Food Diary

Fresh pineapples are one of my favorite fruits to have around. Not only are they good looking just sitting there, but the fruit itself is absolutely delicious and the fronds can be used to garnish various desserts and cocktails, too! I buy whole pineapples on a regular basis and use them to make pineapple upside down cake s, smoothies and fruit salads. They also make excellent sorbets. This Buttermilk Pineapple Sorbet uses just four ingredients, yet produces a wonderfully refreshing dessert that is perfect for hot summer days. You will first need to prepare your pineapple by cutting off the outer skin and removing the core at the center, but the sorbet base takes just minutes to prepare from start to finish. Once you’ve put in the work, you’ll be rewarded by an absolutely fantastic sorbet. The pineapple is blended with sugar and buttermilk in the food processor until it is very smooth and all the sugar has been dissolved. The high speed of the food processor helps the sugar to disso

Hello dear friends,  We’re well into the best day of the week and I hope you’re feeling sunny. I had a quick flu this week.  Is that a thing?  It sure knocked me down on the couch for one full day, but my goodness I clawed my way up and out by the end of the week.  Sometimes these claws still get me up and I am grateful.   I didn’t quite get everything  ticked off the to-do list last week, but here we are, life goes on.  Hopefully I’m blessed with next week to try again.   Last week my sweet mama was in town for a visit.  We hustled my new sewing machine out of its box, went to the fabric store, and mom taught be the basics of sewing.  It’s like learning a new language and mom had to sew the straight lines on the wrap skirt we made together. Continue reading Let It Be Sunday, 220! at Joy the Baker.

It’s no secret that I’m a fan of tropical fruit flavors. They’re both sweet and refreshing, so they’re always welcome at my dessert table – particularly in the spring and summer, when the provide something of a “dessert vacation” on a hot day! This Passion Fruit Coconut Bundt Cake has two of my favorite flavors in it, and it is just bursting with tropical tastiness. The cake is a dense, moist cake that is rich with sweetened shredded coconut and it uses lots of passion fruit juice as the primary liquid in the cake, infusing each bite with its bright, sweet-tart flavor. While passion fruit is technically a berry, it has a lot in common with citrus because of its high acitidy. In this recipe, it both flavors the cake and helps to tenderize it. The batter comes together easily and is made with both butter and oil to ensure that the cake is nice and moist. Passion fruits can be found in the tropical food section of most well-stocked grocery stores, and it isn’t that difficult to juice t

Hello my friends! I’m back atcha with another reading list!  I always have a book in my big purse these days in an effort to spend less time on my phone when I find myself with a few minutes.  It totally works.  If you’ve got a good read, it trumps Instagram by a mile.  This spring reading list holds a few books I’ve read, a handful I’m looking forward to hauling around and reading, a few that you resoundingly suggested, and some old classics for good measure.  We’re in between beach-read and bathtub-read season so some of these books are thrillers (I love a scary book at the beach!), and some are lady memoirs (perfect inspiration for a nighttime bath).   I hope you find a page turner on the list below.  After each title there is a link to buy the book on amazon or one of my favorite independent bookstores across the country.   •  I’m really loving these thoughtful and honest essays in I Miss You When I Blink by Mary Laura Philpott ( Amazon or Parnassus )  •  There is always ti

Homemade whipped cream is easy to make and it is always a nice way to finish off a dessert. Canned whipped creams tend to not have the pillowy volume of freshly whipped cream, but can work when you need something that is quick and easy! In the refrigerated section of my local grocery store, I noticed a new dairy-free whipped topping option, Non-Dairy Coconut Reddi Whip . This whipping topping is made entirely with coconut milk and contains no heavy cream at all. In fact, coconut milk is the first ingredient on the product’s label. As a coconut-lover who has made coconut milk whipped cream from scratch , I couldn’t resist picking up a can and giving it a taste test. I took the product home and gave it a good shake, then piped some right onto a spoon. I have to admit that I was immediately impressed by the whipped cream. It was velvety and rich, with a great coconut flavor – a lot more coconut flavor than I expected it to have, in fact. It was delicious and, after licking my spoon clea

Pakora is a crispy Indian street snack made with vegetables that are dipped in a chickpea flour batter and then fried and served with chutney or other dip sauces. We use white cabbage, carrot, zucchini and spinach in our pakora and share the recipe both for a crispy pan-fried version and one that is baked.

Pakora is an Indian street snack where vegetables are covered in a chickpea flour batter and then fried in oil and served with chutney or other dip sauces. We use white cabbage, carrot and zucchini here and share the recipe for one pan-fried version and one baked.

There have been a lot of savory meals coming out of my kitchen lately. Beans, like… an alarming amount of beans since I discovered how easy they are to make in an Instapot.  I’ve also been making what I lovingly refer to as Fridge Salads.  Salads that are strong enough to sit in the fridge for a few days or however long it takes me to snack on them until they’re gone.  This salad stands the test of the fridge.  It really stands apart from the Drake on Cake and Strawberry Crumble Pie I also have in there.   This recipe is inspired by and lightly adapted from my friend Maggie Battista’s book A New Way to Food .  After cooking from this book for a handful of weeks it feels clear to me that Maggie knows how we cook and how we eat – with a balance of care and ease.  It’s now a staple in my kitchen.   Maggie, in addition to being a cookbook resident in my kitchen, is also one of my dearest Boston friends soooo… ((!!  I’ll be in Boston hanging with Maggie and The Fresh Collective on Mond

Let me start off by saying that I did not go into this trip feeling easy breezy. I love my children more than anything; they lighten my heart and ask interesting questions and love me unconditionally... Please visit Sprouted Kitchen to view this Recipe.

A few weeks ago, I picked up some perfectly pink Ruby Cacao from Trader Joe’s. These chocolate chips are naturally pink – thanks to a unique process used by chocolate maker Callebaut – and have a creamy, fruity flavor that has a distinct berry note to it. Although its color really stands out, it can be incorporated into recipes that might use other chocolates for a new twist on an old favorite! These Ruby Chocolate Brownies are made with ruby cacao and white chocolate chips, for fudgy dark chocolate brownies with unique look and flavor! The brownie recipe is one of my old standbys that produces a fudgy, chewy batch of brownies with a deep chocolate flavor. It uses both dark chocolate and cocoa powder in the batter. The ruby cacao and white chocolate chips are folded into the batter before pouring it into the pan. I opted to include white chocolate chips because they also have a distinctly creamy, sweet flavor to them. In this recipe, they help to brighten up the brownies just enough

Hello friends!  This week I’ve had the incredible fortune to have an adult lady sleepover with one of my baking heroes Erin Jeanne McDowell .  Erin stayed with me at The Bakehouse and we really dove directly into talking about ghosts and astrology, refilled each other’s wine glasses, sharing plates of Chinese food, crying over Beyonce together, and of course standing around the kitchen counter rolling a big pile of chocolate-studded dough into ropes for Easter Bread while brainstorming baking adventures. Continue reading Let It Be Sunday, 219! at Joy the Baker.

There’s not a lot I feel the need to fight about, but I’ll fight someone for the last deviled egg.  And really – I’ll fight someone for the first deviled egg if I have to.  By ‘fight’ I most definitely mean ‘dance battle’ because I’ve been working on my spinning floor moves for the last two days and I’m ready to do battle, especially where deviled eggs are involved.  Do we have to fight about deviled eggs?   I mean… no.  But have you seen these things!? Continue reading Muffuletta Deviled Eggs at Joy the Baker.

Mojitos are a fantastic summer cocktail, with refreshing mint, zesty lime, rum and a splash of effervescent soda. They’re always a crowd-pleaser and it’s easy to put a twist on the basic recipe by adding some fresh berries to the glass and muddling them alongside the mint. These Blackberry Mojito Almond Cakes are inspired by the refreshing cocktail, made with mint, lime, fresh blackberries and a splash of rum! The cakes are individually sized desserts that are baked in a muffin pan. They start with an almond cake batter that gives them a moist, dense crumb that really supports the fresh berries well. The batter includes fresh lime zest and both peppermint and vanilla extracts. You need to use a light hand with the peppermint extract to ensure that it doesn’t overwhelm the other flavors, so measure it carefully! Once the batter is mixed thoroughly, it is divided into individual muffin cups and blackberries are arranged on top. Adding the blackberries last gives the cakes a beautiful

Lemon curd is one of my favorite treats to make when I have a surplus of fresh lemons in my kitchen and I use it regularly in all kinds of sweet treats, from quick breads swirled with lemon curd to homemade ice cream . These 2-Ingredient Lemon Curd Danishes are an easy brunch option that is a fantastic way to put lemon curd to good use. The quick-fix danishes start with a puff pastry base and are filled with lemon curd for a bite-sized pastry that is sure to be a new favorite. You can use homemade puff pastry or store-bought, although store-bought will need to be defrosted before you can use it. Now, traditional Danish pastries are made with a dough that contains yeast and is a little bit more like croissant dough than puff pastry is. That said, puff pastry is not too far off the mark and the buttery, layered pastry is incredibly easy to use. These may be “cheating” a bit when it comes to a traditional Danish, but they’re so delicious that I doubt anyone at your next brunch will com

Friends, hello! It’s feeling a little buzzy around my house this week as I get ready for houseguests.  The incomparable Erin McDowell is coming to stay a few days – dreams, really.  We’re going to make pies (and see about Drake-ing them), teach a class of Easter breads , dye Easter eggs, and generally throw flour around the kitchen for two good days.  My mom is coming to visit just after Erin and I fully plan to cook her ever meal and convince her to teach me how to sew. Continue reading My Favorite Baking Adventures Last Spring at Joy the Baker.

Hello friends! It’s been the most lovely week in New Orleans, mostly because the jasmine is in full bloom filling the air with the most delicious smell, the strawberries are showing off, and musical festival season has started.  We’re feeling very fortunate.  This time of year, New Orleans really shines her magic.   I’ve committed to taking care of myself this spring and for me that looks like yoga and meditation and really trying to get enough sleep even if that means not going out most nights.  Can I just tell you how much it’s changed my energy levels?  I know time is a true luxury, but my goodness I deeply recommend carving out as much time for yourself as you can.  The steadiness it lends to most days is almost calculable.   The offering this Sunday is below. Continue reading Let It Be Sunday, 218! at Joy the Baker.

Carrot cake is a classic that is good all year round. Your classic carrot cake is a dense, moist layer cake that is stacked high with rounds of cake and swirls of cream cheese frosting. These One-Bowl Carrot Cake Muffins are a twist on this favorite that is better for brunch than dessert. These muffins capture all the warm, spicy flavors of a traditional carrot cake in a one-bowl recipe that takes just minutes to put together. The ingredients for these muffins are very similar to those of a full-size carrot cake, using a mixture of white and brown sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg, and generous amount of shredded carrots. When it comes to the shredded carrots for this recipe, you’ll need three or four large carrots. Shred the carrots with a cheese grater at home instead of buying pre-shredded carrots. Grated carrots are thinner and incorporate more easily into the batter, while pre-shredded carrots are sometimes thicker (because they’re used in salads and you want them to have more texture)

Don’t judge these at first look! I mean, these are hard to take a photo of ok? There is something about this tot recipe that equally makes me roll my eyes a bit and also feel quite proud of myself. I... Please visit Sprouted Kitchen to view this Recipe.

Key lime pie is an easy dessert to love. Not only is it delicious, with its combination of zesty key lime juice and rich sweetened condensed milk, but it is very easy to make at home. I make it on a regular basis and I’ve even added other flavors to the basic recipe. This time around, I used the idea of a key lime pie and swapped out all of the lime juice for a more tropical favorite to make Passion Fruit Pie. This pie uses passion fruit juice in the type of recipe that would normally be made with fresh key limes. The pie filling is made with sweetened condensed milk, egg yolks and a generous amount of fresh passion fruit juice. Passion fruit works in this recipe because the fresh juice is very acidic, just like key lime juice, so it reacts with the other filling ingredients and begins to thicken even before it goes into the oven. Passion fruit juice is incredibly aromatic, with an amazingly sweet floral scent that you’ll notice as soon as you cut into the the fruit. This tropical

I’ve made hundreds HUNDREDS of recipes on my site over the last 11 (can you believe!?) years.  They’re all my loves, most of them, really.  Everything from the humble oatmeals to the fussy petit fours . It’s all for the cause – and the cause is getting us all in the kitchen.  Some recipes stick in my taste-brain stronger than others.  These Chili Fries are one of them. Continue reading Chili Baked Sweet Potato Fries at Joy the Baker.

We are obsessed with tahini so when we heard of a cookie that combined tahini with rye flour and chocolate, we knew it had to be good. And we were not wrong. This is simply one of the best cookies we have ever tasted.

I make lemon curd on a regular basis when I have a few extra lemons on hand in my kitchen. The velvety curd is packed with luscious lemon flavor and is surprisingly easy to make (you can even make it in the microwave !!!). When you have a freshly made batch, you can serve it up with scones, spread it onto waffles or eat it with a spoon. You can also use some to make this Lemon Curd Swirl Quick Bread, a lemony loaf cake that has a lemon curd swirl running through every slice. The cake itself is good even without the lemon curd, but it turns into something very memorable when you amp up the lemon flavor with the swirl. IT is a simple sweet bread that is made with buttermilk, lemon juice and lemon zest. The juice and zest of the lemon give it a nice lemony base, while the buttermilk enriches and tenderizes the loaf to give it a moist, soft crumb. You can use homemade lemon curd for this bread or store-bought lemon curd, as both will give you good results. The look of the swirl will be

Hello sweet friends!  What a beautiful spring day! I’m in New York this weekend to speak at Cherry Bombe Jubilee and everyone, (almost literally everyone) is outside in the soft sun. We’re blooming in every which way.  There’s such a bright energy to this time of year which make the shifts and changes these last few weeks feel more exciting than daunting.  There’s a lot swirling, isn’t there? Back home in New Orleans I’ve got some construction going on in my pantry and laundry closet – trying to give myself a smarter pantry and more functional laundry space.  Thank goodness for perfectionist contractors and their talent and tools.  I’ll share a photo with you next week.  Do I know how my mountain of pantry items are going to be organized? Continue reading Let It Be Sunday, 217! at Joy the Baker.

This egg salad recipe existed here a few years back, piled on top of avocado toast. For our Cooking Club menu a couple weeks ago we piled it on top of asparagus and served it with toast. I know it... Please visit Sprouted Kitchen to view this Recipe.

Earl grey tea is a classic flavor that can be a great pick-me-up in the mornings and an equally tasty way to unwind in the evening. The next time you’re having a cup of tea, you might want to consider pairing it with these Earl Grey Tea Cupcakes. The soft, tender cupcakes are made with a tea-infused milk and are laced with bits of tea leaves, which give the cake both an attractively specked look and a delicious Earl Grey tea flavor. The recipe starts by infusing a small amount of milk with Earl Grey tea. I used tea bags, but you can use loose leaf tea for this process, if you prefer. I used two teabags for a half cup of milk to ensure that the milk was able to pick up plenty of flavor without pulling any bitterness out of the tea. A steeping time of 20-30 minutes is all you need to get a nice flavor, and the milk can steep at room temperature (and it should be at room temperature for the recipe, anyway!). I also used whole milk, however other types of milk can be used in this recipe.

Little Green Kitchen – our fifth book baby – hits the shelves in the UK today! We wrote this book to inspire and help families and kids to get more vegetables into every meal. It is filled with dinner recipes, lunchbox ideas, nutritious snacks, party food, fun desserts and lots of tips on how to get kids to eat more greens. It also has some comforting thoughts for days when bowls are left untouched and food end up tossed on the floor. Although the focus of the book is kids and families the recipes are for everyone, as we have included adult upgrades on all recipes that make them more interesting and flavor packed. Here is a little trailer for the book that we filmed to give you a sense of the book. You can also see a few spreads from it down below. You can find it in book shops all over the UK and Australia today or order it  here through amazon.co.uk . The US edition is out 9 May. Click here to preorder it on Amazon.com. The European editions are out in the beginning of August.

Gingerbread is a cake that is usually reserved for the fall baking season, but that doesn’t mean that it is the only time of year you can enjoy warm, spicy ginger. Adding a flavor that contrasts with those deep spices can turn a fall favorite into one that is perfect for spring or summer! These Ginger Passion Fruit Cake Bars are gingerbread cake bars that include fresh passion fruit puree in both the filling and the glaze for a touch of tropical flavor that pairs perfectly with bits of candied ginger in each bite. Passion fruit puree (aka passion fruit juice) can be made using fresh passion fruits, which you can usually find at a well-stocked supermarket. It is very tart and very, very aromatic. Bottled passion fruit juices are usually combined with sugar or other fruit juices to sweeten them, so they are not a good choice for this recipe. There are, however, frozen and refrigerated passion fruit purees that you can find at some markets (specialty markets and frequently at Mexican m