Sweet Treats with Peggy

After going to the grocery store and putting away the groceries, I noticed that I had four  peaches in the refrigerator that I forgot I had.  My first thought was to make refrigerator jam. Instead, I decided to make a cobbler.  Since I didn't have enough peaches, I pulled out the blueberries that I had handpicked and frozen.  I thought peaches and blueberries would go together!  And, they do!!!  You can make this cobbler using 8-10 cups of any type of fruit that is in season with excellent results. It is best to make this cobbler in a cast iron skillet.  I love my Lodge cast iron skillet.  I used to rarely use it but now I use it all the time.  I just used it last night for a pork chop dish with potatoes and onions and a delicious gravy with few ingredients. Covered and cooked on the stove top for 40 minutes. Delicious!!   This is the one I use:   Lodge Cast Iron Skillet   If you plan on getting this one, it is already pre-seasoned, which I greatly appreciated :).  I

Wow!  It has been almost 2 years since my last blog post.  There was a lot going on in my life at the time.  I moved back to Pepperell, MA about 1 1/2 years ago into a townhouse and I absolutely love it!  I guess I got out of the habit of blogging.  I also miss baking so this will definitely get me back into it!  I know some of you might consider ginger a Fall/holiday spice (along with the other warm spices included in this cake) but I definitely think the lemon brightens it up and you can make this cake any time of the year.   Thanks Debbie Macomber for the recipe in your Cedar Cove Cookbook. INGREDIENTS Cake 3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour 1 Tbs plus 2 tsp ground ginger 2 tsp baking soda 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon 1/4 tsp  ground cloves 1/4 tsp allspice 1/2 tsp salt 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted  butter,     room temp, plus more for pan 1 1/4 brown sugar 2 large eggs 2 cups molasses 1 cup boiling water Glaze 1 cup sifted confectioner

Today is National Sandwich Day!!  I thought about making a literal sandwich and putting something sweet inside, i.e., Nutella, chocolate or honey.  I changed my mind and decided to stick with the theme of this blog and go all out with a sweet baked good.  I have some candied ginger in my pantry that has been there awhile.  I saw it at Trader Joe's and decided to buy it.  The problem is I couldn't think of how to use it.  Even though today is an abnormally warm day at 71 degrees, it is still Fall.  When I think of Fall baking I think of warm flavors such as ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, etc.  To stick with the sandwich theme, how about Ginger cookies sandwiched with a spicy whipped cream. I chopped the candied ginger into small pieces and added it to the ginger cookie batter.   I tweaked this recipe by using less sugar to compensate for the candied ginger but I did not add any more salt because I used unsalted butter.  These are literally one of the tastiest cookies I

Every year I have to guess how much Halloween candy to buy.  It didn't use to be that way.  I lived in a very large neighborhood in a small town for 18 years.  You know, the kind of neighborhood where the parents drove to the end of your street from other parts of town, or even out of town.  We had hundreds of kids (I'm not kidding).  I have moved a couple of times since then so when Halloween rolls around, I have to guess.  This is my second Halloween living in a very large apartment complex.  Last year I bought candy, thinking that I would get a lot of kids.  I didn't get even one single trick or treater.

Today is National Chocolate Day!  There are a lot of specific chocolate days throughout the year, but this day is a day for whatever chocolate you want to eat.  This cookie is so chocolately and delicious.  It's not too sweet and goes perfectly with a hot drink.  I can see me (and, of course you) on a freezing cold, snowy winter day with a plate of these chocolate biscotti and (for me) a nice hot cup of tea.  I almost took a picture of how much I trashed my kitchen making this dessert.  Usually, I clean up as I go.  But, I made this particular recipe at 12:30 in the morning.  I did not ice the bottoms until the next morning.  Let me tell you, it wasn't a pretty site to walk into.  These are well worth it though :)

I love to watch television shows about food, especially shows about baking (of course).  One of my favorite shows was  DC Cupcakes .  When I heard that Sophie and Katherine were going to be at the  Willow Books & Cafe  in Acton, MA, I was there!!  I've only been to one other book signing prior to this (Jodi Picoult in Boston, with my sister).  I've since learned they are all run differently.  If you are interested, do the research ahead of time.  At Willow Books you have to buy the book ahead of time so that you receive a low number.  When you get there, you can sit wherever you want and listen to their talk.  Then you are called by a small group of numbers to get in line to have your book signed.  I think I was in the second group.  It was a really fun thing to do and I was able to talk with Sophie and Katherine for a minute or so.  They even brought sample cupcakes for everyone to try. YUM!