I chose a recipe from Simply Recipes because it called for ground almonds and I had half a bag sitting in my cupboard. Overall, it was easy to prepare, but I had to make the caramel topping twice. I didn’t let the first batch boil long enough on the stove and the sugar didn’t dissolve, so I let the second batch boil for the full recommended four minutes.

The pineapple slices fit just right in the pan.

And after pouring in the batter and baking for an hour and 15 minutes, the cake released from the pan the moment I flipped it over. It was a bit off center, but I was too terrified to move it.

This is what victory looks like:

They did have some sweet signs, though.

When the exam was over, I refused to take the subway home and spend an hour in a larger tube, so I took a cab instead. I rolled my window down as we passed over the Brooklyn Bridge and looked out over the river. My sunglasses were on, the city wind pulled at my hair, and I knew there was only one way to celebrate freedom: baking some damn cookies. Namely, some cookies with oatmeal, cranberries, and chocolate chips.

I’d call them Oatmeal Triple C Cookies, but the Internet tells me Triple C is the street name for a cough medicine teenagers like to trip on. Hm. Let’s stick with the more descriptive Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cranberry Cookies. Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cranberry Cookies
(Adapted from Smitten Kitchen’s Oatmeal Raisin Cookie recipe)
Makes about two dozen cookies

• 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened
• 2/3 cup light brown sugar, packed
• 1 egg
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 cups rolled oats
• 1/2 cup dried cranberries
• 3/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

1. Pre-heat oven to 350º.

2. In a large bowl, cream together butter, sugar, egg, and vanilla until smooth.

3. In a separate bowl, mix the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, and salt. Mix into the butter and sugar mixture until the flour disappears.

4. Fold in the oats, cranberries, and chocolate chips with a wooden spoon until they’re evenly distributed and coated with batter. At this point, you can chill the batter if desired or bake right away. Chilling will give you thicker cookies.

5. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a Silpat baking mat. Place the cookies two inches apart on the sheet and bake for 10-12 minutes, or until the edges of the cookies are golden brown but they’re still a bit soft in the middle. Let the cookies cool on the sheet for five minutes and then move to a cooling rack.

Few of us have time to prepare a spread of sandwiches, scones, and clotted cream to enjoy with an afternoon mug of tea, so my go-to accompaniment is a buttery, crunchy cookie.  That’s why I immediately flagged this recipe from The Kitchn. Butter, rosemary, and sugar? Perfect.

I followed the exact recipe from The Kitchn and had great results, but I wanted to try making a chocolate version. Truth: I liked the original, non-chocolate version more than the chocolate version I created. It didn’t let the rosemary flavor come through as much as I like. But! If you’re in the mood for a chocolate shortbread, give it a try.

Chocolate, Rosemary, and Walnut Brown Butter Cookies
Makes about 2 dozen (Adapted from The Kitchn)

• 1 cup unsalted butter
• 1 cup walnut halves, toasted and chopped small (none larger than pea-sized)
• 1 1/2 tablespoons rosemary, minced
• 1 1/2 cups flour
• 1/3 unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1/4 cup confectioner sugar (or another 1/4 cup granulated, if you don’t have confectioners)

1. Melt the butter in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Swirl the pan occasionally until the butter stops foaming, turns brown, and small dark brown specks form. It will smell like roasting nuts. Remove from the heat and set aside to cool to room temperature.

2. Mix the walnuts, rosemary, and dry ingredients in a medium bowl. While beating on medium speed, add the cooled butter until it’s fully incorporated and the dough takes on the consistency of damp sand and holds together when you press it into a ball. Add a few teaspoons of water if it doesn’t hold.

3. Pour the dough onto a large cutting board or other work surface and form into two logs about 1 1/2 to 2 inches in diameter. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap and place in the freezer for at least thirty minutes (up to three days).

4. When you’re ready to make your cookies, preheat the oven to 350º and line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

5. Unwrap one of the dough logs and use a sharp knife to slice it into 1/4 inch cookies. Place them on the parchment paper about a 1/2 inch apart. Bake for 10-13 minutes. Allow to cool for 5 minutes on the baking sheet and then transfer to a cooling rack. The cookies will keep in an air-tight container for up to two weeks.

When Christmas morning finally arrives, all I’ll want to do is collapse, but what better way is there to collapse than onto a couch with a sticky bun in hand? Even better, a sticky bun that’s easy to make and includes the flavors of the season, like citrus, cranberries, brown sugar, and lots (and lots) of butter. If you defrost your puff pastry overnight, this whole recipe should take ten minutes to put together, not counting the baking time.

It starts with mixing up some butter with brown sugar and orange zest.

Then, melt some non-zest-infused-butter, brush it on the puff pastry, and top with all sorts of delicious things.

Next, roll it up and slice it up. The filing will try to escape, but be strong.

Finally, drop spoonfuls of the orange butter into a muffin tin, place the rolls in the tin spiral-side up, and bake. The buns will puff up and brown. After about thirty minutes, they’ll look something like this:

Cool them for a few minutes, then invert on some parchment paper. Done. (If you were a stand-up comic or giving a speech, this would be an appropriate moment to drop your mic. You can do the baker equivalent instead, which I suppose is dropping your oven mitt. )

Sunday Morning Sticky Buns
Makes 1 dozen
(Adapted from Ina Garten)

• 12 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1/3 cup light brown sugar, lightly packed
• 1/2 cup pecans, chopped
• 1 package (17.3-ounces/ 2-sheets) frozen puff pastry, defrosted
• 1 teaspoon orange zest

The filling:

• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
• 2/3 cup light brown sugar, lightly packed
• 3 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1/2 cup dried cranberries
• 1/2 cup golden raisins

1. Pre-heat the oven to 375º. Place a 12-cup muffin tin on top of a baking sheet with lined parchment paper.

2. Mix together 12 tablespoons butter, 1/3 cup brown sugar, and orange zest. Place a tablespoon of the mixture in the bottom of each of the muffin cups. Sprinkle with pecans.

3. Lightly flour a large board or other work surface. Unfold one of your puff pastry sheets and brush lightly with melted butter. Top with 1/3 cup brown sugar, 1/2 cup cranberries, 1/2 cup golden raisins, and 1 1/2 teaspoons of cinnamon. Carefully roll the pastry, and finish with the seam side down. Cut a bit off the ends and then cut into six equal parts. Place the buns spiral-side up into the muffin tins. Repeat this process with the other pastry sheet.

4. Bake for about 30 minutes, or until the buns are golden brown. (Check them often because just a few extra minutes can mean the difference between gooey caramel topping and tooth-breaking brittle.) Allow them to cool for five minutes in the muffin tin, then invert onto the parchment paper on the baking sheet. Let them cool and then serve.

It felt good to wake up at home this morning, a familiar light fixture above my head and the Brooklyn streets still quiet outside. A perfect time to fill the apartment with the smells of baking and warm spices, like cardamom, cinnamon, and a dash of ground ginger. A perfect time for coffee cake with streusel.

I adapted a Martha Stewart recipe to fit the contents of my refrigerator and available baking pans.

Cardamom Coffee Cake with Streusel
Adapted from Martha Stewart Living

For the Streusel

• 1 tbs ground cardamom
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup packed light-brown sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened

For the Cake

• Vegetable-oil cooking spray
• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tbs ground cardamom
• 1/2 tsp ground ginger
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 3/4 cups (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
• 1 1/4 cups sugar
• 3 large eggs
• 1 1/4 cups sour cream
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1. Pre-heat oven to 350° F.

2. Start with the streusel. Combine cardamom, flour, brown sugar, and salt in a medium bowl. Cut in butter with a pastry blender until the mixture resembles large crumbs. If you don’t have a pastry blender, you can use the double-knife method. Set aside.

3. For the cake, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, cardamom, ginger, and salt in a medium bowl. In a separate bowl, combine the butter and sugar with an electric mixer until light and fluffy. Reduce the speed to medium and add the eggs one at a time. Reduce the speed again and add the flour mixture in two batches, alternating with the sour cream.

4. Coat a large bunt pan with non-stick oil or butter. Add half of the batter to the pan and smooth with a spatula. Sprinkle with the streusel. Top with the remaining batter and smooth gently with a spatula.

5. Bake for 45-55 minutes or until a knife inserted into the cake comes out clean. Keep a close eye on it to make sure it doesn’t brown too much. I made that mistake today, and while the crunchy exterior of the cake is nice, I wish I’d pulled the cake out at the proper time.

6. Cool the cake in the pan for 15-20 minutes on a wire rack. Invert the pan on the rack to remove the cake and cool for an additional 45 minutes or so. Serve with coffee, tea, or a mug of chai with milk and sugar.

But let’s not talk about work. Let’s talk about warm pumpkin chocolate chip cookies. These are the kind of cookies you want to come home to when you’re a post-work zombie. Chocolate and pumpkin make things all better.

They start with fresh pumpkin puree.

Actually, let’s take a step back. These cookies really start with a whole pumpkin. To make pumpkin puree, you need a small sugar pumpkin (also called a pie pumpkin). Slice it in half and scoop out the seeds and gunk. If you’re obsessed with citrus and have a few grapefruit spoons in your silverware drawer, they’re great scoopers.

Next, pre-heat your oven to 400°. Cover a baking sheet with tinfoil, coat with a small amount of oil, and place the pumpkin halves on the sheet with the sliced side down. Cover the halves with tinfoil and bake for about an hour, or until a fork easily pierces the skin.

Let the cooked pumpkin cool for 20-30 minutes, then use a spoon to remove the flesh. Puree in a food processor or mash with a potato masher, whichever you prefer. Set aside and start the cookies.

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies
(adapted from the classic Nestle Toll House chocolate chip recipe)

• 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
• 3/4 cup brown sugar
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2/3 cup pumpkin puree
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp ground ginger
• 1/2 tsp ground cloves
• 1/2 tsp nutmeg
• 2 1/4 cup flour
• 2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips

1. Pre-heat oven to 375°.

2. Cream butter and sugars together with electric mixer until fluffy. Add egg and vanilla and mix until incorporated. Add pumpkin puree and also mix until incorporated.

3. Combine flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, ground ginger, ground cloves, and nutmeg in a medium bowl. Gradually add to butter and egg mixture until fully incorporated. Stir in chocolate chips.

4. Using a tablespoon or fancy cookie scoop, drop balls of dough onto a lightly greased cookie sheet and bake for 9-11 minutes. The edges and tops of the cookies should be golden brown.

5. Let the cookies cool for a minute on the baking sheet and then move them to a wire rack. Serve with a glass of milk or spicy hot chocolate. The pumpkin puree will give the bottom of the cookies an extra crunch.

Refusing to be defeated by one of the simplest fruit dishes out there, I looked to Martha Stewart to correct my baking errors for a second attempt. It turns out I used the wrong type of apple, my sugar levels were way off, and my use of melted butter made the baked topping soft. For the second try, I used Gala apples, upped the sugar, and cut cold butter cubes into the dry ingredients. After an hour in the oven, it came out bubbling and golden brown. Perfect.

Apple Crisp
(adapted from Martha Stewart)
Serves 6

• 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup light-brown sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 8 tablespoons unsalted butter, cold, cut into small cubes
• 1 cup old-fashioned rolled oats
• 4 Gala apples, peeled, cored, and sliced into 1/4 pieces
• 1/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
• Juice of 1 large lemon

Equipment:

• 9″ square baking pan (glass preferred)
• 2 large bowls
• 2 knives or a pastry cutter

1. Pre-heat the oven to 375°.

2. Mix together flour, 1/2 cup brown sugar, and salt in a large bowl. Cut the butter in using two knives or a pastry cutter. Mix in the oats using your hands until clumps form. Place bowl in the freezer to chill.

3. In a second bowl, toss apples with lemon juice. Mix in granulated sugar, cinnamon, ginger, and cloves until apples are coated. Pour the apples into a buttered baking dish and evenly top with the oatmeal mixture. Place on a rimmed baking sheet and bake for about 60 minutes, or until the topping is golden brown.

4. Let cool for 10-15. Serve with ice cream.

I found the recipe for the b’stilla in Dorie Greenspan’s Around My French Table and didn’t adapt it at all, so you can check it out in this handy Google Books preview version of her fantastic cookbook. You can also find photos from and lessons learned during my pie preparation after the jump.

B’stilla Lesson #1: Chicken thighs come in many sizes. I picked up some scrawny chicken thighs at the store and didn’t end up with as much for the filling as I would have liked. In fact, I may have had more diced onions than chicken, so choose your chicken thighs wisely. If you end up with too much filling, make a mini-b’stilla to go with your big one.

B’stilla Lesson #2: Pastry brushes are a wise kitchen investment. Dorie’s recipe calls for sheets of phyllo brushed with butter, so make sure to have them on hand.

B’stilla Lesson #3: Don’t forget the coriander. I forgot to pick it up at the store, but remembered that my lovely friend Allie had not only given me whole coriander seeds as a wedding gift, she also hauled a mortar and pestle from Seattle to the east coast for me to grind them with.

Here’s a not-quite-successful action shot in natural light by the window:

B’stilla Lesson #4: If the phyllo dough starts browning too much, cover it with aluminum foil. My crust was on the verge of burning 25 minutes into baking, so make sure to check it periodically (preferably with an oven light so you don’t let out the heat).

B’stilla Lesson #5: Be prepared to eat it for a few days. Dorie’s recipe says that it serves six and no accompaniment is needed, but if you pair it with a salad, this pie could last you and your significant other for three days of dinners and lunches.

Cut to the spice rack. I pulled down the cinnamon, ground cloves, ground ginger, and chili powder to add to the intense chocolate flavor. I didn’t find the amount of spices to be overwhelming, but you may want to tweak them to meet your tastes. Also, keep an eye on the clock while baking. Just one extra minute in the oven can mean the difference between serving cookies with perfect, chewy centers and cookies that could double as miniature hockey pucks. I let a batch go a few minutes too long, and pressed for time, I had to bring them to an office potluck, my head hung in shame. I’m lucky no one cracked a tooth.

Triple-Chocolate Cookies with a Kick (adapted from Real Simple)
Makes 3 dozen cookies

• 1/2 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1 large egg
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 3/4 teaspoon chili powder
• 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1/2 cup milk-chocolate chips
• 1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Equipment

• 2 baking sheets
• 1 large bowl
• 1 electric mixer
• 1 medium bowl
• 1 spoon or cookie scoop
• 1 sifter or fork

1. Pre-heat the oven to 350°.

2. Cream butter and sugars with an electric mixer. Add the vanilla and egg and beat at medium speed until combined.

3. Sift together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, chili powder, ginger, and cloves, or combine the ingredients in a bowl with a fork. Add the dry ingredients to the butter and sugar mixture in three equal parts at medium speed until combined, not a moment longer. Stir in the semisweet and milk chocolate chips with a wooden spoon or spatula.

4. Spoon the dough in 1 1/2 inch balls onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or a silpat mat (after just a few uses, I can’t recommend the silpat mats highly enough). You may want to flatten the dough a bit before baking to help them spread, like so:

5. Bake for 12 minutes. The centers of the cookies should be barely set. Let cool on the sheets for five minutes and transfer to a wire rack. Serve warm (if possible) or store in a tightly-sealed container.

Hi there. I should start this post by acknowledging things have been very quiet here since late February. Between having limited internet access at my apartment for the past three weeks due to shoddy Road Runner service, long days at work, and a minor boyfriend medical emergency, I haven’t been cooking or posting much. I have been documenting my existence with daily photos and uploading them when I can. I’ve also been eating a lot of sandwiches, my favorite of which has been this week’s melted brie, apple, and blackberry jam on toasted whole wheat.

But let’s get down to the business at hand. It’s St. Patrick’s Day. You may be reading this through Guinness goggles; perhaps you have a bottle of Jameson nearby. You may not be drinking and just wearing a wool sweater, or still giggling to yourself about the suckers you saw wearing wool sweaters on a day that hit sixty degrees.

I have no sweater or booze. Instead, I have a large chunk of crispy, sugar-topped Irish soda bread. This is the first soda bread I’ve made that couldn’t double as a doorstop or weight training tool and I owe it to this recipe from Epicurious. It’s not be the most traditional recipe, but it was a hit this morning at work, and I’ve consumed half of a second loaf by myself. Its scone-like consistency and flavor may make it a staple in my breakfast bread rotation. The only issue is tracking down buttermilk and having plenty of raisins on hand.

Even though the holiday is almost over, give the recipe a shot and enjoy a slice on Sunday morning with a cup of tea.