Christmas Morning

Everybody has their own special Christmas traditions.  For me, I have many... and I may or may not get really into it.  Home Alone, buckeyes, anything Santa, the list could go on and on.  But one thing that is very special to me - every year on Christmas morning, we always have monkey bread.  I've seen monkey bread made many different ways over the years, but I happen to think my family has perfected it - not that I'm biased. : )

My monkey bread is made in a bundt pan, so you never end up with gooey undone pieces in the center.  It's essentially little nuggets of dough, tossed in cinnamon and sugar, and then doused with a sweet cinnamon sauce.  It's heavenly!  And because Christmas morning is the only time we ever have it, it's extra special to me.

Blessings-
LC

Ginger Goodies

If Christmas morning had a smell... it would smell like these cookies.  They are a chewy ginger cookie, and when they're baking... they smell like spicy molasses, cinnamon, ginger, and clove.  If that doesn't say Merry Christmas, I don't know what does!  Plus, before I bake them I roll them in some sparkly raw sugar, so they are just so pretty and festive.  Definitely one of my favorites around the holidays.

Blessings-
LC

Christmas Candy

Everyone has their own Christmas traditions... I happen to have several!  But one that I do every year, and only at Christmas, is make buckeyes.  Now, if you're not from the Midwest, you might not know what those are.  I've heard people call them peanut butter balls, peanut butter bon bons, and other such variations.  But just look at them - they're obviously buckeyes because they look just like the nut that falls from the tree (which we happen to have a lot of back where I'm from).  They're kind of like a homemade Reese's, exact way tastier and much cuter.

I've already made three batches of buckeyes this Christmas season, and I'm anticipating making at least one more.  Those who know me are aware of my Christmas buckeye tradition, so I've been getting many requests for them... and a few lucky folks received little baggies of them from Santa. HoHoHo!

Blessings-
LC

Pun-kin Pie

As promised, here's the pumpkin pie I made for Thanksgiving this year.  Admittedly, it's not the prettiest looking crust I've ever made, but I must say, I think it's the best-TASTING pumpkin pie I've had.  Not to brag of course : ) but it was smooth, and creamy, and had just the right amount of fall spice.  Plus, it's pumpkin, which I've already admitted I love in any form - even though I'm not a pie kinda gal.

Blessings-
LC

Who doesn't love cookie dough?

I have a confession - I LOVE cookie dough.  Like a lot.  I would even dare say I love the raw dough more than the baked cookie in almost every circumstance.  So when I got the idea to make a cookie dough "truffle" I was particularly excited out of my mind.  These have no egg in them, so those of you who are more germ conscious than I am have nothing to fear.  It's a chocolate chip cookie dough base that I put mini chocolate chips in, and then dipped in chocolate.  What could be better?  Not much - that's what I say.  I just had to bite into one so you could see what the inside of one looks like.  It's a tough job, but somebody had to do it, and that's just the kinda gal I am.

Blessings-
LC

Pumpkin Spice

It's that time of year when I don't need an excuse to make something with pumpkin - it's pretty much expected.  I'll be posting pictures of my Thanksgiving pumpkin pie soon, but first I wanted to share another delightful treat I made recently... Pumpkin Whoopie Pies.

Growing up in the Midwest, I had never heard of whoopie pies until college (thanks Rach!).  But my oh my are they delicious!  They're like little hand-held cupcake tops with icing... except mine came out bigger than usual and were a little larger than my palm - oops!  That's what I call a tasty accident.  I just love these pumpkin whoopie pies with sweet cream cheese filling.  They are moist and delicious and I could eat a whole plate of them.  Well, maybe not a whole plate, but they are super tasty and just remind me of all my favorite things about fall.

Blessings-
LC

Savory Scones

These cheddar and chive scones are a departure from my usual sweet treat, but they are soooooooooo good!  They're great with some eggs and bacon, or warm with a little butter.  I have made them before using dill instead of chive, and those were really good too.  But I'm not much of a dill kinda gal, and I must say that I really like the combination of the sharp cheddar, onion-y chive, and buttery scone.  And the best part is there are so many different combinations you could make by using different herbs or types of cheese.

Blessings-
LC

I Heart Cake

I'm a cake girl.  All shapes, sizes, and flavors - it really doesn't matter, I love them all.  Red velvet (with cream cheese frosting of course) happens to be a favorite of mine, and one of my coworkers.  So when his birthday came up recently, I decided to make jumbo-sized cupcakes to take into the office.  Just to give you an idea of scale, I put a cupcake next to a large honeycrisp apple so you can see just how ginormous they were!  They were over twice the size of a regular cupcake, which just means there was twice as much tastiness to enjoy!

Blessings-
LC

Sticky Sweet

I got the urge lately to try my hand at homemade cinnamon rolls.  The kind with yeast, that you have to let rise, and knead, and rise, etc.  They take a long time, and a lot of love, but it's worth it in the end!  I based my cinnamon rolls off a recipe I found from the Pioneer Woman, and then I came up with my own cream cheese frosting.  I'm from the Midwest, and a cinnamon roll isn't a cinnamon roll unless it's smothered in cream cheese frosting - right?  The recipe made 6 pans of rolls, so I gave some away, and then froze some for future treats.

Blessings-
LC

Flavorful Fall

I really like fall - mainly because it means Thanksgiving and Christmas are right around the corner!  I also love the scents of cinnamon and spice that start lingering in the air, and of course the changing colors of the leaves.  But perhaps my most favorite thing about fall is pumpkins - plain, carved, candles, and of course... dessert!  I pretty much love anything pumpkin - bread, cake, cookies, and even pie (even though I'm not a pie kinda gal).

This is my favorite pumpkin cake, which I adapted into miniature cupcakes for a party.  I should have taken a picture of them next to something so you could see them to scale.  They really were sooooo cute!  They were just small enough for one bite if you didn't care about social etiquette, or a couple of smaller bites for those of us who are a little more conscious of our company - perfect for a party!  And with the dreamy cloud of cream cheese frosting on top, there was not one left at the end of the night - which is too bad because I really want one right now.

Blessings-
LC

Tart 'n Tasty

So these photos are from "the archive."  This last spring, some good friends of mine got married in Brazil, and then had a state-side reception for all their US friends.  The bride's favorite color is yellow, and her favorite flavor is lemon... isn't it nice how that worked out?  She had given me a picture of what she wanted her cupcakes to look like, and 100 cupcakes and several bottles of yellow food coloring later, this is how they turned out!

 





  

Blessings-
LC

Crack Mix

First of all, I don't encourage or condone illegal drug use, but this stuff is addicting - hence the nickname. : )  Several years ago I was at a friend's house, and per usual, her mom had some snacks set out for us.  I'm embarrassed to admit that the bowl of party mix was devoured that night, and I've been addicted to it ever since.  Every time I make it, I try to get it out of the house as quickly as possible, because I literally can't stop eating it!  It's the perfect combination of sweet, salty, and crunchy.  Over time I've altered the recipe slightly from what was originally given to me, so this is now my perfect kind of treat.  That's a dangerous combination!

See how it kind of sparkles and glitters?  Yeah, that's straight butter and sugar - it doesn't get much better than that!

Blessings-
LC

Apples!

It's that wonderful time of year when the trees are heavy laden with perfectly ripe apples.  An afternoon trip to the orchard was not only a welcome escape into the open countryside, but left me with a whole bag of apples just waiting to be baked into a delightful treat.

I'll admit, I've never been much of a pie gal.  Something about the texture just doesn't make it my favorite.  But who doesn't love apple pie - especially when the crust is flaky and delicious and the apples were hand picked?  So I decided to try my turn at this classic American treat and made little individual hand-held pies.  Kind of like a fried pie you'd see at a fair, but lighter, and flakier, and without the heavy "I've been soaking in a vat of grease" taste.  And even this not-usually-a-pie-kinda-gal has to admit... they were DELICIOUS!!!  It was like a taste of fall.  Warm, cinnamon, buttery apples inside a perfectly flaky and light crust.  Plus, they were the perfect size to hold in your little paw and devour without feeling guilty that you didn't share.

I think this may have converted me.  I just might be a pie-kinda-girl after this!

Blessings-
LC

And so it begins

I have to admit - I love to bake.  I think about it all the time.  I find myself constantly dreaming of my Kitchen Aid mixer whirring with the sounds of Frank Sinatra in the background as I whip up some delightful treat.  And as the years have passed, this hobby of mine has become an obsession and a true passion.

At the urging of many friends and family, I have now embarked upon an experiment in online promotion and expansion of this "hobby."  I'll be posting stories, pictures, and descriptions of my baking adventures on here for anyone interested and willing to read.  I am just beginning to dabble in this, and to be honest, the whole thing both terrifies and excites me.  I am neither an artist nor a writer, so this is bound to be a wonderful learning experience!  Please spread the word to your friends and family, and of course, if you would ever like to order something, please contact me at DelightfulTreatsByLC@gmail.com.  I'd love to provide you with a delightful treat for your next special occasion!

Blessings-
LC