• Beer and fish cookies

    Y’all. I totally forgot to share these cookies with you, and for that, I’m sorry. Here’s the story: My former neighbor’s sister was getting married to a guy whose last name is Weintraut. Naturally, he called the fiance “beer catfish.” And so, for her wedding shower, I made these cookies: and these: A little random, […]

  • George Washington’s cranberry pudding

    I grew up in a state that didn’t even become a state until 1912. The history there tends to be of the native American or Mexican variety, and there aren’t any bars that can boast of hosting a founding father. So it’s a little weird to me that I live just a few blocks away […]

  • Southwestern butternut squash saute

    I have a really hard time getting dinner on the table every night — particularly a well-balanced, homemade dinner. Do you have this problem? It seems like it always turns into a thing. What do we want to eat? Do we want to try to eat something healthy? Do we have anything in the fridge? […]

  • Eastergrams

    I hope y’all enjoyed your weekend! We went to Ft. Thomas, Kentucky, where I managed to fall while running and bruise/scrape the heck out of my knee on Saturday morning… which resulted in me hobbling around the church for the baptism of Toby’s cousin’s baby girl. I also forgot my camera battery for the baptism, […]

  • Peeps s’mores pie

    You may recall that I love Peeps, which disgusts my friend Aaren and delights my normally uber-healthy friend Olga. In 2011 and 2012, I combined my love of baking and my love of Peeps to create a Peepcake and Peep cupcakes. Both were totally awesome, obviously. This year, since I (sadly) live farther from Olga and […]

  • Roasted root vegetables

    I know roasted root vegetables don’t sound as exciting as three-layer cakes and frosted brownies. But, seriously? Don’t let the not-so-appetizing word “root” fool you: These are delicious and super easy. And at least a teeny bit healthier than brownies. Predictably, you start with raw vegetables. I used a turnip, carrots, parsnips and a sweet […]

  • Brownies with marshmallow-mint frosting

    I’ve made more thematic St. Patrick’s Day items in past years. There were the Guinness/Bailey’s/Jameson cupcakes, the beef and Guinness pies, the soda bread, the Irish coffee sundaes, the Guinness chocolate cake. But this year, I went a slightly lazier (and Guinness-free) route and just dyed some frosting green. I’d say I’m sorry… but once […]

  • Banana coconut cake with chocolate frosting

    It has been far, far too long since I posted a cake recipe, y’all. But today I’m going to remedy that with a doozy — an easy three-layer banana-coconut cake with simple, perfect chocolate frosting, toasted coconut and chocolate ganache. A-maze-balls. And tomorrow? Chocolate mint brownies for St. Patrick’s Day. Party!   You’ll need a […]

  • Green chile corn pudding

    The weather around here has been… interesting. Last week started with 30-degree mornings, somehow we reached “warm” the next afternoon, but then a crazy snow storm was going on the whole next day (though none of the snow stuck in Alexandria or DC). And now it’s like 60. Crazytown. It’s the kind of weather that […]

  • Charred tomatillo salsa

    I know what you’re thinking. You’re wondering how I could possibly give you a recipe for nachos and not include some salsa to go with it. So… today I’m talking about salsa. Homemade salsa. It goes perfectly with pork, and it’s so easy you may not quite believe it. Those are tomatillos. They look like […]