Sorrel Cardamom Muffins

Sometimes, I get a culinary idea in my head and I just can't shake it.  I am driven, like an insane artist, to create whatever it is that takes hold of me.  Sometimes it's genius, sometimes a disaster.

Meet sorrel.  Sorrel is a leafy herb.  It's tangy and tart, and very refreshing.  It's fun to mix in salads, soups, and even drinks.  I got some on a whim and planted it last year, not realizing that it was a perennial.  Until it was the first thing to pop up in my garden this year, that is.

Hard Boiled Egg Cookies? Believe it or Not...

Once in a blue moon, I run across a recipe where I just stop and have a total WTF? moment.  This is the story of one of those recipes.

It started as I was internet surfing, and I stumbled upon a this site, which seemed to show hard boiled eggs being used to make cookies.  But it was completely in Spanish.  Which I don't know very well.  No bueno.  So I used the translate button, which then changed the title to "Do not eat: eggs.  Cookies boiled egg".  Ummm...is that a warning?

Pavlovian Response

If there's one thing I love (besides my family, of course), it's a good dessert.  And pavlova is not just a good dessert, it's an amazingly delicious dessert!  It's also fairly easy to make, although you need to start a day ahead, and hugely impressive.

Making Mozz

I tend to have big ideas and then slack on some of the follow through.  I also tend to be a little spoiled by my husband, and if I mention (or, say, e-mail a link to) something I'm interested in, he will often buy that thing (within reason) for me for the next appropriate holiday.  Enter the cheese making kits.

Last year, right around Mother's Day, I saw that Williams-Sonoma had DIY cheese kits available.  And my inner food geek went a little nuts.  I started dropping hints, like, "Wow, with all the tomatoes and basil that we have in the garden, wouldn't it be nice to have fresh, homemade mozzarella to make caprese?", and "Grilled pizza is the bomb.  The only way it could be better is if we had some fresh, homemade mozzarella to top it with!".  You know, subtle.

These Eggs are for the Birds!

Easter is nearly here, and I know that you guys are desperate for some egg-citing ideas!

Ugh.  Okay, that's the only pun I am going to throw out today...it actually made me physically gag to type it.  I am so, so sorry.

Seriously though, Easter and eggs go hand in hand.  And, for my first time, I'm joining in on a Tinkerlab Creative Challenge!  Every other month, Tinkerlab extends an open invitation for kids to create with a common inspiration, and this month, it's eggs!

Malibu Coconut Nuts

I am all about nuts lately.  I know, ha ha, "nuts", but at any given moment these days, my kitchen smells like one of those irresistible vendor stands with cones of deliciousness wafting their siren song as you walk past.  I've been really hooked on this recipe for Lavender Rosemary and Cinnamon Spiced Nuts from Redpath Sugar.  It's great, and I've been bringing it to lots of friend and family gatherings.  This has lead to may, many mature jokes about my nuts, how delicious they are, how people can't stop putting my nuts in their mouth...basically, my nuts have been all over Facebook.

Anyhow, a lot of people have been asking me to put my nuts on my blog.

I'm sorry, I'm still snickering.