There was much fun and mixing in my kitchen this week in preparation for the birthday party of a young girl who will be six. She wanted a snowman cake, the description of which changed several times over the course of several days and, indeed, right up to the last moment when she decided that … More In the kitchen with juliyya: Adorable Snowman Cake for a birthday
Earlier this summer while walking home from the Ballard Viking Days with some neighbors, I picked up a party cookbook at one of the pick-up/drop-off free book bins. There was a recipe for a chocolate party cake featuring three layers, lots of butter and chocolate, lots of work and plenty of time to get ingredients … More Chocolate Party Cake. No party.
A lovely neighbor gifted me with two bars of Seattle’s own Theo Chocolate, a pure and dark variety, which, in this house, means “Bake something with it.” Some people have suggested a deficit in the planned cookie menu for MsChef in Seattle upcoming shops, namely, a chocolate chip cookie. I’ve resisted because that cookie is … More Whoop-tee-doo Chocolate Shard Cookie, V.1, Seattle’s Theo Chocolate
The first of two expected windstorms in the Pacific Northwest passed yesterday with leaves and branches and plenty of fresh air. The second, more powerful storm, is already hitting the coast and expected here in the Seattle area beginning in a couple hours. While it’s not necessary — at least locally — to fill the … More How to prepare for big storm: Bake! Loaded Frittata, Hard Flour Banana Nut Bread
Several years ago during a wander by the bakery aisle at one of the big West Coast grocery chains, I saw a slice of tuxedo cake that looked so different from the other cake slices in the case, was so attractive to someone who was hungry, had/has a sweet tooth and screamed “chocolate!” that I … More Tuxedo Cake from the Cakerie for my birthday
Having missed an opportunity to provide a friend with birthday goody, I asked what he’d like. Cake? Nah. Pie? Yes, please, real Southern Pecan Pie, dark and gooey, with a scoop of vanilla ice cream. As much as I don’t like to make the crust, I did it anyway, making a single butter crust. There … More Southern Pecan Pie for a friend on my birthday, Crispy for me
There was maybe 3/4 cup of leftover chocolate fudge icing in the fridge and last night somebody gifted me with a bag of Washington’s own Bluebird Grain Farms organic whole grain hard white flour while we were discussing acquisition of some good quality chocolate for a cake recipe. So, with chocolate on my mind and … More j’s Hard Flour Brownies with Cocoa, Walnuts & Fudge Icing
What do you do with storebought purple plums and nectarines that are a bit too mushy for snacks? Stew them for breakfast? Make jam? Use them for baking? Since it’s a bit chillier in Seattle following our brief heat wave, I decided in favor of a hot oven and the aroma of cinnamon and nutmeg … More Plum, Nectarine and Walnut Crisp
Someone requested that I have a go at making pineapple ice cream and someone else recently on holiday in the tropics mentioned looking for it while there. Temporarily out of fresh fruit because of unwillingness to go outside in Seattle heat and having whipping cream in fridge set to expire, I looked in the freezer … More Small Batch: Pineapple(from frozen) Ice Cream V1
Having discovered a neighbor’s taste for Mexican chocolate, I decided to surprise her on her birthday today, August 12th, with some fudgy brownies made with Ibarra chocolate, well-known to bakers. A little goes a long way, so the icing was a simple, plain fudge. She loved them. In honor of her birthday, in addition to … More Mexican Chocolate Brownies & garden art for a birthday girl
Ms Chef in Seattle 