Pesto and Bruschetta Cheesecake

Pesto and Bruschetta Cheesecake, slice

Each summer I dream of casual gatherings—wine and appetizers aplenty, perfect weather, fireflies darting (but not bugs biting)—out on my patio. Reality check! This summer it is too hot to enjoy the outside. It is too hot to cook. Who wants to turn on the oven and heat up the house? OK–it’s time for me [...]

Rustic Roasted Vegetable Tart Recipe

Farmer's Market, Flowers, Photo

I love farmer’s markets. I don’t just mean, I browse through them occasionally, I am addicted to them. Walking through the fresh vegetables, fruits and flowers, with all of the vibrant colors, fresh smells and flavor possibilities is truly a salve for my weary soul. It is my time to literally stop and smell the [...]

Strawberry Cobbler Recipe

Strawberry Cobbler photo

Cobblers, simmering jewel toned fruit and syrup topped with golden brown crusts, mean comfort to me. I grew up with master peach cobbler bakers, yet thanks to a trip to New Orleans and a food find with Roxanne, I now make a strawberry cobbler each spring. It is so easy and tastes so very good. [...]

Test Kitchen Time…And Lemon Herb Chicken and Vegetable Kebabs

Lemon Herb Chicken and Vegetable Kebabs, photo

Test kitchen days. Fun, tasty and busy. Did I mention fun? Oh and tiring, too. We have been busy developing recipes for our new cookbook, The Big Book of Babycakes Cake Pop Recipes, due out in the fall. (Robert Rose, Inc.) (It and another new cupcake maker recipe book will join 175 Best Babycakes Cupcake [...]

Sweet Little Lamb Cupcakes

Sweet Little Lambs in a basket, photo

  Spring has exploded in the Midwest and painted the country side with vibrant colors and new life. I was just not content to let Mother Nature have all of the fun—and had to get in the kitchen and bake up some sweet creations of my own. Cupcakes and Cake Pops from the Babycakes appliances [...]

Tortellini Soup

Tortellini soup Photo

It’s funny how we get “hungry” for a specific food.  Why does a salad sound great one night and the next you must have a juicy burger? This week, I was hungry for Tortellini Soup. Why, I don’t know, except I hadn’t made it in several weeks. It’s easy and really is one of those [...]

Asian Sesame Pork Tenderloin with Napa Cabbage Slaw

Asian Pork Photo

My taste buds are fickle and get bored easily. I love to cook with the seasons as the weather changes—a salad and fresh corn in the summer, a soup or stew when it snows. Yet, this time of year, I tire of winter fare and long for fresh—especially this winter with the weather so oddly [...]

Spanish-Style Chicken in Garlic-Tomato Sauce Recipe

spanish chicken photo

Tastes change. It’s sad, but true. A couple weeks ago I remembered an old recipe that I had made, and loved, years ago. I was longing for it— chicken, simmered in tomatoes, onions, and peas. Warm, comforting, easy to prepare and as I recall, very good. It was one of the first meals I made [...]

175 Best Babycakes Cake Pops Recipes

175 Best Babycakes Cake Pop Recipes

It’s here! Our newest book, 175 Best Babycakes Cake Pops Recipes is out and we are thrilled. Packed inside the new cookbook are recipes for cake pops of all kinds and flavors, plus muffins, biscuits, meatballs, appetizers, ebelskivers, doughnuts, scones, bread bites and more. You will find recipes that will inspire you to use your [...]

Souvlaki Pork

Souvlaki pork

What’s for dinner? Such a simple question and yet, it strikes terror in our hearts almost daily. I have a confession to make—and that is sometimes I hate that question as much as you do. I know, I write about food and love to develop new recipes. But, when stuck between a rock and a [...]