Half-Size Bakes (Page 2)

Better yet

I made gingerbread a while back, and posted the recipe. We all enjoyed it. I was particularly pleased because my previous foray into gingerbread had been a fairly complicated gluten-free recipe developed by America's Test Kitchens, and it was pretty disappointing. More recently, I

cake

Hail and farewell

Remember back in March? The joke going around then was that we should send the year back and ask for a refund, before the warranty expired. I keep remembering that now, and wondering if we should have tried harder. Just like everyone else, I've

breakfast

How sweet it is

Opinion seems to be that the next phase of the Great Quarantine Bake-Off is going to involve cinnamon rolls. That makes a lot of sense to me. Not only are cinnamon rolls wonderful, but (in my mind, at least) they are pretty firmly linked

cookies

First frost, last leaves

"Dear, dear Norland," said Elinor, "probably looks much as it always does at this time of the year. The woods and walks thickly covered with dead leaves." "Oh," cried Marianne, "with what transporting sensation have I formerly seen them fall! How have I delighted,

dessert

Little black cake

If I were doing a keyword search for dessert these days, I'd probably be looking for "rich" and "warm". And "easy". In the aftermath of Thanksgiving, with Christmas baking yet to come, "easy" is definitely high on my list. Hence this pudding cake, which

clafoutis

And now for something completely selfish

It's a reflection of the life we live these days that I often feel lonely, but also never alone. I imagine new parents must feel this way often: I miss my old life! And seeing my friends! And having a minute to myself! When

bread

What goes around

A year ago, it seemed that eating bread had become rather passe. What with paleo diets and keto diets and gluten-free diets, the bread basket as a dining room staple seemed to be going the way of the dodo. I myself grew up in

gingerbread

Once upon a chilly evening

At this time of year, I find my thoughts turning to gingerbread. The scent of gingerbread, for many of us, evokes the whole holiday season: gingerbread cookies, gingerbread houses, even gingerbread-spice lattes. Gingerbread has been associated with winter celebrations since the Middle Ages, and

cake

Perfect Noir

"Because it's so perfectly dark." That's what I said when a friend of mine asked me why I liked The Maltese Falcon. And I stand by that: it is dark. And perfect. And funny in spots. And tragic, and confused. You know. Like a

frittata

Little and broken

This is my family. I found it, all on my own. Is little, and broken, but still good. – Stitch, from Lilo and StitchThese days I find it useful to pick something insignificant and obsess about it. (You could argue that this whole blog is

cake

A Hallowed Dessert

Host: Welcome to another exciting installment of "Things that go with chocolate"! Today's episode features an intriguing new contestant – a zesty fruit-forward little number that's both a color and a flavor – let's give it up for our guest star: Orange! Orange, tell us a

Lows and Highs

Back in the Early Mesozoic Era, when I was in graduate school in Iowa, Sunday afternoons were particularly fraught. Friday afternoons were great – on Friday afternoon, I had the illusion that with two glorious empty days, an infinite amount of studying would transpire. Fridays

dessert

Boston cream pie

I don't know what it is about Boston. They seem to have an aversion there to calling things by their right names. I remember my disappointment as a child, when I found out what the "Boston Tea Party" really was. I mean, what kind

muffins

In a supporting role

It's a truism in life that not everyone can be in the limelight all the time, and the same thing is true of foods. In composing a meal, it's a good idea to think about one or two dishes that will be stars of

dessert

A back number

I have an irrational fascination for old recipes. I love to read them and try to puzzle out what the original authors had in mind. I can spend a lot of time wondering what they might taste like. But often I don't actually try

cheesecake

A fine pairing

Pairing: Two things, people, or organizations that work together – Cambridge English DictionaryI have written before about flavor combinations: there are many I find irresistible, but top of my list is raspberry paired with white chocolate. This can take many forms: raspberry sorbet swirled with

biscuits

From Scratch

Someday I'll write a post comparing English and American foods of the same name: biscuit vs biscuit, muffin vs muffin, pudding vs pudding, pancake vs pancake. This is not that post. This is a post about American biscuits, pure and simple ... and wonderful. Today

cookies

Perfectly Plain

It may be that no author in the English language has inspired such a long-standing and devoted following as Jane Austen. She only wrote half a dozen novels, all portraying quiet scenes of everyday life in early 19th century society. But each of those

cake

Round like a lemon

Lemon tree very pretty and the lemon flower is sweet But the fruit of the poor lemon is impossible to eat. – from the folk song "Lemon Tree" by Will HoltWhen I was a kid (a very literal-minded kid, I guess), this lyric used to

Three's a cloud

In the Before Time, when I regularly had dinner in restaurants, there was always an exciting moment when the waiter started reciting the dessert specials. Sometimes the first few words were enough: I'd listen politely to the whole list, but the fact is, he

muffins

Cinderella's carriage

The rest of the country is eagerly awaiting the return of the PSL (that's Pumpkin Spice Latte, if you've been living under a rock). But here at Half-Size Haven I keep hearing "Isn't it about time for some pumpkin muffins?" The fact is, pumpkins

pound cake

Quarter-pounder for the king

Sean I'd say the best one came from Tupelo Mississippi – The ProclaimersPound cake has a long and venerable history in America, originally brought to the country by colonists from England. Cookbooks were by no means unheard-of, but were far less commonly available than today;

dessert

By any other name

I grew up calling them "butterscotch brownies". They are also called "blond brownies", or "blondies". If you do an Internet search for them, you'll find a dizzying variety of recipes, and not a lot of agreement on what they should be like. I'll put

cake

Joyous

Ever since I was a small child, I have been convinced that chocolate cake is hard to beat. If I'm ever wondering what would make a nice dessert, chocolate cake immediately springs to mind. This cake has the added bonus of a mocha icing:

All cobbled up

There's a restaurant near my mom's house where, for a brief window every summer, blackberry cobbler is on the menu every day. My mom and I love to go there and get a light lunch, so we have plenty of room for dessert. We