The Adventures of a Frustrated Baker

One of my favorite parts about living in the Pacific Northwest, especially in the summer is all the wild blackberries that grow around here.  I LOVE fresh blackberries, and unfortunately so does most of my family so we didn't have any left from the summer to freeze and use throughout the year this year.  So when I saw that the blackberries at Safeway were buy one get one free, two things came to mind.  One, BLACKBERRIES, yummy!  and Two, hmmm, there is probably a reason these are buy one get one free so I guess I better freeze them or use them fast if I buy any. Yeah, if I buy any indeed!  Of course I grabbed a couple...thought about grabbing more but decided as freezer space was short (notice the WAS short, we have since hooked up the big deep freeze : D !!!!!)   I better limit myself to two pints.  Now all that was left was to decide what to do with them. After staring at the blackberries and waiting for them to...

Hope everyone had a great Christmas!  I know we did!  As part of our family gift-giving, I always make a little package of goodies for family and friends. This year, with the moving and work and everything going on I decided to go ultra easy and quick.  I made these secret turtle candies that I learned from my mother-in-law (sorry guys she won't let me tell you all the recipe) and candied almonds!  Those I can share with you cause I found them all on my own! They are super duper easy!  It does take an hour and 15 minutes or so total to make, but most of that can be spend hanging out with the family or relaxing and recuperating from all the holiday festivities.  They are super tasty and very addictive and would probably make great snacks for a New Year's Eve party or a great gift to the host of a party you may be attending.  My main tip would be to buy the almonds at a bulk store or out of the bulk bins if your grocery...

These cupcakes came to me while I was shopping a few weeks ago.  I saw a tub of buttered rum at the grocery store and I felt the need to buy some and use it in something. Those of you who know me, know how I feel about eggnog.  I think it's gross...though I've been told I can't really judge it until I've tried it warmed up with rum added.  Maybe someday people, but until that day, I stand by my hate of eggnog.  And since everyone keeps asuring me nothing pairs better with rum than eggnog, I figured they can't all be wrong. That being said, the fact that I made these cupcakes is a miracle as I taste absolutely EVERYTHING that I take out in public to ensure that there are no odd tasting goodies coming out of my kitchen!    Of course the day I made these cupcakes there was no tub of buttered rum to be found at the grocery store.  No worries...there's always rum in my house!  (Got to have it on hand in case I get the inkling for p...

Hey there everyone!  I know I disappeared for a bit, but we were relocating!  I now have my own kitchen back, none of my kitchen stuff yet, but lets just get right into the baking!  Christmas is coming and my kitchen is running pretty much 24/7 this time of year.  No time to waste! This recipe is actually from one of those free recipe cards you see just about everywhere this time of year.  I was walking down the seasonal baking display at our grocery store and saw these delicious mint chocolate chips that I loved last year.  They were buy one get one free so I just couldn't resist!  Plus they had recipes right there!  They were calling my name...I couldn't leave them there unbaked on the shelf. This recipe is super duper simple!  Took maybe 30 minutes and 25 minutes of those were the bars baking in the oven.  They taste and look great!  Hint, hint guys!  Awesome idea for Christmas goodies for bake sales or gifts!...

When my daughter and I were shopping for her new school clothes a few weeks ago, we stopped at the mall food court to recharge in between stores and grab some lunch.  We went to a little cafe/sandwich shop there that had these amazing little triple chocolate cookie chippers that my little one and I have both been craving ever since. Of Course, she wanted me to just go back and buy more, I however decided to try to recreate the recipe at home...you know so that we could have them over and over instead of just when I have time to go to the mall.  It's a baking version of the whole teach a man to fish, he'll eat for life philosophy... kind of deep for a cookie craving, huh?! Anyway, we mostly just went with the recipe of the back of a bag of Nestle white chocolate chips...the results were pretty close and we ate them all in about 24 hours!  (All 8 of us...not just my daughter and I!) Wihisk or sift together your dry ingredients. Cream together butter a...