Christmas Cookies

Peanut Butter Kiss Blossoms

Maple Chocolate Chip Shortbread

Baby Bûche de Noël Cookies

And my very first madeleines, thanks to Michael and my brand new madeleine pan! 

Merry Christmas to all and to all a Happy New Year!

In Loving Memory

Last week, the world suffered the loss of the greatest woman I have ever known, my Granny. Typewritten words cannot convey how wonderful she was or express how sad I am. How sad we all are. She touched the lives of so many and made our world beautiful.

Granny and Pop on their wedding day, 9/8/51

But lucky for us, we have each other. Over the last 60 years, Granny and Pop created a loving, strong, close-knit family who will support each other forever. We will carry Granny with us wherever we go. And I can guarantee that every cup of tea sipped, every apple pie made and enjoyed, every kind, thoughtful deed carried out by us will be the legacies of Granny.

Granny and Me, 1988

I was blessed to have her as my Grandma. I couldn't have wished for better. She is the perfect role model, and I will be happy to spend the rest of my life striving to live up to her generous, compassionate, selfless, gentle, lovely memory. 

J.A.G, February 25, 1932 - December 13, 2011

Feelin' Dapper

We saw Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings at the Music Hall of Williamsburg last night. They were extraordinary! Real, talented performers. Ms. Jones has an incredible, full voice, a fitting complement to larger than life stage presence. Her playfulness with the crowd is genuine and shines through in her smile. What a lady!

We were this close! (photo courtesy of Mike)

And the Dap Kings? They killed it. The sharp, blaring brass/woodwind section had me in awe. The conga drum player never tired. The bass, drums, keyboard, guitars... all of them, oozing musical talent. Makes me want to pick up my instrument again and start a band. 

Check them out. Guaranteed to keep you dancing past your bedtime!

Get Well Soon Bread

I'm on vacation. Thanksgiving vacation: ain't nothin' better. This week I will be trying out a couple new recipes for Thursday's meal, including pumpkin gnocchi with sage brown butter and maple chocolate chip shortbread. I am looking forward to the latter because I just got my hands on some maple sugar from the Union Square Green Market last week and I can't wait to use it! As for the former, pumpkin + sage + butter = alright in my book. I'm also excited to share these cider caramels I picked up over the weekend at the Bedford Cheese Shop with the folks at home.

But before all that, I have one important thing to bake. 


For going on 4 weeks now, my dear, dear Grandma has been in the hospital at NYU. She is quite a trooper. Lucky for us, Granny is scheduled to come home on Wednesday! And on Thursday, we will be able to celebrate and give thanks for another year with this special woman who has cared for us, cooked for us, given generously to us, made the world wonderful for us - and continues to do so each day.


On my visit last week I brought this bread made with applesauce and 3 very ripe bananas my Pop gave me. Granny enjoyed it so that I thought I'd make it again for her to have throughout the last days of her stay at the hospital. It is the very least I can do for my lady. 


This time around I did not have readily-ripe bananas, but I did have half a can of pumpkin puree left from my oatmeal breakfast. So with pumpkin and spices subbed in for the 'nanners, I came up with this Thanksgiving-week-appropriate bread. I hope she likes it! 

A one-bowl operation

Sugar-free Quick Bread made with Applesauce
Makes 1 loaf
Ingredients
1 1/2 cups flour, I used 1 cup all-purpose and 1/2 cup whole wheat
1 1/2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice mix (cinnamon, ginger, allspice, nutmeg)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 egg
1/4 cup melted butter
1/2 cup applesauce
1 teaspoon vanilla
About 1 cup (or more) pumpkin puree, I used about 3/4 of a 15 oz. can. Bananas also work well. You want something that will contribute some moistness.
1/2 cup roughly chopped hazelnuts, or any nut of your choosing
Instructions
1. Preheat the oven to 375 F.
2. Grease your loaf pan.
3. Mix all ingredients in a large mixing bowl until they come together. 
4. Pour into your greased loaf pan and spread evenly.
5. Bake for 25-30 minutes, until a knife or toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.

And voila! Quick and easy. Not your average pumpkin bread, it's fluffier and less sweet, but still super tasty. Have a slice or two with a cup of tea, just the way Granny does.

How 'bout them Gintes?

Spicy baked chicken wings, and

The New York Football Giants.

Happy Sunday!

Spooky, scary!

Halloween was a week ago, yes, but it lingers as the Jack-o-lantern still sits on our balcony and I am still finishing off our candy supply. And shoot! I am just too proud of my first carving creation not to share. So here he is:

Took a few re-draws to finally get his big evil eyes and snarling mouth right. I do not claim to be an artist.

Skilled, precision knife-work by Dexter (aka Michael). 

Pumpkin guts and seeds we didn't even bother to roast! 

Can't blame us too much, though. We were simultaneously working on this beaut:

Whole wheat pizza with roasted eggplant sauce,crumbled hot Italian sausage and fresh mozzarella, topped with crispy sage leaves.

The finished product...

Bikeless AND headless!

So until next Halloween, stay spooky and scary, my friends. And stay tuned for my next long-form post on Berlin! 

Montreal Microbrews

I recently recovered these shots from Michael's phone. They are of the beers we had during our market lunch on our bike tour of Montreal. From the Dieu du Ciel microbrewery, they had simply beautiful label artwork! 

He had the "Rescousse" (to the rescue), an Altbier. 

I the Rosée d'hibiscus, a blonde wheat beer.

Happy weekend, everyone. Cheers!