The Hangover: Overnight Cinnamon Pecan Coffee Cake

I don’t know what your plans are for New Year’s Eve. I never used to like planning for the biggest night of the year. There sometimes were disappointments. Sometimes there were grand celebrations. Now that I’m a mommy, I have the best excuses to not want to go out on New Year’s Eve. Like, “I don’t have a sitter.” Or, “Little guy gets scared of the fireworks outside.” Actually, my chihuahuas get very scared.

Chocolate Nutella Peanut Butter Fudge

New  Year’s resolutions tend to fill me with unwanted and unnecessary angst. I used to make a list at the end of every December. They were lists full of hope and promises to do better. My lists included some of the usual suspects:

Holiday Panettone and Some Favorite Things

Here we are all are after the holidays. Is there room for another fabulous holiday dessert? I say there is!! Panettone is eaten in Italy during the Christmas days. I have never made panettone, but I have sure had some wonderful Italian ones.

Daring Bakers Challenge: Christmas Stollen

The 2010 December Daring Bakers’ challenge was hosted by Penny of Sweet Sadie’s Baking. She chose to challenge Daring Bakers’ to make Stollen. She adapted a friend’s family recipe and combined it with information from friends, techniques from Peter Reinhart’s book and Martha Stewart’s demonstration.

Mostaccioli–Italian Christmas Spice Cookies

Mostaccioli brings back many Christmas memories to me. It is a cookie that I ate often as a child. My father is from Sicily. I grew up eating plenty of cannoli and mostaccioli.  I was glancing through Nick Malgieri’s Cookies Unlimited book last night and came across this recipe. My eyes lit up. I could taste the pungent cloves and cinnamon. Memories of the sticky glaze dusted with sprinkles came rushing back to me.

The Fluffiest Cinnamon Swirl Bread

When I was little, Christmas morning was the most exciting day of the year for all of the presents I would receive. Now that I’m older and much smarter, it’s all about the sweets!

Holiday Devil’s Food Cake with Buttercream Frosting

I know a beautiful little girl with curly dark brown hair. She has huge blue/grey eyes. Tiny freckles scattered across her nose.

Grandmother’s Buttermilk Cornbread

When it gets REALLLLY cold here in sunny South Florida, I crave chili and corn bread. It was REALLY cold here last night and today. 12 degree wind chills merit a good bowl of chili with super fluffy cornbread. Don’t you agree?

This is grandmother’s buttermilk cornbread. Don’t ask me whose grandmother. It’s not mine. I found this recipe a while ago and I make it all year round. I use it also to make an amazing stuffing at Thanksgiving. Since I baked this Thanksgiving, we didn’t have the amazing stuffing. I think I will make it "just because" so y’all could have the recipe!

Chocolate Mint Thumbprints

Thumbprint cookies are so cute! They are little and fit into your mouth with one bite! Therein lies the problem. One bite. One cookie. 30 bites. 30 cookies.

The Winner of the Tate's Bake Shop Giveaway!

Thank you everyone for participating in the Tate’s Bake Shop Giveaway! This has been a fun giveaway! Don’t worry if you didn’t win because you can still get a discount on Tate’s Bake Shop orders. Tate’s Bake Shop is offering a 15% off discount on Tate's Bake Shop orders. The discount code is: cookie.
The winner of Tate’s Bake Shop’s giveaway won a gift pack of three different kind of cookies! Oatmeal Raisin, Chocolate Chip, and White Chocolate Macadamia and the Tate’s Bake Shop Cookbook-what a great prize!

Negroni Sbagliato- An Italian Christmas Cocktail

Feeling the holiday pressure? Feel like you are running out of time? Head is spinning with unfinished lists. Are you asking yourself why a Pet Shop toy costs $39.99? I propose you have a cocktail! A tasty Italian cocktail.

Speculoos–French Fridays with Dorie

Speculoos (or speculaas) are crisp and full of spices. Perfect with tea or coffee. Delicious made small or large. They are traditional Christmas cookies served on St. Nicholas’s eve on December 6th in their native Belgium. That old St. Nick is a lucky guy! 

Tate’s Bake Shop Chocolate Chip Cookies and a Giveaway!

Have you ever heard of Tate’s Bake Shop? If you haven’t, let me tell you ALL about this fabulous company! Tate's Bake Shop is Southampton's favorite bakery! Founder, owner and baker Kathleen King makes all of Tate's baked goods from the finest ingredients, just the way she made them when she was 11-years old and first started selling cookies at her family's farm stand.

Christmas Red Velvet Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting

Red Velvet Cake is a cake whose origins is full of mystery. I like a good mystery. I like a good cake! Was it invented at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in New York City? Was it invented in the South? Was it invented in Canada? (YES, maybe in Canada!No offense to my Canadian friend;) When was it invented?

The Winner of the Big Night In Giveaway!

Thank you all so much for entering the Domenica Marchetti Big Night In Cookbook Giveaway! I really enjoyed doing this double giveaway with my friend Shulie. I also want to thank you again for reading my blog!

Sweet and Spicy Nuts-French Fridays with Dorie

This week I thought it would be fun to make Dorie’s Sweet and Spicy Nut recipe. It’s holiday time. I was dreaming of having a wonderful cocktail and a bowl of these nuts. I had a feeling these nuts would be delicious. Yes, I was right!