It’s November. It’s the week before (American) Thanksgiving. It’s so cold here in Los Angeles, I actually wore a long-sleeved shirt today. In FoodBlogLand, it’s pumpkin this and pecan pie that and cranberries up the wazoo. What better time to post about fresh strawberry-passion fruit cake? Actually, this out-of-season cake is less about me sticking…
Over Christmas break I stopped by to see my old high school friend Claire. As I was leaving, she offered me lemons from her overflowing tree. My first instinct was to decline, since I was staying with my parents and had no interest in shlepping random lemons back home with me in my already-overstuffed car….
Today I would like to share the #1 secret to making amazing birthday cakes without breaking a sweat. It’s not having all the fancy kitchen gadgets, although some specialty tools can help. It’s not taking expensive baking classes, although you can learn lots from great teachers. And it’s not using expensive ingredients, although sometimes it’s…
This weekend I made a violet velvet cake for a friend of a friend’s bridal shower. What is a violet velvet cake, you ask? Well, it’s just like red velvet, only it’s purple. Duh. I wish I had a picture of the cake when it was cut, because it was this deep dark purple color…
I’ve had a few summer posts lurking around waiting to be completed, and now that it’s October the time for fresh berry desserts has almost passed! Quickly, quickly now… It all started with a new kitchen in a new apartment in a new city. Or rather… A sweet pistachio tart crust in a new kitchen…
Meet Shelby. Shelby & I go way back. In fact, I knew her when she was just a twinkle in her parents’ eyes, back when I was making these butterfly cupcakes for her mom’s baby shower. Shelby & I are tight. So how else to celebrate her first birthday but with an adorable Shelby-sized cake?…
We are still in the midst of baby shower season around here, and the most recent honoree was my friend Meghan. Her shower had a beach theme (perfect for our warm LA winters!) so I made her a seashore cake to celebrate. I found a great seashell candy mold at Michael’s that had 5 different…
Something’s in the water round these parts, because all of my friends are either new mothers or expecting. Downside: being (blissfully) left out of dirty diaper and breastfeeding discussions. Upside: baby showers and the desserts that go along with them! (Oh, and the resulting babies are a pretty big upside too.) This past weekend we…
