Banana Pumpkin Bread

Banana Pumpkin Bread

Happy Halloween everyone!!!!  When the night is over, don’t forget to reclaim your Jack O’lanterns to make pumpkin puree.  You can then freeze the puree, and use it throughout the year to make pumpkin bread, pumpkin pie, pumpkin soup… whatever you feel like!  Making pumpkin puree from field pumpkins is a little bit time consuming, [...]

Homemade Mini Quiche Appetizers (quick microwave recipe)

Mini Quiche Appetizers

With several holidays just around the corner… Halloween, Thanksgiving… and all the December holidays… many of us may need appetizer recipes that are easy to prep and serve.  Mini quiches are the answer!  You can make the tart shells for these mini quiches a few days ahead of time, then add whatever ingredients you have [...]

The secret to making perfect Flan (Crème Caramel)

Flan (Crème Caramel)

My husband LOVES flan.  I’ve never understood why… every time I had flan in a restaurant it was lumpy and hard with a congealed cottage cheese texture – served in a bitter burnt-sugar tasting sauce.  It reminded me of curdled milk… yuck!  Since then, I’ve realized that is NOT how flan is supposed to be… [...]

Field Pumpkin Butter (Making Pumpkin Butter from leftover Halloween jack o’lanterns)

Homemade pumpkin butter from leftover Halloween Jack o'lanterns (field pumpkins)

Every Halloween, I go through the same thing.  I stay up really really late the night before carving Jack o’lanterns (storing them in the empty garage refrigerator overnight)… then I put them out at dusk to greet all the neighborhood kids that come by trick or treating.  After the crowds have gone, I reclaim the [...]

Rugelach (Walnut & Cinnamon Sour Cream Crescent Pastry)

Rugelach:  Walnut & Cinnamon Sugar Pastries

Rugelach are delicious cookie-sized crescent shaped pastries –  traditionally made with a yeast leavened dough containing sour cream, wrapped around some sort of sweet filling (walnuts, cinnamon, raisins, poppy seed, marzipan, jam, etc.).  Although they are quite simple to make, they look very impressive and are the perfect little treat to go with afternoon tea [...]