Daring Bakers in January - Tuiles

For the first Daring Baker's challenge in 2009 we were given the task to tackle Tuiles.  This month's challenge is brought to us by Karen of Bake My Day and Zorra of 1x umruehren bitte aka Kochtopf. They have chosen Tuiles from The Chocolate Book by Angélique Schmeink and Nougatine and Chocolate Tuiles from Michel Roux.  Thank goodness they chose something fairly quick and simple because, once again, the best of intentions to get this done early in the month were quickly dashed.  

For my tuiles I chose to use the 'plain' recipe from The Chocolate Book (as seen at Zorra's blog), and pipe a little chocolate stripe on the cookie before baking, then rolling them around the handle of a wooden spoon.  I filled my cookies with a raspberry and cream cheese filling using this recipe from Helen at Tartelette.

Be sure to check out all the seriously beautiful creations from all the other Daring Bakers!

TWD: Fresh Ginger and Chocolate Gingerbread

Two words: crazy good. Heather of Sherry Trifle chose Fresh Ginger and Chocolate Gingerbread for our Tuesdays with Dorie recipe this week. For my gingerbread I chose to leave off the chocolate glaze.

I know. I left off the chocolate?! Yes. In this case, I did. I also made mini cakes as you can see, for cute little personal servings. The reason I left off the chocolate glaze was simply because I wanted to see what this combination would be like.

It may seem like an odd combination, bananas and gingerbread, but it is just so good. You really have to try this some time. I was inspired by Peabody to top make the mini cakes topped with good vanilla ice cream and caramel sauce (and you really ought to follow that link and see why). All together, this is one surprisingly light and still delicious and sweet treat. The only other change I made to the original recipe was to leave out the stem ginger since that was no where to be found at our grocery store.

I will definitely make this recipe again since I love the chocolate and ginger combination. Make sure to see how everyone else's gingerbread came out by going to the Tuesdays with Dorie blogroll!

CEiMB: Chicken Cacciatore

This week's Craving Ellie in My Belly recipe is the Chicken Cacciatore, hosted by Peggy over at Pantry Revisited.   (Incidentally, over at Food Network, this recipe has a five star rating).  I have never made, nor eaten this dish.  Why?  Well, I don't like eating peppers, onions or mushrooms, three of the main components of this dish.  Really.  I don't like them.  I haven't liked the texture when I have tried them before, I love the smell, but haven't loved eating them.  You already knew I was weird, right?

Well... it pains me to admit this, but I may have to start saying, "I didn't like them."  This dish was really, really good.  I did make a few changes, but nothing I felt was too drastic.  In the original recipe, it calls for skinless chicken breasts, on the bone.  With the economy the way it is, and the fact that we don't buy chicken on the bone, I decided to make a few little changes.

First off, I used a whole chicken that I cut into four pieces - two breast and wing sections and two thigh and leg sections.  This probably detracts from the healthy factor a bit, but since the 3 lb. chicken I bought cost me just barely above $3, I am fine with that.   I also didn't bother to remove the skin, because I knew that none of us were going to eat it anyway.  I chose to let it cook in with everything and help with the flavor a bit.

I also used some sweet baby bell peppers I had on hand - red, orange and gold, instead of just one large red bell pepper, and actually almost doubled the amount of peppers.  I didn't make any change to the amount of onion, but I did use cremini mushrooms instead of white mushrooms.  I just like those, when I am trying to get myself to eat mushrooms that is, better than plain white mushrooms.

I will admit that I added about 1 Tablespoon of butter to the vegetable mixture when I put the mushrooms in, but the way I see it, 1 Tablespoon, amongst several people, isn't too mush to worry about.  The only other change I made was to use chicken stock instead of dry white wine in the mixture.  I don't drink, and therefore never have wines or other liquors on hand to use and don't often go to recipes that would use it anyway, so this seemed like a good substitution to me.  I don't know what it would have tasted like with the white wine, but with the broth it was really fantastic.

I served the chicken on a bed of whole wheat egg noodles with all the good juice and sauce from cooking the chicken.  Yes, me, whole wheat noodles - go figure - I actually added something healthy instead of taking it away!  I am happy to say that I will definitely be making this again. It was fairly easy to make and tasted delicious.  It was a great meal for a cold winter night.

Don't forget to check out the blogroll to see how everyone else's chicken turned out!  (You can find the original recipe here - my changes are shown below). 

Chicken Cacciatore

Adapted from The Foods You Crave, by Ellie Krieger

4 skinless chicken breast halves on the bone, about 2 pounds (or 1 whole small chicken, cut into quarters)
Salt and freshly ground black pepper 
2 teaspoons olive oil 1 Tablespoon unsalted butter
1 medium onion, thinly sliced 
1 red bell pepper, thinly sliced (or 10 small baby bell peppers, thinly sliced)
1/2 pound cremini mushrooms, thinly sliced 
2 garlic cloves, minced 
1/2 organic, low sodium chicken stock
1 (14 1/2-ounce) can whole tomatoes in juice, chopped and juice reserved 
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano 
1/8 teaspoon red pepper flakes or more to taste

Rinse the chicken and pat dry with paper towels. Season the chicken with salt and pepper. 
Heat the oil in a saute pan over moderately-high heat. Brown the chicken on both sides, about 8 minutes. Remove the chicken.Reduce the heat to moderate. Add the onion and pepper, cover and cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables begin to soften, about 5 minutes. Add the mushrooms and cook, uncovered and stirring occasionally, until the mushrooms begin to brown. Add the garlic and cook, stirring, for 30 seconds. Add the stock and cook until reduced by half. Add the tomatoes and juice, oregano, red pepper flakes and 1/4 teaspoon of salt and simmer the mixture covered for 10 minutes.

Return the chicken to the pan and simmer, covered, until the chicken is just done, about 20 minutes longer.

Cake Slice Bakers: Banana Cake with Praline Filling and White Chocolate Ganache

The Cake Slice Bakers this month chose to make this Banana Cake.  It is actually a very small amount of banana that goes into the cake, but it was quite tasty.  I didn't get a picture of the interior this time, but it was a light speckled color, kind of like a very light banana bread.  

The filling is made from pecan pralines and was a bit intimidating to read about making, but was quite easy to do.  I will make my pralines this way from now on I think.   Basically, we boiled the pecans, then drained them, then coated them with powdered sugar and deep fried them.  Yes.  You heard me right.  Boiled then fried.  It was fun though and oh my, were they delicious!

Part of the pralines are then chopped up and added into the white chocolate ganache.  I have attempted a white chocolate ganache four times before this and failed miserably each time.  I finally had success this time by making sure I had plenty of time to wait and lots of patience.  I am pretty sure I failed all those other times because I rushed the process.

Either way, the cake and the process of making the components was fun.  I took this to my Mom for a belated birthday cake and everyone really enjoyed it.

Make sure to check out all the other beautiful cakes by visiting the Cake Slice Bakers blogroll. You can get the recipe over at Gigi Cakes.

TWD: Berry Surprise Cupcakes

The Sugar:  These little cakes were fun to make and very pretty and tasty, which is always a plus.  They made me think of summer, and that is always a nice memory in the middle of winter.

The Snark:  Notice, I didn't say these little cakes were easy to make.  The two pictured above were the only survivors because I had some really fallen cupcakes that didn't work out at all.  Good thing they were tasty because that will get me to try again.

The Spice:  I was so careful about not over-mixing that I ended up under-mixing my batter, up until the last two cupcakes.  So, while at least I had survivors to take pictures of, I had a lot of failure to contend with as well.  That was my fault though.

I have some great neighbors.  I really do.  One in particular, my neighbor across the street, is so fun and easy to talk to - and vent to - about life, raising our kids, marriage, etc.  I bring this up because it is something that I haven't had in a really long time.  Oh, we've had neighbors, but not that I could really commiserate with about life in general.  I have some friends, that I'm happy to say are still friends, even though we haven't actually been neighbors for going on seven years now.  I value those kinds of relationships that go deeper than just the surface, and, if you are lucky, surprise you along the way.  The best surprises, I think, are sweet ones.  Not only in baking, like these lovely little cupcake versions of this week's recipe, the Berry Surprise Cake, chosen by Mary Ann of Meet Me in the Kitchen, but in relationships.   Speaking of relationships, one of my favorites, is all my fellow Tuesdays with Dorie Gals & Guys.  Be sure to check out the blogroll for all the other amazing variations this week.

The best relationships are a lot like these delicious cupcakes, which, incidentally, I did share with my wonderful neighbor and she loved them.  These cupcakes may be light and airy and uncomplicated on the surface, but they are sturdy and can hold in all the goodness that is inside and keep you going and keep you surprised by that goodness being shared and touching our lives.  Sweet little red berries as that added extra little boost that we sometimes all need.

This may seem silly, but in this case, you could almost say that you could learn a lot about friendship from a cupcake.  I didn't mean to write about this when I started this post, but the fact is that while I was finishing putting these together tonight, I was having a great heart to heart with my neighbor.  It was really nice reaffirm again that, basically, I'm not the only one that is in a situation like mine, and that someone out there understands where I'm coming from.  That is very comforting, especially if you go through life for a long time, surrounded by people and feeling very alone.

I think that is why, that even though the past couple of years have been some of the most difficult times in my life, they have also been the sweetest.  I spent a lot of time alone with my babies, which was both joyful and very lonely, but I have two beautiful, mostly healthy boys who keep me going (and going and going) and are the sweetest reward life has to offer.  When our first boy was born, people used to ask me how I felt about being a mother.  I didn't mean to sound flippant and I hope that people understood that I was completely serious when I would laugh and say that it is by far the best thing I have ever done.  I'm not saying it is for everyone, but even when I feel like my head is going to explode or I'm going to pass out from sheer exhaustion, it is still the very best experience I've ever had.

I don't think I focus on that enough.  I have a tendency to want life to be good, but hone in on the bad too much.  This is something I am working on.  That is something I would say is a good resolution to have.  It is a daily, if not hourly, event and something I have to constantly remind myself of.  Especially when faced with hard times as we are all experiencing.

I wanted to take this opportunity to thank all of you who come here and visit my little blog and leave me comments that are always helpful, funny, cute, creative and supportive.  When I started this blog, I really hoped that I would be able to find my way into this community and get the support and basic human contact I so desperately needed.  I really just don't have enough words to express my gratitude for not only having good neighbors near my house, but having incredible neighbors in this blogging community.  I really couldn't do all this without you.

A huge part of this for me has been Tuesdays with Dorie.  Tuesday is now my favorite day of the week.  I know that even if I fail, I will still get to share the experience and the passion for baking and creating with simple ingredients that we all share.  I know I am gushing, but I just had to share how I'm feeling with you all.  So, thank you, a million times over, for being here and sharing this experience with me.

Giveaway FYI - Bumbleride Stroller

So, I don't normally do this, but since I know for a fact so many of my readers are other Mom's with active kiddos, I just wanted to let you know about this great giveaway you can go and enter (at a really great blog by another Mom here in Utah - I Never Grew Up). 

Vanessa does lots of great giveaways and is always fun to read, so you'll definitely want to bookmark her blog.

Here is the link with all the details to enter the giveaway for a Bumbleride Stroller - actually, exactly like the one you see right over there on the left.  Pretty cool, huh?!  : )  Good luck!

CEiMB: Beef Tenderloin with Rosemary and Chocolate

Well, this week I am finally back on track with the  Craving Ellie in My Belly crew.  The holiday season was exceptionally crazy this year and I'm sad to admit that, though I did cook, I never got pictures of any of it.  I am trying to do better.  My apologies to my fellow CEiMBer's on my lack of participation in December.  I am going to try to do better this month.

In the spirit of doing better, I did make the Beef Tenderloin with Rosemary and Chocolate, hosted this week by Beckett Bakes It.  This one of the recipes I had immediately bookmarked as soon as I got my copy of The Food You Crave.  I love beef tenderloin and was intrigued by making this sauce.  

The only changes I made to the recipe (linked above) were to omit the dry red wine (we just don't have it).  I just substituted extra beef broth.  I also didn't use a whole beef tenderloin roast.  I had some beef tenderloin 'steaks' in the freezer.  I've mentioned it before, but we are very lucky to get all of our beef from my in-laws who have a small farm in Northern Idaho. Otherwise, this could get to be a rather expensive dinner to make.  Ellie does mention in the book though that any cut of beef will do nicely with this sauce, so I imagine you could use this with whatever you have on hand.  So, how was the tenderloin?  Yum.  Need I say more?  Well, ok, I will.  But just to say that, really, a bit of oil, salt and pepper is all a good cut of beef needs.

Making the sauce itself was really fun.  I like building sauces because of the process of building flavor, layer by layer.  The taste itself was wonderful and I will definitely make it again.  Think about your favorite steak sauce... now imagine the feeling of accomplishment when you make one yourself that tastes far better than anything store bought.  The tastes are all more well melded together and it is a rather mellow and satisfying kind of sauce.  I imagine you could turn up the heat quite easily if that was more your style too though.

Make sure to check out all the other beefy goodness from the rest of the CEiMB crew at the blogroll.

TWD: Savory Corn Muffins (and Sweet Corn Muffins)

The Sugar: These darling little loaves are sweet, with a tender crumb that just melts in your mouth. This comforting and great cornbread / muffins at their best.

The Snark: Well, technically, these darling little loaves are not the recipe you came here to see. I'll share my confession with you below. I did make the right recipe too though.

The Spice: I think that was part of the problem for me. Too much spice for what I love in my cornbread. It is totally a personal preference thing though.

Confession time. The lovely rectangular mini-loaf muffins you see above are not actually the recipe for this week. They are the Corniest Corn muffins from the page before. Though Rebecca of Ezra Pound Cake (by the way, I have to admit, I don't know the story behind her blog name... but it always sounds like a great rock band name to me! Random. I know.) chose Savory Corn and Pepper Muffins for our Tuesdays with Dorie recipe this week, I couldn't resist making both versions. Why you may ask? Well, it is really quite simple. I love corn bread. Love it. In fact, it was one of the signature items on both of the restaurants I waited tables at in my 'younger' days. Since in the introduction to the Savory Corn and Pepper Muffins Dorie mentions the Corniest Corn Muffins, I did a comparison.

Savory Corn Muffins

Now, in the strictest sense of the word, it isn't a true recipe to recipe comparison, because as you can see in my muffins I left out a lot of the bells and whistles. Mainly because no one in this house would have eaten them with the extra heat from the jalapeno and bell pepper. I even backed down on the chili powder. I am going to assume that this is why I really didn't love the texture or flavor of these muffins. Aside from that, they are just not the kind of cornbread or corn muffin I usually like. They are a rather sturdy muffin and they are savory. There isn't anything wrong with that, it just isn't really my thing.

On the other hand, you have the Corniest Corn Muffins. Different story. First off, the only spice really added is the littlest amount of freshly grated nutmeg - which I love in just about anything - and the addition of quite a bit more sugar - which, again, no brainer that I love me some sugar. These muffins, like the others have bits of corn (I used frozen) in the batter as well. I loved everything about these muffins. They were sweet, tender and absolutely delicious.

To sum it up. If you like sweet cornbread, use the Corniest Corn Muffins, if you are a savory kind of person who likes some spice, then by all means use the Savory Corn and Pepper Muffins. Either way, they are both great. It just depends on your preference.

Don't forget to visit the Tuesdays with Dorie blogroll to see all the other muffins out there today!

YWPWT: Chocolate Tartlets

The Sugar:  They are tiny, darling, easy to make and a real knock-out to eat.  What's not to love?

The Snark:  They are tiny, darling, easy to make and about knocked me on my butt with how good they are.  Their size makes them good for portion control... right?  Right.  As in, I had a hard time controlling myself from eating everyone's portions.

The Spice:  I thought about various ways to try to dress these up, but frankly, there is a reason that the little black dress is a classic and I'm not one to mess with perfection.  These are simple and elegant in the very best of ways.

This month's You Want Pies With That? is all about the straw that could break the camel's back, I mean, if the camel knew that if someone put one more straw on his back that he would be a goner.  In words that actually make sense, it is about that pie or tart recipe that could make you break your New Year's Resolutions (if you made them - which I am doing the anti-resolution this year myself anyway, but the point is the same).  The genius's behind this theme are Nic of Bakeologie and Carrie of Cooking With Carrie.  My thanks go out to Susan for creating this fun group and for keeping it up, it has been crazy busy and I'm so glad to be able to work with her on this (and for the extension - though I am not happy it is because she isn't feeling well!!  Hope you are better by the time you read this, if not sooner, Sus!)  

By the way, if you have little kiddo's, don't miss Susan's shoe giveaway going on right now over at the always fun and fantastic (with the best reviews!) She's Becoming DoughMESStic.  They are just way too cute to resist!

It is all about that pie recipe that you couldn't resist, even in the face of best intentions.  As a matter of fact, there are still a couple of these darling little chocolate ganache filled tartlets sitting in my kitchen waiting to break me... I mean waiting to be eaten.

I have had Robert Linxe's Chocolate Tart recipe bookmarked over at Smitten Kitchen, well, ever since I found them.  Especially since the recipe comes from Dorie Greenspan's Paris Sweets book.  The thing about these little tarts is that it is so easy to make, and if you like chocolate at all then these could break you too.  Think, buttery cookie crust with just enough sweet and salty to balance out an extremely rich and smooth chocolate truffle filling.  It couldn't be any easier to make and definitely couldn't be any easier to enjoy. In my opinion, that makes these an ultimate guilty pleasure because there is so little effort and work involved for such wonderful results. 

Speaking of guilty pleasures, like dark chocolate, which as I mentioned above, is actually good for us with all those great antioxidants, I thought I would come clean on a few of my guilty pleasures.  Do I actually feel guilt about them?  No, not really.  I was told a few days ago that was a sign of maturity on my part, but frankly, I just don't worry too much about whether it is something silly or not.  I just enjoy what I can.  There is enough bad stuff in life to go around without sucking all the joy out of the things you enjoy in life.

So, confession time - my 'guilty' pleasures (besides the obvious sugar and chocolate addiction):

Romance/Suspense/Mystery Novels:  I am an avid reader, but I don't read biographies or things that will "make the world a better place".  I probably should, but when I read, I'm not ashamed to admit it is for an escape from reality.  I'm purely there for entertainment value.  I have enough reality in my life, I am fine with giving myself a break and trying to take a trip to somewhere else.  I'm not saying that all books are great, because they are not, but some consistent winners and my personal favorite are from Nora Roberts (and all her books as J.D. Robb too).  She is a fantastic writer and really knows how to make you feel involved in the lives of your characters and get to know and love them.

TV Melodramas:  Again, I'm looking for entertainment and that is fine by me.   My current favorites are Privileged, 90210 (don't ask me why?!), and Psych - which is just so fun and silly and hilarious and well written that I always laugh my head off, no matter how bad of a mood I'm in.  I didn't discover Psych until a couple of months ago and have been recording everyone to enjoy after the kids are asleep and I need a real break.  Privileged is also well written and very entertaining.  I think 90210 is more like the train wreck you just can't look away from, but I still watch anyway.  We also love NCIS, which is just a great show.  I don't get out much with two little kids anymore, so this is my grown-up entertainment.

So, what is my point?  Well, that I thoroughly enjoying snacking on a couple of these little darlings with their creamy truffle filling while enjoying a couple of those shows.  It was a great way to unwind after a frustrating day.

Just look at how creamy and glossy the warm ganache is before it sets up!  I could have just eaten them up like this, but actually, it is worth it to wait and let them set up.  I did at least make them small tartlets so that they were easier to give a few away - in theory anyway.

TWD: French Pear Tart

Did you hear?  This Tuesday with Dorie is really with Dorie?!  Yeah.  I know.  Too cool.  This week's amazingly terrific recipe choice is by none other than Dorie Greenspan herself.  A moment please.  I'm feeling a little overwhelmed...

OK.  On with the show.  So, Dorie chose the French Pear Tart as the first recipe for 2009.  I was super excited because I have had that one bookmarked ever since I got the book.  I was curious what it would be like since I have never (A) seen anything like the recipe described and (B) ever since I made the Almond Cream recipe (when I made my Rugelach) I have been having insane cravings to make it again.   It really is one of the most heavenly creations I've ever tasted.

My only nod to New Year's Resolutions this year is to enjoy life and the things I want to, but to be smart and enjoy in moderation.  That, for the most part, is what I do anyway.  I know it looks like I eat nothing but dessert here in the notoriously sweet-ridden PheMOMenal kitchen, but really, we eat food.  Seriously.  Don't laugh.  I'm serious.  (I heard that).

Ahem.

So.  What is my point?  This tart could break me.  That is my point.   I halved the recipe and it is a good thing.  Otherwise, I would probably have eaten the entire 9-inch tart all by myself.

I'm going to tell you a little known and ridiculous fact about myself.  My Senior year in High School (yes, that long ago) when the votes came in for Senior class titles - you know - best smile, best legs, most likely to end up in prison - and no, I'm not kidding, that was a real category - there was a vote for Most Likely to be a Used Car Salesman.  Yeah.  So.  Ummm...

One of my best friends and I won.  We were so proud.  We went down into the depths of the costume area for the Drama Department at our school and raided for the best - well, worst - car salesman outfits we could find - the plaid pants, the yellow jacket, the 70's style collars and a old fedora - it was good.  If I could only find that yearbook, I swear I would share the picture. It was classic.   

The theory behind the voting, or so I was told, went something like this.  They voted for the two people who it seemed could talk their way into or out of any situation.  When they put it like that, I have to admit, I deserved it.  I spent most of my Senior year breaking the rules, getting away with everything and never getting into any trouble for it.  Think Ferris Bueller, only friends with all the teachers and administrators instead of the principal chasing after me. It was awesome.  I still got good grades and didn't get into real trouble, but I also pretty much just did what I wanted all the time.  It was a great year.

Anyway.  By now, you have to asking yourselves what on earth this has to do with a French Pear Tart, blogging about food, and why you and I are both here.

Here at PheMOMenon, I like to talk myself into and out of things still - all the time.  If I really want something, I will work a way around to it to try to talk myself into it or out of it.  This causes a lot of over-thinking of things, but it keeps life interesting as well.

To make my reviews of things a little more interesting, I am committing myself to a little segment I have decided to call SSSS.  Pronounced sss of course, the fourth 's' is silent - probably as in the crickets chirping at how funny I think I am, when I'm not - ok.  Just kidding.  Really it is Sugar, Snark and Spice.  So, what does that mean, you ask? 

The Sugar:  What I have that is nice to say about something.

The Snark:  Mmmm... maybe not so nice, or maybe it is just the part where I share my abilities outlined above to show you how I can pretty much justify almost anything.  

The Spice:  What I really think.  Sometimes a little spice is good, sometimes not so much.  It could go either way.  Oh the suspense!!

This section will be highlighted at the top of every post, under my  favorite photo of the item in question.  Well, except this time, when it is going to end up right.... about.... here....

The Sugar:  I've already said how much I love the Almond Cream.  I still do. There is just something insanely good about it.  The crust is like a tender, sweet cookie, so what's not to love there.  

The Snark:  So.  Here's the thing.  Is there great quantities of sugar and butter involved.  Yes. Of course, silly.  But, there is also fruit and fruit is good for you.  I don't eat enough fruit.  If I make this and eat fruit that has to be a good thing, right?  Right.  Plus, add on to that the fact that almonds are a superfood (I think - either way, that's my story and I'm sticking to it) and this is practically begging to be eaten at least once a week.

The Spice:  Nothing bad to say about it, so you have to know that, even though I wasn't actually sure I was going to like the pears, I went with it anyway.  I did make two small 5-inch tarts instead of one huge one (dang it!) and that is how I went for the moderation.  Another keeper!

Make sure to head on over to the Tuesdays with Dorie blogroll to see all the fabulous tarts running around today!

First Blogiversary and 2008 Favorites Round-Up

Happy Blogiversary to my little blog! One year ago today was when I published my first post. I didn't have a clue what I was doing, but I knew I needed to do something. I was locked up at home and going slowly crazy. I needed contact with the world outside my little house and outside my mind. The world of food bloggers is the best support group I could have ever asked for.

I thought I would share a selection of my favorite posts from my first year. I made many things I had never made before, some that I had never heard of, but out of them all, these are probably the ones I am most proud of or enjoyed the most. It isn't even all of them, but I posted over 175 posts in my first year and thought I had better stop with these few. So, without further ado, and in no particular order of favor, but in the order of the photos in the mosaic above, here are many of my faves from 2008.  They are shown in the same order as the photos above, left to right, top to bottom:

1. Peach Leaf Pie


2. Chocolate Coconut Raspberry Swirl Tarts


3. Apple Infinity Pie


4. Raspberry Spiked Brownies and Vanilla Frozen Custard


5. White and Dark Chocolate Marshmallows


6. Chocolate Cupcakes with Strawberry Buttercream


7. Blueberry Orange Clafoutis


8. Peanut Butter Torte Bars


9. Black & White Cookies


10. Orange Mousse Creme Brulee


11. Pecan Sticky Buns


12. Gruyere Stuffed Rolls


13. Chocolate Oatmeal Cake


14. Strawberry Tarts with Chocolate and Sweet Crust


15. Peach Cobbler in jars


16. Honey Lime Chicken Enchiladas


17. Malted Chocolate Whopper Drop Cookies


18. Jam Crumb Cake and Plum Preserves


19. Chocolate Hazelnut Macarons


20. Lenox Almond Biscotti


21. Pumpkin Muffins


22. Banana Cream Pie


23. Apple Cider Doughnuts


24. Rugelach


25. Turkey Roulade


26. Kugelhopf


27. Perfect Party Cake


28. Chocolate Pudding Pops


29. Chocolate Chess Pie


30. Butterscotch Pudding

I count myself very blessed to be a part of this community and words can't express how grateful I am to all of you who visit and comment. You are what kept me from losing my mind this past year. I needed an outlet that wasn't all about dealing with preemies and health issues and that would let me work through some things. I needed an escape from the craziness and stress. A sanctuary. All of you amazing people have been all of that and more. I have made friends with so many truly talented, fun and incredible people. It has been an amazing first year, filled with friends, amazing food, sharpening of my skills and confidence and support.  It took a long time, but I feel like I was able to find my voice and feel comfortable with sharing my thoughts.   I am looking forward to continuing with this for a long time to come and hope that you will all continue to join me for the ride!

To say thank you to you all, January is going to be a month of celebration here at Phe/MOM/enon. 

Stay tuned for some fun announcements throughout the month!

AWARDS

Thank You Melanie!



Thank You Chriesi!



Thank You Gabi!



Thank you Steph and Carrie!


Thank you Tea Lady!



Thank you Cristine!