Peppermint is the one flavor that transforms itself at the holidays. Some of the traditional tastes, eggnog, fruitcake, even gingerbread, hardly make an appearance at any other time of the year. But not peppermint. I eat peppermint candy all year. The little hidey-hole in the arm on the door of my car is always filled with peppermints pilfered from bowls at restaurants and … [Read more...] about Peppermint Angels
Holiday Cooking
Overnight Eggnog French Toast Casserole
I have a thing for eggnog. I think it is my favorite holiday flavor. I buy all the eggnog flavored holiday gimmicks – candy, yogurt, ice cream, coffee creamer (and I don’t even drink coffee). I love a good glass of eggnog, but I don’t really drink it as much as I bake with it. I have become something of an eggnog baking expert. In fact, in planning out my Christmas posts, I … [Read more...] about Overnight Eggnog French Toast Casserole
Decadent Hot Chocolate
I have always liked the idea of making homemade hot chocolate. I have tried many recipes; I have made hot chocolate with expensive, imported chocolates, cocoa powder and all sorts of permutations. Butafter all the experimentation, I finally put together this recipe – using plain ol’ Hershey bars. And it is some kind of good. This is not hot chocolate for the faint of … [Read more...] about Decadent Hot Chocolate
Spiced Fruitcake Bars
During my college semester abroad in London, I was determined to visit Austria on winter break. I am not sure where this notion came from, maybe too much Sound of Music as a kid, but I set out alone to discover whether the hills were truly alive. After a trying time in Vienna, I moved on to Salzburg, a lovely place I found charming and comforting and manageable. I think it … [Read more...] about Spiced Fruitcake Bars
Pumpkin Cream Tart
My First Thanksgiving The first Thanksgiving feast that ever I cooked was during graduate school in England. An American friend and I decided to host a holiday meal at his digs, which had a larger kitchen, for a motley crew of Americans, Canadians, South Africans and an Ecuadorian thrown in for good measure. This plan of course meant that I cooked and he, well, he ate. I … [Read more...] about Pumpkin Cream Tart
