I await fig season each summer with such eager anticipation. I get to the farmers market first thing on Saturday morning, making a beeline to my favorite fig vendor to snap up as many as there are available. My first task is making Fig, Bourbon and Vanilla Bean Jam, a favorite of my friends and family. I hold a few back to slice and eat drizzled with honey or wrapped in … [Read more...] about Fig, Brown Butter and Hazelnut Tart
Sweets
Blueberry Lavender Pound Cake
Last year, I went on a little tear baking with fruit and herbs. It started when a favorite vendor at the farmers market had a proliferation of lemon balm, and it was so fragrant I couldn’t resist. That led to my Nectarine and Lemon Balm Cake. The same trip to the market resulted in a plethora of blueberries, so I turned them into this dense, rich pound cake, and with my … [Read more...] about Blueberry Lavender Pound Cake
Frozen Lemon Bisque with Blueberry Nutmeg Compote
Frozen lemon bisque is what my mother always called this lovely dessert. It was her party piece for years, served at all her dinner parties, and sometimes just for us. She always served it from a cut crystal bowl, a bowl I always think of as the lemon bisque bowl. And she always served it with a blueberry sauce, sometimes with nutmeg. I have always loved that dessert, and at … [Read more...] about Frozen Lemon Bisque with Blueberry Nutmeg Compote
Gypsy Tart
I thought, when all these safer-at-home orders started, that I would be an absolute cooking machine. Testing three and four recipes a day, absolutely alight with creativity. And I’d make myself fantastic meals twice a day. I planned to become an expert on cooking from the pantry and the freezer. But it hasn’t happened. I still cook – it’s my job – but that burst of energy and … [Read more...] about Gypsy Tart
Dundee Cake
We are all spending more time at home these days, and I think it would be a very civilized idea to bring back afternoon tea. To take a moment in the day to sit down with a cup of tea (or coffee or lemonade) and a nice treat and relax, unwind and talk. After you wrap up your work from home or the school day. I have always had it in my mind that I would start inviting people over … [Read more...] about Dundee Cake
