• Funfetti Scotcharoos

    I honestly can’t remember the first time I had scotcharoos.  I know it was at least a decade ago.  My mother-in-law sent them home with my husband and I’m pretty sure I ate the entire box of them before my husband even realized what was going on.  They’re yumzos. Scotcharoos seem to be a pretty common Midwestern potluck/picnic/party food.  I’ve had them prepared a gazillion different ways, cut into different shapes, sizes, some with too much chocolate, some with not enough, etc. etc.  Of course, everyone’s…

  • No Bake Peanut Butter Cheesecake

    As the minutes start to dwindle on my four-day holiday weekend, I have to admit that I’m not ready quite yet to get back into the swing of things.  Tomorrow it’s back to work, the girls start two-nights-a-week dance class, and suddenly the first signs of fall are all around us.  Now, don’t get me wrong – I love fall, but I don’t love winter.  Fall is a bit of a double-edged sword.  Love it, but dread it because cold weather is right around the…

  • Cookie Dough Brownies

    Right now, I’m sitting in the lobby of my daughter’s gymnastics studio, waiting for her to finish up.  In my flurry to get her fed, dressed and out the door after school, I didn’t have time to eat dinner myself.  On top of that, I’m writing a blog post about cookie dough brownies.  This is pure torture.   I’m really wishing I would have packed myself a little brownie goodie bag.   I feel like I’ve been making a lot of cakes (and cupcakes) lately,…

  • American Kitchen Stories

    When I think back on my childhood, then to my college years, and now to my adult life (I use the term adult loosely), many of my happiest and most vivid memories took place in a kitchen.  When I think of family gatherings, I’m always transported to a kitchen.  When I was a teenager, we had a phone with a long white cord in our kitchen – and I spent many nights laying on my kitchen floor talking to my now husband. On Sundays, all…

  • One Minute Chocolate Cake

    I’m sorry.  I know that it’s a new year, and I know that your resolution to eat healthier is already nagging at you, but I just couldn’t let this one pass.  One minute chocolate cake?  Yes.  I made it, topped it and ate it all under five minutes. I’m not ashamed. Now, if I’m really being honest, this actually took a little longer than one minute to make.  It took two and a half minutes.  I used a small glass bowl, a small whisk and…

  • Chocolate Cupcake with Peanut Butter Cookie Frosting

    So, close your eyes for a minute, and imagine with me. Wait, don’t close your eyes yet.  You have to read this first. Ok, in a minute, you’re going to close your eyes and imagine a soft, perfectly-chocolate cupcake.  It peels away from the wrapper in one piece, and is just strong enough to hold the weight of the frosting without being too dense or heavy. You bite through a soft, sweet layer of peanut butter “cookie” nestled atop a generous layer of dark, slightly-sweet…

  • Cheesy Garlic Biscuits

    So, I have a confession to make.  I don’t care for seafood.  Admittedly, I have had a bite or two off my husband’s plates over the years that didn’t make me gag, but generally speaking, I can’t do fish – cooked or raw, shell or not – it’s not happening.  For this reason, growing up in the Midwest has proven to be to my advantage – I have a lot of other protein options and a good steak is far more prevalent than any seafood…

  • Samoa Sheet Cake

    So, first – let me tell you about my weekend.  Then we’ll get to this DELICIOUS Samoa Cake recipe. I took a couple of extra days off before the long Memorial Day weekend, mostly to prepare for my daughter’s birthday party and get the girls to and from dance recital and rehearsal, which this year fell on Thursday and Friday evening.  NBD.  Right? Yeah. So Thursday brought some (SCARY) severe weather to my part of the world, and of course that only happens when my…

  • Strawberry Cupcakes with Ice Cream Buttercream

    Hold.  The.  Phone. Did I really just make ICE CREAM BUTTERCREAM? Um, yes.  Yes I did.  And know what it tastes like on top of a strawberry cupcake?  Yep, just like you think it would taste, only better.  Kind of like strawberry ice cream, but without the brain-freeze. And, it’s only four ingredients, and it’s E.A.S.Y. So, strawberry cupcakes, buttercream that tastes EXACTLY like ice-cream, and no brain freeze. Best cupcake ever, right? I’ve been on a bit of a strawberry cupcake kick lately –…

  • Spinach & Gruyere Quiche

    Every time I think of quiche, I am reminded of weekend shopping trips with my mom and sisters.  We’d leave early on a Saturday morning and head to the mall or shopping centers so we could be there when they’d open, and we’d shop until after lunchtime.  I can’t even imagine how much money we spent, but we hit every store in the shopping center, sometimes twice, until we were done.  After our marathon trip, we’d head out to eat a late lunch at the…

  • Chocolate Buttercream Cake

      I love chocolate cake.  Good chocolate cake might be my very favorite thing, ever.  So when I saw this recipe, I knew I had to try it. The first thing I noticed was that there were a LOT of ingredients, far more than any chocolate cake recipe I’ve ever tried before.  I would strongly suggest pre-measuring your ingredients so they’ll be ready to add as you go along, and take the time to buy or cut the parchment circles for your cake pans.  You’ll thank…

  • Pumpkin BTS Cake

    So, I don’t really care what you call this cake.  Anytime you combine pumpkin, homemade whipped cream and caramel sauce?  Uh-MAZE-balls.  My last BTS cake has driven almost 120,000 visitors to Lemon Sugar, and is among one of my most requested desserts in my inner circle. Inner circle?  That means my family.  I don’t know why I called them my inner circle.  I’m clearly not Miley Cyrus.  I don’t have an “inner circle.” But if I did, I would totally feed them BTS cake. If…