Maple Walnut Blondies with Butterscotch Glaze

So here we are. Or at least, here I am. Already with a blanket on my lap and a cat atop the blanket. (Niles weighs 19 lbs. My legs cannot fathom having a child.)

Has the switch been thrown so soon? Everything; the wind, the sky's cool hue, my icy fingertips, the wistful way the sun casts it's light as it sets too soon...the world's ambiance has changed. It's a subtle shift, the trees still cling to their green leaves and there will still be warm nights peppered onto the following weeks, but I can sense that a page has been turned. Every year I wonder when and how that occurs. I listen for it, I peek into hidden corridors, but it just happens. Fall slides softy and quietly into our lives the way cream swirls gently into an unstirred cup of coffee.

Inevitably, and sometimes against my will, I start to crave apples, and pumpkin lattes, and cinnamon, and maple.

Pecan Joy Cookies

"When sorrows come, they come not single spies, but in battalions." Hamlet (act 4, scene 5)

So true. Although in this case, it's less sorrow, more stress. Last week I chipped a tooth on a rogue popcorn kernel (luckily the chip was located on one of the shy, out-of-sight back teeth). Once that was taken care of, my car started making odd noises which I can only describe as that hissing, angry sound coffee pots make when you cram 16 Tablespoons of grounds into an undersized "gold" filter. Adding salt to the chip and hissing, Niles, my cat, may need to have a tooth extracted. Who knew cats could have dental problems?

This month may be a little bit slim, as far as posting is concerned, but I promise to get back on top of baking and picture taking as soon as things return to my neurotically structured version of normal.

I do, however, have these spectacular cookies to share with everyone!

Pine Nut and Chocolate Caramel Squares

I love recipes that bridge the gap between the sweet and savory worlds. For the past few years, bacon has been the ambassador of the savories, and chocolate has carried the torch for sweets. I'll never forget my first experience with a dark chocolate and bacon bar...it was cosmic!

Tipsy Chocolate Pecan Pie

Have you ever sighed, woefully, because pecan pies are so cloyingly sweet? Or wept internally over the fact that you couldn't have a second piece because you just complained, aloud, that pecan pies are cloyingly sweet?

Well, sigh no more, would-be pecan pie lovers. Sigh no more.

Walnut-Oat Caramel Shortbread

My convenient, digital kitchen scale rarely gets to play in the world of grams, so why start now? For this recipe, I dug out my mom's old-school kitchen scale. (The kind that has to be at eye-level in order to get an accurate read on the thin, wobbly needle.)

Tuesdays with Dorie: Honey-Nut Scones

I hope that everyone had a fun Halloween!

As usual, I had absolutely no trick-or-treaters. So not only am I left with the residual guilt of candy corn hoarding, but now I have a crooked, ceramic bowlful of Smarties, Jolly Ranchers (my other weakness), and raisins (yes, I'm one of "those" people.) I'm beginning to wonder if I'm turning into the crazy cat lady. Are 3 cats the default qualification number, or am I saved by the fact that I'm still in my early 30's? I pondered this and other deep thoughts as I devoured a scone while watching "House". I absolutely ♥ that show...it sometimes makes me wonder if I missed my true calling (then again, so did "Alias" and "Ally McBeal").

Pistachio-Walnut Baklava (Daring Bakers' Challenge)

Phyllo dough, along with symmetrical layer cakes, yeast breads that actually rise, and the ability to avoid stepping barefoot through a rogue hairball at 3 o'clock in the morning, is just not in the cards (not mine anyway.) I'm not sure what went wrong, or when the phyllo dough, which up until the rolling portion of the recipe, had been so genteel, decided to turn on me. I would like love to blame the humidity and heat for making all the layers stick together, but considering where this amazing dessert has it's origins, I can't really point fingers at the temperature. I'm eyeballing the flour though. Maybe the half-bag that I threw onto every square inch of every layer (as well as my kitchen) wasn't enough? Maybe the flour wasn't really flour, but sticky tape? It shall remain a mystery. But phyllo dough and I will meet again, and next time I'll be prepared... and I'll have an unexpected ally, Winter.

Erica of Erica's Edibles was our host for the Daring Baker’s June challenge. Erica challenged us to be truly DARING by making homemade phyllo dough and then to use that homemade dough to make Baklava. Thank you Erica. Despite the the devious dough, I did have fun making this!

Chocolate Chip-Pistachio Bars

Chocolate chips, long time no see! It's frustrating when, as a food blogger, you fail to capture how spectacular something is. It's like picking a bouquet of flowers for someone, dropping them in heavy traffic, getting a few caught in a doorway, and then trying to explain how beautiful they looked at one point. I made David Lebovitz's chocolate chip cookies a few weeks ago, but the pictures are sitting in my camera, waiting for me to release them. They were good, very very good (I'm speaking of the cookies here, not the photos.) Until I started this blog, I had no idea how fussy cookies can be when it comes to getting their picture taken. I've over done the cookie in a cup, and I always fall back on just plopping them on top of each other, so I wanted to try something different. After reading about taking pictures using the manual settings, I attempted to be cute by placing a glass of milk in the frame. However, not only does whole milk and half & half taste better in cereal, I'm sure they're much more photogenic than transparent-blueish skim milk. It looked like dingy dish water, plus I didn't have a tripod to help alleviate the effects of too much coffee and frustration. So my plan is to go back to my fall-back cookie settings (i.e. cookies in a cup), and redo the recipe soon...eventually.

Non-food bloggers, are you bored stiff right now? Sorry. I had to vent a bit about food photography. Onto the actual bars!

Tuesdays with Dorie: Honey Nut Brownies

It's been a while since I've made brownies. And just to clarify, they are not on my list of overly-chocolaty-things (that spot is reserved exclusively for chocolate on chocolate cake), so no worries, brownies will still make a cameo appearance here from time to time. *I wonder how many people are ready to hit me over the head with their whisks for not liking double chocolate cake?* It will all be explained when I write about my sister's birthday cake... there is a reason for the implied craziness, I do promise. :D

Tuesdays with Dorie: Citrus Pecan Sunshine Muffins

I couldn't possibly stay away for lemons for too long. And I'm happy to say that they rebounded quite well in this recipe. These muffins match the mood that everyone seems to be in now that Spring is on the way. They're perky, hopeful, and full of promise for the coming day/season. As opposed to my usual late-winter sulky persona (this year it was almost as bad as my angsty, brooding, door-slamming preteen phase.) I'm just so happy that the long months of winter are Finally coming to an end!

Tuesdays with Dorie: Toasted Almond Scones

When I saw this week's Tuesdays with Dorie pick, I was so excited! I've been making googly eyes at these scones ever since I bought Dorie's book. Almonds and I are pretty tight. I know I can always turn to them if I think a recipe needs a little pick-me-up. So when almonds actually get to take center stage in a recipe, I'm in the front row, ready to give a standing ovation. And if ever a scone recipe deserves a round of applause, it's this one! I'm not a huge scone fan, and I don't know many scone fans, which is why I don't make them very often. But, based on this recipe, maybe I should start baking these coffee/tea companions more often.

Toffee-Nut Bars

The comforting aroma of brown butter, especially during cold wintry days, is the culinary equivalent of your favourite over sized-sweater...the one that comes down to the knees and can be worn over leggings (mine is grey, and nubby, and super-warm.) When I'm freezing, I can't wait to throw it on, sit on the sofa, and curl my legs up into it. The scent of Brown butter makes me feel the same way.

Nutella-Peanut Butter Pillows (revisited)

Since this is peanut butter lover's month, I wanted to take things full circle by returning to an old favourite. When I first started blogging, well over a year ago, this was one of my first recipes.

Salted Caramel Pecan Shortbread

Caramel, my warm and sometimes temperamental cold-weather-companion, has returned. And the reunion didn't require too much persuasion. A cool night, the slight chill carried on a breeze and the need to pull out my beloved grey cardigan.

Tuesdays with Dorie: Chewy, Chunky Blondies

Sometimes a cookie just isn't enough, you need to sink your teeth into something more substantial. Enter the classic blondie. They are basically pudgy, pimped out cookies.

Tuesdays with Dorie: Swedish Visiting Cake

A huge Thank You to Nancy of the blog, The Dogs Eat the Crumbs, for hosting this weeks Tuesdays with Dorie. I think a lot of us have been waiting patiently for someone to chose this recipe. Why? Because of Dorie Greenspan's mouthwatering description.

Blueberry and Apricot Almond Thumbprints (TWD)

These cookies are fabulous. I loved everything about them. From their jewel toned eyes to their lacy dressing of powdered sugar.

Maple Macadamia Nut Bars

Happy belated Valentine's Day! I used to be anti V-day and go around in grey sweaters with black pants. That phase is long gone, I think I left all that angst somewhere back in college along with a much missed papasan.

Caramel Pecan Bars

I warned you about this caramel obsession. And I still can't quite explain the fascination. Maybe I just like to perform kitchen alchemy and watch the way white sugar transforms into a dark camel coloured creamy substance.

Dark Chocolate Turtle-Scotch Brownies

Fresh off the heels of my homemade caramel obsession, I decided to try my skills at the easier to make, yet just as sticky and irresistible, butterscotch sauce.