Italian Pignoli Cookies

Pignoli Nut Cookies are a soft Italian macaroon like cookies topped with crunchy pine nuts. Whenever you get a box of Italian pastries, you're sure to find these delicious cookies inside. I got a request for a recipe for these cookies, but they're actual one of my favorites! The recipe is also really simple and they're gluten free too if you use gluten free almond paste.

        My mom's good friend Toni Ann requested these cookies and will have a sweet delivery today! If you     are local and you request a recipe, once I make them I can deliver them right to your door!

Italian Pignoli Cookies
makes around a dozen cookies

Ingredients:

one 7 oz tube of almond paste
1/2 cup sugar
one egg white
3/4 cup pine nuts

preheat oven to 350 degrees // crumble almond paste into food processor and process until they're crumbs // add in sugar a little at a time and process until combined // add in egg white and process until the dough is smooth // roll two tablespoons of dough lightly in your hands and press into pine nuts // bake on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper for 12 - 15 minutes // remove from oven and let cool

A Summer Vacation to the South

Hi everyone, hope all of you are enjoying your summer! Sorry for not posting again, it's just that summer is a super busy time, from vacations, day trips, and all the like. Anyways, I would have posted last week except I was on vacation since last Wednesday and came back yesterday. I had great photo opportunities, and got lots of inspiration for new recipes!

My family and I started our nine-day trip at 4:30 am, Wednesday morning. We got the car all packed and settled in for a 6-hour ride to Charlottesville, Virginia. Before going to our hotel, we drove through Shenandoah National Park. It was our first view of the Appalachian Mountains on our trip but definitely not our last!

When we finally arrived, everyone was so excited to be at our hotel, and to be out of our car. Our first stop was the Jefferson Mansion - Monticello. I don't have any pictures, but it was amazing. I definitely got some inspiration and ideas for my room and future house (I've been dreaming of decorating my own home since I learned how to read HGTV magazine).

Jefferson designed and decorated the entire house, inside and out.  He placed all the beds into a small alcove, and used windows and sky lights to bring in as much light as he could. There were mirrors across from any window to reflect natural light throughout the room, and designed his home to be practical and stunning. My favorite room was the entrance hall, filled with an assortment of native american weapons and arrows mounted on the wall. There was a clock Jefferson designed that could tell the time and the day, one very sophisticated for its time. He also had a room in the shape octagon, which I don't think I'll be able to find when looking for a home in the future.

After we left the mansion, we went for dinner at a restaurant in our hotel. We stayed one night in Virginia, then headed off to Gatlinburg, TN -- a totally different scene! There was one big street full of restaurants and many different shops. Then drive five minutes away and you're right in the middle of the Great Smoky Mountains! We took many trips through the Mountains and saw many deer and black bear while we were there!

We took a 1.3 mile hike to breathtaking waterfall; Laurel Falls. Even though it took about 30 minutes to get there in the humid Tennessee weather, it was definitely worth it!

The Smokies had many rivers, including the one below that we drove along side of to roughly an hour. At the end was an old mill and barn (Ely's Mill - nearly 100 years old) that was converted into a little shop with antiques, homemade yarn, and lots of other little crafts.

We stayed 4 nights in Gatlinburg, then went to Cherokee, NC to the native american reservation. It was one of my favorite places we visited. I love the Native America culture and got a dream catcher while there!  I went to three different shops before finding the perfect one, made with tan leather and an abundance of brown and tan feathers. We only stayed in Cherokee one night there, then left in the morning for our last stop on our vacation: Asheville, NC. It's home to Biltmore Estate, owned by the famous Vanderbilts. There is an Inn that's part of the estate, where we stayed for two nights. The Estate was beautiful, even prettier than the Jefferson.There was no stone unturned in that place, they had the best of everything!

There's a downtown part of Asheville, which was definitely one of my favorite parts of the trip. They had an abundance of vintage thrift shops with the cutest clothes I've ever seen. Art gallerys, antique stores, and my favorite of them all, L.O.F.T of Asheville, a store full of the funniest, coolest, rarest things ever! I got a sweet smelling little candle and a princess crown ring that are totally rad.

I didn't want to leave, but as they say, all good things must come to an end. The trip was amazing and I learned so much, and got so much inspiration, from baking to decorating, and everything in between.

I should have one or two more posts by the end of next week, including Italian pignoli cookies and caramel pretzel brownies! Keep the requests coming!

Lemon Poppy Seed Tea Cookies

I made these cookies a while ago and I never got around to posting them. To be honest, I don't really know how I came up with these cookies, but I've always liked these flavors together. Most of my family likes plain desserts and these are simple cookies that go perfect with a nice cup of tea! The cookies in the picture actually have a honey and lemon glaze, but the flavors didn't work well together, so I just took out the honey from the recipe. Honey doesn't really appeal to me anyways, and I don't know why so many people obsess over it (yes obsess). Like when I read The Secret Life of Bees, I never understood how they could eat honey off of a spoon. Oh well, I guess it's just not my cup of tea, or something I'd like to put in my tea either!

Lemon Poppy Seed Tea Cookies

makes aprox 2 doz

Ingredients:

cookies:

1 stick butter 

1 1/2 cup flour 

1/2 cup sugar 

1 egg 

1 tsp vanilla extract

1/2 tsp almond extract 

2 tbs poppy seeds

glaze:

1/2 cup heavy cream

1 tsp lemon zest 

1 tsp lemon juice 

1 cups powdered sugar, sifted 

cookies:

preheat oven to 325 // beat butter and sugar // add in egg //  add in flour // mix in extracts // fold in poppy seed // roll out and cut into 2 inch circles with biscuit cutter // bake at 325 for 20 minutes

mix all ingredients for glaze // dip cooled cookies in icing

I'm liking the fact that I've been posting more often and I'm loving the feedback. Thanks everyone! Also, if you didn't notice, I changed the format of my recipes, there more simple now and much easier to follow. I'm not going to change the old ones but that's how they will be from now on. Please leave some requests for anything you'd like me to make. Hope everyone's summer is going well so far, but I'm really anticipating fall and all the fall baking; I can smell it already!

The Best Crumb Cake you'll ever Make, and Eat!

My family and my obsession for this crumb cake started last year when I had to decide what to get my mom for her birthday. My mom isn't picky, so I knew I could get her almost anything and she would like it. So I planned on baking her something but I just wasn't sure what. So asked her, "what's you're favorite dessert; ever." And her answer surprised me but I was not gonna question it, because to be honest, I kinda wanted crumb cake with caramel too. But I knew I couldn't just make a boxed cake with store bought caramel, it had to be homemade and different.

And there I went, hunting down every pin for the ultimate crumb cake and the best (and easiest) homemade caramel recipe, that didn't involve melting prewrapped caramel candies that taste pretty disgusting. Finallyyyy, I found a crumb cake recipe, super crumb cake to be exact, from The Domestic Rebel. Just by looking at the pictures of the cake made me want to make it. And then came the best part. Heaven in one recipe. I'm pretty sure I've mentioned this caramel about a million times because it's that good. Did I mention it was my first time making it? Yah, I might have burnt the first batch. Whoops.

So here's how it went: The crumb cake came out so good. Most of it was the crumb (which was fine for me since that's my favorite part) and the small amount of cake was moist and didn't over power the crumb, but I mean, how could it? The only problem I had was that I couldn't get it out of the pan. Oh well. So I poured about a cup and a half of the caramel on top of the whole cake and let it sit over night. I can't tell you how much I wanted to eat that cake, I think I dreamed about devouring the whole thing. The next day, when I brought out the cake for my family,I had a hunch that they really wanted to dig right in, I mean I don't know why. We each got a pretty big piece of cake, but we all went back with our spoons to scoop out some more crumb and caramel from the pan. After that, I had some requests for the cake, and the caramel itself! You can buy a jar of caramel on my facebook page. Just message me and I should get back to you as soon as possible!

You're probably wondering why I decided to post this now, since this cake is what's been missing from your life. But I'm posting it now because I just recently made it for my great aunt's birthday, because I made it with her a few months ago. This time, I changed the cake to a lighter and fluffier sour cream cake that I created, and I changed the crumb up a bit so it would be more buttery. The new recipe is different from the original but it still has that buttery crumb on top. I definitely recommend trying this recipe, if you haven't gotten the hint already.

The Best Ever Crumb Cake:
makes one 9x5" cake

Ingredients:

For the cake: 

1 stick butter

1 cup sugar

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla

1 1/2 cups flour

1/2 tsp baking soda

1 cup sour cream

For the crumb:

4 cups flour

2 cup brown sugar

4 tbs cinnamon

3 1/2 sticks butter, softened  

3/4 homemade or store bought caramel (I promise I won't judge if you buy your caramel)

Directions:

For the cake:

1. Preheat oven to 350.

2. Cream the butter and the sugar until smooth 

3. Beat in eggs one at a time, then beat in the vanilla

4. Mix in the flour and baking soda

5. Fold in the sour cream until everything is smooth

For the crumb:

With an electric beater or preferably a stand mixer, cream all the ingredients until it turns to crumbs. 

Butter and flour a 9x5" pan, and fill it with the cake batter. Crumble the crumb mixture on top so it's evenly spread. Bake in the oven for 35 to 40 minutes. Let cool for 30 minutes to an hour. After it's been cooled, remove from pan and pour over about 3/4 cup caramel on top before cutting. 

I know I promised whoopie pies, and I will post them soon! If you have any other requests for any recipe ideas, please comment below or tell me on facebook!

Happy Summer!

Hi everyone! I'm so glad to be back. I'm so sorry for not posting in so long, I've been busy with so much stuff. Here's a little explanation about what's been going on lately:

In the beginning of March, I auditioned for my school play, Annie. A few weeks after I found out I got the part of Annie! We started rehearsals in the beginning of April and they lasted until the end of May. We usually had 3 or 4 rehearsals a week for 3 hours after school. Hell week was the worst of all, with some rehearsals running from 2:30 after school to 6:30, and then going too help build the set until 9:30. But all of the work definitely payed off. We had three shows, one on May 30th and two on May 31st. I had such an amazing time working with all my friends and our amazing director Lauren!

After that I had a week of just regular school, without any major events. The week after I had to study for finals, and then take finals. Ugh, glad that's over. I finished school on June 20th. I then enjoyed a whole week relaxing in the sun, swimming, and just doing whatever I wanted. My birthday was June 28th, and I got some really cool stuff:

A Polaroid camera from Anthropology, film and all; and a super rad ouija board shirt from a cool shop called Gypsy Warrior,

A new tapestry from urban outfitters,

And Lorde's Pure Heroine album that I can use on my Crosely record player that I got for the play.

Even though I haven't posted in a while, I still have been baking some new things. I should have a lot more recipes coming soon, including whoopie pies, cookies, and a few savory dishes as well!

Hope everyone is having a great summer, and I can't wait to start posting regularly!

Homemade Ravioli

 Every Sunday, most Italian families sit down at a table with an abundance of pasta, gravy, meatballs, bread, cheese, wine, and just about any other kind of Italian food you could think of, my family included! We always have at least three boxes of pasta in our pantry, whether its for our big Sunday dinner or any night of the week. Last Sunday, we decided to try something different, and ditch the boxed pasta for homemade raviolis. These aren't as easy as pouring pasta into boiling water, but they sure do taste good. Even though making the raviolis was time consuming, we have nothing to complain about.


According to the many stories told by my amazing mama, my great grandma Riga used to make homemade pasta every Sunday. We have made homemade raviolis and other pastas a number of times before, but nothing can compare to how much she made. Not to mention it was for more than the average four person family, but for 20 hungry Italians who weren't shy when it came to asking for a second helping. It was a lot of work, but it was worth it!

Make a well by placing the flour on a clean surface and make a hole in the middle. Then fill it with the eggs and gradually whisk the sides of the well into the eggs.

My mom had to finish kneading the dough for me! If you have a stand mixer with a dough hook I recommend that you use that.

If you want to add in the spinach then you can. I did half in half just to try out the two flavors.

Mangia!

Homemade Ravioli

dough:
3 eggs*
2 1/2 cups flour
1/2 to 1 cup water

filling:
1 lb ricotta cheese
1 egg
salt and pepper to taste
3/4 cup crushed frozen spinach, optional

pasta machine and ravioli cutter, optional

1. On a clean surface, make a well with the flour
2. One by one, whisk the eggs into the flour until it turns into small crumbles
3. Slowly add in the water and knead until uniform and all one texture
4. Form into a ball and place in a bowl lightly coated with olive oil. Cover with a damp cloth and let rest for 15 minutes
5. Combine all ingredients for the filling in a bowl and set aside
6. Take one quarter of the dough and place the rest back in the bowl and cover.
7. Roll out the dough in the pasta machine or by hand with a rolling pin. Make sure to coat any surfaces with flour. If using the pasta machine, gradually roll out the pasta to the 2nd smallest thickness.
8. Cut the long sheet into two pieces and place 1 tablespoon of the filling on one sheet of dough about 1 to 2 inches apart.
9. Place the second sheet on top and seal  the edges. Using a ravioli cutter or a knife, cut the out the pasta into 2 inch circles or squares.
10. Fill a pot with water and bring to a slow boil. Pour in the raviolis gently and cook until they float to the top. 
11. Serve hot with gravy and cheese.

*Update: the original recipe called for 3 eggs which was a mistake in my part. Sorry to anyone who was confused!

Fudge Brownies

I think I should change Everything is Better with Frosting to Everything is Better with Chocolate. Just kidding, but really, almost all of my recipes have to do with chocolate. But I promise to post more than just chocolate and caramel. After these delicious guys. I've always tried to make brownie; and I've always failed. They either come out flat, dry, or just plain bad. Until I made these little bites of heaven. I guess by making my own recipe, they turned out better? I really don't know what it was, but I guess you can say these are the best brownies I've ever made.

If you want, bake the brownies in a sheet pan and cut into hearts with a cookie cutter. 

Frost with any icing if desired. I made mine look like giant conversation hearts. I sent them to my cousin in college, probably not the best dessert to ship through three states....

Fudge Brownies

makes aprox a dozen brownies

Ingredients:

1/2 cup flour

2 eggs

dash of salt

1/3 cup cocoa powder

1 cup sugar

3/4 cup milk chocolate chips plus 1/2 cups

1/4 tsp baking soda

1 stick butter 

1 tsp vanilla extract

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
2. In a small pot over medium heat, melt butter and 3/4 cups chocolate chips. Stir frequently until the butter and chocolate is fully melted, stir in vanilla. Set aside off heat
3. In a seperate bowl, beat together the sugar and eggs. Whisk in the cocoa powder, baking powder, and salt. 
4. Mix in the flour. The batter should be thick.
5. Add in the butter mixture and beat until smooth. Fold in the rest of the chocolate chips.
6. Bake in a 9 by 9 in pan lined with parchment paper for 35 minute. Let cool and slice.