In spite of their humble appearance, these fruit roll-ups have wow factor. We had some friends over the other day, and when I brought these out, there were surprised utterances of "are these homemade?" They are probably the easiest things to make in the world, but look mysteriously difficult. I have to warn you that these are very addictive...you can use any fruit combo (and add veggies too, if you so desire), but I tried strawberries, raspberries and mango. On top of bringing back fond ... Read more

Do you remember that movie Julie & Julia? It was based on a blog that became a book about a woman (Julie) who worked her way through Julia Child's first cookbook. I feel that I too am working through recipes, but from Smitten Kitchen instead of The Art of French Cooking. Maybe they could call the sure-to-be-blockbuster movie Sanae and Deb: a crafty mama tries to bake better. Or Smitten with Deb. Yes, that has a nice ring to it. I demand that Lucy Liu or one of those girls from Ang Lee movies ... Read more

Valentine's Day is still a few weeks away, but I'm starting to think about all the heart-themed goodies I'd like to make. After elementary school and before I got married, Valentine's was rife with charged emotions, and awkward didn't even begin to describe those years. Oh sure, there were a few romantic dates here and there, and yes, I may have had a secret admirer or two. But more often than not, I was plagued with unrequited love, and that super cute boy in middle school did not notice me, ... Read more

...I forgot to share with you my little goody gift packs I made for the holidays, and felt they deserved a bit of blog love. Using these super cool edible marker pens, I decorated tiny shortbread cookies. The pens have a paint brush-like tip and though they seem to have mixed reviews, I thought they were very easy to use. I whipped up the same recipe as these and also used a gingerbread cookie recipe from here (you can kind of see the gingerbread cookies in the image below). I like to ... Read more

Ina Garten is a goddess. I don't think there is a single recipe of hers that I've tried that hasn't come out amazing. OK, these shortbread cookies have only five ingredients (butter, flour, vanilla, salt and sugar), but still, it's all in the proportions and these shortbread cookies are perfection. Every bite is probably irreparably clogging my arteries, but it's so worth it. The recipe is here, and I give you my word that these will be the best shortbread cookies you've ever tasted. The one ... Read more