If you’re planning a slightly twisted, ghoulish Halloween, these cupcakes will draw some delighted gasps. They’re not for the faint of heart, and that’s exactly why I like them. A few days ago, my friend Roxanne came over and we baked these together. Roxanne is a very serious baker. She knows professional techniques and tricks, and has great original ideas, even though baking is not her chosen profession. She is an amateur in the true sense of the word – […]

My mind has been on simple American treats lately, maybe because Halloween is looming, and memories of anticipating the sweets of the holiday linger long after childhood is gone. Peanut butter cookies are another iconic American treat, like the brownie. They are the ubiquitous after-school, post-soccer practice, bake sale, scout meeting, church circle, Halloween party cookie, baked in a flash and brought for others to enjoy. Today’s recipe comes from the Blunt family in Missouri. The Blunts have made a […]

There are some recipes that have a beautiful purity about them, free of too many ingredients, instructions, and time spent for a marginal rate of return on flavor.  A brownie is a simple sweet that really only requires two things: chocolate and butter.  Everything else is basic chemistry to hold the two ingredients together.  This recipe came from Roxanne Roberts, the Washington Post’s Reliable Source for many years, and a keen observer and writer of Washington ways.   Roxanne got the […]

One of my favorite foods has always been a perfect caramel apple. The crunch of a tart apple underneath velvety caramel, studded with crushed peanuts – it’s a flavor combination for the ages. Another thing I love is little food. Any entrée-sized portion that can be served in a single mouthful is always preferable to me for some strange reason – perhaps from my days playing with my girls’ dollhouses and having American Girl Doll-sized tea parties, when anything in […]

My Grandmother Svec was a formidable cook.  She could size up the day’s larder at a glance, start lunch and dinner for twenty, then spend the day in the vineyards clipping grapes, before returning ahead of us to get the food on the table.  The best part of her cooking was her baking.  She was a master of the flaky or yeasty fruit-filled concoctions that are a Czech trademark, and she baked in such quantity that it all seemed to […]