I’m thinking of turning Monday mornings into a time for weekly wedding updates. Everyone okay with that? Mmmkay good. What’s become very evident to me over the past week and a few days is that I’m a very decisive bride. One who doesn’t dilly-dally over decisions in the least bit. And since Joey and I didn’t want a long engagement, it works out well. Decisions Made:*Date: July 9!*Ceremony and reception locations: Check!*Dress and veil: Check and Check! In other news, … Read More
Strongbow Hard Cider Cupcakes
Let’s get one thing straight: I am not a passionate beer drinker. In fact, I’m not much for alcohol in general, and when J. and I sit down to have a drink, a half glass of anything is enough to satisfy my tastes. What I am is a Strongbow drinker. Strongbow, as in the English hard cider, my favorite alcoholic beverage, and pretty much the only drink I ever really have a craving for. It’s crisp, and bubbly, and slightly … Read More
Nutella Chocolate Chip Cookies
I’ve been a real-life, full-time working girl for three whole days now and boy is it tiring! Tiring in the best sort of way, in the my-brain-is-exploding-with-new-information sort of way. Yet despite thinking about food all day at work, I still somehow find myself baking and cooking at the end of the day to decompress and relax. This morning I woke up to a sky full of rain, I have a new Netflix movie coming my way this afternoon, a … Read More
White Chocolate Dipped Nutella Cookie Dough Bites
Originally I planned to post these on Friday in preparation for 4th of July. But then I made these brownies and got so excited about them that I lost my mind, got distracted, and in a sugar-induced haze I posted brownies instead. Not to worry, these White Chocolate Dipped Nutella Cookie Dough Bites (yes, you heard that right) taste good any time of the year. If you’re at all like me, you probably don’t need to read the rest of … Read More
Super Fudgy Brownies
Let’s talk about brownies, shall we? When I first made these brownies, I was doubting the recipe the entire time. “There isn’t enough flour!” I kept thinking. But since the recipe comes from the baking great, David Lebovitz, I figured it was worth seeing the recipe out as directed. I might have even audibly coaxed myself onward with a “It’s David-freaking-Lebovitz, Madison! He knows baking!”Call me crazy, but my pep talk worked, and I continued. The head notes of the … Read More
Chocolate Revel Bars
No time for extra words today because after I post these Chocolate Revel Bars, I’ll be heading to a church kitchen a few miles away to spend the day baking. Baking 300 cupcakes and a two tiered wedding cake to be exact. Sure I’ve done this before, it seems that every time wedding season comes around I commit to at least a few weddings, but it never gets any less stressful. I play it cool and collected every time. But … Read More
Chocolate Covered Marshmallows
This recipe, if you can even call it a recipe, almost didn’t make it to the pages of Espresso and Cream. I got to dipping marshmallows in chocolate one night to satisfy a sweet tooth craving, never really thinking of sharing the idea with anyone else, but when J. arrived at my apartment last week his enthusiastic reaction made me do a double take. “You’re going to put these on the blog, right?” he asked. And so in the name … Read More
Homemade Oreos
Whew. Two days after graduation, three loads of laundry, four bags of groceries, one day of work, and two deliriously wonderful nights of sleep later I think I’ve finally recovered from a crazy-lovely graduation weekend up in Minneapolis. And yes, that guy I talk about quite a bit on Espresso and Cream graduated, with honors and a job! (excuse my bragging, I’m just a bit proud) And because I enjoy looking at other people’s photos on the blogs I follow, … Read More
Whole Wheat Oatmeal Dark Chocolate Chip Cookies
This weekend I had the pleasure of teaching a healthy cooking class for a women’s conference back in my home town. Because it was one of my first formal presentations on healthy cooking for a large group I was a bit nervous, but the women were great and I enjoyed sharing about one of my favorite topics. Rewind to earlier this week, when I was putting together my Power Point presentation and was finding it hard to focus, so what’s … Read More
Chocolate Raspberry Cups
After an unintended break from Espresso and Cream, it feels good to be back in the kitchen and at my computer. Sure, lots of baking and eating was done over the weekend, and I spent many a moment kicking myself for not remembering my camera to take photos of all the kitchen adventures and Easter weekend triumphs. In honor of Easter weekend, I baked a double batch of World Peace Cookies for my family and made around three dozen homemade … Read More
World Peace Cookies
Not all that long ago, yet too long ago, I took what was the most magical, wondrous, and tasty trip of my 22 years of life. For eight blissful days, my step-mom, Andrea, and I navigated the streets and sights of Paris. Classes at Le Cordon Bleu in the morning, early afternoon naps, cups of near perfect coffee, and more beautiful artwork and architecture than one can even possibly process in eight days. Sure, it rained hard the first four days … Read More
Double Chocolate Muffins
Weekends are near the top of my list of favorite things, and while there may not be a hard and fast formula for a great weekend, I’ve found that if you combine at least two of the following, you are guaranteed to have a fabulous two days: *Beautiful weather*Loved ones*Baking a new recipe*Scrabble*Exercise*Good food*Lots of coffee I was lucky enough to have a weekend that included all of the above. And while I would hardly be able to justify baking … Read More