My empty nest world of scratch baking and chicken scratch
Cindy Liles
Delicate, buttery Spritz Cookies with festive variations, make a perfect adornment for a Christmas cookie tray. You can add food coloring or leave plain – either way, these cookies are delicious and beautiful. You will need a cookie press to make Spritz cookies.This is one of the very first Christmas cookies I learned to make … Read more
My children grew up in a bake-from-scratch household and have been introduced to more cookies than we can possibly count! My youngest son, now in college, loves anything with ginger or molasses, so when I made these cookies for him, they became his all-time favorite cookie. We are fortunate that we use the zest … Read more
Pecan Sandies. A melt-in-your-mouth shortbread cookie that is far better than its store-bought counterpart. These cookies have only four ingredients and are a cinch to make up. The dough can be made in advance, shaped into balls, and frozen for another time when you need a quick dessert. Just take them out of the freezer and … Read more
Depending on the cultural origin, there are numerous variations and interpretations of tea cakes around the world. In the United States, a tea cake is usually a dense cookie made with butter, sugar, eggs, flour, milk, and flavoring; Petit Fours are also sometimes classified as tea cakes in America. In England (where … Read more
Shortbread is a biscuit or cookie and is traditionally made with three ingredients: Butter, sugar, and flour. While there are many variations on this classic (types of flour, types of sugar, flavorings, etc.), I like this simple recipe that adds a hint of vanilla. Gather ingredients. Spray either a Shortbread mold or a 8 or … Read more
Old-fashioned Gingerbread – dense, aromatic, spicy and moist. Gingerbread is one of those cakes that you can whip up for a quick dessert almost any time because most of the ingredients are stock pantry items. I have several Gingerbread cakes that I like to make, however, I think this recipe is pretty much fool-proof and … Read more
Years ago, I lived and worked in Center City Philadelphia. On weekends, I would escape the hustle and bustle of the city and drive to visit friends who lived among the lush Pennsylvania Dutch farmlands in Lancaster, Pa. The Amish bakeries were a treasure trove of old-fashioned, homemade cakes, pies, cookies, and pastries. My favorite … Read more
This recipe comes from the September 1994 Southern Living Magazine. Reminiscent of old-fashioned American diners, this pie never goes out of style; always a classic and always a crowd pleaser. The pie is bursting with a fresh lemon curd and topped with soft, billowy, creamy, vanilla scented meringue, all sitting on top of a … Read more
Coconut Cream Pie is a classic. A thick, rich, creamy coconut custard filling topped with either meringue or billowy mounds of whipped cream, this pie always makes a great impression! This pie is different from a Coconut Custard Pie which is more custard-like and does not get a topping. When people eat this pie, they … Read more
An old-fashioned pound cake from scratch in just a few simple steps. Be sure that the butter and eggs are at room temperature and that you follow the order of the recipe – it’s that easy! You can make this in a tube pan or in a couple of loaf pans, just be sure to … Read more