What's better than mashed potatoes?

Oven roasted chicken, mashed potatoes, romaine and cranberry sauce.

One plate has to be vegetarian - too bad for you - that chicken was so moist and delish!

Don't forget the celery!

Potato, brocolli and cauliflower soup

THE most perfect meal after flying from Europe to America.
Something warm, homemade, bland and comforting.

Don't forget the celery!

The shame of a sweet tooth

We had one suitcase full of candy that we brought back from Germany. Hey, it was all gifts for other people. Well, most of it, I mean at least some of it.

The messy side of baking

The messiness of making a homemade pie. So worth it !!!
This one is apple blackberry. Lately this is the one I want.
Plain apple is nice as is a berry pie,
but the combination has a power to ease several cravings.

Vegetarian lentil stew with oatmeal chocolate chip cookies

This is a stew I usually make with chicken. This time I wanted to make a vegetarian version for my daughter. This version is made with dry lentils (soaked overnight) cooked in vegetable stock. Rice or barley, carrots, spinach and green beans are added after the lentils have just begun to soften. Tomato sauce and seasonings are added at the end.



These are the chocolate chip oatmeal cookies we always love.

Bison holiday meal

For a family holiday meal when another turkey is too much, try bison steaks. Above is the winter punch my kids enjoy, and we enjoy more with a shot of rum. Simply mix some spiced apple cider with some orange juice and a peppery ginger ale. It can be served warm or cold.

This is an appetizer tray. The hit was the brie covered with a layer of plum jelly then topped with sliced almonds before baking it in the oven for a delicious cracker topper.

The salad was romaine with chopped pears, dried cherries and a grapefruit vinaigrette.

Baked potatoes were served with shredded cheddar, butter, sour cream and chopped scallions.

The stack of bison steaks fresh off the grill.




We finished off the meal with a blackberry apple pie served with a cinnamon whipped cream.

The Chocolate Viennese Filled Cookies

Most of my cooking and baking have a bit of a healthy twist. This is one exception. The only healthy thing about these is that they are made with all organic ingredients.

I usually do a lot of baking around the holidays. There are a couple delicacies that win the popular vote. The one baked item I get asked for more than any other is the viennese cookies. I have no idea why they are called viennese cookies and don't know if the recipe comes from Vienna. I do know that they are delicious. I do know they are addictive. I do know that I licked my fingers and the bowl and the broken ones so much that I woke up with a sugar hangover.

The recipe starts with a chocolate shortbread type cookie that is piped out and baked.

Dark chocolate is melted so that one edge of each cookie can be dipped.


The filling is flavored with espresso which gives such a nice coffee balance to the dark chocolate and the sweetness of the cream filling.

Now they're ready for gifting and for munching. They freeze well too!

If you want the recipe, post a comment requesting it, and I will gladly post it.