October 2011

Ghosted

31 October 2011
Ghost Cake

Last week my husband celebrated his 40th birthday.  This momentous birthday happened to coincide with my need to try out a tiered cake.  If you had asked me a year ago if I’d ever make a tiered cake, I probably would laughed, but here I was, scheming to plan a party for my husband so [...]

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Paradigm Shift

20 October 2011
Whole Grain Fennel Bread

At the beginning of the school year, I decided to bake bread at least once a week for my daughter Eliza’s peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.  She loves fresh bread — not that the rest of us don’t — but it is her reaction to loaves warm from the oven that prompted me to make [...]

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Getting Our Fill

13 October 2011
Potato Samosas

Living on a small island limits your food options.  San Juan Island has some spectacular restaurants, but the ethnic choices, well, they’re nearly non-existent.   I miss eating sushi.  I miss eating Ethiopian food. And Greek food and Italian food and Indian food.  And Maloula’s — the Syrian restaurant open only  from April to September [...]

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To Germany with Love

6 October 2011
Orca Whale Cake

When our German neighbors first moved to San Juan Island, they spent nearly every free moment at Lime Kiln State Park.  The park includes a quaint lighthouse, rocky shoreline, and trails that lead to 19th century kilns used for transforming limestone into cement.   As you take in the ocean view from almost any spot [...]

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Glazed Over

1 October 2011
Yeasted Potato Doughnut with Chocolate Glaze

The wind howled outside our little cottage.  We could hear the fir trees creaking and crackling dangerously.  Fortunately, we had plans that would get us out of the house on this first official Sunday of fall — plans that dovetailed perfectly with the suddenly blustery weather.   We grabbed our bowl of rising doughnut dough and [...]

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