Chocolate Mint Thumbrints

WOW!! These were a ton of fun. Made very similar to the cherry teacakes. Nice and colorful for fun decorating a cookie tray, maybe setting them up to look like a christmas tree and using the cherry teacakes to be the ornaments. How fun would that be!!

Cherry Tea Cakes

These were a lot of fun; pretty easy to make too. The drizzled white chocolate is a delicious last touch. This a cookie that would be complimented with a glass of milk or a hot cup of coffee or hot chocolate.

You enjoy the pics, I'll enjoy the cookies. :)

"Christmas in July...no, Christmas in May"

I LOVE CHRISTMAS!!!! It is my favorite time of the year. I love the lights, the smell of the Christmas trees and the anticipation of opening up presents (hoping my husband stuck to my list, and maybe threw in a few surprises). My stepmom would set up live Christmas trees in her dining room, living room, den and even a small Christmas tree in each of my brothers' rooms. So that is a total of five Christmas trees in one house. I loved it and still do!

It takes me almost 2 full weeks until I get my house exactly how I like it (of course, every year I buy more and more things to decorate with). Once I get everything decorated, then comes my favorite part...BAKING CHRISTMAS COOKIES!!!!!!!!!!!!!! This is a tradition that was started by my grandma, my mom's mom, and has been passed down. I can remember baking cookies with my mom every year and loving every moment. My mother and I butted heads quite a bit during my youth. (I realize now it's because we were and still are so much alike.) However, when we baked together it was wonderful. Those memories I will cherish forever and look forward to continuing that tradition with my children.

So, I am sure you're probably wondering why I am talking about Christmas when it's only May. I am not insane, but I was trying to think about what I wanted to bake until my pastry cookbook arrives. I was looking through my magazines and found this small Betty Crocker magazine that has nothing but Christmas cookie recipes. Anything from truffles to fudge to brownies to cookies, it has it all. I got it after Christmas this year so I haven't baked from it yet....until now.

I looked through the magazine, and boy was it hard to find a recipe to prepare. So I have picked three that I have most of the ingredients for already. Here they are:

Cherry Tea Cakes
Chocolate Mint Thumbprints
Chocolate-Marshmallow Pillows

I am on my way to the grocery to get the things I need. Will share pictures once I have finished. If only there were a way for you to taste. :)

Wish me luck!!

The Pastry Chef

This is the cookbook I will be using. If you are interested, I purchased it from Amazon.com.

Here We Go!!!

I will admit when I watched the movie, "Julie & Julia," I fell in love. I love cooking and this movie was an inspiration to me, as I'm sure it has been an inspiration to others as well. I've always thought about taking one of my favorite cookbooks and cooking every recipe in the book. The only problem is that I have around 50 cookbooks, and I can't even begin to pick my favorite.

So I got to thinking, which can be pretty scary, I love baking more than cooking. To give you an idea of just how much I love to bake, my husband came home from work one Saturday evening and I had baked three different batches of homemade cookies. He looked at me and said, "Were you bored?" Yes, yes I was bored and baking brings me such joy. I love the smell of it in the oven when it's almost finished. I enjoy watching people ooh and ahh over it just by looking at it. Most importantly, the rush I feel when people take the first bite and make sounds that you only hear in the bedroom. :)

Ultimately, I would love to own my own bakery one day. I have already started making baby shower cakes and would like to continue to do this professionally. Until then, however, I have another plan of action. Instead of cooking every recipe out of a cookbook, I am going to bake every recipe out of a Baking & Pastry Cookbook I just purchased. The title of the book is The Professional Pastry Chef: Fundamentals of Baking and Pastry, 4th Edition. It arrives on June 16 so, until then, each day I will share with you a favorite dish, funny moment and I might even bake a cake or two for you.

I am very excited about this!!! I hope you enjoy what's to come. :)