Today, February 22, is National Margarita Day. This either makes no sense (“Why in the world would it be decided to have national margarita day in February when it is cold and snowy?!?”) or is completely ingenious (“Hey, it’s National Margarita Day! What a great excuse to have a margarita in the middle of the day on a Sunday when it is snowy and miserable outside!”). Either way, I’m making a drink! And because it is still Meyer Lemon season, my Margarita of choice is this one. Bottoms up!
Happy Valentine’s Day! For this faux holiday, I decided to make one of my “heart inside cakes”, even though I have made many of them over the last couple of years. This time, however, I actually photographed all the steps so that you would have a sense of what is involved (you actually have to make two cakes). After having done this so many times, it seems self explanatory to me, but if you have any questions, shoot me a note. Enjoy!
Sometimes you just need a quick and easy dessert. These little (4 inch) tartlets might just be the thing. Here they are dressed up for valentines day, but no reason that you couldn’t put stars in the middle for the 4th of July or a flower in the spring. They’re quick to put together — start to finish, including baking time is just about an hour (depending on how long you let your dough rest — at minimum 20 minutes which is just enough time to make the filling). The recipe easily makes 4 tartlets; if you really stretch it, you can get 6 out of this (depends on how deep the tartlets pans are). Now, where is the a la mode?
I’m not very good at making truffles. They are a lot of work and I don’t have the patience for them. That said, every once in a while, a recipe comes a long that I just must have a go at. Thus, Coconut Crème Truffles, which might be my new favorite homemade truffle type. They might not be Russell Stover for this Valentine’s Day, but maybe your sweetheart will appreciate homemade?
Ah yes, still in the lead up to Valentine’s Day (I promise to change topics before next Sunday!) and the final of the cookies that I will be making this year for VDay. I found these cute “Conversation Heart” cookie cutters and decided to put them to the test. The cookies themselves weren’t all that interesting, so I decided to “glitter-ify” them with very nice results.