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Chocolate Zucchini Bundt Cake with Chocolate Glaze
It’s the time of year when zucchini overflows from every garden in Northern Minnesota. In some neighborhoods, you can find boxes full of them set on street corners and labeled “FREE”. The zucchini harvest is so overwhelming that people are desperate to get rid of them. Luckily, we know what to do with such an abundance of zucchini — grate them, add chocolate, and bake this Chocolate Zucchini Bundt Cake. Chocolate Zucchini Cake > Zucchini Bread I know, I know, most people would go for zucchini bread first, but honestly? It’s overrated. Zucchini bread is fine and all (and MUCH better than banana bread, in my opinion), but this cake?…
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Blueberry Hand Pies
I just got back from a few days away in Grand Marais, MN. I spent most of my time next to Lake Superior, walking, reading, writing, eating delicious food, and sipping wine, coffee, and locally-brewed beer. It was glorious. The entire small town hugs the lakeshore, making for the most incredible lake views. It is, hands down, my favorite place in the world. I mean, just look at all of this beauty! Celebrate the Little Things Whenever I’m on vacation, I think a lot about celebration — especially taking time to celebrate the little things in life, like a sunny day, a quiet morning, the sound of birds singing, or…
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Sunken Plum Snack Cake
Friends, it’s officially stone fruit season. Bring on all the peaches, nectarines, apricots, cherries, and — for our purposes today — plums! I love baking with stone fruits. They lend themselves so well to pies, cakes, bars, and jam (which isn’t really baking I guess, but baking-adjacent). Stone fruits have a decent amount of firmness to them, but when you bake them, they sort of melt and go all soft and jammy. Yum. Before I baked with plums for the first time (years ago now…in a pie, I believe), I had enjoyed snacking on them but never thought of putting them into baked treats. But once I tasted them baked…
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Rhubarb Curd Tart With Rosewater Meringues
Rhubarb season came early this year, along with all of the things that typically signify the arrival of summer: lilacs, lily of the valley, 90-degree temps. Even the mosquitos seemed to be early to the party. As someone who is constantly too warm and whose skin burns easily, I’ve never been particularly enthusiastic about summer. And while I still can’t say that I’m a fan of 90-degree days, sunburns, and mosquitos, I have to admit that the arrival of the flowers, fruits, and foliage of summer now fills me with a giddy kind of joy. The extra-long days don’t hurt either. I’m a big fan of all things rhubarb, so…
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Olive Oil Pistachio Brownie Cookies
I’ve been wanting to make an olive oil chocolate chip cookie for a while, and that’s how this one started out. But as I worked on the recipe, it ended up much more chocolatey and brownie-like than I originally intended. And I have to say, I’m not mad about it. This is a rich, fudgy dream of a cookie. Say hello to Olive Oil Pistachio Brownie Cookies! I have a feeling you’ll love them. Olive Oil In Cookies? Yep, You Read That Right. Cookies aren’t the first thing I think of when I think of olive oil. Pasta, bread, salad dressing, roasted veggies…there are a million and one savory ways…
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Salted Brown Butter Rice Krispie Bars
Boy have I got a treat for you, my friends. I’ve been working on this one for a few weeks, and in that time I have eaten a LOT of Rice Krispie Bars! (I have to say, it wasn’t the worst thing in the world.) If you’re a fan of soft, marshmallowy Rice Krispie bars, nutty brown butter, and sea salt, you’ll love this recipe. Let’s make Salted Brown Butter Rice Krispie Bars! If At First You Don’t Succeed… For the longest time, I couldn’t make a decent Rice Krispie bar to save my life. I made damn good cookies, great cakes, and amazing pies. But Rice Krispie bars had…
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Strawberry White Chocolate Scones
It’s been a while since I posted something breakfasty, and I don’t have a good scone recipe on the site yet, so I thought it was high time I created one. Plus, with strawberry season around the corner, it’s a good time to start stockpiling recipes to use them in. So, give a hearty welcome to the new kid on the block and my new favorite breakfast treat — Strawberry White Chocolate Scones! British vs American Scones There are two main types of scones in the world—British scones and American scones. There are also some pretty strong—and varied—opinions about which of these versions is the correct one. I’ll tell you…
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Carrot Cake with Honey Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting
I’ve always wondered how carrot cake became an Easter tradition—in my mind, spice cake is really more of a fall treat. I suppose the Easter bunny has something to do with it, I’m not sure. But as it’s one of the tastiest cakes there is, I’m sure not going to complain. This is my version, with all of my favorite things: walnuts, no raisins(way overrated, IMO), and a sweet, fluffy, cinnamon-y cream cheese frosting. Let’s give a hearty springtime welcome to Carrot Cake with Honey Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting! Carrot Cake History So it turns out that carrot cake has been around for a while. Or, at least, some version…
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Milk Chocolate Toffee Cookies
Growing up, I loved a good Dairy Queen Blizzard. (TBH I still do, but now I opt for the “mini” size because I just can’t finish the large like I did when I was a kid). Anyhow, my favorite mix-in has always been Heath bar. For a while there, they had a Cappuccino Heath Blizzard that was TO DIE FOR. I loved it so much. Does anyone else remember that? And does anyone know if they’ll still make me one if I ask nicely? Well, the idea for these cookies sprang from my love for Heath bars. Milk chocolate and buttery toffee in a salted brown butter cookie…what could be…
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Fig Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting
This March marks the 10th anniversary of the company I work for, Wild Fig Marketing! Since we can’t get together to celebrate with cake (boo, COVID!), I decided to create a recipe for a Fig Cake that we can all make on our own. Because there HAS to be cake, right? A celebration just isn’t a celebration without it. This single-layer almond-scented cake is dotted with chopped dried figs and topped with a thin layer of fig jam and a lush cream cheese frosting. Perfect for a (small) celebration. Fig Fun Facts As I was tooling around looking for inspiration for this cake, I stumbled on a few fig facts…
Recipes and Musings from the Zenith City
