The Mom 100

I’m not sure which is the first cookie I ever baked by myself: it was either classic chocolate chip, or Snickerdoodles. I remember having just moved to Connecticut when I was 7, and making them in our little classroom kitchen area with my teacher and thinking, “school isn’t so bad!”   Cinnamon Sugar Coating The main difference between sugar cookies and snickerdoodles is really the cream of tartar in the cookie dough and the combo of sugar and ground cinnamon that the balls of cookie dough are rolled in just before baking. This light coating provides cinnamon-iness (duh), some color, …

Full confession—I’ve never known what Swedish meatballs were.  I knew of them of course, but I never knew what really made them Swedish, or at least “Swedish”.  So I did a little research.  In Sweden meatballs are called köttbullar (which is now the first and only Swedish word I know), and usually made with ground beef or a mix of ground beef, pork and sometimes veal, sometimes with some bread crumbs soaked in milk, mixed with minced onions, and finished in a sauce of broth and cream.  That sounded like something my family could get down with.  Lingonberry Sauce And …

This smoked salmon crostini has a good number of things going for it. A Perfect Holiday Bite It’s lovely to look at It involves smoked salmon, which is a favorite indulgence food of many people It make a ½ pound of salmon go a very long way It’s easy to make the components ahead of time And then assemble right before serving It’s an elegant room temp app So, we’ll start there! Easy Assembly I am a little smitten with the Herbed Mayonnaise you see being lovingly dolloped onto the crostini here. As soon as I made and tasted it, …

Gingersnaps are one of my favorite cookies ever.  I make very humble cookies, as a rule.  I’m all about taste and texture, and not so much about the decorating. (Though from the amount of piping tips I own you might think I was really good at it – I bought a big collection of piping tips at a flea market once, once owned by a pastry food stylist).  I admire any of you who wield a piping bag with skill and grace.  I do so only reluctantly and then messily (but sometimes happily).  There is someone I used to work …