One dark, early February morning, I woke up from a sound sleep with these two words in my head:

Pretzel buns.

Had I read about pretzel buns in a food magazine? Seen them online?

Maybe they were somewhere on the Food Network (watching “Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives” being one of my favorite brain-candy pastimes).

Whatever their provenance, I was now seeing golden brown twists of dense bread, sliced into top and bottoms and cradling barbecued chicken.

That’s right, chicken. Because chicken had also been on my mind, seeing as it’s the #1 most searched for recipe term online.

Read the rest of this entry »

There’s nothing like a good, hearty sandwich, is there?

Now, I’m not talking tea sandwiches. Those thin-sliced, crust-free triangles have their place; after all, you really can’t go wrong with egg salad on white bread.

But when you want a sandwich you can really dig into – a sandwich with body and bite, one that you struggle to get your mouth around, one that you need two hands to handle – delicate sliced bread just doesn’t cut it.

Read the rest of this entry »

Did you know that Elvis’ favorite cake, one he enjoyed on his birthday AND at Christmas every year, was vanilla pound cake?

I grew up loving chocolate cake. Still do. But over the years I’ve also developed a great appreciation for vanilla cake, the dessert equivalent of your little black dress: simple, classic, goes with everything. And my very favorite vanilla cake is super-dense, golden pound cake. Read the rest of this entry »

Mousse.

No, not the stuff you put in your hair.

And surely not the large, antlered animal drivers here in northern New England worry about meeting some dark night on the road.

I’m talking mousse, as in chocolate. And strawberry. And “easier than you think.”

Read the rest of this entry »

One of the greatest challenges of gluten-free baking is tackling yeast recipes. Those restricted from gluten want warm, chewy English muffins, sweet, soft cinnamon rolls, and a good crusty artisan-style bread; however the consensus is that these are the most difficult novelties to achieve, especially if you want them to be anything close to their wheat-version counterparts.

Read the rest of this entry »

About a month ago, I posted the following question on our King Arthur Flour Facebook wall:

“Question: Have you, would you, or are you interested in making cream puffs, chocolate éclairs, and/or profiteroles (ice cream-stuffed puffs)?”

I expected a moderate response. I mean, cream puffs and éclairs aren’t the most au courant dessert these days. Compared to cupcakes, they’re positively old school.

Well, guess what? Our Facebook followers, which I know include a lot of you, dear readers, are apparently not averse to “old school.”

Over 1,000 of you responded in the affirmative: YES, bring those cream puffs on!

Read the rest of this entry »

Left to right, top to bottom: Vanilla Biscotti; Peanut Butter; Salty-Sweet Butter Pecan; Shortbread; Almond Cloud; Oatmeal; Chocolate Chip, and Whole Grain. Click anywhere on grid to enlarge.

There’s nothing like a customer review to keep you on your toes, huh?

I tend the online recipes here at King Arthur Flour. And sometimes I feel like a mother with lots and lots of needy kids.

About 2,152 of them, at last count.

Read the rest of this entry »

There’s nothing – NOTHING – like a warm cookie and a cold glass of milk.

Back in the day, this meant Mom’s homemade cookies: oatmeal, peanut butter, sugar, or chocolate chip – period.

Things like chai shortbread, lavender tuiles, and green tea macarons were not yet even a glimmer in a progressive baker’s eye.

Read the rest of this entry »

As summer rapidly approaches (where did April go?), chat around the coffee machine has begun to revolve around one simple question…

Read the rest of this entry »

Mojito (mo-HEE-toe), def.: a cocktail consisting of rum, sugar, lime juice, sparkling water, and mint.

I’m sure many of you have heard of this summer drink, which has become wildly popular in the past 5 years or so.

Would you be surprised if I told you it was Ernest Hemingway’s favorite cocktail?

Yeah, that’s right; this drink can actually be classified as “venerable,” right up there with the Rob Roy and Sidecar.

What goes around, comes around…

Read the rest of this entry »