I love shortbread. I love pecan. I really love shortbread with pecans.

This recipe is delightful—the pecans are deeply toasted and ground with the flour before being added to the dough, and raw turbinado sugar is sprinkled atop the crumbly squares. Easy enough to make en masse, these cookies would pair beautifully with afternoon tea.

Pecan Sandies

(adapted via Smitten Kitchen)

Makes just shy of 12 dozen, one-inch square cookies

1 cup pecans
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
2/3 cup confectioners’ sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
2 tablespoons turbinado (raw) sugar

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Spread the nuts out in one layer on a baking sheet and bake them, stirring occasionally, until they are well browned, 10 to 13 minutes (they will smell toasted and nutty). Transfer the pan to a wire rack to cool.

In a food processor, grind the nuts with 1/4 cup of the flour. Set aside.

Using an electric mixer, beat the butter and sugar until creamy and smooth, about 2 minutes. Add the vanilla and beat well. Sift together the remaining 1 3/4 cups of flour, the salt, and the baking powder, and add it to the dough, mixing until just combined. Stir in the nut mixture. Form the dough into a disk, wrap in plastic wrap, and chill for at least 3 hours.

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Roll the dough between two sheets of wax paper to 3/16 inch thick (a rectangle approximately 10 x 14 inches). Using a sharp knife, cut the dough into 1-inch squares, then cut the squares on a diagonal into triangles (I skipped the last cut into triangles). Sprinkle the cookies with the turbinado sugar. Place them 1 inch apart on ungreased cookie sheets (do not reroll the scraps). Prick the cookies with a fork and bake until pale golden all over, about 10 to 12 minutes. Cool on a wire rack.

For me, one of the joys of baking is giving people a moment in their day to appreciate the simple pleasures of life. These brownies—really, they’re more like fudge—are a project of that ideology and worked like a charm. Little smidgens of heaven with three layers of rich chocolate (and a delicious mint interlude), these squares are a perfect treat on a hot day (or any day—who are we trying to impress here?).

Grasshopper Squares

(adapted from Gourmet via Smitten Kitchen)

For brownie layer
1 1/2 sticks (3/4 cup) unsalted butter
10 1/2 oz fine-quality bittersweet chocolate (not extra-bitter or unsweetened and no more than 60% cacao if marked), finely chopped
1 1/2 cups packed light brown sugar
3 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 1/4 teaspoons vanilla
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder
3/4 teaspoon salt

For mint ganache
1/4 cup heavy cream
10 oz fine-quality white chocolate, chopped
1 teaspoon peppermint extract

For chocolate ganache
1/2 cup heavy cream
10 oz fine-quality bittersweet chocolate (not unsweetened), finely chopped

Make brownie layer:
Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 375°F. Lightly butter a 13- by 9-inch baking pan and line with 2 crisscrossed sheets of foil, leaving a 2 inch overhang on all sides. Butter foil.

Melt butter and chocolate with brown sugar in a 3-quart heavy saucepan over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, until smooth. Remove from heat. Whisk in eggs and vanilla until combined. Whisk in flour, cocoa, and salt until just combined.

Spread batter evenly in baking pan and bake until set and a wooden pick inserted in center comes out with moist crumbs adhering, about 20 minutes. Cool completely in pan on a rack, about 1 1/2 hours.

Make mint ganache:
Bring cream to a simmer in a 2- to 3-quart saucepan and remove from heat. Pour over white chocolate in a bowl. Let stand 1 minute, then whisk until smooth. Stir in crème de menthe and extract and chill, covered, stirring occasionally, until thick, about 1 hour.

Make chocolate ganache:
Bring cream to a simmer in a 2- to 3-quart saucepan and remove from heat. Pour over bittersweet chocolate in a bowl. Let stand 1 minute, then whisk until smooth. Chill, covered, stirring occasionally, until thick, about 30 minutes.

Assemble layers:
Spread mint ganache over top of cooled brownie in a thin even layer using offset spatula, then chill until firm but still slightly sticky, about 30 minutes.

Spread chocolate ganache over mint and chill until firm, about 2 hours.

Lift dessert out of pan using foil overhang. Run a heavy knife under hot water and wipe dry, then trim edges of dessert (1/4 inch off each side). Cut dessert into squares and peel from foil.

Cheesecake has always presented a special challenge for me: I take it out of the oven too early or too late, burn the top, or am dissatisfied with the consistency. I was determined to make the perfect cheesecake, and I think this recipe is it. This cheesecake has all the hints of citrus that make me swoon, and a rich density that would satisfy even the high New Yorker purists. A quick and easy blackberry and orange sauce brightens the cheesecake and, I think, adds a whiff of summer.

New York Cheesecake

(from Smitten Kitchen)

Crumb crust:
8 ounces (15 4 3/4 x 2 1/2-inch sheets of graham cracker) finely ground graham crackers
8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt

Cheesecake filling:
5 (8-ounce) packages cream cheese, softened
1 3/4 cups sugar
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest
1 teaspoon finely grated orange zest
5 large eggs
2 large egg yolks
1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Make crumb crust: Stir together crust ingredients and press onto bottom and up the sides, stopping one inch shy of the top rim, of a buttered 9 1/2-inch (or 24 cm) springform pan. (I used a mini cheesecake pan with removable bottoms instead. This recipe made 12 and I didn’t have to adjust the cooking times.)

Make cheesecake filling: Preheat oven to 550 degrees (make sure that your springform can stand this temperature—mine couldn’t. If you must, lower the temperature a tad and bake longer). Beat together cream cheese, sugar, flour and zest with an electric mixer until smooth. Add vanilla, then eggs and yolks, one at a time, beating on low speed until each ingredient is incorporated. Scrape bowl down between additions.

Put springform pan with crust in a shallow baking pan (to catch drips). Pour filling into crust (springform pan will be completely full) and baking in baking pan in the middle of the oven for 12 minutes or until puffed. Please watch your cake because some ovens will top-brown very quickly and if yours does too fast, turn the oven down as soon as you catch it. Reduce the temperature to 200 degrees and continue baking until cake is mostly firm (center will still be slightly wobbly when pan is gently shaken), about one hour more.

Run a knife around the top edge of the cake to loosen it and cool the cake completely in springform on a rack, then chill it, loosely covered, at least 6 hours.

Cheesecake keeps, covered and chilled, two weeks.

Simple Blackberry Sauce

2 cups sugar
1 cup water
2 cups frozen or fresh blackberries
1 teaspoon finely grated orange zest

Bring the sugar, water, blackberries, and zest to a boil in a small saucepan. Stir often. When boiling, reduce heat to medium and let simmer for five minutes. Remove from heat and let cool. Gently mash the blackberries against the side of the pan, and strain out seeds before serving.

I love mornings when you can leisurely have a few cups of coffee and catch up on the news. These muffins actually taste like those mornings—the sour cream recalls a crumbly coffee cake and pairs perfectly with bursts of fresh juice from the berries. I definitely won’t mind grabbing one of these on my way out in the morning, even if I’m late.

Blueberry Coffee Cake Muffins

(adapted from Ina Garten)

12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 1/2 cups sugar
3 extra-large eggs, at room temperature
1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
8 ounces (about 1 cup) sour cream
1/4 cup milk
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
2 half-pints fresh blueberries, picked through for stems

Feeling obligated to bake cookies for the holiday season, I thought I’d give these cheese and jam clams (ha!) a try. I love these cookies because you could easily swap out the sweet filling for something savory, like mango chutney or a brie and herb blend. I found this recipe over on Smitten Kitchen in crescent form, but in my attempt to make an easier process and, I think, prettier result, I ended up with all dough and no filling. Please, follow Deb’s recipe. Let’s not even talk about all the oozing, burnt jam.

Cheese and Jam Cookies

(adapted from The Gourmet Cookie Book via Smitten Kitchen)

2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
8 ounces cream cheese
1/4 teaspoon vanilla
2 cups all-purpose flour, plus additional for rolling cookies out
1/4 teaspoon salt
Jam or preserves (I used a currant jelly)
Powdered sugar, for dusting

Cream butter in a large bowl with an electric mixer until smooth. Add cream cheese to the creamed butter and stir. Add the vanilla and combine the mixture well. Whisk or sift together flour and salt in a separate bowl and gradually blend it into the cheese mixture. Wrap the dough in plastic and chill it for at least 3 hours.

Preheat oven to 400°F. Roll one-fourth of the dough out very thinly on a lightly floured surface and chill the remaining dough until it is to be used. Cut the dough into two-inch circles and put about 1/2 teaspoon jam or preserves in the center of each. Fold the dough in half pressing firmly down to seal the two sides around the jam. Use the end of a fork to crimp the edges.

Arrange crescents on a baking sheet (they won’t expand terribly much, so just an inch or so between them is fine), brush them lightly with milk and bake them for 15 to 20 minutes, until they are golden. Transfer the cookies to a wire rack and dust them with powdered sugar. Continue making cookies in the same manner until all the dough is used.

After the turkey and acorn squash is cleared, my family’s thanksgiving table turns into a gleaming altar of baked perfection. The shockers this year? A blueberry pie (oh my!) and this bourbon pumpkin cheesecake. Creamy, light, and with a refreshingly tart sour cream layer, this cheesecake has just enough pumpkin.

Bourbon Pumpkin Cheesecake

(adapted from Gourmet via Smitten Kitchen)

Serves 12 to 14

For crust
3/4 cup graham cracker crumbs (from five 4 3/4- by 2 1/4-inch crackers)
1/2 cup pecans (1 3/4 ounce), finely chopped
1/4 cup packed light brown sugar
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 stick (1/4 cup) unsalted butter, melted and cooled

For filling
1 1/2 cups canned solid-pack pumpkin
3 large eggs
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
2 tablespoons heavy cream
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 tablespoon bourbon liqueur or bourbon (optional)
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, at room temperature

For topping
2 cups sour cream (20 ounces)
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 tablespoon bourbon liqueur or bourbon (optional)

Garnish: pecan halves

Make crust: Invert bottom of a 9-inch springform pan (to create flat bottom, which will make it easier to remove cake from pan), then lock on side and butter pan.

Stir together crumbs, pecans, sugars, and butter in a bowl until combined well. Press crumb mixture evenly onto bottom and 1/2 inch up side of pan, then chill crust, 1 hour.

Make filling and bake cheesecake: Put oven rack in middle position and Preheat oven to 350°F.

Whisk together pumpkin, eggs, brown sugar, cream, vanilla, and liqueur (if using) in a bowl until combined.

Stir together granulated sugar, cornstarch, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, and salt in large bowl.

Add cream cheese and beat with an electric mixer at high speed until creamy and smooth, about 3 minutes. Reduce speed to medium, then add pumpkin mixture and beat until smooth.

Pour filling into crust, smoothing top, then put springform pan in a shallow baking pan (in case springform leaks). Bake until center is just set, 50 to 60 minutes. Transfer to rack and cool 5 minutes. (Leave oven on.)

Make topping: Whisk together sour cream, sugar, and liqueur (if using) in a bowl, then spread on top of cheesecake and bake 5 additional minutes.

Cool cheesecake completely in pan on rack, about 3 hours.

Chill, covered, until cold, at least 4 hours. Remove side of pan and bring to room temperature before serving.

Do ahead: Baked cheesecake can be chilled, covered, up to 2 days.

I am officially a crazy person. Not only did I volunteer to bake cupcakes for a dear friend’s graduation party, but I volunteered to make three different kinds. I should mention at this point that 1) I hate baking cupcakes, 2) I can’t frost to save my life, and 3) I only have one 12-cupcake pan  (#firstworldproblems). The result was an obnoxious eleven hours spent in the kitchen, improved frosting skills, a new-found respect for bakeries, and about 85 delicious, delicious cupcakes. Vendi, vidi, vici.

The carrot cupcakes with cream cheese frosting and vanilla cupcakes are old news to this blog, but seriously moist and satisfying. I vowed at least twice while baking that I’d only ever make Ina’s carrot cupcakes again. The chocolate cupcakes were intensely flavored and dense, but surprisingly not very popular. Overall, it was a good exercise in endurance and patience.

Beatty’s Chocolate Cake

(adapted via Ina Garten)

Butter, for greasing the pans
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for pans
2 cups sugar
3/4 cups good cocoa powder
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup buttermilk, shaken
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 extra-large eggs, at room temperature
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 cup freshly brewed hot coffee

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter two 8-inch x 2-inch round cake pans. Line with parchment paper, then butter and flour the pans. 

Sift the flour, sugar, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder, and salt into the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment and mix on low speed until combined. In another bowl, combine the buttermilk, oil, eggs, and vanilla. With the mixer on low speed, slowly add the wet ingredients to the dry. With mixer still on low, add the coffee and stir just to combine, scraping the bottom of the bowl with a rubber spatula. Pour the batter into the prepared pans and bake for 35 to 40 minutes, until a cake tester comes out clean. Cool in the pans for 30 minutes, then turn them out onto a cooling rack and cool completely.

Place 1 layer, flat side up, on a flat plate or cake pedestal. With a knife or offset spatula, spread the top with frosting. Place the second layer on top, rounded side up, and spread the frosting evenly on the top and sides of the cake.

Chocolate Ganache

(adapted via Ina Garten)

1/2 cup heavy cream
8 ounces good semisweet chocolate chips
1 teaspoon instant coffee granules

Cook the heavy cream, chocolate chips, and instant coffee in the top of a double boiler over simmering water until smooth and warm, stirring occasionally. Dip the top of each cupcake in the ganache.

Quick and Easy Buttercream

(adapted via Gale Gand)

3 cups confectioners’ sugar
1 cup butter
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 to 2 tablespoons whipping or heavy cream

In a standing mixer fitted with a whisk, mix together sugar and butter. Mix on low speed until well blended and then increase speed to medium and beat for another 3 minutes. Add vanilla and cream and continue to beat on medium speed for 1 minute more, adding more cream if needed for spreading consistency.

After making a key lime cheesecake that wasn’t quite right (not sure how that recipe didn’t end up on here), I thought I’d give this flavor another go. This tart was perfectly lime, and I couldn’t help but envision a picnic every time I enjoyed a slice.

Key Lime Tart

(adapted from Ina Garten via Smitten Kitchen)

Tart Shell
3/4 cup (1.5 sticks) unsalted butter at room temperature
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
Pinch salt

Filling

4 limes at room temperature
1 1/2 cups sugar
1/2 cup key lime juice
1/4 pound (1 stick) unsalted butter at room temperature
4 extra-large eggs at room temperature
1/8 teaspoon salt

Preheat the oven to 350°F.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, mix the butter and sugar together until they are just combined. Add the vanilla. In a medium bowl, sift together the flour and salt, then add them to the butter-and-sugar mixture. Mix on low speed until the dough starts to come together. Dump onto a surface dusted with flour and shape into a flat disk. Press the dough into a 10-inch-round or 9-inch-square false-bottom tart pan, making sure that the finished edge is flat. Chill until firm.

Butter one side of a square of aluminum foil to fit inside the tart and place it, buttered side down, on the pastry. Fill with beans or rice. Bake for 20 minutes. Remove the foil and beans, prick the tart all over with the tines of a fork, and bake again for 20 to 25 minutes more, or until lightly browned. Allow to cool to room temperature.

Remove the zest of 4 limes with a vegetable peeler or zester, being careful to avoid the white pith. Put the zest in a food processor fitted with a steel blade. Add the sugar and process for 2 to 3 minutes, until the zest is very finely minced. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, cream the butter with the sugar and lime zest. Add the eggs, one at a time, and then add the lime juice and salt. Mix until combined.

Pour the mixture into a 2-quart saucepan and cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until thickened, about 10 minutes. The lime curd will thicken at about 175°F, or just below a simmer. Remove from the heat and set aside.

Fill the tart shell with warm lime curd and allow to set at room temperature. Once set, serve immediately or refrigerate until ready to serve.

Finding myself in somewhat of a baking rut, I decided this week to venture into the world of yeast breads. Inspired by Beth Hensperger’s amazing book, The Bread Bible, I became enamored with the thought of warm orange and cinnamon surrounded by carbohydrate goodness.

This bread was a little more effort to make than cookies or cupcakes, and takes a while to get into the oven. After a day of laundry and cleaning, though, who could ask for a better reward?

Orange Cinnamon Swirl Bread

(adapted from Beth Hensperger’s The Bread Bible)

Makes two 9-by-5 inch loaves

1/4 cup warm water (105 to 115 degrees F)
1 tablespoon (1 package) active dry yeast
Pinch of sugar
1 cup warm milk (105 to 115 degrees F)
1 cup freshly squeezed orange juice
1/2 cup sugar
4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, melted
2 large eggs, at room temperature
Grated zest of 3 oranges
2 teaspoons salt
6 1/2 to 7 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose or bread flour
2/3 cup sugar mixed with 1 1/2 tablespoons ground Vietnamese cinnamon
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted, for brushing
Ground Vietnamese cinnamon, for dusting (optional)

Pour the warm water into a small bowl. Sprinkle the yeast and the pinch of sugar over the surface of the water. Stir to dissolve and let stand at room temperature until foamy, about ten minutes.

In a large bowl using a whisk or in the work bowl of a heavy-duty electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the milk, juice, sugar, butter, eggs, zest, salt, and two cups of the unbleached flour. Beat until smooth, about one minute. Add the yeast mixture and one cup more flour. Beat one minute more. Add the remaining flour 1/2 cup at a time, until a soft dough that just clears the sides of the bowl is formed. Switch to a wooden spoon if necessary when mixing by hand.

Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface and knead until smooth and springy, about three minutes, dusting with flour only one tablespoon at a time as needed to prevent sticking. If kneading by machine, switch from paddle to the dough hook and knead for two to three minutes, or until the dough is smooth and springy and springs back when pressed. If desired, transfer the dough to a floured surface and knead briefly by hand.

Place the dough in a greased deep container. Turn once to coat the top and cover with plastic wrap. Let rise at room temperature until doubled in bulk, one to one and a half hours.

Gently deflate the dough. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface. Grease two nine-by-five-inch loaf pans. Divide the dough into two equal portions. Roll or pat out each portion into a eight-by-twelve-inch rectangle. Brush the surface of each rectangle lightly with melted butter and sprinkle with half of the cinnamon sugar, leaving a one-inch border all around the edge. Starting from the short end, roll the dough up jelly-roll fashion to form a loaf. Pinch the seams to completely seal. Place each loaf, seam-side down, in the loaf pans. Lightly dust the tops with plain ground cinnamon for decoration, if desired. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and let rise at room temperature until one inch above the rims of the pans, about 45 minutes.

Twenty minutes before baking, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Place the loaf pans on a rack in the center of the oven and bake 40 to 45 minutes, or until the loaves sound hollow when tapped with your finger and a cake tester inserted into the center comes out cleanly. Transfer the loaves immediately to a cooling rack. Cool completely before slicing.

For me, an oatmeal raisin cookie is like a big warm hug in food form. And while everyone has their own preferences when it comes to these little gems, I prefer a crispy outside with a chewy center, a nice large size, and lots of goodies buried deeply within. This recipe is exactly that and more: it’s a new-found favorite and definitely worth a try.

I was prompted to bake these after discovering Vietnamese (or Saigon) cinnamon. Far more complexly flavorful and a tad more mellow than its well-known cousin, Vietnamese cinnamon is like espresso compared to diner coffee. It shines in this recipe.

Oatmeal Raisin Walnut Chocolate Chip Cookies

(adapted from Smitten Kitchen)

A couple tricks with this recipe: melting half the butter lends to a crispier result, and chilling the scooped dough for ten minutes before baking prevents cracks and spreading.

1/2 cup (1 stick or 4 ounces) butter, half melted, half softened
2/3 cup light brown sugar, packed
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon ground Vietnamese cinnamon
1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups rolled oats
3/4 cup raisins
1/2 cup toasted walnuts, chopped

1/3 cup bittersweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350°F.

In a large bowl, cream together the butter, brown sugar, egg and vanilla until smooth. In a separate bowl, whisk the flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt together. Stir this into the butter/sugar mixture. Stir in the oats, raisins, walnuts, and chocolate chips.

Scoop the dough onto a cookie sheet lined in parchment paper using a one-inch ice cream scooper. Spread the scoops about two inches apart and press down the tops of the cookie dough with the back of the scooper.

Bake them for 15 to 18 minutes (your baking time will vary, depending on your oven and how cold the cookies were going in), taking them out when golden at the edges but still a little undercooked-looking on top. Let them sit on the hot baking sheet for five minutes before transferring them to a rack to cool, otherwise they’ll crumble apart in transit.