Hippie Fuel ("Ultimate" granola)

Granola ranks among my very favorite foods, to the degree that (like Biscoff cookie spread) I'm better off not even keeping any in the house lest I simply devour it by the bagful. Crunchy-sweet-salty is totally my jam, and the typical inclusion of nuts & berries is also right up my alley. It shouldn't be overlooked, however, that while granola has a significant history as healthy "hippie" food, some granolas' claims to "health" may be somewhat...questionable.

Healthy ...ish

Fruit of the Underworld (Pomegranate lime vanilla cake)

Pretty in pink can be difficult to achieve without food dye. Unfortunately, taking an all-natural approach might not always turn out as you expected. This was the case with a batch of blood orange cinnamon rolls Aaron prepared one day. While delicious, the attempt to stain the icing ruby red with blood orange juice instead yielded a deeply unappetizing mauve-taupe. My attempts to correct with the trusty dropper of food dye resulted in nuclear pink. Ultimately, the project was abandoned for photographic purposes. This pomegranate lime vanilla yogurt cake, on the other hand, is perfectly calibrated to yield a beautiful finish using only the most natural of ingredients.

Au naturale

Waffles 4 lyfe! (Liège-style Belgian waffles)

Over time, the entirety of my immediate family has trickled down to live in Chesapeake, Virginia. While I love the area, the job market has invariably left me further north. As the odd man out, it can sometimes be difficult to make family get-togethers. This was the case this most recent Mother's Day. I was sad to miss spending time with my family, but doubly so when I learned my equally epicurean sister had served gaufres de Liège, Belgian waffles with pearl sugar, as a holiday brunch.

Thus, with a waffle, I die

A Scone's Throw Away (Vanilla Bean Scones)

As is no secret to our barista, Aaron and I have an addiction to vanilla scones. More correctly, I have an addiction to scones, period. They are, in essence, a sweet biscuit and as I love both sweets and biscuits I find myself perpetually wanting to throw caution to the winds and luxuriate in creamy, buttery, crumbliness with reckless abandon. It just so happens that one of my favorite pairings for said exquisite crumbliness is vanilla.

Exquisite!

Spring Fling (Lavender Vanilla Bean Cupcakes)

This post is also available as an article in the 3/28/2012 Williamsport Sun Gazette.

Now that it's finally, officially, spring, I have to celebrate. I think these lavender vanilla bean cupcakes with lavender lemon buttercream icing do just the trick. Some say the cupcake is a passing fad, soon to be abandoned and forgotten, but I think it is a thing of beauty and a joy forever. If cupcakes are to be my personal anachronistic eccentricity, there are certainly more dire fates.

Love at first sight