Tea Stains on Parchment

A cookie not from M&F and not as good  that I might tell you about later Did you know August 4th was Chocolate Chip Cookie Day? Of course you did; that's obviously one of the most important holidays of the year. I mean, it doesn't matter what religion you practice, a chocolate chip cookie is a chocolate cookie which is delicious. Naturally, I celebrated, and I made it a two day affair because we can't limit ourselves to one cookie or one day. Basically, I'm here to tell you about a lovely day that I had because I'm trying to appreciate the little good days. My celebration began on the 3rd. In case you haven't noticed, this summer I've kinda had a thing for celebrating holidays on the wrong days. But this time I knew it was the wrong day, I promise. Markham & Fitz just happened to be celebrating a day early, ok? Ok. After what had been a taxing excursion to Walmart during tax-free weekend (but fun, as I was with my niece and nephew and sister...

I've dreamt of French patisseries filled with croissants, mille-feuille, and, of course, macarons. I don't think I am going to France any time soon, but I have always thought I was pretty good at baking. That is, before my many failed attempts at macarons. For such a small cookie, they offer an unnecessary amount of work. And there is a steep learning curve; so many things can go wrong: hollow shells, no feet, flat shells. Macarons are impressive, delicious, and beautiful. Though everyone wants a batch on their table at their tea party, no one wants to pay the often $2+ price tag or fail at making them. Let me help save you from both of these fates and teach you everything I have learned making macarons professionally the past few months. 1. There are a lot of recipes out there, but to know that the recipe is decent, the amount of powdered sugar is double the amount of almond flour. Some recipes work more than others, but t his one is my go-to, though I do have a few alte...

What do you do when you have about an hour to make a dessert for an impromptu dinner party? Or rather, what do you not do- don't use the oven (sort of). With time running out and limited ingredients in my arsenal, I came across a chocolate orange and lemon wafer cookies, and thus my pie was born. This is a very forgiving recipe and is very versatile, substitute flavors for what you have on hand; no one enjoys running to the store at 5. Preparation : 30 minutes Crust : about 35 lemon wafer cookies 2-3 tablespoons butter (melted) Filling : 1 package cream cheese (softened) 3/4 cup heavy cream 3/8 cup powdered sugar (sifted) Zest of one small orange Zest of half a medium lemon Splash (about 1/2 teaspoon) vanilla extract Topping : 8 chocolate orange slices 3 tablespoons heavy cream Preheat oven to 325F (I know, I cheated, but just a bit.) Start by crushing the cookies in a food processor until a fine crumb. Next, pour in the melted butter, adding the third tabl...