Lull

the past few weeks have been somewhat of a lull for me 

only in regards to baking.

all other aspects of my life have been an insane whirlwind 

of work, attempting to meet up with friends, work,

buying a new car, work, reading, 

and the occasional few hours of sleep a night

{this should be considered a nap. by no means have i 

gotten a good nights sleep in far too long}

for christmas i was given an array of baking/cooking related items

and i cant wait to use them. 

unfortunately for now, my bed, 

a cup of tea (or a bottle glass of wine), and a good book

are a lot more appealing. 

i have a few posts up my sleeves 

to hold you over until i get back in the groove

but i'd love to have your input.

what would you like to see on this blog?

have a type of cupcake, cookie, pie or dessert 

that you've been meaning to try?

let me in on all your little secrets!

Mustard Filled Croissants

similarly to this recipe i posted a little while back

i made these easy appetizers to take to a friends this weekend

only 30 minutes start to finish!

using store bought croissants lay out each triangle

spread with mustard

sprinkle salt and ground pepper

starting with the larger end, roll croissant

bake until golden

eat warm or allow to cool

Yuengling Beer Bread

this past sunday i wanted an easy but fun recipe for a relaxing 

sunday of movies, cooking and watching football.

luckily a friend at work shared this one with me on friday before leaving for the weekend.

beer bread is always a crowd pleaser, even if the crowd is only three. 

1 yuengling

1 stick of butter

3 cups of self rising flour

1/2 cup cheese 

1/3 cup sugar

mix all ingredients (except the butter) until just combined 

pour batter into a loaf pan like this: 

melt the butter and pour on top of the dough.

i didnt take a picture of this because to me it became incredibly

unappetizing at that step in the process.

luckily after baking at 350 for one hour it looked like this:

deliciously golden brown and crispy on top.

 allow to cool, slice and enjoy.

if you cant tell i got a little impatient during the cooling process

and had to slice into it while still warm

(look closely and note the steam)

Biscotti

biscotti is one of those things that instantly brings me back to one particular memory.

it immediately brings me to a family friends mountain house in the pocono's. 

our families used to spend a week or so their every winter,

a good time was had by all every time.

i was too young to drink coffee back then but i'm pretty sure,

our moms drank coffee and chocolate dipped biscotti every morning 

on those week long get-a-ways. 

biscotti making is a little bit tedious but absolutely worth it in the end.

while searching the depths of the internet for the perfect biscotti recipe,

i found so many possibilities & ended up combining many to create my own.

flour, salt, baking powder, sliced almonds, eggs, butter,

baking powder, sugar and vanilla and almond extracts 

combine perfectly into a delicious crunchy treat.

after shaping the dough into a log, 

it is baked until golden brown,

allowed to cool and sliced.

lay the slices onto a baking sheet and bake once more until golden brown

be sure to flip the slices half way through to brown both sides.

these were perfect without chocolate but you could also 

dip the bottom into melted dark chocolate for some extra sweetness

Guinness Chocolate Cupcakes

if you've been keeping up with me here at sugared limes,

you've been waiting for this recipe ever since this post last week.

hopefully the suspense was worth it. these cupcakes were definitely 

worth the hard work and late night.

i found this recipe months ago and have been waiting to break it out ever since.

when friends were visiting last weekend to celebrate their birthdays,

i knew this would be a perfect recipe for the occasion.

1 1/2 cups Guinness

1 cup butter

3/4 cup cocoa powder

2 cups cake flour

2 cups sugar

1/2 tbsp baking soda

3/4 tsp salt

2 eggs

2/3 cup sour cream

 in a small sauce pan simmer beer and butter until butter melts 

beat eggs and sour cream in mixing bowl

add cocoa powder to beer and butter and whisk until smooth

add beer, butter and cocoa mixture to eggs and sour cream

fold in flour, salt, sugar and baking soda

mix until smooth

fill cupcake wells 3/4 of the way and bake at 350 

until toothpick comes out clean.

cool completely.

the frosting was my favorite part. 

unlike the original recipe, i used 

homemade chocolate whipped cream frosting

1/3 cup confectioners sugar

2 tbsp cocoa

1 cup whipping cream

1 tsp vanilla extract

add cream and vanilla to sugar and cocoa mixture

beat until thick

Mini Cupcake Poppers

a few weeks ago i spent a night with three adorable little ones. 

if you read Always Love you've definitely seen them around

for these mini cupcake poppers

i used confetti cake mix, canned vanilla frosting,

and my trusty wilton food coloring gels

mix the cake according to the directions on the box, 

separate into 4 different bowls and mix with 4 colors of coloring gel

fill mini cupcake wells and bake

after the cupcakes are done baking and cooled, 

cut the tops off and discard the bottoms

fill with a little spoonful of frosting and press two tops together

creating a mini sandwich. 

hand out to beautiful little girls and watch their faces light up!

Chocolate Cherry Cookies

for those of you impatiently awaiting my follow up post from last week....

this isn't it.

i haven't had time to upload my pictures yet,

so i thought this post might hold you over just a little longer.

here i used canola oil, cherry jam, sugar, and cocoa powder,

vanilla extract, salt, baking powder, and

mix all ingredients (i used my hands cause it was alot more fun)

and mold into balls and flatten on a cookie sheet.

bake at 350 for approximately 8 minutes

let cool and enjoy!

Why...

...do i always start baking after 930?

for some reason i find most of my baking motivation

around 10pm, on work nights.

starting a project at 10pm, finishing at 1am

and a 6am alarm clock, do not make for a friendly friday morning.

luckily last nights project was worth it, or at least i hope it was

 i cant tell exactly what it was just yet, and

i'm celebrating friends birthdays this weekend,

so check back next week for the pictures and recipe!

Mustard & Parmesan Breadsticks

i came up with this super quick appetizer recipe 

for a holiday party at a friends house

thaw one sheet of phyllo dough and lay flat on floured surface

spread spicy mustard on one half of dough as shown above

add fresh cracked pepper and a sprinkle of salt

fold top down over mustard and cut into strips

bake at 350 until tops are golden brown

arrange on a platter or in a jar and enjoy!

Halloween: Orange & Dark Chocolate Cake Balls

as a self proclaimed "baker," when halloween came around

(yes. i do realize that was months ago)

i couldn't give out store bought candies to the adorable

trick-or-treaters at my work. i knew just what i would make.

i chose dark chocolate covered orange cake pops.

follow the simple cake pops recipe here using an orange flavored cake mix

dip in melted dark chocolate and top with white sprinkles

Lesson Learned: I HATE Flaxseed

once upon a time i tried to bake healthy.

i learned a few things:

1. i love baked goods for their sugary sweetness

2. i need to try many "healthy" baking recipes before i will be successful

3. i HATE flaxseed

here i used roasted flaxseed, almond butter, peanut butter, honey and oats

in an attempt to make my own no bake granola bars.

mix all ingredients and spread into a glass baking dish. freeze until solid and cut.

place in individual plastic baggies to ensure freshness and have an easy

on the go snack ready at all times!

doesnt look so bad does it?

looks can be deceiving my friends!

the flaxseeds were AWFUL. not only to they smell funny

but they taste terrible and over powered my poor granola bars.

luckily my mom liked them so they didnt go to waste!

next i used the above ingredients to make pumpkin oatmeal muffins.

sadly i had not tried my granola bars before i baked these and added flaxseed unknowing of its terribleness.

although these muffins were much better than the granola, they still were not my favorite.

maybe soon i will give "healthy" baking another shot...minus the flaxseeds.

do you have a favorite "healthy" treat or recipe? please share!

Apple Tarts, Pumpkin Bread, and Pomegranate Banana Muffins

when a dear friend bought her first house a few months ago,

she invited me over for a day of interior decorating talk good company.

and what better way to break in a new oven than a day of fall baking?

we chose fall recipes, went shopping and got to work.

first up was pumpkin bread with cream cheese filling

next up we made mini apple pies in tart tins.

line tins with store bought pie crust;

peel and dice apples and toss with sugar, cinnamon, 

brown sugar, nutmeg, and flour.

fill lined tins with flavored apples and bake.

we made some without tops

and some with tops

they turned out perfect golden brown

next we made banana pomegranate muffins

once again we did a little bake as you go experimenting

and i have very little "recipes" to go from.

what are your favorite fall treats?