Earlier this week, I told you about one of my old favorites I made over the weekend, the amaretti. The other yummy cookie I made to go with our coffee for the week was a biscotti. Biscotti is one of my favorite morning coffee accompaniments, but I usually buy it at the store. I’ve seen it made on cooking shows, and after reading through my cookbooks, I found a rather simple recipe for an almond biscotti. (more…)

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Breakfast, Brunch, Dessert by Courtney

This weekend I decided to take the time to create plenty of homemade goodies to enjoy during the work week. One of the things my husband has been wanting since getting the espresso maker is “tiny cookies” to go with his morning cappuccino. So this weekend I decided to make one old favorite and something new as well.

The old favorite is an amaretti cookie. I discovered these in the A16 cookbook. It’s one of the desserts that looked fairly simple, so I tried it, and while my first batch had issues, I finally figured out the trick to getting the perfect amaretti cookies every time (so the recipe below is updated accordingly). (more…)

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Breakfast, Brunch, Dairy free, Dessert, Gluten free, Italian, Vegetarian by Courtney

I hadn’t planned on making this post, but then again, I hadn’t planned on having dessert tonight! The hubby has long wanted an espresso maker, and low-n-behold what came via FedEx today… an espresso maker. So while we waited on our ordered-in pizza and drank cocktails and wine, we put together the espresso maker, tinkering with the right amounts of grounds, the right texture, etc.

We decided as an after-dinner treat to have affogato. We tried to order it last night at a local restaurant, but they were out of vanilla ice cream, only having mint or cioccolato, neither of which we were in the mood for. So tonight I brought out the Black Cherry Talenti gelato, the brandied cherries, and the kirsch. And of course, we finally got the perfect-ish pull of espresso. (more…)

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Dessert, Gluten free, Italian, Vegetarian by Courtney

It’s that time of year again! When tomatoes start ripening, and the basil grows big and bushy. Of course, I’ve killed my basil and I only have one ripe San Marzano thus far, but that isn’t holding me back. My CSA was full of Roma tomatoes and basil this week, and what better to make than the classic combo — tomatoes, basil, fresh mozzarella — a Caprese salad.

During summer I eat these every chance I get. Breakfast, snack, lunch, appetizer, between two slices of bread if I need more sustenance. While you could simply throw the three ingredients together and it would taste wonderful, there are a couple of additions that I like to add to take this over the top. Want to know what they are? (more…)

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Appetizers, Gluten free, In the Garden, Italian, Quick and Easy, Salad, Vegetarian by Courtney

It’s funny where you might stumble upon a recipe. Sure, there are sites that are dedicated to recipes, such as Epicurious and blogs like this one. There’s the back of a package – like the Nestle Toll House chocolate chips and their famous cookie. One place I hadn’t anticipated, though, was when I went to Cypress Grove’s website to read up on their newest addition to their cheese line up, Truffle Tremor.

When I was putting together a cheese course of local cheeses, and I picked up Truffle Tremor in part because I love Cypress Grove’s Humboldt Fog, so I thought I’d try the newest cheese on the block. The Tremor was so good, so creamy, that I decided to pop over to the website to find out more about it. That’s where I stumbled upon recipes. (more…)

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Comfort food, Gourmet, Lunch, Quick and Easy, Vegetarian by Courtney