My Madison Bistro
Aug 17 2009
I’m the queen of indecision, going back and forth over every possible option until I finally reach a decision. This galette was the product of that indecision. I had a pound of beautiful Bing cherries, a stash of cream cheese, and I simply could not decide what to make. Cheesecake? Cherry Pie? Cherry Tartelettes?
Aug 15 2009
In some ways, mid-August is one of my favorite times of year. Sure, I complain about it being a little too hot, a little too humid, but that very heat and humidity is so important to area crops, not to mention my own garden. The available local produce is at its peak, which translates into lots of fruit desserts.
And with autumn and winter right around the corner, they usher in a whole new slew of desserts. So I figured, what better time to share with you some of my favorite recipes?
With this e-book, I’ve tried to include something for everyone: you’re find desserts that are vegan, gluten-free, sugar-free, egg-free, and/or dairy-free. All of the gluten-free & sugar-free desserts have been tested by folks who do not follow that type of diet; if they give a sf/gf dessert the thumbs-up, I believe most people will enjoy the treat.
You’ll find desserts that showcase seasonal fruit, as well as heartier desserts that will comfort you when the temperatures drop. Here is what you have to look forward to:
Strawberry Rhubarb Compote* (vegan, dairy-free, egg-free)
Summer Fruit Crumble* (egg-free)
Peach Tarts
Cherry Cheesecake Galette (egg-free)
Poached Pears (vegan, egg-free, dairy-free)
Dulce de Leche Chocolate Chip Cookies
Grandma’s Molasses Cut-Out Cookies
Lemon Tea Cookies (egg-free, vegan if use trans-fat free margarine)
Pinwheels
Peppermint White Chocolate Truffles (egg-free)
Chocolate Mousse with Orange Vanilla Whipped Cream
Sugar-Free Chocolate Mousse (sugar-free & gluten-free)
Chocolate Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Icing (sugar-free & gluten-free)
Blueberry Muffins (sugar-free & gluten-free)
Peanut Butter Silk Pie (sugar-free & gluten-free)
*Both Strawberry Rhubarb Compoteand Summer Fruit Crumble are original recipes that have been featured on My Madison Bistro.
This e-book is available at no charge, but if you like the recipes or would like to help fund the recipe development for future e-books, donations are greatly appreciated.
Aug 13 2009
When I take on a project, I tend to ignore everything else in my life. When I decided to start work on an ebook of original desserts, my kitchen started to look much as it does around the holidays when I’m baking and candy-making during every free moment I have. For Christmas, I like to make gift baskets of goodies, each year trying to get a bit more elaborate, always trying to include one thing specific to that person. Each year when I’m finished, I say never again.
With my kitchen in a new state of disaster – there are desserts everywhere (a sane person would stretch a project like this over weeks, happily snapping away a photo when they decide to make a dessert, but I never really claimed to be sane), it’s been somewhat of a struggle to cook everything from scratch.
Yeah, about that. It’s confession time.
Aug 12 2009
I’m always in search for the perfect cookie. There’s just something about the crisp exterior and chewy interior that draws me in. This recipe is inspired by a childhood favorite, a cookie that tasted just as good after it cooled, as it did when it was still warm from the oven.
That’s an important quality for me. I still have fond memories of the Nestle Tollhouse cookies, but I have to say, I had portion control built in with those because once they were no longer warm, I lost interest. When I was in college, I discovered just how long those cookies could be kept. I had baked a batch, ate my fill, and forgot about the rest I had packed away in a container.
A friend of mine came to visit about a month or two later. Standing in my kitchen, she saw the container and squealed, “Chocolate Chip Cookies!!!!” What happened next was one of those movie moments, the drawn-out, slow-motion voice: “Noooooo!”
