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I love writing over at The Creative Mama. I love having a place where women come together and share what works for them and how creative people get through their day. I recently wrote an article about Sunday Dinners and what they mean to me and my family. Would you like to read it too? Awesome. Here it is.
Life around this house has been a little nutty lately and I have not been spending a whole lot of time in my kitchen. I really, I really miss being in there. Cooking and baking are like therapy for me. It calms me, keeps me centered and sane. After a long deployment, sickness, back to school, and broken bones, I could really use some calm and sane in my life.
Any ideas on what I should make first? Any requests?
Have a great holiday weekend. Need something fun and patriotic to bring to your holiday barbecue?
See you tomorrow.
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Some days I really feel like baking bread. I love the process of taking some simple ingredients and turning it into something as spectacular as bread. Really, bread making is a science experiment, and it is so fun to watch. I love watching the yeast foam and bubble and when my bread actually rises and doubles in size I feel like I have truly accomplished something. I also cannot think of a better smell to be wafting through my house. I love to bake bread with my kids. Mine are absolutely captivated by the whole process.
1 Tablespoon rapid rise yeast
I made my bread in the mixer but you can do this easily by hand, I am sure that you could adapt this for your bread machine as well. In the bowl of the mixer with the dough hook attachment, mix together the yeast and flour.
Pour in the water, oil, honey, and salt. I put it all together in a measuring cup and pour it in.
Mix the dough on low speed for about 10 minutes.
The dough will be smooth and elastic. If your dough is really sticky, you can add up to one half cup of additional flour.
Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and knead by hand a few times. Put the dough in a lightly oiled dough. Cover with plastic wrap.
Flour your board and roll out your dough roughly the width of your loaf pan.
Using a pastry brush, brush the dough with the melted butter. In a bowl, mix together the cinnamon and sugar.
Sprinkle the mixture on the buttered dough.
Roll up the dough and pinch the ends closed.
Put the dough in a lightly buttered loaf pan. I butter it when I am buttering the dough.
Cover the loaf with a towel and let rise for 30 minutes or until it looks like this.
Bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for 25-30 minutes or until golden brown.
Turn the bread out of the pan, and let cool. If you can let it cool before you cut it, more power to you.
As my youngest son would say, “yeah, baby!”
Cinnamon Swirl Bread is a big hit in this house. I bet it will be in yours as well. I cannot even imagine how amazing this bread would be for french toast or a bread pudding. Hmmm….
Want to try the most fabulous lemon meringue pie ever? Head over and 
If you read my blog regularly than you know that I try to make the food that my family eats from scratch as much as I possibly can. But let’s face it, I am not a morning person. On a weekend, I am more prone to whip up a batch of homemade waffles or pancakes, but during the week anything goes. That being said, I still try to give my family a healthy breakfast before they leave for work and school and I am pretty picky about what brands I buy. When 
So what are you waiting for? Get some 
I am obsessed with this simple cake. It has all of my favorite flavors; lemon, vanilla, and almond. It takes literally 5 minutes to make and it bakes in 25 minutes. It just might be the perfect snack to have with a steamy cup of coffee or a hot tea. This is going to be a go-to recipe for my next brunch. I found this recipe in the 
If only I could be this cute shoving cake in my mouth. Ah, to be 14 months old again.
This is the book that I am talking about. Run to the your local 
1 cup sugar (plus more more sprinkling on top right before baking)
In a medium bowl, add the lemon zest to the sugar. Rub the zest and sugar in between your fingers to release the oils, the sugar will start to smell delicious.
Whisk in the eggs one at a time.
Whisk in the salt and the extracts.
Change to a spatula and stir in the flour.
Fold in the butter.
Stir until combined. Dorie makes her in a 9-inch cast iron skillet. I don’t have one so I used a regular 9-inch cake pan. I used a little of the melted butter to grease the pan.
Pour the batter into the pan and top with the sliced almonds and a generous sprinkling of sugar.
Bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for 25 to 30 minutes. It will be golden and the edges will have a nice crust.
Let the cake cool in the pan for about 5 minutes and then take a knife and run it around the edge of the pan.
This cake can be served warm (and really is there anything more delicious than a warm cake?) or at room temperature.
Here is a picture of cake #2. A latte and some Swedish Visiting Cake, is there really a better way to spend a morning?
Well, yes, there is. With good friends that let us come over and hang out at 9am. We love you guys!
