Dessert Recipes

I was standing in the checkout line at the hardware store—of all places—when the woman behind me started talking about banana bread. Not just any … Read more

My neighbor Sarah asked me why I couldn’t just use a whole can of pumpkin puree instead of measuring out exactly one cup. I started … Read more

It was 10:47 PM on a random Wednesday, and I had a ridiculous, specific craving for something pumpkin-spiced and swirled with cream cheese. You know … Read more

This was supposed to be a simple pumpkin bread. A loaf, you know, the kind you slice up for breakfast with a smear of butter. … Read more

My neighbor, a retired baker named Lorraine, watched me struggling with a batch of overly flat, sad-looking cookies one October afternoon. I was trying to … Read more

Louise wasn’t trying to impress anyone. I’d stopped by her place to grab a garden stake I’d lent her last spring, and the smell hit … Read more

Introduction Last October, I was at the tail end of a farmers market run, my canvas bag already heavy with squash and the last of … Read more

My dad swore he hated apple cider. For years. “Too sweet,” he’d grunt whenever someone brought out a jug at a family gathering. “Tastes like … Read more

I was standing in the frozen foods aisle of a grocery store I didn’t even like last November when it hit me. A woman walked … Read more

Last summer, the heat wave hit hard, and my kitchen felt like a sauna by mid-afternoon. My kids were bouncing off the walls, asking for … Read more