Pear and Cranberry Muffins with Gingersnap Crumble - SMS

This recipe couldn't have come at a better time. A co-worker gave me several pears from their backyard tree. They remind me of our backyard apples, lots of spots but beautiful, juicy fruit on the inside.

The Pear and Cranberry Muffins are the same base recipe as the Peach Muffins we made in August. This recipe makes a lovely, moist muffin. I decided to make 6 large muffins instead of the 12 small ones. They took about five minutes longer to bake. I used lemon zest instead of orange zest and rehydrated craisins for the cranberries.

Not being a big gingersnap fan, I was a little concerned about the flavor of the topping. Boy was I wrong, the topping ended up being one of my favorite things about these muffins. I used store bought gingersnaps. Next time I make these, I will use more pears.


Thanks to Jennifer of Maple N' Cornbread for choosing this week's recipe. The recipe can be found on her blog. You can find the links to all of the other Sweet Melissa Sunday's bakers he For links to all of the Sweet Melissa Sunday's bakers here.

Next week's Sweet Melissa Sunday's is Butter Toffee Crunch, a perfect recipe for holiday giving.

Devils Food Cake with Peanut Butter Frosting - SMS

I can't remember the last time I made a layer cake. I was digging in the cabinet where I keep the baking pans and pulled out the round pans. Apparently I've never baked a 9" layer cake...my round pans are 7". I had enough for the two 7" rounds and 6 cupcakes.

We went to see our friends Karen and Larry in Kansas City this weekend. We had this cake for dessert last night. This recipe called for strong black coffee. I was a little concerned because Larry doesn't like coffee at all. I tried one of the cupcakes and couldn't even tell, so I knew we were good!! I made the frosting as Karen from Karen's Cookies, Cakes and More suggested. It was sooooooooo good! I can't imagine following the frosting recipe in the cookbook, seriously 6 sticks of butter???!!! I am all about rich, decadant desserts but that would have been too much, even for me!!! The cake was fabulous! This was my favorite SMS so far and you can bet I will be making this cake again...SOON!

This weeks recipe was chosen by Holly of Phe/MOM/enon. Holly you rock! This recipe was the best! Visit the SMS site to see what finishing touches all of the creative SMS bakers put on this delicious cake!!

Pumpkin Cookie Cakes - SMS

What do you think of when you think of pumpkin? Everyone has their own special pumpkin memories. I love to remember October and pumpkins as a child, carving the jack o lantern, trick or treating. I also have a special memory of my mom's Pumpkin Bread. My mother passed away when I was 16 and her recipes are those special memories I still cherish today!

As a child, Pumpkin Bread and Pumpkin Pie are the two things I can remember eating. Blogging has allowed me to create new recipes made with pumpkin. I like pumpkin but I can't say I love pumpkin! This week's Sweet Melissa Sunday's recipe is Pumpkin Cookie Cakes. For me, you need to love things made with pumpkin to love this recipe. My favorite part...the cream cheese frosting. I was using leftover frosting, so I didn't have as much as I would have liked.


Thanks to Debbie of Everyday Blessings of the Five Dees for choosing this recipe. Visit the SMS site to see all of the links to the group of talented and creative SMS bakers!

Sticky Buns With Toasted Almonds - SMS

To bake or not to bake? That was my question for this weeks Sweet Melissa Sunday. I've never been very successful with yeast breads or kneaded doughs. However, the reason I starting blogging and joined Sweet Melissa Sundays was to try recipes that are a challenge for me. So I decided to bake and I am so glad I did. These sticky buns are so delicious.

I made a couple of changes. I used lemon zest instead of orange zest and honey instead of maple syrup. My dough came together nicely. I realized as I was rolling the dough, most of the doughs I made in the past were kneaded by hand before I owned a Kitchen Aid. With the assistance of the Kitchen Aid, I feel much more confident about my dough making skills.

I had a little trouble telling if these were done. I took them out after about 30 minutes. They did seem a little doughy on the bottom but were golden brown on the top. Maybe the honey was more liquid than the maple syrup would have been?

Thanks to Jen of Not Microwave Safe for choosing this wonderful recipe. You can find all of the creative and talented Sweet Melissa Sunday's bakers here.

Apple Orchard Pecan Crumble - SMS

A quick note before we get to this weeks Sweet Melissa Sundays. I love chocolate and want to start a baking group around Chocolate Epiphany. I'd like to keep the group small and bake once a month. If you're interested, please leave me a comment.

When I saw this week's Sweet Melissa Sunday's recipe was Apple Orchard Pecan Crumble, the timing couldn't have been better. I have two buckets of apples from our tree and I needed a dessert to serve Saturday night. Recently I was listening to Martha Stewart Radio and the host was talking about how we tend to not use our dining rooms and our good china. As I was setting the table for last night's dinner, our friend Larry said I've never eaten in your dining room. Karen and Larry have been my best friends for more than 30 years, they're more like family. I tend to use my dining room for holiday dinners and large dinner parties but I've never used it when Karen and Larry come to visit. I immediately set the table with the good china and the candles. It was a lovely dinner and reminded me we should use the dining room more often.

Melissa Murphy suggested serving the Apple Orchard Pecan Crumble with Brown Sugar Vanilla Ice Cream or whipping cream. I decided to make the homemade ice cream and I am so glad I did. The ice cream was a wonderful compliment to the crumble.

Thanks to Christine of Cooking With Christine for choosing a recipe that was a delicious ending to our lovely evening. You can find all of the other Sweet Melissa Sunday's bakers here.

Orange Scented Scones - SMS

Due to a family emergency, we made a quick day to trip to Kansas City. Today I am trying to get the things I wanted to do this weekend done in one day. My baking for the weekend was going to be TWD Cottage Cheese Pufflets and SMS Orange Scented Scones. After reading some of the comments on the dough for the TWD recipe and considering my dough skills, I decided just to bake the SMS recipe.

Since I felt like I was in race mode today, I measured and arranged all of the ingredients in advance so as to not make mistakes. I read the recipe well or so I thought. I pulsed the dough and when I went to fold it into the wet mixture, I realized a lot of the butter had settled on the bottom. Too late to correct, half the dough is in the wet mixture. The dough seemed to have a good texture when I rolled it out, so I am hoping they are still good. As I put them in the oven, I realized the glaze was supposed to go on them BEFORE I baked them. I decided to go ahead and bake them and make an icing style glaze to drizzle over them.



The reason I decided to join the SMS and TWD baking groups, is to improve my baking skills and bake recipes outside of my normal comfort zone. It's a great learning experience and next time, I will check the food processor before I fold into the wet mixture.

This weeks recipe was chosen by Robin of Lady Craddock's Bakery. You can find the other SMS bakers here. There are some very talented and creative bakers in this group.

Perfect Pound Cake - Sweet Melissa Sundays

I am excited to announce my first official Sweet Melissa Sundays (SMS) post. This weeks recipe was chosen by Michele of Veggie Num Nums. You will find the recipe on her blog. Check out some of the other wonderful SMS bakers here.

I wanted to do something besides just a plain pound cake. I am trying to get a little more adventurous with my baking. After some deliberation as to whether or not the recipe would work in a bundt pan, I decided to go for it. I adjusted the baking time to 40 minutes.

In addition, I thought it would be yummy to give the pound cake a touch of lemon. I added 1 teaspoon of lemon zest to the batter. As well, I made a lemon syrup to go on top of the cake.

Lemon Syrup
1/4 cup lemon juice
1/4 cup sugar
Combine over medium heat until sugar is dissolved.

Place cake on cooling rack. Poke holes in the bottom of the cake with a toothpick. Brush 1/2 of the lemon syrup over the cake. Let the cake cool about 20 minutes. Remove from the pan. Poke holes in the top of the cake and brush with remaining syrup.



Although the cake isn't as tall as I would like, I think it turned out beautifully. The lemon is a nice addition to the already buttery pound cake.