Browned Butter Snickerdoodles

These Browned Butter Snickerdoodles are pretty magical. They are chewy and cinnamon-y, and not your average snickerdoodle. This is because they have a slight nutty caramel flavor from browned butter.

Chrysanthemum Bread with Sausage, Pepperoni, and Mozzarella Cheese

My version of this Chrysanthemum Bread probably doesn't make you immediately think "that looks just like a flower!" It did look like a flower at one point, but then I tossed a handful of grated mozzarella on top just before placing the carefully shaped bread in the oven. What else was I going to do with leftover cheese?

Butterflake Rolls

These Butterflake Rolls are brushed with melted butter between layers of enriched dough prior to baking. They are so soft and tender, and are perfect for a family feast.

I pulled these out of the oven around 5:00 PM, a little early for dinner. For "quality control purposes," I pulled a small layer off of the smallest roll, spread a teensy bit of butter on it, and taste tested it. About 15 minutes later, I felt it was necessary to try one more layer "just to make sure."

Normandy Apple Bread with Levain and Apple Cider

This Normandy Apple Bread is made with both dried apples and apple cider in the dough. It's name is derived from the apple growing regions of France.

This recipe calls for dried apples, which you make yourself. I used some honeycrisp apples that I found at our local farmers market, and loved them. You an use any tart/sweet apple you prefer. I had a hard time judging how many apples to use to get to the correct amount, and made way more dried apples than necessary. Fortunately, the leftover apples were tasty on their own.

Sandpot Stir-Fried Chicken Rice | Wok Wednesdays

This Sandpot Stir-Fried Chicken Rice is a traditional Cantonese dish. Rice is cooked in a sandpot, while chicken, ginger, and shiitake mushrooms are stir-fried in a wok. Before the rice is fully cooked, the stir-fry mixture is placed on top of the rice to finish cooking.

As Grace Young says, this "exemplifies the fuel efficiency of Chinese cuisine." The hot rice continues to cook the chicken, and the juices in the chicken flavor the rice.

Raspberry Jam Crumb Muffins

These Raspberry Jam Crumb Muffins are very tender and moist, filled with raspberries and a swirl of raspberry jam, and then topped with streusel. I made my own raspberry jam to fill these muffins, but jarred jam would work just as well. What's so cool is that you can use either frozen or fresh raspberries, so you can have these muffins any season.

Hot (or Cold) Crab Dip

This Hot Crab Dip is the perfect game day snack. It will make your friends and family very happy, and keep them fueled for a long day of game watching. It kind of reminds me of the hot crab dip my mother used to serve in clam shells in the 1960s for cocktail parties.

This dip can also be made ahead of time, and is just as good cold the next day. Make it for a potluck. Your friends will swoon.