Blueberry Scones

It's that time of year again when the blueberries are on sale! I got a box for my 4th of July party and had a bunch of leftovers for my favorite scone recipe. These are delicious with a dollop of whipped cream or eaten with cup of hot coffee. Makes 8 "Starbucks-sized" scones.

Strawberry-Rhubarb Pie

One of the gifts of spring/early summer is fresh strawberry-rhubarb pie. It's truly magical how the well the orange tang of rhubarb and the mouthwatering sweet of sun-ripened strawberries melt into each other in the heat of the oven. Well, my recipe is based on a recipe from the classic pie bible, Farm Journal's Complete Pie Cookbook. I highly recommend serving with a generous dollop of whipped cream.

Blackberry Pie

One of the treasures of summer was going out into the country with my dad to collect the little clusters of black gold. We would take the berries home, wash them well, and freeze them for use all year round. My favorite application for blackberries is in pie. Blackberries tend to get runny, so to thicken the pie, add tapioca. Unfortunately, for this round of cooking, I forgot to get the tapioca at the store. Even if your pie turns out extra juicy, it's great over ice cream!

"Carrot Cake" Muffins

This recipe was adapted from one in Jessica Seinfeld's new cookbook, Double Delicious. I tried it and realized these were basically less-sugary carrot cakes in muffin form. They are so incredibly good with a layer of plain cream cheese on top. They are perfect for breakfast or for an afternoon snack.

Sherry Sugars

Wonderful for the holidays and made to be decorated, these cookies are delicately sweet and are a perfect backdrop for a little sugar glaze. In my sugar glaze recipe, I've used a few unusual techniques for getting some color since I don't like using traditional food colorings. Yields about 60 cookies.

Eggnog Cookies

These cookies are absolutely wonderful and are a must-bake. The nutmeg in these imparts a slightly egg-noggy flavor. These are fantastic for the holidays and anytime you are jonesing for some 'nog.

Holiday Dinner!

Due to the hustle and bustle of Thanksgiving, as well as a dose of technical difficulties, I didn't have the opportunity to snap any photographs of my Thanksgiving spread. But as my guests and I can tell you, it was to-die-for good.

Christmas dinner is just a few days away, so I'd like to share with you my menu I used for Thanksgiving.

Main Course:
Herb-Roasted Turkey Breast

Side Dishes:
Brussels Sprouts Casserole
Glazed Carrots
Garlic Mashed Potatoes
Trader Joe's Cornbread Stuffing
Chardonnay-Herb Turkey Gravy
Cranberry Sauce
Bowl of black olives

Dessert:
Pumpkin Cheesecake

Drinks:
Le Baron Ranch Late Harvest Riesling 2009
Milk / Water

Holiday Special: Pumpkin Cheesecake

This cheesecake is ethereal and light due to being made in a blender and using nonfat ingredients. It's extremely guilt-free for the holidays and any other time you want some cheesecake. Remember to have all of your ingredients at room temperature. This will (hopefully) keep the cheesecake from cracking and also make blending the ingredients together easier. This recipe was made for a 10-inch springform pan so if you only have a 9-inch pan, like I do, you have some excess. Fill it as full as you can.

Chocolate-Orange Biscotti

Biscotti are those fantastic dry cookies you dunk in a good cup of coffee. The word biscotti originates from the Latin word biscoctus, meaning "twice-cooked/baked." Baking the biscotti twice makes them very dry and easily stored.

Blueberries and Cream Cheese Coffeecake

It's lovely, decadent, and it's for breakfast! This coffeecake is perfect for brunches. When serving, this cake tastes best when you've warmed it in the microwave for 20–30 sec.

Easy and Delicious Gluten-Free Brownies

Something new is here at the Salubrious Epicure blog! You can now search for gluten-free recipes over in the right column of the site. I'm kicking off my new gluten-free category with these delicious gluten-free brownies. They aren't as low in fat as my desserts usually are, but they aren't bad either—approximately 81 calories per brownie with just 4g fat. The basis of these beauties is, believe it or not, black beans. Gluten-free eaters and wheat eaters alike won't be able to resist the crumbly, melty, and chocolaty goodness.

Fudgier Buttermilk Brownies

Updated! This recipe hails from the New American Heart Association cookbook. To make it a lower-sugar recipe, I subbed in some Splenda® for the brown sugar. These are so good and so addictive.

Strawberry-Rhubarb Crumble

One of the treasures of spring is having fresh rhubarb. The farmer's market didn't have a lot last week, but I could not pass up the gorgeous  ruby stalks of rhubarb. This week I bring you this crumble I adapted from a recipe found in Taste of Home's The Market Fresh Cookbook.

Yellow Cake With Seven-Minute Frosting

I won't kid you, this is purely for a sugar-fix. My version of yellow cake is a little mealy due to the whole wheat flour. If you can find pastry whole wheat flour, I suspect it would fix the mealiness.

Chocolate Chip Cookies

These chocolate chip cookies are very satisfying and full of fiber. The suprise ingredient is chickpea (a.k.a. garbanzo) puree—don't worry, you can't taste the beans.