SMiLes by Meg

Cinnamon Rolls

I’ve been promising Erik cinnamon rolls for a couple of weeks now, and since this is one of those rare weekends during which I’m actually in Cambridge, it seemed like the right time. Now, these are not to be confused with cinnamon pinwheels, which I’ve made before. Those are more of a cookie than pastry. Cinnamon rolls, on the other hand, are a yeasted dough (more on that later), and are meant to be a lot cakier. And they’re meant to be iced, but since Erik was calling the shots, we didn’t go that route.

Rugelach

Last week, I baked my first recipe out of Sweet, but did so down in DC with Cate and Jonathan. This week, I baked my first recipe out of my own copy of Sweet, and did so here in Cambridge, during a much-needed weekend without travel. I had originally planned on making Torrone, but decided to wait on that. Then, I thought I’d make Ottolenghi’s peanut butter s’more cookies, but again decided it seemed a little too involved. Finally, I settled on Rugelach: impressive looking, but not overly time-consuming. And, as luck would have it, they got one of my

Rum and Raisin Cake

Finally out of the Christmas cookie posts! And this week, I’ve got a great one, out of Ottolenghi’s new cookbook: Sweet. I have many of his cookbooks, and really have never gone wrong with his recipes. But I never would have known about him if not for my college roommate Cate, who spent the past couple of years in England. When I went out to visit her, she brought me to one of his restaurants, and later got me a cookbook.

Chocolate Pecan Bars

Sometimes, when you’ve got an 8 hour final coming up, you just need to spend the day before doing fun things. Like baking. And climbing. And Christmas shopping. And just trust that you really weren’t going to learn any more copyright law today anyways.

Spiced Waffles

Two breakfast posts in a row! Obviously, I’ve been a little selfish lately, making things that I actually end up eating instead of pawning off on my friends. Don’t worry – next week’s Halloween treat is 100% for other people. But until then: Spiced Waffles.

Pumpkin Cheesecake

The last of my back up recipes: Pumpkin Cheesecake. I probably had time to bake this weekend, but it was kind of nice to just be lazy instead. We’ve got a long weekend from school, but the rain and general yuckiness stopped us from heading into the mountains as planned. Oh well. Watching High School Musical and exploring the Massachusetts area isn’t a terrible alternative.

Sourdough Pancakes

I always feel a little bit like pancakes don’t quite belong on this blog. As a baker, I’m drawn to breakfast food, and they do have cake in their name, but they seem like less of an adventure than other things I make. But I wanted to make another loaf of sourdough bread this weekend, and was already feeding my starter, so decided to give these a try. As consolation for them not being super exciting, I’ll supplement them with a good story.

Morning Glory Muffins

Happy birthday week, Mom! Yesterday, we kicked off the festivities with a surprise party for her. I think, miraculously, we actually pulled it off, and it was great to see so many people come out to celebrate such an amazing woman. Today, we kept the party going with some coconut baking: Morning Glory Muffins.