SMiLes by Meg

Tag: salt

Dark Chocolate Fudge Brownies

I recently discovered the blog Hummingbird High when she was featured on another blog I like, Cloudy Kitchen. I feel like there’s this network of real baking bloggers that are all friends and go to each other’s places in New York and make really amazing and beautiful desserts and generally live pleasant lives. Michelle Lopez, behind Hummingbird High, recently released a cookbook, Weeknight Baking. The entire concept appealed to me – ways to bake delicious things in minimal time. And, the star recipe that seemed to be all over Instagram was Better-Than-Supernatural Fudge Brownies, so obviously I started with those. …

Salted Caramel Thumbprints

Guys, it’s Christmas cookie season. And, if you’ve been reading my blog anytime in the last six years, you know that every year, I dedicate one weekend to making an absurd amount of Christmas cookies, which I then put in boxes or tins and distribute to friends and family and coworkers. This was not that weekend. But I did make some Christmas cookies anyway, because The NY Times Cookie Spread on instagram was way too perfect not to get an early start. So these will go into the office, not in bags, and hopefully next weekend I’ll actually dedicate the …

Mint Chocolate Pistachio Fridge Cake

The best-tasting treats are not necessarily the prettiest things I make, even if that rainbow cake was pretty delicious. No, they’re the dump-everything-into-a-bowl-and-hold-it-together-with-chocolate recipes. They’re quick to make, clean out your pantry, and give you just the right amount a sweet and crunchy. Take this Mint Chocolate Pistachio Fridge Cake. Maybe you have chili chocolate, or salted chocolate in your kitchen. That’s fine – use that instead! Or maybe pistachios aren’t your thing, but you’ve got pecans and walnuts. Perfect! And maybe you’re someone that just doesn’t like rum-soaked raisins (I can’t imagine why). Try whiskey-soaked dried cherries. This recipe …

Millionaire Bars

Last week, I promised to make something with halvah. This week, I bring you: Millionaire Bars. I’m going to keep this post on the shorter side, since I’m typing it before going into the office on Friday, and I’ll be traveling to Portland for the weekend to see what the pacific northwest is all about. Though these take a little bit of work (three separate layers, each with its own instructions), they actually were easy to make during the week. One night, I made the shortbread layer, and let it cool overnight. The next morning, I quickly did the halvah …

Honey Macadamia Coconut Caramels

Working in corporate law often feels like you’re either barely staying afloat or barely have enough to fill a day. For example, on Wednesday, I worked past midnight and still didn’t get everything done. On Thursday, I got home at 5:30 and spent the evening making these caramels. It’s definitely taking some getting used to. But a free Thursday night means you get a good recipe this week! I’m hitting “publish” on this from a weekend with my family down in Florida, so if Thursday hadn’t happened to be a light day, you may not have gotten a recipe at …

Chocolate Molasses Cookies

I haven’t written a blog post from my iPad in a long time, and I’m not entirely confident this is going to work, but here goes nothing. I’ve been in Alaska for the last week, experiencing Anchorage in winter, which is decidedly snowier and colder than Anchorage in summer. But, since Boston has not been delivering on the snow this year, it’s a welcome change of scenery, and brings with it some pretty cool stuff. For example, on the day I flew in, there had been a frozen fog over the city, which left trees and signs and just about …

Salted Chocolate Chunk Shortbread Cookies

Happy Christmas Cookie Season! Every year, I dedicate one weekend to spending all of my time in the kitchen baking at least 5 varieties of cookies to put in tins and give out to friends and families. This year, that weekend will be next weekend, but when my roommate and I decided to host a Gingerbread House Party this weekend, I couldn’t pass up an opportunity to get a head start. Because I’ve already posted my gingerbread cookies, which I was using for my house base, I decided to throw a new variety of cookie in the mix: salted chocolate …

Sourdough Bagels

If you’ve been following my blog for awhile, you know that I have a sourdough starter that I like to bake with fairly often. Anytime I have a bread-type thing I want to make, I look to see if there’s a sourdough version. This is partly because every time I open my fridge it stares at me, wanting to be fed or used, and I feel bad letting it sit in there too long without doing something useful. (Even yeast cultures deserve to have a purpose in their lives.) But it is also because I despise using dry yeast for …

Peanut Butter Brownies

When I first started this blog, I think I envisioned myself making a lot more brownies than I actually do. In creating categories for my recipes, I apparently didn’t think “Bar Cookies” was specific enough, and made a whole separate category for “Brownies.” But now I have 23 recipes under Bars and only 11 under Brownies. Let this recipe be a first attempt at remedying this situation.

Saltine Bark

Amid a whirlwind weekend full of family, tacos, and probably too little reading, I needed to find a quick recipe that would also be a crowd pleaser. I’ve had this before around Christmas, and generally am not able to step away from a plate of it. Turns out it also makes for a great cookout dessert for a lot of people in very little time.