Harveen's Baking Affair

Why an ode to Fall? Why not ? It is my most favorite season.. crisp coolness in the air, breathtaking colors of the foliage , family pumpkin picking trips , craving some of them as jack-o-lanterns ,  apple cider...the list can go on and on but I will skip to the most pleasure inducing part of the list .. fall baking...the chill in the air gives the perfect excuse to indulge in some aromatic fall favorites like pumpkin pie and apple quick breads . The addition of the pumpkin pie spice lends such an aroma to the bakes that they become a treat for the senses. The flavors of the autumn bakes leave you spell bound and make you crave for these culinary comforts every fall. Rummaging through old pics, I can easily spot many in which we all seem to be enjoying pumpkin bakes..Be it pancakes , scones or quick bread, Trader Joe's had it covered for us . Yes, I did not do scratch baking at that time. But the abovementioned used to do their job beautifully and baking them gave me th...

I'll be the first to admit that I don't possess a green thumb. My knowledge of gardening is practically zilch  but that doesn't stop me from dreaming of going to my imaginary herb garden and just picking a few and incorportaing them in my bakes. My imagination is quite vivid and advanced in that regard-- I can even smell the fresh herbs lending a heavenly aroma to my kitchen . What pure bliss can I conjure ..right ? Anyways, coming back to reality , the closest I come to getting this spiritual experience is when a good friend takes pity and gifts me some fresh herbs. That does happen and I bless them a million times. My latest blessings were for a friend who sent me some fresh romsemary from her garden . The sight of them sent me into a baking frenzy . Make it bread baking frenzy . There is no other bake that can do justice to rosemary than freshly baked home bread, The aroma and flavor are simple divine not to emntion the extreme satisfaction you get from baking y...

I am still vacillating as to what I should name this bread.Swirl bread is the first to come to mind but in all fairness date pistachio swirl bread seems more apt. Highly tempted to call this a fruit and nut bread but somehow I feel that the name does not do it justice ..sounds too vague. If you are reading this blog, then you do know my final choice but right now my vacillation continues. How about eggless fruit swirl bread ? Doesn't sound very enthusiastic ! Might just have to ask my daughter to do "eeny meeny miney moe" to choose since I can't make up my mind. That is what she does whenever she is vacillating..we are permitted to copy our kids sometimes. Enough with the naming choices. Let's talk about the bread. For this one, I really wish there was a way technologically , that you could taste this bread . It is an utter delight and the pistachio and date filling just tastes divine. Had been meaning to make a swirl bread for quite sometime now and wh...

Every few months , a bug bites me . Let's not take the expression literally . Yes, I am bitten but not by a real life tangible one. The "bug" in my case is an invisible force which attacks my neurons in such a way that the end result is lack of enthusiasm. Lucky me , it only lasts temporarily ( well atleast till now) but during that time frame, everything seems a chore ..even baking which is like my spiritual spa. That's when I crave real simple and easy to make recipes for my weekly challenge. Nothing like a new baking recipe to break you out of this rut especially one which requires minimal effort but doesn't compromise on taste. The original recipe comes from  here  and quite unlike what i normally do, have made absolutely no change to the recipe. Blame it on my lack of enthusiasm bug..after all it affects my creativity as well. Don't tell me you guys were unaware of the link between the two ! Coming back, did I mention that these brownies are an egg...

It's that time of the year when love is in the air and hearts are everywhere.Not to be left behind ,here are mine...cookie hearts or more precisey eggless heart shaped dipped cookies . In this season of love , wanted to spread some cookie cheer especially the egg less kind. So, all of you who are always on the look out for eggless baking recipes can rejoice ! For once , you can follow the recipe without having to worry about substituting the egg it with apple sauce or banana. You guys are in for a treat..a sweet treat no less that a dipped heart one . let's get on with it - Ingredients -  For cookies - 2 1/4 cup flour 1 cup butter ( 2 sticks) 1/2 cup packed brown sugar 1/2 tsp salt 1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice  For  Dipping - 1/2  cup red candy wafers (for dipping) /* use normal baking chocolate to skip the red color*/ 2 tbsp shortening like Crisco Method - Pre heat the oven to 350 degrees F. In a bowl , with the help of a hand m...