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Chocoholics, such as myself, tend to get a bit overlooked at Thanksgiving. Most the desserts following the Best Meal of the Year focus on pumpkin, pies, apples and spices of the season. While I’m certainly not one to turn my nose up to a piece of homemade pumpkin pie, if given the choice, I’d much [...]
It is universally true that people like free stuff. Especially free stuff that tastes awesome. Well, you lucky folks are in for quite a treat! In honor of Fair Trade Month, the good people over at Fair Trade USA have put together an amazing gift box for one lucky reader. How lucky are you? I’m [...]
Fall is in the air and I couldn’t be more excited! The weather has that perfect crispness to it, football is taking over my weekends and I’m starting to dream about all things warm and spicy. It’s the time of year for pumpkin scones, spiced pumpkin bread and pumpkin pie bites. It’s pretty clear that [...]
When I was a kid, my parents used to buy those giant trays of softball-sized muffins at Costco. The trays came with a combo of blueberry muffins, poppyseed muffins and the most indulgent double chocolate muffins you could imagine. Of course, the chocolate mufffins were always the first to vanish. They would disappear almost immediately [...]
Oh people, I have to apologize in advance for this recipe. If you are a lover of anything sweet and salty, you will need an exit strategy for these blondies. Have friends and family standing by to take the extras off your hands. I’m giving you fair warning, these little beauties are a Level 10 [...]
I haven’t been particularly inspired by a recipe in a while. Wedding planning has suddenly consumed my life and we’ve been subsisting on an awful lot of turkey burgers, tacos and pizzas. I haven’t been pulled off the couch and into the kitchen with a new recipe in ages … until I ran across an [...]
Believe it or not, I’m actually not a girly girl. I wasn’t a little girl who grew up dreaming about getting married. In fact, I was the angst-y young adult who actually purchased a book entitled Marriage and How to Avoid It. But then, life throws you a curveball. A tall, handsome curveball who is [...]
My apartment is overrun with black bananas. For most folks, this would be a cause for concern, but for me it’s a gift that keeps on giving. Black bananas lead to batches of naturally sweetened homemade granola bars, cookies and breads. Looking for yet another way to use up these mounds of black bananas, I [...]
Wait, weren’t we talking about amazing holiday cookies just the other day? Yes, I know I just gave you those addictive Maple Jam Thumbprint Cookies a few days ago. Too many cookie recipes, too soon! Well, ’tis the season for homemade baked goods. Besides, who can go to a party with only one type of [...]
Cookie season is upon us. The social calendar is quickly filling up with parties and other cookie-appropriate gatherings. Your kitchen is probably covered in a fine layer of powdered sugar by this point. In a sea of sugar-laden, overly-processed baked goods, sometimes you want to be able to bring something to the party you can [...]
I love the flavors of apple pie, but rarely have the patience (or energy) to make a whole pie from scratch. Besides, of all the pies out there, apple pie falls into the Labor Intensive with Great Risk for Failure category. Plus, establishing portion control rules for an entire apple pie in a house of [...]
I am in love with a man who loves Pizza Rolls. Several of our first dates involved heated debates about the pros and cons of Pizza Rolls. My list of cons always ended up being more substantial than his “They just taste good” list of pros. Once I even let him prepare a taste testing [...]
Is there anything more quintessentially Fall than pumpkins? You know that the seasons have officially changed when you start to see pumpkin-flavored-everything popping up everywhere you look. I’ve already let you in on my favorite pumpkin scones and pumpkin pie bites, so it’s about time that I hook you up with a go-to pumpkin bread [...]
Corn has gotten a bad wrap recently. With the bad press surrounding high fructose corn syrup and the prevalence of corn derivatives (corn starch, corn oil, not to mention all the derivatives that don’t even have corn in the name) in processed foods, it’s easy to forget how delicious, flavorful and inherently perfect sweet summer [...]
A few weeks ago, when Hurricane Irene was barreling toward the Eastern seaboard (aka. My Home), New York City was in a panic. Store shelves were stripped bare, batteries had never been worth more and people were walking around with more cash in their wallets than they had since the early 90s. Like most other [...]
One pot dinners are priceless when it comes to weeknight dinners. Magic happens when you can toss everything into one giant pot, throw it in the oven and watch an entire meal come out. Calling for only a tiny amount of planning (soaking the beans overnight), this recipe needs to be added to your arsenal [...]
There is nothing sexy about refried beans. Nothing. We all know the famous “Beans, Beans” song. They are probably one of the Top Five Least Attractive Foods to Photograph. If you were taken on a first date where the person took you to a place for some “great refried beans,” there probably wouldn’t be a [...]
Despite being a fairly frequent banana eater, I inevitably end up with the last few bananas in the batch turning brown before I’d planned. It’s a safe bet to assume there are at least a few brown (ok, black) bananas hanging out in my fridge at any given time. I usually throw them into a [...]
Growing up in Southern California, my version of comfort food is anything Mexican. Tacos, burritos, enchiladas, you name it. Basically anything topped with salsa and avocado hits the spot. If I find myself lost and looking for inspiration in the kitchen, I generally end up reaching for some beans, spices and cheese. Of course, there [...]
Summer is fruit season. It seems hard to remember a time when we didn’t have peaches, plums and berries aplenty! This leads to an overwhelming desire to make pies. Lots and lots of pies. The problem is that making pies is a pain in the you-know-what. You’ve got to make the crust, bake the crust [...]
I’m not going to tell you about how easy these brownies are to make. I won’t bore you with the fact that they are sweetened naturally, use an olive oil base and are made with whole wheat flour. Going on about the healthfulness of these brownies, the ease of assembly and the practical bonus of [...]
I’m embarrassed to admit this, but there was a time in my life when the majority of my meals came in the form for a bar. Prepackaged, processed food-like substances pressed into tight bars (usually dipped in some type of synthetic chocolate) were easy to eat on the go, cheap enough to buy in bulk [...]
This salad is so fancy I feel like I should be charging myself $15 just to eat it. A bed of baby spinach topped with sliced sirloin steak, sauteed thyme mushrooms, crumbled goat cheese and a hot caramelized onion vinaigrette. Can’t you just picture that salad gracing the menu of a fancy restaurant? People like [...]
Bookmark this recipe immediately. I promise that there is going to come a time when you are backed in a corner, you have to make something fabulous for a party/mandatory work function/end-of-a-bad-day-cure and you are going to feel trapped. You don’t know what to make! You don’t have time to make anything elaborate but you [...]
Friday nights are pizza night around here. A simple way to relax after a long week, Friday Night Pizza Night has become something of a religion in our household. I’ve always insisted on making our own healthier versions of this take-out favorite. For awhile, I was using whole wheat or low-carb tortillas for the base [...]
Raise your hand if you think you are getting enough veggies and whole grains in your diet? Anybody? Seeing no hands, I’m going to assume that we could all use more veggies and whole grains in our diet. Doesn’t that seem to be the mantra of the health food movement lately? Eat more vegetables. Eat [...]
Recently, I’ve been on a quest to eliminate processed sweeteners from my diet. Say goodbye to Splenda, Truvia, and good ‘ol fashioned granulated white sugar. Sounds a little hippy, to be sure, but I figured that cutting out processed sugar as much as possible can’t be a bad thing. Since this quest isn’t managing to [...]
Let’s say that you have a Dear Friend who suddenly, without warning, was required to go on a strict vegan diet. Luckily, this was a temporary situation but a drastic change nonetheless. Being told that you can eat no eggs, no butter, no cheese, no milk overnight would be a shock to anyone’s system. After [...]
I know that this certainly wouldn’t be the first time I’ve gone on and on about the perfect pairing of chocolate and peanut butter, but I simply can’t resist sharing this new cookie with you. Let’s say, hypothetically, that suddenly Your Dear Friend had to follow a strict vegan diet. No dairy at all — [...]
Am I the only person who was under the false impression that making a roast chicken was extremely difficult and wildly time consuming? For years, I was convinced that roasting a chicken (like my more familiar Thanksgiving turkey) was an all day affair. If you jump over the logical gaps involved in that analogy (i.e. [...]
Folks, I owe you an apology. An apology for leaving you hanging for the past few months, for leaving you stranded during the biggest cooking season of the year (gulp), for leaving you wondering what was to become of A Dash of Sass. I don’t have a good excuse, but a simple explanation: Life! I [...]
Can we turn the clock back a few months to the beginning of cherry season and pretend that I haven’t been hiding this perfectly good brunch recipe from you all summer? Ok, thanks. People, I know the calendar says September but, in a very grown-up fashion, I’m refusing to acknowledge that this summer is rapidly [...]
Earlier this year I received an email from an adoring fan asking where she could find my favorite zucchini bread recipe on A Dash of Sass. I went to the recipe index with the intention of sending her to the appropriate link only to discover (gasp!) … I’ve never posted my favorite zucchini bread recipe! [...]
Do you remember the Mark Peel cherry ice cream sauce that I told you made me cry at the Silver Spoons event? That sauce was so incredible that I found myself daydreaming about it a week later. A dish that sticks in your mind like that must be recreated. Now, I’m no Mark Peel, but [...]
Ever try something that is so perfectly ready for adaptation that you instantly begin dreaming of ways to make it better? A chocolate chip cookie leads you to a dark chocolate cherry cookie. Or a piece of pumpkin pie leads you to spiced sweet potato pie. Well, that was my experience with zucchini boats. So [...]
Every once in awhile, you get the opportunity to participate in something so astronomically awesome that you think that the organizers must have invited you by accident. You are not this cool. You have never been this cool. You may never be this cool again. Be careful not to trip or [...]
Meet my new favorite side dish. In case I haven’t mentioned it lately, I’ve been a little short on time these days. An elaborate side dish that requires lots of dicing and chopping and stewing is beyond my realm of thinking at the moment. Give me something fast, deliciously creamy and oh, can it please [...]
People, I have a confession to make. Being a responsible grown-up is way harder than it looks! I know this is old news to you amazing folks that have been pulling it off flawlessly for years, but for a newbie to the Grown Up World, I’m still a bit in shock. Between working a full-time, [...]
At the first sight of ripe, red strawberries at the grocery store each spring, I go absolutely bonkers. Bonkers, people. Three pints for $5? Great, I’ll take six … that kind of bonkers. After a long, cold winter of nothing but apples, pears and imported oranges, strawberries are a sign of all things summery to [...]
I wish I could say that I’ve always been confident when it comes to cooking fish at home. I wish I could say that, but I can’t. For years I’ve been terrified of working with fish at home. Fish is delicate, hard to handle and liable to go awry at any moment. Leave the fancy [...]
I know that my calendar says that it’s going to be March tomorrow, but that can’t be right … can it? What happened to February? I distinctly remember having a conversation with a co-worker near the end of January commenting on how I predicted that my February was shaping up to be nothing but a [...]
Have you heard about this big football game that’s coming up next week? It’s this once-a-year excuse to go all out, throw dietary caution to the wind and eat massive quantities of wings, dips and chips. Or is that only at my house? From what I understand, this is a nationwide phenomenon. In case you [...]
Something about a warm, soft pretzel is utterly irresistible. The crisp, salted crust hiding a perfectly chewy center. Something this delicious must be insanely difficult to make. There is no way that I could possibly replicate that perfection in my tiny, amateurish kitchen. First big surprise of the year: Pretzels are ridiculously easy to make. [...]
Consider these clementine cakes my apology for throwing that heaping pile of indulgent deliciousness in your direction last week. When I tell you that these mini cakes are guilt-free, I mean they are completely guilt free. They also happen to be gluten-free, refined sugar-free and flour-free (ok, flourless but I was on a roll there!). [...]
