Cinnamon Buttermilk Scones

Okay, I lied a little in the title. These aren’t really scones, and they’re not very pretty. They’re actually biscuits (which don’t ever need to be precious at all–they are allowed to be quite the hodgepodge. Double [baking] standards!).

Anyway, I added a bunch of sweet stuff to them and changed them into faux scones. Don’t tell the British.

They are still buttery, soft, and big, like biscuits, but sweet, sugary, and very cinnamony–like a good fall scone should be.

Also, if you’d like to wrestle with a sticky dough when baking, this is the recipe to make.

In fact, I couldn’t even pat it out; you’ll need an ice cream scoop.

But, hot out of the oven with a bit of salted butter (or heck, make yourself some maple butter and throw some bacon in there), they are a delightful afternoon snack. Or breakfast. Or dessert? Scones are so versatile. Unlike biscuits. Good thing I changed the title.

Tasting Tuesdays: Pumpkin Cranberry Cookies

Is there anything better in the fall than pumpkins?

(Actually, let’s not answer that. The answer might be apples, cinnamon, or molasses, depending on my mood, which would not really work out for the pumpkin focus I’m trying to set in this post.)

Pumpkins, turns out, are pretty versatile. They can be many things. For example, they can be jack-o-lanterns. They can be Thanksgiving pies.

They can be bedazzled. (That’s right. I said bedazzled. If Anthropologie can do it, so can you.)

And, of course, they can be cookies. Soft, cake-like, spice-filled cookies, with bursts of tart, chewy cranberries for texture.

These cookies are absurdly easy. The cookbook, a pretty little volume called Milk & Cookies, says to bake them instead of pie, to make your Thanksgiving more manageable. I don’t know if I’d go that far (holidays and celebrations call for statement baked goods!)… But if it’s, say, October and you’re craving the best part of Thanksgiving–the pie, of course–these definitely are the things to whip up on your weekend.

And if you really want to go nuts, make them into whoopie pies with this cream cheese frosting. They’re lovely on their own–but they’d be killer with buttercream in the middle.

It was so great to once again have friends and customers come to Anthropologie and taste these goodies, so thanks to all who came out! If you were there, you probably smelled not only pumpkin cookies, but also the ridiculously amazing smelling gingerbread candle that was near the display. (Looks like it’s not online yet, so you’ll have to run into the store and grab one to make your house smell like cookies all the time.) Fair warning–its not-so-subliminal scent may have affected my baking plans for next month’s Tasting Tuesdays… stay tuned!

Thank you so much to Kim for the gorgeous display (for real–those bedazzled pumpkins), as well as Shannon and Lyn for being wonderful hostesses, as always. Once more, the ladies at the Milwaukee Anthropologie made today’s Tasting Tuesdays pretty much the highlight of my month. I hope you’ll come visit too next time if you’re in the Milwaukee area!

Pearl Sugar Molasses Cookies

Pearl sugar–hands down one of the best Scandinavian inventions ever–is one of the primary reasons why I am proud to be Norwegian.

People know within a few weeks of meeting me (okay, a few days) that I am Norwegian. This is because my heritage is the excuse reason behind many of the quirks of my personality.

My pale skin? Norwegian. My bizarre love of cold weather? That Scandinavian blood. My obsession with cardamom? A childhood of baked goods filled with it.

My love of pearl sugar? Yes. Norwegian.

I love chewy cookies. I’m not big on raw dough, but an undercooked cookie is my kind of baked good. But every so often even I need some variety in texture. (Check out the cooking lingo I’m learning from Top Chef Desserts!) That is why pearl sugar is genius. It holds its crunch and bright glowy whiteness when baked. And you probably know this, but it is pretty difficult to make a cookie that is crunchy-crisp on the outside and chewy on the inside.

That is where substituting pearl sugar for regular sugar is a genius move: you get the undercooked, thick, dense texture, the intense dark-molasses-brown-sugar-cinnamon-cloves-ginger-allspice flavor, and a super-sweet crunch of sugar every time you take a bite.

So until I can visit the fjords and northern lights of my ancestral homeland, I will just make some molasses cookies. I’m pretty sure the history of this recipe has nothing at all to do with my Norwegian heritage, but I don’t care: adding pearl sugar makes them Scandinavian enough for me.

Garlic Kale Chips

I’m cheating on sugar.

Don’t tell. I think sugar’s feelings would be hurt. Along with flour and butter. They’d probably be pretty upset, too.

Green things usually don’t do it for me. Sometimes I get on a salad kick–but they’ve always got to be followed up with cookies or brownies or scones or something. My sweet tooth is very demanding.

That is, unless there’s garlic involved. Then the scales are slightly tilted in healthy stuff’s favor.

These kale chips are super crispy, thin, a little salty, and garlicky. They’re not at all like eating potato chips, but somehow you still don’t realize you’re eating something that’s actually healthy. (It’s true. This “dark, leafy green” is in fact a superfood. Gwyneth says so.) … (Did I just seriously embarrass myself by admitting I read GOOP? Oops.)

If you are feeling guilty about all the brown sugar and cinnamon and butter I’ve been feeding you lately, make yourself some kale chips. And feel happy.

Pumpkin White Cheddar Muffins

Okay. These guys are not pretty.

But if you like your muffins super cheesy, slightly spicy (it’s the cayenne pepper), and very savory, then these are the breakfast treats for you. Be warned, sweet teeth: there’s only a hint of brown sugar in here, and the muted flavor of pumpkin really acts as nothing more than a colorful backdrop for white cheddar.

You probably could have told me this before I went through the trouble of baking these things, but it turns out I am not a fan of savory muffins. I mean. I am really not. That bite you see in these pictures? … That was the only bite I took. The rest of the dozen went straight to the ol’ workplace for sharing.

Luckily, museum people on the whole seem to be savory muffin fans (although I noticed peak snack times were more at lunch than at breakfast). These muffins are crazy-easy to make and would be great at a brunch buffet–where ideally your guests are a little more attuned to the needs of their sweet tooth than I am.

Psst… Guess what, paper lovers? You can now print my recipes! Just click on the little print or PDF icon below the recipe.