Rachael Ray

My sister got married a few weeks ago in a beautiful intimate wedding on the beach. No shoes, a setting sun, close family and friends - it was truly special. I walked away firmly believing big weddings are overrated. My sister did everything her way - right down to the dessert. She wanted cupcakes and as she is a cheesecake lover, a cheese cake for the “wedding cake.” Everyone was having so much fun at the reception that for the traditional “cake cutting,” no one noticed! A sign of a good wedding, indeed. This is a thick and creamy traditional New York-style cheesecake - make the cake the day before, chill overnight, and finish off with the berries and berry topping [...]...

When  you have little kids, good babysitters are like gold - you do not want to let go of them. Some parents are lucky enough to have grandparents as built-in regular babysitters - I always had to find my own and had overall good luck thorough local colleges, friends of other friends’ sitters, even Craig’s List. Now that my kids are older and in grade school, I have them troll the halls for sitters. They will ask their favorite substitute teachers and after school program instructors if they babysit - what a dream. There are some unwritten laws when it comes to sharing babysitters, at least with my friends and me, without which you can definitely run into trouble. If you “found” [...]...

A pizzelle is an Italian wafer cookie that’s usually flavored with anise, like many Italian cookies. Pizzelles can be eaten with a  cup of coffee or tea, smeared with jam, dipped in chocolate, or sandwiched around a scoop of ice cream to make a crisp and light ice cream sandwich. I just got a pizzelle maker so I’ve been making them non-stop. It’s so fun! I got a great old-fashioned machine that plugs in and heats up in about fifteen minutes. Here’s a pizzelle maker that Rachael recommends. You can flavor the pizzelle batter with whatever you like. Try vanilla extract, orange flower water, cocoa powder, ground cardamom, cinnamon, anise, or almond extract. Go easy on flavoring, because a little goes a [...]...

There was a baby shower for my cousin’s wife a few weeks ago and I though t would be cute to do mini cupcakes that were in the baby theme. I made mini yellow cupcakes with buttercream frosting and then used ribbon, lollipop sticks, (from Michael’s), gel frosting and m and ms to decorate. My kids helped me and they turned out very cute - I was shooting for baby rattles, but they look more like lollipops. They weren’t perfect but adorable in any case. Check out www.partycupcakeideas.com for tons of cute cupcake decorating ideas. ...

My daughter’s 10th birthday was a few weeks ago. We survived her first slumber party unscathed (kiddie hangovers all around) but I can’t say I will be jumping up and down to have 8 girls in my house for 18 hours any time soon (the volume!). She had fun, which of course is the most important thing. The next day was her actual birthday and she cried at least ten times due to sheer exhaustion. The day was capped with her telling me it was “the worst day ever.” You gotta love the roller coaster emotions of a 10 year old girl. Her birthday cake request this year was not a cake at all, but brownie waffles (I used my normal [...]...

Ireland is not necessarily known for the food but one standout worth making for St. Patrick’s Day (or anytime) is this delicious - and easy - Irish Soda Bread. No yeast, and therefore rising, required, and I whipped the dough up in about 5 minutes, then it bakes in the oven for 45 minutes. This bread has a delicious soft texture with a crusty exterior, and is lightly sweetened with orange zest and currants. I ate 2 pieces right out of the oven with butter, so to restrain myself I immediately sliced it and threw it in a zip-lock into the freezer. It should make delicious toast. Quick and Easy Irish Soda Bread (from a recipe by Ina Garten) (click here [...]...

I love love cheesecake but shockingly have trouble putting away a whole piece. Maybe not while I am eating it, but I never feel good after the fact. Cheesecake it a perfect example of a little goes a long way, which is why these cheesecake squares are the perfect size - one square is a one- or two-biter. Not overly sweet, there is a generous amount of lemon in this recipe so if you’re not crazy about citrus, cut the amount of lemon zest and juice in half. Cheesecake can be tough to slice - dip a sharp (non-serrated) knife into warm water before slicing for neater cuts. The thin slice of strawberry on the top hides any imperfections! I have made these [...]...

Or is it pay for grades? I think I have written about this topic before but it’s worth bringing up again, as a friend of mine was recently recounting how she and her husband have adopted this policy to great success with her two boys who are in 7th and 5th grade. They established a pay scale according to the report card grade - ie, an A earns $10, a B+ $5, a B $5, and down the line. I don’t think a C garners any dollars, but I am not sure. I personally think kids should do well in school because that’s what is expected of them, and as my dad used to say, when you are in school, your [...]...

I went on a shortbread cookie baking spree this past weekend. I hadn’t made them in years and I forgot how awesome (and how simple!) they are to put together. In fact, the reason I made them was because I promised to bake dessert for a party I was attending and literally forgot. Of course, I had next to no ingredients in my house and I was seconds from grabbing something from the Italian bakery so I wouldn’t show up empty handed. A last raid of my fridge and pantry produced: butter, flour and sugar, but wasn’t sure what to do with them. That is, until I remembered…SHORTBREAD!! If you’ve never made shortbread before, I must warn you, they are addictive and [...]...