• authors,  books,  fiction,  literature,  madison,  recipes,  seasonal,  summer,  sweets

    A French Dessert and a Fresh Read

    For me, one of summer’s great joys is scarfing down mass quantities of berries and stone fruits. Another one of the season’s pleasures is sitting in a shaded spot, curled up with a good book. When the two converge? Serendipity. Last week, the fruit box delivered by my CSA farm was packed tight with eight pounds of sweet cherries. My husband, son, and I stuffed as many into our mouths as we could. Immediately. When we wiped the red juice from our faces, though, we still had quite a few cherries left. Enter, The Good Luck Girls of Shipwreck Lane, the delightful debut novel by Kelly Harms that I happened to be…

  • coffee,  creativity,  desserts,  food,  local,  seasonal,  sweets

    Of Creativity and Cupcakes

    This fall, Edible Madison editor Jamie Lamonde contacted me to ask if I was interested in writing a feature on Bloom Bake Shop and its owner, Annemarie Spitznagle, for the winter issue. Bloom is a small-batch dessert bakery in Middleton, Wis. that uses local, seasonal, and organic ingredients.  Of course I wasted no time in saying, “OH MY GOD, YES!” I mean, who wouldn’t love to sample and write about cupcakes, whoopie pies, and to-die-for French press coffee?   The afternoon I spent at Bloom was about so much more than cupcakes, though. Annemarie and I talked about goals, determination, and finding the place where work and passion intersect. You can read the…

  • booze,  chocolate,  food,  microbrews,  peanut butter,  sweets,  wine

    Pairing Drinks with Halloween Candy

    Halloween is upon us and, with it, bags and bags of grocery store sweets. Whether you swipe Fun Size Snickers from your kids’ plastic pumpkins or you scarf down the leftovers you bought for trick-or-treaters, chances are you’ll be indulging in some candy. And if you’re looking for an adult beverage to go with that candy, look no further. Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups go great with beer. Although some might suggest a heavier brew, like Lake Louie’s Warped Speed Scotch Ale, these sweet and slightly salty little peanut butter cups also would go great with a light, caramely ale, like Furthmore’s Proper. In Food Network Magazine, restaurateur Tom Geniesse of…