Baked's Candy Cookies

I heart Baked. I've never been to the actual bakery in NYC, but I've made a few of their recipes- their brownies and the chocolate cake with salted caramel. Apparently, I have yet to post either of these, since I just searched for them and they're not up.
A couple weeks ago, they posted a link on Facebook for these Candy Cookies- candy bars inside chocolate-dipped chocolate shortbread cookies. Yum, right? I decided to make them for our friends for the holidays. I used Mounds candy bars for the centers, and double dipped the cookies in white and milk chocolate.

Then I finished them with a drizzle of red candy coating for a festive touch.

These little cookies are AMAZING! You have to dip them in chocolate, otherwise they're dry and not that flavorful. They were a huge hit with our friends, and our family! Make them! And then make another batch because you ate all of them!

Candy Cookies

Recipe by Matt Lewis and Renato Poliafito

INGREDIENTS

1. 2 cups all-purpose flour
2. 1 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder
3. 1/2 cup sugar
4. 1/8 teaspoon salt
5. 1 stick plus 6 tablespoons (7 ounces) unsalted butter, softened
6. 1 large egg yolk
7. 40 mini peanut butter cups and or 20 fun-size Mounds bars, cut in half
8. 4 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped
9. 4 ounces white chocolate, chopped
10. Sprinkles, dragees or nonpareils, for garnish

11. DIRECTIONS

    1. Preheat the oven to 350° and line 2 large baking sheets with silicone mats or parchment paper. In a small bowl, whisk the flour with the cocoa powder, sugar and salt.
    2. In the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with the paddle, beat the butter at medium speed until creamy. Beat in the egg yolk. Add the dry ingredients and beat at low speed until incorporated. Pat the dough into a disk, wrap in plastic and refrigerate until chilled, about 30 minutes.
    3. On a lightly floured surface, roll out the dough a scant 1/4 inch thick. Using a 2 1/4-inch round cookie cutter, stamp out as many rounds as possible. Reroll the scraps and stamp out more rounds. You should have about 40 rounds. Set a peanut butter cup or halved mounds bar in the center of each round and roll the dough around the candy, pinching any tears. Roll the cookies into balls and arrange on the prepared baking sheets, 1 inch apart.
    4. Bake in the cookies on the upper and middle racks of the oven for about 16 minutes, until the dough is firm and just slightly browned; shift the pans from top to bottom and front to back halfway through baking. Let the cookies cool completely on the baking sheets.
    5. In a microwave-safe bowl, melt the bittersweet chocolate on high power in 30-second bursts until nearly melted. Remove from the microwave and stir until melted. Repeat with the white chocolate in another microwave-safe bowl. Dip the tops of the cookies in the melted chocolate and decorate with sprinkles, dragees and nonpareils. Transfer the cookies to a parchment paper—lined baking sheet and refrigerate until the chocolate is set, about 10 minutes. Transfer to a platter and serve.

TWD- Devilish Shortcakes

How was everyone's Thanksgiving? I feel so out of the loop because were visiting my parents, who just moved into a new house and have no Internet yet. What's that about? I felt like my right hand was missing.
I have made this week's TWD recipes for Devilish Shortcakes, but apparently I haven't taken pictures of it. These are a wonderful alternative to regular shortcake- I love it with macerated mixed berries. I have a tendency to overbake these, which makes them very dry. I usually err on the side of caution and underbake them a tiny bit. Head here for the recipe.

CS- Cinnamon Pudding Cake

This cake is AMAZING. I made it twice in three days because my family and friends loved it so much. It's super easy and tastes delicious. It is a cinnamon cake with a caramel-type topping (more caramel than pudding). You pour the topping over the top of the unbaked batter and magically, it ends up on the bottom.

When you turn it out, this gooey, buttery, caramel sauce tops the warm, spicy moist cake. Make it. Now.

November’s Cake: Cinnamon Pudding Cake

Makes one 8 inch square pudding cake
(Recipe from Cake Keeper Cakes by Lauren Chattman)
For the Caramel Topping
1 cup plus 2 tbsp packed light brown sugar
¾ cup water
1 tbsp unsalted butter
½ tsp salt

For the Cake
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
2½ tsp cinnamon
½ tsp salt
2 tbsp unsalted butter, softened
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup whole milk
1 tsp vanilla extract

Method – Topping
Heat the oven to 350F. Spray the bottom and sides of an 8 inch square baking pan with nonstick cooking spray.
Combine the brown sugar, water, butter and salt in a small saucepan and bring to a boil, whisking occasionally, then set aside to cool.

Method – Cake
Combine the flour, baking powder, cinnamon and sakt in a medium mixing bowl.
Combine the butter and granulated sugar in a large mixing bowl and cream with an electric mixer on medium-high speed until fluffy, about 2 minutes.
With the mixer on medium-low speed, add a third of the flour mixture to the bowl. Add half of the milk and the vanilla. Add another third of the flour, followed by the remaining milk and the rest of the flour. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and beat on medium speed for 30 seconds.
Scrape the batter onto the prepared pan and smooth the top with a rubber spatula. Pour the topping over the batter (the pan will be very full). Carefully transfer the pan to the oven and bake until set, 20-30 minutes.
Let the cake cool in the pan for 15 minutes, invert it onto a large rimmed serving platter and serve warm.
Let any leftover cake cool completely before storing in an airtight container at room temperature for 1 day or in the fridge for up to 3 days.

Harry Potter Sorting Hat cake

For an 18th birthday. Covered in fondant, decorations are fondant/gumpaste, house shields are edible images.

TWD- Not-Just-for Thanksgiving Cranberry Shortbread Cake

 Do you like cranberries? They, it seems to me, are conflicted. They can be yummy- dried is pretty much the only way I like them. Doused with sugar and canned is the only way most other people I know like them. But this week's TWD was a great new twist to the fickle fruit. Dorie's Cranberry Shortbread Cake is a layer of cranberry jam sandwiched in shortbread. 
The cranberry jam was quick- orange and cranberry cooked with sugar and water:

The recipe says to cook the jam for about 5 minutes- mine took closer to 12.

I wasn't really sure what to expect with this- it says "shortbread" but it also says "cake." Which is it? I'm going to say it was really more like shortbread cookies with a layer of jam between.

My kids loved this- they ate it for dessert Sunday night, and then one of them wanted it for breakfast the next morning. I think next time I would leave out the orange zest- the orange flavor almost overpowered the cranberries. Or, skip the cranberries altogether and make with raspberries! Yum!
The recipe will be here.

TWD- Peanuttiest Blondies

After this cake last weekend, I wasn't much in the mood for running to the store for the things I didn't have for this recipe- non-natural (unnatural?) peanut butter and peanuts. Dorie says not to use natural peanut butter, but I did and it was really good. These blondies are great- the texture reminded more of a bar cookie than blondies/brownies, though. And my baking time was about half of what the recipe calls for. I loved the addition of cinnamon in these!

Bakeologie had the recipe!

Happy Halloween- Haunted House cake

Inspired by this cake

Camera Cake

Sweet 16 Cake

TWD- All-American, All-Delicious (Caramel) Apple Pie

Apple pie is a funny dessert for me. When I think of it, I always think "ew." But whenever I get the courage to eat it, I think it's fairly good. Apple pie reminds me of my grandmother- it was her absolute favorite. Maybe I think it's an elderly person's dessert. Dunno.

 This week's TWD is for regular apple pie. I added a caramel syrup to it. Dorie's pie crust is my absolute favorite. It comes together in a couple minutes in the food processor (note to self: a double crust does NOT fit in your food processor), and is so buttery and flaky.

I topped it with cinnamon and sugar, which added a nice little crunch to the pie. This recipe uses a lot of lemon zest- 1 full lemon. I used about half that and my husband (granted, he has ultra sensitive taste buds) said it tasted like a lemon bar with apples.

Even for not loving apple pie, this recipe is a keeper. Easy to make and delicious! A great holiday pie! Sandmuffin has the recipe!

Caramel syrup

• 1 cup sugar

1. Heat sugar and 1 cup water in a heavy-bottomed saucepan. Place over medium heat and cook, stirring occasionally, until the sugar dissolves and comes to a boil. Continue cooking, brushing down the sides of the pan with a wet pastry brush but without stirring, until mixture becomes golden amber in color.
2. Immediately remove from heat and add 1 cup water. Return to heat and continue stirring until mixture becomes liquid. Transfer to a heatproof container and let cool completely before using.

Dora Party Cake

Toy Story Cake

 

Little Einsteins Cake

CS Bakers- Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Pound Cake

We're starting a new book for Cake Slice Bakers- Cake Keeper Cakes: 100 Simple Recipes for Extraordinary Bundt Cakes, Pound Cakes, Snacking Cakes and Other Good-To-The-Last-Crumb Treats. Crazy long title, I know. I haven't even read the whole title yet. :)

Anyway, pumpkin chocolate chip bread has been a favorite of mine since I was in junior high and my mom and used to go to Great Harvest Bread Company after school. They have the yummiest bread, and they give you huge samples every time you go there. Their pumpkin chocolate chip bread is moist and tender- perfect.

This recipe is pretty quick to put together and uses butter instead of oil, which I thought would change the texture. I liked this recipe, but it's not as good as the bread I set as the standard. It's not as dense. This seemed more like bread to me, and the Great Harvest one is more like cake. But anything with pumpkin and chocolate chips can't be all bad!

October’s Cake: Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Pound Cake

Makes one 9 by 5 inch loaf cake

October’s Cake: Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Pound Cake
(adapted from Cake Keeper Cakes by Lauren Chattman)
Ingredients
2 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp ground cinnamon
½ tsp salt
¼ tsp ground cloves
Pinch nutmeg
½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
1 cups sugar
3 eggs
1 cup canned pumpkin puree
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/3 cup milk
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Method
Heat the oven to 350F. Coat the inside of a 9 x 5 inch loaf pan with nonstick cooking spray and dust with flour.
Combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, salt, cloves and nutmeg in a medium mixing bowl.
Combine the butter and sugar in a large mixing bowl and cream with an electric mixer on medium high speed until fluffy, about 3 minutes, scraping down the sides of the bowl once or twice as necessary.
With the mixer on medium low speed, add the eggs, one at a time, scraping down the sides of the bowl after each addition. Stir in the pumpkin puree and vanilla. Stir in the milk.
Turn the mixer to low speed and add the flour mixture, ½ cup at a time, scraping down the sides of the bowl after each addition. Stir in the chocolate chips and walnuts.
Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top with a rubber spatula. Bake the cake until it is firm to the touch and a toothpick inserted in the centre comes out clean, 55 minutes to 1 hour. Let the cake cool in the pan for 5 minutes, invert it onto a wire rack and then turn it right side up on a rack to cool completely.
Store uneaten cake in a cake keeper at room temperature for up to 3 days or in the refrigerator, wrapped in plastic for up to 1 week.

TWD- Caramel Pumpkin Pie

Yes! Pumpkin pie! One of my favorite holiday treats. I'm a little picky about pumpkin pie, though. I don't like it spicy and I don't like it with a lot of crust. This TWD pick is a different take on pumpkin pie- white sugar is cooked until it's dark brown and caramely, and added to the pie batter.

The caramelized sugar definitely adds depth to the pumpkin pie. I'm a traditionalist when it comes to pumpkin pie so I didn't love this. Also, cooked sugar such as this tastes more burned to me than caramely. But yay for pumpkin pie!

Check out Janell's blog for the recipe!

Lemon Salad with Garlicky Croutons

One of my favorite savory flavors is lemon. I love lemon on fish and chicken and I really love lemon salad dressings. This is a quick and easy salad dressing that uses only three ingredients that you definitely have in your pantry. It goes great on any type of lettuce (we eat Romaine), and you can throw any vegetables in it make a refreshing salad. I topped it with some homemade croutons for some crunch!

Lemon Salad Dressing

makes 1/2 cup

• 1/4 c freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon red wine vinegar
• 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
• salt to taste

Whisk lemon juice and vinegar in a small bowl. While still whisking, drizzle in olive oil until combined. Salt to taste.

Garlicky Croutons

• 1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 1 teaspoon minced garlic
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 cups French or sourdough bread, cut in 1" cubes

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Combine oil, garlic, and salt in a large bowl. Add bread cubes, tossing well to coat. Spread on baking sheet in a single layer. Bake in preheated oven for 10-12 minutes, until golden and crisp.

Lasagna with Ragu Bolognese

I love lasagna. Seriously, LOVE it. When I was a kid, it was my favorite thing my mom made. Granted, her lasagna was not authentic, gourmet, or healthy- it was more like this:

Cheesey (yes, even cottage cheesey), bubbly, comforting.

Well, I married a bit of an Italian food snob (not just a bit, actually) and apparently, lasagna with cottage cheese, powdery Parmasan cheese and cheddar cheese is not "authentic". Whaaat?!! What's that about? So when we were first married, I came across this recipe from Martha Stewart Living for a lasagna with Ragu Bolognese.

There's three parts to the lasagna: the ragu:

 Bechamel:

 the lasagna noodles and some Parmigiana Reggiano

This recipe takes a while to prepare, but it's so worth it. I sometimes double the recipe and make an extra to freeze.  It won a "pretty authentic" from my husband, too!

Ragu Bolognese

adapted from Martha Stewart Living

serves 10-12

Makes about 3 quarts.

• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 onions, cut into 1/4-inch dice
• 3 stalks celery, cut into 1/4-inch dice
• 3 carrots, cut into 1/4-inch dice
• 2 pounds ground sirloin
• 2 pounds ground veal
• 1 quart whole milk
• 1 quart Homemade Beef Stock, or two 14 1/2 -ounce cans
• 1 cup tomato paste
• 1 1/2 teaspoons coarse salt
• 3/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

1. In a large cast-iron or enamel pot, heat butter and olive oil over medium heat.
2. Add onions, and cook until they begin to soften, about 5 minutes. Add celery and carrots, and cook until the vegetables are tender, 8 to 10 minutes. Add ground sirloin and veal, and cook, stirring occasionally, until the meat is no longer pink. Add milk, and cook at a gentle simmer, skimming fat from surface, until the liquid has reduced by half, about 50 minutes.
3. Add beef stock, tomato paste, salt, and pepper; simmer gently until sauce thickens, 40 to 45 minutes. If using for lasagna, set aside to cool slightly before assembling. The sauce can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days, or in the freezer for 2 months.

 Bechamel

• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into small pieces, plus more for baking dish
• 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• Pinch freshly grated nutmeg
• 1 cup milk

To assemble

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 3/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter, cut into small pieces, plus more for baking dish

1. Make the Bechamel Sauce: In a small saucepan, combine butter and flour. Stir in nutmeg, and season with salt and pepper. Place over medium heat and stir in milk. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low, and continue cooking until the mixture begins to thicken, about 2 minutes. Remove from heat, and set aside.
2. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Lightly butter a 13-by-9-inch baking dish. Spoon a little of the meat sauce into the bottom of the prepared baking dish, and spread to coat. Then, layer with lasagna sheets, one-sixth of the bechamel sauce, one-sixth of the meat sauce, and a little Parmesan. Repeat the layers five more times. Top with remaining Parmesan and pieces of butter. Bake until cheese begins to turn golden brown, 30 to 45 minutes. Serve warm.

Chocolate Banana Muffins

Ok, so I've had a few overripe bananas in our house. I blame my husband who will only eat bananas if they're just so- which leaves about a 2 day window that he'll eat them. I found this recipe on allrecipes.com- I'm pretty much loving the recipe spinner on the iPhone app!

This recipe is quick- I halved it and made a couple changes. The muffins are moist and really yummy. One of my new faves!

Chocolate Banana Bread adapted from allrecipes.com

1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened 3/4 cup white sugar 2 eggs 3 bananas, mashed 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour 1 teaspoon baking soda 1/2 teaspoon salt 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder 1/2 cup lite sour cream 1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips

	Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Lightly grease two standard size muffin tins.
	In a large bowl, cream together margarine, sugar and eggs. Stir in bananas and vanilla. Sift in flour, baking soda and cocoa; mix well. Blend in sour cream and chocolate chips. Pour batter into prepared pans.
	Bake in preheated oven for 20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into center of a muffin comes out clean.

Cinnamon Rolls

Twice a year, our family spends a weekend watching the General Conference of our church. The conference consists of two 2-hour sessions on Saturday and Sunday mornings and afternoons. Therefore, it is imperative that we have yummy breakfast treats- usually cinnamon rolls. This year, I tried a different recipe than I normally do, simply because it came in the church newspaper. 

This recipe is large- I recommend halving it unless you're feeding 20 people, or want to give a bunch away. It's pretty yummy, but not as yummy as my usual, which I have yet to post. :)

Cinnamon Rolls

adapted from  "Family Dinner Cookbook," by Debbie G. Harman

2 packages yeast

½ cup warm water

1 tablespoon sugar

1 cup butter

2 cups milk

4 large eggs

2/3 cup sugar

2 teaspoons salt

7-8 cups flour

½ cup sugar

2 teaspoons cinnamon

½ cup brown sugar

Dissolve yeast and the 1 tablespoon sugar in water. Melt butter in saucepan. Stir in buttermilk and eggs. Mix together in a large mixing bowl. Add sugar, salt and 4 cups flour and beat with mixer until smooth. Stir in enough flour to make a moderately stiff dough. Turn onto floured surface and knead 7 to 8 minutes. Place in greased bowl and let rest 15 minutes. Divide dough in half. Roll dough to ½-inch thickness. Sprinkle water over dough. Sprinkle with sugar, cinnamon and brown sugar. Roll dough jelly roll style. Cut ½-inch thick slices.

Place on greased baking pan. Let rise until double. Bake at 375 degrees for 20 to 25 minutes or until edges just start to turn golden. Remove from oven and spread butter cream frosting on rolls immediately.

Butter cream frosting

¼ cup butter

¼ cup milk

2 cups powdered sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla

Beat butter until creamy. Add whipping cream, vanilla and enough powdered sugar to make a creamy frosting.

TWD- Double Apple Bundt Cake

I'm starting to get appled out. Between this week's TWD, last week's Cake Slice Baker's, and the Apple-Apple Bread pudding I made last weekend (which I should've photographed and psoted), I'm ready to move on to pumpkin.
I halved this recipe and made muffins because I still don't have a bundt pan. The recipe is super easy and comes together quickly. It is a great Fall recipe- the flavors are warm and spicy. I used Gala apples (that's pretty much the only kind we eat), and the flavor came through nicely.

Yes, I broke out the Halloween stuff last week. Thanks to my cute sister-in-law for the Halloween plate! Lynne has the recipe!

My Favorite Sandwich: Pesto and Prosciutto Poached Egg Sandwiches

I know what you're thinking- poached eggs? We're not 80 years old. Don't only grandpas eat that with wheat toast and tea?
Ok, maybe you're not thinking that, unless like me, you didn't grow up eating poached eggs. I'd never had a poached egg until I tried these sandwiches a couple of years ago. This recipe, from Cooking Light, poaches eggs in ramekins placed in a pan of boiling water. No fancy schmancy egg poachers needed!
The sandwich is a toasted English muffin, topped with pesto, a poached egg, and prosciutto (we use ham since I don't normally have prosciutto on hand). The whole meal takes about 15 minutes to make and is a nice change from the norm!!

Pesto and Prosciutto Poached Egg Sandwiches
adapted from Cooking Light 
Yield:  6 servings (serving size: 1 sandwich)

6 pasteurized large eggs
Cooking spray
6 teaspoons commercial pesto (I make my own)
4 whole wheat English muffins, lightly toasted
1 ounce very thin slices prosciutto

Add water to a large skillet, filling two-thirds full; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer. Break eggs into each of 6 (8-ounce) custard cups coated with cooking spray. Place custard cups in simmering water in pan. Cover pan; cook 6 minutes or until yolk is just set or until desired degree of doneness. Remove custard cups from water.
Spread 1 teaspoon pesto mixture on cut side of each of 6 English muffin halves. Divide prosciutto evenly among 6 English muffin halves.
Run a small rubber spatula around outside edge of each custard cup; slide 1 egg onto each muffin half. Drizzle each egg with 1 teaspoon remaining pesto mixture. Top with remaining muffin halves, cut side down. Serve immediately.

TWD- Coffee Break Muffins and Party Cake!

Well, after a few birthdays, a week in Italy, a week recovering and getting kids in pre-school, I'm back to TWD! This week's recipe was for Coffee Break Muffins. We don't drink coffee, so I substituted cocoa powder for the espresso powder, and whole milk for the coffee. I also omitted the nutmeg. These muffins are SO good. They don't require a stand mixer- just a large bowl and a glass measuring cup. They come together in about 5 minutes and take about 18 to bake. I halved the recipe and wished I made the whole thing!

My kids loved them, too. I'm a big fan of chocolate and cinnamon together. They're moist and not too sweet- perfect for a fall breakfast!

Chocoholic Anonymous has the recipe (and a great blog)!

And I made a party cake for a 13th birthday!

CS Bakers- Fresh Apple Cake with Brown Sugar Glaze

This month's Cake Slice Bakers recipe was for Fresh Apple Cake with Brown Sugar Glaze from Southern Cakes by Nancie McDermott. I'll have to be honest, I haven't loved all the recipes from this book. This one for me was kinda gross. Maybe I did it wrong, but it was oily with not much apple flavor. The brown sugar glaze was yummy, though- caramel-y and buttery.

I omitted the nuts and added 1 tsp of cinnamon. Looking forward to next month's cake- Pumpkin Chocolate Chip loaf!
 

September’s Cake: Fresh Apple Cake with Brown Sugar Glaze
(adapted from Southern Cakes by Nancie McDermott)
Makes one 13x9inch sheet cake or two 8-9inch round cakes
Fresh Apple Cake
3 cups all purpose flour
2 cups sugar
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
3 eggs
1½ cups vegetable oil
2 tsp vanilla extract
3 cups finely chopped apples

Brown Sugar Glaze
1 cup tightly packed light brown sugar
1/3 cup butter
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 tbsp evaporated milk, half-and-half or cream

Method – Fresh Apple Cake
Heat the oven to 350F. Grease a 13 by 9 inch pan or two 8-9 inch cake pans.
In a medium bowl combine the flour, sugar, baking soda and salt. Stir with a fork to mix everything together well.

In a large bowl, beat the eggs with a wooden spoon or a mixer at low speed until pale yellow and foamy. Add the oil and vanilla and beat well. Stir in the flour mixture with a wooden spoon and continue stirring the batter just until the flour disappears. Add the apples, stir to mix them into the batter until fairly uniform. Scrape the batter into the prepared pans.

Bake for 45-50 minutes or until the cake is golden brown, springs back when touched lightly near the centre and is beginning to pull away from the sides of the pan. Place the cake (still in the pans) on a wire rack and spoon over the glaze while still hot.

Method - Brown Sugar Glaze
Combine all the ingredients in a medium saucepan. Cook over medium heat, stirring often, until the mixture comes to a gentle boil. Then cook for 3-5 minutes.

To Finish
Spoon the hot glaze all over the hot-from-the-oven cake. Let the glazed cake cool completely before serving straight from the pan.

Tinkerbell Cake

For Maeli, who turned 3:

Italy!

My husband and I went to Italy for a week. Finally! He travels there a lot for business, but this is the first time we've gone together. His good friend was getting married in Puglia so we went for the wedding, and then up to Rome. Since this is my food blog, I'll only cover all the eating we did :) 

First off, the place we stayed was AMAZING. A beautiful bed & breakfast in Matera, where "Passion of the Christ" was filmed. 

Our typical breakfast was a pastry, sometimes with cream, sometimes just plain. Heavenly.

These pics are just SOME of the food we ate at the wedding. Yes, the eating began at 3pm and ended around 9pm. Granted, there was some dancing in between there (not by us), but it was mostly eating. And eating.

They had several (I mean, SEVERAL) kinds of marzipan goodies.

Just one of the antipasti platters. Speck is now my favorite food group.

I could've eaten this whole plate myself. Mozzerella. Tomatoes. Ricotta.

Uh, yeah. I didn't eat any of these.

Ever seen fish in a jar? Now you have. I didn't eat this, either.

The groom knows we love, LOVE sushi. So he told the reception center to serve some. This is what they came up with. Arborio rice, cooked al dente, soaked in olive oil, wrapped in seaweed with tuna in the middle. I couldn't choke it down.

One of two pasta courses. This one was seafood. The other was mushroom. And really good.

Did I mention I liked the cheese?

And of course, dessert. There was a very LARGE fruit platter with lots of stuff I've never seen before.

And LOTS of little plates with various sweets on them like this one. Now, I know you're thinking there's NO WAY you're going to eat something that looks like chunks in brown stuff, but you would be missing out on quite possibly the yummiest thing ever. Don't cringe when you read the name.

Chocolate sausage. I know. What? There's no sausage in it, just so you know. It's chewy chocolate with some kind of crunchy cookie numminess. I don't know. But it's goooood.

The wedding cake. It was HUGE. I wasn't convinced the whole thing was cake, but the groom's father said it was. There will be a lot of leftovers! :)

The highlight of our time in Rome was meeting the wonderful, talented, very knowledgeable Natalia of Gatti Fili e Farina. We spent our last day with her at the Vatican Museums and had the best pizza. Grazie mille Natalia!!