SMiLes by Meg

Tag: baking

Individual Flan

I’m writing this from my kitchen counter, taking a break from packing, but by the time I post it (a day early, I know) I’ll be in Washington State, catching a ferry to Alaska. I’ll spend the entire month of September there, hiking, kayaking, exploring, and, obviously, baking. With Erik moving to Anchorage for two years to clerk, and me not starting work for another couple months in Boston, I’m very excited to have the opportunity to get to know a state I’ve never visited. AND I’m very excited to take this ferry, which will bring us from Bellingham, Washington …

Nutmeg Tart

Another rainy weekend, another baking adventure. Since I’m still thoroughly enjoying funemployment, I spent the weekend in Duxbury with my parents. I love being able to hop on a train and be with my family in about an hour, and nothing beats running to the beach and back, even if its pouring rain while you do it. Plus, I’m very into the series of books I’m reading right now (The Wheel of Time – no spoilers, please!), and my favorite place to read is the wood paneled room in their home, snuggled up on the recliner with a big fluffy …

Homemade Oreos

This week, I baked for the first time in my new kitchen! Spoiler alert: it was awesome. Plenty of counter space. Pretty new toys to play with (read: stainless steel mixing bowls). And a whole new group of people to eat the end product! Plus, central air conditioning, which means turning on the oven was not the horrific experience it could have been in this insanely hot summer we’ve been having.

Flourless Coconut Cake

This post is going to be a buzzer-beater. I made it yesterday, finally at home in Duxbury enjoying summer vacation, and then spent today moving into a new apartment with my mom’s help. There is nothing like moving into a new place – full of fresh starts and exciting decorating opportunities. And, of course, a new kitchen! But in all my excitement, I definitely was a bit rushed in baking this last night. And maybe had a pretty catastrophic baking fail. I do not blame the recipe – this one was all me. So if you do try this post, …

Walnut Halvah Cake

Fun fact for my Instagram followers (@smilesbymeg): while 76 of you took the time to watch my Instagram story in which I made this cake, only 24 of you could bring yourselves to like the post itself. I’m not really sure what that says about my respective video/photo editing abilities, but I think it means I have to work on my food photography. Also, despite now having posted 7 different Ottolenghi recipes, I still haven’t been selected in his #IBakedOttolenghi compilations. Further proof that my food photography needs work. Looks like I have my project for post-bar-exam life!

Ice Cream Cone Cupcakes

This week the humidity finally broke, meaning mornings and nights were once again bearable for baking. To take advantage, and because I had promised a friend I’d bring dessert to dinner on Friday (hi, Josh!), I decided to make something from my pre-blog life that I was actually astonished I hadn’t posted before: Ice Cream Cone Cupcakes. These cupcakes were a team dinner staple at the Baran household in high school (hi, Jen!), and I always had at least two. I made them once or twice in college, but college was pre-SMiLes by Meg, and I have no idea why …

Quick Bark

Ever find yourself in need of a quick dessert for a holiday? This is your solution. All it takes is a quick trip to Michael’s (or whatever other craft store you know of that sells every possible color of Candy Melts), and maybe 30 total minutes of assembly and waiting time. End result looks very impressive, is endlessly adaptable to your tastes, and can be piled in a tupperware without worrying about ruining it. Extra perk? It fills the need at cookouts for something sweet at the end of a big meal without requiring the commitment of a slice of …

Sesame Seed Cookies

To be honest, I did NOT want to turn on the oven today. It is ridiculously hot. And while we have AC in the bedroom, there is not AC in the rest of the apartment. The thought of taking a kitchen that was already 90+° and turning an oven up to 375° seemed insane. But after spending a lot of time looking through no-bake and icebox recipes, I just couldn’t find anything I was actually excited about. And I’ve been meaning to make these cookies for weeks, since I found them and thought they sounded interesting. So I sucked it …

Strawberry Rhubarb Pie

There really isn’t a whole lot better than baking a pie with fresh ingredients from a farmer’s market. You’re supporting local businesses. Everything is super ripe and perfect. You get to buy the ingredients outdoors. Even someone who doesn’t like pies or fruit-based desserts (that would be me) can appreciate how good it feels to do this. So when we were walking through the farmer’s market at Harvard and a vendor had both strawberries and rhubarb, I couldn’t just not buy them. And, as luck would have it, strawberry rhubarb is Erik’s favorite pie!

Icebox Cake

Happy Father’s Day to the best dad a girl could ask for! Today, I spent an absolutely wonderful day with my dad, reading at the beach, kayaking/paddle boarding, and generally enjoying South Shore life. And, because it’s his day, I made a recipe this week that is one of his favorites: Icebox Cake. Icebox Cake is good for a number of reasons. It only has three ingredients. You don’t have to turn on the oven. And the finished product kind of tastes like Oreos but better.