Blogger up! East Coast Chapter

Me. Obviously.

     So as many of you may have noticed there are three of us writing this blog. Strangely enough, although we all grew up in the same place, we're currently living as far away from each other as is possible. I get to be the East Coast Chapter. Pretty exciting. It's almost like a "Switched at Birth" episode. But with food, not children. And pictures.   

Holiday decorations 

      For those of you who don't know me. I'm Kate, the weird, entertaining, sometimes-makes-too-many-dirty-jokes one of the bunch. As my mother would probably say in response, thank god these blog posts are mainly in pictures or we'd probably be here a while. She's probably right. I also ended up being the one with the short attention span, so apologies in advance if any of my dishes look half finished or undecorated. I assure you they taste good. Aesthetic appeal is not one of my strengths.     

Rum balls

     For my first installment I decided to feature some of the delicious treats my brother and I made for Christmas/Hannukah/Insert-any-holiday-you-want-to-celebrate-by-drinking party. Over the holidays, I had a lovely philanthropic visit from the white-haired man in red (not Ron Paul) and received a wonderful new camera that takes wonderful pictures of food. Perfect timing. Enjoy!

Ginger molasses cookies

Lemon bars garnished with fresh fruit

       Recipe for lemon bars 

(courtesy of allrecipes.com with my own additions)

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2/3 cup confectioners' sugar
• 1/2 (1 stick) butter and 1/4 cup oil
• 2 teaspoons vanilla
• 3 eggs
• 1 1/2 cups white sugar
• 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup lemon juice (fresh squeezed is best!)
• 2-3 tsp lemon zest (if you used fresh lemons)
• 1/3 cup confectioners' sugar for decoration!
• fruit for decoration

• 1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Grease a 9x13 inch baking pan.
  2. Combine the flour, 2/3 cup confectioners' sugar, and butter. Pat dough into prepared pan.
  3. Bake for 20 minutes in the preheated oven, until slightly golden. While the crust is baking, whisk together eggs, white sugar, flour, and lemon juice until frothy. Pour this lemon mixture over the hot crust.
  4. Return to the preheated oven for an additional 20 to 25 minutes, or until light golden brown. Cool on a wire rack. Dust the top with confectioners' sugar. Cut into squares.