Mmm, warm and toasty…The next edition of Sugar High Fridays has been announced–it’s being hosted by the lovely Zarah Maria at Food & Thoughts. The theme: Spices. Participating cooks are to use Nutmeg, Cardamom, or Allspice (or any combination thereof) to make something sweet and delicious, then blog about it on Friday, December 10. I thumbed through all my recipe clippings, and then all my cookbooks, and I can’t decide what to make. I’ve narrowed it down to four finalists, but I’m eager to try any and all of them.
This is where you come in. That’s right, I’m leaving the decision to you! Vote for the recipe you’d like to see me experiment with, and whichever gets the most votes by December 3rd, well that’s what I’ll make. Here are the finalists:
NUTMEG
Cinnamon Puffs: This is really a muffin, apparently–I’m not really sure why it’s called a “puff.” It’s from The King Arthur Flour Baker’s Companion, and the description includes words like “simple,” “classic,” and “understated elegance.” There’s nutmeg in the batter, and a cinnamon sugar topping.
CARDAMOM
Dried Cherry and Raisin Rice Pudding: I clipped this from a magazine years ago and have yet to make it. Picture a creamy bowl of rice pudding studded with golden raisins and dried cherries, perfumed with ground cardamom.
ALLSPICE
Hermit Bars: one of my all-time favorite bar cookies, chock-full of chewy, spicy goodness. I grew up eating the Freihoffer’s version, but I’ve never actually made them myself.
WILD CARD (combination of one or more spices)
Pumpkin Bread Pudding: This makes my mouth water just thinking about it–pumpkin and challah bread, maple syrup and pecans, cinnamon, ginger, allspice, and nutmeg. Mmmmm.
So there you have it: your candidates. Vote early, and vote often! In the comments section, if you please…
And here’s a tease for Friday (I think I’ll be taking tomorrow off):
I baked this this morning, to bring to my parents’ for Thanksgiving. I’ll write a full post once we eat it!
Happy Thanksgiving, everyone.