Vanilla Bean Pound Cake

It is hard to believe that a month has gone by and it is time for another recipe from Lick the Bowl Good by fellow Food Blogger Monica Holland.  This month's recipe choice is a Vanilla Bean Pound Cake, and I've been looking forward to this one.

Fresh Ginger Apple Chai Cake

Last week I made an amazing Classic Green Mint Chutney from Spices & Seasons, and this week I wanted to try something sweet from the book.  A couple of recipes caught my eye, but there was one I just could not resist - a Fresh Ginger Apple Chai Cake.

Manhattan Cheesecake

For this month, and until the end of baking through Great Cakes by Carole Walter we are doing things a little differently in the Cake Slice Bakers.  Instead of voting and and everyone baking the same cake we are choosing between a few different cakes, and each member can bake the one that appeals to them the most.  This is quite exciting, and has never been done before in this group.  I am really looking forward to seeing which cake each person made.

Orange Blossom Honey Madeleines #CreativeCookieExchange

April showers bring May Flowers, and that leads me to the theme for this months #CreativeCookieExchange - May Flowers.  I think that this theme really allows us to be creative with our cookies, whether it be with the addition of edible flowers, a floral extract, or even the shape of the cookie.

Classic Green Mint Chutney

I know that some of you may be a little surprised to see something here today that is not sweet.  Most posts on my blog seem to revolve around baked goods, but the truth is that I also need to eat.  Recently I was invited by Hippocrene Books to a blog cook-off for the release of Spices & Seasons: Simple, Sustainable Indian Flavors by Rinku Bhattacharya, and given my love for Indian food I immediately accepted.

French Toast Bundt Cake with Maple-Bacon Glaze - #BundtBakers

I cannot tell you how excited I was when I found out the theme - this month, the #BundtBakers are baking up breakfast! There are just so many different directions you can take - sweet, savory, a combination of the two which is kind of what I went for.

Rustic French Onion Focaccia #TwelveLoaves

The theme for Twelve Loaves this month is onions, which gave me the perfect opportunity to try my hand at focaccia.  I have loved this bread ever since I started my first job in an Italian neighborhood after graduating.  My treat for lunch every few weeks was this amazing bread that was sliced in half, stuffed with wonderful cheeses and meats, and then placed in a panini grill.  One bite and I was in heaven.