Coffee and Walnut Cake ~ #CakeSliceBakers

#Cake Slice Bakers are one month into baking from their new book - World Class Cakes by Roger Pizey. I can't wait to see which cake everyone chose to bake this month.

Honey Mixed Nut Bars - #CreativeCookieExchange

Nuts in Cookies! is the theme for #CreativeCookieExchange this month.  I had trouble picking just one type, so I used all the nuts - well almost.

Chile Hot Chocolate Bundt Cake ~ #BundtBakers

Sleigh bells ring are you listening, in the lane snow is glistening, a beautiful sight we're happy tonight baking in a Winter Wonderland. What do you mean the lyrics don't include baking?  The theme this month for #BundtBakers is Winter Wonderland so I am sticking with those lyrics.

Hawaiian Christmas Cookies ~ #CreativeCookieExchange

#CreativeCookieExchange is all about the decorated cookie this month.  Unfortunately for me I stepped out of line when the decorating of cookies talent was being handed out, so I missed out. Lucky for me I found these adorable reindeer cookies to make.

Danish Apple Cake - #CakeSliceBakers

#CakeSliceBakers have baked their first cake from our new book.  As soon as I received my book in  the mail I knew I was going to love it, and could not wait to get started.  There are so many great cake recipes from around the world.

London Fog and Pear Bundt Cake ~ #BundtBakers

I'm sure I'm not the only one wondering how it is already the middle of November.  Seriously, where did the year go?  Fortunately there is always something to look forward to with the #BundtBakers, and our theme for November is pear.

Pumpkin Spice Latte Jelly Roll ~ #CakeSliceBakers

This is the last post for our cakes baked from our current book, Maida Heatter's Cakes.  A little bittersweet for me since I just re-joined the #CakeSliceBakers. However, we were given free choice to make any cake we wanted to from the book, and I was excited to make a Jelly Roll.

Apple, Pear & Honey Cider Bundt Cake ~ #BundtBakers

Happy Fall, Y'all, that is the theme for this months #BundtBakers.  Fall, that magical time of year where the days start to get a little colder, the leaves turn to brilliant shades of red, orange, and yellow, and the Pumpkin Spice Latte is back.  The only one of these things that happens here in Hawaii is that yes indeed, Pumpkin Spice Lattes are back.

Apple Cranberry Crumble Bars ~ #CreativeCookieExchange

The October theme for #CreativeCookieExchange is Celebrate the season - Autumn, and we were asked to focus on seasonally appropriate ingredients for wherever you are for fall!

Queen Mother's Cake - #CakeSliceBakers

I am once again baking with the #CakeSliceBakers, and in a lot of ways it feels like I am going home. The Cake Slice Bakers was the first baking group I joined, and I have been in and out of the group over the years.  They are currently baking from Maida Heatter's Cakes.

Pumpkin Spice Mocha Crinkle Cookies ~ #CreativeCookieExchange

#CreativeCookieExchange is all about the drop cookie this month.  I had my heart set on baking Crinkles, so check out how I made a traditionally rolled cookie into a drop cookie.

Vanilla Bean Malt Bundt Cake - #BundtBakers

"Healthy Cheat, Sneak or Substitute" is the theme for this months #BundtBakers.  This is going to be fun! What did I decided to cheat, sneak, or substitute?

Apple French Cruller Bundt Cake ~ #BundtBakers

“Surely the apple is the noblest of fruits.” — Henry David Thoreau.  Apples are one of my favorite fruits, and I love using them in both sweet and savory recipes.  Perfect timing because our theme for #BundtBakers this month is apples.

Blackberry and Cream Monte Carlos - #CrativeCookieExchange

How do you celebrate the end of summer vacation?  I remember growing up in Australia, and it seeming like summer vacation would go on forever.  Of course being the land Down Under our summer vacation happened around Christmas.  I am looking forward to seeing how all of the members of the #CreativeCookieExchange embrace this theme.

Lavender Lemonade Bundt Cake ~ #BundtBakers

The theme this month for #BundtBakers is Secret Garden, and we were asked to bake bundts with flowers, herbs or summer vegetables as an ingredient or theme. I choose a flower I have never baked with before - lavender.

Italian Ricotta Cookies ~ #CreativeCookieExchange

This month it is all about cheese for the members of the #CreativeCookieExchange.  When I first saw this my first thought was, wow, this is going to be fun.  I love the variety of themes that we are presented with as it usually means you will be stepping out of your comfort zone and trying something new.

Coconut Apricot Slice ~ #CreativeCookieExchange

Summer is officially here. The #CreativeCookieExchange has the perfect theme this month for those who do not want to turn on the oven - No Bake Cookies!

Dukkah, Herb & Cheese Monkey Bread - #BundtBakers

As you all know you can always rely on #BundtBakers to have amazingly inventive recipes each month, but we really kicking it up a notch this month with savory bundts.  Yep, you heard right Savory Bundts! Bundts, they're not just for dessert :)

Turkish Delight Bundt Cake ~ #BundtBakers

Our #BundtBakers theme this month is One Thousand and One Nights.  As soon as I saw the theme I immediately thought of Turkish Delight.  And as soon as I thought about Turkish delight I thought about a candy bar from Australia called Turkish Delight, which is a turkish delight jelly covered in milk chocolate. I decided to turn it into a bundt cake.

Sticky Mango Shortbread Bars ~ #CreativeCookieExchange

Spring is in the air, birds are singing,  April showers have given way to May flowers, and amazing produce is showing up at the Farmer's Markets.  It makes perfect sense that our theme this month for #Creative Cookie Exchange is Seasonal Spring Baking.

Lemon Meringue Pie Bundt Cake ~ #BundtBakers

You know how everything old is new again?  Well this month's theme for #BundtBakers is Retro Desserts Recreated as Bundts - how fun is that?  We were all asked to pick a dessert from a bygone era and turn it into a bundt cake.

Classic Spritz Cookies - #CreativeCookieExchange

Our theme this month for #CreativeCookie Exchange is Mother's Day Cookies.  I remember there being Spritz cookies in our house growing up, but I choose to make these cookies because my daughters gave me a fantastic cookie press and this was the perfect opportunity to try it out.

Ma'amoul ~ Date Stuffed Cookies - #CreativeCookieExchange

Easter is fast approaching and I have to admit that it makes me a little sad that my girls are grown up and we don't do an annual Easter Egg Hunt any more. It was always so special to watch my older girls share the eggs, pointing out to their younger sisters where they might find a treat-filled surprise rather than taking it for themselves.  Fortunately I still get to bake yummy treats for us all to enjoy. The theme for #CreativeCookie Exchange this month is Traditional Spring Holiday Cookies from around the world.  I love when we get to go around the world and try something new, and the cookies I choose are called Ma'amoul.

Lava Flow Bundt Cake - #BundtBakers

Ah, the tropical vacation.  Toes in the sand, beautiful aqua-blue water, tiki drink in hand - perfection. I am extremely lucky to call Hawaii home, so I guess in some ways I am always on a tropical vacation.

Ballymaloe Irish Brown Bread - #Twelve Loaves

This month's theme for #TwelveLoaves is Irish Breads.  I'm pretty sure the Irish made a few of breads and said, lovin' this bread, we're good, because there really isn't an abundance bread recipes from this part of the world.  I choose a brown yeast bread recipe that originated at Ballymaloe House - a bread that has been baked there for over 60 years.

Cinnamon Dolce Coffee Bundt Cake - #BundtBakers

Cinnamon invokes such a warm and comforting feeling. Sitting in front of the fire, drinking hot chocolate, eating a piece of Cinnamon Dolce Coffee Bundt Cake while the snow gently falls outside......well that is not going to happen here, except the eating cake part. I was still excited when I found out that the theme for this months #BundtBakers was cinnamon.

Hawaiian Raincoast Crisps - #CreativeCookieExchange

This time of the year many people in the Northern Hemisphere are looking to get away from the dark and relentless winter.  It has been many years since I experienced a true winter, but I remember quite well the feeling of it being bitterly cold and needing to go somewhere that the sun was shining at full strength to thaw out for a while.  Not everyone has the luxury of being able to do this so maybe some tropical treats will hit the spot. This month the #CreativeCookieExchange is taking us all on a virtual tropical vacation via cookies. It is true that a taste of a food can transport us to another time, so why not a tropical island getaway?

Braided Red Bean Bread ~ #TwelveLoaves

There really is something magical about making your own bread, whether it is the tactile feel of the dough in your hands or the smell of a fresh-baked loaf coming out of the oven.  The theme for #TwelveLoaves this month is Red, and this post is a tale of what can happen if you just have a little faith in what you can create.

Lamington Bites

Aussie Aussie Aussie, Oi Oi Oi! Happy Australia Day. Even though I am many miles away I always try to make something that reminds me of the country I grew up in - sausage rolls, fairy bread, butterfly cakes, pavlova - there are just so many great things to choose from. I decided to go back to the classic lamingtons.

Dark Chocolate Beet Bundt Cake - #BundtBakers

Do you have any strange but good-weird flavor combinations that you love to eat?  I love to eat my french fries by dipping them in a chocolate fudge sundae. There, I said it out loud.  Call me weird but there is just something about that sweet and salty taste that has me going back for more. A few months ago I saw a chocolate cake in a magazine that had a secret ingredient - beets. When this month's theme for #BundtBakers, strange but good-weird flavor combinations, was revealed I knew that this would be the perfect cake for me to try.

Aloha Linzer Cookies - #Creative Cookie Exchange

Aloha.  Most people think of this word as hello or goodbye but it is so much more.  You could say it is the word for love, but that would not be totally accurate either.  Aloha can mean love, affection, peace, compassion, respect, kindness, and sympathy but the simple truth is that it is a way of life. It is a connection to each other and to nature, and a code of behavior as to how we should live our lives.

Glazed Cranberry, Lemon & Dried Ginger Loaf

Hands up if you still have a bag of cranberries in your refrigerator. I may have more than one.  And a few in the freezer.  And maybe a few of the bags are in the freezer are from last year.  What can I say?  I panic that I will run out of cranberries throughout the year so I always stock up.  Anyway I saw this recipe from PassThe Sushi and knew that I had to make it straight away as it has three of my favorite ingredients - cranberries, lemon, and ginger.

Five Grain Loaf with Cranberries & Pecans ~ #Twelve Loaves

I met this month's #TwelveLoaves theme with a mixture of excitement and trepidation.  Bread baking is still quite new to me, and I'm trying to find my way.  Every month I learn a little more about how the dough should feel after each stage, so would the theme of New-to-You Flour Breads be my undoing?