Cranberry Coffee Cake

Before I go any further, please learn this one thing from my blog: It's a good sign when recipes for cakes/cookies have sour cream in the ingredients list. It just really is! Moving on...

I told you I like cranberries — and I suspect that this won't be the last cranberry post of the season! Once again I found myself with a couple bags of Jersey cranberries and thought I might use them to try a new recipe. I also thought that the folks in my department would appreciate it at the staff meeting the next morning.

A lovely cup of tea — thanks for the mugs, Ash!

How would I describe the end result? Well, as Brad and his two brothers might have said when they were little boys, it was a big, hurkin' cake! It looked huge as it puffed up well beyond the side of my 9x13" pan, and this thing was heavy to carry too! But somehow the cake was still light, moist, and delicious! 

Restaurant Review: Pru Thai

Last weekend my mom and I went shopping for bridesmaid and mother-of-the-bride dresses in Clinton, New Jersey on a cold and windy fall day. After walking around the cute little town along the Delaware River, we needed some sustenance and warmth! 

We stumbled across Pru Thai (6 East Main Street, Clinton, NJ), and we were happy to see their menu of tea that you could buy by the cup or pot. We ordered a pot of Orange Spice tea and decided on a few menu items to share for lunch.
 

We started with a combo appetizer that included one serving on beef and chicken satay, steamed dumplings, vegetable spring rolls, and a delicious pickled salad for garnish (and yummy dipping sauces!).

The Best Sugar Cookies (Ever)

I always thought of sugar cookies as a fun way to make cookies into shapes, but I was rarely impressed by their taste. They can be dry and flavorless — just nothing to write home about in general. This recipe, however, makes delicious cookies and has served me well for many years! If you're willing to spend the time to roll the dough out and cut the shapes, I think you'll be very pleased with the results!

I recently made these cookies for the dessert table at my cousin's baby shower (they are expecting baby Joey in February — congrats Kate and John!).

The cookies have a nice citrus flavor, but you could also experiment and use other flavors if you'd like.