Bazaar-o-Rama 2022
It’s been a long two years, but I’m happy to say that bazaars are back, baby! I can’t tell you the joy I felt the other day, stepping into my first church basement since COVID, and smelling that percolated coffee.
Read MoreBest and Worst Apple Cider
It’s not autumn until you’re unwedging your front teeth from a candy apple, dodging drunk wasps, and wearing your new parka when it’s 28 degrees outside. It’s also not autumn until you’re enjoying a glass of apple cider and poking your eye with a cinnamon stick every time you take a sip.
Read MoreBest and Worst Macaroni Salad
Summer is many things for me: Hawaiian Tropic Dark Tanning Oil, thongs, roller skates, and boardwalks. (In that order.). But summer is also about food. And nothing says summer to me like a good helping of macaroni salad on a soggy paper plate.
Read MoreCool Whip Easter Eggs
Colouring Easter eggs as a kid was always stressful. You ran the risk of your eggs cracking while they boiled. Then you had to mix the PAAS food colouring tabs in separate bowls. Then you had to deal with your mom hovering over your shoulder, saying, “If you stain my counter, so help me God…”
Read MoreBest and Worst Panettone
Being married to an Italian means I’ve been exposed to different Italian holiday traditions over the years. Like eating fish on Christmas Eve, wearing red underwear on New Year’s Day for good luck and, unfortunately, Limoncello.
Read MoreThanksgiving Paper Bag Cornucopia
Recently, I came across a copy of Woman’s Day “Best Ideas for Christmas” magazine, published in 1976. It featured recipes like Avocado Ring with Crab-Meat Dressing, as well as an assortment of holiday craft ideas (never underestimate the versatility of a paper towel roll).
Read MoreBest and Worst Commercial Pastries
For most people, elementary school was a time of learning, exploration, and growth. For me, it was about the joy of finding a cellophane-wrapped Twinkie in my lunch box. Or a Hostess Cupcake. Or a Wagon Wheel. If grades were given out for glucose-fructose and guar gum consumption, I would’ve been the smartest kid in class.
Read MoreBest and Worst Chocolate Easter Bunny
For some people, Easter represents a time of rebirth, redemption and hope. For me, it’s about chocolate. Specifically, chowing down on chocolate bunnies while wearing my Easter bonnet.
But with so many varieties and price ranges to choose from, which bunny is the best?
Read MoreBest and Worst Egg Nog
For better or worse, eggnog is a divisive holiday beverage. (Even more divisive than Coffee Mate’s Frosted Gingerbread.) Hate it or love it, there’s no middle ground. But what turns people off eggnog? The nutmeg? The phlegmy texture? The raw egg origins? Or maybe it’s that, on the French side of the carton, it reads “lait de poule” which translates in English to “chicken milk.”
Read MoreHolly Cookies Recipe
Bazaars may have been cancelled this year on account of COVID-19, but that doesn’t mean the bazaar fun has to stop. Throughout the month, I’ve been posting my best bazaar finds of all time and recipes for some bake table classics.
Read MorePeanut Butter Marshmallow Squares Recipe
COVID-19 might have stolen church holiday bazaars this year, but it hasn’t stolen their spirit. All November, I’ve been posting classic bake table recipes for you to make at home as well as showcasing some of my best bazaar finds over the years.
Read MoreChocolate Haystacks Recipe
Bazaars may be cancelled this year, but I’m keeping the spirit alive by featuring a weekly bake table recipe for you to make at home, as well as some of my favourite bazaar treasures I’ve acquired over the years.
Read MoreChurch Windows Recipe
Church holiday bazaars may be cancelled this year, but that doesn’t mean the fun needs to end. All this month, I’m featuring a bazaar bake table classic recipe, taken from my collection of community cookbooks, along with my best bazaar finds over the years
Read MoreShortbread Cookies with Maraschino Cherries Recipe
I’m heartsick about bazaars being cancelled this year. Damn you, COVID-19. Where will I get my cabbage rolls? Where will I buy my next tea cozy? Where will I flirt with women named Bea across a knit table?
Read MoreBest and Worst Sugar Cereal
Sugar cereals have always had a bad rap. But I think it’s undeserved. Often, a heaping bowl of sugar, corn syrup and high monounsaturated canola oil is the best way to start your day.
Read MoreBeanie-Weenie Bake Recipe
Every year since the dawn of time (or so it seems), I host an annual Caker Christmas party. I invite Italians to make – and eat – caker dishes. At the end of the night, I ask them to vote for the night’s best-tasting dish. For them, it’s like asking to choose the least offensive smell at a flatulence convention.
Read MoreTortilla Pizza Recipe
Another week, another exciting Caker Cooking recipe!
With everyone self-isolating, many parents are dealing with kids at home 24/7. And parenting is a lot harder than when I was growing up in the '70s. The main difference being that, these days, parents are supposed to pay attention to their kids.
Read MoreCheesy Scalloped Potatoes Recipe
When it comes to times of stress and hardship, few things provide comfort like the combination of cheese and potatoes.
Read MoreJELL-O Pudding Easter Eggs Recipe
I used to have a food blog called Caker Cooking. In 2014, I shut it down. But tough time calls for good eating. And given the state of the world right now, who couldn’t use some comfort food? So, for a limited time, I’m bringing Caker Cooking back.
Read MoreCaker Christmas 2019
I can’t think of a better way to send off the decade than with a hot, steaming casserole. So I was happy to host my annual Caker Christmas party the other night. “Caker,” for those unaware, is short form for “mangiacake,” a term Italians give some of the more questionable aspects of Anglo-Saxon cuisine.
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