Easy, Economical & Delicious - Homemade Chicken Stock and a Super Sensational Soup!

I have a confession to make...............

Beef, Butternut & Bacon Chili

Yesterday was rainy, gusty, cold and just plain old yucky which made it the perfect day to snuggle up inside and .................

Brown Sugar & Pumpkin Pie-Spiced Pound Cake with Caramel Icing

Sugar and spice and everything nice...............

Grilled Vietnamese Banh Mi Sandwiches

I've been secretly leading you on................... the last three days I've been posting recipes which are very versatile and totally able to stand on their own but when combined, make the freshest, most fabulous sandwich you'll ever have the pleasure of meeting eating; a Grilled Vietnamese Banh Mi Sandwich...................

Ginger-Sesame Vinaigrette

Vietnamese Table Salad

Artisan Baguettes - in Five Minutes!

Grilled Vietnamese Banh Mi Sandwiches

Artisan Baguettes .................in Five Minutes!?!

I would't tell you this if it wasn't true............ honestly, the hands-on prep time for whipping up these amazing baguettes is five minutes! I started making this five minute artisan bread, (I know these four words seem quite contradictory) several years ago, and to tell you the truth, I didn't believe it either.....

Vietnamese Table Salad with Ginger-Sesame Vinaigrette

I could eat this fresh, healthy, flavorful...........just plain old delicious salad every day! A special cutting technique and a delicious dressing takes these simple, ordinary ingredients and turns them into nothing short of extraordinary!

Ginger-Sesame Vinaigrette

This is a fantastic salad dressing; transforming the most commonplace greens into something spectacular........

Parmesan, Garlic and Rosemary Dinner Roll Fans

To me, one of life's sweetest treasures is dear friends. You know, the ones who you can re-connect with in minutes - even when life takes you in different directions, casting you miles, even states apart from each other................

Smoky Sweet Potato & Carrot Soup

We've been a little over-indulgent this past week.............with with the Carrot Cake Jam (and the bread that went along with it!), the Dulche de leche Sauce (and the ice cream that went along with it!) and to top it off, the Caramel-Pecan Hand Pies yesterday (more ice cream!). I decided  that we'd better start behaving a bit more............ (and you might need to as well!) so..........

Caramel-Pecan Hand Pies

I love traditional tried-and-true recipes with unique and unconventional twists. My husband pointed out these delicious looking Caramel-Pecan Hand Pies in the latest issue of Food and Wine and the minute I saw them, I knew that it wouldn't be long before these interesting pastries would find their way to the cake dome on my counter..........

Delicious Dulche de Leche .......... the Easy Way!

Delicious Dulce de leche is a delightful, thick, caramely South American dessert sauce that has become very popular in recent years. Literally translated it means "sweet jam" or "sweet milk jam"............

Sweet and Savory Goat Cheese Appetizer

Last Friday I posted a wonderful recipe for Carrot Cake Jam. This unique jam is not only delicious on toast, bagels, muffins, scones, yogurt and oatmeal, but it can be transformed (very quickly!) into a delightful appetizer................

Carrot Cake...... Jam!

Oh my... this stuff is crazy good! Pineapple, pears, apples, coconut, pecans, craisins and shredded carrots along with cinnamon, cloves and nutmeg all combined into an unbelievably incredible cake, oops, I mean jam..............

Curried Lentil Soup with Chicken Sausage

This is a delicious, hearty, healthy, cool weather soup that we have just fallen in love with..........

Pumpkin Pie Granola Bars with a Secret Ingredient

I did it! I've come up with some granola bars that I think are just "the cat's meow"! You might be saying, "the cat's meow?" What in the world is she talking about.........yes,  I know from my stats that the Café has quite a few readers from other countries who might not understand this crazy American idiom. The cat's meow simply means "the best" - AnswerBag actually defines it as "too cool for words". But wait a minute, let me tell you why I use such a superlative.....

White Chip & Toffee Cookies and a Shameful Tale

These have to be my favorite cookies - ever!  There is, however, a somewhat embarrassing story to go along with  these yummy cookies............... shhhhhhh, just promise you won't tell anyone else.....

Haricot Verts and Sugar Snap Pea Salad

Haricot Verts......... just a fancy French name for the slender green beans that are available in many markets now days.........and with a name like The Café Sucré Farine I just couldn't call this lovely salad Skinny Green Bean and Pea Pod Salad, could I?.......

Whole Grain Bread Crisps

Bread and butter. That's it. Simple, basic, ordinary..................

Sweet Potato and Butter Bean Hummus

I had an extra sweet potato (baked and ready to be put to work!) left over from my Sweet Potato Galettes with Fresh Herbs, Applewood Bacon and Goat Cheese that I posted yesterday. I couldn't see letting this delicious, nutritious potato go to waste.......

Sweet Potato Galettes with Fresh Herbs, Applewood Bacon and Goat Cheese

I was intrigued by these fantastic looking puff pastry tarts the minute I saw in my new Ottolenghi cookbook and couldn't wait to give them a try...............

The Café's Olive Oil & Rosemary Boule

I love the plethora of rustic breads that are available nowdays at many local grocers. It used to be that you had to hunt to find a good European-style bakery to enjoy truly good bread. In my neck of the woods, good bakeries are few and far between. So I'm thrilled that I can pick up beautiful loaves of crusty, fragrant bread anytime I want. Well, maybe not ANYtime ..........

Roasted Carrot and Coriander Soup with a Greek Yogurt and Fresh Herb Drizzle

While we were in London last week, my daughter served us a fabulous Carrot and Coriander Soup. It was tasty, healthy and just plain delicious with crushed coriander seed, fresh coriander (cilantro) and LOTS of carrots. I haven't been able to get that yummy soup out of my mind, so when the hot weather broke this weekend I pulled out her recipe..........