Uncategorized

I used to make sugar cookies on the regular. I would do thick, soft, cut-out style cookies and then spend hours decorating them. If I’m honest, I made them in order to escape life’s stress. I was in a miserable, unhealthy relationship. Staying focused on the baking and decorating kept my mind at peace. I felt like I was in a situation that I couldn’t escape physically so I would do so mentally. Some people exercise to escape stress, some people turn to drugs or alcohol… I turned to baking. I did ultimately end that toxic relationship, got therapy and moved on to much happier times. It would be easy to resent those years but that would only keep me locked into the misery. Instead, I think of it as one of the most important life lessons I’ve ever had. I wouldn’t be in the incredible marriage I’m in today if I hadn’t experienced my past. I probably wouldn’t be as thankful as I am for the healthy, loving and supportive relationship I have with my husband.

My love for sugar cookies is still strong but I don’t spend hours baking and decorating unless I’m motivated to do so out of joy. “Escape baking” is a thing of my past.  Instead, I choose easier, less time-consuming recipes to satisfy a sugar cookie craving. With summer comes bright citrus – lemon and lime season. When I was looking to make some sugar cookies, I saw key limes sitting on my counter and knew I need to incorporate them. This recipe is easy to make, you don’t even need to chill the dough. Perfect for when you don’t want to wait all day to have a homemade cookie.

Tips:

• If you can’t find key limes, go ahead and use regular limes or you could even swap out for lemon if you prefer.
• I made the icing somewhat thick so I could manipulate it on the cookies. If you prefer a lighter icing, reduce the amount of powdered sugar.

Print Recipe

Key Lime Sugar Cookies

A vibrant take on a classic cookie.

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Keyword: Cookies, Dessert, Easy Cookies, Easy Recipe, Homemade Cookies, Key Lime, Key Lime Cookies, Key Lime Dessert, Lime

Servings: 30 cookies

Ingredients

• 2 cups all purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
• 1 cup sugar
• 2 Tablespoons key lime zest
• 1 egg
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

For the icing

• 2 Tablespoons fresh key lime juice
• 1 1/3 cups powdered sugar

Instructions

• In a medium bowl, whisk together flour and baking soda then set aside.
• In a large bowl, cream together the butter, sugar and lime zest until light in color. Add in egg, vanilla and salt and beat to combine. Gradually add in flour mixture, stopping to scrape the bowl periodically.
• Roll cookie dough into 1” balls then place on parchment covered cookie sheet, leaving 2 inches between cookies.
• Bake 15-17 minutes or until edges are slightly golden. Let cookies cool completely before adding icing.

For the icing

• For the icing: pour lime juice into a small bowl. Gradually whisk powdered into lime juice until fully incorporated and smooth (no lumps). Spoon icing onto cookies as desired.

When I first moved to Texas, I distinctly remember waking up at all hours of the night and checking the temperature. It was August and even at 3:00 in the morning, we were at 90°F outside. The low temperatures were in the 90’s!!! The highs were certainly hitting around 110°F. I grew up with hot summers in Kansas but over the last few years I had been living in much colder climates in Western New York and then Colorado. I quickly learned how to cope with the heat though. Here in San Antonio, it is all about pool life with snacks and drinks in hand. There were a lot of antics that first summer. Fence hopping, trivia at a nearby hole in the wall, dancing at clubs downtown, plus lots of sangria and snacks by the pool. Every weekend, my friends and I would hit up the farmer’s market for fresh, healthy ingredients – we would buy whatever produce we could find and then create those pool side snacks from our haul.

This salad would have been the perfect addition to our pool side spreads that summer. The base of a traditional panzanella is lightly toasted pieces of bread with large chunks of tomatoes and not a single leaf of lettuce. The beauty from here is that you can add in subtle or bright flavors to compliment those base ingredients. I wanted to add an extra sweetness to my version so I’ve tossed in peaches – such a classic summer ingredient. Even with the pieces of bread tossed in, this salad is light and refreshing, perfect for those summer days spent by the pool.

Tips:

• Go ahead and make this salad a few hours in advance. The juices of the tomatoes and peaches will start to soak into the bread (without making it soggy), helping to blend the flavors.
• This salad is the perfect opportunity to use up any tomatoes that might be overripe. The extra juiciness will only add flavor.

Print Recipe

Panzanella Summer Salad

The perfect salad for your summer finds from the farmer's market.

Ingredients

• 6 cups rustic multigrain bread, cut into 1/2" cubes
• 2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 5 medium, ripe tomatoes of mixed variety, cut into 1/2" cubes
• 2 ripe peaches, cut in half & sliced thin
• 10 large basil leaves cut into thin strips

For the salad dressing

• 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 1/2 teaspoon dijon mustard
• 3 Tablespoons white wine vinegar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 375°F. Spread bread pieces out on a sheet pan and drizzle with olive oil. Bake 6 minutes or until lightly toasted, not browned. Remove from oven and let cool.
• In a large bowl, gently toss together toasted bread with
  tomatoes, peaches, red onion and basil.
• For the salad dressing, whisk all ingredients in a small
  bowl. Drizzle over salad as desired.