Light, buttery, almond flavored shortbread thumbprint cookies have been the most requested cookie I make for almost as long as I can remember. My friend Augusta gave me this recipe years ago and it became a forever favorite at first bite.

Thumbprint Cookies with Jam

There’s something so endearing and adorable about jam thumbprint cookies. Fruity jam adds the perfect amount of sweetness to the flaky shortbread cookie. The easy glaze on top of these thumbprint cookies adds a beautiful touch.

These cookies are great as a snack, tucked into lunches, or when served as dessert. I especially enjoy them with cafe con leche, chai, or a London Fog on a chilly afternoon.

Shortbread Thumbprint Cookies

With just the right amount of sweetness, filled with jam, and then lightly drizzled with icing, these cookies are a hit with everyone who tries them. Don’t be fooled by their unassuming appearance. They’ll surprise you by just melting in your mouth.

Almond extract is what gives these cookies just a hint of almond flavor. It adds a nice layer of nuttiness that complements the buttery flavor of the shortbread cookie and the fruitiness of the jam.

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The velvety sweetness of chocolate mingles with the nutty goodness of walnuts in these Chocolate Walnut Cookies. Paired with a cup of coffee or a glass of milk, these cookies are pure and indulgent chocolate bliss.

Chocolate Cookies with Walnuts

These are wonderfully unique cookies. With just a quarter cup of flour in the entire recipe, the bulk of this cookie is richly packed with chocolate and walnuts. (And yes, if you don’t happen to be a fan of walnuts, feel free to substitute pecans. But, please hear me out first, ok?)

The first time I planned to make these cookies, I knew that Sean would be happy to see them, since he loves walnuts in his cookies and walnuts haven’t always been my favorite. I’m happy to say that I wound up loving these cookies, walnuts and all.

I initially thought to make them with pecans, but I’m glad I didn’t. In the 10+ years since I first made these cookies, I’ve never again been tempted to swap in pecans. The rich, deep cocoa taste of chocolate plays beautifully with the earthy, slightly bitter notes of walnuts, forming a delicious contrast.

Chocolate Walnut Cookies

You’ll need the followi

Blueberry gelato is a delightful fusion of creamy, rich gelato married to an irresistible tangy fruitiness.

When you combine the smooth richness of homemade ice cream with berries or a berry sauce, the result is always a refreshing, creamy treat – and this blueberry gelato doesn’t disappoint.

Blueberry Ice Cream

If you’ve been making ice cream here with me for long, you may recall my long-time love affair with Rusconi’s blueberry chocolate ice cream. That was my introduction to the wonders of blueberry ice creams and gelatos.

I’m grateful to Chef Michael for sharing his recipe with me when we were preparing to move to Ohio. Because once I made my own batch of Blueberry Chocolate Chunk Ice Cream at home, there was no turning back. Blueberry ice creams make regular appearances in our freezer now.

When I’m craving the restaurant’s ice cream and have never time nor motivation to make that custard base, this Blueberries and Cream Ice Cream has become a go-to. With no stovetop time at all and just a blender to whir it all together, you can have that one ready to churn in just minutes.

Blueberry Gelato

This blueberry gelato recipe is a cross between both of those blueberry ice creams. With a simple blueberry sauce reduc

Mexican Wedding Cookies are tiny melt-in-your-mouth cookies that are known by many different names around the world. My grandmother called them Sugar Butter Balls.

The first time I shared this recipe online, I was overwhelmed by the response, it felt like everyone had a different name for these cookies!

Russian Tea Cakes, Polvorones, Snowball Cookies, Egyptian Feast Cookies, Nut Butter Balls, Norwegian Snowballs, Kourambie, Walnut Delights, Pecan Petites, Holiday Nuggets, Swedish Heirloom Cookies, the list goes on and on. If I’ve missed your favorite name for them, please leave a comment here to let me know!

Wedding Cookies

Every time I bite into a wedding cookie, I’m transported to a time when I watched my grandmother roll them between her hands. She was the source of so many delicious foods in my childhood.

She would set the finished cookies on a platter and everything looked so elegant to my young eyes. More than any other holiday treat, these Mexican cookies taste like Christmas to me.

I’d try sneaking them from the tray before it was time but I’m fairly certain that the powdered sugar always left a ring of evidence around my mouth. No matter, Grandmother always made plenty of these cookies to go around.

Mexican Wedding Cookies

The first time I tried making these cookies on my own, I was 18 years old and living in my first apartment. I had my grandmother’s Mexican wedding cookies recipe, but I figured I knew best.

Instead of rolling the warm cookies gently through the powdered sugar, I placed them in a Ziploc bag and poured sugar over them. When I shook the bag to coat them with sugar, at least half the cookies broke apart.

The cookies were still delicious, but they were a mess to eat. In the years since I’ve learned that Grandmother knew best. If you follow her directions for rolling the cookies in the sugar, yours will turn out every bit as perfect as hers always did.

The easiest method I’ve found for coating the cookies in powdered sugar is to put about a cup of powdered sugar in a bowl and roll the warm cookies, a few at a time, through the sugar.

Yes, rolling each ball in powdered sugar might take a little more time but the results are so very worth it. These classic cookies are crisp when you bite into them and then they melt in your mouth.

That first bite delivers sweetness from the powdered sugar on both the inside and outside. This light buttery cookie always brings a smile to my face as I think about my grandmother and all those childhood holidays.

Sea Salt Pecan Toffee is the answer to your snacking and sweet tooth dreams. The end. Do I exaggerate? Sometimes, yes. But right now? Not really.

There aren’t a whole lot of foods that I label as “The Best Ever” or “crazy insane amazingly delicious” but this toffee recipe is exactly that. All of those things. It is EVERYTHING.

Pecan Toffee

If you have never made candy or toffee or any hot sugary boiled treat, do not fear it. Because I have a wicked easy toffee making tip that you’re going to love. No candy thermometers are needed.

Want the toffee-making tip that you’ll never forget? Set a brown paper bag near the stove and let the mixture boil until it matches the bag in color. (You can also use a jar of peanut butter for color reference.)

I have never used a thermometer for making toffee. (Admittedly, at this point, I don’t need the paper bag any longer. I just eyeball it.) This takes between 18-20 minutes and I ALWAYS set a timer for 17 minutes.

Just in case I find myself distracted, the timer prevents me from letting the candy burn. It will go from perfectly amber colored to burnt in about 30 seconds, as soon as it turns light brown, pull it off the heat.

Once you’ve made this a few times, you’ll be able to smell when it’s done too.

Sea Salt Toffee

We’ve made this toffee at least six times since Christmas because everyone I shared it with has requested it again and again.

Three different people have called or texted to ask what the heck was in the toffee because they could not stop eating it.

I have already emailed the recipe out twice with promises that I would get it on the blog soon. One friend had me laughing with her text, “Is there ACTUAL crack in this? Drugs? What did you put in it? I can’t stop eating it!”

I have yet to meet anyone who can resist the salty-sweet combination in this salted toffee with pecans.

If you love salty-sweet combinations, like these Salted Chocolate Chip Cookies, this pecan toffee is going to make you very happy.

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