Hot Cross Buns

"Hot cross buns!

Hot cross buns!

One ha' penny, two ha' penny,

Hot cross buns!"

For many years I thought that hot cross buns existed only in a child's nursery rhyme and held some sort of weird, archaic symbolism like "Ring Around the Rosie." It wasn't until a couple years ago at my hubby's (then boyfriend's) parent's house that I learned that, in fact, hot cross buns are a real baked good! My hubby's mom had purchased a dozen of them from a local bakery and had warmed them up to serve along side our Easter dinner. After only one bite, I was extremely taken by these little spiced rolls that were decorated so neatly with frosting crosses. The insides were light and fluffy, the spices were delicate yet present and the currents provided a nice burst of sweetness every few bites. I knew right away that these were going to be an Easter staple from then on out. 

German Chocolate Cake

This week my dad turned the big 5-0! In honor of this monumental celebration, I baked one of his favorite cakes: German Chocolate. German chocolate cake is a chocolate layer cake that is filled with a gooey coconut-pecan frosting. Yummy!

Beet Brownies (Daring Bakers' Challenge)

Whew! It has been a crazy month. My school work finally caught up with me and instead of spending my time experimenting with recipes in the kitchen, I have spent my time working with the same techniques over and over. But spring break is finally here and just in time for this month's Daring Bakers' Challenge.

Ruth from Makey-Cakey was our March 2013 Daring Bakers' Challenge host. She encouraged us all to get experimental in the kitchen and sneak some hidden veggies into our baking, with surprising and delicious results!

Raspberry-Lemon Mini Pies

It must be pie week in the Rainy Baker household! Coincidentally, after baking my Meyer Lemon Pie yesterday afternoon, we learned new pie techniques later that evening in class. This left me with a lot of leftover pie dough. Mini pies are all the rage right now, appearing all over foodgawker and the blogasphere. I have never tackled mini pies before and thought this would be an excellent use for my scraps of pie dough. This is a good reason to always save any extra pie dough you may have! I also had leftover raspberries and Meyer Lemons from previous baking experiments and thought these would be a lovely combination for my pies.

Shaker Lemon Pie

It's that time of year again, everyone! Meyer Lemon season. If you have never had a Meyer Lemon, it is a delicious, sweeter relative of the common lemon. Originally native to China, the Meyer Lemon is a cross between a lemon and a mandarin orange. Due to their temperamental nature, the majority of Meyer Lemon crops are only able to be harvested between November and April. I was lucky enough to stumble across a bag of them at Costco last week and I knew that I had to use them to make a Shaker Lemon Pie!