Writing groups & workshops can be really helpful…if you find the right one.

Writing groups, workshops, or getting insight from people you trust are all necessary in the artistic process of writing. No matter the genre or the scope it's important to have a critical eye look at you first draft (or drafts) and help you flesh out your novel, story, poem, personal essay, etc. Definition A writing group may be just that: a group that writes together. Or it may be a group that writes together and critiques one another’s work within a session. The basis of a workshop is that the entire session is dedicated to appraising each other’s work. It’s important to differentiate the two in your mind and decide what you may want in terms of help with finished pieces or just a push to write on a consistent basis.

Atmosphere Writing groups and workshops are overly available and not, which is a Catch-22 of sorts. Mind you there are many groups/workshops out there full of "writers" but not necessarily writers with a critical eye. From high school on I've been in workshops and among people that vary from being overly analytical of your work (If you’ve never done that how can you write about it?) to not giving a damn because they aren’t serious (This class was supposed to be an easy A.) or just want to get as much feedback as they can for themselves (Enough about me, what do you think of me?). When you hit the jackpot and find not just one, but several people in a group who are outgoing and help you tackle the problem(s) in your manuscript it can be the best thing ever. When you experience those who just don't know what it is they do and don't like about your work, people who go on to focus on simple things like the overuse of one word, or simply say “I liked it” can make you downtrodden.

I’ve experienced good and bad writing groups/workshops in and outside of the academic environment. Students in my undergraduate and graduate courses were not “in the know” in regards to proper workshop etiquette and would either blatantly bash your work or roll their eyes at the thought of it or remain mute throughout the semester. In a smaller writing group outside of class things may be better or worse. Perhaps you have a thick skin and want to hear every last issue with your piece or maybe you want people to handle you (and your work) with kitten gloves therefore you need to hear the good along with the bad, preferably in that order. In the real world, with no instructor acting as mediary/Yoda there’s even more of a chance that people won’t stick to their guns about attending group regularly or providing feedback as there’s no threat of a bad grade on one’s transcript.

Etiquette For those of you who may not be familiar with the workshop environment here are some tips:

1)    Sharing means caring – Everyone has a story to tell, so try to be polite and professional when attempting to critique another writer’s work. Sharing one’s work isn’t an easy thing to do and to be bashed by people you may or may not know can hurt the ego. So be kind and try to acknowledge the good and bad of a piece to show you care about the work itself and seeing it progress. Example: “I enjoyed the visuals in this piece and how much you made me feel in the moment as a reader in the first few pages. I completely saw the environment I was in in 1920s Mississippi. I did think there was a bit too much description at times and would suggest cutting certain parts. For instance...” 2)    Don’t be afraid to speak up if something doesn’t make sense – Some may gloss over the points they don’t understand and just focus on what made sense to them in a piece. This can hurt the author because they can’t see what you as a, hopefully, objective reader can. After rewrites and plotting the author is so connected to the piece they may not see the glaring holes that you do. So if there’s anything that didn’t strike you as clear make sure to mention it and not worry if you may be the only one that missed something. Example: “I’m not too familiar with The War of 1812 so there were aspects of the battke scenes I couldn’t get into fully. Maybe you could be a bit more descriptive of the lay of the land and the machinery used then or add footnotes to certain things for those who may know to skip and those who don’t to take a look at?” 3)    Multiple reads are a good thing – When writing a formal report sometimes you re-read portions of the work your focusing on to get a clearer sense of what you’d like to say about it. The same goes in a writing group/workshop. What you may have missed the first time around you may suddenly see in the second or third read. Or you may notice elements of the story that don’t work upon an additional read. I’d suggest reading a piece at least twice before providing feedback to the author, more if time and length of piece allow. 4)    Keep an open mind – Many of us have our favorite genres. Some love science fiction and fantasy while others abhor it. Some love chic lit, others prefer literary fiction, some literary non-fiction, some historical books. We all have something we prefer over something else. Yet in a writing group (unless it’s focused towards speculative fiction, sci-fi/fantasy, YA, erotica, etc.) we have to be open to all sorts of genres. Just because you may not read YA doesn’t mean you won’t be able to provide suitable feedback to a member in your group. If character development is off or the setting isn’t clear than these are things that can be helpful whether you’re a fan of the genre or not.    Example: “I was really into this. The narrator is funny and brought me right into the plot with his acerbic wit. Some of the more technical aspects of what makes speculative, speculative and not solely sci-fi I may be not know, but as a story I am entertained and would continue reading after the first few pages because I like the characters and setting.”

Of course, there may be times when you really cannot get into the work because you’re just not too into the genre for specific reasons (language seems too artistic and not focused, reminds you too much of Virginia Woolf and you can’t stand her) this is also a good time to mention you’re not the reader for this person’s particular style and can note the reasons why. Either way you’re helping to provide the author with some feedback as to who their audience should be, in which case this also helps them to know to narrow things down when submitting pieces to magazines or agents. Example: “I’m sorry. I tried reading it and it made me a little uncomfortable because of the heavy religious undertone throughout. I thought it was well written and held the main argument in the piece. But also felt it was kind of biased, so I’m afraid I couldn’t give it a fair read as you may have wanted. I just don’t think I’m the reader you may be reaching out to in this piece.”

The Good and the Bad There are writing groups that are open call and some that tend to interview participants before allowing them to enter the arena. In the case of the latter it may be a payoff because you know that the interview process is routine and that others have been through the same thing. Knowing a group takes applicants and their work seriously can only be a plus. I would warn one to be weary of groups where no meeting is necessary and one just throws their work into the fire. It’d be best to meet with members first, see how they treat one another and critique, then make a firm decision.

Something else to be weary of is writing groups with friends. Like everything in life there can be a good and bad side to this. I became friends with writers I met at an international writing conference. When we returned to our respective homes I got in touch with those in my area and we decided to meet monthly and discuss each other’s work. Since it was established that we were serious enough to pay through the nose to go overseas for a writing conference it turned out to be a positive meeting of the minds locally. On the flip side, I’ve attempted writing groups with friends of mine I knew wrote and these get-togethers were more happy hour hangout sessions than writing/critique sessions. Plus, friends may flake out more than those you don’t know because they expect you to understand. Hell, you saw your friend just last week at karaoke, you know what the deal is! This can make things murky so that the excitement in the beginning drops off slowly then steadily once other things get in the way. In these cases if you have friends who are serious pin them down, now. If it’s easier to just do some e-communication with them to get feedback on your work and vice versa this may be the route to go.

Move Forward Just because you may not have anyone with a critical eye to readily look at your finished draft(s) doesn’t mean you should pump the brakes on your writing completely. Continue to progress and proceed with other work. Heck, it wouldn’t hurt to give a piece a rest for a bit if you’ve been living with it for months or years before taking another crack at it. Let the manuscript marinate!

But in the mean time, be on the look out for writing groups/workshops in your area and see what they’re about. You might even consider going for a graduate or post-graduate degree to focus more on your writing and meet published authors that can give sound advice. Just. Don’t. Stop. Writing.

Here’s a list of places you may be able to give and get feedback on your writing: $ denotes fee

Online Writing Groups/Communities Critique Circle EditRed.com FanStory.com Goodreads Book Excerpts group Gotham Writers Workshop – Offers some free and fee-based courses online or in-person.  ($) Mediabistro – Offers online and in-person classes/workshops. ($) Mike’s Writing Workshop Online Writing Workshop The MuseItUpClub Critique Group Scribophile.com ($) Writer’s Digest University (formerly Writing Workshops Online) ($) The Writers Studio

Workshops/Writing Groups Asian American Writers Workshop Craigslist - Every so often someone may post searching for writers to join a group in the Writing section. East Harlem Writers’ Circle (NYC) - Become a fan on Facebook! Freebird Writing Workshops (NYC) ($) Gotham Writers Workshop (NYC) – Offers some free and fee-based courses online or in-person.  ($) List of Latin focused writing groups Mediabistro – Offers online and in-person classes/workshops. ($) Meetup.com – May list some writing groups/workshops seeking new members to meet regularly in various locations throughout the US. Morningside Writers Group (NYC) - Offers workshops in fiction, memoir, speculative fiction, and screenplays. ($) 92nd Street Y (NYC) Unterberg Poetry Center Writing Program for poetry and fiction workshops. ($) NYC Latinas Writers Group - Become a fan on Facebook or a friend on Myspace! NYC Writing Coach – Editor provides one-on-one help and workshops. ($) New York Writers Coalition New York Writers Workshop ($) The Sackett Street Writers’ Workshop (NYC) ($) The Writer Magazine list of Writing groups (USA) The Writers Studio

Also try:

Local colleges/universities – Beyond workshop classes for degree students colleges/universities may also offer workshops for continuing education students. Alumni may be searching for people interested in starting a group on or off campus. (Here are a few places offering free writing courses online.)

Various writing conferences, residencies, and week-long (or longer/shorter) workshops go on across the country (and world) throughout the year. Poets & Writers has a list of residencies and conferences or you can try ShawGuides or Google ones by genre/location. You can apply for financial aid for many that are connected with colleges/universities or apply for grants you may already have from school or fellowships.

OR you can form your own group/workshop by placing an ad or conferring with friends (serious writers need apply!).

Vote Ramen & Friends for Best Food Blog 2010!

My friend and fellow foodie has had her wonderful food blog ramenandfriends nominated for the 2010 Bloggers Choice Awards in the Best Food Blog category! Peruse the site, check out some of the hot-spots mentioned, and perhaps even be so inclined to vote R&F. I know I've been enlightened by the many eateries regularly explored by R&F!

Also, feel free to nominate and vote for friends blogs and those posted in the various categories on Bloggers Choice!

How to have a successful cookie (and bar) competition!

Happy New Year Reader(s)! Now that we've been through the worst of the snowfall this winter let's look on to happier times. Late last year I got to thinking... what with the worsening recession and the rise of unemployment I was wondering how, in times of financial constraints, one can have a fun and successful party where no one will think about the dire straits of our country? Something that has united me and those around me has always been the effect of good food, particularly yummy baked goods. So, it only made sense to have a cookie (and bar) competition to celebrate my birthday, the beginning of a new year, hopefully the end of the recession, and above all sugar-infused treats!

I have to tip my hat to Jason Lam, the man behind MeSoHungry, who hosts an annual cookie competition before the Christmas holiday. And hearing how successful his parties had been I thought "Hot damn it's solidified!" I'd have a cookie (and bar) competition and hope my friends would be kind enough to participate. The bars came into play when a friend of mine mentioned a preference for making them. Plus, I didn't want to be prejudice against bars because they're so damn delicious.

Once the plan was set I got to thinking how this could all work out...

Step 1) The Contestants! Luckily I have many baking inclined friends or those who are just into trying new things. Some are into cooking/baking to wow the masses, like my husband, while others were happy to do me a solid and get some accolades in the process.  If you're throwing a competition and don't have enough entries then there may be trouble afoot and you may have  lie and say Paula Deen is going to be there and give out heaping amounts of deep-fried goods to all who attend. I won't say I didn't politely urge some people into baking, especially if I knew they could bring it and bring it hard.  There were about a dozen or so contestants resulting in a might fine spread. And all were more than happy to partake.

Step 2) Location, Location: I've had my birthday party at Stone Creek Bar & Lounge for the past few years because the service is phenomenal and the back room is spacey. I reserve ahead of time and usually get the room on the date I request. With no time constraints, a private room and bar the party can go all night long! You should look into where you can have said competition ahead of time and hope it can hold all the aspiring bakers and empty bellies. Also try to negotiate pricing or learn of fees beforehand.

Step 3) Advertise! I made sure to contact people ahead of time and let them know this was a "COOKIE PARTY." Of course this doesn't stop people from looking at you with raised eyebrows wondering how they'll get "real food." I couldn't help but stare at some people as I emphasized the words "Baking party!" as they headed out to try and find protein and vegetables or whatever leaving perfectly good sugary goods behind.

If you're really nice have some finger foods available for consumption before everyone digs into the sugary pile. (I'd also recommend asking or strongly urging people who don't enter the competition to make donations to help pay for healthy spreads like crudite, chicken fingers, or cheese and crackers for people to nosh on before the competition begins or even to help cover costs for the room/space if there's a set fee.)

Step 4) Prizes! What good is a competition if you just get glory "in name"? Yes, we compete for the accolades but dang it if I weren't also in it for prizes. The Olympians of yester-year used to get a simple olive branch wreath. Now they get medals that they can show off and pimp themselves regularly for endorsements of various foods and athletic apparel. Prizes are the way to go so try to find some that will make your guests happy or at least smile. In my case I offered different tiers of movie passes for 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place, which really made people excited about entering. Even those that didn't rank for the top prizes got a cute lil' button proclaiming their badassness in the kitchen. Or as my friend BLee says "official cookie aficionado, JBH approved." Heck yeah!

Step 5) Democracy! This is America dammit (the U. S. of A.) and as such the competition was a democracy. Just because it was my birthday party doesn't mean I was fit to judge. My husband entered for crying out loud how am I expected to be impartial? So I made ballots AND labels so people could be voted on appropriately. We wouldn't want any Indecision 2000 stuff going on at a cookie party as things could get dangerous with a few dozen people on a sugar high.

And those are my steps to having an awesome and democratic cookie/bar competition. Follow said steps, allow the masses to enjoy the spread, stand back and watch the good times roll, then repeat as necessary.

As you can see from the pictures the entries were vast and awfully tasty. There were vegan options and none, many bar entries, and things I'd never think would taste good in a cookie like cardamom. Who knew?

The winners of my inaugural 2010 competition were as follows and you can get the recipes for these tasty treats online by clicking on their respective links:

1st place: Key Lime Coconut Bars made by the lovely mistress behind Dessert Landscape!

2nd place: Orange Citrus Bars made by my hubby!

3rd place: Vegan Mint Chocolate Chip Cookies made by my co-worker KP!

Other entries included Amaretto Bars, Good ole Chocolate Chip Cookies, Vegan Peanut Butter Oatmeal "amazingness" Cookies, Vegan Cardamom Pistachio Cookies, Lemon Bars, Sugar Lemon Cookies, Cream Cheese Swirl Brownies, Banana Tart, Cookie Concoction (a colored sugar cookie with a spice-laden surprise), and so on and so forth.  Some were family recipes others were open to the public but all and I mean all were good.

Thanks again to everyone who participated and came out for a successful birthday celebration and competition! See you next year!

Wrap up! My year in baking...(Pt. 2)

And here are my remaining baking efforts for the year. The second half of the year brought a lot of use of my oven. Thankfully, it can take it. August:

The Dish: If it isn't already evident that I'm a lemon nut then here's more proof. My baked good for August was: Lemon Poppyseed Cake. Hell, I had left over lemons and, as mentioned, a whole lot of poppyseeds. Why not make bread?

End result: Also from Sweet Melissa's Cookbook, but I was not a fan of this one. Too tart and not sugary enough for me. Plus, I believe I left one loaf in a bit longer than necessary so it was a bit too crisp on the bottom. But, I brought it to work and people enjoyed it. I was told that the fact it was more lemony than sugary made it taste more like a traditional bread rather than cake. Go fig.

September:

The Dish: The previous month I had gone to Vermont for a Writer's Conference. My roomie at the conference went to a Maple shop and I implored her to get me maple sugar if she could find it. She did! (Thanks, Iris!) And so I made it a point to find something to use this decadent sugar for. And so I found a simple recipe, because I like simple, for Mapledoodles.

End result: For me, I think these cookies tasted better cool rather than warm. I got a metallic like taste from either the maple extract or the maple sugar. And lastly, too much maple! This recipe called for maple extract and maple sugar in the cookie along with maple sugar outside of the cookie and an (optional) maple glaze! I had to hold off from doing maple outside of the cookie because the taste was too darn strong! Decent enough cookies, but I've seen alternate mapledoodle recipes I'll try.

The Dish: In addition to the, somewhat disappointing, mapledoodles I made a classic fave: pumpkin chocolate chip cookies! My same friend who is a gifted baker introduced me to pumpkin chocolate chip bars, which are amazing! This is a take on that.

End result: These have a cakey texture rather than your normal cookie texture. And to eat these warm is amazing! The moist cakey-ness along with melty chocolate chips makes these to die for. It's filled with the same spices you'd use to make pumpkin pie as well as pumpkin filling and is amazing!

You'll fall in love with these and the recipe I use makes five dozen or more which is never enough! People in the office loved them and I found the adult mentors liked them too. Kids and teenagers may be a bit sketched out by pumpkin cookies, but once they try them they'll be reformed. I'm drooling just thinking about them.

October:

The Dish: Of course one would think that I'd save the pumpkin treats for October, but in all honest they're good any time! But this month I actually delved into a treat I've eaten a lot, but never had the cajones to make: pound cake!

Turns out it's super-easy!

End result: Main difference is that it is made with light brown sugar rather than regular granulated as per the recipe on the back of the Domino's sugar box. So it looks a bit darker as well. Tasted really good and familiar, almost like my grandma's!

Made it for my drinking group (hey ladies!) and they enjoyed it. Moistness keeps if sealed well for a couple of days, but definitely tastes best right out of the oven and with some accoutrements such as cream or berries.

The Dish: I also did a pumpkin recipe for Halloween! Last year I had an awful pumpkin bar recipe. The bars were incredibly dense and not sweet at all. Not happy. So I went with a Paula Deen recipe this year because, quite frankly, you can trust her butter-filled delicacies. And I wasn't disappointed!

End result: I just couldn't be bothered with icing and didn't want to deter from the pumpkin taste, so there you go. I have to say that this was more of a cake then a bar. It was mighty fluffy and could've used icing. It tasted fabulous and I'll make again instead calling it Ms. Deen's pumpkin cake!

November:

The Dish: And as the year comes full circle so does this month's dessert which was, well, lemon of course! This time lemon cupcakes with lemony cream on top. I made it for my department's first ever Dessert Hour before Thanksgiving and these cupcakes were a hit! If you're not a big dessert person lemon is excellent because it's not too strong and complements the sweet just right.

End result: These cupcakes are somewhat of a semi-homemade approach and you just do your own thing after using the cake mix. Lemon curd is the secret ingredient for these minicakes and it's really good. I have to say my main delight was in the lemony cream (heavy whipping cream, lemon curd, and confectioner's sugar that you beat the hell out of). I've made it again since I had left over ingredients and it was well received with some brown sugar bundt cake on Christmas. Also, used the lemony cream on a pumpkin tart with friends for Thanksgiving and everyone loved it! So it just goes to show that again...lemon shows its versatility!

The Dish: And lastly for the year of the pumpkin (and lemon) was pumpkin chocolate chip muffins from the same book I got the lemon cupcake recipe Cupcakes from the Cake (mix) Doctor by Anne Byrn It was hard for my husband to find a chocolate chip muffin mix, but when he did I went buck wild with left over pumpkin filling and enjoyed the results merrily.

End result: Pumpkin and chocolate is basically the best combination...ever. Just don't argue with me on this one. These muffins kept, when well sealed, and I brought some in for co-workers who are also pumpkin fanatics. Needless to say they loved them also.

December:

Well, another marathon baking month for moi this month.

The Dishes:

First up, Almond toffee crunch cookies from Cookies to Die for. Another hunt for me, but I found toffee bits! You put almond extract, chopped almonds (which I left out so my husband could eat the cookies), toffee bits, and your basic cookie ingredients to make this decadent type cookie.

End result: Well, the recipe said you could make five dozen and I stayed up making about eight or nine dozen. Almond extract has quite a particular taste so if you're a fan of that (or say almond croissants and such) then you'll enjoy these cookies immensely. They're soft and slightly crispy. The toffee sticks to your teeth, but that's the best part about toffee! I'll probably try these again and use vanilla extract instead of almond and see how much more you can taste the toffee.

Next up, peanut butter cookies (from scratch!) from the Sweet Melissa book. Another super easy recipe, hoorah! I added chocolate chips because I think most things with chocolate are awesome so I just keep adding. I made these for a friend's holiday cookie party when my original cookie dough went up in smoke or crumbles I should say.

End result: The recipe calls these chewy peanut butter cookies, but if you cook them a bit longer they become crunchy, which isn't a bad thing really. I've gotten them in the middle for the past two times I've made them. Very enjoyable and I have the ingredients at home so I'll make these again and again.

And then there were maple chocolate chip cookies! This was the basic chocolate chip cookie recipe (courtesy of Hershey's) and instead of brown sugar I added in maple sugar and a smidge of maple extract.

End result: Again, better the next day. I dunno if it's the maple extract or sugar but right out of the oven there's a bit of a metallic taste. However, the next day when cool (and super chewy) these cookies tasted awesome with a hint of maple. Co-workers loved this holiday treat!

And for me that's it for the year in baking. I look forward to the new year and new recipes and experiments in the kitchen.

Happy Holidays and Happy Baking!

Wrap up! My year in baking... (Pt. 1)

I enjoy baking and cooking. Baking more so because of the fact that I actually seem to be good at it and things turn out the way they're supposed to (most of the time). I can't always say the same for savory or meat dishes in my hands. Since I started my current job I found I was surrounded by people who enjoyed baking and even more so enjoyed eating what someone else baked. It only seemed fair that I participate in the activities since I enjoyed their offerings. I usually only baked for the holidays (cheap gifts!) and to say "thank you" for donating to a special cause (hundreds raised for AIDS Walk and rewarded by cupcakes!) And so within the past year my baking efforts have quadrupled. I bake new recipes regularly and am happy to offer my services for others including my current mentoring group.

Many of my baking successes have been posted to my Facebook album page, but I wanted to also include them here because, well, I like y'alls.

I present...my baking efforts of 2009!

January:

The Dish: For my cupcake-themed birthday party I made lemon-raspberry cupcakes and my husband contributed red velvet cupcakes with a cinnamon buttercream icing. Both were well regarded at the party. I first made the lemon-raspberry cupcakes for my mom and mother-in-law on Mother's Day in 2008, I made them again to say "thanks for donating to AIDS Walk in my name" that same year, and then again this year.

This recipe is from Bon Appetit magazine. And thus far my husband and I have not been let down by the recipes we've tried in there.

End result: I'm a lemon lover so this is a great treat. You use lemon zest and fresh lemon juice in the cupcake so that it has a light (not overpowering) lemony taste. In addition you put in a teaspoon scoop of raspberry jelly inside as a nice treat and top it all off with an intensely sugary lemon icing (lemon juice, confectioners sugar; add some jam if you want to make it pink).

Voila...you have lemon goodness! Party-goers enjoyed this treat a lot and many raved about it even against the well loved red velvet.

April:

I will say not much went down during the winter months baking wise.

The Dish: Lemon strikes again! In cookie form this time. Lemon Poppyseed Cookies have become a staple for me this year. The people love 'em, and I have to give the people what they want. And since I have a crap load of poppyseed's I might as well make these treats as often as possible.

End result: The lemon comes from, again, lemon zest! Which is amazing in every sense of the word. You can't add too much so don't be afraid to add more than the recipe dictates.

Did I mention people love these cookies? I most recently made them for my department's book club and these things were ravaged. A co-worker even said she was introduced to a flavor she didn't know she liked. That's right, baking causes miracles!

May:

My oven started getting heavy use when NY AIDS Walk came around and I was basically pimping my baking skills for donations. And dagnabbit it worked! Even during a recession I was able to raise several hundred dollars for the cause. Heck yeah!

Requests were varied and some people just got some of what I made others. But let me tell you it was a baking bonanza for a good couple weeks.

There were brownies, yawn. But then I made cupcakes!

The Dishes:

1) Carrot cake cupcakes with cream cheese icing. I skimped on the icing and bought some whipped. After spending almost an hour zesting (not smart on my part) 2 cups of carrots I was tired and it was late on a school night no less.

End result: Those who donated enjoyed this treat as well. Though, I felt it tasted more like a muffin than a cupcake. Moist and good and all but light on the sugar taste. So perhaps it's better for you?

2) Coconut cupcakes with cream cheese icing: Since I had left over icing from the carrot cake cupcakes you know where it went. This recipe was interesting because it called for coconut flakes in and on top of the cupcake as well as coconut extract. But, in a war of extracts the vanilla won because I tasted that more than the coconut. And toasting the coconut then sprinkling it on top gave off a nice effect I think.

End result: My donator who is a coconut lover really enjoyed this cupcake. So I'm pretty sure he'll be donating again next year.

June:

The Dish: May was also busy in that I went to Book Expo of America and don't think I didn't go about trying to get as many cookbooks (books in general) as I could. I did snag Cookies to Die For by Bev Shaffer and found one of the easiest recipes to make and went for it: Maple Butter Cookies. One thing to note is that you have to refrigerate the dough after making so it's a day affair to make these cookies.

End result: Unfortunately the supermarkets nearest me don't have the best brands of maple syrup that was called for in this recipe. So I don't think the maple taste was as heavy as it should be. But the public enjoyed. Personally, I think they're biased by butter, which I am as well.

The Dish: I also made Blondies for the first time. Not realizing how easy it is to make these things these have now become a staple when visiting people. Need me to bring something? Heck, I'll make blondies! Anyone probably has the ingredients for these in their home: flour, butter, brown sugar, salt, vanilla extract, and perhaps chocolate chips. There you know the recipe, now go out there and bake!

End result: I've made these three times this year because they're so easy. If you're nervous about blondies don't be. It's basically a chocolate chip cookie in bar form. Sounds delicious right? My co-workers thought so and so I'll continue to make them.

July:

My husband and I had visited Sweet Melissa Patisserie in Brooklyn a little while earlier and I tried her pumpkin bread pudding, which I liked. So when I found out she had a book and additionally saw her win a decorating competition on FoodNetwork I knew I had to get her recipes! She had pumpkin recipes for crying out loud!

The Dish: And so, with book in hand, I made Snickerdoodles. A friend first introduced me to this and she is also a phenomenal baker. Hers are quite moist, these are moist but a bit firmer.

End result: Pretty easy to make and I've had requests for these. I made some for a friend's birthday party and even though the cookies were still a bit warm in the dense humidity of July the three or four dozen cookies I bought were ravished within the first 30 minutes I set them down. Someone asked if this was a family recipe and I had to give credit where it was due. Thanks, Melissa!

The remainder of the year to be summed up in the next post...