Brown Butter Spiced Winter Squash Bread

Oh boy. This was a good one. I think I easily polished off the whole loaf by day two.
The spices! The texture! Oh my I do adore this cakey bread.

The recipe comes from none other than my current favourite Ms. Heidi Swanson of 101 Cookbooks. I followed the recipe pretty much completely as is, except I used walnut oil instead of hazelnut, and I made my own garam masala-esque blend of spices (coriander, cumin, ginger, black pepper, bay leaf, cardamom, and clove).
One bizarre thing I did do though was NOT measure my squash. Yup, that's right, I chopped, roasted, and pureed it but somewhere in my zombie mom brain I didn't think about measuring the damn stuff. Oh well, turns out lady luck was on my side and this turned out great. Now the only thing is I wonder how it'll turn out the next time...

Strawberry Coconut Tart

Please tell me you have a favourite cook book that you keep coming back to again and again only to be further impressed and inspired by. Because then maybe I won't feel so crazy for gushing over my long time favourite book "Super Natural Everyday" for the millionth time.
I just love how Swanson manages to make such wholesome foods that taste so damn good. If you still haven't looked for this book in your local library I will try to forgive you if you insist you'll go do it now.

Last night I decided to give this coconut tart a whirl, seeing as I just can't seem to get enough strawberries but needed a new form in which to devour them. This lil gem was just perfect! Not too sweet or too heavy.
I think I'm definitely going to make this all summer long with a variety of fresh fruit like peaches, raspberries, and plums.

Chocolate Pear Cake

My husband laughs at me a little when he peers over my shoulder and sees me browsing cake recipes online. I suppose what he's laughing at is the fact that this is during an average Saturday afternoon, no occasion that warrants a cake, yet cake is on my brain and I just can't shake it. I don't want anything fancy, or too sweet. Just a luscious cake filled with some kind of seasonal fruit that I can eat without too much guilt.
This everyday cake seemed to fit the bill perfectly. Browned butter, chocolate, and juicy pears. Lovely on a Saturday afternoon, and even better for a Sunday morning.