The Chopping Block Cooking Blog

Celebrate Carnival with King Cake Cupcakes

I love Mardi Gras season for many reasons: my birthday, parades with masked people and their "throws" (i.e. beads and trinkets), and King Cake. Being from Louisiana, I'm particularly picky about my ...

Foolproof Homemade Bread

I need to make a confession… for many years I felt extremely intimidated to bake bread. The kneading, the waiting, the pans it involved, it just felt too complicated. Even after I studied at a ...

When Inspiration Strikes: The Story of the Cannoli Cake

Have you ever had the urge to create a new and different dish but didn't have the foggiest idea of what to make? Or have you ever wondered how to put the seemingly random ingredients in your ...

Caramel is Liquid Gold

Drizzled over cheesecake, stirred into coffee, mixed into brownies, served with Pot de Creme or dunked with apple slices, caramel sauce is a versatile and fun way to turn any treat into an event, and ...

‘Tis the Season for Sugared Cranberries

Back in May, I wrote a post about sugared flowers and how wonderfully they can dress up even the simplest cupcake. Well, now that the holidays are upon us, I thought I would talk about another ...

Rugelach for all of the Holidays

I’ve always loved the holiday season. I grew up in a household that celebrated Christmas and Hannukah, so the month of December was always fun! There was lots of good food and friends and family to ...

Popovers: A Fun and Delicious Alternative to Rolls

I just found out that we are hosting Thanksgiving this year, and while that can be a bit daunting, my husband Mike and I are excited for the challenge. I say challenge because our condo is quite ...

All Hands on Pie

Pie season is upon us and several months of sweets encased in flaky butter dough lie ahead. But for me, a general hater of pies (except pumpkin, banana cream and The Chopping Block's famous Apple ...

Cake Catastrophe Recovery 101

One of the first cakes I ever learned to bake was a pineapple upside-down cake. I can remember Mom explaining to me that the bottom would become the top and that sounded so magical to me! We arranged ...

Apple Extravaganza

Every September, I convince my girlfriends to go apple picking, and until we go and eat half a dozen (fine, sometimes a dozen) cider donuts in the car, it never really feels like fall. There’s ...