4

As of last week, this little blog of mine is four. I've never done this sort of "blog birthday" thing before, but my house is being painted this week, giving me limited access to the kitchen, so I thought, why not?
Over the past four years, this blog has had its moments of being neglected by me, but I'm happy to say that for over the past year, I've been able to carve out baking and blogging time every week. I find baking to be so relaxing and enjoyable - I love the feeling of pulling a sweet treat out of the oven and knowing I made it myself - and it brings smiles to people around me. This blog gives me a place to share my experiences in the kitchen: the ups and downs of becoming a better baker, and the yummy recipe at the end of each culinary story. Here are a few memorable moments:

My first post:
I made this Tropical Dulce de Leche Cake in October of 2008, based on an idea my mom had. You can see from both the photo and the writing how much this blog has evolved; no matter how much more "sophisticated" my treats have become, those first few posts are some of my favorites to look back on.

My favorite post:
Wow, this one's really hard. I think I would have to say my favorite would be this August, when I made Jacques Torres's Chocolate Chip Cookies. It isn't because they were the greatest baked goods I ever made; it's because of the whole process. They were made in my New York kitchen with chocolate my best friend brought me from France, the dough had to chill overnight before being baked (which, believe me, is not easy to let happen when there is a big bowl of cookie dough calling you from the fridge), and they were packed up and shared with my family in Brazil. I like to call them my triple-continent cookies ;)

My mom's favorite post:
I'm not totally sure. My guess would be that her favorite is these Brazilian Cheese Rolls. I like this post too, because it's the only tutorial I've ever done on here. These rolls, or "pão de queijo" in Portuguese, are the classic food of her hometown, and naturally gluten-free. Oh, and did I mention how delicious they are? Cheesy, chewy, perfection.

My dad's favorite post:
Without a doubt, this cherry pie. It's a classic recipe, made with tart cherries to contrast the sweet filling. This gets made all the time in our house- for Christmas, I gave him a "gift certificate" for unlimited cherry pie for a year!

My most popular post:
This one's funny. I would have expected it to be when I hosted Tuesdays with Dorie (I love being in Tuesdays with Dorie, by the way, and also enjoy baking along with the Daring Bakers when I can), but according to my page view counter, it is this Chocolate Cake with Raspberry Mousse Filling. Apparently you all are always searching for a raspberry mousse filling recipe? Well, it was a good cake...

Having a baking blog is a wonderful experience, and I've met some great fellow teenage bakers through the process. As always, I'm so very grateful to each and every person who takes time out of their day to read about my baking endeavors. Please take a minute to stop by and say hi, or ask a question!