Four Nights A Week

Adventures in Eating

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Amy’s Writing, Photography and Art can be found at amybisson.com

Category: Special Treats

  • 11 Mar 2026: Flour’s Famous Banana Bread (Kind of)

    We are fortunate in that we live close to Boston and Flour Bakery + Cafe. While Joanne Chang, the artisan baker behind this locally revered favorite cafe and bakery, is pretty famous for her Sticky Buns, the Banana Bread that Flour turns out is my favorite. Do yourself a favor when you visit Boston and…

  • 14 February 2026: Sur La Table’s Chocolate Panna Cotta

    We’ve participated in some great online cooking classes with Sur La Table. This one, Date Night: Italian Eatery, appears periodically. As is our habit, we cook at home for Valentine’s Day, and this recipe collection was a great special treat: Spaghetti alla Carbonara (with option to make your own pasta), Shaved Fennel & Pear Salad…

  • Thanksgiving Week: Day 4

    Cranberries. They are arguably the quintessential flavor of Thanksgiving. For all the debate over homemade or jellied cranberry sauces, the way I like my cranberries is in bread, and this one has been a family favorite for years. Anna Thomas, author of Vegetarian Epicure Books I and II, was the force behind the recipe I…

  • 09 October 2025: Mulled Wine Pâtes de Fruit

    I opened a bottle of Pinot this week which was not unusual, but the bottle was truly not to my liking. Not wanting to waste it, I looked a ways to cook with it other than as a braising liquid. Andrea Geary recently published some interesting recipes for Pâtes de Fruit in America’s Test Kitchen,…

  • 05 October 2025: The Most Pumpkin Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Bread

    I’ve been testing out quick breads that will eventually find the way to our Garden Club’s bake sale, a fundraiser we hold around Thanksgiving. So when King Arthur Baking featured this pumpkin recipe, I gave it a try. And as usual, it did not disappoint. The recipe yields 1 larger loaf (8-1/2 x 4-1/2), but…

  • 20 Dec. 2024: Mexican Wedding Cakes

    This recipe comes from my Aunt Eleanor’s collection of recipes, and while the original source is no longer known to us, it was one of my Dad’s favorite cookie recipes. Aunt Eleanor, a career woman who did not marry until later in her life, always made sure we were well-stocked with cookies whenever we visited…

  • 28 Oct. 2024: Dad’s Favorite Cut Out Cookies

    My Dad, like most dads in the 1950s and 1960s, was not the chief cook in the family. After he retired, I think he did a bit of cooking and maybe even some baking. This recipe card is labeled “Bud Likes These”, so it may have been something Dad – always called Bud, never by…

  • 20 Oct 2024: Lemon Walnut Squares

    Gourmet Magazine, RIP 2009, was one of my favorite sources for challenging my cooking and baking chops. This recipe, hand copied by me after it appeared in July 1983 – that’s 40 years ago if you’re keeping track – was a favorite bar cookie, brought to many gatherings. Because we have some folks with walnut…

  • 22 Sep 2024: Lasagne

    This lasagne recipe came from a church cookbook published sometime in the 1960s by St. Peter’s Church in my hometown of Huron, Ohio. Once my family discovered how much of a treat lasagne can be, it became our traditional dish to celebrate New Year’s Day for as long as I can remember. Flash forward to…

  • 22 Jul 2024: Mother’s Best Fudge Cake

    I may have made mention that my family’s favorite flavor is chocolate. This recipe card, in my Mother’s handwriting, is for Mother’s Best Fudge Cake. It was the chocolate cake recipe used for family celebrations. The recipe may have come from my Grandmother, who herself was a phenomenal cook and baker, or it may have…