Baking Season

When the weather turns cold the little baking elves come out from under the roots of the oak trees and start whispering in my ear at night: "Bake!" they say. "You must bake!"

So I bake.

I have little helpers. They make baking very... um... exciting.

Despite the messes and the chaos and dirty little fingers, the things we have been baking have been turning out very, very delicious.

Cranberry orange pecan muffins, above. And cranberry orange cheesecake with Oreo crust, below.

(I like cranberries and oranges. And cranberries are a dollar a bag at Aldi. And they're healthy. I think that justifies the cheesecake.)