Heritage.

A 4 year old Danielle with her grammys. And her photo bombing uncle Tom.

This post is dedicated to the two women to whom much of my talent and love for all things baked can be attributed to-my Grandma Davis and my Grandma Wagner.

For as far back as I can remember, I have loved everything these women made. I can remember Christmas Eve at Grandma Wagner's (whom I fondly refer to as "Graham Cracker"), carefully helping her roll out, cut out and later decorate sugar cookies. Any part of the mixing process she let me do made me feel SO very important, and she always let me lick the beaters. She had to be fair, so she'd also give my brother a beater. I'm sure we had debates about who got more icing on theirs. I also loved to put sprinkles on the cookies...what little girl didn't love a never ending supply of frosted cookies to put sprinkles on?? I'm sure the fact that the sprinkles reminded me of glitter probably had something to do with it...

As for my Grandma Davis, holidays at her house stand out to me the most. She always made this very simple, but very yummy corn dish. Almost like cornbread, but more moist. Corn cake? I don't know, but I'm sure many of you have had it at your family gatherings. What in the WORLD makes it so delicious? I'm guessing lots of butter and milk or cream. Whatever it was, I knew I could always look forward to it every Thanksgiving and Christmas.

After she passed away unexpectedly in 2006, family gatherings were never the same. I'm sure we've all experienced similar feelings, because most of us have lost loved ones. For my family, my Grandma was the "glue that held everything together." She was always reliable, always there, and most importantly, always loving. Even 6 years later, things still aren't the same. I don't know how many times I wish that I could call her to ask advice on a recipe, or just to drive over to her house for a visit. She had experienced so much LIFE (much of it wasn't easy), and was so real to me. I was just beginning to appreciate that about her when she passed. If I stop and think about it, I'm saddened greatly by the fact that she has already missed some big milestones in my life, and will miss many more. But yet I'm comforted by the fact that her memory isn't far from me. Every time I bake a cheesecake I'm reminded of her, because that's where my recipe came from. I'm so very grateful for the years I had with her, for those times when I would ask if I could have a bowl of "Life" cereal & she'd made me give her a kiss first, and her special nickname for me-"Lover." I wonder what she would think of me today? Hopefully I'm turning into a young lady that would make her proud.

The most important thing I have learned from both of these beautiful women isn't how many cups of sugar there are in a cake recipe or how to properly mix cheesecake batter-it is how to love. My Grandma Wagner pours herself into each and every family dinner, and although she's in her mid 80s and gets tired more easily these days, she still makes special occasions lovely and brings a little treat to every family gathering (if it's not hosted at her house). Grandma Davis would always encourage me to get something from the fridge or offer to fix me a plate of something, even if we'd only eaten a few hours before. Their love transcended their baked goods and filtered down into each and every person they came into contact with and both women were/are about as humble as you can get.

As I bake and carry on their legacies, I try to pour that same amount of love and care into each and every thing that comes out of my kitchen. I strive first and foremost to honor God with the gift he's given me, but I strive also to honor those strong women who have taught me so much, and whose love continues to influence my life each and everyday.

Choose to love today. 

A Year of Yum...3rd and final installment!

Ok, so you might be tired of the yumminess by now, but I promise, this is the last post reviewing my year of baking adventures! Christmas is my absolute most favorite holiday, one of the reasons being is because I'm constantly baking and giving things away. There's really nothing like the look on someone's face when you surprise them with a delightful treat. I fully believe that acts of service if one of my strongest love languages God has given me, and one of the ways I can do that is by baking. He continually blesses me in that area and gives me new opportunities to minister, and spread a little homemade sweetness along the way.

Enjoy these last few pictures...I hope they stir up memories of the wonderful Christmas you had with your family!

THE best birthday present I could ever receive. I can't even tell you how much I love my lil' Pistachio!

Date Nut Pinwheels..I used the extra sugar cookie dough I had left over to make these little guys and they turned out alright!

Sugar cookies! I improved upon my methods from last year. These were a big hit at Baires!

I had SO much fun making special cards to send to friends. I think my favorite was the whale anniversary card for my good friends Zach and Becki. :)

Just a little cowl I knitted for my restaurant mama Marcela. I wore an apron like the one on the card all during December, thus earning myself the nickname "Santa Baby." She loved it!

Another Baires favorite-Gingersnaps! Soft and moist, topped with a drizzle of sweetness!

Probably the prettiest cheesecake I've made...White Chocolate Raspberry Swirl, with a rich dark chocolate crust.

Not a typical wintery dessert (perfect for the non-typical winter we had), but this is Lemon Pound Cake I made for a birthday.

Marcela made it lovely with some wine soaked pears and whipped cream!

Little heart shaped Chocolate Raspberry Cakes I made to surprise two of my newly engaged friends.

One of the best purchases I made before the baking season began...a must have for every baker with a tiny kitchen!

A fun birthday cake in honor of Marcela's son's 9th birthday! It was quite late when I finished and almost wrote "Packers" in the end zone instead of "Patriots"...that could've been bad.

Cupcakes! Who doesn't love a strawberry vanilla cupcake, with buttercream frosting and gold sprinkles??

Attempt #1 at caramel...not the color I was hoping for at all. Luckily I was able to use it to fill my Brown Sugar Salted Caramel cupcakes!

Attempt #2-much better! I poured it over top of my Salted Caramel Cheesecake, which has become a favorite at Baires.

Sweet lil' Red Velvies for a friend's birthday!

Ooey gooey caramel...I'm all about repurposing baking failures!

And last but not least, amongst all the sugar and calories, a healthy treat! This is an original vegan cookie recipe, based loosely upon the oatmeal I eat every morning. On the left is a Cran Apple cookie, and on the right is some sort of Blueberry Peach concoction. 

Well friends, that's it for my "Year of Yum"! Thanks for sticking with me and walking through my tasty year. I'm SO excited, because my business cards just came in, so now people will have all of my information (including a link to my blog) on a precious little card! Yay! I do have to say that many of these recipes are NOT original, but almost all I have adapted and change in more than one way or another. I will have a blog post coming soon citing all of my sources, so if you happen to stumble upon this blog and see one of your recipes, please know that I am working on giving the credit where it's due!

It's my goal to be extremely diligent about updating my blog, where I will go into more detail about some of my favorite recipes and tricks of the kitchen. I consider myself to be the "Queen of Substitutions and Food Combinations", so I'm also going to use this as a venue to share of my favorite healthy substitutions and show how I can make an ordinary salad into a delicious creation that you'll want to eat all the time.

I'm SO very excited for this upcoming summer, and the various baking opportunities God has been placing in my lap-weddings, grad parties, and other fun things. I feel very blessed, and I need to send a HUGE thank you out to those who continue to love and support me, and encourage me every step of the way. I don't know where my baking (and maybe acting) will take me, but I know that I don't have to worry, because God already knows. I'm just going to continue to sprinkle love into whatever I bake and use the gifts God has given me to benefit others.

Enjoy the life you've been given, and never stop loving.

-xoxo