knead

Hey friends❣️

January is an exciting food month not only because there's such a sharp pivot from the excess of the holidays, but for me it's always been a time to get back to the simpler, homier side of baking. Muffins, bundt cakes...(ok, the Brooklyn Blackout Cake made the list, but hey, there' s always room for a decadent chocolate layer cake!)

One of the most delicious lemon cakes I've ever tasted tops the list... and I highly recommend the Chinese chicken salad, it's the perfect fresh mid-winter meal.

Oh, and if you still haven't made homemade English muffins I'm going to have to insist!!

The BEST of January...

Lemon cakes are popular all year long but they really come into their own in January. My Lemon Olive Oil Cake has convinced so many of you to try baking with olive oil. Use a mild olive oil in place of your regular veg oil for richer flavor and a big nutritional boost.

The two cakes below look similar but they're very different. My Meyer Lemon Cake makes use of a whole Meyer lemon blended up into the batter. The result is like nothing you've ever had before.

I turn my attention to bread baking in January, and probably first up will be big fat English Muffins. If you've never made them before you'll be surprised to learn they're 'baked' right on the stove top! They're tied with my Toasting White Bread for best toast ever.

But for an easy-peasy blockbusting January baking session nothing beats my no knead trail mix bread.

So basically January is toast month!

I'm craving salad, but not the baby lettuce and tomato type salad, we'll never find that this month. My Thai salad is gloriously healthy, fresh and crunchy, made with ingredients right in the produce aisle now. Ditto my classic Chinese chicken salad. A rotisserie chicken works for both.

Ricotta cakes were super popular in 2025 with my Almond Ricotta Cake leading the pack. Some, like the almond version, are naturally gluten free, while others like my Chocolate Chip or Orange Ricotta Cake do contain AP flour.

Bean salads creep into my menu this month, too. I love how much color and crunch I can get from winter produce. They make healthy salsas for game nights, great sides for all kinds of meals, and we love to add tuna or salmon (try my miso salmon with this bean salad.)

1. ​Lucky Black-eyed Pea Salad for the New Year! ​
2. ​Cowboy Caviar​

Self soothing is always on my mind as the new year starts up. For coughs I alternate between plain hot honey and my All Natural Pineapple Cough Soother. For hydration I turn to tea and of course brothy soups.

Sue Moran I love to make delicious food, photograph it, and write about it, but mostly, I just love to EAT. Isn’t that what it’s all about? My recipes are bold and vibrant, but totally approachable ~ and my philosophy? We should all have the tools to feed ourselves well, and the confidence to cut loose a little in the kitchen. Food should be fun!

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The View from Great Island, Madison, WI 53719
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