Now, this may come as a shock since I have such a sweet tooth, but as much as I love sweets, I'm not usually a fan of sweets that are just too sugary. I think that's why this is one of my favorite cookie recipes of all time. I love the less sweet tea-style cookies (thumbprint and shortbread cookies are my favs too) and cookies with a bit of salt in them (like my new favorite chocolate chunk cookies).

This recipe comes via Cook's Illustrated, and I don't have any suggestions for improvement, because more often than not their test kitchen is right on the money! If you've never had these before, Mexican wedding cookies go by many different names, all with a similar nutty flavor in a cookie that is so soft it just crumbles away in your mouth. This recipe has just a hint of salt, but combined with a powdered sugar coating they have that wonderful salty/sweet flavor that I can't get enough of.

It's a simple recipe and not very finicky, so it doesn't take a baking expert to get these to come out right. I made two batches yesterday to bring to Finn McCool's weekly cook the competition cooking contest during the Saints game and while the second definitely started with a better butter temperature and the texture of the dough was noticeably different, the end result was virtually the same. I'm always whipping up a few batches during the holidays and it wouldn't be Christmas without these and pralines strewn about the kitchen. I hope you enjoy them as much as I do!

Usually when I'm making a cake for someone else, I try not to use recipes I've never tested before because who knows how it will turn out. Then you've got this terrible cake that you would never eat yourself, much less give it to someone else and tell them, "I baked it with love!!" Yikes.

I had no time to test this Italian Cream Cake before I made it for one of my husband's co-workers, but thank goodness it was delicious! He was able to bring a slice home for me to taste and even I was surprised how yummy it was. No wonder they were all still talking about it the next week! I can't wait to make it one week to bring to Finn McCool's for one of the Saints game cookoffs!

I haven't been baking much at all this summer because it's just too dang hot to turn on the oven and the little baking I have been doing is in the weee hours of the night when I can at least turn it on without suffocating in the kitchen, but finding this little gem was totally worth it! I used the organic coconut you get from the bulk foods section and I really liked that this recipe didn't have any coconut on the outside of the cake. The overall  texture was really nice without having too much coconut. My husband hates coconut cakes and even when I had him taste the batter he wasn't too impressed. The final product comes together nicely with the cream cheese frosting and I think this recipe is definitely a keeper!