To paraphrase pastry chef Jacques Torres, nothing is certain right now; eat dessert first! These are words of wisdom under the best of circumstances, but even more true during this unprecedented modern quarantine. For me, it hasn’t really altered life much, due to being on leave for the past nine weeks. I enjoyed staying at home anyway, making a whopping 57 Magnolia Table recipes! January’s hopeful goal to have this cookbook mission completed by April 7th, the day Joanna Gaines releases her second volume of recipes, is not meant to be… Sadly, the time has come for me to go back to work, putting a damper on my kitchen activities. The bright side of a statewide “stay at home” order is that returning to work only means a commute to my kitchen table; the downside being limited grocery shopping.
But this is a time to focus on the positives! In two months I surpassed the 100th recipe mark and managed to write blogs detailing 25 individual dishes. I also only gained a couple pounds, which given the circumstances, is really saying something! According to the most recent press briefings, we are all going to be hanging out at home for the long haul, so let me turn your attention to 10 fabulous desserts you can cook to make the time as sweet as possible!
1. Let’s start with “morning dessert”, shall we? Technically these recipes were from the Breakfast chapter, but I’m not one to quibble when something is full of sugar! I’d like to make a confession regarding Cinnamon Swirl Walnut Quick Bread. I screwed up royally! If yours looks anything like mine, I’m afraid you took a wrong turn. Luckily, it tasted great anyway! Where I (first) erred was missing the distinction of four separate parts: Topping, Filling, Cake and Glaze. I didn’t realize my mistake until I had a walnut FILLED, cinnamon-sugar TOPPED loaf and there was no fixing it. By then I figured a glaze was overkill, so I axed it. The second “oops” would have been harder to ignore. Although it appears to be a chocolate bread, the dark color is from loads of brown sugar and cinnamon. Mine came dangerously close to becoming Cumin Swirl Bread! Have you ever noticed how similar those containers look when you’re in a hurry??
2. While I’m making True Kitchen Confessions, here’s another (don’t tell Jo!): I’m never eating Buttermilk Blueberry Puff again! This recipe calls for cut-up croissants, blueberries (I used frozen), and a custard topping. You don’t fool me for a second, “Blueberry Puff”, that is the definition of BREAD PUDDING! Yuck. The Other Half seemed to love it, and he ate it for days, but frankly I could hardly choke down a single serving. However, if bread pudding is your thing, then by all means, raid your freezer and you should be able to throw this together without even waiting a week for an Instacart grocery delivery!
3. I am a self-proclaimed scone snob. The humble scone is either a brilliant triumph, or a door-stop unfit for human consumption. There is no in-between. For years I labored under delusion that they were all dry, hard, and flavorless. 
The first one I ever tasted was more like a bad biscotto. Years later, Starbucks, of all places, showed me what a scone could be with their Petite Vanilla variety, and the Pioneer Woman later taught me how to bake a perfect, tender version. I figured Jo had a lot to live up to with her Orange Scones, and she did not disappoint. The recipe was basic enough that you probably have what you need in your pantry and fridge already, and tasty enough that you’ll want to make them for a weekend breakfast. I took issue with just one thing: Jo called for FREEZING the butter cubes, then cutting them into the dry ingredients. All I can say is good luck! My poor little pastry cutter was not up to the task, and it nearly broke! Just refrigerate the butter; it works just fine, and your scones will turn out like the flaky star of a Pillsbury commercial!
4. When the going gets tough, the tough get their kids to do the work! At least that’s what I did for the last “bressert”, Cinnamon Squares. Home-schooling is in full effect, and my daughter chose to bake these as a Home Economics project. That’s good, because I have been avoiding this recipe like the… well, never mind, I’ve been avoiding it! Jo spoiled me with simple, quick recipes, and this one just took too darn long! Lucky for me, I had a student willing to do the heavy lifting. Basically a nut-filled, cinnamon sandwich, these pastries were a bit too “bread-y” for me, but they had a sweet, spicy flavor. Warning: this recipe will use up all your flour, so make a half batch if you really need these in your life! Also, when the filling boils over into the bottom of your oven, your house may fill with smoke, and Emergency Services doesn’t need that kind of hassle right now, so just be sure to put a drip-pan underneath your baking sheet!
Now for a brief shout-out to a couple “pretty good, but I could improve them” desserts, such as 5. Aunt Opal’s Banana Pudding. These didn’t wow me like I’d hoped. For banana pudding, it was just not “banana-y” enough. 
Vanilla instant pudding, really?? I would substitute at the bare minimum, BANANA instant pudding, or better yet, make your own pudding from scratch. Really, it isn’t that hard, and it tastes better… Secondly, plain banana slices are fine for an ice cream sundae or a smoothie, but they don’t pack enough punch to make this interesting. A Bananas Foster approach would bring out a lot more flavor (flambé with brown sugar and rum). RUM!! Sorry, Aunt Opal… Her recipe sure did look pretty though. I whipped out crystal daiquiri glasses to build the parfaits, but even though they are great for a photo op, they are a pain to eat from!
6. Cherry Almond Crisp was a solid effort, but texture was a problem. The oatmeal didn’t ever quite get cooked through, so perhaps toasting it separately (like granola) prior to mixing with the nuts and sugar would make the crunchy part more effective. I may be at fault here; leaving the house for fresh cherries seemed an unnecessary risk, so I used frozen, which produced a huge quantity of liquid. I had at least a cup or more of juice that I discarded. Jo didn’t mention what to do with excess moisture, and maybe I should have used it to soften the oatmeal more, thus leaving the sliced almonds as the crunch factor. Live and learn!
I’ve saved the best for last, so I hope you’re still reading; here’s the good stuff!! Delicious, easy, and very likely using ingredients you have even during lockdown, the last few desserts are Magnolia Table gold! 7. Chocolate Dipped Shortbread Cookies, are commonly known as “black and whites”, for obvious reasons. 
Shortbread is one of those genius recipes that is, by definition, short. There are so few ingredients you are sure you must be doing it wrong! Butter, sugar, flour, salt, vanilla, DONE. (PS, the meaning also describes the short rise, and therefore crumbly texture!) The dough comes together into a solid mass you can roll into a log, then slice and bake. I made these for poker night in a matter of minutes, plus a half hour of chilling time. The dipping chocolate is as simple as melting chips with a touch of shortening, which helps it set quickly. Just remember this key fact: chocolate is like Gizmo the Mogwai… it hates water! If you let your melted chocolate come in contact with so much as a drop, it will turn as ugly as a gremlin!
Tied for first place, because I honestly can’t choose, are 8. Mina’s Lemon Bars and 9. Spiced Pecan Pie with 10. Jo’s Pie Crust. Perfection; that’s the only way to describe them! For your sake, I pray you have fresh lemons in the fridge, though you could try the recipe with RealLemon bottled juice, if that’s all you have. For buttery, tart, blissful lemon bars, I urge you strongly to try the recipe below! 
Ingredients:
- Cooking spray or parchment paper
- 2 c all-purpose flour
- 1/2 lb (2 sticks) salted butter, melted
- 1/2 c powdered sugar, plus more for garnish
- 1/4 tsp sea salt
- 2 c granulated sugar
- 4 eggs, slightly beaten
- 5 Tbsp fresh lemon juice (from about 2 lemons)
Instructions:
- Rack in middle position; preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Either spray a 9×13 in glass baking dish with cooking spray or line with parchment paper. (Acidic desserts should be made in non-reactive pans, i.e. no metal!)
- In a mixing bowl, combine flour, melted butter, powdered sugar and salt. Mix with a fork until barely combined; don’t overmix. Place dough in baking dish and use fingers to flatten into the prepared pan.
- Bake for 20 minutes, or until the edges are lightly browned.
- In another mixing bowl, whisk together granulated sugar, eggs and lemon juice until combined.
- Pour lemon mixture onto prepared crust directly out of the oven. Return to oven and bake 15 minutes more. Tent with foil and bake an additional 15 minutes.
- Remove from oven and dust with powdered sugar. Let cool completely on wire rack before cutting into bars.
- Store in airtight container at room temperature for up to 1 week. For longer storage, wrap in plastic or freezer bag and freeze up to one month.
- ** These are not going to last long enough to worry about storage!**
Last, but in no way least, is hands-down the best pecan pie I’ve ever had.
I don’t even really like pecan pie! I’ve always found it to be a bit off-putting with its gooey texture, and (dare I say it?) too sweet. That is almost inconceivable for me, but there it is. I only decided to make this for another poker night because I had all the stuff in the pantry, save for the one ingredient I was very wary about. Ancho chile powder… in a nut pie?! I’ve made plenty of “sweet-heat” combinations of chocolate and cayenne, or habanero and apricot jam, but this seemed weird. My friends, embrace the weird! The spicy note with the cinnamon was the absolute perfect offset to the sweetness of brown sugar and corn syrup. There was nothing cloying about the filling, and though I grumbled profusely, I was glad I made the pie crust from scratch as well. 
Only because I was out of pre-made crusts, I decided to roll my own from Jo’s first chapter. I had made her recipe previously and frozen the dough, which works in a pinch, but I have to say baking it fresh really did make a difference. The combined calorie count for all the recipes listed here is probably insane, but desperate times call for desperate measures! May you all stay safe and healthy, and while you have all this extra time on your hands, why not try something new for dessert? Or breakfast… no one’s judging!Ingredients:
- 1 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
- 1 cup light corn syrup
- 3 tablespoons salted butter, melted
- 3 large eggs
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon, plus more for serving
- 2 teaspoons ground ancho chile powder
- 2 cups pecan halves or chopped pecans
- One 9-inch deep-dish pie shell
Instructions:
- Preheat the oven to 350°F.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the brown sugar, corn syrup, and melted butter. Whisk in the eggs. Whisk in the cinnamon and ancho chile. Stir in the pecans.
- Pour into the pie shell.
- Bake until the filling puffs around the edges and is nearly set in the center, about 1 hour. A knife inserted 2 inches from the center should come out clean. Cool to room temperature on a wire rack.
- Serve at room temperature or lightly chilled with a dollop of whipped cream or vanilla ice cream.
- Cover leftover pie with plastic wrap and store in the refrigerator for up to 2 days.
Have Book, Will Cook 