2019 Edition - What are you baking?

[Cooking Goddess]

I baked a loaf of our favorite white sandwich yesterday. I'm testing some yeast that I found stored in the basement. Although the sealed bag was past "use by" date (and with yeast, unlike canned veggies, that date does mean something), I want to find out if it needs replacing. It took a little more time to bloom when I did an "is it alive???" test, but it did get foamy. The bread turned out OK, but took forever to rise. I think I'll try another loaf today, but throw in an extra half-teaspoon of yeast "for the pot" and find out if it helps. I'll be back to report sometime, as long as we don't end up with "the yeast that devoured CG". Yikes!

 

[pepperhead212]

So what is your favorite white sandwich bread, CG? Funny you should mention that, because last night I was thinking about how long it had been since I made my white sandwich breads. My two favorite recipes were a pain de mie, with a whole stick of butter in it, and a buttermilk white, with 3 tb butter in it (if I remember correctly!). Both of these were the best breads for making grilled cheese sandwiches, which is why I started thinking about them.

I might have to make one of these, using that artisan bread flour - I never made either of these, since I got that flour - just dinner breads.

As for that yeast, I replace mine yearly, or close to it, and towards the end, I notice that it slows down, for sure. There is usually not much I throw out, given the fact that I use so much! And as I start to use the new, it speeds up, to the point that I use a little less, in the beginning.

 

[Cooking Goddess]

pepper, it's a recipe from the book that came with my bread machine. It's a standard, one loaf recipe since I have a smaller machine. I use the machine on its "dough" setting and finish off in a bread pan. The ingredients list is:

6-8 ounces warm (110-115 degrees) milk
1 tsp salt
1 large egg, beaten
1 1/2 Tbsp softened butter
3 cups bread flour
1 1/2 Tbsp sugar
1 3/4 tsp active dry yeast

This "new" bag of yeast is "saf-instant" yeast that I bought in Amish country obviously a few years ago. Had I checked inventory before our holiday trip, I could have picked up a fresh bag in January. I got the instant since it can be tossed right into the machine rather than needing to be proofed first. Anyway, the Red Star website says to use 1/2 teaspoon per 1 cup of flour. This next loaf will be made with the extra 1/2 tsp.

This loaf is good for grilled cheese, BLTs, and meatloaf sammies. Making meatloaf tonight...

 

[Andy M.]

I baked a batch of oatmeal raisin cookies this afternoon. They are one of my very favorite cookies. Check out the Quaker Oats Vanishing Oatmeal cookies recipe, can't be beat!

 

[Cooking Goddess]

I've been hanging on to a Midwest Living recipe for multi-grain blueberry muffins since 2009. Decided to make a batch on Thursday. I can report that there is no longer a need to hang on to that recipe.

They're edible, but only because I refuse to toss food.

 

[Andy M.]

Made a cast iron skillet corn bread. Didn't think to take the photo before it took it out of the pan.

 

[Sandrii93]

I always cook a Quiche someday of the week for the dinner with onion, cheese and leeks. Sometimes with tomatoes insted of leeks.



It tastes very good and a little crunchy in the sides.

 

[Cooking Goddess]

A few years back, a friend and I did an old-fashioned New England "swop". He had broken one of his Irish cut glass brandy snifters. I had bought two just like it years earlier on eBay; I rarely used them. In exchange for my snifters, he gave me a bottle of their homemade red wine and a quart of homemade tomato sauce. Himself and I shared the wine a few years ago with my SIL and her hubby when they were over for dinner - it was good. I recently used the sauce for a pasta dinner - it was really delicious. I felt a special "thank you" was due to my friend. My plan was to fill the canning jar with homemade scones. I should have measured instead of eyeball the size. My big scones don't fit through the opening! I should have used my small scone pan instead. Well, they look nice in a gift bag.

Two different batches of scones. The upper left is a basic cream scone with pieces of dried cherries. The lower right is orange-mini chocolate chips ( our favorite).

 

[bethzaring]

I'm obsessed with sourdough right now. This is a loaf of sandwich bread and a batch of whole wheat hamburger buns.

 

[JustJoel]

Chocolate babka two ways

The dough recipe I had was for two loaves, so instead of making two identical loaves, I made one according to the recipe, and one pinwheel babka, which I kind of invented as I baked.





I was actually pleased with the results, but the dough is so loaded with butter that it’s a PITA to work at all; I nearly gave up. After a night in the fridge, though, it was actually not too difficult to form the loaves.

As you can see, this is NOT the dessert for you if you 1. Hate or are sensitive to chocolate, if you’re restricting your sugar intake, or if you hate messsy foods!

 

[Cooking Goddess]

Pouring a fresh cup of coffee and heading your way, Joel! That looks delicious. It also looks very rich - I think I added an inch to my hips just looking...

Oh, wait, date night tonight. You can have my slice...

 

[msmofet]

A few years back, a friend and I did an old-fashioned New England "swop". He had broken one of his Irish cut glass brandy snifters. I had bought two just like it years earlier on eBay; I rarely used them. In exchange for my snifters, he gave me a bottle of their homemade red wine and a quart of homemade tomato sauce. Himself and I shared the wine a few years ago with my SIL and her hubby when they were over for dinner - it was good. I recently used the sauce for a pasta dinner - it was really delicious. I felt a special "thank you" was due to my friend. My plan was to fill the canning jar with homemade scones. I should have measured instead of eyeball the size. My big scones don't fit through the opening! I should have used my small scone pan instead. Well, they look nice in a gift bag.

Two different batches of scones. The upper left is a basic cream scone with pieces of dried cherries. The lower right is orange-mini chocolate chips ( our favorite).
View attachment 34309

Have you posted the scone recipes? They look wonderful.

 

[Cooking Goddess]

Thanks, msm. I haven't posted any recipes since they aren't my recipes. I have a little book called "Simply Scones" that I use for any scone I bake. However, they are all just basic 2-cup recipes. Just like a lot of other 2-cup scone recipes online. MY secret, though, is that I always add a bit more liquid than any of the recipes call for, and I always bake them in my Nordic Ware scone pan. I've made scones the standard way, cutting a circle into eight wedges on a baking sheet, and they didn't come out anywhere near as nice. I swear by my scone pans more than any recipe.

 

[pepperhead212]

I made something today, which was National Coffee Cake Day (not that I need an excuse to bake something!). And I doubt that many people, if any, have seen recipes for it, or made it before. It is a pumpkin bread, which I made with butternut squash flour! I dehydrated a bunch of extra butternuts that I had, and ground them up into a fine flour in the VM. Each time that I dehydrated them, 1 lb reduced down to 1 oz, like tomatoes! I had only used the flour before in some butternut soups, as a thickener, and it worked well, but I had been thinking about this use since I made the flour.

Here are the photos, and the recipe. The original recipe had dates, rather than prunes, and pumpkin. I used 2 oz oz butternut flour, and 14 oz water, but next time I'll use 13 oz water, as it was a bit thin this time, compared to using canned pumpkin. However, 1 lb of butternut dehydrates to 1 oz, so this was the equivalent of 2 lbs of butternut.

Pumpkin Coffee Cake

2 1/2 cups flour
2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp Salt
1 1/2 tsp Cinnamon
1/2 tsp cloves
1/2 cups oil
2 large eggs
1 lb canned pumpkin, or 2 oz butternut flour plus 13 oz water
2 cups light brown sugar
8 oz prunes,; cut into quarters
4 oz walnuts; cut into large pieces

A. Butter a 10 c loaf pan, or two 6 c pans, or any combo of smaller ones. Sift together the dry ingredients (I usually do this in the FP), and set aside.

B. In mixer bowl beat the eggs and sugar briefly, then add the oil, followed by the pumpkin. Add the dry ingredients on low, and beat just until flour is mixed in. Fold in the prunes and nuts, and turn into the pan(s). Set aside 15 min. while preheating the oven to 350º (or set in a cold convection oven, and set to 300º).

C. Bake large loaf about 90 min., medium loaves about 70 min., and small loaves about 50 min., or until toothpick comes out clean. let cool in pan 15 min., then turn out onto rack to cool. Flavor improves with a couple days of storage, like all spice breads.

Dry ingredients for butternut bread. by pepperhead212, on Flickr

Butternut bread, just removed from the oven. by pepperhead212, on Flickr

Butternut loaves, cooling. by pepperhead212, on Flickr

Sliced butternut bread by pepperhead212, on Flickr

 

[Josie1945]

Dave,
Your bread is beautiful.

Josie

 

[Cooking Goddess]

Ooo, Ooo, I made a loaf of banana nut bread on Monday. It tastes so good, I just might buy extra bananas next shopping trip. More rainy baking weather is "scheduled" for later this week. *sigh*

 

[Andy M.]

I haven't baked for us in some time. I have zucchini and banana nut muffins on my list along with bagels and sandwich bread.

 

[Cooking Goddess]

It was a full kitchen day today, what with it being cloudy and damp. I made another banana nut bread and a batch of from-scratch shortcake biscuits. Gotta use up my abundance of stockpiled flour. (I should have taken inventory before our last trip to Ohio Amish Country...)

 

[Andy M.]

I have a batch of onion bagels in process. First batch this year. I hope they come out as good as this batch:

 

[msmofet]

Pecan Raisin Bread


Dusted with cinnamon sugar and snipped. Ready for oven.



Baked and cooling