Search Results for '("C'

[Mike Nolan]

Freezing the second batch of rolls for a half hour didn't seem to make a lot of difference, I thought the crust was possibly a little crisper but that could have been due to baking time differences. The ones that had been in the freezer were a little easier to slash.

Neither batch had the eggshell-like crust that is my Grail. But they're pretty good rolls, the overnight sponge gives them some of the blistering of sourdough without the full-out sourdough texture and taste.

We'll see what happens with them when I try to reheat them tomorrow. I put them in breathable (microperforated) bags for the night.

The ones on the left were the ones that spent a half hour in the freezer. They might not be quite as tall, I didn't try to measure them.

They weigh about 62 grams each after baking, a good size for a dinner roll.

I made these in the small oven, so they didn't get steam, I might try that on a subsequent batch. I also think I'd like to see what happens if I sub in some whole wheat flour, rye flour or triticale flour.

With an overnight sponge, a bulk rise of 3 hours and then 1-2 hours of final proof and another hour or two in the refrigerator, these aren't a 'last minute' roll. But assuming they reheat well, I'll probably make more next week for Thanksgiving.

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[Mike Nolan]

I like to add just a little Dijon mustard to Brussels sprouts, I think it cuts the sweetness of the maple syrup.

I made a chicken thighs with sweet potatoes, Brussels sprouts, apples and onions dish a few weeks ago, I'm going to make it without the chicken as a side dish for Thanksgiving. I think it'll be an improvement over the traditional sweet potatoes topped with marshmallow. (I saw a recipe for sweet potato s'mores pie the other day, graham cracker crust, sweet potato pie filling, topped with chocolate ganache and marshmallows. Now that's almost tempting.)

[BakerAunt]

I had some beets from the farmers’ market that have been in the refrigerator bin for a couple of months, and on Monday, I used them to try a new recipe from Ken Haedrich’s The Harvest Baker: “Roasted Beet, Spinach, and Feta Cheese Flatbread.” As my husband cannot eat onions and is not a fan of beets, it will be my lunch into this week.

I used Haedrich's crust but opted for his variation of half whole wheat flour, and I reduced the salt from 3/4 to 1/2 tsp. He makes it in a food processor, but I used the bread machine. I do not know if that made a difference, but my crust was very thin and crisp, like crackers. His recipe called for a pound of spinach; I used the 4 oz. that I have on hand. I also used just 4 oz. of feta (real feta made of goat cheese!), which is about a cup, and the recipe calls for 2 cups. The beets have to be roasted and peeled before using as a topping, so that was an adventure for me, as I have never cooked beets before.

Although he bakes directly on the pan, I lined mine with parchment. The recipe makes two, and he baked one on a lower and one on an upper rack, then switch, for twelve minutes each. I baked one at a time and set the timer for 20 minutes. When I checked at 18, I pulled it out because the edges were getting burned. For the second flatbread, I checked at 15 minutes, then pulled it out at 16 minutes. These flatbreads are a great light lunch or light dinner. They would work well as appetizers as well. I will bake these flatbreads again, so that is one more great recipe from this seasonal baking book.

[Mike Nolan]

I'd probably use KA AP, but KA bread flour should be OK, too. The recipe is kind of low in salt (1 tsp to 4 cups of flour or about 1.25%, 2% is more typical), so I would expect it to rise a lot, but not as much as a salt-free Tuscan bread.

European flours are typically lower in protein than US flours, though.

[chocomouse]

I made Wild Rice and Onion Bread, from Brother Juniper's Bread Book. I haven't made it for years, but recalled that it would make tasty rolls to have in the freezer for soup meals. It came out very sticky, wet, and I had to add about a cup of flour. I don't recall that this was a problem previously. I used fresh chopped onion, which added to the moisture in the bread (compared to dehydrated onion, which was an option). I also subbed whole wheat flour for 2 cups of AP. The rolls came out fine, and smell wonderful.

[BakerAunt]

We started the week with a light snowfall that speckled the plants and ground but which has now melted. Still, it is a cold day, and time to set the tone for this week's baking!

On Sunday, I baked Pumpkin doughnuts in my two Norpro doughnut pans that I coated with The Grease. For this recipe, I used the same mixing measure and same dry ingredient proportions as I used in the baked applesauce doughnut recipe that I developed earlier this month, except that I used cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg as the spices and omitted the vanilla and boiled cider. I did add 2 Tbs. Bob’s Red Mill milk powder. I replaced the applesauce with a cup of my pumpkin puree (7.5 oz.). I find this version superior to the King Arthur recipe that I have baked in the past and consulted this time; it is less spongy and sticky and more of the texture of cake. (I think the KABC people were going for a muffin texture.). I sprinkled the warm doughnuts with Penzey’s Cinnamon Sugar.

I nearly had a disaster, as my husband was making his lunch in the kitchen, and I was distracted. Right after I mixed the wet and dry ingredients, I realized that I had forgotten to add the salt and baking powder! I sprinkled both on top of the batter, then mixed with a spatula.

The mini-spoonula I have is perfect for filling the doughnut pans. I drop in batter in three dollops, evenly around the pan, and it works great!

[Mike Nolan]

I started some lettuce plants in the Aerogarden today, some black seeded Simpson, some Rouge d'Hiver, one romaine, all from Aerogarden. I also did some self-planted buttercrunch lettuce, parsley and spinach. I don't know how well they'll do, but its better than having empty slots.

I was going to start them last week, but when I set up the Aerogarden after moving it, the right set of lights weren't coming on correctly. Fortunately, it was still under warranty (until the end of November), so I had to wait until a replacement console arrived, then I spent 2 hours taking off the old one and putting on the new one. Those things are solidly built.

[navlys]

I made chili for our community chili contest. I volunteered to enter because I thought it would be cancelled. My neighbor makes great chili ( as my husband told all the tasters) so I knew I wouldn't win. There were 10 of us cooking. I decided to use a recipe a friend gave me a few years ago since I heard she was a good cook. I was supposed to make 8 quarts!!!! My crockpot holds 6 so that's what I made. After following the recipe I tasted it and found it to be tasteless so I opened my spice cabinet and went to town. I knew it was a crap shoot that I would win and of course the winner was...... MY NEIGHBOR! I did get a lot of compliments however and I was just glad it was edible because we have alot left in our freezer.

[RiversideLen]

I made a pre-Thanksgiving test pumpkin pie. I wanted to try blind baking the crust as I've always used an unbaked crust for pumpkin pie. That tends to leave the bottom of the crust pale. So, I looked at a couple of techniques on youtube and decided on the ATK method. I covered the crust with 2 pieces of foil with the foil bent over to cover the edge and then put in the pie weights and baked it for 25 minutes at 375. Filled the crust hot, fresh from the oven, and then baked per the recipe. The pie and crust came out pretty good except the top part of the crust burnt a little (you can see it in the pic) but I liked the bottom of the crust much better than when I don't blind bake it.

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[BakerAunt]

Thank you for the good wishes for my husband, Joan and Chocomouse. He is impatient with injuries, so he probably overdid it the first day. He has been hobbling around the house and even raking leaves. He thinks that he can drive tomorrow, so that we can go get apples.

I had noticed that another one of my smaller butternut squashes had a bad spot, so on Thursday, for lunch, I baked a recipe that I created last year, Butternut Squash, Kale, and Cheese Savory Tart, starting from a Splendid Table recipe for Butternut Squash Galette with Gruyere. Oil crusts do not work for a galette, but I bake the recipe in a 10-inch Emile Henry ceramic tart dish, and it is every bit as good as I recall. Leftovers warm up well in the small convection oven. For the crust, I used olive rather than canola oil and cut the salt by another quarter teaspoon.

I had to substitute pre-grated low-fat mozzarella for the cheddar I used last year because the bag of pre-grated 2% cheddar that I opened yesterday had green mold in its midst. (Note: expiration date is Dec. 25). It would have been present when I used some of the cheese yesterday for an omelet. I had thought it smelled slightly off, but I did not see anything then, and as it was newly opened, I went ahead and used it. Today it went into the trash.

[BakerAunt]

As I was doing the usual grocery shopping on Tuesday morning—without my husband who twisted his lower leg after tripping on a grapevine in the woods on Sunday—I saw some lovely cabbages and decided that coleslaw would make a wonderful addition to leftover sloppy Josephines for dinner. I like a change from frozen vegetables. I am also finishing up a course of antibiotics that accompanied the root canal I had last week, so I am keen to get my digestive tract refurbished with healthy bacteria. Coleslaw is a start.

I also made yogurt on Tuesday, for the first time in several weeks. I had run out of the Stonyfield yogurt and had to wait until we did our big shopping trip last Thursday to the next town, as it is not carried in our local store. I was having to make do with Yoplait low-fat peach or strawberry yogurt, which is the best that the local place carries. The other brands of non-Greek yogurts they carry rely on food starch as thickener, which means they have less calcium, and have added sugars, or else they carry yogurts high in saturated fat. I was able to get a quart of Stonefield full-fat yogurt (fat not an issue, since I use 170 g to make my six containers), but I had to settle for vanilla, as Kroger once again had no plain yogurt. While that means some added sugar, at least the 11 grams of added sugars will be dispersed among my six jars.

I'm a little worried that my yogurt maker may be developing some problems, as the batch I made a few weeks ago did not solidify as much as it should. If that happens again--and I end up drinking the jars--I will need to seek out an alternative.

[BakerAunt]

Monday was a busy day in the kitchen, and busier than expected when I noted that one of my small butternut squashes from the farmers market was beginning to go bad. I cut out the bad parts, skinned and diced it, then roasted it for 40 minutes in my small convection oven. I decided that it would go well in a lunchtime pasta dish for me, so I cooked 3 oz. of Ronzoni Super Greens Rotini. (I bought it on sale a while back, less because of its healthy hype and more for the color.). For the sauce, I used the defatted drippings and deglazing liquid from the chicken I roasted last week, and added chopped onion and sliced mushrooms, then a 5 oz. can of light chicken meat, and the roasted butternut squash. I added a dash of freshly ground black pepper, combined it with the pasta, and I had lunch for today, with enough left for tomorrow.

I made chicken broth from the meaty bones of the chicken I roasted last week. I will freeze it.

Monday dinner was Sloppy Josephines. I added that ¼ cup of tomato sauce I made last Saturday and used less ketchup. We also had microwaved frozen mixed vegetables.

[Mike Nolan]

This is basically the recipe I learned at SFBI pastry school.

Apples: 100% I prefer a good cooking apple like Winesap or Jonagold.
Sugar: 20%
Salt: 0.15%
Cinnamon: 0.15% (but I usually increase it by about a third)
Nutmeg: 0.05%
Cornstarch: 2.4% in enough water to make a slurry
Lemon juice: 1.46%

Cook the apples, peeled and cored, with the sugar until they're soft enough to bend then strain off the juice. Set apples aside.

Boil the juice then stir in the cornstarch slurry (2.4%), cook it for about a minute to thicken, add lemon juice, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg, then pour it over the apples.

Refrigerate before using.

For my latest batch I peeled, cored and sliced enough apples to fill my 16 quart pot about 2/3 full, about 4.6 kg after peeling and coring, enough for 4 pies plus some extra. I could probably have gotten 5 pies from this batch but my wife likes the filling all by itself, and so do I. It also goes good with cookies, like Pepperidge Farms Bordeaux.

Cool filling before using it. It freezes well.

I use 1100-1200 grams of filling for a 9″ pie. Put a few small pieces of butter on top of the filling before putting the top crust on, brush the top crust with egg wash and sprinkle with sparkling sugar. Cut some vents.

I start it on a convection cycle at 385 degrees for 20 minutes, then switch to regular oven mode and drop the temperature to 350. It usually takes another 25 minutes or so. There should be filling bubbling through the vents and the crust should be nicely browned. I recommend putting a larger pan underneath to catch spills.

I've also used this filling for Irish Apple Cake.

The pie below used my pie dough table (Pie Dough Chart) to determine the amount of pie dough, the lower crust was 255 grams and the upper crust was 175 grams.

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[Mike Nolan]

Making the pie filling in advance is something I learned at SFBI. I find it is easier to make a large batch of it than enough for just one apple pie. I do the same thing with pie crusts, I usually make enough for 2 or 3 pies, freezing what I don't use right away. That way I can have an apple pie ready in about 24 hours.

If I was making enough for one pie, I'd want about 1 kg of sliced apples, probably around 3 pounds of whole apples, depending on the size.

The formula is:

Apples: 100% Winesap is my favorite pie apple, Jonagolds work well, too. I will use Golden Delicious if I have to. Granny Smith apples are dreadful these days, IMHO.
Sugar: 20%
Salt: 0.15%
Cinnamon: 0.15% (but I usually increase it by about a third)
Nutmeg: 0.05%

Cook the apples until they're soft enough to bend then strain off the juice.

Boil the juice then stir in a cornstarch slurry (2.4%), cook it for about a minute, then pour it over the apples. Add lemon juice (1.46%)

For my latest batch I peeled, cored and sliced enough apples to fill my 16 quart pot about 2/3 full, about 4.6 kg after peeling and coring, enough for 4 pies plus some extra. I could probably have gotten 5 pies from this batch but my wife likes the filling all by itself, and so do I. It also goes good with cookies.

Cool filling before using it. It freezes well.

I use 1100-1200 grams of filling for a 9" pie. Put a few small pieces of butter on top of the filling before putting the top crust on, brush the top crust with egg wash and sprinkle with sparkling sugar. Cut some vents.

I start it on a convection cycle at 385 degrees for 20 minutes, then switch to regular oven mode and drop the temperature to 350. It usually takes another 25 minutes or so. There should be filling bubbling through the vents and the crust should be nicely browned.

I've also used this filling for Irish Apple Cake.

I just added this recipe to the recipe section of the site.

Today's pie. It leaked a little, as it often does, which is why I put a larger pan underneath to catch spills.

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[BakerAunt]

Skeptic--I usually par-cook my apples before I put them into the pie. That is in part because I use an oil crust and a streusel top. That mixture could be frozen. I have also once frozen cut up raw apples with sugar and lemon and later baked them into a pie.

I seem to recall that Zen (Kitchen Barbarian) has a recipe somewhere on this site where she discussed par-cooking the apples. I'll have to look for it.