On Sunday, I baked my wholegrain pumpkin bread (a recipe low in saturated fat). I baked it as 6 small loaves and froze there. I used the recipe Lemonpoppy posted on the Baking Circle, and that Rottiedogs kindly posted here, but I made the changes noted in my comments on the recipe.
On Monday, I baked Malted Whole Grain Rolls, a KAF recipe:
https://www.kingarthurflour.com/recipes/malted-whole-grain-rolls-recipe
I substituted in 1 cup buttermilk and soaked the malted whole wheat flakes for 30-40 minutes before combining ingredients. I don’t think rolled grains work so well when KAF recipes just throw everything together and mix. I added 1 Tbs. honey to help prevent staling (a tip from Cass in the past). I reduced the salt from 1 ½ tsp. to 1 tsp. I used my bread machine to mix the dough. After the initial 5 minutes of mixing, I waited a couple of minutes (it has a 5-minute rest), then added the 2 Tbs. of oil. That was another tip from Cass, about a year ago. Although I own the “Tear and Share” baker, I’ve no idea where it is, and it makes huge rolls. Instead, I used a 9x9-inch pottery baker that also came from KAF, but it was made by an old, established family pottery Hartstone Pottery in Zanesville, Ohio, that went out of business a couple of years ago, probably due to cheaper ceramic bakers and dishes from China. The rolls baked beautifully. I'll add a note after we taste them.
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This reply was modified 7 years, 3 months ago by
BakerAunt.
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This reply was modified 7 years, 3 months ago by BakerAunt.
On Friday, I again baked the graham cracker recipe from Recipes from the Old Mill. As I did last time, I used graham flour, but I cut it from 3 ½ cups to 3 ¼ cups. That did make the dough somewhat easier to work, but it was still a bit crumbly, and I still needed to spray some water on it as I was rolling it out. I tasted one the next morning, and the taste and texture is improved. I may reduce the flour by another 2 Tbs. the next time I bake the recipe. I have hidden the container from my husband, because these are for our trip next week.
I tried a new recipe for Italian Breakfast Cookies, which I found on the internet at:
https://www.shelovesbiscotti.com/easy-italian-whole-wheat-honey-breakfast-cookies/
I followed the recipe, except that I used ½ tsp. vanilla rather than 1 tsp, and added 1/8 tsp. Fiori di Sicilia, in part because I did not have orange zest, and in part because I’ve only used my 4 oz. bottle of Fiori di Sicilia twice since I bought it a long time ago (yes, it is refrigerated). These are whole wheat and use honey and oil. I rolled the dough to an 8x8-inch square, then used a pizza cutter to make 16 (about 2x2-inches each). The next day, I found that they are a pleasantly soft cookie, with only .25g sat. fat. I had one with coffee at breakfast, after dutifully eating my usual steel-cut oats, but they would go well as a dessert or with tea. The Fiori di Sicilia is a wee bit strong. I’d likely cut it to a couple of drops next time, but they are still delicious.
I finished my Friday in the kitchen by mixing up dough for my Lower-Saturated Fat version of Whole Wheat Sourdough Cheese Crackers (posted at Nebraska Kitchen) and feeding my starter. I’ll let the dough rest in the refrigerator for a couple of days, then bake crackers for our trip that I will need to hide from my husband until we travel.
Making sure there's only as much light as you need is why we went with 3 banks of lights that can be controlled separately, the inner bank is over the island and is the one we use the most when working in the kitchen, the two outer banks are together. The under-counter lights are on an infrared sensor, so they come on automatically in the morning and evening. (Lights in most of the rooms, including the master suite, are also on sensors, we had one of the first home automation systems installed in Lincoln NE, back in 1996.)
We have a 48" dual fuel range and went with a full-sized range hood with two lights and warming lamps. We almost never use the warming lamps, though. When you turn the fan all the way up, it has a pretty strong draw.
I definitely recommend going with the best range hood you can. Make sure it's properly vented to the outside.
Good range hoods have grease baffles that you can take off and clean. We just throw them in the dishwasher every year or so. There are services that can clean the vent tubing if it get clogged. I checked ours a few years ago using a fiber optic inspection system, it looks fairly clean up there. (Much better than the dryer vent, which I just cleaned out with the big wet/dry vacuum.)
As to grease in the vent being a fire hazard, just don't do anything stupid. If you're flaming something, turn the vent fan off for a few minutes. My older son tend to over-do it when flaming things, he's been known to set off the smoke detector in the butler's pantry just outside the kitchen a few times, I think I've done it just once in 22 years.
I checked out a friend's kitchen here, and he had a long fluorescent in the center of the kitchen area, which his father says is "too much light for me in the morning!" He also has various under the counter lights that are both plug in and work on a switch.
We decided on LED "can" lights, which will be inserted into the ceiling. We have two in one area of the living room, and they give off great light. I have arranged for one to be centered over the sink and one over the peninsula. I was going to put two over the peninsula, but it does not work with the roof angle. As I said, these are low ceilings. I will also have a light on the stove hood.
We head to South Bend tomorrow to check out paint color for the house siding, to buy paint for the interior, and to go by the appliance store so that I can get a look at the Wolf range. They don't have the dual fuel on the floor, but they do have that size in a gas model, so I can look it over. Depending on the contractor's schedule, I will have an idea of when to place the order. I need to order it before February 11, as there will be a price increase on that date. I plan to get the black rather than the red knobs. (They also have stainless, so I will look at those.)
I will look at stove hoods. Wolf makes one, but the hood does not necessarily have to be Wolf.
I'll look at refrigerators as well. Sub Zero is not in my price range, and we don't want a built-in, so I will see what else they have.
I tried a new recipe on Monday, Braised Chicken with Apples and Sage (Gourmet, December 2005) from the Epicurious website. I used ten chicken thighs rather than eight, as that was what the package contained. My two other changes were to use onion rather than shallots and three Winesap rather than two Gala apples. I did not peel the apples. I served it with unpeeled, mashed Yukon Gold potatoes and steamed green beans. It’s a recipe that I’ll likely make again next fall or winter, as we liked the change from our usual chicken entrees.
The dog, who charms food from my husband, also approved!
These days they have fixtures that look like fluorescent lights but are actually LEDs. When we repaired the ceiling in the master closet last fall, we put one in there. It's very energy efficient and seems to be a bit brighter as well.
Under cabinet lights are OK but only light a fairly small area. They can also affect how you organize your counter space, both because of shadows and the heat they generate.
Our kitchen is quite large (17 x 18) and has 3 rows of fluorescent fixtures behind diffuser panels, when all 3 are on we refer it to as lighting the kitchen up for surgery. We also have under-cabinet lights on all 3 counters and above the desk area, though that one seldom gets used these days. There's also a spotlight above the main sink and two spotlights that are part of the exhaust fan.
In a galley kitchen I'd think about possibly putting in track lights along the ceiling, you can adjust where they point as you figure out where you really need light. And they make LED bulbs for those too now.
I have to empty the cupboard and freezer as we get ready to go south. I mixed up some tuna with finely chopped carrots and mayonnaise and put it on 4 large toasted bagel halves. I topped them with sharp provolone and broiled them. I served them with baked French fries (recipe from allrecipes). Pretty good if I do say so myself. BA,you are so good and I am so bad.
I bought what I thought was a pork tenderloin but it turned out to be a 2lb pork LOIN. I should have known better. I have never seen a 2 lb tenderloin. Anyway I baked the loin (cut it in half)and it was not tender. How do those marinated in a bag loins turn out so well?
MARLISS:
Good Morning my friend. I have read your post on your GRAHAM CRACKER baking episode.
You didn't ask for my thoughts but I just cannot not help myself... I am like an old retired firehouse dog that is ready to jump on the fire truck when it hears bells clanging & whistles blowing.
Marliss your recipe has failed you because it omitted at least 1, egg... most likely 1, egg plus a yolk.
This is why your dough was crumbly as you described. The oil can be increased an extra 1,oz or 2. You can consider adding honey about 2, oz
Marliss, 1/4 inch thick is to thick consider 1/8th or add 1/2 more to 3/32nds/inch (.09375) as a thickness.
Consider using ground cloves rather than cinnamon.
MARLISS let me give you good a reason why you should not pay any attention to the above...I have never baked graham crackers before. I use them in my cheesecakes base along with NILLA crackrs.
Good luck in your next baking episode....enjoy the day my friend.
~KIDPIZZA/CASS
This past week I have made bread using a new (at least to me) Whole Grain Flour Blend from KAF: white whole wheat, barley, pumpernickel, sorghum, oat, millet, amaranth, teff, and quinoa flours. It made wonderful bread. I also used the Super 10 Blend for more bread: spelt, millet, barley, teff, buckwheat, amaranth, sorghum rye, quinoa, chia seeds. Again, excellent bread. And, a loaf with my oldest favorite, Harvest Grains Blend:whole oat berries, millet, rye, wheat flours, and flax, poppy, sesame, and sunflower seeds. Another superb bread. I cannot find the Super 10 or Whole Grain blend on their website. I also do not see the Ancient Grains, another great blend I have used, on the website. I suspect they have renamed some of the flours, just as they have renamed other products, or possibly made a few minor changes to the ingredients. I used to mix up my own blends, using a variety of flours and seeds, But I've now decided to finish off my assorted jars of ingredients in the pantry and just buy whatever they are selling at the moment.
I baked a new recipe on Wednesday, Graham Crackers, from Recipes from the Old Mill: Baking with Whole Grains, by Sarah E. Myers and Mary Beth Lind (Good Books: 1995), p. 73. I’ve been looking for a graham cracker recipe. I had tried Peter Reinhart’s and did not like the consistency or the flavor, as I’m not a molasses fan. This recipe also uses oil rather than butter, but it uses brown sugar for the sweetening. I substituted graham flour for whole wheat flour, since I have it. I suspect in 1995, it was harder for the average baker to purchase. I added the optional cinnamon. The dough was very crumbly. (I wish that recipe writers would indicate what its consistency should be.) It came together a bit after refrigeration, but it was still crumbly. I ended up squishy each third of the dough together, flattening it, then spritzing with water until I could get it rolled out 1/8-inch thick. I rolled them out on parchment paper, with saran wrap on top, then cut them into 5x5 cm. squares (metric rules in such matters) and poked each a few times with a fork. I pulled them apart from each other. I baked for 15 minutes. They have very good flavor and while firmer than what we would buy in the store, they are nice to munch. It made about 60 crackers, with only 4 g saturated fat for the entire recipe, and that is from canola oil.
I’m wondering, if I bake them again, whether it would be best to add more water to the dough or to reduce the flour, as it was a bit of a pain rolling them out. However, I don’t want to change the consistency or the texture. It used 3 1/2 cups flour, 1/4 cup canola oil, and 3/4 cups water. It also called for 1/3 cup instant nonfat dry milk, and I used Bob's Red Mill brand for that, as I did for the graham flour. (For inclusiveness, it also used 1 1/2 tsp. baking powder, 1/4 tsp. salt, and 1/2 tsp. cinnamon.)
I had some issues with the Blueberry Pie.
I tried baking the blueberry pie on New Year’s Day, using the oil crust, and reserving some of the crust ingredients to sprinkle on top. It came out more as a cobbler. The crust held up, but the filling did not thicken up. I used homemade blueberry pie filling that I canned last summer. I probably should have used just 1-quart rather than adding an additional pint. The pie would have been a bit low, but that would have been fine. I added 2 tsp. of lime juice and ¼ tsp. allspice. I may not have baked it-- after blind-baking the shell--for long enough at a higher temperature. I started it at 425F, then after 10 minutes reduced it to 375F and baked another 40 minutes. That works for my apple pie, which has a hot filling added, but not for this one with room-temperature filling. (The apple pie is also baked in a deep-dish Emile Henry ceramic pie plate; this one was baked in a regular 9-inch pie tin.) I probably would have left it longer, but we had Skype appointments with the kids, so I pulled it out, thinking it would gel as it cooled. It didn’t. The crust did come out crisp and not soggy, and I liked the topping. The filling is delicious, but we were hoping for regular pie.
Next time, I’ll use just a quart of filling. Other possible issues that may have created problems include the different kind of oven, putting the pie on the center shelf rather than the lower one, since the top element only comes on for broiling, need for higher oven temperature, or maybe it would bake best with a top crust. There is also the possibility that the filling could have been thicker.
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This reply was modified 7 years, 4 months ago by BakerAunt.
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This reply was modified 7 years, 4 months ago by BakerAunt.
I'm making a batch of honey wheat bread today. (I might make another one tomorrow, I've got a lot of milk to use up, and the bread freezes well.)
BAKERAUNT:
Good evening to you. Marliss, why not consider a sruesel (crummy top) cover. easily found on google.
HAPPY NEW YEAR TO YOU & ALL OF THE BAKER MEMBERS.
~CASS///KIDPIZZA
