What are you Baking the week of December 15, 2019?

[Joan Simpson]

I baked another loaf of sourdough last night and gave it to my friend today,she said it was very good.

[BakerAunt]

On Wednesday, I baked the Springerle Shortbread dough that I made up on Monday. It does hold the design well. I had to let the dough soften before I could roll it. The hard part is pushing down firmly on the molds; I used the rolling pin to roll over the back. I did the imprints one at a time, used my bench scraper to cut it out, transferred it to the parchment-lined baking sheet. Repeat. The first tray needed almost the full 12 minutes; the second one got slightly over brown before 11 minutes had passed. I’m pleased that the designs came out well. They don't show as much when flat, but hold them vertically, and the detail is clear. (I used House on the Hill springerle molds.) My husband and I each taste-tested a cookie. They are, as the name implies, a cross between a shortbread and a sugar cookie. I’ll wrap up the others to put in the gift box for my sister and her twins.

After baking the Springerle Shortbread, I made dough for Molded Gingerbread Cookies, following a recipe in “Too Pretty to Eat,” the recipe booklet that comes with the molds. It uses vegetable oil. The dough is wrapped in the refrigerator.

[BakerAunt]

On Friday, I rolled out the dough I made on Wednesday for the Molded Gingerbread Cookies. It's an easy dough with which to work. I used a 1/8-inch pie wand on top of a 4/8-inch pie wand, since the recipe says 4/8-5/8 inches, and the oval House on the Hill mold I’m using (a fireside Christmas scene) has some deeper spots. I will need to look for two 5/8-thick wood pieces that I can use in the future.) I used the same technique of pressing one cookie at a time, using an oval scalloped cookie cutter around it, moving it to a parchment-lined baking sheet, and then repeating for the rest of the cookies. I had 12 cookies, and one smaller one that I impressed with a smaller springerle mold. The directions say to allow the cookies to sit out on the sheets and dry for 8-24 hours, so I will bake them tomorrow. I probably won’t wait 24 hours because we are having friends over for the late afternoon and dinner on Saturday.

• This reply was modified 4 years, 11 months ago by BakerAunt.

[BakerAunt]

I went ahead and baked one pan of the cookies after about nine hours. The design did not hold up as clearly as I would prefer. I'll let the other pan sit the full 24 hours and see if I get a different result. The recipe said to bake large cookies for 15 minutes, but I found that they needed 20 minutes. (It would help if the author had specified what is meant by large.)

On Friday evening, I baked my adaption of Bernard Clayton’s streusel topped apple pie, using my oil crust. I used Jonathan apples that we picked back in November.

[Joan Simpson]

I baked another loaf of sourdough and it's better than the last.

[chocomouse]

I baked rye bread, again using the recipe on the bag of KAF rye flour. This time I added a table spoon of their Rye Bread Improver, as well as my usual assortment of seeds (but I forgot the onions!). I'll have some for lunch tomorrow.

I also made a batch of chewy molasses cookies for the Christmas Eve cookie tray.

[BakerAunt]

On Saturday, I baked my adaptation of Ellen’s Buns, but I made them as twelve rolls to serve with tonight’s dinner. I accidentally turned it to the convection mode, so they were slightly more done than usual, which means not quite as light but still delicious. (It's a forgiving recipe.)

I also baked the second sheet of the Molded Gingerbread Cookies, which had sat for nearly 24 hours. I don’t know that the design is that much clearer, but the cookies baked a little firmer. My husband and I both like the taste (not overly molasses) and the spice combination. I'll be baking them again and will include some in the cookie box I send to my sister and nieces.

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