What are you baking the week of March 18th, 2018?

[BevM]

Bakeraunt, are your dried blueberries homemade or store bought? My three bushes produce so many, I can never use all the frozen ones. Drying them sounds like a good alternative. I also give away lots to friends and neighbors.

[BakerAunt]

BevM--These were bought. I've not tried dehydrating the ones we pick because after I get done making jam and pie filling--and baking with fresh blueberries, my husband covets all the rest to freeze and use on his oatmeal. We didn't pick as many this year, due to getting here later than usual, so my husband ran out of blueberries early this week. Horrors: Unless he breaks down and buys some frozen ones in the store, he will have to wait four months--assuming that all goes well with the blueberry crop this year at the place where we go to pick.

I recall that Omaria mentioned in a baking circle post that blueberries are harder to dehydrate than some other fruits. I seem to recall that like cranberries, you have to briefly boil them to break the shell of the skin before dehydrating. If we ever get our remodeling started and finished, I'll look for the instructions that are with my dehydrator.

[wonky]

BakerAunt and Chocomouse...Thank you for your nice comments. I did not put anything in the little logs. The logs are probably to small to do that, but I think I might try rolling them in cin/sug and then braiding. I also think rolling each log in a garlic/herb concoction would also be good. These were made with a sweet dough, but I am going to make them out of my regular white bread recipe also. They would be so lovely for a bridal/baby shower brunch. I would slice each one, and have a variety of sandwich fixings for the guests to make their own personal sandwich.

I also love making "fancy" breads, and currently have two other beautiful bread projects on my bucket list.

[BakerAunt]

After the morning muffins, I settled down for an afternoon of baking. We had found lovely strawberries on sale at Aldi's yesterday, so that means strawberry shortcakes for dessert again. Instead of a pound cake this time, I used the cake part of a KAF recipe titled Lemon Custard Cake that is designed for an 8-inch Maryann-style pan.

https://www.kingarthurflour.com/recipes/lemon-custard-cake-recipe

I made it in my Chicago Metallic Pie Bowl pans. I have two, and there are four wells per pan, with each well like an individual Maryann pan. Here's what they look like. Mine were a T.J. Maxx splurge, and I've used them in this recipe before.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00DZZATJ4/ref=asc_df_B00DZZATJ45411530/?tag=hyprod-20&creative=395033&creativeASIN=B00DZZATJ4&linkCode=df0&hvadid=194847541832&hvpos=1o2&hvnetw=g&hvrand=5141620692937630347&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9016246&hvtargid=pla-315127156292

I made a few changes to the recipe. I do not have or use the Cake Enhancer that KAF sells, so I left it out. I also left out the lemon oil and/or zest and used 1/4 tsp. strawberry extract instead. I've baked these before for shortcake, but they always seemed a bit dense to me. I wondered if I could get a more tender cake if I used Bob's Red Mill unbleached, extra-fine cake flour. I substituted it in by weight, as it is denser than the KAF flour. Of course, I used my new best friend--the grease-- for the pans, and it worked great. I baked them for 20 minutes at 325F. The little cakes have a nice tender texture but still hold up well to having sliced, sugared strawberries spooned into the middle and down the sides. I will bake this recipe with these changes again.

I also baked a loaf of the Buttermilk Grape Nuts bread, as we are almost out of bread.

I'll end the evening by feeding my sourdough starter and making up the dough for my Whole Wheat Sourdough Cheese Crackers. I've promised my younger stepson back in Texas a care package.

• This reply was modified 6 years, 9 months ago by BakerAunt.
• This reply was modified 6 years, 9 months ago by BakerAunt. Reason: added information and links
• This reply was modified 6 years, 9 months ago by BakerAunt.

[Mike Nolan]

I'll be making banana nut mini-muffins tonight, I've got enough ripe bananas for a good sized batch of them.

[Italiancook]

I baked a vanilla cake from Martha Stewart's "CAKES" cookbook.

[skeptic7]

I did whole wheat pizza with white whole wheat flour, and three types of cheese for toppings. I came out surprisingly well.

[cwcdesign]

Last week when I took the Irish Chocolate Cake to work, one of my coworkers asked about it because he liked it, partly because of the alcohol. I told him there was another cake I had been wanting to try - Bailey's Dark Chocolate Guinness Bread with Bailey's and Guinness. I explained that I didn't want to try out a new recipe on everyone. He asked if I'd make it for his girlfriend whose birthday is Sunday. Since mine is Monday, I said yes. He's also our steward which has to be the worst job in the department - dirty dishes, trash, toilets, cleaning and just about any heavy lifting job that occurs. So he bought the Bailey's for the glaze - I had everything else on hand. I made it last night and will take it in for him today.

It was very easy and Will and I both tasted the batter which is nice - I will definitely make it again. But . . . isn't there always a but? The recipe said to bake it in a 9x5 pan - I should have baked it in an 8x4 or doubled it. If I had been paying attention, I would have realized that less than 2 cups of flour was not going to make a very tall loaf - it looks like I cut the bottom off the loaf. That's an easy fix. Also, the recipe had you mix in all of the Guinness first and then the flour - next time I will do flour, Guinness, flour.

My biggest problem was the glaze. I think the proportions are off and I could taste the powdered sugar even after I let it sit overnight. I also thinned it too much trying to up the Bailey's flavor and I had leftover glaze. It drizzled onto the plate.

1 ¼ cups powdered sugar
2 tablespoons Bailey's
2 teaspoons cream (I used whole milk)

Any thoughts on how to improve it? Should I leave out the cream/milk and use Bailey's? Should I get some Irish cream flavoring to add? What about the proportions?

[BakerAunt]

I'm not sure about the proportions, but I do know that whole milk will behave differently from cream in a glaze. I've found that out with some of my sweet rolls. I also find that if I use cream, the glaze holds up longer. The cream will make it thicker. If you use whole milk, you might want to add a little melted butter with it.

[cwcdesign]

Thanks BA, how do you deal with the powdered sugar taste o4 does the cream help with that?

I still think the Irish Cream taste needs to be bumped up

• This reply was modified 6 years, 9 months ago by cwcdesign.

[Mike Nolan]

It's the cornstarch in powdered sugar that impacts the taste. You can get powdered sugar without cornstarch in it, some people call it icing sugar, but it's kind of hard to find in the USA, and usually expensive. (KAF had it at one point, not sure if they still do.)

[BakerAunt]

KAF did have a glazing sugar that does not have cornstarch, but I just looked at the KAF site, and it is not to be found.

Cwcdesign--Go ahead and try the Irish Cream flavoring, maybe 1/4 tsp.

[Mike Nolan]

They may not carry it during certain times of the year, because without the cornstarch it is very prone to clump.

I wonder if baker's superfine sugar would work here? It's not as finely ground as powdered sugar, but it is much finer than granulated sugar.

[RiversideLen]

Yesterday I made a pumpkin pie. A recipe that uses brown sugar, I seasoned it with Vietnamese and Madagascar cinnamons and vanilla extract and nothing else (I don't care for the other spices that are usually used in pumpkin pie in pumpkin - I like those spices, just not in pumpkin). I haven't had a pumpkin pie in a couple of years. It might be out of season but I'm enjoying it.

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[Italiancook]

RiversideLen, your pumpkin pie looks scrumptious! You always post such good pictures. You must have photographic talent, too. Thanks for sharing with us.

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