What are You Baking the Week of November 14, 2021?

[BakerAunt]

I baked two loaves of my adaptation of Grape Nuts bread on Wednesday. My husband is excited, as it is his favorite bread. I have been baking other recipes that make three loaves, but as I am now freezing pumpkin puree, and after Thanksgiving, broth, I need to allow for more freezer space, so freezing only one of the loaves works better right now.

[Mike Nolan]

I put some of the rolls in the oven at about 200 degrees for about 10 minutes, it made the crust nice and crunchy, even more so than yesterday, and they were very good with supper. (My wife's comment earlier today was 'rolls with fish?', but I pointed out that fish and broccoli don't have many carbs.)

So I plan to make a batch of these next week and reheat them ahead of Thanksgiving dinner.

[chocomouse]

This morning I made a coffeecake, with ginger preserves for a filling and a cinnamon streusel topping.

[Mike Nolan]

Sounds interesting. How do you make ginger preserves?

[Mike Nolan]

I need to make semolina bread, probably tomorrow. I was thinking I might do it today, but I had to dig into the freezer downstairs to get some more semolina out. I have one more big container of it, I'll probably need to order more soon. Looks like the price of semolina has gone up since the last time I bought a 50 pound bag (15 months ago), and shipping costs are up, too. I will likely wait until January to avoid the pre-Christmas shipping crush.

[chocomouse]

Mike, ginger preserves are easy to make but time consuming. It's just peeled and chopped fresh ginger, water, and sugar - simmered 'til thickened. Sometimes a little pectin is used also. But I just buy mine in a jar. This time I used Bonne Maman.

[Italiancook]

Mike, your dinner rolls are gorgeous! Thanks for posting pictures.

[navlys]

I made my annual Christmas stollen. My German neighbor (long gone) shared the recipe with me and even had me over to watch her make it. Every year my stollen comes out differently. She used farmer's cheese which is hard to find so I either use cottage cheese or ricotta cheese. I used to use the Dr oetker baking powder packet until I could no longer find it in the stores. I was substituting regular baking powder until I just discovered this year the the German baking powder was single acting not double acting. After a little research I discovered I could substitute cream of tartar and baking soda. Ok I could have ordered the baking powder online but it was too late. My neighbor also used the Dr oetker essences which are also hard to find. Can't wait to taste this years stollen on Christmas morn!

[Mike Nolan]

I made semolina bread this afternoon.

[BakerAunt]

Thursday was a busy baking day. I started by baking my adaptation of Skeptic’s Pumpkin Biscotti, since I had a bit of leftover peanut pumpkin from Tuesday, and a bit of frozen leftover pumpkin from last year that gave me the half cup I needed.

I made dough for my Whole Wheat Sourdough Cheese Crackers. I will bake them next week.

I baked an apple pie this evening, using seven Northern Spy and two Winesaps. I was worried about having enough apples for the filling and had my husband fetch the two Winesaps from the garage, but the Northern Spy would have been sufficient, as the pie is very tall. I used my favorite recipe, which is Bernard Clayton’s “French Apple Pie,” from his pie baking book. He used Granny Smiths, as I have in the past. (I agree with Mike's earlier comment that Granny Smith's are not that good anymore.) It has a streusel topping, which I adapt by replacing the 1/3 cup of butter with 1 Tbs. butter and 1 ½ Tbs. avocado oil. I used a teaspoon of Penzey’s apple pie spice (a free sample). The pie will rest overnight, and we will have a slice at lunch tomorrow. I have never used Northern Spy, so I am particularly looking forward to tasting it.

[Mike Nolan]

I don't think I've ever had Northern Spy apples, not sure I've even seen them out here.

[Mike Nolan]

We finished off the hard rolls tonight, they're definitely better on day 2 than on day 3, so I'll make them Wednesday for Thanksgiving.

[chocomouse]

Northern Spy is the standard, old-fashioned apple used for baking here in New England. But you never see them in stores. I guess because they are not the best for eating out of hand. We get them at the orchards or farmers' markets.

[BakerAunt]

My husband and I both enjoyed our slices of pie after lunch. I bake with the skins on the apple, and they were not intrusive. Northern Spy is more tart than Winesap, and I used a bit more sugar in the filling, but it has a lovely light taste. I would definitely bake pies with Northern Spy again. While I was worried about the height of the pie when I took it out last night, it had subsided to a regular level this morning.

I'm not sure that most markets sell good apples for pie baking or applesauce. I have bought Jonathans a the local grocery in the past, but the rest that they sell are not baking apples.

[BakerAunt]

Italian Cook: Cass called today, and he had some thoughts about your Portuguese bread recipe that he asked me to pass along.

1. He thought that the King Arthur unbleached flour would work well. He also thought a mixture of half Gold Medal AP and the King Arthur AP would work, perhaps better. He said it is a matter of extensibility for the fough.

2. The recipe has a hydration of 75%, so it will be like working with ciabatta dough. He was not certain you would want to mix it without a stand mixer, as it will be a gloppy mess, and you will likely be tempted to add in too much additional flour.

3. He thought this recipe would work better with a biga. He suggested that you look at the King Arthur site, as they have included information on using them. The biga is an overnight "starter." It will help when you try shaping the bread.

4. Be prepared for the bread to spread out and be flat like a pancake. You might want to think about baking it in a pan so that the sides will be contained.

He also said you can get a similar kind of bread, maybe with less pain, by baking a French or Italian style loaf.

I took notes as CaSS talked to me about your bread recipe on the phone, so I hope that I have correctly communicated his suggestions.

He also had a serving suggestion--the way his mother did it: Instead of dipping the bread in olive oil, toast just one 1/4-inch slice, one side of the bread only, but do not let it turn amber or tan, just a bit crispy. Drizzle 1-2 tsp. olive oil over the toasted bread, then toast again until it is a bit crisp, not brown. Use a pepper mill to put a bit of pepper over it. Eat and enjoy!

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