What are you baking the week of September 23, 2018?

[Mike Nolan]

No baking for me yet this week.

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[navlys]

Two banana breads from taste of home. Will remember to grease the pans better.

[BakerAunt]

After dinner Sunday, I mixed up the ingredients for Skeptic's Pumpkin Biscotti. I used white whole wheat flour, rather than regular. I followed Skeptic's lead in reducing the sugar to 2/3 cup. I added 3 Tbs. powdered milk to the flour mixture. (I'm trying to make sure I get enough calcium.) I made it into a long log (16 inches), but I only made it 3-inches wide. It was 1/2 inch high. I spritzed it with water and sprinkled it with demerara sugar (Sugar in the Raw) to give it a bit of sparkle.

It's in the oven on its first bake. I'll add to this post after it is finished.

The first bake was 25 minutes. After the 15 minute cooling period, I spritzed it with water, moved to a cutting board, then cut straight, rather than on a diagonal, 1/2 inch thick. I checked on the second bake at 15 minutes, then gave them another 5. I'm waiting to taste test until tomorrow, since I want the spices to have a chance to meld, but I did nibble some of the crumbs after I sliced the log, and the taste is great. It made 28 biscotti (counting the little curved ends).

• This reply was modified 6 years, 2 months ago by BakerAunt.
• This reply was modified 6 years, 2 months ago by BakerAunt.
• This reply was modified 6 years, 2 months ago by BakerAunt.

[aaronatthedoublef]

I made the Cake Bible white velvet cake. My wife used it for cupcakes for a baby shower. This was my go-to caked for my family but the last few cakes have been chocolate cakes. I brought my daughter over to the dark side and she now requests chocolate! I almost screwed these up. I forgot the baking powder when I first mixed up the batter. I had it in the fridge until my wife came home with the cupcake wrappers she wanted and for some reason I thought "darn, I forgot to add the baking powder." So I added it in and all was fine!

My wife decorated them as she and I have different views of the proportion of sugar to butter in faux butter cream and how much icing to use.

I've forgotten how much fun cake baking is!

[skeptic7]

BakerAunt;
I have other low fat Biscotti recipes developed after a friend had a heart attack. You can reduce the fat still further by using egg whites instead of whole eggs, and by leaving out the nuts. I prefer recipes with whole eggs so I don't have to think of uses for extra yolks or extra whites.
Do you want them?

[BakerAunt]

Skeptic, Yes, I would like to see your other recipes when you have time to post them.

I will use whole eggs, since the yolks have important vitamins. (I wish the same could be said for butter, which I have loved not wisely but too well. Sigh.) I would include nuts, as walnuts and almonds are considered heart-healthy. As with eggs, of course, the key is not overdoing it. My approach is to make sure that my saturated fat per day is under 11 grams and to include more prominently foods that help lower cholesterol, such as beans and oatmeal.

[BakerAunt]

Today I baked Whole Wheat Sourdough Cheese Cracker dough I made last week. I used 1/3 cup canola oil in place of the usual 1/2 cup butter. On the positive side, I found the dough easier to work with. I could roll it right away when I took it out of the refrigerator, and it was easier to get it to 1/16-inch thickness. The crackers baked well and are crisp. They may even be more crisp than the butter ones. On the less positive side, without the butter, the Vermont Cheese powder flavor does not come through as nicely. I wonder if olive oil might have been a better choice for the dough, even with its stronger flavor.

I might need to think about other ways of flavoring the crackers if I'm going to make the oil for butter substitution. That might mean omitting the cheese powder and using some kind of herb mixture in the dough.

I'll add a note to this post after they have a day or so for the flavors to blend.

[BakerAunt]

This Monday evening, I'm baking my adaptation of KAF's Baker's Grain Sourdough Bread, a recipe that appeared in their catalog last year. I got a late start, so it will be a late night.

[BakerAunt]

On Monday evening, I baked Baker’s Grain Sourdough Bread, a recipe that appeared in a KAF catalog last year. I did not start the dough until after 8:30, so it was a late night. I baked this recipe once before, and it came out very well in the Emile Henry long baker.

It requires some alteration, as it calls for 1/2 cup of their Ancient Grains Flour Blend, which I tried years ago and did not like. It’s also expensive to buy. I know that my sourdough starter is not as thick as what KAF uses in its recipes, so I expect to add about ¼ cup flour per cup of sourdough starter. The recipe calls for the Harvest Grains blend, and I have that ingredient. While they soak them in a cup of hot water, I soak them in ½ cup of warm buttermilk. I was delayed in starting the bread, so they soaked about 3 hours.

I proof the yeast with honey in the other ½ cup of water. The recipe calls for ½ cup potato flour, but I used 1/3 cup. For the Ancient Grains mixture, I used ½ cup dark rye flour, ¼ cup barley flour, ¼ cup spelt flour, and ¼ cup flax meal. (Yes, that is more whole grain flour than KAF specifies.) After proofing the yeast, I added the rest of the honey and the soaked grains and mixed. Then I added the whole grain and potato flour blend, and ½ cup of the high-gluten flour, and the 2 Tbs. oil (I use canola) and mixed. I let it sit for 10 minutes. I mixed the salt (reduced to 1 ¾ tsp. from 2 tsp.) with the other 1 ¾ cups of high-gluten flour and mixed it in. Once it was incorporated, I kneaded on speed 3 for 5 minutes. The dough passed the window pane test.

The first rise was 1 hour and 15 minutes. I de-gassed, then pre-shaped and let sit for 5 minutes. I then shaped by folding the oval longways in half, sealing the edges with the heel of my hand, flattening to an oval, and again folding it over. (I turn so that the smooth side will be the outer side.). I then roll it as a cylinder, and put it in the greased, and sprinkled with farina, Emile Henry long baker. The second rise was 50 minutes. Although the recipe did not specify to do so, I slashed it before putting it into bake with the lid on for 35 minutes (recipe says 35-40 min.), then an additional 10 minutes until 190F.

Note: I sliced it the next day, and I love the way the whole grains meld with the sourdough tang.

[BevM]

Yesterday I baked Oatmeal Raisin cookies. I did a little research before I started to see if there were any improvements to the recipe I've used for years. I found one that added baking powder and one that included 1 tablespoon on molasses. I ended up adding 1\2 teaspoon of baking powder (no molasses this time) to see if it made a difference in the end result. I can't see that it did. I'm not sure what it should accomplish in the cookie. My taste-tester (granddaughter) approved of the results.
In the past I have baked Libby's Oatmeal cookie with the coconut in it . I liked it but the rest of the family didn't!

[chocomouse]

Today I made a chocolate zucchini cake. It is dense, and rich, and delicious. I made a ganache type frosting for it, which really isn't needed, but adds to the richness. I also used an extra cup or so of zucchini - the last one from the garden.
Yesterday I baked an herbed, cheesy zucchini bread, not yeasted. I used extra sharp cheddar, rosemary, thyme, and basil from my herb garden, and then at the last minute thought that didn't sound quite right, so added two minced cloves of garlic and some minced onion. A little garlic and onion is always good, right? It's OK but I would try different herbs next time. Somehow, the taste just isn't quite right.

[skeptic7]

I baked Chocolate Cherry bread in my slow cooker on Sunday night/Monday morning. This was adapted from a recipe on page 127 of "Crumpets and Scones" by Iris Idhe Frey. I have had the book awhile and have long wanted to try the bread -- I might have tried to make it sugarless which was a failure.
This is much like Mrs. Cindy's chocolate cherry bread, except it has almost twice the cocoa and a little more flour. I changed the recipe in the book deliberately by using whole wheat flour, and 1 cup of dried cherries instead of walnuts. I also used buttermilk instead of regular milk. I accidently added an extra 1/4 cup of water.
By the time I finished I had a very soft dough that wouldn't keep its shape. I lined a regular loaf pan with parchment paper and spooned the dough into the pan and leveled it out. I placed the loaf pan into an oval slow cooker and started cooking it on high. This was late at night. After about an hour, I turned the slow cooker to low and went to sleep. I took it out very early in the morning and found the bread was at 200 degrees and felt cooked. I took the pan out of the slow cooker and then the bread out of the pan and let it cool. The bread had risen about double and was slightly dry. It is rich and tasty. I like it with a cup of milk, its a little dry on its own. I'd like to try this again and not cook it as long. Its nice not to worry about rising the dough twice and shaping it or being very careful not to over bake.
I also did a spinach pizza on Monday -- my normal recipe only I had broccoli instead of spinach and used 1 tablespoon of smoked paprika instead of nutmeg, and cheddar and provolone cheese instead of parmesan. This had a completely different texture due to the broccoli. When is something a new recipe instead of variations on an original?

[skeptic7]

BakerAunt;
I have uploaded Judy's Biscotti -- low fat, low salt.
How did the crackers and biscotti come out after the flavors had a chance to mellow.
I am impressed by the Whole Grain Sourdough, it must have been difficult to knead properly.

[BakerAunt]

Skeptic--Many thanks for posting the low-fat biscotti recipes. I look forward to baking them. My husband and I have already devoured the pumpkin ones.

The cheese crackers did taste better the next day, even though they will never be the same as the butter version. They seem to me to have an aftertaste when eaten on their own, but they work quite well with soups. I used canola oil in the crackers. I could try them with grapeseed oil next time, as it has a more neutral flavor than canola oil and that might work better with the Vermont Cheese powder. Grapeseed oil, like olive oil, however, has 2 g saturated fat per Tbs., compared to canola which only has 1g per Tbs. And canola is supposed to help lower cholesterol. I will try a canola based version with some kind of herb seasoning.

I let my 7-quart Cuisinart mixer handle the kneading of the Whole Grain Sourdough. I find it helps, however, to add the flour in stages, rather than the all at once that KAF seems to suggest in so many of its recipes. I also find it helps, with whole grains, to give them a resting period.

• This reply was modified 6 years, 1 month ago by BakerAunt.

[RiversideLen]

Yesterday I made an apple pie. I used 2 each, Granny Smith, Gala and Pink Lady. Made it with a crumble top that includes oats.

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