[BakerAunt]

We have been subsisting on delicious leftovers. On Thursday we had the rest of the roast chicken, bulgur cooked in chicken broth, and microwaved frozen mixed vegetables.

[BakerAunt]

On Tuesday, I tried baking my oil version of the eggnog cake in a Nordic Ware snowman pan--the one in which the two halves are joined after baking. It did not go as well as I had hoped. Oil cakes do not rise as much, and I needed at least a third more batter. Wo, the heads of the two snowmen are not very thick and baked much faster, while the lower areas took longer. As my husband said, the cake will still be good, but it was not the stunning presentation I was seeking.

[BakerAunt]

On Tuesday, I roasted an Autumn Frost squash (50 minutes at 375F, upside down). I used my stick blender to combine the puree with a cup of turkey broth left from Christmas cooking, and a little bit of water. I stirred in half a cup of Fage Greek yogurt, and 1 1/2 tsp. Penzey's Now Curry then warmed the soup over medium heat. It goes well with the crackers I made yesterday. I have enough for a couple more lunches.

[BakerAunt]

According to my husband's nature book, shrews are carnivores who mostly eat insects like flies and spiders, and it was certainly welcomed to any of those that it found.

A couple of years ago, we had a bat in the house. My husband actually heard it before he saw it. We opened the back door, and he made some movement behind it, and it went right to the door and flew out. On a sadder note, three years ago, the chimney sweep found that two bats had gotten into our chimney and died. When we got the woodstove, the installer failed to tell us that a chimney cap was needed. We had one installed ASAP.

[BakerAunt]

On Monday morning, I baked my version of the KABC Gourmet Soda Crackers after the dough rested in the refrigerator for about 16 hours. I rolled it out, cut the dough into 2x2-inch pieces, then baked on the convection setting of 400F for 4 minutes 40 seconds, turned the sheet around, and baked for another 4 minutes 40 seconds. I pulled them out, separated the crackers, removed the parchment, then put the crackers back in the oven, where they will stay until completely cool, to maintain crispness. My Wolf oven vents the heat well, which means that I do not have to prop the door open to prevent them from further browning. (This feature, however, is a pain when I would like to turn the oven off for a short time without losing the heat because I want to use it again within a half hour or so.)

Hugs to you and your family, CWCdesign, as you remember Michael's birthday.

[BakerAunt]

Christmas dinner was roast chicken, gravy, Pepperidge Farm blue bag dressing, applesauce from the freezer, and microwaved fresh broccoli. Dessert was pumpkin pie.

[BakerAunt]

Len--THere is a great variation in Pfeffernusse recipes. I tried two or three before I found a recipe that I like, which I have posted here at Nebraska Kitchen. I suspect regional areas in Germany favor different recipes. I've seen some with molasses, which do not tick the Pfeffernusse box for me, and a variety of spices are used. For me the citron and anise are key, and they do require butter and powdered sugar coating.

I have been buying and using the King Arthur non-melting sugar for years, but this year, I had a difficult time getting it to stick to the warm cookies, and even now the sugar goes flying when we bite into them. I contacted KABC to ask if the formulation had changed. I was told no, but that they would be happy to refund my money since I was disappointed. I told them there was no need for a refund, as I did use the product, even though it did not work as well. I did note that the sugar seemed to be of a finer consistency, with less clumping this year, so now I wonder if they are manufacturing it differently.

[BakerAunt]

Merry Christmas!

[BakerAunt]

Pastry flour or part pastry flour would also work well in scones. I recently discovered how well a combination of white and whole wheat pastry flour works in my pie crust.

[BakerAunt]

For Christmas Eve breakfast, I baked the cinnamon rolls that I shaped last night and parked overnight in the refrigerator. After I glazed them, I sprinkled some red, green, and white nonpareils over the rolls to make them seasonally festive.

This afternoon, I baked my pumpkin pie, as that is my husband's traditional Christmas dessert. We will slice into it tomorrow,

My pumpernickel bread is excellent. I do not think that I would change anything that I did. I used 1 1/4 tsp. caraway, 1 1/4 tsp. dill seed, and 1 tsp. mustard seed. The pickle juice I used gave it great flavor. I don't think that it needs that deli rye flavoring with this combination. As Joan notes, it has a great, light texture. It can also be sliced thinly. I will be baking it again!

[BakerAunt]

We had dinner shortly after 6 p.m. tonight as well: leftover coleslaw and ham sandwiches on the pumpernickel bread I baked yesterday. I found an unopened jar of Bavarian hot mustard in the cupboard, and it went so well with the mayonnaise, bread, and ham.

[BakerAunt]

One of my nephews (vaccinated but not yet boosted) tested positive for Covid after coming into contact with one or two people at his work who tested positive for it. He was and continues to be asymptomatic, but he visited his parents before he knew about his co-worker, so then they had to be tested. My sister, who had received her booster nine days earlier, continues to test negative. However, my brother-in-law tested positive, had trouble breathing, and had to be hospitalized for treatment. (He's home now.) He had been dragging his feet on getting the booster, even though he was eligible before she was. After hearing her story, several of my sister's friends immediately made appointments to get their booster shots.

Moral: Boosters are not optional.

[BakerAunt]

I finished my Thursday in the kitchen by making the dough and shaping cinnamon rolls to refrigerate overnight and bake for Christmas Eve breakfast.

A big thank you to Italian Cook for giving me the link to Frank and Sal. I ordered the candied citron on Monday, and it arrived today--free shipping UPS.

[BakerAunt]

Chocomouse--I had wondered if that was your base recipe for your rye bread. I used to bake it a lot, usually with a mix of dark rye and medium rye and to use the deli rye flavoring. I note that the new recipe from KABC says 1 Tbs. mustard seed or regular mustard. I wonder if that is a mistake, since I don't think one would use the same amount of mustard seed as prepared mustard. I cut it to 1 tsp. I may adjust carraway, dill seed, and mustard seed next time depending on the taste.

[BakerAunt]

Thanks for posting the link, Mike. I am not sure that I would have the patience to make these cookies. Of course, the butter content gives me an excuse not to do so. I've also never had matcha so do not know if I would like them. I chuckled at one poster who commented that when she makes these cookies, she will have her guests watch the video before serving the cookies so that her effort will be appreciated!

Thanks for looking up the hearth pan. I figure at some point they will be available again. I'd prefer shiny ones to the dark finish ones that I have, although they did ok with this bread.

I wonder if someone could start a cooking store co-op. REI got its start many years ago when a guy was searching for a decent ice axe. He found one in Europe, and then all his friends wanted one as well. A co-op was born. Of course, that would be hard to get going these days.

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