BakerAunt
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That bread looks wonderful, Mike.
I pulled out my Nordic Ware Autumn Wreath pan on Saturday evening and baked my adaptation of the Pumpkin Chocolate Harvest Cake recipe that came with the pan. I substitute in some whole wheat pastry flour, use my homemade pumpkin puree, replace 2/3 cup butter with ½ cup oil, delete the water, add some milk powder, use 2 whole eggs, and cut the salt in half. I also use a mixing method that works better for oil cakes. I baked in the evening so that there would be no temptation to slice it until tomorrow, and the flavors have time to meld.
Saturday night dinner is leftover Tarragon Chicken with Rice and Mushrooms and microwaved fresh broccoli.
On Friday, I baked my adaptation of Skeptic’s Pumpkin Biscotti. (Adaptation consists of using white whole wheat flour, reducing the sugar to 2/3 cup, cutting the cloves to 1/8 tsp., and adding 3 Tbs. milk powder.) I am grateful to Skeptic every time I bake this recipe, which is frequently.
For Friday’s dinner, I made Tarragon Chicken with Mushrooms and Rice, a recipe that I adapted from one at “The Splendid Table.” We also had microwaved frozen peas.
I had 3 cups of potato water left from the potatoes I cooked on Sunday, so I decided to make a soup for me for lunch that I can eat for the rest of the week. I proceeded as in the story of “Stone Soup,” by putting in whatever I could find in the refrigerator, freezer, and pantry. I sauteed onion, celery, carrot, red bell pepper, and 2 cloves minced garlic, added the potato water, then added 2 cups of great northern beans that I had cooked and frozen a while back and about 1/3 cup black-eyed pea broth I had stuck in the freezer as well. I found a can of tomatoes with hatch chilis in the pantry to add. I added ½ tsp. chili powder and about ¼ tsp. cayenne (rather old cayenne), and a ½ tsp. Penzey’s Salsa & Pico. When it boiled, I stirred in ½ cup of bulgur, then let it simmer for 12 minutes covered. Given the ingredients, it is clearly a soup for me, since the onion, tomatoes, and great northern beans—not to mention the spices—make it unsuitable for my husband, who prefers his usual lunch sandwich anyway. The flavor is good, and the soup is nice on a cool day. The spices clear my head.
I am renewing my efforts to eat more vegetables and fruits, and include more beans, since my cholesterol numbers are stubbornly refusing to budge lower. (I also think that the frosting on that cake I had on each of three days before my doctor’s appointment made the numbers worse this time—it was made of butter, cream cheese, and white chocolate. I should have known better.) If diet and exercise cannot get the number down, I may have to take the statin.
The Arlo and Janis comic strip is doing a story line on the shortages--particularly Christmas items:
A quick vaccine note. CVS, in the info they sent me before the shot, suggested drinking 16 oz. of water an hour before getting the vaccine shot in order to alleviate symptoms afterwards. I was willing to try anything that would help, so I did so. I checked later on line, and I do not know that there is a basis for drinking water before, but perhaps it helps to be properly hydrated. It also helps to have someone who is good at giving this particular kind of shot!
I do not know if it is pandemic related, but when we did our shopping trip in the larger town northeast of us last week, Kroger was out of some items I normally buy there. The King Arthur flour (on sale) was gone; there were not the potatoes I usually buy, they did not have my full fat, plain Stonyfield yogurt (that happens periodically), and they have not had the low-fat Kemp's frozen vanilla yogurt that my husband likes for several months. I also checked the pasta shelf, and I noted that the nice selection of pasta from Italy was missing, so Italian Cook's thoughts about a shortage may indeed be correct. Aldi's did still have several varieties from Italy.
I received my Pfizer Covid-19 booster on Tuesday at my local CVS. The pharmacist gives very good shots, so I did not have the nerve issues in my arm that I experienced after the second shot at the hospital. It was more like the first time, with my arm being a little sore. I was a bit tired on Wednesday and a little chilled. It felt more like the first Covid-19 shot rather than what I experienced after the second one.
On Sunday, I baked Whole Wheat Oat Bran Bread—Take III—as I continue my adaptation of Peter Reinhart’s recipe. This time I used half bread flour and did not substitute in any high-gluten flour. I kept the changes of using half whole wheat flour, grinding the oat bran, reducing the yeast to 1 ½ Tbs. and the salt to 1 Tbs. and using just 5 Tbs. honey. I increased the buttermilk substitution to 3 cups, using just ½ cup water. I ended up adding 1 Tbs. of water as the dough kneaded. Next time, I will use 5 oz. water. I reduced the olive oil that I add from 4 Tbs. to 3 Tbs. Instead of using two 9x5 pans (makes enormous loaves), I baked it as three slightly small 8x4 loaves, a size that works better for us. I started the baking at 375F for a couple of minutes, then lowered it to the 350F of the recipe. The loaves were done at about 42 minutes. Note: The flavor and crumb are very good. I think with the addition of another ounce of water (to make a total of 5 oz water), the recipe will be ready to be typed and added to my baking binder.
I felt ok enough after my Covid-19 booster on Wednesday to bake the Whole Wheat Sourdough Cheese Crackers from dough I had resting in the refrigerator. I have decided not to add any salt on top of these from now on. I was keeping a light hand, but there is plenty of sodium in the cheese powder, as well as some in the milk and milk powder.
Sunday dinner was my Turkey-Zucchini Loaf with Peach-Dijon Glaze, boiled and roughly mashed red potatoes, tossed in olive oil with a little salt, and microwaved green beans—a blessing from a garden where we thought there were no more.
We had leftover Turkey-Zucchini Loaf for dinner on Monday. I roasted red potatoes, tossed in olive oil and sprinkled with Penzey’s Mural of Flavor seasoning. I also made buttermilk coleslaw, although the cabbage was old, so the flavor was not that good. I need to learn the best way to store cabbage.
I received my Pfizer Covid-19 booster shot at 11 a.m. on Tuesday. I planned an easy dinner that would allow me to save the turkey-zucchini loaf for tomorrow, and then have another meal for Thursday. I was relatively confident that I could cook the day of the shot, but given last time’s day-after, I wanted to make sure most food was prepared. So, I made salmon patties that we could have with the leftover roasted potatoes and the coleslaw.
I roasted a medium, cubed butternut squash, tossed in a bit of olive oil, using my small convection oven to have for Wednesday dinner with leftover turkey-zucchini meatloaf and microwaved frozen peas.
For lunch on Wednesday and into the week, I made soup with the Autumn Frost puree that I made yesterday. I had about 4 cups, which I combined with 2 cups of chicken/turkey broth, 1 ½ tsp. Penzey’s Now Curry, and a couple Tbs. of leftover Greek yogurt that I needed to use. The Autumn Frost squash is an acceptable substitute in the soup, but it is not as sweet as butternut squash, nor does its puree have as smooth of a texture. I will probably buy a couple more Autumn Frost to use for soup. The vendor tells me that their experience last year is that the squashes become sweeter the longer they are stored.
For Thursday’s dinner, I used the leftover pork and the drippings from when it was cooked. I chopped carrots, celery, and a red bell pepper from our garden in avocado oil, then added sliced mushrooms and chopped zucchini. I added the drippings, and a heaping ½ tsp. of dried onion that I had rehydrated, the pork, then some farro that I had cooked separately. (I cooked ½ cup dry farro, rinsed first in 1 ¾ cups water.) We have enough for a second meal tomorrow. The idea was to have less grain to more vegetables, and it worked very well.
Dinner on Saturday was panko coated chicken breast cutlets, noodles (Garden Herb Egg Tagliatelli for Aldi’s), and microwaved fresh broccoli.
I also made a batch of yogurt on Saturday. Unfortunately, when we shopped on Thursday in Plymouth, Kroger was out of plain Stonyfield yogurt—something which happens far too frequently.
I baked Cinnamon-Swirl Pumpkin Rolls, on Friday, a recipe that I have been adapting from the King Arthur recipe site. I use 2 tsp. of the special gold yeast and proof it in 1 tsp. honey. I use equal parts whole wheat and AP flour. I usually add ¾ cup oats, but this time I added ¾ cup BRM 5-Grain blend that I am using up. I reduce the salt by 1/3 and add 2 Tbs. flax meal. I replaced ¼ cup butter with 3 Tbs. olive oil. I use 12 oz. pumpkin puree, and my own blend of cinnamon, ginger, and cloves. I found that I needed to add an additional tablespoon of AP flour as the dough mixed in the bread machine. I used about 1/3 cup crystalized ginger in the cinnamon sugar filling. For the icing, I used 1 cup powdered sugar, 1 Tbs. melted butter, 1 Tbs. 1% milk, and ½ tsp. vanilla. These are delicious! However, my husband has asked me to leave out the crystalized ginger next time. Sigh.
I baked the Italian Lemon Ricotta Cookies from the Olive Tomato blog on Saturday afternoon.
I made dough on Tuesday for my Whole Wheat Sourdough Cheese Crackers.
The cake sounds good, Skeptic. I have baked the rye cookies on the KABC site and like them.
On Tuesday I roasted an Autumn Frost squash, a new variety for me:
https://www.panamseed.com/plant_info.aspx?phid=058800001025662
I have been having difficulty at the farmer’s market finding butternut squash of any larger size. I’ve bought some smaller ones, but the larger ones are not to be found. A vendor told me that their butternut squash never grow that large, so they have starting growing Autumn Frost squash, which are of a similar flavor. I pureed the roasted squash and will try it in a soup tomorrow.
Scott pan-cooked pork for Tuesday dinner. I cut up and roasted some little Honey Nut squashes that we grew from seed from ones bought last year at the farmer’s market. We also had microwaved frozen peas.
Your story of Violet's love for baking made me smile, Aaron.
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