[BakerAunt]

You are winning him over to the baked-side, Joan! 🙂

[BakerAunt]

Our dinner on Friday night was Salmon and Couscous. I used 1 tsp. dill, ½ tsp. chives, and a bit of salt and pepper as the seasoning. We had fresh microwaved broccoli as well.

It was close to 80F today. The wind is blowing now, but it was still this morning, which made for perfect kayaking. It's the first time I've been able to do so since that ankle sprain over five weeks ago. That's because we have to carry the kayak down the stairs to the lake, and that requires both of us. After an intense week, I needed the peace of floating in the kayak.

[BakerAunt]

Thanks for your thought, Mike. Next time I'm in Aldi's, I'll also read the label of their product and see if there is a difference in how the two are produced.

[BakerAunt]

On Thursday, I made another batch of tomato sauce (about 3 cups). As I cannot use the 4-qt. Calphalon pan anymore, due to the loss of its anodized coating, I looked around and realized that the 12-inch All-Clad round roaster pan, although not quite as deep, would work. It performed admirably and cleaned up easily. I expect these tomatoes were the last major batch, although some are still ripening on the vine. So far, the weather has allowed them to continue. If we get to where freezing weather is forecast, then we will pick any that remain and ripen them in the house.

For Thursday dinner, we had the remaining leftover Turkey-Zucchini Loaf with Peach-Dijon glaze, with one of the Queen squashes from our garden. I halved it lengthwise, lightly rubbed with olive oil, and baked for 40 minutes at 400F in my countertop convection oven. I then turned them over and stuffed them with a combination of bulgur and the leftover farro, mushrooms, and red bell pepper mix. I put a little bit of 2% cheese on top. These baked for an additional 20 minutes at 375F.

I realized that with the zucchini in the meat loaf, the Queen squash, and the pumpkin bread at dessert, we ate three kinds of squash this evening.

[BakerAunt]

Apparently there has been a run on peanut butter due to the pandemic:

https://www.marketplace.org/2020/09/22/food-industry-reaping-benefits-people-staying-home-peanuts/?utm_campaign=20200922_Marketplace&utm_medium=email&utm_source=sfmc_&utm_content=&utm_term=3676540

[BakerAunt]

For dinner on Tuesday, I made Turkey-Zucchini Loaf with Peach Dijon Mustard Glaze. I also cooked some farro in broth from the freezer, which I mixed with red bell pepper and sliced mushrooms sauteed in grapeseed oil. We had microwaved green beans as well. For this dinner, the red bell pepper and the green beans came from our garden. We still have a couple of red bell peppers, but this may be the last of the green beans. With the pumpkin snacking cake for dessert, it was the perfect dinner to celebrate the autumnal equinox.

[BakerAunt]

Aaron--Perhaps set the oven 25 degrees hotter, then when you put the loaves in, turn it down to the correct temperature?

[BakerAunt]

On Sunday, I baked a half recipe of Toffee-Pumpkin Snack Cake, a recipe form Better Homes & Gardens Fall Baking (2017), p. 28. I reduce the canola oil in the half recipe to 1/3 cup and make up the ½ cup with buttermilk. I reduced the half sugar from ¾ to 2/3 cup. I use my own spice mixture in place of pumpkin pie spice. In the half recipe, I use a scant ¼ cup (45g) of toffee pieces, which I put into the bars. I sprinkled autumn-colored nonpareils thickly on top.

I'll be working through the remaining frozen pumpkin. I have bought five pie pumpkins from the farmers market, and I may try to get a couple more.

[BakerAunt]

We will be enjoying leftovers tonight as well.

On Sunday, I made another batch of yogurt.

[BakerAunt]

Thanks, Mike, and S.Wirth. I will look into a replacement All-Clad pan. I have found All-Clad at T.J. Maxx and at Tuesday Morning for less than the going rate. They might have slight cosmetic blemishes but cost less. I favor the "made in America" ones. I like the heavy bottoms. I can cook grains in the sauce pan that I have and not get sticking or burning, and the skillet that I have works great for simmering the blueberries for my pie recipe. I have a small roaster pan that performed so much better for my maple-glazed pork tenderloin recipe than did the Calphalon--more efficient cooking, less overbrowning, no sticking.

I will have to look online given the pandemic and our distance from stores.

[BakerAunt]

The Whole Wheat Sourdough Pan bread came out very well. The tweaks appear to have helped with the dryness I noted when I first worked with the recipe back in May.

On Saturday, I baked my Whole Wheat Sourdough Cheese Crackers from the dough I made earlier this week. They are needed because my husband finished the last of the previous batch today.

[BakerAunt]

On Saturday, I made my Broccoli, Cherry Tomato, and Quinoa Salad, using cherry tomatoes from today’s farmers’ market. My husband cooked pork in a pan, and we also each had an ear of sweet corn. Due to this salad, my husband is now willing to include a cherry tomato plant in next year’s garden or in a separate pot.

[BakerAunt]

Joan's Cinnamon bread has my mouth watering, but since we are out of regular bread, I needed to focus on what could be used for sandwiches. I made another attempt at adapting the recipe for Whole Wheat Sourdough Pan Bread, from an old Sunset cookbook titled Bread (first edition, not revised one). It seemed a little dry back when I tried it on May 20, so I adapted it further by increasing the sourdough starter further to 1 1/4 cups. I used the same proportion of whole wheat and dark rye that I did in my previous adaptation, but I used just the Bob's Red Mill artisan bread flour, and I increased my olive oil substitute to 3 Tbs. I inadvertently may have cut salt by half rather than by a third as intended. I preheated the oven to 400F, then turned it down to 375F once I put in the bread. The loaves got nice oven spring. They are cooling now. I look forward to slicing into one at lunch tomorrow.

[BakerAunt]

I think that some parts of the country are more likely to carry self-rising flour than others. Joan may have an advantage living in the south. I do not recall seeing it in Texas (admittedly, I wasn't looking), but west Texas is more of the west than the south. I do not think that I've seen it here, but it may be that I did not look. I'll report back after our next shopping trip to the town to the north.

[BakerAunt]

Great looking bagels and bread, Mike. Oh, for a taste....

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