BakerAunt
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My husband cooked boneless pork in a skillet on the stove. I roasted the halves of a Queen squash from our garden, then filled it with cooked farro mixed with ½ tsp. Penzey’s Bavarian seasoning.
On Saturday, I pulled more pumpkin out of the freezer and baked a pumpkin cake in my Nordic Ware Baby Pumpkin Cake pan. My starting point was the recipe that came with the pan, but I made some changes. I replaced 2/3 of the AP flour with whole wheat pastry flour. I reduced the sugar from 1 1/3 cups to 1 cup plus 2 Tbs. I reduced the salt from ¾ to ½ tsp. I replaced 1/3 cup butter with ¼ cup canola oil plus enough buttermilk to make 1/3 cup. I added 2 Tbs. BRM milk powder and 1 Tbs. flax meal. Since I was using homemade pumpkin puree, I deleted 1/3 cup water. I also omitted the pecans. I also changed the mixing directions, since if an oil cake is beaten as much as a butter cake would be, it tends to be tougher and drier. I baked it on the third rack up (above center) in my oven.
Instead of 28 minutes, my cake took 45 minutes. That is likely due to the pumpkin puree being more watery, so leaving out the additional water was a good call. The two halves domed a bit more than I would like. I might consider reducing the baking soda from 1 tsp. to ¾ tsp. next time. I cut off the domes and we each had one for dessert tonight. There is plenty of sweetness, so I might further cut the sugar to 1 cup next time. The only spice is cinnamon, so there is just a hint of it, and the pumpkin stars. I will make a glaze and “glue” the top and bottom of the pumpkin together with it for a festive cake for tomorrow’s dessert.
Only an advanced baker ought to try this loaf. Maybe they think it is approachable since it is broken down into steps with some long and some shorter times separating them, but that means whoever bakes it must have two or three days clearly organized in order to do what is needed at the required times.
No, Skeptic, you would not be hoarding if you buy more pumpkins and apples. I say this as someone who has six pie pumpkins and two peanut pumpkins waiting to be processed. Most people really do not know how to deal with pumpkins, so in buying them, you are doing a useful service to the growers. The seller from whom I buy at the farmers' market knows me as "the lady who likes to bake with pumpkin," and had thoughtfully brought along an extra peanut pumpkin last week in case I wanted it. (Of course, I did!) Their sales are mostly decorative pumpkins--most of which will end up in the landfill.
As for apples, if we can get to an orchard, we will be stocking up as well. The apples keep pretty well in the garage (heater is at 39F). My husband likes to eat them plain, and I do a lot of baking with them. I hope to find some for applesauce. I'm also considering canning apple pie filling.
Cases are spiking in our state, and there has been a sharp increase in the cases reported in our county over the last few days.
I made another batch of yogurt on Thursday.
I've noted that ground turkey prices at Aldi's have been particularly good the last two times we've shopped there (about $1 less than usual.
On Thursday, I baked my Whole Wheat Sourdough Cheese Crackers, using the dough I made last week.
On Wednesday, I made two more containers of pizza sauce from more of our garden tomatoes. I will freeze them for now.
To go with leftover roast chicken on Wednesday, I cooked freekeh in turkey broth from the freezer. I sauteed carrots and celery and mushrooms, then added the freekeh. We also had microwaved frozen peas.
To my surprise, the local grocery had Gold Medal unbleached flour for $2.59 per bag, so I was able to get an additional bag. I wonder why unbleached flour has been so hard to find.
Thanks, Skeptic. I'll report on the voting experience once the location opens in my town (only for two Saturdays in October). I, too, liked the feeling of being part of a great day and until the last election always voted on election day.
We did our big grocery run to the next town this morning. We included Walmart--only the third time we've been to Walmart since the first weekend in March. That meant stocking up on extras. The local store charged me $4.99 for mayonnaise a couple of weeks ago. I paid half of that at Walmart and so bought two. At Kroger, I was able to snag a bag of blue label Pepperidge Farm Dressing mix. I'm not taking any chances of not having it for Thanksgiving.
Has anyone else noted a shortage of unbleached flour--Gold Medal or Pillsbury? Neither Walmart nor Kroger had it. They did have King Arthur, but sometimes I want the lower protein. There was plenty of bleached flour and even White Lily self-rising flour, as well as whole wheat (KABC and BRM). I did buy another small bag of Arrowhead Mills spelt flour.
Other than the unbleached flour, I came home with everything on my list.
Note: post is corrected to say Gold Medal.
I'm baking a pumpkin pie this Monday evening. While it might seem that I am copying Joan, the occasion is my husband's cousins' reunion, happening tomorrow night via Zoom. We all agreed to cancel the usual fall reunion, because, hey, in the time of Covid-19, what possibly could go wrong with people traveling from Florida, California, Michigan, Virginia, and Indiana?
One of the highlights of the reunion is an early Thanksgiving dinner with all the trimmings. So, for the Zoom call, people are choosing pie, wine, or turkey leg to get into the spirit. My husband is pleased that he is getting pumpkin pie, which is his second favorite pie.
For dinner on Monday, I roasted a chicken with cut-up potatoes and small carrots, tossed in olive oil and sprinkled with Penzey’s Buttermilk Ranch Dressing mix. I also rubbed the dressing mix on the chicken. I put the chicken up on a silicone rack and distributed the vegetables around it, since the vegetables under the chicken do not roast as well. The result was excellent, and I will employ it again. We had the chicken and vegetables with the last of the green beans from the garden, or so my husband tells me, but he has said so before, and yet we end up getting more. With the weather getting colder and less sun, however, it may truly be the end of the green beans. We have leftovers for the next few days.
Your pie looks delicious, Len.
To go with leftover soup on Sunday, I baked my Scottish Style Scones (Barley).
Italian Cook--also, depending on the size of the pan and your microwave, you can heat up a cup of water in the microwave, then put the pan inside and close it. That makes a good rising chamber. Just don't let anyone hit the controls while the rolls rise.
I was relieved that Bob's Red Mill has its milk powder back in stock (or did when I ordered it). It is vital for my yogurt, so I've had to hold back on adding as much or any to granola, muffins, quick breads.
Cases in my state are rising, since our governor, in his not so great wisdom, moved us on to stage five from stage 4.5. We should probably still be in stage 2 or 3. My state is one where vote-by-mail is only allowed for about five reasons, so I have to vote in person. There is also a shortage of poll workers. (By the way, the primary did allow vote-by-mail without incident.) I will take advantage of early voting, put my license in a baggy, take my own pen, and consider wearing disposable gloves.
Italian Cook--I usually slice my bread the next day because we mostly eat bread at lunch. This particular bread is not meant to be a soft bread but a chewy one. I let breads cool for about four hours, then wrap them or put them in Tupperware.
I ran into the same cold kitchen issue when I made my sourdough pan pizza this week. I was lucky in that I had started early enough that I could wait it out. In the case of the spelt bread, the cold was a blessing, given the electrical disruption.
You could put the pan of rolls on a rack over a pan of hot water next time. You would still have to wait on the second rise, but they would rise. Another option might be to just refrigerate them and let them rise overnight, then bake the next day.
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