[BakerAunt]

I saw my doctor last week, and she is still firmly on the Vitamin D train. I had cut back at the end of last March, so that I was alternating (every other day) a multivitamin with 1000 IU Vitamin D with a 2000 IU Vitamin D because I was concerned about taking 3000 IU per day, and frankly not keen on 600 IU in calcium supplements, as I am working to get most of my calcium from food. Well, they tested my Vitamin D levels and said, just as they did last year, that "they are a little low" and the doctor wants me on the 2000 IU and says it's ok to take the multivitamin with its 1000 additional IUs of Vitamin D as well. I may ditch the multivitamin. I am, however, wondering if I'm even absorbing most of the Vitamin D that I take.

I do not like being so confused.

[BakerAunt]

On Tuesday afternoon, I am baking Len's Rye/Semolina/Whole Wheat Buns recipe, but I am experimenting with baking it as two 8 1/2 x 4 1/2 loaves. I 3/4 cup buttermilk for that much water in the original recipe, so I did that again. I decided to try, in my doubled recipe 1 and 1 1/2 scant Tbs. molasses instead of honey, and I'm using canola rather than olive oil. I'm using 3 tsp. yeast and 1 1/4 tsp. salt and only one egg. (I'm remembering Paddy's bread recipe where she specified that when doubling the recipe, do not double the egg.) My only other change was to add 1/4 cup special dry milk. I'll report back on the final result.

Note: The bread baked nicely, although I let it over rise a bit the second time. Thirty minutes would have been enough. I'm looking forward to cutting into it tomorrow.

• This reply was modified 6 years, 5 months ago by BakerAunt.
• This reply was modified 6 years, 5 months ago by BakerAunt.
• This reply was modified 6 years, 5 months ago by BakerAunt.

[BakerAunt]

I selected correctly, but that may be because I was focused on fresh green peas, but had I thought about dried ones, used to make soup, I might not have chosen the correct answer. I take it, from Mike's explanation that dried or fresh does not matter, in which case I've learned a nutritional fact I did not know and will keep in mind when I make split pea soup (green peas or my favorite yellow peas).

[BakerAunt]

Well, I never said it was the original recipe....

[BakerAunt]

I made a stir-fry tonight with the rest of the cooked pork. Vegetables were green onion, carrots, celery, mushrooms, broccoli, and snow peas from our garden. I used the deglazed drippings from when my husband cooked the pork chops, and mixed in soba noodles.

[BakerAunt]

Well, we did not like the taste of the cake. Next time I would omit the lemon oil. We will probably use some of that leftover blueberry sauce on subsequent slices.

[BakerAunt]

On Monday morning, I baked my adaptation of King Arthur’s Lemon Blueberry Cornmeal Cakes. Although I saw the recipe in a recent catalog, I also checked it onsite, where they give directions on baking it in an 8 1/2x4 1/2-inch loaf pan. I decided to use my 6-cup mini-Bundt pan. I replaced the AP flour with white whole wheat flour. I added ¼ cup Bob’s Red Mill milk powder and 2 Tbs. flax meal. I used ¾ cup buttermilk and ¼ cup oil (original recipe uses ½ cup each). I don’t have lemon paste, so I used the zest of one lemon, and I doubled the lemon juice from 1 to 2 Tbs. I did use the lemon oil. I baked it at 350F for 30 minutes, tested it and decided to give it another 5 minutes. It came out of the pan beautifully, thanks to THE Grease.

[BakerAunt]

I went on a low-saturated fat diet last year. Most butter went out of my diet. We rarely have beef, and when we do it is lean. we do eat lean pork. We like chicken and turkey, but I've stopped cooking chicken breasts, since most have those white streaks in them. I also banned Hershey's Kisses and M&Ms, as well as anything else of that ilk. Tortilla chips are not allowed unless my stepdaughter is here to eat most of them. I do allow mini-York Peppermint patties; f I nibble on just one, it's .5g saturated fat. I make pie crusts with canola oil, and I use olive or canola in baking. Most cheese is out of my diet unless it is low-fat mozzarella or 2% cheddar, and even there, I try to keep it low, although I like to get some calcium from it. I switched back to Land o' Lakes Light Butter-Canola spread. I drink 1% milk and eat nonfat Chobani Greek yogurt. Eggs are still in my diet, although mostly I use them in baking.

My cholesterol was tested again last week, and it has improved, but it needs to improve more:

My LDL went from 190 to 165, and my overall went from 274 to 243. I also have lost 14 pounds and can fit into clothes I could not wear a year ago. That was a nice benefit. I am a bit depressed that the cholesterol numbers didn't come down further.

I eat steel-cut oats almost every morning. I eat lots of whole grains.

The areas where I could perhaps improve, based on my reading are: eating more fruits and vegetables--easier in the summer and fall here--and exercising more.

My doctor told me to continue doing the low-saturated fat way of eating, and she will test me again in a year.

• This reply was modified 6 years, 5 months ago by BakerAunt.

[BakerAunt]

Thank heavens for pans that stack--so says the woman trying to work out which pans get to stay in the house kitchen, and which will be stored in the apt. kitchen over the garage--with it's large wire shelving (great) and it's rather small cabinets (not so great).

Italian Cook. I have one pan that I store the lid upside down under the pan. It's a heavy plastic. That pan is a 13x9-inch, and I think it is one of those "air bake" ones that were all the rage years ago, but which I found did not work that well. I still have it, however, because when I make my caramels recipe, it's the perfect size. Of course, I am not likely to be making caramels anymore, unless I decide it is worth my while to try selling them.

[BakerAunt]

I chose the correct answer. Had I been working with the list given in the answer, however, I would have chosen incorrectly.

[BakerAunt]

I have a Cuisinart stand mixer, and so I have to guess at speeds. However, I looked at the recipe book that came with the mixer, and that let me decide what speed is appropriate.

[BakerAunt]

Great pun, Joan!

[BakerAunt]

Skeptic--Crepes is on my list of something that I'd like to cook, although butter may be an issue for me now. I bought a Staub "crepe pan" back when Chef's originally closed. I bought it for the flat griddle surface for when I make English muffins (and it can be used on the wood stove as well), so I've not used it for crepes. It came with two wooden tools: One is T shaped--a 5-inch round piece at the top, with a smaller diameter round piece stuck into it (forming the T). There is also a narrow flat wood panel that has a tapered ridge all the way around its 7-inch top part before a short handle, and it forms a tip at the end. I recall seeing videos where the chef uses the T-tool to spread out the crepe batter quickly to get it into an even large crepe. I think the other tool is for lifting it out. It might be worth checking out some online videos.

Maybe we should have a crepe thread.

[BakerAunt]

Best wishes on the new arrival at your kitchen, Italian Cook. May it serve you long and well in mixing up tasty food!

[BakerAunt]

When I was making thin crust pizza, I used the KAF thin-crust recipe. I would make the dough, then while it was rising, prep the toppings. I usually shaped the dough by hand on parchment paper. It made two pizzas, and since I was baking my husband's first, I would do that crust first. When I did mine, I found that it stretched more easily, so clearly a waiting period of about 5 minutes before starting was needed with that particular crust. However, I never got it as large as the KAF recipe said. Twelve inches diameter was tops. I once made it as four small separate pizzas--top your own. I did the math to figure out what size each should be.

My husband prefers the sheet pan sourdough pizza crust that I've developed with my starter, and it is easier than the thin crust. Once it is in the pan, it does its second rise there, and that's when I prep the toppings.

Don't give up, Italian Cook. It's a matter of figuring out the routine, which gets easier and faster the more often you do it.

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