[BakerAunt]

On Tuesday evening, I baked Skeptic’s Pumpkin Biscotti. I used white whole wheat flour, added 3 Tbs. Bob’s Red Mill nonfat powdered milk, and deleted the vanilla. I also reduce the cloves to 1/8 tsp. Like Skeptic, I use 2/3 C. sugar. The recipe really worked well this time; perhaps it was the consistency of the homemade pumpkin puree. I initially stirred it together with a dough whisk, then used a bowl scraper and my hands to knead it into a mass, before forming it into a 16-inch log. As always. I spritzed with water and demerara sugar before the first bake.

[BakerAunt]

Today I bought a 30-inch, 4 burner Wolf dual fuel range. To my surprise, both my husband and I decided that we like the red knobs. It has a three year warranty, since I'm having it installed by their trained people. We did find out that the gas and electric need to be very specifically located for Wolf stoves so that the stove can be pushed back against the wall. As we are installing the gas line and moving the electric, that is not a big deal.

I chose a Zephyr "Cyclone" hood. The Wolf hood was 1) very expensive and 2) would not fit under any cabinets in our kitchen, where we have 95 1/4 inches from floor to ceiling. It has a self-cleaning function. I'll let you know how it works once everything is installed, which will probably be early March, since the cabinets and the counter tops must go in before the stove. Countertops are not ordered until the cabinets are installed.

• This reply was modified 6 years, 8 months ago by BakerAunt.

[BakerAunt]

I checked out a friend's kitchen here, and he had a long fluorescent in the center of the kitchen area, which his father says is "too much light for me in the morning!" He also has various under the counter lights that are both plug in and work on a switch.

We decided on LED "can" lights, which will be inserted into the ceiling. We have two in one area of the living room, and they give off great light. I have arranged for one to be centered over the sink and one over the peninsula. I was going to put two over the peninsula, but it does not work with the roof angle. As I said, these are low ceilings. I will also have a light on the stove hood.

We head to South Bend tomorrow to check out paint color for the house siding, to buy paint for the interior, and to go by the appliance store so that I can get a look at the Wolf range. They don't have the dual fuel on the floor, but they do have that size in a gas model, so I can look it over. Depending on the contractor's schedule, I will have an idea of when to place the order. I need to order it before February 11, as there will be a price increase on that date. I plan to get the black rather than the red knobs. (They also have stainless, so I will look at those.)

I will look at stove hoods. Wolf makes one, but the hood does not necessarily have to be Wolf.

I'll look at refrigerators as well. Sub Zero is not in my price range, and we don't want a built-in, so I will see what else they have.

[BakerAunt]

I tried a new recipe on Monday, Braised Chicken with Apples and Sage (Gourmet, December 2005) from the Epicurious website. I used ten chicken thighs rather than eight, as that was what the package contained. My two other changes were to use onion rather than shallots and three Winesap rather than two Gala apples. I did not peel the apples. I served it with unpeeled, mashed Yukon Gold potatoes and steamed green beans. It’s a recipe that I’ll likely make again next fall or winter, as we liked the change from our usual chicken entrees.

The dog, who charms food from my husband, also approved!

[BakerAunt]

On Monday afternoon, I used the KAF Toasting Bread recipe as my base but continued to make some changes. At some point, I will post the recipe here as [Rolled Grain of Your Choice] Whole Wheat Buttermilk Bread, but I’m still adjusting the liquid. Because we are down to a single refrigerator-freezer, I’m only baking one loaf of bread at a time. I used the bread machine to do the kneading. Today’s rolled grain was barley, which I baked a few weeks ago, and which my husband really likes, as do I.

[BakerAunt]

I recently formulated a version of this cake lower in saturated fat. If you wish to bake that variation, delete the butter and use a total of 2/3 cup canola oil. Begin by beating the oil and the sugar together, then beat in each egg separately.

In addition, to increase the wholegrains, I substituted 1 cup of barley flour for 1 cup of the regular flour. I recommend that change if you wish to increase wholegrains in your diet. In fact barley flour, because of its low gluten, works quite well when substituted into cake and quick bread recipes.

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

[BakerAunt]

Chocomouse, I tried the Ancient Grains a long time ago, and we did not care for it. I ended up using just a little of it at a time until I used it up. Other than the Harvest Grains, I tend to avoid blends simply because I'm disappointed when the blend is changed or discontinued.

[BakerAunt]

Hello, again, Cass. I always like to read and consider your comments.

I've done other crackers that do not use eggs, but I'll keep your suggestion in mind, just in case increasing the water a bit does not do the trick.

Believe it or not, the 1/8th-inch thickness actually produces a nice sized graham cracker thickness. Previously, I did Peter Reinhart's recipe, and his 1/4-inch were too thick.

Honey would certainly add some moisture, but I'm not sure that I want the honey flavor, since we really like the brown sugar taste.

I will be baking these again because my husband adores them, and I also like them. I'll post updates on what I do with the recipe.

[BakerAunt]

On Friday, I baked my version of Ellen's buns using some additional whole wheat flour. They are good, but I will go back to my original adaptation. We used them for sandwiches with some of the leftover maple pork tenderloin.

I also baked my Eggnog cake, using low-fat eggnog, which I miraculously found in Kroger. The original recipe uses 1/2 cup oil and 1/2 cup butter; I substituted 2/3 cup oil for both. I also substituted in 1 cup of barley flour. I made it in the "Party" cake pan, which can be neatly sliced into 20 pieces, which comes to 1 g of fat per slice. I'll add a note tomorrow about whether this experiment is successful.

Note: The low-saturated fat eggnog cake is delicious and compares well to the original recipe. I think that I posted it here, so I'll add a note to the recipe.

• This reply was modified 6 years, 8 months ago by BakerAunt.
• This reply was modified 6 years, 8 months ago by BakerAunt.

[BakerAunt]

The blueberries came from a local farm. I canned the filling this summer. I still have 2 1/2 quarts, so I'll experiment later this winter and report back. I'm thinking it did not get hot enough. I'll use less filling, a higher temperature, and wait until it bubbles in the center.

[BakerAunt]

I baked a new recipe on Wednesday, Graham Crackers, from Recipes from the Old Mill: Baking with Whole Grains, by Sarah E. Myers and Mary Beth Lind (Good Books: 1995), p. 73. I’ve been looking for a graham cracker recipe. I had tried Peter Reinhart’s and did not like the consistency or the flavor, as I’m not a molasses fan. This recipe also uses oil rather than butter, but it uses brown sugar for the sweetening. I substituted graham flour for whole wheat flour, since I have it. I suspect in 1995, it was harder for the average baker to purchase. I added the optional cinnamon. The dough was very crumbly. (I wish that recipe writers would indicate what its consistency should be.) It came together a bit after refrigeration, but it was still crumbly. I ended up squishy each third of the dough together, flattening it, then spritzing with water until I could get it rolled out 1/8-inch thick. I rolled them out on parchment paper, with saran wrap on top, then cut them into 5x5 cm. squares (metric rules in such matters) and poked each a few times with a fork. I pulled them apart from each other. I baked for 15 minutes. They have very good flavor and while firmer than what we would buy in the store, they are nice to munch. It made about 60 crackers, with only 4 g saturated fat for the entire recipe, and that is from canola oil.
I’m wondering, if I bake them again, whether it would be best to add more water to the dough or to reduce the flour, as it was a bit of a pain rolling them out. However, I don’t want to change the consistency or the texture. It used 3 1/2 cups flour, 1/4 cup canola oil, and 3/4 cups water. It also called for 1/3 cup instant nonfat dry milk, and I used Bob's Red Mill brand for that, as I did for the graham flour. (For inclusiveness, it also used 1 1/2 tsp. baking powder, 1/4 tsp. salt, and 1/2 tsp. cinnamon.)

[BakerAunt]

I had some issues with the Blueberry Pie.

I tried baking the blueberry pie on New Year’s Day, using the oil crust, and reserving some of the crust ingredients to sprinkle on top. It came out more as a cobbler. The crust held up, but the filling did not thicken up. I used homemade blueberry pie filling that I canned last summer. I probably should have used just 1-quart rather than adding an additional pint. The pie would have been a bit low, but that would have been fine. I added 2 tsp. of lime juice and ¼ tsp. allspice. I may not have baked it-- after blind-baking the shell--for long enough at a higher temperature. I started it at 425F, then after 10 minutes reduced it to 375F and baked another 40 minutes. That works for my apple pie, which has a hot filling added, but not for this one with room-temperature filling. (The apple pie is also baked in a deep-dish Emile Henry ceramic pie plate; this one was baked in a regular 9-inch pie tin.) I probably would have left it longer, but we had Skype appointments with the kids, so I pulled it out, thinking it would gel as it cooled. It didn’t. The crust did come out crisp and not soggy, and I liked the topping. The filling is delicious, but we were hoping for regular pie.

Next time, I’ll use just a quart of filling. Other possible issues that may have created problems include the different kind of oven, putting the pie on the center shelf rather than the lower one, since the top element only comes on for broiling, need for higher oven temperature, or maybe it would bake best with a top crust. There is also the possibility that the filling could have been thicker.

• This reply was modified 6 years, 8 months ago by BakerAunt.
• This reply was modified 6 years, 8 months ago by BakerAunt.

[BakerAunt]

I baked a blueberry pie on New Year's day, that turned out rather soupy. Details are on the dessert thread.

[BakerAunt]

For Tuesday’s New Year’s dinner, I made maple-glazed pork tenderloin, mashed Yukon Gold potatoes w/skins; and black-eyed peas. We also had applesauce that I made in November and froze. Dinner was great, the dessert not so great.

[BakerAunt]

Thanks, Cass. Happy New Year to you! I was trying to cut back on the saturated fat by not having a top crust, but perhaps I could use a light streusel topping, like the one I used on the apple cake last week.

[Author]

Posts