[BakerAunt]

Mike--The recipe called for combining hot water with the cornstarch and sugar and stirring until it thickened. The berries were then added, but the recipe said to cook only until the berries are hot and not to boil them.

I will add maybe 1/2 tsp. of lemon juice next time I make the recipe (next year when the black raspberries return). I wonder what people who are trying to cook local, in an area where citrus is not local, and trying to cook in season, would do.

[BakerAunt]

At the farmers’ market yesterday, the folks at Hole in the Woods Farm shared a black raspberry cobbler recipe with me, even though I bought potatoes. (We have our own supply of wild black raspberries.) I baked a half recipe on Sunday (we only had 3 cups of black raspberries left), but of course I made a few changes. I left the filling alone, but for the topping, I used ½ Cup AP flour and ½ Cup whole wheat pastry flour rather than all AP. Instead of using 1-1/2 tsp. baking powder, I used 1 tsp. baking powder and 1/8 tsp. baking soda, as the recipe uses buttermilk, and I wanted to offset its acidity. The original recipe is baked in a cast iron skillet, but I don’t have one available right now, so I used a 9-inch Emile Henry deep pie dish. I brought the topping together into a ball, then flattened it into a circle 5-1/2 inches in diameter. I cut it into 8 wedges. I arranged those over the topping. As I was baking just a half batch, I baked for 30 minutes, until the topping was lightly browned. It is good, but I think the filling did not have as nice of a flavor as my jam. Maybe I should use something other than cornstarch as the thickener?

Here's the filling ingredients for the half recipe:

1/4 Cup + 2 Tbs. sugar
1 Tbs. cornstarch
1/4 Cup + 2 Tbs hot water (3 oz.)
3 Cups black raspberries
1/2 Tbs. butter

[BakerAunt]

Yesterday we saw the start of two tiny tomatoes. Here's hoping more will follow.

[BakerAunt]

After leftovers for two nights, it is time to cook again. Whole chicken legs were 59 cents per pound at the grocery, so I bought a package with six, and at my husband's request, I’m making Maple Glazed Chicken with Sweet Potatoes and Rosemary (sheet pan dinner—and yes, I know that I also cooked it last week), to be accompanied by steamed green beans from our garden.

[BakerAunt]

We are out of bread, so Saturday afternoon is devoted to baking two loaves of my Buttermilk Barley-Whole Wheat Grape Nuts Bread. The recipe began as the one Dachshundlady posted as Grape Nuts Bread (which is on this site), but I’ve been substituting in some buttermilk and some whole wheat flour for a while now, and I have posted a Buttermilk Grape Nuts Bread that is my variation (both a single and a double loaf recipe). I’ve now started substituting in ¾ Cup barley flour as well, and we like, so I’m giving this version its own name. I also cut the salt to 2 tsp. after looking at the sodium content of Grape Nuts.

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

[BakerAunt]

Oh, I also made Cherry Granola on Friday morning. I like it for an occasional breakfast. My husband likes to snack. Guess who will probably eat most of it? 🙂

[BakerAunt]

Last week, I bought zucchini at the farmers' market. I baked the KAF recipe for Double Chocolate Zucchini Bread on Friday afternoon. I know from having baked this recipe several times before that the 1/3 Cup of honey in the recipe is too strong for my taste, and I have looked for ways to reduce it. (I'm not crazy about honey and chocolate together.) Last time I used 2/3 Cup light brown sugar and 2 Tbs. honey, but I still felt the recipe needs work. This time, I wondered if perhaps the additional brown sugar in a chocolate recipe also gave an off-taste, so I used the original ½ Cup light brown sugar and added ¼ Cup granulated sugar. I reduced the honey to 2 Tbs. (I think it might be there to deter staling—something Cass always told us.) To make the recipe slightly healthier, I substituted 2/3 Cup white whole wheat flour for that much of the KAF flour, I added ¼ Cup powdered milk, and 1 Tbs. flax meal. I used Ghirardelli dark chocolate chips. (Hey, dark chocolate is healthy.) 🙂 I baked them for 30 minutes in the U.S.A. 8-well mini-loaf pan. They rose a bit over the rim, but it works well. We ate one of the little loaves for dessert, and we liked the taste and texture. I’ll freeze at least half the batch for “emergency” desserts.

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

[BakerAunt]

Navlys--We actually had planned to return home via Gainesville, visit a couple we know there, and shop the TJ. However, the wife fell, broke a leg, and had to have emergency surgery the day before we left, so we went back the way we came (and there was no TJ on that route).

[BakerAunt]

Baking soda in the bottom of the trash bag helps with smells.

[BakerAunt]

I feel for you Navlys, as I have not lived near a Trader Joe's for nearly 24 years. Whenever I visit a place that has one, I try to stock up. Unfortunately, we have not been near a TJ for nearly three years.

[BakerAunt]

Dinner was more sweet corn, steamed broccoli, pan-fried hamburgers (my husband did not want to grill in the heat) on Wheat-Oat Flax Buns, and for me, a side salad of sliced onion, tomato, and cucumber with a sugar-cider vinegar marinade. (Thank you, S. Wirth!)

I do need to work on my hamburger pan-frying technique. I don't think that I've cooked a hamburger since my single days, and then I used the microwave....

The ground beef we bought at the farmers' market was excellent, and I will buy from that vendor again.

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

[BakerAunt]

On this Independence Day, I baked the KAF recipe for Wheat-Oat Flax Buns, with my changes, this morning. We are planning to grill hamburgers tonight.

Re: First Clear Flour. I may regret not having Mike pick up a bag for me, although storing 50 pounds right now might have been an issue, as we continue to wait on our contractor so that we can get the remodeling done--and then have a second good refrigerator. (The one we brought with us is in the apartment and working great, but the one that came with the house is on its way out, and we are hoping it will have enough life in it, by the time our contractor is ready to start, that we can qualify for the $50 rebate from the power company for removing a working inefficient refrigerator.)

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

[BakerAunt]

Like Len, I wanted a patriotic dessert for tomorrow, so on Tuesday afternoon, I baked Confetti Cookies, a recipe from the Smitten Kitchen blog (May 12, 2016). Instead of rainbow sprinkles, I used a mix of red, white, and blue nonpareils—until I ran out, at which point, I switched to rainbow ones. I found that I needed to bake mine 11 minutes rather than the 9-10 stated, but I have heavier baking sheets. I ended up with 40 cookies. I love the light texture and the crunchiness from the nonpareils. I will definitely bake this recipe again.

[BakerAunt]

Tuesday dinner was a salad with leftover chicken breast on top, leftover roasted potatoes, and SWEET CORN! I found it at the farmers’ market when I went before dinner, and the Amish farmer said it had been picked just three hours before. Oh, it is so delicious.

[BakerAunt]

We harvested and ate some of the first green beans from our garden this evening. My husband tells me to expect plenty more, as he tries to keep those "not bush beans" from overrunning our small garden. Our tomato plants have developed blossoms. The bell pepper plant still has just the one large green pepper. I'm waiting for it to turn red, but I wonder if that will keep the plant from developing any other peppers.

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