[BakerAunt]

Mike--the link goes back to your "getting seeds to stick" post.

[BakerAunt]

I needed to use the lovely peaches I bought at Saturday's farmers' market, so on Wednesday, I tried a new recipe, "Peach Cobbler with Cinnamon-Swirl Biscuits," which appeared in Comfort Cooking Recipes (2002), a special issue from Better Homes and Gardens. I had trouble with the biscuit dough, so I'll post about it in the desserts section. However, the dessert is delicious, so I will make it again.

[BakerAunt]

Tonight, I made one of my vegetable stir-fry with leftover pork, the drippings from it, and soba noodles.

Unless there is another package of soba (buckwheat noodles) hidden in the pantry, that is my last one. I have not been able to find them here. I was going to stock up before we left Lubbock, but suddenly, they became hard to find there as well. I may need to look for a buckwheat pasta recipe.

[BakerAunt]

Thanks, Mike that worked. It's an interesting article.

A friend in Texas used to buy the marked down "old" bread. One day, that shelf was gone. She learned from a manager that it is more cost effective for the store to donate it and take the write-off than to sell it--particularly when people are not buying the full-priced bread but the sale bread.

In an issue of the older Baking Sheet, Jeffrey Hamelman wrote about having to throw bread away when homeless shelters and farm animals have enough. A blizzard hits, and no one comes to buy what is baked.

Maybe part of the problem is that there is too much inferior bread, cheaply made, being produced.

[BakerAunt]

I broke down and tried the salted butter that can be bought in bulk. I tried an 8 oz. roll in the cookies I baked this week (I omitted the salt in the recipe), and since it worked well, I bought a 2 pound roll for $5.99 and popped the wrapped butter into a sealed plastic container in the refrigerator. It will be some hassle to weigh it out each time I use some, but to save the money, I'm willing to do it.

I'll still look for unsalted butter on sale, since I do need it for some recipes.

Those dairy cows must have a great union negotiator.

[BakerAunt]

Hi, Aaron. For some reason the link takes me to a "cannot display this page" message, so I could not read the article.

King Arthur used to sell 25 pound bags of their AP flour, and they were a good deal--especially with the Baker's Bucks program. Now they won't sell anything larger than 10 pounds for mail order, and the price is not particularly competitive with Walmart prices for two 5 pound bags. When we were traveling through Rantoul, IL on our various trips back and forth between Indiana and Texas, I was sometimes able to pick up a 25 pound bag at that Walmart. The Walmart here only has the standard five pound bags. KAF also does not sell bread flour online in more than a 5 pound bag, and again, I can beat that price at Walmart. I remember Zen musing that KAF is now interested only in the professional market and the "boutique" bakers who are willing to buy all sorts of specialty ingredients--often for just a single recipe try. I've also noted that KAF is really pushing their mixes now. Someone asked in the comments section of the regular flour why they don't offer the 25 pound bags of regular flour anymore, and they told the person, if he or she is a professional, to go to the professional section of the site. Apparently "civilians" need not apply.

I understand that it is expensive to ship 25 pound bags of flour. Bob's Red Mill, which has free shipping for orders of $50 or more will not include a 25 pound bag in the free shipping offer. However, they will include bulk buys of bags--and the product is less expensive when you buy bags bundled together. I was able to try their bread flour (store in Texas had it on special), and I noted no difference between it and KAF's, so I am mulling an order to them. I like the unbleached, extra fine cake flour as well (and thank you for telling us about it on this site!). I find that they are also a less expensive source for specialty flours, as well as couscous, brown rice and other grains, beans, and I am a long time fan of their old-fashioned and quick oats.(The website is irritating, so I hope they fix it.)

• This reply was modified 8 years, 3 months ago by BakerAunt.

[BakerAunt]

Hi, Skeptic. Yes, that board looks like the one I used for kneading bread for a number of years. I don't think that I would use it to roll out a pie crust directly on the board. My technique for pie crusts is to roll them out with a wide piece of parchment on the bottom and a wide piece of saran on top. I then flip it over and remove the parchment. I pick up the saran and flip it over into the pie plate, position it, then carefully remove the saran. If the crust needs to be refrigerated at that point, I use the piece of saran to cover it.

The back lip might get in the way of the rolling pin for me, as I use a long cylindrical pin.

[BakerAunt]

Please let Frick know that we miss her.

[BakerAunt]

Tuesday evening, I baked two loaves of my Buttermilk Grape Nuts Bread (recipe on this site, although I fiddle around with the percentage of whole wheat flour and buttermilk). It's my husband's favorite bread, but we discovered that it does not last well in warm weather with high humidity, so I've been baking the Vienna bread. Today, cool weather rolled in, so it is time to bake it again. I'll freeze one loaf.

Side Note: I'm trying to train my husband not to talk to me when I'm measuring ingredients. Tonight, I realized that I might have left out a cup of bread flour, and indeed as I was mixing, I found that I had. At least this was a mistake that I could fix easily. I've never been a fan of the "open concept" kitchen, but that is what I have and what I will have, so the only alternative is to train him to let me focus on my measurements.

[BakerAunt]

Chocomouse: When Cass gave me his Challah bread recipe, he included this note:

"If you are going to seed the crust, approximately 3-5 minutes befoure you are to remove the bread, apply another application of egg wash, then turn off oven. Remove the bread after 3 minutes. This is done so the seeds stick. Otherwise, they will fall off very easily."

I do not seed bread because small seeds are a problem for my husband, so I did not try this. I assume that the seeds are on at the start of the bake, after an egg wash has been applied, so this would be an additional one.

If I got this wrong, then perhaps Cass will pop in and clarify for us.

[BakerAunt]

On Monday, I baked a new recipe, "Chocolate Chip Cookies with Espresso and Cinnamon," which appeared in Bon Appetit (August 2002), p. 87. They are an unusual, scrumptious cookie. Even my husband who does not care for coffee loves them. They are good with milk and should be excellent with coffee. I made only two changes: I substituted in 1/2 cup of white whole wheat flour, and I used all semisweet chocolate chips. The original recipe used half semi-sweet and half milk chocolate chips, but I had none of the latter.

I may have to post this recipe.

[BakerAunt]

I checked and the orchard to the south is not u-pick, and they only sell at farmers' markets (including Indianapolis!) I'll see if there are any around Rockville, where we will go for the covered bridge festival in October. We'll be in west central Indiana.

Addendum: My husband thinks that there will be plenty of apples available at the festival. He remembers that from years ago, and says there was fresh-pressed cider as well--so will I please stop bugging him about our route. Sigh. Non-bakers just do not understand about sourcing the right ingredients, but they certainly appreciate eating the results!

• This reply was modified 8 years, 3 months ago by BakerAunt.
• This reply was modified 8 years, 3 months ago by BakerAunt.
• This reply was modified 8 years, 3 months ago by BakerAunt.

[BakerAunt]

If you have a typewriter mat--probably unlikely in this day and age--it would prevent sliding. I actually do have one, but I keep it under my sewing machine. A silpat mat might also work, although that seems a waste. One of the gals who helped care for my mother-in-law told me that at a place where she cleaned, a young woman was using her silpat mat under a typewriter--she had received it as a bridal shower gift and did not know what it was.

Maybe some plastic shelf lining?

[BakerAunt]

Thanks, Italian Cook. The map shows an orchard to the south. I'll investigate if it is a you-pick one. It may be where the vendor at last Tuesday's farmers' market is located. I'll also use the map for when we make our trip.

• This reply was modified 8 years, 3 months ago by BakerAunt.

[BakerAunt]

There used to be a local apple orchard on the east side of the lake, across the road, according to my husband, called Bigley's. He remembers going and the wonderful smell of apples. However, it closed before I started coming here thirteen years ago. I think that there is one out towards Logansport. However, we plan to go to the Covered Bridge Festival in mid-October, so I will look to see if there are any orchards along the way. We also might make a road trip to Michigan, so that is also a possibility.

I'm not having a lot of success with googling u-pick apple orchards.

A couple of years ago, my husband had to travel through Champaign-Urbana on a research trip, and I told him to stop at the orchard outside the city. It was very crowded that weekend, so he did not pick but just bought a couple of bags of different apples. I made an excellent pie from the ones designated for baking, but I do not recall what kind they were, and it was before I was keeping a baking log and doing the "What Did You Bake?" thread.

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