BakerAunt
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Joan--Your banana cake looks luscious. It reminds me that I have a banana cake recipe with a light cream cheese frosting. I need some people around so that I can bake it again.
I am in awe of your challah project, Aaron. It sounds as if it has been growing. The make two loaves and give one away would be a great way to involve more people.
I know that it is not always easy to get these activities started so that they root and flourish. I tried for years to establish a short coffee hour and treats for after services at my church in Texas, but there were only a couple of us who ever volunteered. I suspect that when I moved away, it ended.
It would be great to have a Dessert Nebraska Kitchen meet-up. We could all show off our desserts!
For Thursday night's dinner, I made Turkey, Spinach, and Mushroom Lasagna, which goes well with the cooler days we have had this week. We have planned overs for two more meals.
Your cheese bread sounds delicious, Skeptic.
I needed to use the last of my Cara Cara oranges, so I found a quick bread recipe, "Barley Orange Bread" in Bernard Clayton, Jr.'s New Complete Book of Breads (expanded 2nd edition, pp. 177-179). It uses just barley flour, which appealed to me, since my husband and I are both fond of barley. I baked it, with a few changes on Thursday. I reduced the baking powder from 1 Tbs. to 2 ½ tsp. because the larger amount always seems to me to leave an aftertaste, and I find that the Bakewell Cream baking powder outperforms other brands. The rise was fine on the baked bread, but the center of the loaf has a slight depression. I wonder if 2 tsp. baking powder and ¼ tsp. baking soda (to offset the acidity of the orange juice) would correct that slight defect. (Cass would have known!) The recipe has a complex boiling of orange rind and creating a kind of syrup with it and half the sugar, but the headnote in the 2nd edition of Clayton's book, unlike in the 1st, says that you can skip that if you do not mind assertive orange flavor. However, he does not say how to compensate for the syrup. I decided to cut the amount of water used to make the final syrup (which I did not make) in half, as I assume at least half would have evaporated in the 25-minute cooking time. I added 1 Tbs. milk powder, and I replaced 3 Tbs. of butter or shortening, melted, with 3 Tbs. avocado oil. I altered the mixing instructions to mix the wet ingredients first, along with the sugar into which I had mixed the orange zest. The pans called for were either a 9" x 5" or two 7" x 3". I used three 2 ½" x 5" loaf pans. I baked for 38 minutes but perhaps should have taken then out after 35, Once they have cooled, I will wrap up two for freezing, and the other I will wrap and allow to rest for a day or two, as Clayton says a richer flavor will develop if allowed to rest for at least a day. As we have dessert for the next two days, that works perfectly.
We went for a picnic lunch and hike at the Indiana Dunes on Wednesday, so I knew to plan an easy dinner for when we returned. I made Salmon and Couscous with Penzey's Greek Seasoning, which we had alongside microwaved fresh broccoli.
We finished the roast chicken breast meat tonight. My husband had his with the rest of the bulgur stir-fry, and I had mine with curried butternut squash soup from the freezer. I froze a lot of that soup; it is very handy to pull out a container whenever I want it.
We had leftovers from last night for dinner.
I like all the cookout foods mentioned. I might add a pasta salad.
On Sunday, I baked a double recipe of my no-butter drop sugar cookies and rolled them in red sugar in honor of the Memorial Day weekend. The cookies are soft enough that Scott will be able to eat them.
I made yogurt on Sunday.
My husband wanted to try chicken for dinner tonight, so I roasted two bone-in chicken breasts. I made an accompanying stir-fry with cooked bulgur, mushrooms, red bell pepper, and more of the kale from the pot my husband has growing on the porch. The meal worked for Scott, although he still is chewing mostly on one side.
We are also not doing anything special meal-wise for Memorial Day.
You make good points, Navlys. The first Girl Scout cookie sales, many years ago, consisted of troops baking their own cookies and selling them. At some point, it was commercialized, and it morphed from there into the large enterprise it is today.
I baked Asparagus, Scallion, and Goat Cheese Quiche on Saturday. I had a slice for dinner, while Scott, who does not care for asparagus, finished the pea soup and cornbread mini muffins. For dessert, we had fresh strawberries from the farmers market.
Lovely cake, Joan!
Mike--I agree about having the ability to close off the kitchen when there is a pet. With some projects, I do not want the dog in the kitchen because either she or I might get hurt. Of course, I am in the camp of the no open concept kitchen, even though I ended up with one.
I had a beloved Siamese cat for many years. She considered it beneath her to get on tables or countertops. She preferred the back of an armchair near my typewriter. (Yes, that was before computers.) Most of my family's cats happily jumped up on countertops. One slurped tea from my mother's unattended large mug--but only if she put milk in it. A favorite place was on top of the refrigerator--back in the days of non-enclosed refrigerators. One cat once jumped up to the top, noted that another was already there, seemed to freeze in the air, just as in the cartoons, then sailed over the refrigerator and onto a table. I did not witness this acrobatic routine, but my mother did and told us about it.
It's a good sign that your cat wants to explore the house, but as you note, it will require some rearranging to prevent problems.
We were out and about this afternoon, so we were glad to come home to a Friday dinner of more peas soup and mini cornbread muffins.
Beautiful pumpkin pie, Joan! I'm hoping to bake one soon.
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