[Italiancook]

I baked a Lemon Loaf Cake from Cook-Ahead Cookery. I've made this many times but I goofed at the end. When cake comes out of oven, a syrup of lemon juice & sugar is poured over it. Then it sits in the syrup for 15 minutes before being removed from the pan. Today, for the first time, I poured the syrup over the cake when the syrup was piping hot. Result was that it boiled around the edges of the hot pan. Consequently, the boiling burned the edges of the cake.

I made this for the freezer, for dessert for a friend who's coming to lunch next week. I had planned on serving it cut into a shape, instead of as a slice. So I'll be okay -- the edges will be cut off anyhow. I just hope the burnt edges don't adversely affect the interior of the cake.

Later today, I'm making 2 boules of "Cuban Bread" from The Complete Tightwad Gazette. For the freezer. One will be for the luncheon next week.

[Italiancook]

How do you like the kneading spiral, BakerAunt? Kitchenaid comes with the kneading hook, but last time I checked, they sold the spiral. I've been debating whether to buy it. Do you think it does a substantially better job?

[Italiancook]

I don't use seeds so I don't read about them. Therefore, I missed this.

[Italiancook]

I will always miss a question about grams. I don't weigh anything. I had a nutmeg grinder, and as mentioned a couple of times, it broke. I have been grating my nutmeg on a long microplane. I wash it on the top shelf of the dishwasher and have never noticed any difference in its sharpness. Been doing this for several years, and I use nutmeg frequently. It's good not only in sweet goods, but also in some Italian dishes.

• This reply was modified 6 years, 4 months ago by Italiancook.

[Italiancook]

I knew this one.

[Italiancook]

RiversideLen, it is the Nordic Ware Pan! KitchenKrafts showed it filled with cinnamon rolls. KAF has a Tangzhon (spelling?) Cinnamon Rolls recipe that I think makes 24. I thought I could use my new pan for those, after I figure out who's up early enough in the morning to give them away. I tried to post the link here, but the KAF recipe search area is not working right now.

The lid is plastic, so I'm afraid to put my 3 sheet pans and 3 wire cooling racks on top of it. If you do, please let me know if the lid didn't crack, IF you think of it. Regardless, it's a lovely pan. I bought it for roasting a chicken. Now that it's here, I'm thinking it may be too large for a 3-1/2 pound chicken, but I'm going to try that once and see what happens to the chicken. It's the perfect size for a V-rack to place the chicken on, but I bought the pan to avoid digging out and washing the V-rack to use it.

[Italiancook]

I have a somewhat recent philosophy on buying for the kitchen. Can't buy it unless I'm getting rid of something. KitchenKrafts had a 2" deep half sheet pan with lid that I really wanted. I had to give away something to make a space for it. By then, I couldn't find it on KitchenKrafts website, so I bought it at Amazon. Now that it's in my kitchen, I have no idea what I'll do with it!

[Italiancook]

Thanks, RiversideLen, for your input about the Italian style flour. Since I'm a fledgling pizza maker, I haven't decided what type of crust I prefer. When ordering out, I just eat whatever they make. My husband likes the crustiness of the Now or Later Pizza that's par-baked before the toppings are put on. When I figure out where to store yet another kind of flour, I'll buy some Italian style and try it. KAF has a recipe for a spinach and feta pizza that uses that flour. I'd like to try that.

• This reply was modified 6 years, 4 months ago by Italiancook.

[Italiancook]

I gave my new mixer it's maiden voyage today. Made my grandmother's chocolate cake, which I think is a Hersey's cocoa recipe from decades ago. When I bought the mixer, I didn't inquire about the motor. The Artisan appears to have a stronger motor. Normally, I put sugar and butter in mixer to cream. Then go to another counter while it whirrs so I can work on other ingredients. By the time I get around to going back to the mixer, all is creamed. The Artisan works much faster. It creamed the ingredients so fast I didn't have other ingredients ready. Every stage of the mixing process was much faster.

I purchased the stainless steel flat beater as an extra. I like that type of blade for mashing a big batch of potatoes. I used it on the cake and am happy to report it didn't leave a glob of ingredients at the bottom of the bowl. It had incorporated everything from the bottom. So I'm a happy baker.

[Italiancook]

I also had never heard of it, so I missed it.

[Italiancook]

RiversideLen, I bought white. Humdrum, I guess, given the wide range of colors they offer, but I have white cabinets. I purchased the Artisan because they offered a discount on it. Plus, it comes with a bowl that has a handle. So when I say the instruction booklets said to never take bread dough above Speed 2, I mean for the 4-1/2 quart and 5 quart Artisan. I have no idea what the guideline is for their more expensive machines.

[Italiancook]

As I read your post, BakerAunt, I wondered if part of my shaping problem is the size I'm making. Just checked the recipe & it says 9" to 12" pizzas. I think I've been trying to stretch it larger than 12". Never measured it. The last 2 times, I've hand-shaped it mostly on the parchment without putting olive oil on the parchment. I'm thinking now that I should put a light layer of olive oil on the parchment. What do you think? Do you?

RiversideLen, I really appreciate the tip about the semolina. KAF's Now or Later Pizza uses 1-1/2 cups semolina, which makes me nervous. For health reasons, I shouldn't be eating so much. I have dough for 1 crust in the freezer. Next time I make the dough, I'll use more AP flour and only 1/2 cup semolina. I'm also thinking I'd have better shaping success if I shaped on my granite pastry board (thanks, Mike, for the tip about these), but I'm worried whether I'd be able to transfer the crust off the board. Pioneer Woman does it with her pizzas, but I've never used her recipe for crust.

Mike, do you think KAF's Italian Style flour would have more gliadin? I guess I could call and ask them.

[Italiancook]

Today, I finally made Artichoke & Bacon Pizza, using artichokes from Sam's. I used the Now or Later Pizza crust from KAF that I made earlier this week. Thanks, Mike, for the tip about artichokes at Sam's. They're really good, and I'm sure they'll become a staple in my refrig. They were delicious on the pizza. Thanks, Aaron, for mentioning you par-cook your bacon for pizza. I think that if I had cooked it all the way, it would have burned in the oven. As it was, the bacon was perfect.

Okay, I know I'm still a fledgling pizza-maker, but this is really time-consuming for me. I can't seem to get the knack of hand-shaping the dough. I guess I'll have to go back to using a rolling pin. It took me 1 hour 20 minutes from start to out-of-oven. That time included par-cooking the bacon, making olive oil with garlic (I cook the oil until both sides of the garlic are slightly brown), and cutting up and drying the artichokes. I dried them because I thought they'd make pizza too wet if I didn't. Do you dry your artichokes for pizza, Mike, or just drain them?

By the time the finished pizza came out of the oven, I was too worn out to enjoy eating it. The main issue was shaping the dough. I stretched it a little by hand, then I put it on parchment and spent, probably, 15 minutes trying to stretch it out into a rectangle big enough to feed 2 people. I'd never be able to serve pizza to anyone!

[Italiancook]

You pretty much listed the only ways I fix eggs, Mike. I'd never come up with 9, let alone 100. Maybe it's an old chef's tale that there are a hundred.

[Italiancook]

I'm happy to report the stand mixer crisis is over. My husband and I both tried to save her. A collection of screw drivers still on the living room floor prove it. In the end, she was beyond repair. Kitchenaid gave me a discount on a new Artisan 5-quart tilt-head mixer, so I bought it. Cheaper than Macy's and Home Depot -- well, for sure Macy's, I can't as clearly recall Home Depot's price.

The bowl, dough hook, and wire whisk I have now will still work with the new mixer. The flat beaters will not, but since they won't go on the mixer right, no love lost. I am also losing the burnished flat beater. Now, KA has replaced it with a stainless steel flat beater that's dishwasher-safe. I bought that, too.

Soon, I should be back in business. I'm happy to have 2 mixer bowls. Often, I'll want to make two items in one day and am too lazy to hand-wash the bowl. It's easier for the dishwasher to remove the gunk out of the bowl than me. Of course, it takes longer in the dishwasher.

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