[skeptic7]

I mixed up Potato Raisin Rolls yesterday and will be baking today. I finished up computer learning last weekend and now will have time to do some fun baking. Well that is if I can find flour. I was at the grocery store(s) yesterday and they didn't have 5lb KAF all-purpose. They did have 10lb and organic but not 5lb. I want to make some pepperoni pizza and I already bought 2 lbs of beef pepperoni. Last time I froze this in packages of 15 slices which is not enough. I think I need 22 or 24 slices to completely cover a 9x13 pizza.

[skeptic7]

Congratulations Joan!!

[skeptic7]

I like cakey, unfrosted brownies. I made more Bao today. Turned out nicely.

[skeptic7]

I did tomato, and pepperoni pizza yesterday. Unlike the last time I tried it, I had no problems with the dough, or the tomato and managed to locate my cheese cutter. Its so nice when everything works well.
I also made the Taiwanes Bao without problem.
The difficulty occurred with the beef and turnip soup. I found out that a pressure cooker can boil dry even with the lid on -- I thought it wouldn't lose enough water from the vent -- I was wrong. I was listening for the pressure cooker to start rocking and whistling as it got up to temperature. I only noticed something wrong when I could smell the burned soup. I think I rescued most of the soup by adding more water, but it has a decidedly smoky taste.
Next time I'll be a little more careful .

[skeptic7]

I did more Bao -- basically the KAF Taiwanese Breakfast Bao -- yesterday and this morning. I turned out nicely,but I noticed when kneading that it doesn't feel exactly like other doughs. Can baking powder have an affect on the gluten formation? It doesn't windowpane like the other doughs.

[skeptic7]

This is an impressive recipe. I'm sure it would taste great. I can see using baking soda with normal cocoa which is slightly acidic, but I thought dutched cocoa had been already treated to be a neutral PH.

[skeptic7]

Installing a deer fence is a very expensive solution. My neighborhood has a lot of the old fashioned 3 ft chain link fences and that doesn't seem to stop the deer at all. I think the 6ft wooden privacy fence would keep the deer out. The WSJ seems to recommend tall fences made out of a frame and net design. I wonder how long these would last before falling apart.

[skeptic7]

My pizza is full of errors. It started with the dough. I had mixed up a sponge, saw that it had a few bubbles and added the rest of the ingredients -- salt, egg, oil. Then I kneaded in more flour until the consistency was reasonable Then I left it to rise. Only it didn't rise. It just sat there. After too long, I gave up and dissolved another teaspoon of yeast in a little water and mixed it in. After a couple of hours the dough had risen nicely and had large visible bubbles. So I kneaded it, adding more flour to compensate for the extra water. Then I let it rise a little and flattened it out and put into a pizza pan.
The next day I prepared to make fresh tomato and cheese pizza. Only the tomatoes weren't in the refrigerator where I had left them. They had been in left in a plastic bag on the counter top and were now moldy. So I opened a little can of tomato paste as dotted the dough with about half. Then I reached out for the cheese. The mozzarella and provolone were in the refrigerator where it should be but I couldn't find the cheese plane. So I sliced up the mozzarrela with a knife and put it on the pizza together with the provalone.
The pizza baked up nicely to make up for all that trouble.

[skeptic7]

Everyone's baking looks great. I've made another batch of Taiwanese Breakfast Bao. I've increased the salt to 1/2 teaspoon, and the baking powder to 1/2 teaspoon. I've mixed the dough and formed the bao on Sunday but didn't steam it till Monday morning. It turned out very well even with being slightly over proofed. I've looked at other recipes and think that increasing salt and baking power is a good idea or at least harmless.

[skeptic7]

I am making another batch of the Taiwan Breakfast Bao. I started last night. Looks promising so far except that the second half might have thumb prints in the dough. My father insisted on moving the second half of the dough to the steamer. I normally do this myself.

[skeptic7]

I finished the rest of my whole wheat pizza without any digestive problems. It must have been something else I ate that disagreed with me.

[skeptic7]

Hello. I'm back in my own house as opposed to my father's for a couple days. I made a whole wheat pizza with pepperoni and tomatoes and cheese. Its been nearly four years since I have been doing much whole wheat bread. It turned out very well but I was surprised at the denseness of the texture compared to white flour.
I used to make whole wheat pizza on a regular basis, but I ate 1/4 of the pizza and had digestive problems. Can going to whole wheat after not eating much be upsetting my stomach? Could the cheese be at fault -- there wasn't that much. I've eaten Trader Joes' Harvest Wheat bread without problems, but that has a soft texture.

[skeptic7]

I did Ham and Cheese pizza yesterday. Baked late at night when things had started to cool down. The nice thing about pizza in this season is that they are perfectly good cold.

[skeptic7]

More Bao. Dad is willing to eat these so I guess I will be cooking them for awhile. Steaming seems more forgiving as there is little to no risk of over cooking, and it seems to heat the kitchen less than baking. It takes two batches in the steamer for 20 minutes -- 10 minutes actively steaming and 10 minutes resting in the hot steamer. So 40 minutes for two. Which is comparable to preheating the oven for 15 minutes and baking for another 15.
This bao turned out well and I cooked it before it over rose so it expanded in the steamer. I am basically using KAF Taiwanese Bao but will a little extra water to dissolve the yeast, and more flour to compensate. Also a little more baking powder 1/2 tsp, and salt 1/2 tsp. This time I shaped it into small rolls and cooked it that way.

[skeptic7]

I did make the pizza and another batch of bao yesterday. The pizza came out just in time for supper and the bao was steamed as the day started to cool down.

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