September 2011 Daring Baker Challenge = FRESH, FLUFFY, FRENCH

I was so thrilled when the challenge this month was Croissants, As they are on my baking bucket list (see for yourself). So I finally had an excuse to make them. Although, it would've been easier in a cold-weather spell.... Can't wait to try this again in the winter, now that I have done it once, I can learn from my mistakes. Not that there were many mistakes, They tasted AMAZING.

Thanks for the great Challenge Sarah!

Blog-checking lines: The Daring Bakers go retro this month! Thanks to one of our very talented non-blogging members, Sarah, the Daring Bakers were challenged to make Croissants using a recipe from the Queen of French Cooking, none other than Julia Child!



In the recipe notes, Sarah included a link to a Julia Child video on YouTube, which was VERY helpful, and pretty entertaining. I had just watched Julie and Julia a few days before I got this challenge also! Great Timing.



As Usual, I'm going to send you to the Daring Kitchen website to find the pdf file of this months challenge. Sarah included a ton of step by step photo's that were very helpful.




My Croissants didn't last long at all. We ended up eating half of them right after they were done baking, and then the rest for breakfast the next morning. I can't wait to make these again! Again, Thanks Sarah for giving me a reason to finally make Croissants!

Pumpkin Pie

September 1st, we had a party at work. It was my friend's last day, and so we all pitched in to make something for him. I was in charge of dessert. And I asked him what he wanted... Pumpkin Pie.

I said a little secret "YES!" to myself, because homemade pumpkin pie is on my cooking/baking bucket list, and I finally had an excuse to actually make it.  I have honestly never had a homemade pumpkin pie. Always store bought. I would like to actually make my own pumpkin puree at some point too, but the middle of summer isn't really pumpkin season, so that will have to wait for another time.

I made Vodka pie crust, The Cooks Illustrated recipe, that Smitten Kitchen posted.  It was awesome. I will definitely make it again (hopefully for apple pie if I can go rob my grandma's apple tree!). Although, i might just use all butter instead of mixing in some shortening with it. Butter is better!

I followed the pumpkin pie recipe that came with the can of pumpkin puree, But for my second pie (because it makes 2), I used Maple Syrup and brown sugar to taste instead of just brown sugar. The Maple Syrup pie was AMAZING!!! I am the official thanksgiving and Christmas pumpkin pie baker now... no more store bought!

My photos will show the process a little better than I can explain them, and for the pie crust, head over to the Smitten Kitchen, because she has step by step instructional photo post, and It is very helpful!

It was super late when I finally finished making this pie, And I totally spaced and forgot to take a picture of the pie when It was all done baking... oopsie.

My pie crust!

Pumpkin cutter crust embellishments ;)

Pies baking in the oven.... which I really need to clean... :(

 Pumpkin Pie, Like the Sourdough bread... MUCH easier than I expected.

July 2011 Daring Baker Challenge: Fresh Fraisiers

Blog-checking lines: Jana of Cherry Tea Cakes was our July Daring Bakers’ host and she challenged us to make Fresh Fraisiers inspired by recipes written by Elisabeth M. Prueitt and Chad Robertson in the beautiful cookbook Tartine.

SIDE NOTE: I am trying to be more thoughtful (I don't know if that is really the word I'm going for, but it is the only one that comes to mind right now) about my pictures. Instead of posting them straight off the memory card, I am going to try and edit them a little before I post them... Hopefully this will make a difference and challenge me a little more.

Whew, this was a fun challenge. With delicious results. Since it was the boyfriend's birthday on the 15th, I made this as his birthday cake. Killed 2 birds with one stone, so to speak. I made this on the Saturday (the 16th). I got to sleep in until 8, then started whipping up the Pastry cream, followed shortly by the Chiffon cake (which I love, and will for sure be making again). I followed all the directions closely with the Chiffon cake and didn't change a thing.

With the pastry cream though, I used the recipe over at The Joy of Baking. I didn't really like the idea of the gelatin recipe that came with the challenge, so I wanted something that wouldn't make me cringe with the thought of where gelatin comes from.

Inside, I used strawberries and blueberries... and on the very inside, I just used cut up strawberries and a handful of blueberries. I topped the cake with whipped cream and more strawberries and blueberries, and a few cherries.

I will be making this cake again, although I will probably make it smaller, and use whipped cream in the middle instead of pastry cream. I think the lightness of the whipped cream would suit my taste buds better.

I am really proud of my challenge this month, and can't wait for this post to be posted. Also, make sure you go over to the Daring Kitchen website and check out the other Daring Baker's Creations.

(OH, also, I don't really like Marzipan, so no Almond Paste top for this girl, although the pretty pink top would've been nice)

I would have loved to have used my own strawberries in the cake, But they aren't quite ripe... we do get one or two every few days though, but not enough of a crop at one time for this whole cake.

Vanilla Frosting Cookies

I just got my Challenge for June, for Daring Bakers... and I can't wait until the 27th to share it with you too! It is something I have wanted to make for a long time, but just never have, and now I HAVE to... excited!!

I still have a bunch of photos of things I made with my dad when I was at home. I'll try and harass him for the recipes and then show you on here sometime in the near future!

And I tried... I TRIED to make the cashew oat milk like Joy said... But I just couldn't drink it. It was nasty. If that floats your boat, then I applaud your taste buds, But I just couldn't stomach it. I really wish I had just eaten the raw cashews instead. and I'm really glad that I'm not lactose intolerant, because the cookie recipe I'm about to share with you is amazing dipped in milk if you cook them a little too long like I did. They are also good dipped in coffee.

When I saw these cookies, I HAD to try them. They have SPRINKLES! I have sprinkles in my cupboard... They have frosting IN them... I have frosting in my Fridge... match made in heaven!

I took a bunch to work, and they were a massive hit.... Sprinkles and Frosting, whats not to like?

Vanilla Frosting Cookies

1 1/2 cups Flour
1/4 tsp Salt
1/2 tsp Baking soda
3/4 cup Vanilla Frosting
1 egg
1/2 tsp Vanilla
1/4 cup Brown Sugar
1/2 cup white chocolate chips
1/4 cup Sprinkles (more or less, whatever looks best to you)

Preheat the Oven to 350 F, and Line a cookie sheet with Parchment paper
Whisk the flour salt and baking soda together in a large bowl
In a separate bowl, Combine Frosting, egg, Vanilla and Sugar. Beat at medium/high speed for about 3 minutes
Add wet mixture to the Dry mixture and combine

Fold in the chocolate chips and the sprinkles



Drop by tablespoon onto the prepared cookie sheet, and bake for about 15 minutes, or until the edges are lightly browned.
Enjoy!

Black Forest Cake!

I have been meaning to tell you about my Black Forest Cake for nearly 2 weeks, but Life keeps getting in the way...


...and I keep telling it to go away and come back when I'm ready to deal with it

But it totally doesn't listen to me

I finally went and got my License renewed today... The last day I could before It expires

And then didn't have enough money in my bank account to pay for it

Luckily I had some birthday cash hanging out in my Wallet (thanks Grandma! I can still drive a car thanks to you!)

Then I figured I needed to go and do something to make me feel better and less like a failure at life, so I finally stopped at the vet clinic by our house and made an appointment for Ava's shots... and got an estimate on Wilson's neuter if i can ever convince the boyfriend to not feel bad about chopping his Balls off.

But you don't want to hear about any of this...


so Let me show you the Black Forest Cake that I finally checked off the bucket list...

...which was delicious, and even better than I imagined.
Although, we used a Chocolate cake recipe, that I don't really like, so next time I'll try some kind of Chocolate Sponge Cake, I think that would be much nicer (I wrote the chocolate cake recipe down, but I have lost the piece of paper somewhere between my parents house and my house, so if I do ever find it, I will post the recipe here, until then, I guess I just have pictures for you)

Honestly, I don't know why it took us this long to make this cake. It was pretty easy! (and amazing). We thought we put a lot of the Cherry Kirsch on too, but It wasn't very boozy... I think next time I'll add more than I think is enough, and We'll be in business!


The night before we made the cake, I shaved a bunch of chocolate squares into Chocolate shavings. I tried to take a picture, but it was late, so not light, and honestly, a bowl full of chocolate shavings isn't that pretty... but tastes so much better than store-bought chocolate sprinkles.

Then bright and early in the morning (while I worked on my Daring Baker challenge for the month... will post on April 27... but don't hold your breath, I wasn't very inspired) I made the cakes
They rose really high in the middle, so we had funny looking layers, But really easy to cover up. My mom knows a lot of tricks, after years and years of cake decorating so I try and force them out of her, so I can learn them too.

Then we layered the cakes (Two 9" chocolate cakes, sliced in half) with Canned Cherry Pie filling and a little whipped cream in between each layer.
OH, and Cherry Kirsch brushed onto the cakes... Probably the most important part

See... funny layers... but definitely yummy!


Then you just coat the thing in Whipped Cream, push some Chocolate sprinkles onto the sides, and then pipe some Whip Cream puffs (stars, whatever you want to call them) onto the top
Then add some maraschino cherries to each puff
and TA DA!!!!

Black Forest Cake
(Finally checked off the Bucket List!)

Coconut Bread

Until I found this recipe on Sweet Savory Planet, I had never heard of Coconut Oil... But I knew I had to try this bread, so I went on a search, a hunt... A quest is probably more accurate to be honest.
After checking at 3 different stores, I finally found it in the 3rd one. I really didn't want to have to go to a health food store, Because I have a really long list of things I want and not a lot of money for them, and not a lot of will power against my own will sometimes. Luckily Superstore had it in their health food/organic/save-the-earth section. I kind of had to dig to find it, but I found it...

It is weird stuff. Really hard... REALLY REALLY hard, and you have to melt it to use it, so it adds an extra step, But It adds a whole different level of flavor too. I did a little google-ing and found this site... If you want more info, just do some google-ing of your own... TONS of links pop up.

(in the picture below, you can see Wilson's head. He was catching some sun comming through the windows... and trying to get me to drop something on the floor that he could snatch up)

Coconut Bread
(adapted from Sweet Savory Planet)

1 cup sweetened coconut (grated, shredded, flakes, whatever works for you, I used shredded)
2 cups All Purpose Flour (I took out about 2-3 TBSP of the flour and added in some Milled Flax seed)
1/2 cup white granulated sugar
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 TBSP baking Powder
1/4 cup Virgin Coconut Oil (melted, so it is liquid and not rock-solid)
1 cup unsweetened coconut milk
1 egg
1 tsp. Vanilla

Preheat Oven to 350 F
Prepare the loaf pan by greasing the pan and the flouring (pay close attention to the corners)
sprinkle a little coconut on the bottom of the loaf pan.
Mix the coconut, flour, sugars, and baking powder in one large bowl
In another bowl, add in the coconut oil, coconut milk, egg, and vanilla and mix together well.
Add the wet ingredients to the dry and mix until just blended.
Pour into the prepared loaf pan
Bake at 350 for about an hour until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.



Cool in the loaf pan for about 10 minutes, and then transfer to a wire rack to continue cooling.



You can toast the coconut also, But I prefer the un-toasted.

This bread is amazing with the Lemon-Lime Curd used as a spread on top... Laura at Sweet Savory Planet is a genius!!!!



I will definitely be trying the coconut oil in other baked goodies now... and Same with the coconut milk. Its a whole different layer of flavour, and I can't wait to use it in baking again. Every time I've used Coconut milk, it has been for something Savory, like Marinating shrimp skewers (BTW, I'll post some really yummy BBQ recipes in the summer, when there isn't 4 feet of snow on the ground)

Homemade Country Chicken Soup AND Country White Bread

NOTE: Wrote this March 6th, But just getting around to posting it now... ooops


What the hell is up with Winter this year??? Like Seriously! Somebody should tell him that its March already, so we don't need -30 temperatures with Wind Chill warnings past the -40 mark... That is for Actual winter... not the long tail end of Canadian winter...
Today, the warmest it was outside (according to Environment Canada whenever i checked... I didn't actually go outside) was -17! Currently the Windchill is -30

Days (and by that, i mean Weeks... or Months), like this definitely call for Soup. And since I made a crap-load of Homemade Soup Stock (inspired by A Tale of One Foodies Culinary Adventures), and found super cheap Chickens (and then roasted them)... I made Soup today... And Bread... YUMMY

I have a confession to make... I am horrible at doing the dishes. I have a bunch of the ziploc containers so I can take my Lunch to work with me... Which is all well and good...
But then...
I have to remember to bring it back to my car to take home at the end of the day
I have to remember to bring it from my car to the house
I have to remember to rinse it out and stick it in the dishwasher
I have to remember to turn the dishwasher on

Because this seems to be difficult for me to do... I have a pretty good collection (err... almost all of the containers i own) stashed in my car.
This is why i won't be having soup for lunch at work tomorrow :(

Onto the Recipe, because that is much more inspiring that my horrible dish-keeping/cleaning confessions. (However, i would like to note, that I am much better about this in the summer than the winter.. In the winter, its too damn cold and nothing in there is going to rot, its just going to freeze.)

I FORGOT to take pictures of the soup.... But here is the chicken that made it into the soup... (and made the soup stock with)


Country Chicken Soup
Ok, yet again, I don't have exact measurements for you. Soup is kinda like that though.
Chicken meat (left over, or whatever works for you... as much or as little as you want/your soup pot will allow)
Carrots - sliced
Celery - sliced (larger than the carrot pieces)
Onion - chopped (whatever size you want)
Garlic - minced, or at least finely chopped
Olive oil
Chicken Soup Stock (make your own, its sooooo yummy!)
Water
Corn (I used a can of corn)
Spinach
Fresh Parsley
salt/pepper/seasoning

In your soup pot, heat up some Olive Oil. Once warm, add in the garlic, cook til fragrant, then add in the onion - stirring constantly. Add some soup stock (i used about 4-5 cups), Add carrots, and let come to a boil. (this gives the carrots a little head start in softening)
Fill pot with more Soup stock, water and celery
Let simmer for about 10 minutes. Taste then season a little... Simmer 10 minutes, taste and season.
Add in the corn, Chopped Spinach and fresh parsley, put lid on, and Simmer
Check your soup at least every hour... half hour is better
Taste and season as needed
The longer (and at a low temp) you cook it, the yummier it seems to be. My soup was on the stove at about 10am, and we ate at 6pm
Its not an exact science at all. The basic idea is to put a bunch of stuff you like in a pot with water and seasoning... Taste as you go is the trick. Its a good idea to put less salt than you might want in there, and let each person salt their own soup. This keeps sodium levels down. (My mom consistently adds a ton of salt to soup, and I'm trying to get her to cut it out)


Country White Bread
(www.cookingbread.com)

OH NO! I forgot to take pictures of it too! :( FAIL... But the Bread was Delicious.... Go make yourself a loaf of it (recipe makes 2 loafs, might be a good idea to half it, unless you eat a lot of bread, But we don't

So, Since I forgot to take pictures of the Soup AND the bread... here are some photos of my soup stock that I made after reading The post at A Tale of One Foodies Culinary Adventures...
Above = Before cooking
Below = a few hours in.... at that stage, my house smelled soooooooooooooooooooooooooo yummy!!!

March 2011, Daring Baker Challenge - Yeasted Coffee Cake with Meringe

Out of the 3 challenges I have done, this one has been the hardest... I don't know if I would make this again, But I'm glad I tried it. Although, after seeing what fillings the other bakers had tried, I might attempt again.
I also thought that a savory version would probably have worked better, But it has been a crazy month, so I never got to try and make the savory one I wanted to attempt. But onto the challenge:

Blog-checking lines: The March 2011 Daring Baker’s Challenge was hosted by Ria of Ria’s Collection and Jamie of Life’s a Feast. Ria and Jamie challenged The Daring Bakers to bake a yeasted Meringue Coffee Cake.

First of all... Here is the link to the Daring Kitchen, You should be able to find the Recipe there...

Second, I'm going to show you my photos with a little commentary. I think I would've liked this bread a lot more if this month hadn't been so crazy.... And If i had been a little more original and not just used Chocolate and Nuts like the recipe said. Ultimately the only way to know if you will like it, is to try and make it yourself. Its pretty fun, and If you check out the blog roll of what other Bakers made, You will be much MUCH more impressed than with mine...

I love Meringue, I kind of wish I had just make meringue kiss cookies like my mom makes instead of putting it in the bread (because it disappears anyway, and you kind of feel like you wasted a bunch of time beating the egg whites into submission
The filling, on top of the meringue, on top of the rolled out dough.

Rolled into a wreath for the 2nd Rising... I took the advise of some other bakers on the Forums and didn't cut into the thing until after the rising
After the 2nd Rising, with the wash on top, and the slices slashed into the dough (use a SHARP knife!)
After baking... I should have put the blinds down, the lighting is horrible... sorry about that

I also made a braided one...

Which was my favourite one. I think it tasted better, and everything stayed cleaner because nothing leaked out.

I think it may have been prettier if I had used more chocolate.




I would like to thank Jamie and Ria for a great Challenge. (and you can follow the links to their blogs if you want)



This is how Ava sleeps while I bake... Well, this is how Ava sleeps most of the time actually. I wish I could get as comfortable as she does


I'm going to try and be back later today, I need to clean off my memory card so I can put more pictures on it, and I might as well post them here before I move them to my external hard drive and completely forget about them.

Enjoy the weather... unless you live around here... Then stay inside, We are in another snow storm... Is spring ever going to start to show up?