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.

June 2011 Daring Bakers Challenge - From Phyllo to Baklava

I'm not a huge fan of Baklava, but I've only ever had it one time. What I was most excited about was the challenge of making home-made Phyllo. I even bought a new rolling pin for this challenge (and also because I broke my cheap one I got from Walmart)

Let me just add, that I WASN'T a huge fan of Baklava, but I have now been converted. AMAZING! I'll be making this for my mom next time I go home, because she Loves Baklava. I'm convinced that if she likes the stuff that I could hardly stomach, She will be blown away by this recipe. THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU Erica!

Home-made Phyllo is SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO much better than the store bought stuff... And sooooooooooo much more frustrating.... But all that frustration is worth it in the end.

Blog-checking lines: Erica of Erica’s Edibles was our host for the Daring Baker’s June challenge. Erica challenged us to be truly DARING by making home-made phyllo dough and then to use that homemade dough to make Baklava.


Again, I'm going to send you over to the Daring Kitchen Website to check out all the other Daring Baker's Creations this month, and to get the Recipe.... Although I'm sure I'll be adding the Phyllo recipe at some point because I LOVE it!


I bought roasted Unsalted Sun-split California Pistachios and hand-shelled them. Because of that, I cheated a little and bought Ground Almonds, and I already had Walnuts at home. I split the amount of Walnuts in half and replaced the half with Hazelnuts... (the real reason I bought the ground almonds? They were cheaper)

I ground up the nuts in my Magic Bullet (which sounds dirty, but its not, and if you don't have one, you should get one, because they are awesome... especially if you like smoothies)

I couldn't find whole All-spice Berries, so I just used about 1/3 tsp of the ground allspice, and to save some dishes, I just used ground cinnamon too.



I'm sorry my pictures are not so good, It's been pouring rain all day, and the light is crap. But here they are. I don't have much else to say about this month's challenge, except that I loved it. And I plan on using the phyllo recipe again and again. Thanks Erica for a great Challenge!!!