The Baking Topic

[Quof]

Well, they look good. But they have to cool for 30 minutes (the Hell? I always eat them straight from the oven in NYC). So I'll get my workout in before breakfast.

[MargeGunderson]

@Quof, how did the bagels turn out? They are on my list of things to bake in 2021, so if you have any tips I’m all ears.

[Quof]

I hadn't made this specific recipe before 

New York bagels

but realized after I had made half of them that boiling them in water with baking soda creates a pretzel crust, which is not authentic.  I froze half before boiling, so I will boil those in plain water before baking.  Otherwise, they are pretty good.  Time consuming, but not complicated.

[biakbiak]

I was randomly craving a Lane Cake, something I hadn’t had in years, it’s soaked in bourbon for a few days and is delicious!

 

[chessiegal]

I'm probably the last person on the banana bread train. My husband eats a banana on his cereal everyday. Since I've cut down on grocery shopping, I've been freezing over-ripe bananas and used them to make banana bread today.

[Quof]

I've never been a big fan of banana bread, I view it as something to make when (1) there are no sweets in the house and (2) your bananas are going bad.  Occasionally, I will bake up a banana chocolate chip sour cream strusel topped coffee cake.  Otherwise, I throw bad bananas in the freezer and use them to make overnight oatmeal.    

[chessiegal]

I used an ATK recipe that had good reviews - Ultimate Banana Bread. It was a lot of work - draining the thawed bananas, collecting the liquid from them, and reducing it down on the stove. I had so many dirty bowls and pans, I ended up running my dishwasher for a second time today. It's good, but I'm not sure it was worth the time and labor good.

[annzeepark914]

44 minutes ago, chessiegal said:

I used an ATK recipe that had good reviews - Ultimate Banana Bread. It was a lot of work - draining the thawed bananas, collecting the liquid from them, and reducing it down on the stove. I had so many dirty bowls and pans, I ended up running my dishwasher for a second time today. It's good, but I'm not sure it was worth the time and labor good.

My theory is that the more strenuous the recipe, the less chance it has of being a winner. Wow...draining thawed bananas. That's intimidating!!

 

[biakbiak]

Chrissy Teigen’s much talked about banana bread lives up to the hyoe and only uses one bowl, a spoon, and a Bundt pan.

[MargeGunderson]

I’ve set a goal of baking one thing every week this year. Today was King Arthur’s Perfectly Pillowy Cinnamon Rolls which is their recipe of the year. I overproofed them, so they didn’t turn out as well. The flavor was fine, but I think the dough could have used a bit more salt. They were very soft, which is how I like my cinnamon rolls. I made 10 rolls instead of the 8 in the recipe so they wouldn’t be quite so big, and baked them in a 9x13 pan (instead of on a sheet pan) so that the sides would be soft. I also used the KA baker’s cinnamon filling (just because I had some on hand) and didn’t find it as cinnamon-y as I expected. I would make again, but keep my eye on the dough and make the cinnamon filling in the recipe. 
 

(Edit - Baking one thing every week this year, not day.)

Edited January 4, 2021 by MargeGunderson

[BooksRule]

Tyler Florence's banana bread recipe is pretty good. I think the main difference from others is that he mashs up some of the banana and sets it aside.  Then, he beats the rest of the banana with the sugar and butter.  This really incorporates the banana flavor into the batter (you mix in the rest of the mashed banana near the end, so that you have some 'texture' to the bread). Maybe there are other recipes that do it this way, but most of mine just say to add the mashed-up bananas to the batter.  I've also tried other recipes that add other fruits, such as blueberries or cranberries to the banana bread mixture.  They are pretty good and keep it from being bland (I just googled ingredients to find recipes.  I know the one with the cranberries was on the Ocean Spray site).

[chessiegal]

My husband asked for banana bread because I was freezing over ripe bananas. He's enjoying it. I'll make it again if I have more frozen bananas, but not the ATK recipe. The Pillsbury flour I bought had a recipe on the bag. It's probably as good as anything.

[caitmcg]

For a NYE/NYD treat, I made lemon curd tartlets with homegrown Meyer lemons, using Alice Medrich’s recipe (but note that per the cookbook, you need to make a double recipe of the lemon curd to fill a 9-inch tart, with some left over). This is my go-to lemon curd and my go-to sweet tart crust, whether used together or with other things. They’re easy and have great texture and flavor. 

[larapu2000]

I also only make banana bread because I've frozen the overripe ones.  Then I freeze the banana bread in slices because I'm single and can't eat 2 loaves (because I always have more than 1 loaf's worth of bananas!), so it will thaw quickly and easily just by popping it in the toaster or just microwaving for 30 seconds or so.  

I like the King Arthur recipe, it's pretty solid.  Ina Garten's Banana Crunch muffins are also a great way to use up those bananas, but allow me to caution you to cut her recipe in half unless you want eleventy million muffins.

[MargeGunderson]

I made a brioche loaf and 12 mini brioche buns with pearl sugar:

 

[Gramto6]

On 3/7/2021 at 3:56 PM, MargeGunderson said:

I made a brioche loaf and 12 mini brioche buns with pearl sugar:

 

Looks delicious!!

[AimingforYoko]

Made a sour cream coffee cake with a brown sugar glaze using my new faux-Kitchen Aid stand mixer ($130 vs $350). Aucma is the actual brand.

[MargeGunderson]

I’m practicing for my department’s bake off. Since we are remote, the presentation is key. Here’s what I’ve tried so far:

I’m attempting a cake next weekend (I’m not good at decorating). Maybe you guys can help me decide which one to submit.

Edited April 18, 2021 by MargeGunderson

[biakbiak]

Both look great but I would submit the tarte soleil because it has more of a wow factor, particularly for those who haven’t made one. 

[Trini]

Yeah, both look good. The second is a slightly better photo.

[larapu2000]

I would also submit the tart.  However, the photo has a bit of a yellow cast.  Any chance you can utilize more natural light to get a cleaner shot?

[MargeGunderson]

Thanks, everyone! The tarte definitely has more visual appeal. The yellow cast is the reflection from the light in the room off of the marble board. I’m going to try to correct it in Photoshop if I can. Anyone who thinks being a good food blogger is easy has not ever tried to photograph food.

The tarte soleil was easier than I expected. I followed this recipe, but used sundries tomato pesto and grated Parmesan for the filling. After the cut all of the “rays” I put it in the freezer for about 10 minutes so it wasn’t quite as soft when I made the twists. 

Edited April 19, 2021 by MargeGunderson

[biakbiak]

9 hours ago, MargeGunderson said:

tarte soleil was easier than I expected.

I meant no disrespect when I said people who haven’t made it think it’s harder than it is, the cookies you showed  probably took longer and required more skill than the tarte but it seems impossible until you do it. Sorry your coworkers don’t get to taste your lovely goodies!

Edited April 20, 2021 by biakbiak

[caitmcg]

On 4/18/2021 at 3:14 PM, MargeGunderson said:

I’m practicing for my department’s bake off. Since we are remote, the presentation is key. Here’s what I’ve tried so far:

I’m attempting a cake next weekend (I’m not good at decorating). Maybe you guys can help me decide which one to submit.

If those are the Neapolitan cookies from 100 Cookies (as it appears), you got great saturated color. Did you add food coloring to the red part and/or use black cocoa for the chocolate?

I agree with others that the tarte soleil has more wow factor for a strictly visual judging.

 

[Quof]

I've got to ask - How does one have a baking contest when you can't eat the entries?    It's like Ace of Cakes , where the focus is on what the food looks like rather than how it tastes.  What's to stop people from entering modelling clay shaped as food?

[MargeGunderson]

5 hours ago, caitmcg said:

If those are the Neapolitan cookies from 100 Cookies (as it appears), you got great saturated color. Did you add food coloring to the red part and/or use black cocoa for the chocolate?

They are! They had been on my to-do list for a long time. I used black cocoa from King Arthur Flour. The red was a mistake - I used too much gel coloring. I want to try again to get the right shade of pink, and to make them all striped instead of some striped/some blobs of color. 

4 hours ago, Quof said:

I've got to ask - How does one have a baking contest when you can't eat the entries?    It's like Ace of Cakes , where the focus is on what the food looks like rather than how it tastes.  What's to stop people from entering modelling clay shaped as food?

Yeah, it’s really more about aesthetics. I want to improve my decorating skills, so this is an opportunity. I’m definitely making real cake - I’m not going to put the time in if I can’t eat it!

[Quof]

My university cafeteria did catering and apparently charged a lot for it. We would see them doing photo shoots, with the food carefully waxed and beautified for their advertising. That was not the pig slop they served us. 

[larapu2000]

On 4/19/2021 at 1:01 PM, MargeGunderson said:

Thanks, everyone! The tarte definitely has more visual appeal. The yellow cast is the reflection from the light in the room off of the marble board. I’m going to try to correct it in Photoshop if I can. Anyone who thinks being a good food blogger is easy has not ever tried to photograph food.

 

I have to photograph food frequently for work, and it is NEVER easy.  We utilize professional photographers and food stylists for certain shoots, but often do recipe concepts blogger style, where you don't get to use tricks or professional studio lighting to get perfect shots.  It's just me, a nearby window, and my best attempt at presentation and angles.

[MargeGunderson]

The cake is going to be my submission:

(but not these pictures. My husband took some better ones)

Edited April 27, 2021 by MargeGunderson

[Trini]

Oooh! Nice job with the marble frosting!

[caitmcg]

I made devil’s food cupcakes with brown butter cream cheese frosting, and you guys, I may never make plain cream cheese frosting again. Brown butter really does make everything better.

[Spunkygal]

On 4/27/2021 at 5:14 PM, MargeGunderson said:

The cake is going to be my submission:

(but not these pictures. My husband took some better ones)

How did your bake off competition go? They’re crazy if you didn’t win!

[Anela]

I want to make these: https://cloudykitchen.com/blog/baked-cream-buns-with-vanilla-bean-cream-and-jam/

[larapu2000]

I had to to share the incredible 2 recipes I tried and LOVED the last 2 weeks.  

Chocolate Oatmeal Moon Pies  These are SO good!  I'm not usually a marshmallow lady, but these were seriously so amazing.  I would suggest storing them in the fridge to keep the marshmallow from getting messy in your storage container.  The cookie dough was so good I told my fiance we would be lucky to get any onto the pan.  They have chocolate, oatmeal, cherry, and pecan and they are dense but soft, chewy, just the perfect cookie.  Considering entering them in the local domestic arts competition for the county fair.

Black Forest Cake  I was asked to make one for Father's Day and when I say no one could stop eating this, I mean it.  Everyone begged to take a slice home.  The chocolate cake alone is worthy of worship.  I really like Sally's Baking Addiction and have had some major wins from her recipes (there is a lemon blueberry cake that is also amazing).  

Does anyone else do the county fair competition thing with their baking?

[AimingforYoko]

Fresh Strawberry Supreme Pie. One crust pie with cream cheese, heavy whipping cream and powdered sugar mixed together as a base.

[Zahdii]

On 6/28/2021 at 5:20 AM, larapu2000 said:

I had to to share the incredible 2 recipes I tried and LOVED the last 2 weeks.  

Chocolate Oatmeal Moon Pies  These are SO good!  I'm not usually a marshmallow lady, but these were seriously so amazing.  I would suggest storing them in the fridge to keep the marshmallow from getting messy in your storage container.  The cookie dough was so good I told my fiance we would be lucky to get any onto the pan.  They have chocolate, oatmeal, cherry, and pecan and they are dense but soft, chewy, just the perfect cookie.  Considering entering them in the local domestic arts competition for the county fair.

Black Forest Cake  I was asked to make one for Father's Day and when I say no one could stop eating this, I mean it.  Everyone begged to take a slice home.  The chocolate cake alone is worthy of worship.  I really like Sally's Baking Addiction and have had some major wins from her recipes (there is a lemon blueberry cake that is also amazing).  

Does anyone else do the county fair competition thing with their baking?

I put some cookies in when I was a teen.  Got first place!  That was a good year.  I took first for my cookies, my quilt, and my embroidery.

[BooksRule]

With the Christmas holiday coming up, I hoped to get in the 'baking' mood this year since last year was such a bust as far as baking foods for others.  But, it hasn't hit me too much yet, even though I've collected some good recipes I was hoping to try.  I did bake an Eggnog Pound Cake this evening.  I love baking pound cakes (and I will be making my usual Sour Cream Pound Cake for a luncheon next week and maybe another one for the family at Christmas) but I usually bake them totally from scratch.  This one used a pound cake box mix and I added eggnog, freshly grated nutmeg, a couple of eggs, and 1/2 t. of vanilla.  It makes one loaf.  I tried a piece when it was still warm. Not too bad, and you could taste the eggnog a bit, but I had hoped for a stronger nutmeg flavor.  My whole nutmegs might have lost their potency, too.  I've had the jar for a while.  If I bake another one, I'll make sure I get some fresh nutmeg to grate and maybe put in a little more than the 1/2 t. it called for in the recipe. 

[chessiegal]

This is what Mr. Google has to say about how long whole nutmeg stays fresh.

Quote

Properly stored, whole nutmeg will generally stay at best quality for about 3 to 4 years. To maximize the shelf life of whole nutmeg purchased in bulk, and to better retain flavor and potency, store in containers with tight-fitting lids.

I was surprised it's that long. I knew it was longer than ground spices. I've heard tv cooks say ground spices need to be replaced every 6 months.

[MargeGunderson]

I made bagels! They turned out great. I’m going to make cheddar bagels next time.

[Mondrianyone]

Somebody should say those look beautiful, so I will! Great job, @MargeGunderson!

I was actually checking out that KA recipe a few days ago, and you've inspired me.

Now if I could just reach through the screen . . .

[MargeGunderson]

I hope you try making them. I was surprised by how easy they are. I’m going to make the bagel sandwiches in the recipe for lunch tomorrow.

[Mondrianyone]

I think maybe next weekend. Now that I have fresh bugless flour again!

[PRgal]

I think I've finally found the perfect site for my kind of baking.  Kirbie's Cravings.  Lots of recipes with few ingredients, including cookies and quick breads.  I recently made 2 ingredient apple sauce cookies (my pic here - I subbed some of the ingredients, which you'll see in my post)and plan to make apple sauce bread soon).

[Trini]

2 hours ago, PRgal said:

I think I've finally found the perfect site for my kind of baking.  Kirbie's Cravings.  Lots of recipes with few ingredients, including cookies and quick breads.  I recently made 2 ingredient apple sauce cookies (my pic here - I subbed some of the ingredients, which you'll see in my post)and plan to make apple sauce bread soon).

Oh, the 2-ingredient cookies sound perfect for a friend who been asking for something sugar-free and gluten free! Adding a nut butter sounds like a good idea too.

[Gramto6]

Those 2 ingredient cookies do look really yummy! I am going to have to buy some oats next time I shop. Thanks for sharing!!

[Leeds]

On 4/26/2021 at 6:58 AM, larapu2000 said:

I have to photograph food frequently for work, and it is NEVER easy.  We utilize professional photographers and food stylists for certain shoots, but often do recipe concepts blogger style, where you don't get to use tricks or professional studio lighting to get perfect shots.  It's just me, a nearby window, and my best attempt at presentation and angles.

I follow a food-based thread on a different site.  Two posters in particular post frequently and always add awful pictures of their food.  Not only is the quality of the photos terrible, but all the food looks astonishingly unappetizing - soggy vegetables, burnt proteins, etc.  It's bizarre to me what some people thinks looks and tastes good.  Oh well, it makes them happy and I don't have to eat it.  (I'm sad not to eat everyone's baked goods on here though!)

In other news, I was excited to see a new Spring Baking Championship on TV.  I don't bake, but early-vintage GBBO is probably my favourite TV cooking show.  Then I found out that Molly Yeh is the new host on Spring Baking Championship.  She is like nails on a chalkboard to me, even with the volume off, I just discovered.

[Anela]

I'm going to try this:

https://yeewittlethings.com/2015/11/mamushka-recipes-from-ukraine-eastern-europe-plus-apple-sponge-recipe.html

The author's own page is here, but the instructions haven't been converted for US baking. 

https://oliahercules.com/recipes/apple-cake/

[PRgal]

Speaking of banana bread, Kirbie's Cravings has a recipe for...get this...banana bread BAGELS.  I was totally WTF when I saw it, but it might actually be something I'd attempt.  Kirbie has a lot of recipes with few ingredients, including ones that don't have refined sugars and/or are sweetened with fruit.  Because that's my pantry!!!  She also has recipes for applesauce oatmeal cookies (similar to two ingredient oatmeal banana cookies, but with applesauce).

 

[annzeepark914]

I need help with metric measurements.  This Swedish Chocolate Cake recipe was given to me by one of the chefs at Qvikne's Hotel in Norway after I asked him for it.  I tried making it (after my husband worked out the measurements) but it just didn't turn out right.

5   eggs

600 gr sugar

250 gr flour

100 gr cocoa

250 gr butter softened

Bake at 150 celsius

His writing made the first number in the 100 gr of cocoa and the 150 celsius look like a 7--I'm sure that can't be right so I made it a "1".  Maybe he used small or medium eggs and I always use large.  The cake tasted ok but it was very fragile and falling apart.  

 

 

[chessiegal]

1 hour ago, annzeepark914 said:

His writing made the first number in the 100 gr of cocoa and the 150 celsius look like a 7-

That's the way Europeans write a 1. They put a line though 7s (7). Thank you, Rick Steves.