10 posts tagged “baking”

I have tea and cake.  That makes for a good morning.

Last night was our last art class for this session (and probably until autumn, at least) and the very last class at the museum for our instructor, who's worked there eleven years.  She's not leaving in the happiest of situations and I wanted to do something nice to make sure the day had some happy memories in it for her, so I did what I do and baked treats. 

I spent all of yesterday baking.  I made a batch of chocolate espresso cookies first, and as I was putting the last of them in the oven, I noticed that the bag of chocolate chips was still sitting there on the counter.  D'OH!  I thought that might explain why the cookies weren't spreading in the oven.  I made the citrus pound cake next.  That came out perfectly.  I did cut the hell our of my thumb when zesting the lemon though.  argh.  While the cake was baking, I dug around in my cupboards and found that I had enough bitter chocolate to make another batch of cookies, with chocolate chips this time, so I did that when the cake came out of the oven.  The cookies still didn't come out quite right.  I was discussing them with my art teacher (who also bakes - I love that woman!), and she suggested that maybe my baking powder is getting old, and I'm betting that's my problem.  They still tasted great, they just weren't as pretty as they usually are.  Everyone in class loved the treats though.  There was a lot of "MMMMM!" while people worked.  :)

I'm really going to miss Tracey (our instructor).  Last night while I painted, we talked about baking, glass and knitting, and she talked woodshop stuff with Craig.  We just have so much in common and conversation is so effortless that we never seem to have enough time to talk about everything.  I'm ashamed to say I get a little irritated when the other people in our class need her attention for something, because there's just so much I want to discuss with her.  She even graduated high school the same year we did.  She went to a very popular high school in town and I know quite a few people from her graduating class.  We're going to try keeping in touch in email, but I know she's an extremely busy woman and I'm thinking that might not work out.  I hope it does though, because I'm really going to miss her!

Craig and I were thinking about taking a beginner's welding class at the museum next, but I think we're going to take a few months off.  I think art classes might be reserved for the colder seasons when we tend to get a little cabin fever.  Now that the days are warming up, I want to be out in the yard or at my torch and Craig's jonesing for garage time.  There's so much stuff at home to hold our attention, and a class right now feels more like a distraction than a treat.  I definitely want more classes when the weather starts keeping us indoors again though.  That was definitely money well spent!

I've been cooking a lot of new-to-me things lately.  I hate cooking, I really do, but I love eating!

The elk steak was a real winner.  Oh my gods!  That was delicious!  I would take an elk down if I saw one.  *nods*  Yummy, yummy wildlife.

This weekend I had some cheese in the fridge that needed to be used up, so I whipped up some white mac & cheese that was frakking gourmet!  It was so creamy and CHEESY!  It was a masterpiece.

Last night I was madly craving chocolate, but we have none in the house, so on a whim I googled "recipe microwave chocolate lava cake", and the internet provided!  It wasn't the best chocolate desert I've ever had, but it was exactly enough to satisfy my craving.  And it was sinfully decadent.

But the thing I'm most excited about is the strawberry rhubarb pie I have in the oven right now.  *swoon*

Strawberry + rhubarb is one of my favorite flavors.  It rivals chocolate IMO.  I love strawberry-rhubarb jam, I love it SOOOOOOOOOO MUCH!  It's hard to find around here though.  I thought I'd recently found some in a specialty food store, but with the first bite of my jam-covered toast, I spat it out.  PTOOEY!  My first thought was that it had gone bad somehow, but it didn't really taste "bad", it just didn't taste like strawberry rhubarb jam *AT ALL*.  I took a closer look at the jar and in script under "Strawberry Rhubarb" it says "with Bourbon Vanilla"  WTH???  Why mess with a perfect thing?  It is damn near inedible, IMO.  Not that it tastes bad, but just that it tastes all wrong.  I've had some since then, but I have to constantly remind myself that it is NOT strawberry rhubarb jam, or I'm still tempted to spit it out.  It is not what I wanted at all.

So when I went shopping last week, I noticed a lovely bunch of rhubarb.  I didn't think much of it because I've never cooked with rhubarb.  I did pick up some deep red organic strawberries though, and once I was at home and putting them in the fridge, I thought, "DAMMIT!  I should've bought that rhubarb!"  I went back to the store for it, and now I have my very first strawberry rhubarb pie in the oven.  O.M.G!  It smells SOOOOO DAMN GOOD!  I have to wait to eat it.  There's still dinner to make and eat, but DAMN!  Dessert is going to be so very happy tonight!!!

For my birthday this year, my mom enrolled me in her Cupcake of the Month Club.  It's a very exclusive club; I'm the only member.

September is Espresso Cupcakes.  These are the best cupcakes I've ever had!

*joy*

After years of keeping the bunnies contained with a puppy gate, Mia has finally figured out how to fold it out of the way and let herself out.  While amusing, this is not a good development.  I'm sure I can secure it somehow (my brain is much bigger and I have opposable thumbs), but I'm lazy and it was nice just being able to easily slide it around myself whenever I needed to all this time.

Kroger had mini-muffin pans on sale, buy one, get one free.  YAY!  I've been wanting mini-muffin pans for a while, but have been too frugal to buy the good ones and too picky to buy the cheap crap.  I made zucchini mini-muffins today.  Delicious and so cute.

I've remembered that I can view text files on my mp3 player while listening to music.  This feature never really interested me before, but today when I was debating whether I should print out my recipe or haul my laptop out to the kitchen, I remembered about the text files and instead loaded the recipe onto my mp3 player.  It was quite a nice way to work, listening to music and always having my recipe at hand for reference.  Now I'm thinking about making an arm-band, or maybe figuring out how to hang it upside down from my neck so it's readable and mostly hands-free.

It's candle season again!  I have my first two burning right now.  My MIL gave me a couple more bags of church candles, so I'm quite candle-rich!  I love these church candles because they burn so very evenly and clean.  I really need to clean my house up and get my autumn decorations out, then deck the place out with candles.  I love this time of year!

...That's all I have right now, I guess.  I spent the weekend doing very minor home improvement type things, but it feels like time well-spent because the home projects list is soooooo long that any time I can cross something off it makes me feel accomplished.  I did get the mudroom cleaned up though, and that's most exciting because I have room to work with my torch in there again now.  I'm hoping the work I have planned for tomorrow goes smoothly and I can squeeze in some torch time!

Ok.  Time to feed the bunnies and call it a night.  I'm looking forward to this week.  I intend to get so very much done.

We dyed eggs tonight for the first time in quite a few years.  :)

I wanted to make honey cakes too, but while digging for my recipe, I remembered semlor* and decided I'd *MUCH* rather make that.  I don't have almond paste, so I went to the store.  They didn't have almond paste either, so I bought some blanched almonds to make paste from scratch.  The evening got away from me though, and I never did any baking.

We have eggs though!  And candy.  :)  Never go shopping for a "reasonable amount of candy" when you're PMSing.  We have enough candy to tide us over til Halloween probably.

I'll be sleeping when spring tip-toes in, but at least I got some eggs done!

I'll make semlor tomorrow maybe then.  I wanted to bake something for the equinox, but I let the night get away from me.  Thanks to my Swedish uncle, semlor has been an easter tradition in our family, so I guess, according to tradition, I have until Easter Sunday to do my baking then. 

*Semlor is a Swedish bun with the top cut off, filled with almond paste and whipped cream, then the top's put back on like a wee hat, and the whole thing is dusted with confectioners sugar.  They're traditionally eaten all through Lent, sometimes served in a bowl of milk (messy and unnecessary!).  I haven't had them in so many years, not since we used to gather at my Ommy's house for easter fifteen years ago or so.  I've always wanted to make them though, and this will be the year.

I have my sugar cookies done, just need to frost a choice few of those. 

The buckeyes are setting up, though a little messy to handle.  I'm not sure if they're going to set completely, but if not I have little foil cups I can put them in.  Not sure if I used too much or too little Crisco, but one way or the other I'm sure that's my problem.  I know they set better if you use paraffin wax, but paraffin is NOT food as far as I'm concerned.  They're still sinfully delicious though!

The Cornflake wreaths (like Rice Krispy treats but with Corkflakes and shaped into wreaths) are cute.  I only wanted one per tray of cookies for a little color, so I'm not really sure if they're terribly yummy, and I really don't care.  They're cute.  Objective accomplished.

The sugar plums though...  *drooool*!  This is my first year making them, and how have I missed out on these all my years?  I've never even had one, but YUM!!!  And *SO* easy to make too!  I read a bunch of recipes and got the impression it's just a bunch of your favorite dried fruits and some nuts all whirled together in the food processor with a wee bit of fruit juice or liquor, then rolled into small balls and coated in sugar.  I just did a batch that was dates, raisins, dried cherries, candied ginger, coconut, almonds and about a tablespoon of triplesec.  YUM!  And they're so cute too!  I'm definitely doing another batch of these.

Still need to make the chocolate espresso cookies and maybe some gingerbread or apple spice cookies.  But that's it, I think.

While I've been fussing about in the kitchen, Craig has been hanging ornaments.  This place is looking so pretty.  YAY, holidays!

I strung up a couple of quick bracelets yesterday.  They're not share-worthy so no pics this time, just your basic beads on a string.  That was the last of the OMG! NEED TO FINISH THIS GIFT! crafting though.  I have a few more things I want to do with these last two gifts yet today, but if push came to shove, I could wrap what I have right now and feel quite good about gifting it.  Everything else is ready to go.

Today I'm going to do some baking, I think.  I'll make enough to share, but mostly I just want to make sure our pantry is stocked with holiday goodies for the week ahead.  :)  I have the ingredients to make quite a few things, but we'll see how far I get into my baking before I get bored.

Still have some decorating to do too.  Hanging the glass balls takes me a looong time because I fuss and rearrange like crazy.  I'm pretty obsessive about color and composition when it comes to this last bit of decorating.  Everything needs to look well-placed and pleasing to my eye, and I can't stop myself from fussing with it until it's all perfect.

We gave the bunnies their willow-branch star ornaments yesterday for the solstice.  The stars are already missing a few points.  :)  The bunnies can't help but fuss with their decorations too, but in their case they're snacking.  :)

I had planned on working all this weekend, because I really do have a ton I want to be done with by the time the calendar changes, but it's really impossible to work this close to the holiday madness.  It seems far more important to keep my nerves calm and quiet so I'm fresh and ready for all the crazy visiting.  I'm going to try not to have a blotchy, tear-streaked face and those huge deer-in-headlights eyes of terror when we go visiting this year, ...breaking with that tradition this year, I hope.  heh.

It's going to be a nice, cozy, quiet day at home for us today.  We're staying in all day.  The house will smell of cookies; it smells of bacon and coffee right now.  I'll get a hot shower in a bit and put on a clean pair of jammies, rather than "real clothes".  I'll put the rest of my sparklies up.  We have plenty of eats in the house, including leftover chinese from last night's dinner out, and we have a freshly stocked liquor shelf.  I have three books I'm reading, two of which are just about done, and I have a huge and interesting to-read pile waiting for me.  I have some fun crafting stuff I can do when I get tired of baking and decorating.  We'll probably even play some video games later.  ...And maybe I'll watch Elf *again*.  :)  I expect it's going to be a very nice day for me and my sweetie.

That's going to be my whole weekend right there: compiling manuals and baking.  I told Craig I'd make some snacks for him to take to his volunteer thing tomorrow, and I wanted to bake my mom some of her favorite toffee brownies for her birthday.  Plus I have some old bananas that need to be made into bread, and we're about through the batch of apple-date bars I made last weekend, so I need to make something yum for us to have on hand here too.  Oh, and those apples I have should probably be thrown into a pie before they get too old.

I also need to put Halloween away.  I've been stalling on that.  It went by too fast this year.

Lots of work to do though.  My sleeping issues early in the week kept me from being as productive as I had planned, and now I must make up for that.

The no coffee thing seems to be the trick to getting good sleep.  I think I'm going to screw that up right now though.  Coffee does such an efficient job of revving up my brain and getting me some focus, and I really need that for work.  Damned if you do...

Last (but not least!) thing:  My Aunt Jadine has been diagnosed with inoperable cancer of the liver.  They're getting a second opinion and looking for any and all treatment options, but a little prayer and positive energy sent her way would sure be appreciated.  She's a witty, warm, charming woman, and I hate to think of her, my Uncle Jim and their kids having to deal with such heavy news.  If anyone can find a way to turn this around, I'm sure it's Jadine.

Jim and Jadine

I've dubbed this my "Get You Sh*t Together" weekend.  Changing weather always throws my immune system off, but I'm starting to feel more myself, and I have a lot to catch up on!

For today I have a dessert to prepare and costumes to ready for a party tonight though, and that kind of a social outing requires some calm, relaxed preparation.  If I do all the chores and work I wanted to do today, I'm going to be beyond surly and ouchy trying to be social tonight.

So I'm thinking I'll make that dessert then maybe some light chores, a few screen captures and chapter layouts for the documentation, then maybe some painting or torchwork followed by a hot bath and party primping.  Tomorrow can be more serious work.

The weather is perfect for playing dress-up at least.

I should do something.  Deciding on a dessert to make would be a good first move.