baking up a storm

i've been baking. up. a. storm.

one's coming. a snowstorm, i mean. or haven't you heard? it's all the talk at the grocery store.

anywho, i'm baking.

these scones.

three batches, so far. might even bake another batch today.

i'm pretty impressed with myself. i mean i'm no butcher, baker and candlestick maker, but i'm working on it.

feels kind of nice to treat my family to homemade goodies.


best
deborah

for anytime or all the time

i've mentioned in previous posts that i am not a baker. however, there is one recipe that even I, cannot mess up. trust me. i (with the help of our youngest) have baked 18 loaves and counting of this yummy-scrummy chocolate chip pumpkin bread since the wednesday before thanksgiving.

my dear friend and former neighbor would bring this to us every once and awhile. she also would bring us cake*pops*, cookies, soup. i miss her living so close....and i miss her cooking for us.

a few months after she and her family moved back to california, i made cookies. all by myself--they were pretty good too. when the boys came home from school i had them sitting on a plate with ice-cold milk. guess who made you cookies? the boys guessed amy. all the way from california. c'mon.

so here's her recipe:

3 1/2 c. flour
2 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. nutmeg
1 tsp. cinnamon
*mix above ingredients in large bowl.
add following ingredients--mix:
3 c. sugar
3/4 c. water
1 c. oil
1 small can pumpkin
4 eggs
1 (6 oz) pkg. chocolate chips
*grease loaf pans w/crisco. bake at 350degrees for:
1 hour for 4 small loaf pans
or 1 1/2 hours for 2 large loaf pans
let cool a few minutes, then turn out on rack.

i've made a teeny-tiny adjustment out of the idea i could make this a teeny-tiny bit healthier. i substitute 1/2 cup applesauce in place of 1/2 cup of oil. i still use a 1/2 oil. you could skip the chocolate chips. i've thought about doing it....but, i'm scared. what happens to people who pass on chocolate? it can't be good. ;)


best
deborah
p.s. you can move back here amy. that photo at the top of the page--it's from miami or bangladesh. not michigan. not even my backyard.

science a'la mode

every family needs one baker.

needs.

in my family....it is my sister. not me.

she makes all the desserts for every birthday and holiday.

i'm pretty sure she's baked her own birthday cake several years in a row.

i think that is probably at least a little wrong.

b says to me, "she bakes her own birthday dessert? really? that's kind of sad. " in my defense i say, "well, would she want something i baked?" b gives me the arched eyebrow.

baking is science. i earned a minor in science. i should be set.

cooking is art. i love art.

i love the art of cooking--of adding a little more of one thing. maybe a little less of something else. of tweaking and following my instincts. of letting creativity and what's in season lead my hand. maybe some orange peel. and a bit more pepper. out of white onion? maybe i'll add red. the tomatoes are so good--toss those in too.

i've learned you cannot just fly by the seat of your pants, baking. i will pretty much fly by the seat of my pants any chance i get. baking will humble a person like that--like me. i thought i had followed one of my grandma's recipes last christmas for *butterhorns*--a light and flaky pastry shaped into crescents and filled with an apricot preserve. i have such happy memories of those butterhorns and my grandma.

i made cement in a bowl. i did manage to save said bowl--i chiseled it out.

i can make/bake a box mix....i'm not that inept, but the *from scratch* recipes have me scratching my head pretty much every time. (though i do have one *no fail* recipe, i'll share later)

so next year, i promised to bake my sister her birthday dessert. i'm not promising it will be great. i'm going for edible.
she's requested a chocolate torte--my grandma's recipe. oh boy. chisel--check, hammer--check:)


best
deborah