It finally cooled off a little and I saw this baking challenge #bakealong from King Arthur Flour so I baked some bread today. It turned out pretty well so I’ll be bringing it to work tomorrow. I’m trying to get back to posting and hopefully a new kitchen and less travel for work might help.
Here’s a link to the recipe and it is a great one!
http://www.kingarthurflour.com/recipes/pane-bianco-recipe
Pizza Oven
Pizza Oven
No news here, I still love pizza and having recently spent some time with my brother and sister-in-law who have a real outside wood fired pizza oven I just had to do one more pizza post (not the last I’m sure). Getting the oven ready is quite a process involving several hours of loving attention, special wood and lots and lots of smoke, but the result was worth it – especially since I wasn’t the one providing the loving attention!
Smokey Pizza Oven
Chef Tom hard at work
I like thin crust, thick crust and everything in between and have found this recipe to be even better than my original favorite (recipe here). The main difference is the high gluten flour that I don’t always have on hand so I still use the other recipe as an alternate. This dough is simple to make, easy to shape and can be rolled very thin almost like a cracker (popular with the designated taste tester – Husband).
Printable Recipe Pizza Dough
Halloween Cake Pop Ghosts
Halloween Ghost and Witches Hat Cake Pops
It’s that time of year again! I can’t seem to get away from the cake pops. I’ll spare you from the entire process since I have done them several times before (Brownie Cake Pops on Glo Sticks, Easter Egg Cake Balls, and Chocolate Cake Balls). These are different in only in the fact that I used a mold for the Witch Hats and a little glitter icing to decorate the Ghosts but they are so cute for Halloween especially since my artistic skills are pretty weak so I have to go with the easy things. The ghosts are great because when they turn out goofy I just say I planned it that way and using the mold for the witches hats was also just my speed. My biggest suggestion for the ghosts is that you use a white or very light cake and icing combination because otherwise it will show through the white chocolate. I used a really moist apple cake but even that showed a little.
Apple Bundt Cake
For the ghosts, I dipped them in white chocolate in a “rustic” way, making them sort of misshapen and drippy, then used some black glitter icing to give them features.
Ghosts after dipping
Silicone molds for Witches Hats
Witches Hat Molds filled
For the witches hats, I used these molds.
Witches Hat Cake Pops on sticks
After popping them out of the molds onto a cookie tray (which I only really noticed in the pictures is probably past its prime and should be replaced) I added some sticks and put them in the refrigerator for about 1/2 hour to firm up.
After dipping I put them on a table decorated with a mini-oval ceramic bowl filled with crushed Oreos for a coffin, some mini-pumpkins, lots of candles, some little paper witch hats that a friend made and some pumpkin shot glasses filled with a bright red drink.
Here is my annual Halloween Honey Caramel Apple post, this year with some new pictures.
I know, enough with the honey caramel, but I just couldn’t resist one more time. Caramel apples are one of my favorites and Daughter asked me to send some caramel for her and friends after seeing the earlier recipes, so I made another batch. This time it is not a sauce but a full caramel that you can use to dip the apples or form into squares to eat or give as candies for gifts.
When making caramel, the temperature you cook it to determines whether it is a thin (220) or thick sauce (240) or a soft (260)or hard (300) candy. A candy thermometer is a must, but you can get one pretty much anywhere that has kitchen equipment, including most grocery stores for just a few dollars.
The Ingredients are very simple:
1 cup honey
1 cup whipping cream
1/8 teaspoon salt
6 apples (place them in the refrigerator the night before so they will be well chilled – it will help the caramel harden quickly so it will stick better)
Chopped Nuts (any kind you like – I used toasted macadamia)
Chocolate (I always use Ghirardelli Candy Making and Dipping Chocolate – this time I used the white)
6 craft sticks
If you don’t want to make your own caramel, you can always use ones from the store (of course it’s not nearly as good as these).
Wash the apples well to get off any wax or dirt. Put the sticks in each apple.
Apples with Sticks
Honey Caramel ready for dipping
Dipped
This is one of my older, but favorites so I’m reposting one of my favorites for Easter. These were a big hit and I’m sure I’ll be making them again this year!
Although I don’t quite get it as I guess I’m just not that much of a cake fan, cake balls are very popular around here and I do have to admit these are pretty cute. I mentioned to college Daughter that I was going to make some and her exact words were “send them here, send them all here” and I’ve made them for several friends, who all seem to love them. I did have some cheesecake pops at a party recently and those are going to be my next batch as they were amazing.
The basic idea is simple, mush up a cake and icing, roll it and dip in chocolate. The best site for ideas is Bakerella, she even has a cookbook out just for them. Previously I made some simple chocolate ones for a birthday party following Bakerella’s instructions. This time I used a cherry chip cake mix (I usually make my cakes from scratch, but Daughter had left this box of mix here from her last visit so I decided to use it) and some cream cheese icing I had leftover from a birthday cake.
Ingredients:
Cherry Chip Cake mix with eggs and oil (or homemade cake)
1/2 cup chopped maraschino cherries (added to the cake batter for a little extra flavor)
2 cups cream cheese icing (homemade or purchased)
Dipping chocolate white and dark (I prefer Ghirardelli’s candy coating because I think it has the best quality but it’s not always easy to find. Sam’s Club carries it around the holidays so I stock up but you can also use chocolate melts which you can even get pre-colored)
First bake the cake and cool completely.
The crumble the cake in a large bowl.
Add the icing.
Smash it together and form into a thick disk – a spatula works but hands work better. Wrap in plastic and put in the refrigerator for about an hour to stiffen up.
This is a great spoon for making the balls or cookies. It is a hard plastic with a rubber bottom so the portions are even and you can easily push the dough out. It comes in several sizes and I’ve seen it at most kitchen stores, the grocery store and even at the dollar store. For this, I used the Tablespoon size, rolling them into egg shapes and placing them on a cookie sheet.
As you can probably tell, I’m not into perfection, I just don’t have time or the patience. I admire those who do and if you are one of them, you can make them really great. Some of my eggs aren’t shaped exactly right but they still look pretty egg like and they don’t last long anyway.
Next wrap and place them in the fridge for 10-15 minutes.
I have tried two methods of dipping, using a toothpick and putting them on a styrofoam floral stand that I got from the dollar store and just using a fork and putting them on waxed paper. I find that the fork works better for me but they each have good and bad parts. In order to get them to stay on the toothpick, I had to freeze them, which then caused the chocolate to crack as it hardened but they seemed to have the best shape if you can keep them on the toothpick. Any little drips on the bottom can be trimmed with a sharp paring knife.
I switched to “warmer” balls on the fork letting them harden on a piece of waxed paper, which seemed to solve the falling off/cracking problem and seemed to be faster. It sometimes leaves a bit of a flat base, but that is easily trimmed with a sharp paring knife or you can just leave it and serve them with that side down. I used both white and dark chocolate, adding gel food color to the white to make a couple different colors. Make sure you keep the chocolate warm, if it starts to thicken heat for a few seconds in the microwave to keep it easier to dip. When it gets thick it also makes them more likely to crack (I’ve learned these things from the error part of trial and error). The good news is that I learned the decorating can cover up the cracks pretty well!
Here they are after the first round of decorating. Note there are cracks and not so perfect spots, but those will be fixed soon! I used the spray on color on some of the white ones which made a sort of marbled effect that I liked. I tried someone’s suggestion for painting corn syrup on then putting sprinkles, but I just didn’t like the way it looked and am not that much of a sprinkle fan anyway so I ended up using the colored white chocolate instead. Plus, that worked perfectly to fill in any cracks. I always use a small plastic squeeze bottle when decorating with chocolate, you can get them from Wilton at the craft store or pretty much anywhere and they are very inexpensive. Just melt the chocolate in a small bowl in the microwave. Depending on how much you do at a time it can take from 1-2 minutes. I start with 1 minute, then stir and do 15 second increments until it is melted, then pour it into the squeeze bottle.
Again, those of you who are more creative and have more patience could do a much better decorating job.
I also used a chocolate mold (from Wilton that I got at Wal-Mart) to make some little baskets. You just melt the chocolate, put it into the bottom of the mold then put the top. Using the same sharp paring knife I trimmed off any excess before I unmolded them as sometimes it was hard to judge just how much chocolate to put into the mold – the directions on the package just say fill “half full” but there are no markings so you just have to get a feel for it.
Here are a couple in the baskets.
Honey Caramel Apples
Here is a repost for Halloween, the best time for caramel apples!
I know, enough with the honey caramel, but I just couldn’t resist one more time. Caramel apples are one of my favorites and Daughter asked me to send some caramel for her and friends after seeing the earlier recipes, so I made another batch. This time it is not a sauce but a full caramel that you can use to dip the apples or form into squares to eat or give as candies for gifts.
When making caramel, the temperature you cook it to determines whether it is a thin (220) or thick sauce (240) or a soft (260)or hard (300) candy. A candy thermometer is a must, but you can get one pretty much anywhere that has kitchen equipment, including most grocery stores for just a few dollars.
The Ingredients are very simple:
1 cup honey
1 cup whipping cream
1/8 teaspoon salt
6 apples (place them in the refrigerator the night before so they will be well chilled – it will help the caramel harden quickly so it will stick better)
Chopped Nuts (any kind you like – I used toasted macadamia)
Chocolate (I always use Ghirardelli Candy Making and Dipping Chocolate – this time I used the white)
6 craft sticks
If you don’t want to make your own caramel, you can always use ones from the store (of course it’s not nearly as good as these).
More
Wash the apples well to get off any wax or dirt. Put the sticks in each apple.
Apples with Sticks
Make the Caramel
Use a pan much larger than you would think, the caramel bubbles up so use a big pan. Add the cream to the pan and over medium heat bring almost to a boil. Add the honey and salt and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly until the temperature reaches 255-260 (if you plan on using them as candies I would go to 260-265 so they will be a little firmer). Fill the sink with ice water and as soon as it reaches the proper temperature, immediately put the pan in the cold water being sure not to get any water in the pan. Stir the caramel for a minute or two until it thickens but not so long that it is firm (if you try an apple and the caramel drips off, let it cool a little longer). Take the pan out of the water and dip the apples, placing them on buttered wax paper. If you have room in the fridge or outside if it is cooler (that isn’t really an option yet here – still way to hot) to set the caramel.
Honey Caramel ready for dipping
Dipped
Once the caramel has hardened enough to lift them off the paper, dip in the chopped nuts, chocolate, coconut, chocolate chips, etc. pressing them gently into the caramel. If you prefer you can dip them in the add-ons immediately, but I think they look better if you let them firm up a little first, then you can press them in so it sticks better.
Honey Caramel Apples
Since I’ve been quite busy lately, I’m taking advantage of timing and reposting one of my favorites for Easter. These were a big hit and I’m sure I’ll be making them again this year!
Although I don’t quite get it as I guess I’m just not that much of a cake fan, cake balls are very popular around here and I do have to admit these are pretty cute. I mentioned to college Daughter that I was going to make some and her exact words were “send them here, send them all here” and I’ve made them for several friends, who all seem to love them. I did have some cheesecake pops at a party recently and those are going to be my next batch as they were amazing.
The basic idea is simple, mush up a cake and icing, roll it and dip in chocolate. The best site for ideas is Bakerella, she even has a cookbook out just for them. Previously I made some simple chocolate ones for a birthday party following Bakerella’s instructions. This time I used a cherry chip cake mix (I usually make my cakes from scratch, but Daughter had left this box of mix here from her last visit so I decided to use it) and some cream cheese icing I had leftover from a birthday cake.
Ingredients:
Cherry Chip Cake mix with eggs and oil (or homemade cake)
1/2 cup chopped maraschino cherries (added to the cake batter for a little extra flavor)
2 cups cream cheese icing (homemade or purchased)
Dipping chocolate white and dark (I prefer Ghirardelli’s candy coating because I think it has the best quality but it’s not always easy to find. Sam’s Club carries it around the holidays so I stock up but you can also use chocolate melts which you can even get pre-colored)
First bake the cake and cool completely.
The crumble the cake in a large bowl.
Add the icing.
Smash it together and form into a thick disk – a spatula works but hands work better. Wrap in plastic and put in the refrigerator for about an hour to stiffen up.
This is a great spoon for making the balls or cookies. It is a hard plastic with a rubber bottom so the portions are even and you can easily push the dough out. It comes in several sizes and I’ve seen it at most kitchen stores, the grocery store and even at the dollar store. For this, I used the Tablespoon size, rolling them into egg shapes and placing them on a cookie sheet.
As you can probably tell, I’m not into perfection, I just don’t have time or the patience. I admire those who do and if you are one of them, you can make them really great. Some of my eggs aren’t shaped exactly right but they still look pretty egg like and they don’t last long anyway.
Next wrap and place them in the fridge for 10-15 minutes.
I have tried two methods of dipping, using a toothpick and putting them on a styrofoam floral stand that I got from the dollar store and just using a fork and putting them on waxed paper. I find that the fork works better for me but they each have good and bad parts. In order to get them to stay on the toothpick, I had to freeze them, which then caused the chocolate to crack as it hardened but they seemed to have the best shape if you can keep them on the toothpick. Any little drips on the bottom can be trimmed with a sharp paring knife.
I switched to “warmer” balls on the fork letting them harden on a piece of waxed paper, which seemed to solve the falling off/cracking problem and seemed to be faster. It sometimes leaves a bit of a flat base, but that is easily trimmed with a sharp paring knife or you can just leave it and serve them with that side down. I used both white and dark chocolate, adding gel food color to the white to make a couple different colors. Make sure you keep the chocolate warm, if it starts to thicken heat for a few seconds in the microwave to keep it easier to dip. When it gets thick it also makes them more likely to crack (I’ve learned these things from the error part of trial and error). The good news is that I learned the decorating can cover up the cracks pretty well!
Here they are after the first round of decorating. Note there are cracks and not so perfect spots, but those will be fixed soon! I used the spray on color on some of the white ones which made a sort of marbled effect that I liked. I tried someone’s suggestion for painting corn syrup on then putting sprinkles, but I just didn’t like the way it looked and am not that much of a sprinkle fan anyway so I ended up using the colored white chocolate instead. Plus, that worked perfectly to fill in any cracks. I always use a small plastic squeeze bottle when decorating with chocolate, you can get them from Wilton at the craft store or pretty much anywhere and they are very inexpensive. Just melt the chocolate in a small bowl in the microwave. Depending on how much you do at a time it can take from 1-2 minutes. I start with 1 minute, then stir and do 15 second increments until it is melted, then pour it into the squeeze bottle.
Again, those of you who are more creative and have more patience could do a much better decorating job.
I also used a chocolate mold (from Wilton that I got at Wal-Mart) to make some little baskets. You just melt the chocolate, put it into the bottom of the mold then put the top. Using the same sharp paring knife I trimmed off any excess before I unmolded them as sometimes it was hard to judge just how much chocolate to put into the mold – the directions on the package just say fill “half full” but there are no markings so you just have to get a feel for it.
Here are a couple in the baskets.
Chocolate Brownie Cake Pops on Glo Sticks
The birthdays just keep coming. This time my friend’s son who is fond of chocolate cake pops. I tried sending over white chocolate/strawberry cake ones once and they just didn’t make the grade (a polite thanks but next time could you make all chocolate) so we’re back to chocolate. I did give a little twist on this one and they may have changed my mind. As I’ve mentioned before in the past I haven’t really understood the appeal of the cake pops, but these were pretty good! Instead of the usual cake and icing for the filling, I made a really fudgy brownie and slightly underbaked it. They didn’t even need the icing and the texture was perfect for rolling the balls. Lot’s of good quality chocolate in the mix kept them firm enough to dip and the taste was wonderful. To make them special, instead of using regular sticks, I found glo sticks that were just the right size and although I did manage to start a few prematurely glowing, the majority made it just fine and should provide some entertainment after the eating.
I’m not going to go through the whole process of making these but you can refer to my earlier posts on Easter Egg Cake Balls for step by step pictures. Here is the Brownie Tart recipe I used from Ina Garten on the FoodNetwork website. The only change is that I did underbake it by about 5 minutes and didn’t use the glaze. I will definitely be making this one again!
Here’s how they looked after I rolled them. Notice the neat reflections on the counter!
Chocolate Brownie Cake Pops rolled and ready to dip
Dipped and hardening
Done!
Australian Scones (baking powder biscuits)
I admit I’ve neglected my blog. Between lots of visitors over the holidays and my realization that all that baking was having a really bad effect on the family’s collective waistlines I decided to take a little break. I have had a recent fascination with making bread, especially sourdough which I think I’m finally becoming proficient at, but it really doesn’t photograph that well mostly because we usually eat it fresh from the oven so it doesn’t last long enough. This month’s challenge fit right in with that theme though so I had a great time with it. I chose to make the biscuits with some fresh herbs (oregano) and they were delicious. I’ve tried making biscuits before, but although they weren’t inedible, they weren’t spectacular either. This recipe was quite simple and although still not spectacular, they were definitely great and I’m sure with a little practice they will get to spectacular.
Audax Artifex was our January 2012 Daring Bakers’ host. Aud worked tirelessly to master light and fluffy scones (a/k/a biscuits) to help us create delicious and perfect batches in our own kitchens!
The wonderfully written full instructions from Audax in a PDF are here and I so appreciate the work that went into them.
I followed the instructions to make what I would call baking powder biscuits but in Australian they are scones. I made the basic scones and added a few tablespoons of fresh oregano. Thanks to Audax for the great challenge!
Basic Scones (a.k.a. Basic Biscuits)
Servings: about eight 2-inch (5 cm) scones or five 3-inch (7½ cm) scones
Recipe can be doubled
Ingredients:
1 cup (240 ml) (140 gm/5 oz) plain (all-purpose) flour
2 teaspoons (10 ml) (10 gm) (⅓ oz) fresh baking powder
¼ teaspoon (1¼ ml) (1½ gm) salt
2 tablespoons (30 gm/1 oz) frozen grated butter (or a combination of lard and butter)
approximately ½ cup (120 ml) cold milk
optional 1 tablespoon milk, for glazing the tops of the scones
Directions:
1. Preheat oven to very hot 475°F/240°C/gas mark 9.
2. Triple sift the dry ingredients into a large bowl. (If your room temperature is very hot refrigerate the sifted ingredients until cold.)
3. Rub the frozen grated butter (or combination of fats) into the dry ingredients until it resembles very coarse bread crumbs with some pea-sized pieces if you want flaky scones or until it resembles coarse beach sand if you want tender scones.
4. Add nearly all of the liquid at once into the rubbed-in flour/fat mixture and mix until it just forms a sticky dough (add the remaining liquid if needed). The wetter the dough the lighter the scones (biscuits) will be!
5. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured board, lightly flour the top of the dough. To achieve an even homogeneous crumb to your scones knead very gently about 4 or 5 times (do not press too firmly) the dough until it is smooth. To achieve a layered effect in your scones knead very gently once (do not press too firmly) then fold and turn the kneaded dough about 3 or 4 times until the dough has formed a smooth texture. (Use a floured plastic scraper to help you knead and/or fold and turn the dough if you wish.)
6. Pat or roll out the dough into a 6 inch by 4 inch rectangle by about ¾ inch thick (15¼ cm by 10 cm by 2 cm thick). Using a well-floured 2-inch (5 cm) scone cutter (biscuit cutter), stamp out without twisting six 2-inch (5 cm) rounds, gently reform the scraps into another ¾ inch (2 cm) layer and cut two more scones (these two scones will not raise as well as the others since the extra handling will slightly toughen the dough). Or use a well-floured sharp knife to form squares or wedges as you desire.
7. Place the rounds just touching on a baking dish if you wish to have soft-sided scones or place the rounds spaced widely apart on the baking dish if you wish to have crisp-sided scones. Glaze the tops with milk if you want a golden colour on your scones or lightly flour if you want a more traditional look to your scones.
8. Bake in the preheated very hot oven for about 10 minutes (check at 8 minutes since home ovens at these high temperatures are very unreliable) until the scones are well risen and are lightly coloured on the tops. The scones are ready when the sides are set.
9. Immediately place onto cooling rack to stop the cooking process, serve while still warm.
Peach and Raspberry White Chocolate Mousse Tart
This is a simple way to use those wonderful fresh fruits. I had some excellent white peaches, soft and really juicy, and great raspberries recently so for a dinner with friends I made this wonderful tart.
Peach
I did manage to destroy it on the trip over and ended up with a giant blob. It was wonderful tasting but not so pretty anymore, so I can say that I wouldn’t recommend it to take anywhere – eat it at home and don’t try to take it out in 110 degrees!
Printable Peach and Raspberry White Chocolate Tart
Ingredients:
First thaw the pastry dough. I wanted a circle because I thought the peaches would arrange nicely so I rolled it and cut into a 10 inch circles but you could just use the dough in the rectangle shape it comes in. I baked the scraps of dough as well to use as decoration on the top. Place the dough on cookie sheets, prick with a fork and bake according to the package directions until golden brown, about 20-25 minutes. Set aside to cool.
In medium-sized microwave safe bowl melt the white chocolate and 1/2 cup cream on high, stirring and checking at 30 seconds, then at 15 second intervals until white chocolate is almost melted. Stir until white chocolate is completely melted. Cool to room temperature.
In chilled med bowl place remaining cream. Beat with mixer at medium speed until soft peaks form. Fold half the whipped cream into white chocolate. Fold in remaining cream just until blended.
Place one layer of the pastry on the serving dish. Spoon a thick layer of the mousse mixture on (a little less than half), then layer the peaches, saving a few slices for decoration. Spoon on another layer of the mousse, reserving a small amount for decoration and arrange the raspberries on top. Use the pieces of the pastry dough as decoration.
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