rosik929

I love combining apples, cinnamon, AND vanilla in a pie, each enhances and deepens the other wonderfully; the vanilla does get rid of the slight bitterness that cinnamon tends to have, and gives a wonderful aroma and taste. I use freshly scraped vanilla bean seeds, and purchase the vanilla beans online at http://www.Beanilla.com for best results; the beans tends to be fresher (moist, slightly sticky, and vacuum-sealed in their packaging), and the prices are reasonable. I do not get the same taste at all with just vanilla extract. If using an extra buttery crust that is a bit salty, small flecks of thyme sprinkled over the top of the apple pie would be delicious!

I would turn it off in between cooking times; you may actually get a more accurate baking temperature each time. The oven temperature tends to rise over long baking periods, even if the temperature is left alone and not adjusted; a 45 minute wait period between each baking time could result in the second baking time having a significantly higher baking temperature. I do not think that this would be desirable for that batch.

NY cheesecake should be creamy, not dry, rich but not overly dense and heavy, and have a buttery, crumbly crust; it should not be too sweet, or be drowned by a topping or sauce on top. I have never seen one baked at 400 F for 45 minutes, they are usually baked at around 300 F or on a similar low temperature for about 45 minutes. Cheesecake making is a delicate process, but if the instructions are followed exactly it is actually a bit easy.

I love baking with saffron, it has a very distinct taste and lends a warmth and richness to the dish, and transforms many desserts from okay to amazing. It blends very well with cream, for some reason. It is also used in many Swedish sweetbreads and pastries. I have made saffron pistachio ice cream that was heavenly; other wonderful desserts that bake well with saffron are a saffron Tahitian vanilla bundt cake and Swedish saffron buns. For the full recipes with complete instructions, see the following links: http://epicurean-bites.com/?p=40 (saffron pistachio ice cream) http://epicurean-bites.com/?p=49 (saffron Tahitian vanilla bundt cake) http://epicurean-bites.com/?p=151 (Swedish saffon buns)

Macarons can be made with food dye mixed in to the batter as well; a blend of black and blue food dyes could be mixed ahead of time and added to the macaron batter as the very last step to create the silver look. A strawberry curd filling or buttercream filling could be made for the pink filling; if you would like a darker pink filling (close to a magenta look), you may wish to try a raspberry curd filling as well. Here is a recipe for an almond raspberry curd macaron whose curd filling recipe can easily be substituted with strawberries - http://thymetobake.com/?p=125

When your macaron batter is a bit runny when piping it, this usually is a sign that the batter was not beaten enough; did a clump form in the middle of the mixer attachment (the beater, whisk attachment, etc.) towards the end? Sifting the almond flour and confectioners' sugar may also help (some recommend sifting for 3 minutes nonstop) a great deal; using a kitchen scale to measure out the exact amounts of almond flour and confectioners' sugar makes a HUGE difference as well. Leaving the egg whites out at room temperature for 3 days (in a cool, dry place) can also help. Here is a very detailed, very exact recipe with step-by-step instructions for vanilla almond macarons with raspberry filling at http://thymetobake.com/?p=125

I am not sure why your patties fall apart, perhaps they are too salty, or the bacon releases a lot of grease and liquid during the frying process? I agree with MJX (senior host) - cooking the bacon before adding it to the hamburger mixture may remedy this quite a bit. Frying the hamburger mixture in the leftover bacon fat could also help impart some of the bacon flavor to the hamburger as it cooks (some of this flavor may have been lost due to the bacon having already been cooked before adding to the hamburger mixture). I am not sure if adding any extra ingredients would help - herbs may help, but they may also alter the flavor quite a bit. Sour cream does tend to help produce a firmer hamburger patty; Hidden Valley Ranch salad dressing (dry mix, not the bottled version) also helps as well, although it adds a lot of flavor on its own to the hamburger.

I always have to use fresh, not frozen, blueberries in pancakes, the frozen ones have way less flavor and make the batter too runny. I do like them separate, sprinkled over the top or served in a syrup form, although having them cooked in the batter tastes fine as well. I find that lavendar (culinary edible lavendar buds) added to a blueberry recipe is divine (if done right), and takes the recipe to a whole new level; blueberries and lavendar are a wonderful combination! I do like a lavendar blueberry syrup poured over my pancakes - amazing..... Here is a recipe for lavendar blueberry syrup - http://gildedfork.com/blueberry-lavender-syrup/ If you would like to try a lavendar blueberry dessert, here is a recipe for lavendar blueberry muffins with lavendar lemon glaze - http://epicurean-bites.com/?p=173 and lavendar pound cake - http://epicurean-bites.com/?p=55

Peaches with tarragon, honey, and some whipped cream are a wonderful dessert; I had never tried this combination before, but it really was amazing. I had never known that this herb could bring out the peach flavor so well. Lightly roast the peach with some honey and tarragon sprinkled on top (do not try to grill them), and serve with a spoonful of whipped cream.