Your Daily Sweets: What Are You Making and Baking? (2015 – 2016)

[Toliver]

6 hours ago, Panaderia Canadiense said:

 

I oil my scoops for cookie-making when it's the kind of batter that will be really heinous to try and dig out (I'm looking at you, chocobolitas!).  However, what I've found is that an old-fashioned ice-cream scoop with the thumb-release mechanism on it works better than any of those things.  Happily, a company here has those in sizes ranging from melon ball to mega gigantic….

Yes, I have similar cookie scoops that I bought on Amazon. They're color-coded on the handles so it makes it easy to remember which scoop to use for what cookie (depends on the size of cookies you want). The thumb-release works well but sometimes the dough gets warmer than it should (small kitchen, hot oven) which makes it more difficult to eject the dough from the scoop. So I can either refrigerate the dough between batches or spray the scoop...scoop spraying seemed more efficient to me.

[pjm333]

Apple Breton !

[Panaderia Canadiense]

My clients' awesomeness level is currently set to "Epic."  Matías turns 11 today.

 

 

Also, Christmas cookies!  From left to right, they're Mocha White Chocolate Chip, Old-Fashioned Gingersnaps, and Vanilla Dark Chocolate Chip.

 

[pjm333]

Banana & Chocolate Pudding !

[RichardJones]

Caramel tart. The body is a caramel cream made with mascarpone (quite pale). The top is a caramel and milk chocolate glaze. Garnished with caramelised nuts and some leftover chocolate soil.

[Franci]

Nice tart! 

 

Today I made already a galette des rois, with home made puff pastry. 

 

 

[pastrygirl]

 

I'm no fondant pro, but I think this turned out pretty cute.  Its a dump truck cake carrying mini graham crackers, for my nephew's 2nd birthday tomorrow.

[Shelby]

Oh how cute!  You look like a pro to me!!!  I have a nephew named Brooks, too  

[Franci]

Very cool idea, Pastrygirl! I'm sure the nephew will really enjoy it.

 

I had a little bit of stale brioche, so, tonight I decided to slice  it thin and crisp in the oven

 

 

Edited December 27, 2015 by Franci (log)

[Panaderia Canadiense]

15 hours ago, pastrygirl said:

I'm no fondant pro, but I think this turned out pretty cute.  Its a dump truck cake carrying mini graham crackers, for my nephew's 2nd birthday tomorrow.

 

Looking fondant pro to me, sister!  Did you carve the cake underneath into shape, or is there a dump truck pan out there in the universe that I have yet to encounter?

[pastrygirl]

2 hours ago, Panaderia Canadiense said:

 

Looking fondant pro to me, sister!  Did you carve the cake underneath into shape, or is there a dump truck pan out there in the universe that I have yet to encounter?

 

Thanks!  I did a little carving.  I searched the 'net for truck cakes and decided that this boxy one looked easier to manage than a tractor or fire truck (his other two favorite vehicles).  I was sort of trying to copy this one:  http://mylittlecakeroom.blogspot.com/2012/09/happy-1st-birthday-lucas.html

I should have draped the back in one piece going over the top instead of trying to build up panels (the dumper is just a shallow indent in the cake, not hollow)... live and learn!

[Patrick S]

Made a Buche with espresso buttercream, ganache glaze and cocoa meringue mushrooms, along with some orange croissant/challah bread pudding for Christmas dessert.

 

 

 

Also, Santa brought me this book, which I'm looking forward to working from:

 

 

Edited December 28, 2015 by Patrick S
Added pic of inside of Buche. (log)

[curls]

Some baking for Christmas! Dorie's World Peace Cookies, almond cookies, ginger cake, and peanut butter cookies (enjoyed using my new Nordic Ware cookie presses).

 

Edited December 28, 2015 by curls (log)

[ChocoMom]

Patrick....stunning!  I'd "like" your post twice, if I could. =)  

 

Curls.....I am jealous.... I've been anxiously waiting for my new Kitchen Aide 7qt. to arrive, so I can make cookies too! (DH bought me the mixer for Christmas.)  Those PB ones look scrumptious!

 

Merry Baking! =)

[cakewalk]

Beautiful stuff up there. I'm also impressed with those PB cookies put through a press, they look great. I made a lot of cookies, but didn't take any photos. But the best ones were from a recipe I've been meaning to try for ages. It's a Maida Heatter recipe that appears in the Craig Claiborne NY Times Cookbook, ginger cookies with chocolate filling. They looked sort of like a Milano cookie, but the cookie was heavily ginger flavored. (I upped the amount of ginger she called for.) With the dark chocolate filling, it was especially good. Also made Linzer cookies, chocolate chips, maple pecan cookies, sugar cookies, and a couple of others but I can't remember already! (I did not make panettone - did anybody? - but I'm still planning to.) Also had a dismal failure with a Carole Walters recipe, and I still say that the failure was the recipe, not the execution. I was tempted to start a new thread called "Duds" or something like that. Is there one already? For failed recipes where you know you're not the one who messed up. People can either be forewarned, or commiserate with one another.

[FauxPas]

1 hour ago, cakewalk said:

Also had a dismal failure with a Carole Walters recipe, and I still say that the failure was the recipe, not the execution. I was tempted to start a new thread called "Duds" or something like that. Is there one already? For failed recipes where you know you're not the one who messed up. People can either be forewarned, or commiserate with one another.

 

Chris Hennes recently revived one called When Recipes Attack  Is that the sort of thing you mean? 

[Patrick S]

On 12/28/2015 at 2:53 PM, cakewalk said:

(I did not make panettone - did anybody? - but I'm still planning to.)

 

I intended to try a few recipes before Christmas, but didn't get around to it in time. But I did finally get some paper molds, and right now I have a very large no-knead pannettone completing the second proof. I'll bake it before I go to bed and post some pictures tomorrow. The recipe I'm using is here. I'm using a little more honey and a little less salt than the recipe calls for, and I added some orange zest as well.

Edited January 2, 2016 by Patrick S (log)

[cakewalk]

Nice recipe, Patrick. The honey instead of sugar is interesting, I'm sure it will give a great flavor but I'm wondering how it might change texture. Looking forward to your results. (BTW - I bought some paper molds, too. But that's as far as I got!)

 

[Franci]

I had some homemade puff pastry         scraps and for the happiness of my son I made some apple pockets

[excv_]

First try at homemade tiramisu. The recipe for the filling was a simplified, egg-free version I found on the internet which I initially felt bad about using but worked surprisingly well- I was out of eggs after baking the ladyfingers.

 

[Franci]

Krumiri, corn flour cookies, from Piedmont

 

[Patrick S]

Pannetone flavored with brandy-soaked cherries and golden raisins, clementine zest and vanilla.

[Patrick S]

On 1/3/2016 at 2:54 PM, excv_ said:

First try at homemade tiramisu. The recipe for the filling was a simplified, egg-free version I found on the internet which I initially felt bad about using but worked surprisingly well- I was out of eggs after baking the ladyfingers.

 

I was in the same boat a few years ago, and made a whipped filling with mascarpone, heavy cream vanilla and sugar that was so well-received and so delicious that I've never used eggs since!

[cakewalk]

A thing of beauty that is, Patrick. Well worth waiting for.  Did you hang it upside down? Did it "behave" as you expected?

[Lunita]

Hello everyone,

 

I'm new to the forum and thought I'd share some of my baking from the end of 2015:

 

Double baked almond croissant

Cranberry-orange cheesecake w/ candied orange 

Buche de Noel w/ meringue mushrooms (not as beautiful as Patrick's but it was my second buche ever)

Edited January 5, 2016 by Lunita
grammatical (log)