A Holiday Baking Diary

[M. Lucia]

Having enjoyed the foodblogs and diaries on EGullet, I thought I would try to document my holiday baking process and benefit from all the knowledge out there. As noted in the title, I am by no means an experienced baker so everyone’s advice will be welcome as I go along.

A couple notes about me:

I am a student, and the first part of this was will be done in my appartment kitchen which is quite lacking in baking equiptment (as you shall soon see). Since my mother no longer bakes, I have inherited her tools but have not yet moved them up here, so I don’t want to buy anything I already have.

I am also on a budget and at the early stage I will try to use only what’s already in my cabinets and avoid purchasing extra ingredients.

About pictures:

I think pictures are really great to follow the process. Unfortunately, I don’t have a digital camera, but I do have the camera on my cell phone. So no artistry here, just bear with me.

Ok, enough equivocating, let’s get on with it!

First, something I baked a little while ago for the first Christmas party of the season.

Guiness Ginger Cake

The recipe is from Claudia Fleming’s the Last Course, I have enjoyed her desserts at the restaurant and I really like this book.

The recipe can be found on epicurious as well.

I couldn’t help nibbling on the pieces I sliced off to make the bottom flat, let’s just say the bottom was very flat. It was very moist and had a great aroma and there were no problems with it sticking to the pan (that part is always scary). I made a sort of lemon sauce to go with it, adapted from the Joy.

This was a hit! It disappeared in seconds with multiple people going after the last slice. Someone told me it was the best thing they had eaten in recent memory. Wow.

[M. Lucia]

Next up some very simple things.

Oatmeal cookies. Normally I add chopped up medjool dates, I prefer this to raisins because the cut sides of the dates make them much more moist. However, I had neither raisins nor dates, so it was plain cookies. Added some extra cloves for spice.

These also went quickly in the dept. I actually prefer to make them different sizes for casual events because sometimes you want a big cookie, sometimes you just want a little one.

[M. Lucia]

Then some brownies. This is the recipe I have always made and I am a little dissatisfied with it. It could be because I don’t really like brownies much, so I’m not sure what I’m looking for.

Here’s the part where you all come in: advice!

Here’s my recipe:

3 oz. bitter chocolate

1 stick butter

Melt in a double boiler

Add 1 1/4 cup sugar, pinch salt

Remove from heat, break in 2 cold eggs

Stir in 1/2 cup flour

Bake at 400 for 20 minutes. Top should be dry but toothpick should still be moist when removed. Immediately remove to the freezer for about 10 minutes. Continue to let cool at room temp.

So I think better chocolate is important (I just had ghardelli).

My other problem is that while the inside was gewy and almost underbaked the outer edges were a bit dry. This would probably be improved by a better pan and maybe some of those magi-strips.

It is quite dense and fudgy, but it needs some tweaking.

[PopsicleToze]

Can't offer any advice as it's my first "baking year", too.

Just wanted to say that it looks like you did a great job.

Merry Christmas!

[duckduck]

Cool! Thanks for the reminder...I've always meant to try the Guiness cake. Good to know it's a hit. (Not that I ever doubted that anything in that book would be.)

[M. Lucia]

Basic Sugar Cookies

Here is where some serious lack of equiptment and ingredients come into play.

I’m making the cookies when I realize I only have brown sugar. That’s ok, I go with the flow, use almond extract, some cardamom, nutmeg, cloves. Dough is made and chilled.

I have a rolling pin but no cookie cutters. Well I guess I can just use a knife, freehand style. This is comical: have you tried doing a star freehand? I stick to basic things like candy canes.

Baked. They seem just right. Can smell the spices.

Hmm, no food coloring so the royal icing will be white. Use a ziploc bag for some rudimentary piping.

I found some white chocolate in the back of the cabinet and am eager to be rid of it. Dunk some pretzels in it and top with sprinkles. Of course, get sprinkles all over the floor as well.

Cookies, brownies, pretzels:

Taken to a friends Christmas party. Being students, they were quickly devoured.

I really can make prettier, more professional looking cookies with better equiptment. I promise.

But I have arabic vocabulary to memorize, papers to write.

However, these tasted just as good as ever, and that’s the important part.

Edited December 23, 2004 by M. Lucia (log)

[M. Lucia]

Ok guys. I'm still looking for brownie advice, I know it's out there. So make my brownies better. Or share your favorite recipe. Please!

[K8memphis]

Fudge brownies to die for

4 ounces of unsweetened chocolate (melt with butter & set aside to cool)

1 cup of butter (2 sticks)

4 eggs ( beat very well and then combine with sugar & add everything else)

2 cups (extrafine is best) sugar

1 cup sifted flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

pinch a salt

2 teaspoons vanilla

glaze

confectioners sugar & water

9" square pan

Beat the eggs very well - add sugar & combine - add everything else - mix well - bake in a greased 9 inch pan - it's a lotta batter, pour it all in - bake for 45-50 mins at 325 - knife inserted in center needs to come out clean.

Then cut while hot - use a knife dipped in hot water- clean it between each cut - cut from the center back to the edge of the pan - now pour on the glaze made from confectioners sugar and water - it will seep into all the cuts - it just glazes the tops - cool & eat or eat hot

On the glaze, I just put confectioners sugar in a cup measure and put some hot water in it till it's nice pouring consistency, but not too thin - hot water melts clumps and eliminates the need to sift.

The object of the game is to get the eggs to set up - if you're running long on the bake time - turn the heat down 25 degrees - the eggs will still set up - these have an amazing melt in your mouth quality & they bake up nice & tall.

[Wendy DeBord]

I think 400F is too hot for your brownies. That's why the outside is baking too much before the inside is set. You'll get better results baking at 350F or 325f as suggested by K8Memphis.

[Ling]

I love the brownie recipe in the Baking with Julia book. It's the best one I've found so far, and I've seen the recipe online somewhere....

Here it is! http://dianasdesserts.com/index.cfm/fuseac...1136/Recipe.cfm

[momlovestocook]

I was going to suggest the brownies from baking with julia as well. A little more work but well worth the effort.

Sandra

ps everything looks and sounds delicious!!! Good looking cookies even without cutters.

[M. Lucia]

Thanks for the suggestions everyone.

I didn't consider the temperature being too hot, but I think that's it. Especially since k8's recipe is similar to mine proportionally. I will definately try that next time, and also try the Baking with Julia recipe when I get a chance.

Now, I had hoped to do this in "real time," but I started behind schedule.

So I'm going to toss a bunch of stuff up here and then hopefully I can share the Christmas baking with you all in a timely fashion.

In the meantime, there are lots more questions coming, so thanks again for all the feedback!

[M. Lucia]

Despite the simplicity of the ingredients, these are more than the sum of their parts.

Vanilla Buttercreams

1 stick butter (1/4 lb), 1 box confectioners sugar (1 lb), vanilla extract, bitter chocolate

I used Nielsen-Massey vanilla and Cadi butter (Barcelona company) that I had on hand.

My family is taking a year off from our annual holiday gathering at the family farm in Tenn., so I will be sending these to my uncle who helps me make them every year, along with bourbon balls.

When you knead together the butter, sugar and vanilla it seems like it will crumble and never come together, but eventually it does.

Make balls (yeah, they look like mozzarella)

Roll in Melted CHocolate

Easy!

I had this idea, since I have a bottle of rose water sitting on the counter, of making rose creams. Hmmm. Must be the subject of future investigation (when I have more time).

Does anyone know how I keep the chocolate from pooling around the bottom and making little feet? How do I make perfectly round chocolates?

Edited December 23, 2004 by M. Lucia (log)

[M. Lucia]

This being a baking thread, I thought I’d toss in some corn muffins I made to go with dinner. I lightened my standard skillet cornbread recipe by using part flour and part cornmeal (normally I use all cornmeal, this being southern cornbread).

Sorry for the poor photography.

[M. Lucia]

What to do when tangerines are on sale 8 for $1? Make juice and candy the peel.

I do this whenever oranges are on sale, as the peel keeps for months in the fridge, I just snack on it, but it can be used for baking or coated in chocolate.

The tangerines didn’t peel very nicely, but that’s ok. They get blanched 4x to remove bitterness.

Then cooked in a sugar syrup to which I added some orange blossom water.

Laid out to dry (it was hard to get a picture without glare from the greased foil). They will later be rolled in granulated sugar to finish.

Edited December 24, 2004 by M. Lucia (log)

[M. Lucia]

The recent pecan pie thread and the presence of needed ingredients has made me want to make pralines. You know, pecans + sugar= crumbly goodness. The kind we always buy when we’re in Charleston.

I have made these before, but the problem is I can’t find my candy thermometer. I know it’s here somewhere. Well, I’ve done it before, how hard can it be, soft ball stage and all that?

Brown sugar, milk, pecans and a dot of butter go into the pan.

Before I know it, a bubbling mess:

I got that under control. But then things weren’t looking good. Looked like it was separating. I just kept cooking. Like grandma taught me. Things started to look worse. It should take about 15 mins to get to soft ball, but of course I didn’t look at the time when starting. Hmmm, that Mozart piece was starting when I began, how long is it? Only 10 minutes, I have some more time. It’s gotten really dark colored and looks grainy so I’m ready to give up. My experiment seems to have been a failure.

I take it off the heat and beat in some more butter until it comes together. I quickly plop it down on some foil. It actually doesn’t look too bad.

When they have cooled, I try one. They’re not just not bad, they’re really good! From dispair to triumph. Sure they are a little darker than usual but they are less crumbly and hold together really well. I think these are some of the best I’ve made!

Unfortunately, I wasn’t really able to take pictures as the time was crucial. I only realized afterwards how unflattering the above shots are. That’s some bad lighting there. Apologies. The pralines weren’t actually that dark, more a brunette hue. Anyway, they were all packaged up and I gobbled down the rest.

[fou de Bassan]

This is areally good thread, keep it up. Also, never apologize. Your pics are more than fine. As to brownie recipes, katherine hepburns brownies from laurie colwin are a classic. I have not succeeded in posting a link but try to google or look on epicurious... I am really enjoying the baking procession. Keep up the good work!

[M. Lucia]

Thanks for the encouragement!

Here’s my advice on pralines if you want to make them. Do NOT follow the Williams-Sonoma recipe. I did this the first time I tried to make them and it calls for adding baking soda at the end. This will make your nice flowy caramel seize and become crumbly. If you are going to add soda (I don’t) do it at the beginning. In my experience, when making candy, patience and precision are the keys (and a candy thermometer helps).

Up next, some yeast breads.

[M. Lucia]

Portuguese Sweet Bread

This is one of my favorite breads, along with Swedish Limpa Bread. Our friends used to always bring us some from Virginia, and I became determined to make my own. After some research and recipe testing, I finally got what I wanted. A slightly sweet, golden loaf, good toasted with butter (though I have also been known to make BLT's with it).

Bit of milk, sugar, butter, yeast, lots of flour. You have to knead until smooth, about 15 minutes. I now have total respect for bakers hands. Set to rise while I went to the movies.

Shaped for the second rise. I think I added too much flour initially because the dough seemed a bit dry and wrinkly. I was worried about how it would shape up when I baked it.

I made 4 rolls for us and a big loaf as a gift. True to my fears, the loaf came out mishapen. I have had better luck making uniform loaves in the past. How do I get consistent shapes? One of those basket things? Or did I go wrong somewhere when kneading/shaping?

Anyhow, the rolls tasted great. A little lighter than usual, which is a good thing.

Yum, the whole house has that yeasty smell.

[fou de Bassan]

did you round the dough, tucking under and turning to get a nice rounded shape has always worked for me. No, I do not think a banneton is necessary but if you have wooden salad bowls they do work well for helping to shape the rising dough. We line ours with floured tea towels. Of course, without the banneton,you would not have those nifty concentric circles on your bread.

[M. Lucia]

Happy Holidays everyone!

The internet connection where I am is on the fritz, it takes about 5 minutes to load one page. grrr. So I may not be able to update y'all for a while. Here's what I will be doing and posting when I get a chance:

Christmas morning: biscuits to go with the country ham, a cranberry-apple-maple-oat casserole.

Christmas dinner: cheese and olive balls, rolls, brussel sprouts [to go with sweet potatoes, boeuf bourgignon (in memory of Julia)], 8 layer caramel cake.

I will make some shortbreads to take to friends after the holiday.

I would also like to try to make some french macarons if I get a chance.

New Years: Claudia Fleming's Chocolate Caramel tarts.

In the meantime, here are some questions that have come up:

How to make perfectly round chocolates?

What to do about separating caramel?

How to keep breads from stretching or bulging in certain areas when they bake?

Geberal guidance on kneading, shaping loaves, etc?

Your advice is solicited!

[M. Lucia]

8-Layer Christmas Caramel Cake

My mom loves "burnt sugar" cake, and I had been wanting to try this recipe, so I though I'd make it for Christmas day. There will only be a few of us, so I halved the recipe to make half a cake. I was nervous about undertaking this, but it turned out well. Luckily, it keeps for 2 weeks since it is very rich.

First the butterscotch filling.

Sugar, butter, cream go into the pan. Hooray, no separating this time. It did take a while for it reach 242F, but I supose I am just impatient. Add rum and vanilla to stop the cooking.

Then the cake batter. A lovely quantity of rum goes in here as well.

The cake batter was really thick, almost like cookie batter. The recipe says to smooth it out with a spatula, which I did dubiously. When the cakes came out my fears were confirmed: lumpy and uneven.

For the next batch I added about 1/2+ cup of milk to smooth the batter out. This worked great, and the cakes looked much better. As you can see in the comparison:

I sliced the layers in half because I was only doing a half cake.

Now comes the layersing and stacking:

I had exactly enough butterscotch, not a drop left. I think I could have made the outside smoother if I had more though.

All in all a success.

Here's my review of the recipe:

I would make it all again with the alteration of less butter in the cake batter and some more milk, to make it the proper consistency.

The tip about stacking the layers upside down and then flipping the cake over is great.

The butterscotch recipe is just right for this cake, flowy when warm but firms up quite nicely. This is really rich and really good!! And the presentation is exquisite.

Edited December 25, 2004 by M. Lucia (log)

[M. Lucia]

did you round the dough, tucking under and turning to get a nice rounded shape has always worked for me.

←

I am not quite sure what this means.

I will have to check some of my baking books about kneading techniques. I am pressing with the heel of my hand, trying to maintain the round shape, pressing and turning.

More updates to come, but in the meantime I could use some advice on bread baking. Shaping, how to keep th tops from browning too much, etc.

(Also still looking for answers on how to make perfectly round chocolates)

I know you guys are out there so please help!

[K8memphis]

(Also still looking for answers on how to make perfectly round chocolates)

I know you guys are out there so please help!

←

I know they are out there too - but since you have asked so many times here are some thoughts - place them on a very cold surface - I don't think there's anything to really get them round/round unless it's a concave, that is a rounded very cold surface like so many plastic mini-easter egg halves mounted on something that you pop in & out of the freezer. But surely the experts will speak up here soon :) But something like that would get you closer. You could also mess around with a cold center but that would surely be problematic real fast. You'd have to keep your chocolate a constant temperature - the cold middles that you dip in would keep lowering the temp in the choc pot. Probably if you had a lotta chocolate that could mostly hold it's temp - the cold center would not affect it too much. Play with it some more.

[chromedome]

Lucia:

"Rounding" the dough comes in after you've kneaded it and shaped it into balls, or "boules" if you're French trained and/or pretentious.

Cup the bottom of the ball of dough with both hands, using the same sort of "hand shape" you'd use to hold up a tiny kitten. Now, keeping your hands in a cup shape, slide your hands in opposite directions so that the heels (edges) of your hands are rubbing against each other, with the seam at the very bottom of the loaf in between your hands. Repeat until the top of the loaf has been gently stretched into a very smooth surface, and the seam at the bottom has been thoroughly sealed and is almost invisible.

It's one of those things that's very difficult to explain in words, but immediately obvious when you see it done.

Re-reading the above, I should clarify that the dough is on your work surface, you're not holding it "up" in your hands. You're just shaping your hands that way.