[apologies to Stanley Kubrick]
Staying home to be a full time caregiver for the last three years may have warped my mind. Just a little.
Showing posts with label yeah I bake so what?. Show all posts
Showing posts with label yeah I bake so what?. Show all posts
Mar 15, 2012
Full Metal Stand Mixer
This is my mixer. There are many others like it, but this one is mine. My mixer is my best friend. It is my life. I must master it as I must master my life. Without me, my mixer is useless. Without my mixer, I am useless. I must add my ingredients true. I must blend smoother than my neighbor, who is trying to out-bake me. I must cream the butter and sugar before I add the eggs. I will. Before God I swear this creed: my mixer and myself are defenders of my kitchen, we are the masters of our recipes, we are the saviors of my desserts. So be it, until there is no hunger, but peace. Amen.
[apologies to Stanley Kubrick]
[apologies to Stanley Kubrick]
Dec 11, 2011
Dec 11, 2009
Terrible Times Two and the Velvet Failure
A couple of weeks ago Truman and Amelia turned two. I would say that so far they are both living up to the Terrible Two moniker. As expected, they are each taking different approaches to their reign of terror.
One of Truman's many nicknames is "Truminator" and it's fitting his two year old personality quite well. If something can be broken, spilt, crushed, thrown, knocked over, eaten, ripped, dismantled or otherwise ravaged, Truman is focused on it like a laser. He has an antagonistic relationship with any and all objects at rest.
Amelia is taking a different route. What she lacks in destructive force she makes up for in unbridled independence and defiance. She thinks she's twenty-two and has little need for parents or older brothers interfering in her day-to-day pursuits. From teeth brushing to diaper changes and car seat buckling to eating there is only one thing to remember with Amelia -- SHE DOES NOT NEED YOUR HELP. Should you attempt to intervene, be prepared for a spectacular verbal onslaught of "NO!" and "STOPPIT!" I lose sleep over the thought of what she'll be like as a teenager.
The one area where Truman and Amelia are on the same page is bedtime. Unfortunately, the page they are on is "How Not to Go to Sleep at All Costs." This one has me stumped. Up until recently, Truman and Amelia had been extremely easy to put down for bedtime and naps. No fussing. No complaining. Just walk in, put them in bed and walk out. Now all of a sudden, bedtime is an outrageous ordeal. No matter how tired they are, they will not go to sleep at night. They'll carry on. They'll get out of bed. They'll get in each other's beds. They'll go into Jameson's room. I've seen Amelia start to fall asleep at the dinner table yet fight sleep for over an hour once I put her in bed. It's only slightly maddening. On the bright side, it's so exhausting that I easily fall asleep at night right after they do.
Jameson didn't really have a terrible two stage. Julie and I both thought that with Jameson three was a much tougher age than two. Knowing that, I am not sure if I should be relieved or scared. Maybe Truman and Amelia are getting it out of their system earlier than Jameson did. On the other hand, maybe this is just some grotesque harbinger of the insanity to come when Truman and Amelia reach age three.
On a side note, I baked a cake for Truman and Amelia's birthday. Since we needed two cakes, I asked my mom to bake a second one for me. But it was more than just a simple confectionary request. I basically challenged her to make the exact same recipe I was making. In general, this challenge is a joke because she can bake circles around me. In this particular case it was futility at it's finest since the recipe of choice was actually one of her specialties: Waldorf-Astoria red velvet cake. I've never tasted one as good as hers and I've never made one much more than edible. Comparing our two cakes was almost laughable.
One of Truman's many nicknames is "Truminator" and it's fitting his two year old personality quite well. If something can be broken, spilt, crushed, thrown, knocked over, eaten, ripped, dismantled or otherwise ravaged, Truman is focused on it like a laser. He has an antagonistic relationship with any and all objects at rest.
Amelia is taking a different route. What she lacks in destructive force she makes up for in unbridled independence and defiance. She thinks she's twenty-two and has little need for parents or older brothers interfering in her day-to-day pursuits. From teeth brushing to diaper changes and car seat buckling to eating there is only one thing to remember with Amelia -- SHE DOES NOT NEED YOUR HELP. Should you attempt to intervene, be prepared for a spectacular verbal onslaught of "NO!" and "STOPPIT!" I lose sleep over the thought of what she'll be like as a teenager.
The one area where Truman and Amelia are on the same page is bedtime. Unfortunately, the page they are on is "How Not to Go to Sleep at All Costs." This one has me stumped. Up until recently, Truman and Amelia had been extremely easy to put down for bedtime and naps. No fussing. No complaining. Just walk in, put them in bed and walk out. Now all of a sudden, bedtime is an outrageous ordeal. No matter how tired they are, they will not go to sleep at night. They'll carry on. They'll get out of bed. They'll get in each other's beds. They'll go into Jameson's room. I've seen Amelia start to fall asleep at the dinner table yet fight sleep for over an hour once I put her in bed. It's only slightly maddening. On the bright side, it's so exhausting that I easily fall asleep at night right after they do.
Jameson didn't really have a terrible two stage. Julie and I both thought that with Jameson three was a much tougher age than two. Knowing that, I am not sure if I should be relieved or scared. Maybe Truman and Amelia are getting it out of their system earlier than Jameson did. On the other hand, maybe this is just some grotesque harbinger of the insanity to come when Truman and Amelia reach age three.
On a side note, I baked a cake for Truman and Amelia's birthday. Since we needed two cakes, I asked my mom to bake a second one for me. But it was more than just a simple confectionary request. I basically challenged her to make the exact same recipe I was making. In general, this challenge is a joke because she can bake circles around me. In this particular case it was futility at it's finest since the recipe of choice was actually one of her specialties: Waldorf-Astoria red velvet cake. I've never tasted one as good as hers and I've never made one much more than edible. Comparing our two cakes was almost laughable.
Mine tasted better as batter.
The losing cake.
The winning cake.
The losing cake.The winning cake.Oct 28, 2009
Pumpkin Seeds
I've got some fresh pumpkin seeds waiting to be eaten and I'll try any recipe that includes Worcestershire sauce.
I'll let you know how they turn out.
Spiced Pumpkin Seeds
Ingredients
* 1 1/2 tablespoons margarine, melted
* 1/2 teaspoon salt
* 1/8 teaspoon garlic salt
* 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
* 2 cups raw whole pumpkin seeds
Directions
1. Preheat oven to 275 degrees F (135 degrees C).
2. Combine the margarine, salt, garlic salt, Worcestershire sauce and pumpkin seeds. Mix thoroughly and place in shallow baking dish.
3. Bake for 1 hour, stirring occasionally.
I'll let you know how they turn out.
Spiced Pumpkin Seeds
Ingredients
* 1 1/2 tablespoons margarine, melted
* 1/2 teaspoon salt
* 1/8 teaspoon garlic salt
* 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
* 2 cups raw whole pumpkin seeds
Directions
1. Preheat oven to 275 degrees F (135 degrees C).
2. Combine the margarine, salt, garlic salt, Worcestershire sauce and pumpkin seeds. Mix thoroughly and place in shallow baking dish.
3. Bake for 1 hour, stirring occasionally.
Aug 4, 2009
What Have I Become?!
I work all day taking care of my three kids. Maybe I bake some cookies. I slave away to put a hot dinner on the table every evening before my spouse gets home. Then I get the kids to bed. Finally, exhausted, I get some time to relax. How do I relax? I rummage through the freezer for my stash of chocolate covered ice cream bars, grab a blanket and get comfortable in front of the TV to watch my soap (Entourage).
Holy fuck. I've become a 1950s housewife.
Have a good night. I'm off to dream about that new Dyson I so desperately want.
Holy fuck. I've become a 1950s housewife.
Have a good night. I'm off to dream about that new Dyson I so desperately want.
Aug 3, 2009
That Taste Like Frickin' Awesome
At the risk of this starting to look like a baking blog, I will once again try to tempt you into some delicious kitchen work.
I give you, "Muffins that Taste Like Donuts." They're pretty much what the title says. You can find this recipe and variations of it all over the internet. I actually learned it back in my high school culinary arts class taught by Mrs. Mary Ann Bray, who I believe is still teaching the class. I'm all for classes in which you get to eat on a regular basis -- was I destined to be a stay at home dad or what? Mrs. Bray was an excellent cook with enormous hair. I'm guessing she's still an excellent cook and still has enormous hair.
OK, these muffins are incredibly easy to make so you have no excuse not to run to the kitchen right now and whip up a batch. If you can make pancakes, you can make these. My only warning is that it's extremely easy to devour one or two or five of these as soon as they're done baking. We made some the other morning and there was only one left when Julie got home. It was totally the kids' fault.
It's a pretty flexible recipe, so you could probably healthy them up a bit by modifying some ingredients, but where's the fun in that. Besides, I'm going to assume these are already way better than a deep fried donut, so I'm going to put them in the "healthy" column as is.
And now for the photographic evidence:
I give you, "Muffins that Taste Like Donuts." They're pretty much what the title says. You can find this recipe and variations of it all over the internet. I actually learned it back in my high school culinary arts class taught by Mrs. Mary Ann Bray, who I believe is still teaching the class. I'm all for classes in which you get to eat on a regular basis -- was I destined to be a stay at home dad or what? Mrs. Bray was an excellent cook with enormous hair. I'm guessing she's still an excellent cook and still has enormous hair.
OK, these muffins are incredibly easy to make so you have no excuse not to run to the kitchen right now and whip up a batch. If you can make pancakes, you can make these. My only warning is that it's extremely easy to devour one or two or five of these as soon as they're done baking. We made some the other morning and there was only one left when Julie got home. It was totally the kids' fault.
It's a pretty flexible recipe, so you could probably healthy them up a bit by modifying some ingredients, but where's the fun in that. Besides, I'm going to assume these are already way better than a deep fried donut, so I'm going to put them in the "healthy" column as is.
Muffins that Taste Like Donuts
Muffins
1 3/4 cups flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/3 cup oil (I used light olive oil)
3/4 cup white sugar
1 egg
3/4 cup milk
Topping
1/2 cup melted butter
3/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
Directions
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Mix together all the dry stuff. In another bowl, mix together all the wet stuff. Add the wet mixture to the dry mixture. Stir everything together just enough to combine it. (Lumpy is good.) Grease some muffin tins and fill with the mixture. (Those little cupcake papers or foils aren't needed, but go ahead if that's how you roll.) Bake for 20 minutes or so. (If you stick a wooden toothpick in and out of the middle of one muffin and it comes out clean, they're done.) Tip from Mrs. Bray: When baking muffins, fill any empty spots in the muffin tin with water. It protects the muffin tin and will add moisture in the oven to help keep whatever you are baking moist. Meanwhile, mix the sugar and cinnamon for the topping and melt the butter. Once muffins have cooled a little, pop them out with a fork and dip the tops of the muffins into the melted butter and then into the cinnamon sugar mixture. Then start stuffing your face. (Or put them on a cooling rack. Your call.)
And now for the photographic evidence:
I'm telling you these things are good.
I couldn't even snap a photo before Jameson was done with his first one.The twins ate two each. And that was after having already eaten breakfast.
Butter, cinnamon and sugar. I rest my case.
Make some of your own. Now.
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Jul 22, 2009
One Benefit of Having Kids
Chocolate chip cookies always sound like a good idea.
So today, we whipped up a batch for no reason other than we wanted to eat some fresh chocolate chip cookies. And I photographed them for no reason other than to make you wish you were eating some fresh chocolate chip cookies.
Enjoy the warm, gooey goodness.
So today, we whipped up a batch for no reason other than we wanted to eat some fresh chocolate chip cookies. And I photographed them for no reason other than to make you wish you were eating some fresh chocolate chip cookies.
Enjoy the warm, gooey goodness.
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