December

The 2010 December Daring Bakers’ challenge was hosted by Penny of Sweet Sadie’s Baking. She chose to challenge

Daring Bakers’ to make Stollen. She adapted a friend’s family recipe and combined it with information from friends,

techniques from Peter Reinhart’s book.........and Martha Stewart’s demonstration.

I kept the recipe fairly simple. I've never made bread and I wasn't sure if I would make this work well. Nor did I think I would have time. December is a busy month for me. I turned another year older. But I was determined to do this.

My stollen was made with rum soaked raisins, maraschino cherries, almonds, marzipan and lemon and orange zest. The only day that I had enough time to bake this was on Christmas day, as I have this tendency to wake up really early in the morning. So as the sun rose, my baking went forth. I planned to bring it with us to Christmas dinner at my sister's apartment. Unfortunately, the turkey time was a little later than anticipated so we didn't partake of the stollen that night, but my sister cut away a section for her and our parents to have, and I took the rest home. I had it the next morning as my breakfast with lemon-ginger tea. It was a delicious breakfast, unfortunately, very sweet. :(

I enjoyed this challenge because it was something I have never had done before.

Let's see what happens next month.

Challenge FINISHED!

So it took some doing but Crostata has been completed. With Apples, brown sugar, Cinnamon and Caramel candies thrown into the mix! I just wanted the world to see it. Besides from being a bit leaky I think it looks so yummy and it smelled yummy too. Can't wait to try it.

I would like to mention

that I have a very good reason for being late. As in my intention was to make a Crostata this month as per the challenge. However I failed to account for two - three things.

1) getting 4 wisdom teeth pulled out will take you out of commission.

2) Harry Potter opened this month

3) people tend to pass around illness.

I have all the ingredients. I just don't have time. :( btw any Canadians going to Harry Potter I am glaring at you. Especially when you go to the theatre that I am employed by. And it makes me cry a little bit. Take today for example. I showed up early, I work through lunch, I take 20 minutes to run to the drug store so that I may breakdown and purchase cough lozanges, I am supposed to be off at 8:00 PM, I figure do a couple more e-mails and next thing I know I'm leaving at 8:11 PM. Booooooooo.

Oh well I will make you my Apple Caramel Crostata just you wait.

The 2010 November Daring Bakers’ challenge was hosted by Simona of briciole. She

chose to challenge Daring Bakers’ to make pasta frolla for a crostata. She used her own experience as a source,

as well as information from Pellegrino Artusi’s Science in the Kitchen and the Art of Eating Well.

Baking Challenge Ahoy!

The September 2010 Daring Bakers’ challenge was hosted by Mandy of “What the Fruitcake?!”

Mandy challenged everyone to make Decorated Sugar Cookies based on recipes from Peggy

Porschen and The Joy of Baking

I like cookies, I like making cookies, I enjoy decorated cookies, but I do not enjoy decorating the cookies! my icing technique can use a little work.

I have no patience for the decorating. My theme was a mixture of video games (mainly Super Mario) and fall. Fall is such a lovely time of year in Canada, depending on your location the landscape is painted in reds, warm browns, yellows. Sometimes even in the big city I swear I can smell wood burning. I keep expecting to see a swirl of smoke trailing through the skyline. It reminds me of pumpkins and crunchy leaves.

As we can see NO PATIENCE FOR DECORATING!! I tried and I failed, one of my Mario superstars kind of ended with a puddle of yellow icing.

The icing doesn't work if I can't get all the colours at once. THis is how I failed. I don't have enough space in my kitchen to fully be able to achieve a good decorating line. At least I tried! at least i tried.

I wish they turned out better :(

Baking Challenges.

OK So I knew when I signed up that it was going to be different. Oh how different it was!

The August 2010 Daring Bakers’ challenge was hosted by Elissa of 17 and

Baking. For the first time, The Daring Bakers partnered with Sugar High Fridays for a co-event and

Elissa was the gracious hostess of both. Using the theme of beurre noisette, or browned butter, Elissa

chose to challenge Daring Bakers to make a pound cake to be used in either a Baked Alasa or in Ice

Cream Petit Fours. The sources for Elissa’s challenge were Gourmet magazine and David Lebovitz’s

“The Perfect Scoop”.

This was my first challenge, and of course I get to make a choice. I cannot make choices, I'm horrible at them. Plus making Ice Cream and brown butter pound cake o_O Bahahahaha. After one brief moment of mental hysterics I decided to make Baked Alaska. I have heard of a baked alaska, but have never attempted it.

I should also mention that I don't own an ice cream maker which makes the ice cream bit interesting. So first step for me was to decide which flavour I would like to make. I toyed with many ideas, until I came across Watermelon Ice Cream. I thought that the colour would look really good topping cake and encased in Meringue. Unfortunately I didn't anticipate the water part of the watermelon! Trudge on ahead, full speed!

Everything was very labour intensive for me due to making the ice cream. Along with an awkward work schedule of 12-8 that I would have to time everything. So on a free Saturday I made ice cream with watermelon that took what seemed forever where I actually ran out of time. It didn't turn out as I expected. Next day I didn't really have time so I just browned the butter, I was very scared of burning things. I didn't though! Yay!

I stored the butter in a container, and stored it in the fridge til I could have time to make the cake.

The day came to make the cake, and I followed the recipe provided in the challenge, though it was a very dry cake. I might make extra butter next time.

The meringue also followed the instructions though since my metal bowl was usurped by the ice cream the Meringue ended up looking like a fluffy pearly cloud of sugar and eggs.

I covered my ice cream in cake in this cloud, I piped one cake and plastered the other.

Then I baked it, unforunately, not right when I was supposed to, once again time was against me.

But needless to say the above pictures are after baking and it turned out pretty good. I couldn't eat it all as I seem to be developing an adverse reaction to ice cream *tear* but Leo enjoyed it, and could even taste the Watermelon ice cream.

My job here is finished.

For now....until the next challenge. :)

My Baking Pictures

So this is the first cake I ever made. It was the first year that Leo and I were dating and I wanted to do something different. My sister had gotten me a baking cookbook for the previous Christmas and I was itching to try it out. Leo loves sodas...mainly Cherry cola, but this cookbook had a recipe for a Root Beer cake. Intriguing, why, yes it was!

This was a proper cake made with cocoa and actual root beer. The bundt pan proved a little difficult as I didn't have one, but for once I was not let down by Canadian Tire. I had very limited time to make as Leo had a meeting and then we were going to meet up.

This was made in two locations, I made the cake at my place in my VERY small kitchen not exactly designed for most cooking endeavors. I made the frosting/icing at my parents as they have a hand beater. Frosting is a combination of icing sugar, root beer and cocoa.

It was good, I even brought into the theatre so that our co-workers and everyone seemed to enjoy it.

Yay! Cake!

So I promised a picture.

I should trust myself more often. I couldn't find a springform pan so I used a glass pan. bought too much cream cheese and too many blueberries, that's at all possible. So I have those sitting the fridge. But this turned out pretty good if I do say so myself.

The lemon in the cake was not overpowering which is good because the blueberries have such a distinct taste.

One thing though I think I could have done without the blueberry jam glaze (or attempt at such). In the end I think detracts from the whole.

Oh well, it was a good birthday present for Leo. And look I made a cheesecake for the first time EVER!

Current

So tomorrow is Leo's birthday, last year I made a Root Beer cake from the book Baked. It was nice and interesting, very good with ice cream. For Valentine's Day made cupcakes...

This year I wanted to make a blueberry lemon cheesecake. Unfortunately, I do not own a springform pan. So what is one to do?

The nice thing about cakes is that they can always be made into bars...so that is what I attempt. Maybe I will post a picture, of my success or failure, depending on my mood!

So far the most part it tastes really good...

yes - I licked the bowl. Be damned eating properly, I get to indulge right?

BTW I do recommend the cookbook from the awesome people of Baked.

Because my friend got me into this...

I like to bake so why shouldn't I seek to extend my horizons...right? My friend Alysha does monthly baking challenges from a site called the Daring Bakers. Maybe I can learn something more, or at least be motivated to bake more than cookies and the occasional cake.

Hence the title Samantha's Adventures in Baking Land...homage to Lewis Carroll aside.