Recent Blog Entries

I'm returning a neat looking book to the library because I just don't have time to do it justice right now. That book is Celebration Breads: Recipes, Tales, and Traditions. It has celebration breads from all over the world and throughout the year. It looks like it has some very good recipes. I'm blogging it so that I don't forget about it when I have more time to experiment.

I'm also returning Laurel's Kitchen Bread Book. Definitely a classic, just really not up my alley. Too many recipes that make my wife go "ew" when I read the name, like "Mediterranean Garbanzo Bread" or "Soybean Bread." For folks with wheat allergies it looks like a real good one though.

I baked a buttermilk bread last night, trying another loaf of sourdough today. We're having red beans and rice with collard greens for dinner, so I think I'll also have to whip up a batch of corn bread to go with it. Yum.

Made a sourdough walnut raisin with added rye and atta this weekend. Its been a really busy weekend and by the time I got home to bake bread with the ready starter, it was already 10 pm. There was no choice but to mix the dough and put it into the fridge, no folding. I continued the process the next morning but the dough seemed a little sluggish even after 2 hours in the warm tropical environment. I resisted the temptation to add instant yeast and let Carl's Starter do its work. Fortunately, it delivered as usual. It has never failed once and I am glad it didn't disappoint this time.

 http://www.angelfire.com/planet/tomsbread/index.htm

i'm reading that some people are final proofing their dough uncovered. I have always covered the dough during final proofing (after shaping). does it make a difference? is the one way particularily better than the other? any comments, suggestions, ideas regarding this would be greatly appreciated. thanx a lot

Variety is good.  Even with all of the different types of bread to try and to enjoy, sometimes it's nice to do something a little different.  So, when my wife asked if I would make some Rocky Road Fudge Bars, I was happy to oblige.  This recipe was a Pillsbury Bake-off winner some mumble-mumble years back.  I've been making ever since I was in college.  It starts with a brownie base:

The base is then topped with a cream cheese filling:

The pan is then put into a preheated oven.  At the end of the baking period, 2 cups of miniature marshmallows are scattered over the top of the bars and the pan is put back in the oven for 2 more minutes to soften the marshmallows.  It comes out looking like this:

A warm, fudgy frosting is then poured over the marshmallows.  After swirling the frosting and marshmallows together, it looks like this:

This is when things get difficult.  Unless you want to eat it with a spoon, you have to let the bars cool until everything is solid enough to cut into bars.  Best to just put it somewhere out of sight until it is cool so that you aren't seeing it every time you look toward the kitchen counter.  Oh, and cut the bars small.  One is enough to induce a sugar rush and two could push you in the direction of a diabetic coma, even if you aren't insulin-dependent.

You can find the recipe at the Pillsbury site, here: http://www.pillsbury.com/recipes/ShowRecipe.aspx?rid=10098