All things baking

My favorite shortbread was my “initial bake” in Truckee where I discovered there was a problem here. I have always loved making thse cookies as I typically infuse them with herbs like lavender and basil. They have a very subtle taste that leaves people wondering what it is that gives them such a different but wonderful flavor. As for how they bake, they typically rise up, leaving a nice higher edge around the circumference that stays on the bake. My first time they all just m

High and Low Altitude USE A 10" X 4.5" LOAF PAN It fills perfectly to about 3/4 full This recipe took me 4 times to get it the way I wanted it; golden, dense and with a nice dome and "crack" in the middle. I went back to leaving the 5 whole eggs from my Sea Level recipe which was needed to make the pound cake create the steam needed and rise. I had revised it to 4 whole eggs and 4 yolks initially thinking that I wanted less whites as they can be drying and I had such great re

Only 3 Tries! Biscotti is one of my favorite things to make because of all of the steps. First you make the dough, then you shape it into football looking logs, bake it until it gets crusty, slice it, bake it again, both . sides, until almost "dry". If you bake it until it is completely dry, you wil end up with hard as a rock biscotti because it keeps baking, even after you take it out of the oven. There should be a bit of a "sponge" in the middle that barely bounces back.A b

Head to Your Garden and Grab What You Grow! One of my most favorite things to do in the summer is head to my garden and grab rosemary, lavender, basil (not just for pesto!) and even rose petals, nothing sprayed with pesticides of course, and toss them by the handful into your food processor with either sugar, butter or even flour.. Most of the year, I always have a few mason jars filled with herbed sugars that I use in place of regular granulated sugar to make scones, shortb

High and Low Altitude Yield: 1 Large Loaf 9" x 5" & 1 Small Loaf Pan NOTE: If you are going to double the recipe, you will need to put the flour mixture in the mixing bowl and add banana mixture as the food processor will not be larg enogh to accommodate a double batch. Internal Cooked Temperature: 205 Degrees Ingredients: 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour HIGH ALTITUDE: Add 3 extra tbsp. 1/4 teaspoon baking powder HIGH ALTITUDE: Leave as is 1 teaspoon baking soda HIGH ALTITUDE; R

High and Low Altitude Pan: 9” x 13” Single Recipe Fills Pan Ingredients: 3 ¾ cups sugar HIGH ALTITUDE: Reduce by 5 TBSP. 8 oz. unsalted butter HIGH ALTITUDE: Remained the same as at high altitude, brownies need the fat 8 oz. unsweetened chocolate 1 Tbsp Vanilla Extract or a tsp. of Vanilla Paste/Ground 5 large eggs HIGH ALTITUDE: Use 4 large eggs/4 large yolks as extra eggs make brownies chewier 1 cup all-purpose flour HIGH ALTITUDE: Add 2 extra tbsp. all purpose flour

High Altitude & Sea Level THEY CAME OUT PERFECT!!! PAN: 9 x 13 DOUBLE RECIPE FOR 9 X 13" PAN Cooked Intermal Temperature: 200 Degrees Batter Consistency: LIke a thick cake batter and not the same as a brownie batter as there is nochcooalte in it to thicken it up Ingredients: ● 9 oz (about 2 cups) all-purpose flour HIGH ALTITUDE: Add 2 extra Tbsp. ● 1 tsp baking powder HIGH ALTITUDE: Reduce to ⅛ tsp. ● ½ tsp Kosher salt ● 3 oz unsalted butter, melted and cooled HIGH A

Luckily, I found that even at high altitude, this recipe barely changed. I did have to bake it longer which is what happens "up here" and I added an extra egg for a drop more moisture and to make them "fluffier' but I could have left my original recipe exactly the same, thank goodness! Here you go! High Altitude Basic Scones I ALWAYS DOUBLE THE RECIPE TO GET 16 SCONES AND KEEP IN FREEZER! · NOTE: You can use this as a base and add any combination of ingredients you li

This Time it Worked! Well, I tried it again and this time had success! It was odd becaue I followed the exact same recipe but used a different flour and added in a procedure I had not done the firs time......stretch and fold. First off, I used King Arthur All-Purpose Flour. My focaccia rose to close to 2" in the middle whereas the last time I made it it didn't rise enough. I learned that King Arthur All- Purpose Flour has a very high level of protein, 11.7% which is close to

If you are a bit of an "unsure" baker and are not confident in when to take whatever youa re baking out of the oven, you need this! It is a digital thermometer to measure the internal temperature of what you are baking. I NEVER thought of using such a thing as I always knew when things are done by touch...until I moved jp to the Mountains...one of my nervous club members recommended it to me and I hate to say it but I can't work without it! By learning the internal temprature

No problems here for HIGH ALTITUDE BAKING, thank goodness, except maybe needing a bit more or less water depending on the flour you use and whether or not you use Butter. The key is to make sure your pie dough is moist enough to make a ball with it and be able to roll it out. without it crumbing. Use your judgement . At the end of the day, the type of pie crust you make is personal preference. All of the Pie Crust recipes below work; it is up to you. All CRISCO, 1/2 CRISCO/1/

This is a must for anyone that bakes. It is used to embellish your baked goods. Using just plain granulated sugar will not work as well to sprinl on top of something before it is baked as it will melt and possibly burn, leaving you with a darker top than you anticipated Use to Top of: Scones (brush with egg wash first: half & half and a whole egg) Pound Cakes Cookies where you want to see the sugar pieces To roll a cookie dough log and have the sugar on the outside https://a

Another favorite. I love the spicness it adds and most of the time, it keeps people guessing. I chop it and add it to: Scones along with Orange Zest Pumpkin Bread In Fruit Pies: Blueberry, Peach, Apple, Persimmon Sesame Noodle Dishes instead of Fresh Ginger..just different Banana Bread along with Walnuts Salads.....Butter Lettuce, Blue Cheese, Candied Pecans, Roasted Orange Beets, Balsamic https://amzn.to/4aTlOYk

My favorite of all times Cocoa Powder is Black. It has the flavor of crushed Oreos and the smell is more than intoxicating . I use it to make the most intensely flavored and visually "interesting" black pound cakes ( throw some edible flowers or crystallized lavender on top for color contrast), biscotti, Cupckaes......Brownies. And a fabulous Marble Cake! Have kids? Then it makes the best looking and tasting Graveyard Cake for Halloween! King Arthur Baking: https://amzn.to/4

What do you do wit the "stuff" you keep removing from your starter jar? How much of this can you keep saving in your refrigerator? Just use it as you discard it! This morning, when it was time to feed my starter yet again, I had abaouat 2 cups of discard and so I made PANCAKES with it! They were delicious! Here is the recipe: YIELD: About 6 small pancakes 1 cup sourdough discard 1 egg 1–2 Tbsp sugar or honey 2 Tbsp milk 2 Tbsp melted butter 1/2 tsp baking soda pinch salt Opti

After conquering Brownies, Biscotti, Yellow Cake, Chocolate Cake, Carrot Cake, French Bread, Banana Bread, Scones, Pies....I was ready for Sourdough Bread which I gave up on durng Covid. I started at 9 a.m. yesterday, went though the resting phases, pull and fold, shape and stitching. At around 4:30 p.m. yesterday, I put both loaves in the refrigerator to proof overnight. I took them out at 7:30 a.m. this morning. They were rough on top and a bit "flat" and not nice and dome

Ever feel stuck choosing the right flour at high altitude? Cake? Pastry? Bread? When do you use AP Flour with so many other choices? As a kid, all we could get in the store was "regular flour"! Welcome to the never ending hands-on research of high-altitude baking Here are some solid facts: The more delicate your bake, the lower the protein (gluten) you want: • Cake flour: 7–9% • Pastry flour: 8–9% • AP flour: 10–11% • Bread flour: 12–13%+ BAKING AT ALTITUDE CHANGES HOW THE D

Going back to the discussion on what butters are best at high altitude: You want to use butters with the highest fat content meaning the lowest % of water. Anything above 82% is ideal: European butter has between 82-83% butterfat. Minerva Dairy (Amish) butter has the highest fat content with 85% butterfat. I bought Amish butter at Safeway. Always though make sure your butter is UNSALTED as the salt will help the water to evaporate quicker as well. The cheaper butters you may

https://www.kingarthurbaking.com Some of my favorite products are Black Cocoa Powder, 00 Pizza Flour, Sparkling Sugar, Bread Flour, and Fiore de Sicilia (Lemon Extract) products are Black Cocoa Powder, 00 Pizza Flour, Sparkling Sugar, Bread Flour, and Fiore de Sicilia (Lemon Extract)

If you have ever made biscotti, you know there are many steps. Then add in “the science”. It took me 6 times with 6 different versions to get to the point where I no longer mulled in my head at night all the different version I hadn’t tried, like using shortening instead of butter, brown sugar instead of regular…..I made 2 versions with only vegetable oil, 2 with only butter, 1 with half butter and half vegetable oil and the original sea level version which came out as hard