Lord, help me!

A Portrait of Dashed Dreams.

It’s official: Pie Crust and I are mortal enemies. Well never be friends, never understand each other.

All of this started rather innocuously. Last night, my mom and I were discussing buttermilk pie. Then I started craving buttermilk pie. Buttermilk pie with flakey, homemade pie crust. Sure, I’d failed in the past, but this time was going to be different. I’d found a recipe that sounded perfect, and got started. It was already 11 at night, so I was going to let it chill overnight and then roll it out this morning and make the pie.

I finished up, covered the dough in saran wrap and put it in the fridge. This morning, I let it set out for a while so it wouldn’t be so hard. Then I tried rolling it out. It wouldn’t roll. It seemed like parts of it were too dry and other too wet. It stuck to my rolling pin and wouldn’t hold together.

It was hopeless, I threw it in the garbage.

I think I need to take a pie crust class. Every single time I’ve tried, I’ve failed miserably. I don’t understand, can anyone tell me what I’m doing wrong?

All I want is buttermilk pie!

Peach Bread

I don’t know if I’ve mentioned it here, but a couple of weeks ago I got a job as the manager/director of my local farmers market. My first day was this past saturday and I absolutely loved it. It’s pretty much my dream job, I love the sense of community and small town charm the farmers market provides.



But since I’m the director, I can’t have a table. But my mom can! So I’m still baking up a storm all friday and tuesday to get ready for the market days. I’m in the process of finding recipes that are easy, cost effective, and delicious.



My local apple orchard had gotten some peaches in, so I decided to try out a peach bread. The bread it’s self was very good, but my poor peaches just weren’t ripe enough, not sweet enough.

I’d definitely recommend making this though, if you have some ripe peaches.



Peach Bread
Adapted from here.

3 eggs
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup applesauce
2 cups diced peaches
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/2 cup chopped walnuts (optional)

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease and flour two 8 x 4 inch loaf pans.
2. In a large bowl, beat the eggs lightly. Blend in the sugar, oil, and vanilla. Add flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon; mix just to combine. Stir in the peaches and nuts. Pour batter into prepared pans.
3. Bake for about 1 hour (mine only took about 45 minutes.), or until a tester inserted in the center comes out clean.

Let the fields and their crops burst out with joy!




Let the trees of the forest rustle with praise.
Psalm 96:12



All the earth bows down to you; they sing praise to you, they sing praise to your name.
Psalm 66:4

Individual Monkey Breads.

Biscuits, butter, sugar, cinnamon. I think that’s all I need to say about this one.







This stuff is astoundingly good. I grew up with monkey bread, but have never made it with this method - it works wonderfully. I think we’re planning on selling these mini ones at the farmers market. Be careful if you use jumbo muffin cups like i did, the butter mixture spillled out a lot and got in the bottom of the oven. Put aluminum foil under the pan.

Monkey Bread
from Ryan via The Pioneer Woman

3 cans Buttermilk biscuits (not the flakey kind)
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 cup sugar
2-3 teaspoons cinnamon
2 sticks butter


Preheat the oven to 350.

Open up all three cans of biscuits and cut each biscuit into quarters.

Next, combine the white sugar with 2-3 teaspoons of cinnamon. 3 will be really cinnamon-y. Dump this mix and the biscuits into a gallon size zip lock back and shake it up really well.

Drop all of the biscuit quarters into a bundt pan (or jumbo muffin cups).

Melt the butter with the brown sugar in a sauce pan over medium-high heat until combined. Once the brown sugar butter has become one color, pour it over the biscuits.

Bake for 30-40 minutes (or 20 minutes for the muffin cup ones) until the crust is deep brown on the top.

I should now say that you should let it cool for about 15-30 minutes, but that’s practically impossible. Just tear you off a piece, blow on it for a minute and stick it in your mouth.

Oh man, it’s good.

Homemade Pizza Crust

My grocery store stopped selling pizza crusts. Just stopped carrying them, no warning at all. I guess I should first explain I live in a very small town. I’m guessing the the demand for pre-baked pizza crusts just wasn’t that high.


the dough.

But I really loved them. So easy! Just top them with whatever toppings you want and stick them in the oven.

I’ve always kind of been scared of making my own pizza crust, it seemed too hard, like it was something that should be left to the masters.


after rolling it out.

But I really wanted pizza. So I decided to go ahead and try to make it, figuring I’d fail. (by the way, that’s why the pictures in this post are so bad, I never thought it would work, so I didn’t put any effort into it! hahaha)

I found this recipe in King Arthur Flour’s Bakers Catalouge. It seemed simple enough, so I got to work.


out of the oven the first time.

I was so surprised at how good it was! It actually tasted like pizza crust, not something vaguely resembling pizza crust. This will totally be my go-to recipe when I want pizza now. I’m so glad I tried.



Pizza Crust
adapted from King Arthur Flour’s Bakers Catalogue
3 3/4 cups of High-Gluten flour (I just used bread flour)
1 tablespoon pizza dough flavor (I didn’t have this, so I used a tbsp. of garlic powder and some fresh basil)
1 teaspoon instant yeast
1 1/4 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 1/2 cups lukewarm water

Mix and knead together all of the ingredients - by hand, mixer or bread machine (I just used the dough hook on my kitchen aid) till you’ve created a smooth, soft dough.

Allow the dough to rise, covered, for 1 hour.

Divide the dough in half. Shape both pieces into a 10” to 14” circle or rectangle and place each on a piece of parchment paper or on a greased pan. Allow to rise for 30 minutes or so, covered, while preheating the oven to 475.

Bake the crust for 8 minutes, until set, before topping with sauce and cheese; then bake for an additional 4 minutes.

Okay, I did it.

I've been thinking about opening up an etsy shop for my photography for a while now. So today I did it.

http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=7395183

I don't have a whole lot listed, but enough I think. So what do you think? Any feed back on prices, etc?

I'm excited about this!

Coconut Cupcakes

I woke up this morning with a serious hankering for coconut cake. Super coconut-y coconut cake. I love coconut, but I hardly ever eat it.

I want to make coconut cake that actually tasted like coconut - not yellow cake, vanilla frosting and some coconut stuck to the sides.

I searched high and low for a recipe that actually used it in the cake, but couldn’t find any I liked. So I decided to go with my tried and true favorite vanilla cake recipe.

It’s seriously good, guys. But how was I going to make it coconut-y? Coconut extract, that’s how. I didn’t have any, so I had to run to the grocery store.



It’s not a good idea to go to the grocery store on a saturday in a tourist town. OH MY GOSH. So. Many. People.

Anyway, all they had was imitation coconut extract, but whatever works, right?

So I had that under control, but then I had to work out what to do for frosting. As I’ve mentioned here, I’m terrible at frosting whole cakes. I should really take the time to learn how, but I just wasn’t feeling it today. Cupcakes were the obvious solution here. I still didn’t want to do vanilla frosting, so I looked around and found a coconut filling recipe (from the Magnolia Bakery Cookbook!) that sounded good. All I did was add a little more flour than it called for to thicken it up and it worked perfectly! It was delicious, I think next time I may use the coconut extract rather than the vanilla for extra coconut-y goodness.



These were so good! The cupcakes came out perfectly thanks to the super vanilla cake recipe, and the filling/icing was delicious. I just toasted some coconut in the oven for about 5-10 minutes for the top!

Adorable and tasty, best of both worlds. These would be great for a birthday party or any other kind of get together!



Basic Coconut (or vanilla, lemon, orange, etc) Cupcake Batter
Adapted from Southern Living
(just double this recipe if you want a two layer cake)

1 cup sugar
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 1/2 large eggs
1 tsp coconut extract
1/4 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups cake flour
3/4 tsp baking powder
1/8 tsp salt
1/2 cup buttermilk (or just put 1 tbsp of vinegar per cup of milk to make buttermilk)

Preheat oven to 350.

Beat sugar and butter at medium speed with a heavy-duty electric stand mixer until creamy and fluffy, about 3 minutes.

Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating until yellow disappears after each addition. Beat in coconut and vanilla extracts.

Whisk together flour, baking powder and salt in a small bowl; add to sugar mixture alternately with buttermilk, beginning and ending with flour mixture. Beat a medium-low speed just until blended after each addition. (batter will be thick)

Bake for about 20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the middle of one comes out clean.

Coconut Filling an/or Icing
From The Magnolia Bakery Cookbook

3/4 cup milk
1/2 cup sugar
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour (plus just a little more!)
1 seven-ounce package sweetened, shredded coconut
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

In a medium size sauce pan, whisk the milk with the sugar and the flour until thoroughly combined. Cook and stir constantly over medium-high heat (about 5 minutes) until thickened and bubbly. Remove from heat and add the coconut. Stir in the vanilla extract. Cover and cool to room temp.

A Maple Disappointment.

A couple of months ago, a man from Brien’s Fine Maple Products contacted me and asked if I’d like to try some of their stuff - for free! So of course I said yes! Then, when it came in the mail a couple of weeks ago, it sat on the counter for a while, I just wasn’t inspired.

Then yesterday I had, what seemed at the time to be a brilliant idea. Maple cupcakes! They’d be so cute.


one of the bottles they sent me.

So I found recipes online for the cupcakes and maple frosting, then started on my way.

I had a bad feeling as soon as I started putting the ingredients together. They just weren’t coming together as they should. I groaned as I put my whole bottle of syrup into the batter, I was sure they weren’t going to come out right.

Then, while they were in the oven, I started on the frosting. I had an even worse feeling about it. There was just too much sugar in it. I tried some off the beater, it just tasted like sugar. You couldn’t even taste the maple.

So when the cupcakes came out of the oven, I tried one without the frosting. It was alright. Just too sweet.

Then I put the frosting on. SO BAD! Gah, it was like a diabetics worst nightmare. It didn’t taste of maple at all.

So, a big disappointment all around. Although, the syrup was delicious on it’s own. If you want some really good Canadian maple syrup, I’d totally recommend Brien’s. They also sent me some maple sugar, hopefully I’ll be more successful with that. Que Sera Sera!



They were pretty cute.

P.S. It’s not a good idea to leave your second batch in the oven for 2 + hours. They come out looking like this.



Here’s the recipe for the cupcakes, just incase you want it.

2 1/2 cup(s) all-purpose flour
2 teaspoon(s) baking powder
1 teaspoon(s) baking soda
1/2 teaspoon(s) salt
3/4 teaspoon(s) ground ginger (i used cinnamon instead)
1 stick(s) unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup(s) light-brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 1/4 cup(s) maple syrup
2 teaspoon(s) vanilla extract
1/2 cup(s) buttermilk
1/2 cup(s) walnuts or pecans, finely chopped

DIRECTIONS

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and ginger. Set aside. Beat the butter and sugar together using a mixer set on medium speed in a large bowl until fluffy. Beat in the eggs, syrup, and vanilla. Stir in flour mixture by thirds, alternating with the buttermilk. Stir in nuts. Fill 18 lined muffin cups and bake until a tester comes out clean, about 20 minutes. Cool completely.

The first egg.

I heard my sister yelling outside, I thought she was hurt. I ran up the stairs to see what had happened and she had this little egg in her hands. Our chickens laid it today, the first one. It's so cute and tiny. I can't wait for more.

Homemade Oatmeal Cream Pies

This past weekend my dad and brother when on a camping trip with their scout troop. When they came home, they brought something with them. No, not expansive knowledge of knot tying (although they did bring that also). Little Debbies. Oatmeal Cream Pies to be exact. I know what you’re thinking, how dare they bring pre-packaged pastry products into the house of a baker. I thought the same thing.



I’m pretty sure I was about 8 the last time I had a Little Debbie. I was at a friends house, her mom always had snack cakes in the house (my mom never did, still doesn’t!).I didn't even remember what they tasted like. So being the adventurer I am, I decided to try one of them.

It was gross. It just tasted bad. Artificial. So I thought, surely I can make a something better. Right?

Wrong. At first at least. The recipe I used was a disaster! First, I didn’t have enough plain oats. So I had to PICK APPLE PIECES OUT OF CINNAMON APPLE OATMEAL. Then sift all the sugar and cinnamon out. Let me tell you this, there is A LOT of apple bits and sugar in those little packets of oatmeal.



Then I tried three different times to get it to work. The first time, at the temperature the recipe gave. The second, at a lower temp. The third time I used a silpat because I couldn’t get the things off the pan. They burned far too quickly and spread out too much.

They actually tasted fantastic, but they were totally flat and impossible to get off in one piece.



But I was determined to make it work. So, I bought new oats, found a new recipe, tweaked it a bit, and tried again. This time they came out great, not too thin, and not too sweet.

And plus, they are kind of adorable in that reminiscing about simpler times kind of way. You should make these, you won’t be sorry.



Oatmeal Cream Pies

1 cup butter
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 eggs
1 1/2 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1 tablespoon cocoa powder
1 1/2 cups quick oats

In the bowl of an electric mixer, cream together the butter and sugars.
Add eggs one at a time, until well combined, then add vanilla.
Whisk together flour, salt, baking soda, cocoa powder, cinnamon and oats. Add to the creamed mixture. Refrigerate for about 15 minutes.

Drop about a tbsp of dough on cookie sheet.
Bake at 350 degrees F for about 10-12 minutes, or until they are just starting to brown around the edges, they will look moist in the center, so don’t overcook.
Put them on a wire rack to cool.


Filling:
1/2 cup vegetable shortening
1 1/2 cups marshmallow cream
2 cups powdered sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1-2 tablespoons milk

Cream the shortening with the marshmallow cream, then add the powdered sugar and vanilla, beat on low for about a minute. If it’s too thick, add a little water. You want it to be spreadable but not runny.

Gardening

Cinnamon Chip Muffins

These muffins were one of the first things I ever posted on this blog. They are my absolute favorites. I’d been wanting to make them again for a couple of weeks, but I just wasn’t feeling blueberry or chocolate chip.



I found these cinnamon chips at the grocery store on sale, I’d never seen them before so I figured I’d try them out. It was a nice change from the norm, I love all things cinnamon.



I can’t believe I’ve had this blog for over 6 months now. I look back at those first pictures and cringe! I’d grown a lot thanks to honey & jam. I can’t wait to see what the next 6 months bring!



My Favorite Muffins

1 stick salted butter, room temp
2 cups all purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
2 cups blueberries/strawberries/chocolate chips/etc.
1 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup of milk
1-2 tbs. raw sugar, optional

preheat oven to 375 degrees, line a 12 cup muffin pan with papers ( i like to make 6 jumbo muffins, i couldn't find my papers this time though!)

In a medium bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder and salt.
In another bowl, toss the blueberries with about a tablespoon of the flour mix. (this works so well to keep the berries evenly distributed through the muffins.) Set aside.

Using the paddle attachment on an electric mixer, beat the butter for about a minute, then add the sugar and beat until light and fluffy (i love fluffy butter.) Add the eggs one at a time, making sure it's well combined before adding another egg. Then mix in the vanilla extract.

With the mixer on low, alternate adding flour and milk. Beat until just combined. Don't over beat! Lightly fold in the blueberries (or whatever) using a rubber spatula. Divide the batter evenly among the muffin cups.

Then I put a sprinkling over raw sugar on the top, it gives it a nice shine and crunch.

Bake for about 30 minutes, until the muffins are golden-brown. Stick a toothpick in there, and if it comes out clean, you're good. Put them on a wire rack and let them cool for a few minutes, eat em' while they are still warm. with a glass of milk. or coffee. or any beverage of your choice. enjoy!

Zucchini Cheddar Bread

I remember the last time I had zucchini bread. I was about 11. I remember putting it in my mouth and instantly spitting it out. I thought it was the worst thing I’d ever tasted.



But tastes change is 8 years, right? So when Charity of Sweet Charity Pie sent me this recipe, I figured it was time to try it again.



The zucchini bread I had was sweet, I’m not sure what was in it, but it was nothing like this. This bread is savory and delicious. I substituted onions for the scallions and left out the parsley, and it came out wonderfully. Plus, it’s totally gorgeous, the green and the orange.

I will definitely be having zucchini bread again. Thanks for making me a believer, Charity! Be sure to go to her blog, she should have a post on this bread up today.



Zucchini Cheddar Bread

10-12 servings.

Position a rack in the center of the oven. Preheat the oven to 350 F. Grease a 9 x 5-inch (8-cup) loaf pan.

Whisk together in a large bowl:

3 cups all-purpose flour

4 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

Add and toss to separate and coat with flour:

1 cup coarsely shredded zucchini

3/4 cup shredded sharp Cheddar cheese

1/4 cup chopped scallions (or white onion)

3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

1 tablespoon snipped fresh dill, or 2 teaspoons dried

Whisk together in another bowl:

2 large eggs

1 cup buttermilk

4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) warm melted unsalted butter or vegetable oil

Add to the flour mixture and mix with a few light strokes just until the dry ingredients are moistened. Do not overmix; the batter should not be smooth. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, 55 to 60 minutes. Let cool in the pan on a rack for 5 to 10 minutes before unmolding to cool completely on the rack.

P.S. No buttermilk? Add a touch of vinegar to 1 cup of milk. That’s what I did and it worked perfectly.