Last night I went to Madison Market to pick up some rye flour. When I was there, my mind totally exploded from all the bulk selection they had. My friends introduced me to the market some time ago, but I never really made it out there to go grocery shopping. I feel like I didn't really appreciate their selection until I realized how difficult it is to get organic rye flour, or organic cake flour. (which they sell as organic pastry flour where you add 2 tsp cornstarch to make cake flour *so awesome!*)
The best part was that I was able to buy 3 servings worth of rye flour for the focaccia recipe for $0.45 (!!!)
I am going to buy pastry flour to make pound cake. It's gonna taste waaaaaay better than baking from a box of gross pilsbury cake flour and probably cost almost the same!
I love bulk! I love Madison Market!
Thursday, March 19, 2009
Monday, March 16, 2009
Cornbread
I think everyone can agree that cornbread is one of those sweet/savory treats that is just great on its own or with a meal. It makes any meal more festive as a side!
Even kids love it!
With honey
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Fresh out of the oven
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My camera died, so I used my friend Aviva's iphone to document this yummyness. Thank goodness for technology these days! Thanks Aviva!
Even kids love it!
With honey
.jpg)
Fresh out of the oven
.jpg)
My camera died, so I used my friend Aviva's iphone to document this yummyness. Thank goodness for technology these days! Thanks Aviva!
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
Just keep baking
After reading Julie and Julia, I fantasized about performing a project like that on my own.
{Julie is a girl who decides to cook every recipe in Julia Child's Cookbook in a year}
I never did, because of a list of things, like time, money, and thinking it would make me fat...but those are all just silly excuses. Soooooo, I decided to take on a project kind of like Julie and Julia, only I will be baking delicious treats every night insead of cooking meals. I've found it much more economical since I use a lot of the same basic ingredients, and then I can freeze the leftovers or give it easily to friends. I've already accomplished three nights in a row!
As much as I love cooking, I feel like anyone can do it. The secret is salt, cream, garlic, and onion and *poof* you have a mouthwatering meal. But I feel like baking is different. It's a science, it's specific, it's challenging, it's creative, and you really see your results. I feel like I enter a world of concentration, manual labor, and instant gratification once I am able to see my beautiful craftsmanship at the end of the day. It makes me giddy when I peek into the oven and see shapes form, browning on the top of the dough, and then to also be able to taste everything right out of the oven is just a dream come true!
On Monday I decided to make soft pretzels. They turned out so cute! Here are some pics of the process:
Making the dough
Poaching the dough
In the oven
Before going in the oven
Whooo Soft Preztels!
Tuesday I made beer battered cheese bread. My loaf of bread broke apart when I tried to get it out of the pan. I was sad, but then I ate it and didn't feel sad anymore. It was SOOOOO good. I am also going to make cheesy rolls instead of a loaf the next time I make it. I really enjoy the buttery crust, and I think that if I can cover more surface area with the butter crust the world might be a better place.
Since this didn't come out as well as I would have liked, there aren't very many pictures.
Beer-battered cheese bread
and today I made blueberry scones:
Placing blueberries on the dough
Blueberry scones!
I've been really happy with the treats I've made so far. I will update as I go along on my new adventures exploring the wonderful world of baking. Happy eating!
{Julie is a girl who decides to cook every recipe in Julia Child's Cookbook in a year}
I never did, because of a list of things, like time, money, and thinking it would make me fat...but those are all just silly excuses. Soooooo, I decided to take on a project kind of like Julie and Julia, only I will be baking delicious treats every night insead of cooking meals. I've found it much more economical since I use a lot of the same basic ingredients, and then I can freeze the leftovers or give it easily to friends. I've already accomplished three nights in a row!
As much as I love cooking, I feel like anyone can do it. The secret is salt, cream, garlic, and onion and *poof* you have a mouthwatering meal. But I feel like baking is different. It's a science, it's specific, it's challenging, it's creative, and you really see your results. I feel like I enter a world of concentration, manual labor, and instant gratification once I am able to see my beautiful craftsmanship at the end of the day. It makes me giddy when I peek into the oven and see shapes form, browning on the top of the dough, and then to also be able to taste everything right out of the oven is just a dream come true!
On Monday I decided to make soft pretzels. They turned out so cute! Here are some pics of the process:
Making the dough
Poaching the dough
In the oven
Before going in the oven
Whooo Soft Preztels!
Tuesday I made beer battered cheese bread. My loaf of bread broke apart when I tried to get it out of the pan. I was sad, but then I ate it and didn't feel sad anymore. It was SOOOOO good. I am also going to make cheesy rolls instead of a loaf the next time I make it. I really enjoy the buttery crust, and I think that if I can cover more surface area with the butter crust the world might be a better place.
Since this didn't come out as well as I would have liked, there aren't very many pictures.
Beer-battered cheese bread
and today I made blueberry scones:
Placing blueberries on the dough
Blueberry scones!
I've been really happy with the treats I've made so far. I will update as I go along on my new adventures exploring the wonderful world of baking. Happy eating!
Thursday, February 26, 2009
Even Better
{this american life podcast + walk around green lake + clear blue skies + sun + SNOW} = PERFECTION!
Wednesday, December 10, 2008
Tuesday, December 2, 2008
What was China like?
China had Love Birds:
Mao:
A Great Wall:
Man-made lakes for one woman:
A spray-painted dog:
Bubbles!.....
In Fraggle Rock-like places:
2,000 year old ruins:
Seahorses on a stick:
Minnie Mouse fans:
Beijing Crabs:
Cute Garden Kitty:
The Bund at night:
Pretty sunsets:
Farmers collecting grass to feed the water buffalo:
Water Buffalo:
Pretty Mountains near a river:
My favorite part was the countryside. It was the most beautiful and serene. Reed Flute Cave was the most magical. The rock formations were wise, systematic and grande. I couldn't even fathom the amount of history that existed between each centimeter of formation. I guess historical is a good way to describe the whole trip. Yeah, historical.
Mao:
A Great Wall:
Man-made lakes for one woman:
A spray-painted dog:
Bubbles!.....
In Fraggle Rock-like places:
2,000 year old ruins:
Seahorses on a stick:
Minnie Mouse fans:
Beijing Crabs:
Cute Garden Kitty:
The Bund at night:
Pretty sunsets:
Farmers collecting grass to feed the water buffalo:
Water Buffalo:
Pretty Mountains near a river:
My favorite part was the countryside. It was the most beautiful and serene. Reed Flute Cave was the most magical. The rock formations were wise, systematic and grande. I couldn't even fathom the amount of history that existed between each centimeter of formation. I guess historical is a good way to describe the whole trip. Yeah, historical.
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