IT'S DONE!

So we're a few days, ok, maybe weeks, into the new year, well past my goal of finishing the Baked book. I'm pleased to report that I did indeed finish the cookbook before the end of the year. I was expecting a flurry of recipes needing to be completed between Christmas and New Years but the truth is that I only had 1 left. I took that remaining recipe to our annual New Years Eve board game party with my family where it was declared too fancy. I had to agree but more on that to follow.

When I started this little baking adventure over a year ago, I thought it would be fun to document, photograph and criticize each recipe. And I was wrong. It turned into a huge hassle. Writing up posts, taking photos, editing photos, proof reading and then posting was just too much work! In fact, I set a mini goal to finish all of my postings before the end of the year and well, I'm sure you can guess how that went.

Long story short, I'm still working on it. I have abbreviated comments and photos coming. Eventually.

Since I've completed the book the obvious question is what to bake next? My husband actually asked what book I had selected for 2013 and I laughed in his face. I'm working on flagging all the recipes I've been stock piling and drooling over and I'm just going to meander my way though. I received the Flour cookbook in 2012 and a lot of those recipes are very appealing. To make sure that I got off on the right foot, I baked some cinnamon rolls last week. We both caught a cold and nothing seemed more comforting than a pan of warm homemade cinnamon rolls. Verdict? Eh. It might have been the lack of energy/interest but it didn't turn out all that great.  Anyway, I suspect that 2013 is going to be pretty awesome baking wise since I get to be picky about what I make. To hell with the new years resolution to lose weight, I want some warm caramel/chocolate/almond/cake/brownies/everything else.

Milk Chocolate Malt Ball Cake, pg 60

My husband had a lot of allergies as a baby/child. And when I say a lot, I mean practically every food ever known. He was especially allergic to malt. Not that it would kill him or anything but it made his nose run and the generic allergy unhappiness. Because of this he has avoided malt pretty much his entire life. Last summer we stopped for milkshakes and he decided to give it a go. Like all of his other food allergies, this one didn’t affect him anymore so he was pretty excited to try out a malt cake.

 The Verdict: I had high expectations and really, the cake fell short. Sure, it was a perfectly fine cake but with such heavy and rich frosting, you couldn’t really taste the malt. Actually, when just eating the cake plain you couldn’t really taste the malt. It’s just an ok white cake with chocolate frosting cake. It was actually really heavy and people at work who usually gobble my treats up within a few hours were really pacing themselves with this one.

Tips for Next Time: Eh, I’ll skip it. It’s a nice concept and sounds good on paper but it just didn’t deliver for me.

Sour Cream Coffee Cake, pg 38

As much as it pains me, I follow the instructions in the book exactly and the book said something about actually swirling the layers together. Yes, they refer to the cinnamon mixture as the swirl mixture and there is swirl in the name of the cake but actual instructions are to layer the cake batter and the swirl mixture, toss on the crumb topping and place in oven – no actual swirling involved. Would actually swirling the cinnamon layer into the cake layer make a difference? Nope. But it drove me crazy nonetheless. 

The Verdict: Ehhh. It wasn’t horrible but it wasn’t amazing either. The cinnamon layer had chocolate powder mixed into it which I wasn’t a huge fan of either. 

Tips for Next Time: Skip it all together. There is no shortage of coffee cake recipes and if it doesn’t rock my world, I’m not even going to bother with it. The cake was super heavy (as one would expect with a full 16 oz carton of sour cream!) and while the topping was tasty, it’s a small fraction of the overall recipe. 

Tuscaloosa Tollhouse Pie, pg 98

I messed something up at work so I told my customer that the next time he saw me he could throw something at me or I can bring in a pie, his choice. He didn’t respond so I chose for him and brought in this pie. I was expecting it to be super super sweet and kind of disgusting so I didn’t ask for feedback. I had enough crust overhang that I made myself a little tart which I had the following day. To my surprise, it was actually good!

The Verdict: It was good but the concept is a little weird. Why make a cookie pie, just make cookies. They’re easier to make, share and eat.

Tips for Next Time: Maybe some pecans might be a nice addition but really, it’s fine as is.

Pear Plum Crisp, pg 113

In our co-op baskets we had plums which the husband doesn’t like and quite frankly, I was sick of (I even made a plum milkshake, it was not successful). I bought some pears and we were good to go. When I first started this project I was determined to make the recipes exactly.as.written. but this recipe I changed my mind and I went with what I thought would work best. Mostly because my plums were a little overripe and mushy and I knew that it would just be a runny sludgy mess so I added some cornstarch to the mixture.

The Verdict: Sure enough, the filling firmed up to a tasty pear/plum mush, almost like a chunky jam. The topping was crisp, buttery and salty; the way it should be. I think it would have been better had my plums not been overripe but at the same time I think that the flavor of the pears was lost.

Tips for Next Time: I think a crisp is not a good crowd pleaser, it’s a little hit and miss on who likes crisps. But if I was in the fruit crisp mood, I’d try this one again with a different mix of fruits.

Hazelnut Cinnamon Chip Biscotti, pg 147

I just recently discovered biscotti a few years ago and how easy it is to make. Trouble is, people don’t like it, which is a pretty big problem when you’re making treats to share. I approached this recipe as a “throw away” recipe as in I had to make it because I’m doing the entire book but I didn’t think it would be a big winner with people. Especially since they don’t have any oil or butter. Fat = tasty.

Sorry that I don’t have a better picture,  my husband got a little carried away when cleaning out the cabinets and threw my photo samples away.

The Verdict: Boy was I wrong! I was visiting some customers so I dropped some cookies off and I was hounded for a few days until I remembered to bring in the recipe. Same thing at work! People loved these. I was afraid of the hazelnut being too strong but the chocolate helped.

Tips for Next Time: I split the recipe into 2 logs when I baked the cookies for the first time. Even then the middle didn’t bake through which made it a mess to cut and bake for the 2^nd time but it also meant that they weren’t super dried out and brittle like most biscotti. I gave the recipe to someone else who loved what I brought in but they baked it as long as the book said and hated the normal dry and brittle texture. Next time I’m going to make them with almonds (for cost reasons!) and I’ll bake them for a little bit longer. Also, a helpful tip for biscotti, when forming the dough into logs before baking it for the first time, the dough is a million times easier to shape if you wet you hands first.

Classic Sugar Cookie, pg 148

My niece was turning 2 and I thought it would be the perfect time to make sugar cookies. She loves play dough so I brought over the cookie dough and she helped cut the cookies. We got a cute fish and number 2 cookie cutter but she kept wanting to use the boy and girl cookie cutter. Kids.

The Verdict: I had intended to make cookies and freeze them for my nieces party but my sister had to give me a reality check, these cookies wouldn’t last but a few days in their house. Fair enough. The recipe didn’t change my life but it’s really just a sugar cookie. It’s perfectly acceptable and if I were in need to a sugar cookie recipe I wouldn’t hesitate to use this one again but I don’t think I don’t think that there will be a scenario where I’ll be like “you know what I really want… ..a sugar cookie!”

Tips for Next Time: It’s fine as is, just remember that it needs to chill 3 hours before you can make cookies and even then, always keep the dough chilled as best as possible when cutting out the cookies.