In my pantry there is…

an opened jar of almond butter.  I was using a tablespoon here and there in a chia bowl at breakfast.  No-one else was taking any interest.  It was yet another thing lingering a bit too long on the pantry shelves. In Seattle there is a great bakery that I love – Macrina.  They make this…

It’s the only whey.

I enjoy making pizza dough.  I always make a large batch knowing the fam will max out at 2.5-3 thin crust pies.  I follow an old Jamie Oliver recipe from his Italian cookbook, Jamie’s Italy.  It has produced consistent results over the years. The recipe for this dough calls for the usual suspects: flour, water, yeast,…

The berry, berry best

There was a pint container of blueberries lingering in the fridge this morning.  It was enough for a muffin recipe.  I adore Nigella Lawson’s book How To Be a Domestic Goddess.  I have found within it’s pages numerous successful baking projects. This morning I returned to the tome in search of instructions that would transform the…

Down is up.

Rhubarb is now everywhere.  I can barely keep up.  One of my goals for the season is to try some new recipes.  I will still make rhubarb jam.  I can’t resist having one of my favorites on hand.  I would like to make some other things like rhubarb based drinks, cakes and galettes. One such…

Chocolate Shot-put

In my pantry half a bar of Theo’s mint dark chocolate was lingering.   I love having a bit of dark chocolate ferreted away to nibble on. This bar, delicious as it was, needed to go. Earlier in the day I had toyed with making a sour cherry bundt cake. I lacked the buttermilk and…

Focaccia

There is only so much pizza that can be consumed in one night.  After many pies were constructed and consumed a mound of dough remained.  It was boxed up and placed back in the fridge to slowly rise in its cool confines overnight. The next morning the dough now pliant and slack was laid out…

Torte

I have been “trying” to make this cake for weeks.  It’s a recipe from How To Hygge  By Signe Johansen.  The timing was not right.  The cake baked in the oven for the better part of an hour.  In the summer heat this would end up negating all the work our little AC unit was…

Clutch cake

We were away for the holiday weekend.  The rental home was not especially equipped for extensive baking projects.  It’s best to bring your own knives, if you can.  Otherwise you will be left mincing an onion with a dull paring knife. One the long weekend we cooked every meal.  I would not say it was…

Golden Granola

You are 30 minutes away from granola of your own making.  Two-thirds of that time is dedicated to the bake.  It’s possible everything you need is in your pantry already. I like a crunchy granola with big chunky nuggets of nuts and oats clumped together.  Any dried fruit I add after the granola has cooled….

Jam. Doughnut. Muffins.

These muffins are not what they seem. Adapted from Nigella Lawson’s How To Be A Domestic Goddess, Milk 1/2 c Oil 7T Egg 1 whole Vanilla paste 1/2t AP Flour 1 1/3 c Baking Powder 1 1/2 t Baking Soda 1/4t Salt 1/4t Sugar 1/3c Jam 12T Butter 1/2c, melted Sugar 1/2c Preheat the oven to 375˚F….

Snickerdoodles

Everything was going along swimmingly until the flour needed to be measured.  The original recipe calls for 2 3/4 cups of flour.  We had half the needed quantity.  Instead of raising the white flag in defeat we checked the pantry for options.  Oat flour emerged as the savior of the recipe.  In the end it adds…

Eltana

Through the winter the windows of my local shop remain shrouded in steam.  Inside the enormous kettle sits in a windowed corner to give passers by a glimpse  into the world of bagel making.  A wood fired oven roars regardless of the season.  This time of year it is a welcome and cozy site. I come…