My Baking Cupboard

I realized this weekend, while looking for a particular spice, that while I am more confident in my baking and cooking skills, my organizational skills of baking and cooking supplies has dwindled. When I lacked self-confidence, my supplies were neat and organized. In fact, all my spices were alphabetized, making me appear more proficient (well except to those who really knew). Now, not so much (the organization).

I love baking, so my supplies are abundant. In fact, I have a whole cupboard devoted to baking supplies (which in itself might be startling to some). I have things that are not found in local markets that I brought back from countries I have visited. I have used them a few times, and now they sit, unused, or used only slightly. Some have even become outdated (how many times can you use Rosewater?). So I found myself in the much needed position to clean and purge this cupboard.

This task was not going to be that easy. I mean, would there be a way to salvage something that might be outdated for a few years? How bad could a spice taste that might be four years old? And could I really part with the 1/4 teaspoon of cinnamon that remained in one of the four bottles of cinnamon I have in the cupboard? Did I really have to throw away the three remaining mini size cupcake wrappers? Couldn’t I find something to do with the five party skewers that remained in the damaged package? It wasn’t going to be easy, but it had to be done.

So after an hour of rearranging, and much deliberation in my head (I know, scary), my baking cupboard is clean and tidy and the old is gone. There’s much to be said about a clean, and well organized cupboard. Thankfully I have proven I can bake, so my organized cupboards will not depict a different story. And I have room for more stuff to accumulate!

Now my junk drawer is another story...

My Cookie Obsession

I have an obsession with cookies. Not eating them, although I do love a good cookie, but in finding good cookie recipes. Bars, dropped, refrigerator, rolled, or molded, it makes no difference. The definition of obsession means a “compulsive preoccupation” with an idea. Thankfully my obsession in baking them does take breaks, just not long ones. However, my search for the best cookie is ongoing, whether it be a web-based search, or in any book store where recipe books might be found. If it is out there, I will find it! The word “preoccupation” is a bit dramatic.

I got to thinking about my fascination with cookies this morning while dusting my book shelves. I have collected 13 “Cookie” cookbooks and 25 magazines devoted to cookie recipes. If I throw in all the handmade recipe cards I have personally collected, and pages I have ripped out of magazines (mostly in doctors offices when the receptionist wasn’t looking), I might have roughly a million recipes for all kinds of cookies. (OK, not a million, but close).

And is doesn’t stop there. I recently found out that Martha Stewart is coming out with a whole cookbook devoted to cookies! I have to admit that while I AM NOT A FAN of hers, I am chomping at the bit to get my hands on that book. I mean there has to be a few cookie recipes in there that I might not have yet. Right? Maybe it is an obsession?

I am always on the hunt for all kinds of cookies although my favorite recipes are biscotti recipes. I love that bite of crunchy goodness, usually filled with loads of goodies. I have one recipe for Gingerbread Biscotti that is my favorite. Again I find myself wanting to share a recipe.

Prep and Cook Time: about 1 hour. Notes: To toast the almonds, place in a baking pan and bake in a 350° oven, shaking pan often, until golden, about 15 minutes. You can store the cookies airtight for up to 3 days. (If they last that long)

Ingredients
1/2 cup (1/4 lb.) butter, at room temperature
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup dark molasses
1/4 cup minced fresh ginger
3 large eggs
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1 cup coarsely chopped toasted blanched almonds (see notes)

1. In a bowl, with an electric mixer on medium speed, beat butter and sugar until smooth. Beat in molasses, ginger, and eggs until well blended, scraping down sides of bowl as needed.
2. In another bowl, mix flour, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, and cloves. Stir or beat into butter mixture until well blended. Stir in almonds.
3. Spoon 1 cup dough in dollops down the length of a buttered or cooking parchment-lined 12- by 15-inch baking sheet, 1 inch from edge. Spoon another 1 cup dough down the length of the other side of the sheet. With floured fingers, pat each strip of dough into a flat 13-inch loaf, about 1/2 inch thick and 2 inches wide. Repeat with remaining dough (dough can stand while first loaves bake).
4. Bake loaves in a 350° oven until golden, 15 to 20 minutes; if baking more than one pan at a time, switch pan positions halfway through baking.
5. With a sharp knife, cut loaves crosswise into 1/2-inch-thick slices. Separate slices slightly and tip each onto a cut side.
6. Return to oven and bake until cookies are slightly darker and firm and dry to the touch, 15 to 20 minutes longer. Gently slide biscotti onto racks to cool completely. Enjoy!

Yield: Makes about 95 cookies

Nutritional Information
CALORIES 46(39% from fat); FAT 2g (sat 0.7g); PROTEIN 0.9g; CHOLESTEROL 9.4mg; SODIUM 21mg; FIBER 0.3g; CARBOHYDRATE 6.1g

SOURCE: Cooking Light

Making the "Perfect" Biscuit

Making the perfect biscuit has never been an easy task for me. Even my attempts to make what some might call and “edible” biscuit has been a challenge. My “competition biscuits” are those made by my mother; the ones that have satisfied my palate all of my life. Quite honestly, her biscuits are made from a scratch recipe, passed down from her mother, or by following the recipe on the yellow box. I have tried both, and despite following her recipes exactly, my biscuits could only be substituted for hockey pucks. Seriously. I am not kidding. Ask my daughter.

This might seem trivial to many, but making the perfect biscuit has stumped me for decades. And I believe has irritated my daughter who loves my mom’s homemade biscuits. Oh sure, the “crack-open-the-tube-and-bake” ones are nice substitutes, but they are not “Gram’s biscuits.” However, I have just recently found a recipe from Ina Garten’s (The Barefoot Contessa) recipe box that proved to be a prefect and easy to make biscuit. In fact, my mother was visiting with me and agrees that these biscuits, made by me, were heavenly! What follows is this recipe. I’m only happy to share a successful biscuit with my friends and family. Be warned, this recipe is not for those on any diet plan. The butter alone can knock any diet plan out of the park!

Cheddar-Dill Biscuits
4 cups plus 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour, divided
2 tablespoons baking powder
2 teaspoons salt
3/4 pound cold unsalted butter, diced
4 extra-large eggs, beaten lightly
1 cup cold heavy cream
1/2 pound extra-sharp yellow Cheddar, small-diced
1 cup minced fresh dill
1 egg beaten with 1 tablespoon water or milk, for egg wash

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
Combine 4 cups of flour, the baking powder, and salt in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Add the butter and mix on low speed until the butter is in pea-sized pieces. Mix the eggs and heavy cream and quickly add them to the flour-and-butter mixture. Combine until just blended. Toss together the Cheddar, dill, and 1 tablespoon of flour and add them to the dough. Mix until they are almost incorporated.

Dump the dough onto a well-floured surface and knead it for 1 minute, until the Cheddar and dill are well distributed. Roll the dough 3/4-inch thick. Cut into 4-inch squares and then in half diagonally to make triangles. Brush the tops with egg wash. Bake on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper for 20 to 25 minutes, until the outside is crusty and the inside is fully baked.