#acfbaking

At least this would be fun, right?  Well, Brendon was not known for his baking skill but he could do something useful and fun and he was feeling a little rebellious so - he’d give the house fair warning if they wanted to eat his creation.  He was making brownies, complete with fun green sprinkles sure to give some a nice, mellow, low-key high. 

He looked through cookbooks to find a recipe for good brownies and gathered his ingredients.  He had flour, sugar, milk, eggs, chocolate and oil.  He blended the ingredients in a bowl, and added the sprinkles to the mix.  He added an extra spoonful of the chocolate as well, just to give them added flavor.  He made sure that his mixture wasn’t lumpy, and poured it into a pan, set the oven and let them cook while he hunted for some sort of frosting. 

Finding a recipe, he started the frosting while the smell teased his nose.  He took a hit off his own pipe as he worked.  That was nice.  Whatever was good for his head was good for him.  Finally finished, he set his creation on the table complete with a sign.  “Don’t take if you don’t partake.  Love, B.”  Done! 

To say that Ashley was excited about this month’s challenge would be an understatement.  She loved all things baking and cooking.  As she walked into the kitchen, she started wracking her brain, trying to decide what to make.  There were just so many options.  There were cookies, cakes, pastries, or pies, but then again, she could do something savory like lasagna, enchiladas, Cornish game hen, or even go all out with a full Thanksgiving meal.  

The actress started taking inventory of what she had available to use, and immediately set to work. She didn’t use recipes when she cooked, instead, she used instinct.  When Ashley was cooking, all sense of time would just disappear.  She’d get lost in the sensuousness of it all.  The mixing, the kneading, the scooping, the smells…there was something so therapeutic about it all.

By the time Ashley looked at the clock, she had been in the kitchen for hours.  She pulled her last batch of cookies out of the oven and put them on a plate.  She turned off the oven, loaded and started the dishwasher before stepping back and looking at everything she had made.  Apple pie, pumpkin pie, chocolate chip cookies, peanut brittle, fudge, macaroons, divinity, and a big bowl of puppy chow.  She took a picture and sent it to her team and to Daniel with a note “I may have gone overboard on this one”.  She was pleased with herself as she hung up her apron and left the kitchen with a smile on her face.

Harry was excited for a baking challenge.  It was well known that he worked in a bakery.  Did that make him a baker - no.  He made dough, let it rise, made bread and rolls, and other things, but here he was doing something a little different.  He was making a pie from scratch.  He tied the apron around his waist, cracked his knuckles feeling his mum cringe at him all the way from the UK, and set about his work.  He was making his own crust as well as the rest of the pie. 

He prepped the apples, making thin slices and setting them aside in cool water.  He made the sauce with sugar, lemon juice, and cornstarch, along with cinnamon and nutmeg.  Once his filling was hot, he mixed in the apples, along with a few blueberries and sliced strawberries.  It was his mum’s AppleBerry Pie.  Now she wasn’t so cringy all the way over in the UK. 

Hearing this month’s challenge was a baking challenge, Lily was a little nervous about it. Yes, of course she knew how to cook and bake but she hasn’t cooked for anyone but herself in a while. She hoped her housemates will like the dish she decides to prepare. Going through her mother’s recipe book, she decides to go with the family favorite “No bake S’mores ice cream cake.” It wasn’t just any normal s’mores or ice cream cake either. It has that Thompson family touch and secret. Lily begins to smile remembering when she first made this with her mother. Jotting down the ingredients she would need, Lily heads out to the store for the supplies since the house didn’t have all she needed already, which was kind of surprising. About an hour later, Lily returned with all she needed. Heading into the kitchen, she smiles as one of her teammates was also in the kitchen. They chit-chatted for a bit as Lily starting prepping for her desert. Having seen half her team’s dishes already, they all looked amazing and smelled delicious. She couldn’t wait to try everything.

Placing some graham crackers in a bag, she starts crushing them with a rolling pin. After she fixed, she transferred them to her mixing bowl and added some sugar, cinnamon, and salt before adding the melted butter to the mix. Mixing it well, Lily gets another bowl and adds softened ice cream, marshmallows, and chocolate chips into it. Finishing up the rest of the instructions for her desert, Lily then places it in the freezer. Closing the door, she chuckles and leans against the freezer door as she watches her teammates finish their dishes, “Wow, that was a workout,” She jokes with a smile. “The dessert should be ready in like four hours,” she says setting a timer on her phone. Returning four hours later, Lily smiles opening the freezer. It looked like it set perfectly. Pulling it out of the freezer, Lily places it on the table. “Alright you guys, it’s ready. Hope you all like my no baked s’mores ice cream cake.”

 When Chloe heard the next challenge was a baking challenge; she was stoked. She loved baking especially Asian cuisines she learned from her grandmother. It brought back a lot of fond memories for her. It made her think of all the times when she was younger in China and how her grandmother would make her sit for hours and they’d just bake and talk. A tear fell down her cheek, but Chloe quickly wiped it away. She smiles at the memory, missing her a lot. Thinking about what dish to make, Chloe began to process millions of ideas but ultimately ending up going with the simplest yet filling dish she could think of, “Fortune Cookies.” Smiling, knowing none of her house mates had real authentic fortune cookies, Chloe ran off to the local oriental store for her supplies.

Returning thirty minutes later to the house, Chloe smiles seeing her teammates have already started their dishes and they all looked delicious. Taking over for one of her teammates who just finished their dish, Chloe immediately began to take everything out of her bag as she prepped her table and preheated her oven. Painting the cutting board with flour, Chloe started making her dough from scratch. Smiling already liking how it was turning out. Her dough process took about twenty minutes, which ended up with her having about six different flavors of dough. Chloe couldn’t wait for the house to try these as she began to make the fortune cookie shapes and place them gently on the baking sheet. By the end of it, she had about 6 baking sheets full of fortune cookies and Chloe begins to place them in the oven. Setting the timer on her phone, she starts cleaning up her station. Once finished, she started to let out all her decorating stuff.

Getting the plates ready, Chloe hears the timer go off and she immediately jumps up and rushes to the oven and checks on her cookies. She smiles saying, “perfect” in Chinese as she pulled all trays out and onto the kitchen island. Letting them sit for five minutes, Chloe began to decorate her snacks. Grinning fifteen minutes later, Chloe lets out a sigh of relief seeing her dish was done. She smiles as she neatly places them on the counter for everyone to try. “Wow, that took a lot longer then expected,” Chloe says to her teammates with a chuckle. “Don’t forget to at least try one of each because all of them have a different flavor. I made basic, vanilla, chocolate, pumpkin and strawberry fortune cookies, I hope you guys like them.”