#baking bear

Had not busted out my perforated three-up baguette pan in awhlie, and since I’m cookin’ lots of stews and soups right now I wanted crusty-crunchy-outside and soft fluffy inside...only achievable with STEAM!

Without steam, they’re just meh...the only way to achieve that crusty outside is to bake ‘em HOT and STEAMY!

Set one of your oven racks to the lowest rung it can go.  On that rack, take a roaster pan, shallow, filled with about 7 cups of hot tap water.  Now preheat the oven to 450, with the pan and water on the bottom rung.  Have the other rack centered in the middle of the oven. 

If your stove is fairly airtight, you’ll see steam rise out of vent, you are ready to go.  Put the proofed and slashed loaves in as fast as you can, shut the door and set the timer for 20 minutes.

At the end of 20 minutes, do these two things:  remove the water pan on the bottom rack, and lower the actual temp from 450 down to 375...and now leave the bread in for another 10-15 minutes, maybe 20, and you get this:

THAT’s how ya get “real baguette” crust at home.  Thank you for coming to my ted talk.

As for recipe, it’s dead simple if you have a stand mixer.  Measure out 2 1/2 cups of hot tap water and put in metal mixing bowl.  Don’t futz with the temperature THAT much, it just needs to be in the ballpark of 105-110.

Into that water put 2 pkgs yeast, let it dissolve, add 1 tablespoon of salt, 2 tablespoons of melted/cooled butter and 7 cups flour.  Ta-dah!  That’s it.  Dough Hook.  Turn mixer with dough hook on speed 2 for two minutes until it forms a ball, then let it go for another two minutes. That’s all.

Sorta winged it, offa my usual Nanner Bread recipe.  Added three containers of ripe raspberries at the same time as the bananas.  The crumb is dense and colorful, flecked with the little red dots of raspberry.  The combination of the flavors of the raspberry and banana take it all to a whole new level.

Raspberry Banana Bread

Oven to 375 degrees.  Grease and flour your long loaf pans.

Sift:  6 cups flour + 2 cups regular granulated sugar + 1 cup dark brown sugar + 6 teaspoons baking powder + 1 teaspoon salt.  Set aside.

Mash 5 large overripe bananas and 3 containers ripe raspberries.  Set aside.

Melt 1 stick salted butter, set aside to cool.

Measure 2/3 cup of milk.

Measure out 1 tablespoon of ground cinnamon and 1 teaspoon of nutmeg.  Set aside.

Take 6 xlg eggs and crack into your largest mixing bowl.  Beat the livin’ snot outa those eggs with an electric mixer.  Beat ‘em like they owe yer grandma money.  Until mighty frothy. 

Continue to beat the eggs as you gradually add, a little at a time, alternating, the melted butter and the milk. until it’s all added, and then keep whippin’ the hell out of it. 

Dump in the mashed raspberries and bananas, and the spices.

Continue to beat until uniform consistency is reached, and the spices and fruit are incorporated.

Dump the sifted flour mixture into the liquids, and use a sturdy mixing spoon to fold the sifted solids into the liquid until you’ve got a wonderfully thick batter, and there are no dry pockets of flour left.

Pour evenly distributed into your two long loaf pans, and sprinkle liberally with sprinkling sugar crystals.  This is what makes the gorgeous split crust!

Now bake in center of oven for 45-50 minutes.  Test in middle with toothpick.

Cool in pans for 15 minutes, then de-pan and allow to cool before wrapping in waxed paper and foil to keep from drying out.

Will stay fine on countertop for 2 days, slice with a thin-bladed bread knife.  Slice leftovers about 1 inch thick, separate with waxed paper and refrigerate in an airtight container. 

Freezes very nicely for heating up in toaster oven on chilly mornings

These cookies, made with this recipe, have been with me in one form or another since I was a kid.  Over the years I did one essential tweak, and they’ve turned out consistent every time.  The original comes from the tattered pages of my mother’s 1959-edition Better Homes and Gardens Cookbook:

I always make a double batch of these when I make ‘em, so here are the proportions, taking into consideration the change of using equal parts butter and shortening instead of just shortening. 

Flavor improved exponentially!

GINGERSNAPS:

3/4 cup salted butter, softened

3/4 cup Crisco (use the baking sticks...handy dandy measuring marks on ‘em)

2 cups tightly packed brown sugar

1/2 cup Grandma’s Molasses (yellow label)

2 eggs

4 1/2 cups flour (scoop and level)

4 teaspoons baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons ground ginger

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon ground cloves

Follow directions as in the original recipe.  I find that the double batch makes about 5 dozen...but I tend to make ‘em a little bigger than normal.

No matter what insanity is goin’ on, I always feel better after I bake somethin’.

Sometimes ya just gotta stand up, say “I’ve had enough o’this shit.  I’m gonna bake a goddamn cake!” 

And so I just pulled this goddamn Cinnamon Streusel Coffee Cake outa the goddamn oven, goddammit.

If you’re powerless in the face of global catastrophe, don’t sit around bitchin’ about it.  Grow a set and bake a goddamn cake, like A Real Man!

CAKE INGREDIENTS:

3 EGGS 2 TSPN VANILLA EXTRACT 2 STICKS SALTED BUTTER, SOFTENED TO ROOM TEMP 3 TSPN BAKING POWDER 1 TSPN SALT 1 CUP GRANULATED SUGAR 1 CUP DARK BROWN SUGAR 3/4 CUP SOUR CREAM 1 1/4 CUPS WHOLE MILK 3 1/2 TO 3 3/4 CUPS FLOUR

STREUSEL INGREDIENTS:

2 STICKS BUTTER, COLD, CUT INTO CHUNKS 1/3 CUP FLOUR 4 TBLSPN GROUND CINNAMON 1 CUP WHITE SUGAR 1 CUP DARK BROWN SUGAR

FIRST: PREHEAT OVEN TO 325 DEGREES

GREASE A 9" X 13"  BAKING DISH

NEXT:  MAKE THE STREUSEL:

IN A MEDIUM MIXING BOWL, STIR TOGETHER THE FLOUR, CINNAMON AND SUGARS UNTIL MIXED.  CUT THE BUTTER CHUNKS IN WITH A PASTRY CUTTER UNTIL YOU GET A CRUMBLY TEXTURE.  PUT THIS IN THE FRIDGE WHILE YOU MAKE THE CAKE BATTER.

MAKE THE CAKE BATTER:

TAKE THE SOUR CREAM AND PUT IN A 2-CUP PYREX MEASURING CUP.  FILL TO THE 2 CUP LINE WITH MILK.  BREAK THE SOUR CREAM UP INTO CLUMPS, BUT DON'T GO OVERBOARD.  SET THIS ASIDE FOR A MOMENT.

TAKE THE SOFTENED BUTTER, BAKING POWDER, SALT, SUGARS AND VANILLA EXTRACT AND PUT IN LARGE BOWL, AND MIX UNTIL FLUFFY.  A STAND MIXER WORKS BEST FOR THIS IF YOU HAVE ONE.

ONCE YOUR BUTTER AND SUGARS ARE NICE AND FLUFFY,  MIX ON MEDIUM SPEED AS YOU ADD THE EGGS ONE AT A TIME.  MIX UNTIL EACH EGG IS INCORPORATED BEFORE YOU ADD THE NEXT ONE.

AFTER YOUR EGGS ARE INCORPORATED, BEGIN TO ADD THE MILK AND SOUR CREAM, A LITTLE AT A TIME, ALTERNATING WITH A LITTLE OF THE FLOUR.  I USE A LARGE SERVING SPOON TO ADD THE FLOUR.  STOP THE MIXER ONCE IN A WHILE TO SCRAPE DOWN THE SIDES AND CONTINUE ALTERNATING YOUR MILK/SCRM AND FLOUR, UNTIL YOU'VE USED THEM ALL UP.

NOW MIX YOUR BATTER WITH THAT LARGE SPOON, AND MAKE SURE EVERYTHING IS INCORPORATED AND MIXED WELL, AND SLATHER HALF OF IT INTO YOUR GREASED PAN.  SPREAD IT OUT EVENLY ALL THE WAY TO THE EDGE.

GRAB YOUR CHILLED STREUSEL OUT OF THE FRIDGE AND PUT HALF OF IT ATOP THAT CAKE BATTER IN AN EVEN LAYER.  PRESS IT IN SLIGHTLY.  

NOW PUT THE REST OF YOUR CAKE BATTER OVER THAT, AND SPREAD IT OUT EVENLY.  ONCE THE SECOND HALF OF THE BATTER IS DOWN OVER THE FIRST LAYER OF STREUSEL, LAY DOWN THE REST OF THE STREUSEL  ATOP THAT BATTER AND PAT IT DOWN.

PUT IN THE OVEN FOR 50-55 MINUTES.  IT'S DONE WHEN THE CAKE IS GOLDEN AND YOU SEE MOLTEN BUTTER BUBBLE UP ON TOP.

THERE.  NOTHIN' TO IT!

Kiddo came over today, and we baked.  Made two loaves of Nanner Bread and gave ‘em away, and then decided to try a new recipe I found:  Chocolate Chip Muffins.

Now, I’m kinda known for my Raspberry Muffins and Blueberry Muffins, which are both just variations on the same recipe.  I have the two commercial jumbo muffin pans you see in the photo above (pry/cold dead hands/yada).  The basic recipe I’ve used has always been a winner; they’ve always turned out great, but this new recipe kicks things into a whole ‘nuther gear.

The crumb is light and fluffy, the chocolate is melty-good, and the tops are vaulted nicely, crunchy and sweet. 

Recipe is here:

https://sallysbakingaddiction.com/bakery-style-chocolate-chip-muffins/

Now, I did NOT put the cinnamon and nutmeg in, and these turned out marvelous.  The extra things that she adds that I hadn’t used before are melted butter for part of the oil, and adding some baking soda to the mix, PLUS starting them out at 425 for five minutes, and then LOWERING to 350...those things help make the incredibly tall, crispy-crunchy tops and the tender crumb inside.

Next time I make my Raspberry or Blueberry muffins, I’ll use this basic recipe, for sure.  Those subtle little additions made a big difference in the finish product!

Pre-oven:

and after 50 mins @ 400 degrees:

For the crust I always use a 50-50 mix of real butter, and plain Crisco.  Makes for the best crust, period.   These were some super-tart green apples, so I didn’t need to use any lemon juice.   It’s cooling...just came out of the oven about 15 minutes ago.

Gonna do my Salty-Sweet Peanut Butter Cookies later tonight.  Will post.

Yes.  Real sweet-dough’d mofos with drippy glaze.  In the latest chapter of Baking Bear, figured it was time to revive one of my old “secret weapon” recipes, which I haven’t made in about 20 years.

I will unashamedly admit to stealing the shit out of this, lifting it right out of the little sprial-bound cookbook that came with my red KitchenAid stand mixer, back in 1988.  I made them occasionally, up until 1994, when I ran my little cafe in the mountains.  These guys became a “Friday Ritual” for awhile at the cafe.

This has to be the most decadent-feeling dough...once you get it kneaded completely and let it rise, it becomes almost like modelling clay, it’s so rich.  Here it is completely risen.  And that’s with TWO “packets” worth of yeast (4.5 teaspoons).  The dough alone has 3 eggs and uses milk as its main liquid, also a shit-ton of sugar, for the amount of liquid.  Amazingly silky and smooth once it’s risen!

Here they are risen, and about to go in the oven....Now, I always use the “ends” of the rolled up dough as throwaway “Cooks Privilege” quality control, yaknow?  lulz.   SO, those are the two mis-shapen guys in the left front.  The rest, a total of 12, out of a recipe that says yields 21.  ha.  I make things a little bigger than they say, and cut them much thicker.  My rolled out rectangle is more of a 12″ x 20″, and a bit thicker.  Roll along the “long side”, of course.

RIGHT out of the oven, pre drippy glaze.  This is exactly 20 mins at 350, and I remembered that I had timed it to 19 minutes, back in the day.  No harm done, as the next photo shows:

Yes, they “pull apart”, but use a thin metal spatula to make sure you don’t leave any “goodie” in the pan un-necessarily.  The sides where the rolls meet look just about perfect every time.  This recipe has never failed me.

And here it is.  As you can see, it’s stained from the decades...even had to peel an old ticket from the cafe off the page.  NOTE:  I DO NOT USE THE “CARAMEL GLAZE” THEY CALL FOR.  I use  standard powdered sugar/milk/softened butter/vanilla glaze.

The glaze is 2 Tablespoons butter at room temp, soft, plus 2 cups pdr sugar, plus 1 tspn vanilla, and 6 to 8 tablespoons of whole milk, or maybe a little more, to get the drip consistency right.