A baking binge

annie1992

17 years ago

I feel like I've been baking non-stop. Now, I like to bake, but I think this last week was exceptional for me, LOL.

On Sunday, Makayla and I made cookies for her to take to school on Tuesday for her birthday treat. She wanted "pumpkin cookies with faces", so we got busy:

she was pleased at the way they turned out:

Also last weekend I was asked to bake a cake for my nephew's baby shower. Since I've been playing with fondant, I got creative, LOL. The cake is a 9X13 cut in half and stacked, the "canopy" is half a cake baked in a stainless steel bowl. I probably should get some real baking equipment some day, LOL, but it all worked. I made it from Pixiestix' hot milk cake recipe:

I made a loaf of pumpkin bread, Makayla loved it but I thought it was a bit too sweet.

I've had a brisket in the refrigerator "corning" for a week, so I stuck it in the crockpot on Halloween and it came out like this. Everyone seemed to like it a lot, but it would have been better on a more savory bread, I think.

I baked more blueberry muffins for the office:

And tonight I made donuts for David, he helped me replace a couple of boards on the barn. Of course, they were gone way at the top of the peak on the second story, so he earned his donuts. I made a batch of yeast risen sweet potato donuts with maple glaze and a sprinkle of maple sugar:

Since the oil was hot, I thought I'd make some banana donuts too, with a chocolate glaze and chocolate sprinkles:

And, of course, the pumpkin roll for Amanda's birthday:

Makayla's Hannah Montana cake was a big hit, as you can tell from that smile:

and Bruvver drove the tractor and plow all over his cake a couple of times...

Whew, believe it or not, I think I'm "baked out" for a couple of days.....

Annie

Sort by:Oldest

Comments (21)

coconut_nj
17 years ago
Oh my goodness! LOL.. I am sooo glad it's twelve thirty am. I think I need to go to sleep after just reading that. I do hope you take a break. Phewww. Everything looks wonderful and that's so great when the little ones are so appreciative, eh? Good job. Get some rest... lol..

I want a piece of that pumpkin roll. Now. Ok, the cookies too. I have milk.
Terri_PacNW
17 years ago
Wow, that's alot of cakes and donuts!!!!!!!!! Yummm
People should start offering you cake jobs now Annie..you are getting Pro at them!
Related Discussions
Olive Oil Cake
Q
Comments (13)
Well, I wasn't going to post this because I didn't want to go "off topic" but you gals asked for it . . . Here's a link to an article in an e-Zine about Michael's take on eating locally. It's an "interesting" article, so check it out. BTW, totally intended. Be still my heart. Here is a link that might be useful: Tree Hugger Magazine Interview with Celebrity Chef Michael Chiarello
...See More
KAW...pizza steel !!
Q
Comments (23)
You need to go to the Cooking Forum...I posted my latest pizza. Have revised and refined ! I love the steel even more since I am using it correctly. And....the Sullivan No Knead recipe worked great...and tonight DH and I reheated for 2 min in broiler and had a redux of the best kind :) Can't get over how well this has worked. I would qualify the Cast Iron by saying that if you want to make more than one pizza you are sorta ...well....screwed...it will be hot and how will you load it unless you wait till it cools or...try and use a peel to load onto a round pan with edges. I am thinking I will get it as I have some other things I want to try. But..now that I can load from the peel to the steel with ease and bake in 4 minutes !! I don't need anything but a huge crowd that loves...PIZZA !!! Smiling...please post I sure want to see what you do with the CI pan . c Here is a link that might be useful: cooking forum pizza steel
...See More
My Grandson takes a turn in the kitchen too!
Q
Comments (26)
Claudia, I LOVE that picture! It reminds me of my girls at that age, "stuffing" a turkey nearly as big as they were. And now the grandkids are getting big too. (sigh) I didn't think about great-grandkids, so there's still hope of little ones "helping" me in the kitchen! Sharon, I'm more patient with the grandkids than I was with my girls, but I had a busier life then too. You'll do just fine, plus you can teach all the "fun" cooking stuff, instead of the day to day "duty" cooking... Annie
...See More
Week 74: What's for dinner....or planning your kitchen to your style
Q
Comments (45)
My kitchen remodel was absolutely designed around how I cook & how we use the kitchen. Three things I wanted were: 1. Lots of natural light - I cook from-scratch meals almost every day and spend a lot of time here. In addition to prep/cooking, this is where most casual entertaining happens, where I fold laundry, work on the computer, and where DH & I eat most meals. I used to have one small window and we looked at walls of upper cabinet boxes (depressing). We eliminated many uppers, added storage in the island, put the range in the corner so that this is now what I see when I'm working there. 2. Induction range - I also chose my stove for how I cook. I prefer the look of a pro-style gas stove but chose induction because the perfect stovetop temp control works best for my style of cooking. I don't do wok or high sear frying, but for 9 months of the year you'll likely see a pot on my stovetop. I do lots of stocks, soups, stews & chowders. Induction was made for simmering! Here's the pot of chicken stock I have going on this rainy day. 3. Big stone (no prep sink) island -I chose to have a big, uninterrupted island top that, in addition to being our preferred everyday eating spot, also works as a serving table for buffets (has the plugs for crockpots/warming trays). It also allows for a number of people to work around it with room to spare. Like when the grands come over for the annual Christmas cookie bake ;) There are SO many elements I just love in other kitchens posted here but some just wouldn't have worked as well for me. I've used this kitchen for almost a year now, though, and still appreciate it every day. Great thread to get people in the planning stages to really consider their priorities for use over just looks. ETA - Happy Birthday, Texas_Gem!
...See More
mitchdesj
17 years ago
yes indeed, quite a binge !! your house must be so sweet smelling, yum......
everything looks wonderful.
caliloo
17 years ago
Everything DOES lookk awesome! I just got a cup of coffee - I would love to have one of your donuts with it. Great job on the baby cake - it is absolutely adorable!

Alexa
Carol Schmertzler Siegel
17 years ago
Amazing, they all look so good! The cakes are awesome, but those donuts, I would love a dozen here :) Those adorable faces say it all!
User
17 years ago
My word woman that is a whole lot of baking! Everything looks great, love the baby shower cake! An your prime pastry chef is getting so big! Every time I see a pic of her I just shake my head...where does the time go?
wizardnm
17 years ago
I'll have some of it all please. The sweet potato donuts sound wonderful...... recipe??? No hurry, you need your rest!

Nancy
shaun
17 years ago
Wow!

Hey that babyshower cake was adorable! Everything looked great.

Girl, you did go on a binge didn't you!
Tracey_OH
17 years ago
Annie,
The cakes turned out great! I know the kids were thrilled with them. And I think I would work on the barn if it would get me some homemade donuts. Yum! I have issues with deep frying so the few times I tried donuts, they didn't quite turn out. Yours are beautiful!

Tracey
sally2_gw
17 years ago
Just how many birthdays were there?! Wow! I'm definitely impressed. Now, put your feet up for a while, you deserve it.

Sally
lindac
17 years ago
Everything looks yummy...but especially the donuts...one of those pumpkin ones wiould go reallyw ellw ith my coffee this morning!
Linda C
teresa_nc7
17 years ago
Whole lotta bakin' goin' on, Annie! Mmmmmm....pumpkin donuts with maple icing....mmmmmm.....

The baby shower cake is adorable! Now *next time* I think you ought to put a quilt covering that baby! Dontcha think?
doucanoe
17 years ago
Egads! You just never sit still, do you? LOL

Beautiful baked goods, and I especially like how creative you are with your cakes! Those donuts look scrumptious, I wouldn't mind having one right now with my coffee!

Wow, the kids are growing so fast! I swear every time you post a picture of them they are several inches taller!

Linda
centralcacyclist
17 years ago
What a haul! I love Makayla's beaming smile. That is a cake to please a little girl for certain! And Bruvver looks like he will be driving the full sized tractor soon. Gosh he's a big grown-up boy!

I think I need those pumpkin roll and bread recipes, please. My pumpkin bread recipe doesn't rise so nicely. The donuts look heavenly. We call them "fat pills" here!
Marigene
17 years ago
That's a baking binge for sure! Love all the theme cakes but man that pumpkin roll sure is calling out to me. Makayla and Bruvver sure are growing up fast, and oh, so cute.
gbsim1
17 years ago
Wow!!!! You're making Martha Stewart (and her team of helpers) look like a slacker!!!

I've never made homemade donuts! Do you have to have a "real" electric deep fat fryer? (I just stovetop fry.)

Grace
kathleen_li
17 years ago
Busy gal! Those doughnuts are calling me! :)
annie1992
Original Author
17 years ago
gbsim, a REAL deep fryer? LOL, not me. I have a cast iron dutch oven, it's the best darned thing for frying I've ever tried. I think Ann T fries in cast iron too, it heats evenly and retains the heat, works great.

I'll post the donut recipe on its own thread, it was kind of a PIA (as Martha Stewart recipes tend to be, IMO) but they were good. The pumpkin roll recipe came right off the pumpkin can, Libby's!

Annie
annie1992
Original Author
17 years ago
I'm sorry Sally, I forgot to answer your question. Bruvver's birthday is October 20, he turned three. The baby shower was on November 1, Amanda turned 26 on November 2 and Makayla was 5 on November 4. A lot of birthdays right there, so we usually have one big party with LOTS of cake.

Barnmom, the pumpkin bread recipe was easy, but kind of sweet and "cinnamon-y", it makes great toast but wasn't so good with the corned beef. (grin) I made it in the bread machine, as usual, but baked in the oven.

Pumpkin Yeast Bread

INGREDIENTS

5/8 cup warm water
1/2 cup canned pumpkin puree
1/4 cup margarine
1/4 cup nonfat dry milk powder
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
3/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon ground ginger
2 3/4 cups bread flour
2 1/4 teaspoons active dry yeast
Place ingredients in bread machine pan in the order suggested by the manufacturer. Select basic setting. Start.
To bake bread in oven: select dough or manual cycle. Once cycle is complete, shape dough and place in a greased loaf pan. Allow to rise in a warm spot until doubled in size. Bake in a preheated 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) oven for 35 to 45 minutes or until a thermometer inserted in the center of the loaf reads 200 degrees F (95 degrees C).

Yes, the kids are growing, aren't they? Sigh. Bruvver is now bigger than his big sister and Makayla is in school. She still loves me, though, and likes to bake with me better than she likes to do anything. She especially loves to run that big Kitchen Aid mixer, LOL, it's as big as she is, I think!

And right now I'm having a cup of tea and a donut!

Annie
jessyf
17 years ago
I can't believe how much those kids have grown.

That corned beef is screaming at me for pumpernickel or potato bread! The weather is finally cooling off here and I want to get busy baking and cooking too. The grill needs a break!
mustangs81
17 years ago
Well, that is what I bake in a year! Great looking baked goods.

Beau helped me make popcorn balls for Trick or Treaters. He is certainly a motivator and loves to operate the mixer so perhaps we will do some baking together

A baking binge

Comments (21)

coconut_nj

Terri_PacNW

Related Discussions

mitchdesj

caliloo

Carol Schmertzler Siegel

User

wizardnm

shaun

Tracey_OH

sally2_gw

lindac

teresa_nc7

doucanoe

centralcacyclist

Marigene

gbsim1

kathleen_li

annie1992
Original Author

annie1992
Original Author

jessyf

mustangs81

COMPANY

BUSINESS SERVICES

GET HELP

CONNECT WITH US

A baking binge

Comments (21)

Related Discussions

annie1992Original Author

annie1992Original Author

COMPANY

BUSINESS SERVICES

GET HELP

CONNECT WITH US

annie1992
Original Author

annie1992
Original Author