Sprinkled Pink

Oh, the sprinkled doughnut. If ever I am asked what kind of doughnut I want (and if they don't have maple old fashioned, cause no body ever seems to!) I just ask for whatever kind has sprinkles. Flavor is not nearly as important as sprinkles, really.
This recipe was described as a yeast doughnut, but after I started to mix the ingredients I realized there were no instructions for letting them rise. So I unexpectedly made a batch of cake doughnuts. You'd think I would have noticed that initially, but I was born a blond. Anyways, these were plenty tasty even if they were not what I was expecting. Maybe I'll get around to making some fluffy raised doughnuts soon.
I made these for my friends to munch on while selling off their extra stuff before moving out of state. I had hoped making tasty enough doughnuts would encourage them to reconsider leaving the Bay, but I guess they just weren't that tasty.

Sugar Doughnuts
another from the Brass Sisters

1 pkg (2 1/4 tsp) dry yeast
1/2 c warm water
1/2 c sugar
1 T sugar
1 c butter
2 eggs
3 1/2 c flour (I used half whole wheat. Gave them a nice flavor but made them a little dry)
1/2 t nutmeg
1/2 t cinnamon
1 t salt
vegetable oil for frying

Dissolve yeast in warm water. Add 1 T sugar. Allow to proof 10 minutes.
Cream butter, eggs, and remaining sugar. Add yeast. Add spices. Add three cups of the flour, kneeding as the dough gets thicker. If the dough is still very loose, add the remaining 1/2 c flour. Place in an oiled bowl, turing once to cover with oil. Cover and refigerate four hours or overnight.
Remove from fridge and divide in half. Allow to rest 10 minutes. Roll or pat out dough to a thickness of 1/2 inch on a very well floured surface. Cut with a doughnut cutter, or a glass dipped in flour. Transfer to a paper or flour covered baking sheet and allow to rest 15 minutes. Fry in oil heated to 375 ° that is at least 3 inches deep. Fry for approximately 1 1/2 minutes per side. Remove and place on a paper towel lined baking sheet. Roll in sugar or dip in a glaze.

Bacon n' Waffles

Better even than chicken n' waffles.

The King and his coworker requested bacon waffles, and I hate to disappoint. To say these were delicious is like saying water is wet. It's just a given. I used my favorite waffle recipe from Better Homes and Garden. I highly recommend using some nice rich maple syrup on these.

Bacon Waffles

1 3/4 c all purpose flour
1 Tbs baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
2 egg yolks, slightly beaten
1 1/4 c milk
1/2 c bacon fat (or melted butter. But I recommend the bacon fat)
2 stiffly beaten egg whites
4 strips of bacon chopped, and cooked until crispy

Sift together dry ingredients. Combine egg yolks and milk; stir into dry ingredients. Stir in fat. Fold in egg whites, leaving slightly under-mixed. Sprinkle bacon on top, then bake in a waffle maker.

Shiny

Well here she is, my new blog. It's going to take some getting use to, the brown little cave that has been my blog was so warm and inviting. But I think it's starting to grown on me. I may tweak it a bit over the next few days, but all in all I think it's not too bad since it's the first blog I've designed.

Jammin'

It started as a happy tale. After living in this house for over two years I discovered (thanks to my landlord) that the tree across the street had lovely plums on it. The fact that I hadn't noticed is just proof that I was blond at birth. I checked the small purple fruits regularly, and when they started to get deep in colour and soft to the touch I dragged a stool downstairs to harvest the little crop. Most of the lower branches had been picked bare by the local bums (good to know they are getting some fruit in their diets), but I still managed to pick enough to make a little over two pints of jam.

Look at those colours! They were so sweet and juicy.

Happy successful jam.
And then... My husband and I wake up a few days ago to hear tires squealing and a tremendous crash. We still aren't sure how what happened happened, but it seems a man lost control, spun his car around and crashed into the truck that is generally parked across the street. The driver fled the scene (which is common around here due to many people driving without licenses). It wasn't until they towed the truck away I noticed that the front of the truck had been pushed into that sweet little plum tree. I think it might survive, at least I hope so.

Plum Jam
from Better Homes and Gardens

Wash and pit plums. Put through food processor fitted with a course blade. Use 3 1/2 cups of sugar for 4 cups of fruit. Let stand one hour. Cook until thick, pour into hot sterilized jars; seal immediately.

Not Dead Yet

(Just so you get something to look at, here is my wall-o-cookie cutters. I have more, but some don't hang well. Bet you can't name them all!)

Well folks, this evening is the start of my weekend. I know it seems the crickets have started chirping, but I've been a busy little bee and the next few days will be jam packed with fun.
Coming up...

• Plum Jam
• Car Crashes
• Bacon Waffles
• Screamingly Pink Doughnuts
• Dummies Guide to Frosting a Cake
  
• And (hopefully) a Sparkley New Blog Design!

So stay tuned ya'll

Lemon Meringue Pie

(I've been messing around a lot with photoshop lately and looking at books and tutorials. Why haven't I been doing that all along? I've been doing so many things the hard way!)

Few things in this world seems as delightfully perfect as a good lemon meringue pie. Unfortunately, they seem to be a rare find. Women don't often have the time at home, and most bakery versions are seem like cheap knock offs. A glance at this recipe may make you see why though. Timing is very crucial to the success of this dessert, and I can't imagine the nightmare it would be to make this in mass. So while you can approximate a lemon meringue pie that is easy(er) to produce in large quantities, the real deal is still hard to beat.
This is another From the Dessert Bible by Christoper Kimball. I recommend getting everything you will need prepared before beginning so that you aren't fishing around for a whisk with one hand while trying to stir the curd with the other. If you have a stand mixer you can make the meringue and the filling at the same time, which negates the need to reheat the filling.

Lemon Meringue Pie

1 Prebaked pie shell (make sure to weigh it down while baking)

1 c 3 T sugar
5 T cornstarch
1/4 t salt
5 yolks
2/3 c lemon juice
1 T lemon zest (I think I zested all the lemon I had handy. Maybe three? I like my pie zesty!)
2 T butter

2 t cornstarch
1/4 c water
4 whites (I used all five, which worked fine)
1/4 t cream of tartar
6 T sugar (1/4 c +2T)
1/2 t vanilla

Preheat oven to 325°. Pie shell should be baked until it is browned but not too dark. Combine the first four ingredients (after the pie shell that is silly) in a medium/small sauce pan. Bring to a simmer over a medium low heat, stiring frequently. When it turns translucent slowly add the yolks (I tempered in a little of the hot mixture first. Adding the eggs straight in to the hot liquid just seemed dodgy). Continue whisking while adding the lemon juice and zest. Continue cooking, while stiring to prevent scorching and lumping, until mixture is very thick. Remove from heat and add butter. You will want this mixture to be warm when the pie is assembled, but it can be reheated if it has cooled.
For the meringue, combine the cornstarch and 2 T water in a small sauce pan. Heat on low while stiring constantly. The directions claimed this would turn translucent, but mine didn't. Remove from heat. Beat egg whites and cream of tarter until soft peaks form. While they are mixing combine the sugar and the remaining 2 T of water. Bring to a boil and cook to 238° (or until the bubbles at the edge of the pan hesitate before bursting). Once the egg whites are at the soft peak stage, slowely pour the hot sugar mixture in while the beaters are running (careful, you don't wan't them on too high. Getting splashed with hot sugar is no fun)Add the cornstarch paste and the vanilla, turn mixer to high and beat until the meringue just begins to form stiff peaks.
Pour hot lemon filling into the pie shell. Quickly cover with the meringue, swirling or creating peaks. Make sure the meringue covers across to the crust or it will shrink during baking. Bake until golden brown, about 15 minutes. Cool to room temperature then chill before serving.

Bread Puddin'

Bread pudding may seem like a perfect warm treat for a cold rainy day, but it transitions quite nicely to summertime fruits and sunny afternoons. My favorite bread pudding recipe comes from the Williams-Sonoma's book titled Entertaining (I highly, highly recommend it). They have a recipe for the worlds most decadent, most divine, peach bread pudding. This however, is not that recipe. The Williams-Sonoma recipe is incredibly rich, and I didn't really think I needed a dessert that full of heavy cream. So I tried another recipe from the good ol' Brass Sisters. While not quite as blissfully sinful, this recipe was still a delight.
I baked one medium sized pudding with peaches, one small one with plums from our yard, and one with some strawberries and rhubarb. All three were delicious, so I encourage you to try different fruits as they come into season.

Bread Pudding
adapted from Heirloom Baking

14-16 slices of brioche, cut into cubes
(I used day old brioche buns and croissants. I also leave the crust on, removing it always seems like a waste)
1/2 c butter

2 c milk
2 c heavy cream
(I forgot to buy cream, so I used 3 c milk and 1 c Greek yogurt, turned out great)
1 c sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp salt
4 eggs, beaten
2 cups fruit, or raisins soaked in brandy

1 c brown sugar

Melt half the butter in a heavy skillet. Add half of the bread cubes and cook until brown, stirring occasionally. Repeat with the remaining butter and bread. (you can skip this step, but it does make the pudding that much more yummy). Place the bread and fruit in a 9x13 pan..
Combine the remaining ingredients excluding the brown sugar. Pour half of the custard mixture over top of bread and allow to soak for about ten minutes. Pour remaining custard over the bread, making sure all of the pieces are soaked. Sprinkle with the brown sugar.
Bake at 350° in a water bath for 1 hour 15 minutes. Make sure to check to water bath frequently so that it doesn't all evaporate. If the pudding seems to be getting to dried out before it is finished baking, cover the top loosely with foil.
Remove from oven when a knife inserted in the center comes out clean. Allow to cool for 30-60 minutes. The pudding is best when slightly warm.