Vanilla Chiffon Roll

I was a bit perplexed heading into this recipe.  The picture in the Baking with Julia cookbook shows a chocolate filled cake roll somewhat similar to the above picture, yet the title said "Vanilla" not "Chocolate".  Hmmm.  Somehow I could not get my head wrapped around the idea of a chocolate chiffon cake that was really vanilla?  And I must say, since I am not much of a cake person nor a mousse person, the idea of a mousse filled cake did not sound all that appealing to me.

Regardless I forged ahead. And I am glad as this recipe did not disappoint even for a non-cake person.  And it was super fun to roll up a full sheet cake, kind of like playing with play-dough but way better tasting. 

I made the mousse filling a day ahead of the cake.  As a result, the recipe did not feel overwhelming.  Had I done it all in one day, I think the dishes alone would have been overwhelming.  (And how many times can one recipe call for a stand mixer?) I put the whole thing together and cooled it overnight in the fridge.  In the morning, all I had to do was dust it  with cocoa and we were off to brunch, with goodies in hand.

the chilled cake roll

And Rhiannon liked this one too.

To see the other bakers' blogs in the Tuesday with Dorie baking group, click the link.

Country Bread

This basic bread recipe required an entirety of a day (+) to finish. 

Here's a quick recap:

Sunday night: Return from sledding on the mountain.   

Mix up sponge (no rye flour, substitute with more wheat flour). Put in fridge to let rise/ ferment over night.

Monday morning:  Forget to take out sponge. Run.  Take out sponge. 

Go to doctor appointment for the first born while sponge warms up.

Shots!

Return. Mix sponge into dough with more yeast, flour, salt and water. 

Let rise.  Go to tumbling for the second born, Rhiannon.

Go home. Fold bread and shape for the third rise.

Rhiannon naps.  We play with legos.

Slash and bake. (I couldn't envision an added decorative braid this time.)

Monday night: Dinner.

It was actually a simple loaf, despite its time requirements.  The crust was chewy and rustic, contrasting nicely with the soft center portion. It turned out a bit flatter than I expected, not so round and gorgeous as I was dreaming all day.   I believe my loaf lacked the extra flavor the small amount of rye flour could add and I would not miss it next time.  It did keep well, as it had nice texture and moisture the second day out from baking without any special storage.    

Rhiannon in the snow; still not a fan this year.

Gingersnaps

These little cookies required making a very simple dough, a very sticky simple dough.  Even after time in the fridge it was still a bit sticky to handle.  I followed the advice of fellow Tuesday with Dorie bakers and switched the process a bit.  Instead of rolling and cutting out shapes, I simply rolled it into a log and sliced the cookies from that.  It made a rather few small round gingersnaps.

They made odd gingersnaps as they were not too gingery and they lacked any snap.  They were more molasses-y  and chewy.  They were ok but not my first or even third pick in any given holiday cookie line up.

Addendum: I made a second batch of these with the leftover frozen dough.  We cut them out into gingerbread men and frosted and decorated a few.  They were much better this way.  I think it removed them from the "gingersnap" category and put them into the "gingerbread cookie" category in my head, which just made a lot more sense.

Rhiannon!

Challah

I went through a bread baking phase about 20 years ago.  Regardless of my efforts the loaves turned out quite dense and rather bland.  All of them, except Challah, which always came out soft, moist and flavorful.  And the braid was always beautiful.  So for awhile, I went through a phase of making Challah.

This past Thanksgiving weekend brought back memories of green bean casseroles and buttery mashed potatoes and delicious pumpkin pies.  I have let most of those recipes trail off in the past years, favoring them for newer, fresher dishes and desserts.  But like, Challah, maybe some of those are worth bringing back.

And here's Rhiannon.

For links to fellow baker's creations in the Tuesdays with Dorie cooking group, click here.

Double Chocolate Cookies

Ok, so I slacked on the Pumpernickel loaves from two weeks ago, but I could not pass up Double Chocolate cookies even it is nearing the crazy prep time of Thanksgiving.   I have been baking endlessly it feels like, just not on the Tuesdays with Dorie schedule as of late.   My freezer is full of pizza dough balls, galette rounds, pie crust rounds... all awaiting their Thanksgiving debut.

But onto Double Chocolate cookies.  These are pretty incredible cookies, definitely brownie-like in their crumb and filled with melty chunks of chocolate.  And not too much more difficult or time-intensive than a regular cookie recipe, especially with the use of a mixer to whip up the eggs and sugar.  The recipe calls for quite a bit of chocolate lending a richness to these, and the hint of coffee with instant espresso powder adds nice depth.

This may make it into my keeper book of recipes...  and that is hard to do.

the whipped sugar and eggs

the melted butter and chocolate

the end product prior to baking

To see other's bakers' renditions of this recipe, check out Tuesdays with Dorie for their links.

Rhiannon painting away.

X Cookies

So I am a little behind with the baking group, Tuesdays with Dorie, but not as behind as my blog shows.  I did do the X cookies from about a month ago but was too late in posting.  I did bail on the Pumpernickel; maybe I will do that one when I have a little bit of extra time.  The X cookies were enough of a challenge.

They required putting two recipes together- the dough and the filling.  Neither one is very difficult, and the dough is the same one we used for Pizza Rustica which I just loved.  It has this sweet flavor to it that is irresistible.  The filling I had to improvise a bit as I forgot the figs at the grocery store.  I put them in a bag, was weighing them and then had to scramble to stop my kids from sticking their hands into the bulk bins.  In that scramble, I forgot the figs.  I didn't have enough dates either, so I used cranberries and added lemon zest to make up for my lack of candied orange peel.  The filling was less than stellar the way I made it.  I would like to try these again with the proper filling as I absolutely love fig newtons and if these are anything like them....

The eldest wanted to help with this recipe; he added his own flare by making some of the cookies into candy canes.  He is getting ready for the holidays.

And the youngest, Rhiannon:

Danish Braid

This recipe took me awhile.  I had it on my "to-do" list for the past two weeks but somehow it eluded me.  Things kept getting in the way or rather things were always higher on the "to-do" list, exciting things such as laundry or sorting through winter clothes.  I was having a conversation about this with one of my friends today; how the things I like to do or want to do, often get shoved down on the priority list or maybe not even purposefully shoved down but circumstantially bumped.  I am uncertain how to remedy this for the long term (the answer I am sure, is far greater than the scope of this blog) but yesterday and today I decided to put this at the top of the list and get it done.

The recipe actually requires three recipes or three components: the danish pastry dough, the fruit filling and the "other" filling.  I decided on an apricot filling (I was short on apricots so added in cherries as well) and the almond filling.  The dough I made a day or two ago and just used a pastry cutter to cut in the butter instead of the recommended food processor.  Thank goodness at this point, I took the time to read some of my fellow bloggers' blogs as I would have skipped all the turns (the rolling and the folding) required for this dough.  

The final turn.

Once the dough was chilled and ready, it all came together rather easily.   Fillings were spread into the center, diagonals cut and braided over, egg wash applied and sprinkled with sugar  (I didn't have the almonds).   A short rise and into the oven.  

I imagine this to be a crowd pleaser (I didn't have a crowd to feed it to this time round).  It looks quite fancy and tastes like a perfect breakfast pastry.  And the best part is, I have another dough sheet all ready in the freezer ready to go, for the next time my priorities get rearranged.  

Rhiannon, now 2!