Tuesdays With Dorie - White Chocolate Brownies

So I'm sitting at my kitchen table yesterday morning and decided "hey I should prob look up the latest TwD challenges, especially since today is Tuesday." I realized yesterday's challenge was white chocolate brownies and knew if I ran out to the store, I could make them in the evening. Plus I had some apricots I wanted to use, so I figured I would sub them for the raspberries. I did bake these last night, but due to some unfortunate news that caused me to stress out (rescheduling stuff with a tight schedule), I was too upset to take pictures and upload them. Hence why they are being posted Wednesday evening.




I tried doing the meringue, but the egg whites wouldn't even whip to soft peaks. I think it was because the house was too hot. I couldn't whip them the other day for a pie I made. Or maybe I just need to buy a bowl just for egg whites so it doesn't get used for food storage.

I cut this recipe in half bc I didn't want all these brownies in the house when I made cheesecake the other night. I don't know if they had enough white chocolate in them. Plus they are super thin. I did use lemon zest instead of orange bc it's what I had, and I hate oranges.

It's hard to say I liked this recipe. I don't think they turned out the way they were supposed to, so I'll have to hopefully try this again the right way. Thanks Marthe of Culinary Delights for hosting this week! You can find the recipe in Baking: From My Home To Yours on pgs. 110-111 or on Marthe's blog.

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Tuesdays With Dorie - Swedish Visiting Cake

Yes, I know today is Wednesday. I baked this cake last night and was too tired to post. I'm still at Target, but I switched work centers to in-stocks, so now I have a steady schedule - 5 days a week, rotating weekends, start at 6-6:30 am and leave at 1:30-2 pm. Still not full time (roughly 35 hrs, might as well be FT). Why is it that I can move on up in a company that hires almost anyone, yet can't find a job even slightly related to my degree? Sigh. There are days I wake up and see myself still at Target 10 years from now because getting a job I enjoy is "too good to be true."

ANYWAY

Dorie's Swedish Visiting Cake is very moist. I kept forgetting to buy almonds, so I went with coconut. I was a little unsure about the baking time bc Dorie did say it would be "slightly damp," so I baked it an extra 5 minutes bc I didn't want to underbake it. Unfortunately, I let it cool in the pan, and it stuck when removing it, so that's why I have a chunk of cake for my picture.




Since hardly anybody knows what a Swedish Visiting Cake is, I just called it a lemon coconut cake (or lemon almond if you use those). Thanks to Nancy of The Dogs Eat The Crumbs for choosing this yummy, moist cake! You can find the recipe on page 197 of Baking: From My Home To Yours or on Nancy's blog.

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Tuesdays With Dorie - Coconut Tea Cake

This week's recipe was one I made last year when I had some limes in the kitchen. Knowing how much I loved it, I decided to make it again when it was chosen. I didn't take an updated picture because well, it looks exactly the same. Except I used lemon instead of lime. You can read more about this on my earlier post, but all you have to know is that this cake is worth making again and again. It can be somewhat dry, so if you aren't eating this with coffee or tea, you may want to consider a simple glaze to pour on top.



Thanks Carmen of Carmen Cooks for hosting this week! You can find the recipe on pages 194-195 of Baking: From My Home To Yours or on Carmen's blog.

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Tuesdays With Dorie - Soft Chocolate and Raspberry Tart

Ok so I technically I made this week's recipe this past summer - Dorie's Soft Chocolate and Raspberry Tart. Over the summer, the local berry farm lets visitors pick strawberries and black raspberries. Talk about fresh berries, no? Although I loved making this tart, March isn't quite the berry month. And quite frankly, I haven't been to the store to find a substitute fruit. I spent the past six days working at Target, so I haven't been to the grocery store in awhile. And I get to do it all again next week. So much for my degree.



Here's a picture from June when I did make the tart. You can read more about it from an earlier post, but there's nothing really to tell except check your berries for mold and make this tart as soon as berry season starts.

Thanks to Rachelle of Mommy? I'm Hungry! for hosting this week, even though I baked this awhile ago. You can find this recipe on page 354 of Dorie's book or on Rachelle's blog.

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Tuesdays With Dorie - Thumbprints For Us Big Guys

This week's recipe was Dorie's Thumbprints For Us Big Guys. When I first heard this name, I thought she meant there was alcohol or even coffee in them, but I think she just meant they are more delicate with their lovely, sandy texture and jam filling than your typical sugar thumbprints with icing and cute sprinkles.




edit - The filling on these cookies is apricot. I used those jars of Baker's fruit fillings you usually see around the holidays.

These cookies lasted maybe a few hours in the house bc I cut the recipe in half. Make sure you use butter to get the melt-in-your-mouth sandy texture. Thanks to Mike of Ugly Food Dude for hosting this week! I'm sure I'll be making these cookies over and over again. You can find the recipe on page 164 of Baking: From My Home To Yours or on Mike's blog.

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Tuesdays With Dorie - Toasted Coconut Custard Tart

This week's challenge is Dorie's Toasted Coconut Custard Tart, which called for dark rum. Now I rarely drink alcohol, but I know dark rum has a specific flavor profile compared to other types of rum or even rum extract. I've been debating on spending money for something I rarely use but decided since I've had really good rum cake in the Bahamas, maybe I could duplicate it. They don't sell tiny bottles of dark rum, so I bought a regular bottle of Myers Dark Rum (which is the only brand of dark rum I could find).



Rum is not something my family enjoys either, so I made two mini tarts,seeing as only my dad and me would be the ones eating them. Boy was I wrong. They lasted maybe 10 minutes because my mom and brother had a bite and decided to eat more. Cutting the recipe into thirds made the perfect amount for two mini tarts. As far as flavor, some TwDers said there wasn't a strong coconut flavor, which makes sense. If you think about it, it's really just a normal custard with toasted coconut folded in. One person suggested using coconut extract, so I substituted that for vanilla. It would be interesting to see if you can make the custard with coconut milk. I know skim milk is frowned upon because of the fat ratio.

The amount of rum used is debatable. The rum is kinda strong, so if you love rum, great. If not, you may want to scale it back to 1 Tbsp instead of 2. I left rum out of the whipped cream because the custard was strong enough. I did use coconut extract in both the custard and topping.



Thanks to Beryl of Cinemon Girl for choosing this delicious tart. You can find the recipe on pages 344-345 of Dorie's Baking: From My Home To Yours or on Beryl's blog.

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Tuesdays With Dorie - Chocolate Chip Cookies

This week's chosen recipe was Dorie's Chocolate Chip Cookies. This is my second time making them. The first time they spread too thin because I used diet margarine. This time around, I decided to use my brand new heart cookie pan. I was really hoping to get the cookie texture you find in cookie cakes from the Great American Cookie Place at the mall or even your grocery's bakery, but this cookie cake was more...cakier? It was still a good recipe, just not my type of cookie. I like my CCC more chewy and not so soft.



I didn't bother decorating it because it wasn't the texture I was looking for and I was too lazy. If anybody has a recipe for a cookie cake just like the one from mall, let me know. I tried a second recipe last night, but still turned out too soft compared to the mall one.



Thanks goes out to Kait of Kait's Plate for hosting this week's recipe! You can check out the recipe on page 68 of Baking: From My Home To Yours or on Kait's blog.

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Tuesdays With Dorie: Chocolate Oatmeal Almost-Candy Bars

Phew I think my book was getting dusty after not being touched for a few months. I seriously was going to do last week's, but then I realized it was Wed. and I missed it haha So now I'm back with Dorie's Chocolate Oatmeal Almost-Candy Bars. I made these late last night, so I couldn't eat them until this morning. This is what I had for breakfast with my coffee.



It took me a long time to make this bc I had to shell the peanuts. Also, I didn't measure out the raisins, and I definitely didn't put enough. I love chocolate and raisins together, so I'll make sure to take care of that next time.



Thanks Lillian of Confectiona's Realm for choosing this week's recipe! You can find the recipe on p. 114-115 of Dorie's Baking: From My Home To Yours or on Lillian's blog.

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Tuesdays With Dorie - Split Level Pudding

I work 5 days a week at Target, usually evening, so when I have a day off, I'm usually not home. I am cheating this week because I made the split-level pudding last year although I don't think the ganache layer settled properly. Probably because I was too impatient or something. I would have loved to make this again, but I'm just trying to get my life together right now. I'm going to hopefully start zumba classes again to get my motivation back.




Thanks Garrett of Flavor of Vanilla for this week's pick! I know I didn't actually make it with you this week, but the pudding is still yummy.

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Tuesdays With Dorie - Chocolate-Crunched Caramel Tart

FINALLY! After waiting about 16 months, it is now my turn to host Tuesdays With Dorie. Pictures really sell me on a recipe. Although there are many great recipes without pictures, I tend to pick a recipe based on the picture. I've had my eye on Dorie's Chocolate-Crunched Caramel Tart for ages. The caramel is what really sold me. I love the combination of caramel and salted peanuts, not to mention the chocolate ganache. I used semisweet instead of bittersweet chocolate and salted peanuts.


I feel like such a bad hostess because I couldn't get a decent picture of the tart. For starters, the crust doesn't look like a tart crust. Seems like even though I used frozen butter and froze the crust before baking, the edges melt. Do I not press the crust in thick enough? Is it because I mix by hand and not with a food processor? Taste wise it's delicious.


I made this recipe twice. The first time I used my 11 inch tart pan. Mixing the peanuts into the caramel made it really hard to spread, so the caramel didn't make it to the edges. That and the tart is 2 inches bigger than what Dorie made. The peanut halves were also too big.


The second time I used baby tart pans, so I cut the recipe in half. This was my first time using the pans. The crust shrank like usual, and that really frustrates me. Shrunken crust makes it harder to remove from the pan. With the caramal layer, I decided to use baby food processor to chop the peanut halves and sprinkle on top of the caramel instead of mixing it in.

I really do love this recipe, but I still have ways to go before I can get the crust perfect. Hope all you TwDers enjoyed dessert this week.

Chocolate-Crunched Caramel Tart

Caramel
Scant 1/2 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup sugar, sifted
1 tablespoon corn syrup
2 tablespoons salted butter, cut into 4 pieces, room temperature

Ganache
8 oz bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
1 cup + 2 tablespoons heavy cream
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 4 pieces, room temperature

3/4 cup honey-roasted peanuts, coarsely chopped
1 9-inch tart shell made with Dorie's Sweet Tart Dough (p.444), fully baked and cooled

Getting Ready: Because you have to work quickly once the sugar caramelizes, you should have all the ingredients for the caramel measured out and at hand before you start. Also have a medium heatproof bowl at hand to hold the hot caramel.

To Make the Caramel: Bring the heavy cream to a boil.

Meanwhile, put a medium skillet, preferably nonstick, over medium heat and sprinkle in about 3 tablespoons of the sugar. When it melts, stir it with a wooden spatula or fork and sprinkle over another 3 tablespoons. When that sugar is melted, add the remaining 2 tablespoons sugar - the sugar in the pan may already have started to color, and that's fine. Stir in the corn syrup and boil the syrup until it reaches a deep caramel color - it will probably begin to smoke, and that's normal.

Stand back and stir in the butter. The caramel will bubble furiously and may spatter, so make sure you're away from the action. When the butter is in, add the warm cream - the caramel will bubble furiously again. Lower the temperature just a tad and let the caramel boil for just 2 minutes (226F on candy thermometer). Pour the seething caramel into the heatproof bowl and set aside while you make the ganache.

To Make the Ganache: Put the chopped chocolate in a heatproof bowl and have a whisk or a rubber spatula at hand.

Bring the cream to a boil. Then pour half of it over the chocolate and let sit for 30 seconds. Working with the whisk/spatula, very gently stir the chocolate and cream together in small circles. Pour in the remainder of the cream and blend it into the chocolate. When the ganache is smooth and shiny, stir in the butter piece by piece. Don't stir any more than you must to blend the ingredients - the less you work it, the darker, smoother and shinier it will be.

Cover the ganache with plastic wrap, pressing it against the surface to create an airtight seal. Set aside at room temperature for the moment.

To Assemble the Tart: Stir the peanuts into the caramel. If the caramel has cooled and is too thick to spread easily, gently warm in the microwave in 3-second spurts. Spread the caramel over the bottom of the tart shell; you'll have a thin layer. Refrigerate the tart for 15 minutes to set the caramel.

Check the ganache. If it has thickened, warm it in 3-second spurts. Rap the bowl to break any surface bubbles, pour the ganache over the caramel and jiggle the pan to even it.

Refrigerate for 30 minutes - no longer - then keep it at room temperature until serving time.

Baking: From My Home To Yours pages 355-357

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Tuesdays With Dorie - Espresso Cheesecake Brownies

I know my readers are prob wondering what has happened me to the past week or so. Well, I got a job. Now before you go congratulating me and whatnot, it's not what you think. It's just a part-time job at Target. Yes, I spent the past four years in college, and I'm at Target. People tell me to suck it up and be grateful because it is a form of income. Sorry but working at Target doesn't help my self-esteem when I know I can do better. I just hope I can get life straightened out before it gets worse bc frankly, I'm not happy with how things are going.

ANYWAY

On a slightly happier note, I made Dorie's Espesso Cheesecake Brownies aka crownies. Apparently Verizon doesn't recognize the word brownie when texting, but it does put crownie. I didn't even know that was a word or part of a word. Verizon also doesn't recognize salsa, jalapeno, fajita, or cupcake.


I really like my swirling. So pretty! I was skeptical on adding the sour cream layer, but some people said it added good contrast, so I did. Nope, not a fan. I ended up scraping off the sour cream when I ate a piece. The rest of the brownie is good, so next time I'll leave off the top layer. Also, I didn't have instant espreso powder. I was going to use instant coffee, but at the last minute thought, hey why don't I just make espresso? I'd be dissolving it in water anyway. If I would've thought about it earlier, I would've saved some when making my coffee.


Thanks to Melissa of Life In a Peanut Shell for picking these brownies! So good! You can find the recipe on her blog or pages 104-105 of Baking: From My Home To Yours.

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Tuesdays With Dorie - Brownie Buttons

Ever have a dream about food? Ironically, two days before making Dorie's Brownies Buttons, which was this week's pick, I had a dream about baking brownies. Or at least attempting. It was 2 AM and I was melting together chocolate and butter. Once I realized it was going to take 20 minutes to bake, I decided I wanted to go back to sleep and put the pot in the fridge, thinking oh it's just butter and chocolate. It'll be fine until tomorrow. Scary thing was this dream felt real. I was in my kitchen, at my stove, using my pot. I even made sure to check the kitchen for any evidence of brownie baking when I woke up haha

Here's the crazy part. I had a bar of baking chocolate in the cupboard, which I was going to use for these buttons. When I went for it, I couldn't find it. I brought everything out. WTF? Where's my chocolate?! I started thinking but could not come up with anything made recently that used my chocolate. Possible conclusions are my brother ate it, having no job really does affect my memory, or I used it to bake brownies in my dream. Considering that last one is just silly and my brother never goes in that cupboard, I'm left with my memory failing. I even looked through my camera pictures, but nothing sticks out.

I couldn't run to the store (or make anyone run to the store), so I melted semi-sweet chocolate chips. Don't know if I had enough because I don't have a kitchen scale. I kinda want to get one of those. Anyway, I filled 16 mini cups like Dorie said. Next time, I will probably make 12 because the buttons were so tiny and barely rose.

Did you know peanut butter chips do not melt very well? I was going to dip half in pb, half in semi-sweet chocolate. When I melted the pb chips, it just was not smooth. While they were hardening in the fridge, I got the brillant idea of sprinkles. Makes them much more fun.



Thanks to Jayma of Two Scientists Experimenting in the Kitchen for this week's pick. I hope she didn't have some crazy dream about baking these. You can find the recipe on pages 106-107 in Baking: From My Home To Yours or on Jayma's blog.

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Tuesdays With Dorie - Classic Banana Bundt Cake

This week's recipe was an easy and yummy one - Dorie's Classic Banana Bundt Cake. Funny story about this cake. I almost ended up with a half-baked cake. You see, our oven door has been acting up. You could still open it, but it wouldn't open all the way, maybe 75%. Fixing the door was on the to-do list. Well, after baking for 30 minutes, I removed the cake from the oven, closed the door, and covered the pan with foil. Then I opened the door... and then I opened the door.....I said open door!! The door just would not open. Thoughts raced through my head. It's half-baked. It won't fit in the toaster oven (lol ok really? I have never, ever used our toaster oven before and that was the first thing that popped into my mind.) Can I run to someone's house? We spent about 5 minutes wrestling with the door until it FINALLY opened. I was nervous when time was up because I didn't know if the oven would give me back my cake. Took a few tries, but we got it out.



This tastes just like banana bread. My only concern is the recipe called for two sticks of butter. Wow, that's a lot, so I used margarine instead. I also used half sour cream, half Greek vanilla yogurt because I didn't have that much sour cream left. This cake is very moist, and next time, I will add nuts or chocolate chips. I did use the lemon glaze Dorie suggested. At first, I was banana and lemon??? But I tried it anyway. Of course, I tend to bake at night, so it was getting slightly late, and the cake was still a little warm to the touch. That's why you can't actually see my glaze because it melted. You could still taste it though.

After that night, we fixed the hinge on the door. Did you know the oven door actually comes off? Yea, me neither.

Thanks to Mary of The Food Librarian for picking this week's recipe. It was an enjoyable one, indeed. You can find the recipe on page 190 of Baking: From My Home To Yours or on Mary's blog.


I think it's time for a new box...

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Tuesdays With Dorie - Vanilla Ice Cream

This week's pick was Vanilla Ice Cream. I have made this recipe at least three times as written and one time with strawberry puree. Growing up, I hated vanilla ice cream. Usually it was from Dairy Queen or from the store, and I found the taste just too...boring. Then Megan from Megan's Cookin sent me some vanilla beans last year. I really don't know what prompted me to make vanilla ice cream. I guess because I couldn't think of anything else to make with the beans. Boy, do vanilla beans make a difference! I haven't tried the homemade version with extract, but I don't think I'll even bother. Vanilla beans all the way! It can be kinda messy if you have long nails like me because I kept getting specks underneath haha



I already blogged about the ice cream last year. Kinda wish I had a better picture :X The custard does not take long to reach 180F, so have your thermometer ready and remove from the heat asap. Also, you don't need an ice cream maker. Just ask David Lebovitz. You do need to have patience and a somewhat free evening so you can beat the mixture every half hour or so. It won't be a complete disaster if you slack. You'll just have some ice crystals when you eat it.

Thanks to Lynne of Cafe LynnyLu for choosing a great ice cream recipe! You can visit her blog for the recipe or turn to pgs. 428-429 of Baking: From My Home To Yours.

Also, I found out that my turn for picking a TwD recipe is Sept. 29!! I can't wait until it is officially announced because I've been waiting a long time to make this dessert :D

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Tuesdays With Dorie - Tribute To Katharine Hepburn Brownies

This week's TwD was chosen by non-member Lisa from Surviving Oz because she won the logo contest. I almost didn't make these because I was tired yesterday, but I haven't done a TwD in awhile. The nice thing about making brownies is you pretty much mix everything together in one pan then transfer and bake.

If you are friends with me on Face Book or read the P&Q section on the TwD site, you probably saw that I almost had a disaster. This is what I wrote:

How Not To Make Brownies: Put flour in small bowl. Make brownie batter. Put pan in oven. Lick spoon. See bowl of flour on counter. Frantically pull out hot pan without oven mitts. Burn finger. Attempt to stir in flour. Rip foil. Pour into bowl. Replace foil. Replace batter. Put back in oven. Reset timer. Continue to lick spoon.

Since there was only 1/4 cup flour, I put it in a cereal bowl rather than a mixing bowl. I guess I thought I added it with the sugar or something because I noticed after putting it in the oven that I forgot about it. Oops! Besides a few extra dishes, I recovered...



...or so I thought. Apparently when Dorie says use parchment paper, she really does mean parchment paper and not foil. Since I had to hurry up and put new foil in the pan, I guess I didn't spray as much as I should. I thought I did, but my brownies argue otherwise. I refrigerated them for about 30 minutes which helped with the gooey factor, but they still stuck to the foil.



Tastewise - don't let the instant coffee fool you. I will admit I am a coffee snob. If it's not freshly-grinded coffee, I don't want it. I can tell when you have Folger's or Maxwell House because it just has that taste, but what's worse than stale coffee is instant coffee. I don't completely hate it - it reminds me of my stays at hostels in the UK. Not all hostels had a pot of coffee for breakfast, so my friend Shannon packed instant coffee, tea bags, and sugar while we were traveling. However, I would never willingly make myself a cup of instant coffee. In fact, I can't really explain why I have instant coffee in the cupboard. I think it was a free sample pack or something. Anyway, fellow TwDers assured me the coffee is there to enhance the chocolate, and you can't tell that much. Dorie called for 2 tsp but I used one serving packet, so maybe 1 tsp? I could still taste it, but it brought out the chocolate rather than oh I taste coffee and chocolate. I also added the optional cinnamon, but I can only taste a hint of it.

To sum things up, I would definitely make these again, as long as they don't stick or I forget the flour again. Thanks to Lisa for picking this recipe! You can the recipe on pages 96-97 of Baking: From My Home To Yours or at Surviving Oz.

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Tuesdays With Dorie - Honey Mango Ice Cream

I have a confession - I hate honey. I've been in denial for quite some time. How can I hate something that looks and sounds so sweet, yet the smell and taste just make me unsatisfied? I've tried so hard. I bought honey to make honey sesame chicken. The taste just wasn't there for me. I've ordered a honey latte from Starbucks once because the picture of the honey just made it irresistible. I took one sip and wanted to know what I was thinking. Then one morning, I was craving it, so I put honey in my coffee. However, I love, love, love baklava. WTF honey? I also enjoy Honey Nut Cheerios and Honey Bunches of Oats, but err do those really count? It makes me wonder since there are so many types of honey, maybe I just don't like whatever I have? The bottle says Clover Grade A Golden Honey.

Anyway, that bottle of honey I bought sat in my cupboard for awhile, probably six months I'm guessing. It solidified and insteading of throwing it away, I decided to warm it up in the microwave and stir like crazy. It somewhat worked. However, the smell made me want to gag a little.

As for Dorie's recipe, I have been waiting to make this ice cream ever since I saw the picture. I was going to, but then winter soon rolled around and said ok maybe in the spring. It was actually going to be my pick when it was my turn for TwD (only a few more months!), but somebody beat me to it. Oh well. The original recipe called for peaches, but since I had mangoes in the fridge, I used those instead.

I can't really say if the mangoes worked because the honey really put me off. I couldn't really eat more that a bite. Everyone else seemed to enjoy it, so IDK.




Thanks Tommi of Brown Interior for picking this recipe! You can find the recipe on page 437 of Baking: From My Home To Yours or on Tommi's blog.

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Tuesdays With Dorie - Chipster-Topped Brownies

This week's pick was Chipster-Topped Brownie, brownies with a chocolate chip cookie layer on top. I have tried many chocolate chip cookie recipes and failed at pretty much all of them, and this recipe was no different. My chocolate chips sunk into the brownie layer, so really it's just a brownie with a cookie layer on top. This is what they are supposed to look like. Also, I think I overbaked them slightly, so I suggest covering with foil to keep the top from being too brown. One thing I didn't like about the recipe is you had to wash dishes after making the brownie layer. Unless someone asks me, I probably won't make these again.





Thanks to Beth from Supplicious for picking this week's recipe! You can find the recipe on pages 94-95 of Baking: From My Home To Yours or on Beth's blog.

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Anybody else ever experience a baking rut? It seems like everything I have been making lately is messed up in some way. My wonton soup didn't cook properly, chocolate chip cookies failed like usual, my carrot cake didn't rise, the cookie layer didn't work with these brownies, and yesterday, my hamburgers fell apart. My hamburgers never fall apart. Is it possible for the baker's mood to be transfered into food? I feel like everything lately is falling apart, like those burgers.

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Tuesdays With Dorie - Fresh Mango Bread

Man, it's been awhile since I've done one of these. This week's TwD was Dorie's Fresh Mango Bread. Mango is a favorite of mine, so I was really excited to bake this bread. However, I was slightly disappointed. I felt that there was slightly too much ginger in it. My mom said there was too much lime. My dad said it was just right. All I know this bread kinda stuck around longer than usual. I would make this bread again if I have leftover mangoes, but I would probably use the leftovers for mango sorbet rather than bread.



Thanks Kelly from Baking with the Boys for this week's pick! You can find the recipe on page 45 of Baking: From My Home To Yours or on Kelly's blog.

Don't forget to enter my giveaway! In case it wasn't very clear, you need to leave a comment for each step completed. For example, if you are following me on Twitter, comment and say I am following you on Twitter. I am following you in a feed. I subscribed to your email, etc. Each time your comment, you have another entry in the giveaway. Make sense? I hope so!

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Tuesdays With Dorie - Four Star Chocolate Bread Pudding

This week's recipe was Dorie's Four Star Chocolate Bread Pudding. I made this for Easter dessert a few weekends ago. Unfortunately, I had to leave for school that evening, so I cut the dessert while it was still hot instead of letting it cool. I ate a small spoonful, but since I was full, I wrapped it in foil and took it to school. Whenever I ate it a few days later, there was oil "leaking" from the bottom. Not sure if that was the recipe or the fact I wrapped it while it was still hot.




I can't really give my opinion since a cooled bread pudding was probably more set and easier to cut than scooping out still hot pudding. It tasted good, I know that much.




I've also been busy wrapping up my final semester (graduation in less than two weeks - eek!), so I didn't read the problems and questions thread on TwD. Some people did use donuts and cinnamon rolls instead of stale bread. Very interesting! For the recipe, check out pages 410-411 of Baking: From My Home To Yours or at Upper East Side Chronicle by Lauren.

Since I am graduating on May 2, anyone who works in video production, please hire me? I'll bake lots of goodies for you! Ok thanks! haha I hope I don't have to drop out of TwD for not being able to afford ingredients this summer...

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Tuesdays With Dorie - Banana Cream Pie

This week's pick was Banana Cream Pie. I was excited to make this because my parents love banana cream pie. However, this isn't your typical banana pudding and meringue pie. It's a pastry cream filling with whipped cream on top.

I didn't make the pie crust, so I bought one pre-made. I wanted to, but I had a super-packed weekend two weeks ago (when I made this pie) and was too exhausted. I barely finished making this pie before running off for the night. Plus I usually end up with a tough pie crust. I don't even like eating pie crust.



This recipe I used fresh nutmeg for the first time, thanks to Marx Foods. They mailed me samples of six spices a few weeks ago. The people there are just awesome. Now if I can find a good recipe to use the rest of my spices. Any recipes with grains of paradise, tellicherry or scheuzan peppercorns? Anyway, back to the nutmeg. Now I know why you should use fresh - it's very powerful! I'm definitely going to consider using fresh nutmeg when possible.



Back to the pie itself. The pastry cream confused me. I was expecting silky smooth, like eclairs. Especially since banana cream pie normally has that smooth pudding. Wrong (unless I overcooked it??). It was thick and kinda gloopy, but it was still smooth. It spread easily over the bananas, so I guess I did it correctly? It tasted like pumpkin pie with the nutmeg and cinnamon. Since I was running short on time, the cream only chilled for an hour in the fridge and was still pretty warm. Didn't notice much of a difference since the assembled pie chilled in the fridge overnight.



As for the topping, the whipped cream was different. Good, but I prefer the traditional meringue. Plus you are left with 6 egg whites, so might as well use some making meringue. I used some of the whites for cupcakes (will post on April 13 for the virtual bake sale!)

Thanks Amy of Sing For Your Supper for picking this delicious pie! It lasted only 2 days with four people. You can find the recipe on pages 342-343 of Baking: From My Home To Yours or on Amy's blog.

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