Is there one yet? I know there are some talented bakers on TWW.

I want to hear what you make!

Last night's experiment was chewy pink peppercorn cookies. It turned out great! Sweet but on the rich side with a little bit of savory.

10/9/2010 10:30:56 AM

not what I thought this thread was going to be about.



[Edited on October 9, 2010 at 10:33 AM. Reason : and I make a mean cheesecake around the holidays ]

10/9/2010 10:33:05 AM

I'm baking apple pie and peach cobbler today, from scratch.


...oh, and

10/9/2010 10:40:26 AM

Bourbon. Peach. Cobbler.
I made a three-layer chocolate peanut butter cake for my friend's birthday, you could only eat a sliver of it before feeling like a huge fatty but good LORD was it good

10/9/2010 10:44:46 AM

Last year for Thanksgiving I made this



it's a pumpkin pie w/ a caramelized pecan topping. crust was from scratch

this year I'm going to try my first apple cobbler. other than this and the occasional cake or cookies, I really don't bake that much. but this pie was most excellent i thought about making one for our family reunion tomorrow...but I'm just gonna take sweet tea instead, heh.

10/9/2010 11:02:13 AM

that looks like something i could put my dick in

10/9/2010 11:23:20 AM

bump

1/20/2012 1:05:44 PM

First attempt at a Tres Leches cake last night was a huge success. Really simple recipe too (will post it if anyone wants it).

Anyone else got any simple, yet delicious, baking recipes? I'm not talking brownie/chocolate chip cook stuff. Something a little less common, yet you don't have to be a pastry chef to make. For example...the Tres Leches I made last night, I've got a good rum cake recipe, and a 30-minute cheesecake recipe that tastes better than most made-from-scratch cheesecakes I've had.

1/20/2012 1:17:36 PM

Cook some apples with buttah sugar cinnamon

get some phyllo dough, cut into squares

spoon a little of the apple mixture onto each square & roll into a cone shape

bake and serve with ice cream

simple, easy, yum

1/20/2012 1:21:07 PM

i'm sorry, but a top notch brownie is hardly common.


that said, i've got a recipe around here somewhere for a cherry dump cake that is freakin awesome.

1/20/2012 1:21:29 PM

Add to my topics

1/20/2012 1:21:43 PM

Just found the Tres Leches recipe:

Quote :

"Tres Leches Cake INGREDIENTS: Cake 1 box (1 lb 2.25 oz) yellow cake mix with pudding (Pillsbury was the only one I found "with pudding") 1 cup water 1/3 cup vegetable oil 3 eggs Sauce 1 cup whipping cream 1/3 cup rum 1 can ( 14 oz) sweetened condensed milk (not evaporated) 1 can ( 12 oz) evaporated milk Topping 1 cup whipping cream ( or canned whipped cream) 1/3 cup coconut chips, toasted 1/3 cup chopped macadamia nuts DIRECTIONS: Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease 13X9-in (3-quart) glass baking dish. In large bowl beat cake mix, water, oil and eggs with electric mixer on low speed about 30 seconds or until blended. Beat on medium speed 2 minutes, scraping bowl occasionally. Pour batter into baking dish. Bake 25 to 35 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center come out clean. (this was my aunt's recipe...30 minutes worked for me) Meanwhile, in large bowl, mix sauce ingredients. Using long-tined fork, pierce hot cake in baking dish every 1 to 2 inches. Slowly pour sauce mixture over cake. Refrigerate cake at least 3 hours to chill. (Cake will absorb most of the sauce mixture.) Before serving, in small bowl, beat 1 cup whipping cream until stiff peaks form. Spread over cold cake. Sprinkle with coconut and macadamia nuts. Cover and refrigerate any remaining cake."

1/20/2012 1:27:12 PM

Homemade granola bars. I usually do some sort of version of this recipe:

Ingredients
2 cups old-fashioned oatmeal
1 cup sliced almonds
1 cup shredded coconut, loosely packed
1/2 cup toasted wheat germ
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
2/3 cup honey
1/4 cup light brown sugar, lightly packed
1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 cup chopped pitted dates
1/2 cup chopped dried apricots
1/2 cup dried cranberries
Directions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter an 8 by 12-inch baking dish and line it with parchment paper.

Toss the oatmeal, almonds, and coconut together on a sheet pan and bake for 10 to 12 minutes, stirring occasionally, until lightly browned. Transfer the mixture to a large mixing bowl and stir in the wheat germ.

Reduce the oven temperature to 300 degrees F.

Place the butter, honey, brown sugar, vanilla, and salt in a small saucepan and bring to a boil over medium heat. Cook and stir for a minute, then pour over the toasted oatmeal mixture. Add the dates, apricots, and cranberries and stir well.

Pour the mixture into the prepared pan. Wet your fingers and lightly press the mixture evenly into the pan. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, until light golden brown. Cool for at least 2 to 3 hours before cutting into squares. Serve at room temperature.

1/20/2012 2:44:45 PM

Quote :

"30-minute cheesecake recipe that tastes better than most made-from-scratch cheesecakes I've had."

this 30-minute cheesecake, is it a no-bake cheesecake? (aka, "refrigerator cheesecake" as opposed to "baked cheesecake")

if so, i don't believe that a no-bake cheesecake can taste as good as a decent baked cheesecake. if not, i don't see how you can make a baked cheesecake from scratch in 30 minutes.

either way, i am curious now. recipe plz... unless it is a secret!

1/20/2012 3:57:16 PM

Barney Frank and Chris Dodd will inevitably ruin this thread.

The More You Know.

[Edited on January 20, 2012 at 4:01 PM. Reason : Oh shit that says baking.]

1/20/2012 4:01:32 PM

^^ It's baked but not "from scratch"...well at least the crust isn't (graham cracker crust ftw!). Oh...and here are both the cheesecake and rum cake recipes:

Quote :

"Here it is. Cheese Cake 3 eggs 2 8 oz pkg. cream cheese 3/4 C sugar 1 tsp. vanilla 1/4 tsp. lemon juice Warm cream cheese to room temperature. Mix with other ingredients and pour the mixture into crust. Bake at 375 until there is a brown ring around cake. About 35 minutes. Take put and allow to cool for 30 minutes and then refrigerate. **Notice the recipe didn't mention the crust. It's a store bought graham cracker crust (I think Keebler makes the "brand name" one) you can get at any grocery store. "

Quote :

" Rum Cake 1 pkg Duncan Hines (Butter Recipe Golden Cake Mix) 4 eggs 1/2 C corn oil 1/2 C Barcardi Light Rum 1/2 C milk 1 pkg instant vanilla pudding Mix all ingredients in mix master and beat hurriedly. You may put chopped pecans in bottom of sprayed with Bakers Joy bundt pan, Pour mixture in and cook at 300 for 50 to 60 minutes. Let cake cool awhile and pour glaze over cake and let set in pan awhile Glaze 1 stick butter 1/4 C rum 1/4 C water 1 C sugar Boil 5 minutes and stir the whole time."

[Edited on January 25, 2012 at 1:23 PM. Reason : .]

1/25/2012 1:21:46 PM

I tried granola bars for the first time a few weeks ago. They didn't hold together very well but tasted good. Will have to try wolfpackgrrr's recipe.

1/25/2012 1:24:40 PM

I cook dinner for Valentine's Day and I'm looking for a good desert. The lady isn't usually a big desert fan, but every now and then she'll really like one...that desert usually involves a decent amount of chocolate and caramel.

So I'm going to give this one a try:

http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Caramel-Dark-Chocolate-Truffles-with-Fleur-de-Sel-109085

Quote :

"20 ounces bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, finely chopped, divided 1/3 cup sugar 2 tablespoons water 2/3 cup whipping cream 1/4 teaspoon fleur de sel 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder Additional fleur de sel Place 8 ounces chocolate in metal bowl over saucepan of barely simmering water (do not allow bottom of bowl to touch water); stir until chocolate is smooth. Remove chocolate from over water. Combine sugar and 2 tablespoons water in small saucepan. Stir over medium heat until sugar dissolves, occasionally brushing sides of pan with wet pastry brush. Increase heat; boil until syrup is deep amber color, brushing down sides and swirling pan occasionally, about 4 minutes. Add cream (mixture will bubble). Stir over very low heat until caramel is smooth. Mix caramel and 1/4 teaspoon fleur de sel into melted chocolate. Chill until truffle filling is firm, at least 3 hours. Place cocoa in bowl. Using 1 tablespoon truffle filling for each truffle, roll into balls, then roll in cocoa. Arrange on baking sheet. Cover; chill overnight. Line 13x9x2-inch baking sheet with foil. Place remaining 12 ounces chocolate in medium metal bowl over saucepan of barely simmering water (do not allow bottom of bowl to touch water); stir until chocolate is melted and smooth and thermometer inserted into chocolate registers 115°F. Remove bowl from over water. Working quickly, submerge 1 truffle in melted chocolate. Using fork, lift out truffle and tap fork against side of bowl to allow excess coating to drip off. Transfer truffle to prepared sheet. Repeat with remaining truffles. Sprinkle truffles lightly with additional fleur de sel. Let stand until coating sets, at least 1 hour. (Can be made 1 week ahead. Cover and chill. Bring to room temperature before serving.)"

And while I'm usually really good at baking...I feel like there's a good chance that I fuck this up. I'm also spending a decent amount of time on the entree portion of the dinner (rack of lamb)...so I this dessert might be spreading me a little too thin.

Anybody have any good dessert recipes that might be a little more simple, yet still "impressive"??

2/10/2012 7:54:10 AM

^ That essentially looks like a ganache recipe.

If you want a completely fool-proof ganache recipe, this is one that's meant for even kids to make. I got it from the back of a chocolate bar a couple years ago and it's super easy.

3 bars dark chocolate, about 6oz each
5.5 tablespoons heavy cream (~40% butterfat content)
1.5 tablespoons softened unsalted butter
2 teaspoons flavoring (brandy, almond extract, creme de menthe, whatever your heart desires)

Finely chop chocolate and place in a medium size bowl.

Over medium-high heat, bring heavy cream to a boil in a small saucepan. Remove from heat and pour over chocolate. Whisk until smooth. Add butter and whisk until fully incorporated. Add flavoring and whisk until incorporated.

Line a square baking dish with parchment paper, having the paper come up over the sides of the dish. Pour chocolate mix onto the parchment paper. Spread until even. Place in refrigerator for at least one hour.

Lift up parchment paper and place chocolate on a cutting board. Cut chocolate into squares. Dust squares with cocoa powder, powdered sugar, drizzle with caramel sauce, sprinkle with sea salt, whatever you want to do.

DONE!



[Edited on February 10, 2012 at 8:53 AM. Reason : s]

2/10/2012 8:47:22 AM

^ Nice...that looks a lot easier. I'm a little nervous about the melting chocolate in the double boiler like I listed above. And reading the comments on the recipe page, everyone seemed to be having trouble with the consistency (either too liquid or too solid).

Definitely leaning towards the one you posted now.

2/10/2012 9:24:49 AM

i want to perfect my loaf-bread, got pizza dough down, and hearth breads down but i need a good soft and chewy sandwich bread

p.s. for you bread bakers, PM me if you want to share your loaf making secrets

[Edited on February 10, 2012 at 9:36 AM. Reason : .]

2/10/2012 9:35:39 AM

^^ It's ridiculously easy. Just make sure your chocolate is chopped really fine to make it easier to whisk into the cream. I usually throw it in the food processor to get it as fine as possible.

2/10/2012 12:38:53 PM

I used to think I totally failed at bread. Ambrosia recommended this one http://allrecipes.com/recipe/amish-white-bread/, and it turned out amazing. I haven't made it again since I don't actually eat white bread, but still. 'twas good.

2/10/2012 12:51:17 PM

your mommas bakin bread

2/10/2012 1:08:01 PM

i will poast in your thread

2/10/2012 1:50:31 PM