A tamer version of Wild Banana Bread

 

Better late than never, I guess.  Our Kitchen of the Month for January was Elizabeth, of blog from OUR kitchen.  This was definitely a challenge in several ways!  Elizabeth asked us to bake a Wild Banana (Peel and All) Bread using sourdough starter and whole bananas, skin and all.  This presented a dilemma for me because I no longer eat bananas and I no longer keep sourdough starter.  I will, on occasion, bake with bananas, but missing two crucial ingredients was the problem.  Enter Babe Aparna, who created a yeasted version of this bread.  One of my obstacles was now removed, so I decided to go ahead and bake this banana bread.  

 

It was a straight-forward bake, and the loaves had a lovely moist crumb and a slight banana flavor from the filling.

If you're brave enough to try this bread, you can find the entire explanation and recipe on Elizabeth's blog.

 

The other Babes made some beautiful buns and loaves.

 

• Blog from OUR Kitchen – Elizabeth (Kitchen of the Month)
• Karen’s Kitchen Stories – Karen
• A Messy Kitchen – Kelly  
• My Diverse Kitchen – Aparna 
• Bread Experience – Cathy                                           
• Thyme for Cooking - Katie
• My Kitchen in Half Cups – Tanna  
• Feeding My Enthusiasms – Elle

 

 

 

BWD/TWD: Iced Honey-Apple Scones with Spelt

 

Which one to post first?  I’ll start the year with the Iced Honey-Apple Scones with Spelt, yet another delicious treat that can be prepared ahead of time, then baked when needed.  Once again, my suffering quilt group was the target for these scones.  They were really yummy, especially with that bit of vanilla icing drizzle on top and the hint of orange in the dough.  I used the zest from a freshly picked tangerine from my backyard tree, a perk for living in the coastal California region.  Each of my friends took an extra one home, so I guess the scones passed the test!

More goodies can be found at the Tuesdays with Dorie website.

 

 

TWD: Chocolate Babka

 

 

My final bake for 2022 is the Chocolate Babka.  It’s a delicious brioche dough with a chocolate filling and a yummy streusel on top.  Did I mention how much I love streusel toppings?  Best to plan ahead with this dough, but once it’s ready, it’s has multiple uses.  For instance, I just made one babka, and formed the remaining dough into a simple loaf.  (It’s in the oven now, and the house smells divine.)

Although the babka looks complicated, it’s really quite straightforward.  The filling was nice and thick, which meant it didn’t squish out when rolling.  Plus, letting it air dry for several minutes helps.  Before slicing it, I put the roll back into the refrigerator so it would firm up a bit, and that helped as well.  All in all, it was a very successful bake.  (I did play around with an alternate method of making the brioche dough, and that seemed to work out just fine.)

Looking forward to the 2023 baking selections!  It should be another wonderful year for the Tuesdays with Dorie baking group.

 

 

Not the usual corn bread

 

The Kitchen of the Month for December was Karen of Karen's Kitchen Stories.  

All the babes made Corn Bread, but not the usual kind. This was a yeasted bread using corn flour, not corn meal, so it had a more bread-like texture even though it tasted like corn bread.  My efforts started out promising.  The initial proofing was near-perfect -- high rise and lots of bubble action.  However, that all disappeared when I formed it into a  loaf.  I was concerned about over proofing the dough, so, quite possibly, it was under proofed, even though the second rise went over an hour.  Needless to say, the end result was disappointing.  Tasty, but not what I wanted.  Since I invested in the corn flour (thank you, Amazon), I will probably try baking it again, and proof it for a longer time.  For comparison.  I does make delicious toast, so it won't go to waste.

 

For the recipe and instructions, go to Karen's website.  And then, visit the other Babes, who all made beautiful loaves!!

Check out the other Bread Baking Babes:

• Blog from OUR Kitchen – Elizabeth
• Karen’s Kitchen Stories – Karen (Kitchen of the Month)
• A Messy Kitchen – Kelly  
• My Diverse Kitchen – Aparna 
• Bread Experience – Cathy                                           
• Thyme for Cooking - Katie
• My Kitchen in Half Cups – Tanna  
• Feeding My Enthusiasms – Elle

 

BWD: Coffee-Anise Stars

 A bit late posting these delicious cookies for our Tuesdays with Dorie baking group.  Original post appeared, on time, on my Instagram account.

I've been wanting to bake these cookies since the day I got the cookbook, Baking with Dorie.  They didn't disappoint!

I have both powdered star anise and espresso in my pantry, so they were quick to make.  I decided to decorate simply, using both dark and white chocolate, melted.  The chocolate seemed to bring out the flavor of the coffee, and, honestly, they are good either decorated or plain.  They will definitely go into the cookie rotation.

TWD: Cranberry Spice Squares

 

 

I had a light bulb moment with this dessert – instead of just making it ahead of Thanksgiving, I baked it for my quilt guild meeting.  That way, I could share and not feel compelled to eat it all.  It worked!  Everyone enjoyed the cake, and there was  just a little bit left over.  

 

This is a perfect November dessert. It is lightly spicy, not like full-blown gingerbread, and the tartness of the cranberries balances the sweetness of the cake.  The cream cheese frosting adds a bit of tanginess.  Another delicious cranberry treat from Dorie!

 

Head over to the Tuesdays with Dorie website to see what the other bakers made.