TWD: Soft Pumpkin Hockey Pucks

Apparently, I left my baking mojo somewhere in the Caribbean. How else can I account for the fact that these biscuits were a failure? To be fair, they tasted alright, but they never rose and were still a bit doughy on the inside, even after 30 minutes of baking.


Because sweet potatoes never cross the door step, I used pumpkin instead.




Everything seemed to proceed well enough, except the biscuits never rose and were stubborn about being cooked all the way through.



The funny thing is, they tasted ok. My yellow-vegetable-hating daughter pronounced them delicious and ate most of them. Go figure.

I did make these on Tuesday, but I have a huge work backlog, so the baking/cooking events will have to be fit in when space/time becomes available. At least until I get caught up.

For the recipe, check out Erin's blog at Prudence Pennywise.

I haven't stopped by the other TWD blogs since my return, but I plan to do it this weekend and expect to see some wonderful biscuits, right?

Daring Cooks #6: Vietnamese Chicken Pho

Today is October 14th, posting day for this month's Daring Cooks' challenge. If you're reading this, then the autopost worked!

I, however, am far from home, chasing butterflies on St. Maarten and checking out the local offerings.



Before I left, I had a chance to make and enjoy this fragrant Vietnamese Pho, using a recipe provided by Jaden of Steamy Kitchen. That's whole coriander, cloves, and star anise, toasting in the pan above. I added some homemade, rich chicken stock, some onions and fresh ginger, then let it all simmer with a small amount of sugar and fish sauce.


For serving, the resulting broth was ladled over a mixture of chicken and rice noodles, then topped with fresh bean sprouts, red onions, coriander and lime juice. We had enough for two dinners and one lunch, and since I always have fresh chicken stock in the freezer, it would be easy to make again.

Visit the Daring Kitchen to see all the wonderful variations and to get the recipe.



Oh, and before I forget, dessert was chocolate-filled, deep-fried wontons.

TWD: Allspice Crumb Muffins

If you're reading this, it must be Tuesday and the autopost worked. I should be somewhere on the Atlantic Ocean, being pampered.

This week's TWD challenge was Allspice Crumb Muffins, chosen by Kayte of Grandma's Kitchen Table.



I took about 8 of them to work with me on Sunday morning. They all disappeared.

One co-worker said they tasted like doughnuts without the grease, and promptly ate two.


The ones left at home were gone quickly, too. This was a most delicious choice, Kayte!

Gone cruisin'

See you in 10 days.

New Addition

Isn't this just the cutest pan? My 2-quart saucier now has a little buddy to keep it company.


After making a reduced amount of pudding for a previous recipe, I realized I needed a 1-quart saucier to cook smaller amounts, and there just happened to be a sale on over at cooks.com.

The rest is history.

BB: Cheddar Corn Chowder

October's first Barefoot Blogger challenge was a lovely soup, Cheddar Corn Chowder. This is similar to a long-standing recipe I have that includes a few more vegetables and tuna.



For a light and quick lunch or dinner, this chowder is ideal. Although, for the life of me, I can't understand why it requires bacon fat, olive oil, and butter! Rendering the bacon at the beginning of the recipe certainly provides enough fat for the flour and for the taste.

I also quartered the recipe for the two of us -- it makes a whole bunch of soup, otherwise.


My daughter's favorite part was the bacon.

She did like the soup as well, but she consumed the leftover bacon.

Thanks to Jill of My Next Life for a nice change from all the sweet stuff. Stop by the Barefoot Blogger site to see all the other renditions.

TWD: Split Level pudding

This week's Tuesdays with Dorie recipe was selected by Garrett of Flavor of Vanilla. More than just a pudding, this was a split level pudding, hiding a delicious layer of chocolate ganache at the bottom of the vessel.


I chose to flavor the pudding with peppermint oil, just for kicks.



For a more spectacular presentation, I would recommend using a see-through dish or glass as some of the other TWD bakers did. For the recipe and other interesting stories, head over to Garrett's blog.