Ekmak for the Babes

 

 

Our December Kitchen of the Month was Karen, from Karen’s Kitchen Stories.  Karen asked us to make Ekmak, a boat-shaped Syrian pastry filled with sweetened ricotta cheese, topped with jam and fruit, and drizzled with honey.  It is reminiscent of khachapuri, which is a savory pastry.  This particular recipe can be found in the July/August (2021) issue of Bake from Scratch.  There, you can also read the story about this tasty bread.

My experience making this was straight-forward and uneventful for a change.  The dough was lovely to work with and shaping was easy.  I used Bonne Maman Cherry Preserves for the topping.

 

For the background story, recipe, and shaping instructions, head over to Karen's website.  Be sure to join us as a Buddy by the end of the month.

 

 

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

 

Tuesdays with Dorie/Baking with Dorie: Mokonut's Rye-Cranberry Chocolate Chunk Cookies

 

For the first December recipe for Tuesdays with Dorie, I’m posting the Mokonut's Rye-Cranberry Chocolate Chunk cookies.  Thanks to a demonstration by Sarah Kieffer, I was able to figure out how to create the large dimple in the cookie.  These are one of the best cookies I’ve tasted, really addictive.  

 

I tried to freeze most of them, but, in the back of my mind, I knew they were there and they were calling to me.  The next time I make these, I will play around with dried sour cherries instead of cranberries.  I’m betting they will complement the chocolate chunks nicely.

Next post in two weeks.

Check out Tuesdays with Dorie to see which recipe the other bakers made.

 

Tuesdays with Dorie/Baking with Dorie: Apple Pandowdy

 For the second November recipe for Tuesdays with Dorie, I chose to make the Apple Pandowdy from Dorie’s newest cookbook, Baking with Dorie (BWD).  

 

 

Oh my!  This was so scrumptious that it was difficult not to eat it all at once.  I used freshly picked lemons from my backyard tree, and they added so much flavor, that I never missed any typical spices.  (I’m tempted just to make a double batch of the filling and dig in.)  Playing around with different apple varieties for flavor and texture would also be The pie crust topping, of course, was delicious.  I decided to have some fun with the shape, using one of my round cookie cutters.

This is absolutely one of my favorite Dorie desserts, worthy of sharing with others.

 

Swedish flatbread

 

 

Our November Kitchen of the Month was Kelly from A MessyKitchen.  Kelly asked us to make a Swedish  flatbread, Hällakakor, which required a special rolling pin and a super hot oven (baking stones beware!).   Instead of the rolling pin, I chose to use a fork to dock the dough.  Other Babes were very creative for the docking process.

I also chose to add crushed anise seeds to the rye/whole wheat dough.  The other choices were  fennel or caraway seeds.  Instead of honey, I used some golden syrup for a change.

Once again, I had issues with the dough.  It just wasn’t right.  This time I was pretty sure it wasn’t me, and it wasn’t the yeast, since I had been baking other breads with success.  While I was rolling out the dough, my analytical side kicked in, trying to figure out the problem.  I think it was a moisture issue, meaning not enough liquid in the dough, which was very dry.  Were I to make these again, and for future doughs, I will definitely pay attention to the look and feel of the dough regarding added liquids.  I think this may have made a difference with the final dough.

That said, the flatbreads came out just fine, and no equipment was damaged in the process.  The uneaten ones were safely placed in the freezer for future consumption.

 

Stop by Kelly’s website to get the recipe, with photos,  and join the Buddies for a flatbread feast.

And, you must visit the other Babes to see their Hällakakor.

 

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