pumpkin eater

today i made this bread. i was trying a new recipe but, i have to say that mother really does know best and my recipe from her really does kick all other pumpkin bread to the curb.

here is the recipe:

4 cups flour
1/2 t. nutmeg
4 cups sugar
1 29 oz. can pumpkin
4 t. baking soda
1 cup oil
1 t. salt
1 t. cloves
1 t. cinnamon
(my mom puts 2 c. raisins and 2 c. nuts, but personally, i would do 2 c. chocolate chips)

mix dry ingredients into a large bowl. add nuts and raisins (or choc. chips), then stir in pumpkin and oil. beat with wooden spoon until well blended. grease and flour 2 large or 3 medium loaf pans. pour in batter and bake in 325° oven for 1 1/4 hours to 1 1/2 hours. put toothpick in center to see if bread is done.

picture time

ok, so i finally made those cupcakes and peanut butter oatmeal chocolate chip cookies. and these are the photos to prove it. enjoy!


ok, so i didn't have lime oil yet for the cupcakes so i just used the zest and juice of two limes. and i didn't have a blowtorch so, i broiled them on low in the oven, which worked great and is actually probably easier and faster than the blowtorch method.



these cookies are such a great version of peanut butter cookies. i swear, oats make everything better. i did one batch, cooking them at 11 minutes, and the second batch at 12, which made for a slightly chewy/crispier texture which i love in peanut butter cookies. also, i tried 4 different ways of storing them to see what help up the flavor/texture/etc. the best. method 1: wrap cookies in towel and put them in the microwave (too dry), method 2: cookie jar (too dry), method 3: tupperware (pretty good), method 4: ziplock bag (the best). none of them kept the perfect crispy texture that you have the same day that you cook them, but the ziplock kept the chewy moisture the best.

poll, please

ok, so i'm thinking about broek's suggestion that i start selling my goodies now, i want to know how many people would really buy them before i start investing in packaging etc. and would people be more likely to buy if they live near me or would you really buy things online for me to ship? please, if you ever read this blog, let me know what you think...

thanks,
-caroline

lemon meringue with a twist

i need to make these asap. holy crap, these look so amazing.

great grandma's apple crisp

this is the recipe from the apple crisp i made last week. thanks to great grandma julia for passing this recipe down.


slice peeled and cored apples to fill a 9x13" pan (i used 6 medium sized granny smith apples.) mix together the following and sprinkle over apples:

2 c. sugar
2 c. flour
1 c. butter
4 t. cinnamon

Bake at 375° for one hour. goes well with vanilla bean ice cream.
mmmmmm, deee-lish.

try a little tenderness

i think i'll try this recipe sometime this week or weekend. it looks pretty good and i love using oats. i'll let you know what i think.

cookie monster

ok, so i made apple crisp yesterday (great grandma king's apple crisp) and will post about it soon, but in the meantime, i am wondering if any of you have a chocolate chip cookie recipe that you swear by or that you want to try. i will try any and all. i think to have a bakery, you have to have the perfect cookie, so i'm trying to try everything at every bakery and all new recipes. please help me! please send me any recipe so that i can try to perfect this classic cookie.

xoxo,
ck

gettin busy

ok, so i've been super busy lately. i've made loads of things...

granola bars
german chocolate cupcakes (modified)
carrot cake
wheat bread
banana bread
pecan pie
banana bread pudding
caramel sauce
no-bake cookies

that's all i can think of off the top of my head. but, i've been so busy baking and sharing the goods and just working a lot, that i haven't had time to take pictures or post. so... i will post the recipes of the ones you guys want the most. are there recipes you've been wanting to learn or make or find a new version of? which one(s) on that list would you like to see get the recipe for and/or a picture?

also, if anyone has a recipe they've been wanting to try but haven't, feel free to send it to me to try for you and let you know how it went. i'm sure you all do just fine by yourselves, but i'd love to be a sort of a "test kitchen" if you will.

i like you guys!
-ck