SylviaH's blog

For the family dinner tonight at my daughters home.  I was asked to bring cupcakes..red velvet cupcakes.  I've never made a red velvet cake so I decided this morning to add a Yule Log, this is a first also, as you can probably tell a lot of last minute baking on my part.  It has been a very busy week.  My family 'not including myself and husband' are leaving to spend Christmas in Hawaii in a few days.  So we planned some holiday celebration early.  They are very much into red velvet cake lately...I didn't want to make cupcakes so make cakes.

Testing for a little personal satisfaction!  Today I baked a single large loaf of my usual - 100% levain Country Boule...I use my variation of a recipe from Northwest Sourdough,  for a 100% hydration starter, sourdough country bread.  It was proofed in the frig from 4pm until 9am.  I don't usually proof this long, but I was out for most that evening and had to leave the house at 4pm. 

I baked this panettone for the first time last year HERE  and loved it so much I'm baking it for family and friends again this year.  No matter what formula you choose...do make a panettone, you will love it and want it everyear...and it's really not as difficult as it seems...really! 

I've made this bread many times as seen on my blog, with a biga naturale, overnight fermentation, braided loaves, rolls, and just as the recipe comes from the http://www.kingarthurflour.com bread site, listed in the recipes section.  Today I wanted to have a loaf ready for dinner and since I was making my usual sourdough loaves to try out in my iron combo cooker.  I prepared my biga and levains last night.  We love the nutty flavor of the Scali loaves with added sesame seeds.  I especially like making the Scali Hoagie rol

My grandson's 17th Birthday Party was Saturday.  After returning from a fun afternoon of Paintball sportpark a pizza party was planned.  I made the pizza dough and sauce, my daughter and another mom took care of the rest.  It has been a busy fun week of family and friends.  I assembled the pizza's along with lot's of volunteer's...who needed no instructions :)  My daughter tended to the oven baking of the pizza's.  They couldn't come out of the oven fast enough and requests for toppings were coming in fast!  What a production we had going!  I would&nb

to Thanksgiving Day.  I baked several different kinds of bread in advance of Thanksgiving Day and these were just a few, I managed to get a couple of photos of along the way to the big day.  I baked challah, sourdough, cornbread, pugliese and tried the buttermilk rolls from  BH Bread Bible.  I tried a sourdough out in my new cast iron baker...It bakes up a wonderful loaf but the cast iron was a little heavy and hot to handle and limited to only one loaf at a time...all in all, I love cast iron dutch oven pan!  I especially lik

With a house full of company, my little grandaughter helped me make this apple and pumpkin pie.  We used Caroline's buttermilk crust recipe..ran a little short on dough..so didn't get a fancy crimped edge..no matter, won't affect the taste...

This is apx. 82% (the recipe 3 X's is apx. 84%) total hydration dough, that I think would be fun for anyone to try.  It is one of my favorites, I've posted HERE before.  The recipe comes from Rose Levy Beranbaum 'the bread bible' and a photo is displayed on the cover.

Oh the freezer was empty of bread.. I baked up some good old basic sourdough @100.  The recipe from the http://www.northwestsourdough.com  site.  Where Teresa now has her free download book available!

I was so inspired by Pamela's 'xiapete' post on the ZaZu resturants style Chanterelle mushroom and goat cheese pizza, she baked in Nov. of 09, I've been craving one ever since.  I finally found some lovely Chanterelle mushrooms.  I also baked a pizza Margarita style.  It was served with a lovely little organic chicken, I stuffed with fresh garlic, rosemary, lemon, s&p. and, some roasted peppers!  Roasted it all at the oven door while the fire was getting ready for the pizza's.