Baking Day

For the first time in what seems like a long while, I finally had a long, empty evening to start catching up on my baking!

Project 1: I had half a can of pumpkin in my fridge for 2 weeks and I finally had time to do something with it. So glad it lasts a long time! And because I never did get my pie hunger thoroughly sated at Thanksgiving, I went with the classic pumpkin pie.  (Recipe from here.) Surprisingly simple, so much so that both I and my sister in law were a little incredulous (are you sure it calls for sweetened condensed milk and not evaporated milk???). But it did, in fact, turn out just as delicious as the thousand plus reviews indicated it would. Minor changes: I used 1 tsp cinnamon and 1 1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice (approx.) instead of the spices listed. Otherwise I followed it exactly. My crust recipe calls for 1 c. flour, 1 tsp salt, 1/3 c + 1 T Crisco, and some ice cold water.

I used my new toy and the allrecipes app to display the recipe for maximum efficiency, and I must say I think that's my favorite use for the kindle fire so far. I foresee that being far more convenient than printing out recipes all the time, and then having to sift through them all searching for one I know I printed six months ago... I've heard this is a favorite use of the iPad as well for bakers, though I haven't ever been able to justify buying an iPad just for the convenience in the kitchen.

Second baking project: homemade bread. I haven't made any since before Thanksgiving, and my lunches have suffered! Modifications from the recipe: I usually reduce sugar to 3-4 T and substitute butter for oil. This makes excellent sandwiches, especially the first 3 days or so (it is usually good for a week to a week and a half in my house before it starts getting iffy though). It is also great with homemade jam when it's still warm from baking.

Next project: coconut cream pie. I have a pint of whipping cream that's going to go off soon, and it needs to be put to good use... I also have some plain greek yogurt that I've been meaning to whip up into frozen yogurt and haven't yet, but given how long I've had it, I will have to do some thorough checking to make sure it's still good.