thoughts on bake 20.

since the end of july, i've been on a mission to bake 20 items by the end of the year.  when i first pulled this together, i knew i'd have a hard time finishing this challenge since not only do i not enjoy baking, but we were also moving across the country in october.

in the beginning, i loved this challenge.  i enjoyed looking for different items to bake, making each recipe, and taking photos of the successes and failures.  and yes, there were plenty of failures (since this challenge was about baking, i included the unsuccessful attempts in my count since i've heard, all great bakers have many great failures).  once we moved, this challenge was my nemesis.  finding recipes was the easy part- baking them felt like a chore.  i was working out of two kitchens most of the time (my parents & my in-laws) and in doing so, felt so overwhelmed about not only having the right ingredients, but also having the time to bake, clean up, and take a decent photo.  sometimes, after a recipe was baked, i'd stage a little photo shoot in hopes of getting a decent picture.  sometimes this worked, most of the time however, it didn't.

what i learned: despite my better attempts, i'm still not a baker.  i did find however, that when i put my mind to it & took my time when baking, i'm actually pretty good at it.  and to my surprise, i didn't mind doing it.  now, baking pies and bread are my favorite & these will certainly become regulars in our house from time to time.  also, i learned i love having my own kitchen.  it makes baking so much more enjoyable for me & when i had a kitchen of my own, it was much easier for me to be spontaneous and bake when i had a hankering for a specific good.  i'm certain this had something to do with my disdain for baking during the second half of this challenge.

moving forward: i'm still on the quest to conquer a few great bread recipes and to improve my skills with biscuits, muffins, and cakes.  as i continue to grow over the course of this year, i intend to add upon the knowledge i obtained during this relatively successful challenge.  as much as i didn't enjoy the second half, i'm so glad i took on this commitment & stuck with it.  discovering my inner baker (or not discovering) made, if not for anything else, an interesting experiment.

bake 20: coffee cake

recipe: ridiculously easy coffee cake

adjustments: this was a total crap shoot.  we didn't have eggs, sugar, sour cream or canned fruit.  so i guess, i used the recipe for the bisquick to milk ratio.  here's what i did instead: i added two cups of bisquick, one individual peach greek yogurt, 1/4 cup of milk with another 1/4 cup of orange juice.  then, just because it was the last recipe, i added about two tbs of cream cheese.  i mixed everything together, put it in a baking dish and baked it in a toaster oven for about 40 minutes.  

reviews: nothing like cutting this challenge down to the wire!  so here's the thing, technically, i guess you could consider this recipe cheating.  first of all, it goes completely against my eating philosophy since the main ingredient is bisquick.  secondly, well...it's made with bisquick.  but know what?  this was my challenge, so i say it counts :).  originally i had much loftier plans for my last bake 20 experiment, but a. & i decided to head up to the mountains for an impromptu new year's weekend with the family and surprisingly, i totally forgot everything i needed for a legit recipe.  thanks to some major motivation from my sisters, i experimented with what we had on hand and lo and behold, this recipe was devised.  on a good note, everyone loved it- so before i had a chance to take a decent photo, it was gobbled up...

this was #20 of the bake 20 challenge...i made it!
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over the next five months i'm going to try my hand at 20 different baked goods.  there's no specific order and no plan.  just making things that look good and hopefully in the process, finding a new appreciation of baking.  feel free to join me in the Bake 20 Challenge.

bake 20: basic focaccia

recipe: focaccia

adjustments: i used whole wheat flour in lieu of the all purpose flour.  i'm pretty sure i should have used a combination of the two- but considering it's all i had on hand, i think things turned out pretty well.

reviews: i wish i used a smaller pan (like a cake pan for example) for a thicker bread.  the focaccia had great flavor and appearance, but was a bit too crunchy for my taste.  also, per the recipe, you cook the focaccia in half a cup of olive oil.  maybe it was because my bread was so thin, but this was definitely too much and made for extra oily pieces.

this was #19 of the bake 20 challenge...one more, fingers crossed that i make it!
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over the next five months i'm going to try my hand at 20 different baked goods.  there's no specific order and no plan.  just making things that look good and hopefully in the process, finding a new appreciation of baking.  feel free to join me in the Bake 20 Challenge.

bake 20: red velvet crinkle cookies

it's that time of year...christmas cookie baking season!  & it just happens that i have three (!) more baking challenges ahead of me.  any guesses as to what the remainder of these bake 20 posts might be?!? :)  actually, my goal is to stay away from cookies- and while i might do one more, i have two non-cookie recipes i'm hoping to try!  also, my apologies for the awful picture.  late night photo shoots are not proving to provide the best results.  

recipe: red velvet crinkle cookies (plus it comes with a super-sweet printable!)

adjustments: since i'm not much of a baker (though thanks to this challenge, i will definitely say i've become much more comfortable with the combination of eggs, butter, & sugar) i didn't make any adjustments to this recipe. 

reviews: originally, i was planning to make these for a cookie exchange i'm attending on thursday- but i'm kinda glad i didn't.  while these are totally festive- they're definitely missing something...as unanimously agreed by all my taste testers.  next time i attempt to make these (and yes, there will be a next time), i'm going to add a bit more cocoa and possibly some dark chocolate chips.

this was #17 of the bake 20 challenge...almost there!
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over the next five months i'm going to try my hand at 20 different baked goods.  there's no specific order and no plan.  just making things that look good and hopefully in the process, finding a new appreciation of baking.  feel free to join me in the Bake 20 Challenge.

bake 20: spinach feta quiche

quiche is one of my favorite go-to dinner recipes.  for the longest time, i thought it was such a process to make and to be honest, quiche intimidated me.  one of my good friends from our alabama days made quiche all the time for her family and basically convinced me it wasn't so hard.  ever since then, i make it when i know i have to fend for myself (since a. happens to dislike quiche) or we have an abundance of veggies that need to be consumed quickly.

as it turns out, i'm one the only person living in this house who likes quiche.  seriously?  luckily, everyone who tried a slice (to humor me of course) enjoyed it, and that's saying a lot from a non-quiche household.  i swear it's like i married into an extraterrestrial family...

recipes: spinach & feta quiche* and my go-to pie crust

adjustments: i don't measure anything and just add things to taste (obviously tasting before the veggie mixture goes into the raw eggs and milk).  just take note when adding cheese, that everything will get a bit saltier.  that said, season per your tastes, but consider going light on the salt.

reviews: well, my sister in law and i loved this quiche.  a., who's not a fan of quiche humored me and exclaimed he'd probably eat it again...oh well, all i can do is try, right?!  this would be an awesome recipe to add asparagus or mushrooms- and if you're a meat eater, maybe a bit of bacon.

*sauté 1 yellow onion and garlic in olive oil.  season onions and garlic.  in a large bowl, whisk 5 eggs (or 6 egg whites) together adding about a 1/4-1/2 cup of milk.  season with pepper.  into egg mixture add onion and garlic mixture, 4-5 cups of fresh spinach (this is going to seem like a lot, but don't worry, it will wilt when cooking) and one 8 oz container of feta cheese.  mix until everything is thoroughly combined with eggs and pour into a semi-cooked pie crust.  cover with foil & bake at 350 for 45-50 minutes.  remove foil and bake about 10 minutes longer, or until crust is golden brown and a toothpick, when inserted into the center, comes out clean.  then, enjoy!

this was #16 of the bake 20 challenge...almost there!
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over the next five months i'm going to try my hand at 20 different baked goods.  there's no specific order and no plan.  just making things that look good and hopefully in the process, finding a new appreciation of baking.  feel free to join me in the Bake 20 Challenge.

bake 20: one crust, two ways.

originally, i had every intention of making only one pizza.  but the dough was so easy and fast that i just couldn't help myself.  truth be told, i'm a sucker for pizza- anytime of the day.  hence, why i'm now sharing a more traditional dinner pizza & a less traditional breakfast pizza.  enjoy!

recipes: wild mushroom pizza with truffle oil & my go-to breakfast pizza*

adjustments: for the wild mushroom, we did everything per the directions with the exception of replacing the cremini mushrooms with button mushrooms since that's all our local grocer had available. for the breakfast pizza, i used the dough recipe from the mushroom pizza and added some crushed garlic, fresh minced basil & thyme to the dough before letting it rise.  the dough was awesomely flavorful.

reviews: make this mushroom pizza and i guarantee you'll be making it again and again and again.  we used a pampered chef pizza stone, and why a. and i haven't had one of these in our kitchen repertoire is beyond me.  it made the crust crunchy & worlds better than your average oven baked pizza crust.  as for the breakfast pizza- i'm a fan of any opportunity to clean the fridge.  i love how easy it is to make this pizza and believe it or not, it tends to be an impressive breakfast entree should you have quests in town.  we don't make breakfast pizza often, but when we do, it's always a huge hit.

*for the breakfast pizza: assemble the dough per directions and while it's baking, sauté diced onions and pepper in olive oil.  scramble 4-6 eggs and once cooked, add tomatoes, black beans, cilantro, avocado, etc.  season with salt and pepper.  once crust is 90% cooked, pour egg mixture onto crust, top with cheese and put back in oven.  bake until cheese melts.  cool for 10 minutes and serve.

this was #14 & #15 of the bake 20 challenge...almost there!
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over the next five months i'm going to try my hand at 20 different baked goods.  there's no specific order and no plan.  just making things that look good and hopefully in the process, finding a new appreciation of baking.  feel free to join me in the Bake 20 Challenge.

bake 20: pumpkin pie

progress is being made.  slowly for sure, but i'm confident i'll reach my goal before the years end.  this pumpkin pie was one of the two pies i made for this year's thanksgiving dinner.  i'm a huge fan of pumpkin pie- so i knew this was one recipe i had to take on.  and i'm so glad i did.  now if only i had remembered to take a decent photo.

recipe: alton brown's pumpkin pie with this crust

adjustments: i chose to make a traditional crust since i used gingersnaps for the cheesecake.  aslo, i'm a huge fan of spicier pumpkin pie, so i doubled up on the spices in this recipe.  turns out i wasn't the only one who preferred a bit more kick, so it was a good decision.

review: if i say so myself, it was a great pie.  for some reason it was a bit mousse-ier than i remember pumpkin pie to be, but trust me, that wasn't an issue at all.  also, the added spice made the flavor awesome.

this was #13 of the bake 20 challenge.
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over the next five months i'm going to try my hand at 20 different baked goods.  there's no specific order and no plan.  just making things that look good and hopefully in the process, finding a new appreciation of baking.  feel free to join me in the Bake 20 Challenge.

bake 20: maple cheesecake with roasted pears.

knowing i still have a ways to go on this challenge, i offered to make dessert for thanksgiving dinner.  i opted for one traditional recipe, and one less so: a maple cheesecake with roasted pears.  i have to say, if there was a throw down between the two desserts, it would have been close- but this one definitely took the cake.  ha!

recipe: maple cheesecake with roasted pears with an easy press-in pie crust

adjustments: i didn't make any adjustments to the cheesecake but opted to use gingersnaps for the crust. gingersnaps are my favorite cookies- so anywhere i can add them, i will.  the springform pan i used was bigger than the recommended size, so the cheesecake was much thinner than i had hoped.  however, with 12 plus people, the thinner cake went much further than a standard cheesecake might have.

review:  awesome.  totally and unequivocally awesome.  everyone raved about this cheesecake and went back for seconds and thirds.  i was nervous about experimenting with a thanksgiving dessert, but the maple and pear and gingersnap flavors married well.  i think this cheesecake will become a holiday tradition.

this was #12 of the bake 20 challenge.
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over the next five months i'm going to try my hand at 20 different baked goods.  there's no specific order and no plan.  just making things that look good and hopefully in the process, finding a new appreciation of baking.  feel free to join me in the Bake 20 Challenge.

bake 20: mini apple empanadas.

here's a super-easy recipe for the holiday season.  you can honestly do this one of two ways: with homemade or store bought dough.  in my opinion, homemade dough makes everything better- however, that takes time...and that can be hard to come by during the holiday season.  the best part of this recipe?  you can use whatever filling you desire.  the possibilities are endless.

recipe: pie dough & apple filling

adjustments: well, i didn't make a full pie obviously, so i only made about half the filling recipe.  i then rolled out the pie dough and used a large round cookie cutter to press little circles into the dough.  then i added the filling, folded the dough over & pressed the edges down with a fork.  i over-filled the pies so unfortunately they cracked and spilled quite a bit during the baking process however, they were just as delish.

review: i love bite size morsels.  much like any pie, they were perfect with ice cream.  seeing how easy these were to make (especially with store bought pie dough), i'm excited about all the possibilities.

this was #11 of the bake 20 challenge.
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over the next five months i'm going to try my hand at 20 different baked goods.  there's no specific order and no plan.  just making things that look good and hopefully in the process, finding a new appreciation of baking.  feel free to join me in the Bake 20 Challenge.

bake 20: overnight sticky buns.

good news: this challenge has turned into a family affair!  after watching yet another episode of alton brown's good eats, a. was antsy to make something sweet.  we settled on sticky buns.  & i'm so glad we did.

recipe: overnight cinnamon rolls

adjustments: we had to make the dough twice.  the first dough didn't rise and after making the second dough, it looked as though it might have the same demise.  however, we moved the dough to the much-warmer upstairs, and the dough took off.  due to our dough issues, we actually didn't assemble to rolls until the morning.  but this was okay since everything turned out wonderfully.

review: while these take a long time (overnight to be exact), they're definitely worth the wait.  the rolls are gooey and perfect for an impressive breakfast.

this was #10 of the bake 20 challenge.
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over the next five months i'm going to try my hand at 20 different baked goods.  there's no specific order and no plan.  just making things that look good and hopefully in the process, finding a new appreciation of baking.  feel free to join me in the Bake 20 Challenge.

bake 20: pumpkin bread with cream cheese filling.

my sister, is a rock star.  knowing i needed some serious help to finish my bake 20 challenge, she offered to teach me a new and fantastically yummy fall recipe.  this pumpkin bread is not only delish, but so versatile   it makes a great bread, bundt cake, or even muffins.  despite the amount of ingredients & steps, it's also surprisingly simple.  one last awesome factor: it's perfect for the holidays.

pumpkin bread with cream cheese filling

for pumpkin bread:
3 cups flour
1 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
6 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp ground cloves
3 eggs
1 cup vegetable oil
2 cups sugar
2 cups canned pumpkin (or learn how to make your own)
3 tsp vanilla
1 cup chopped nuts, such as walnuts or pecans (optional)

cream cheese filling:
1 8 oz cream cheese, softened
1 egg
1/3 cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp lemon juice

streusel topping:
1/4 cup flour
1/4 cup light brown sugar
1 tsp ground cinnamon
pinch salt
1/4 stick of butter

directions:
preheat over to 325.  sift dry ingredients and set aside.  beat eggs in large bowl, slowly adding oil and sugar.  cream well.  add pumpkin puree and vanilla.  slowly add dry ingredients, mixing well.  add nuts.  chill batter in the fridge while making cream cheese frosting and streusel.

for the cream cheese filling, beat egg in large bowl.  add sugar and beat until combined.  add cream cheese, vanilla and lemon juice, beating until smooth.  set aside.

for streusel, mix dry ingredients together.  cut butter into the mixture.  mixture will be crumbly and sandy looking.  set aside in a cool, dry place.

spoon pumpkin batter into the bottom of buttered pans (two 4x8 inch loaf pans, one bundt pan, or four muffin tins), a little less than halfway.  create a well in the middle of the batter and add cream cheese frosting with a spoon.  add more pumpkin mixture on top of the cream cheese filling, filling the pans 3/4 of the way.  add streusel to the top of the bread/muffins and bake for about 1 hour, or until toothpick comes out clean.

note: when cooked, cream cheese frosting shouldn't be seen from the sides, only the center of the bread/muffins.

a huge thanks to lindsay for helping me get one step closer to my goal!

this was #9 of the bake 20 challenge.
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over the next five months i'm going to try my hand at 20 different baked goods.  there's no specific order and no plan.  just making things that look good and hopefully in the process, finding a new appreciation of baking.  feel free to join me in the Bake 20 Challenge.

bake 20: epic fail

i was debating whether or not i should share this bake 20 endeavor.  but after much speculation, realized blogging isn't all about the win- or at least this blog isn't.  it's about keeping it real.  and anyone who is learning how to bake, cook or just boil water, is bound to have a few kitchen failures under their belts.  this is one of mine.

recipe: an "easy" jalapeno-cheese bread

adjustments: none.  i followed the recipe to the letter.  after letting the dough sit for over an hour with no visible rise, i figured a loaf of bread wouldn't be the most successful decision.  so i opted to make biscuits.

review: the biscuits didn't rise in the oven and while their flavor was fantastic, they were a bit like hockey pucks. regardless, we enjoyed them with black bean chili & lucky for us, radley didn't mind the jalapenos.

this was #8 of the bake 20 challenge.

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over the next five months i'm going to try my hand at 20 different baked goods.  there's no specific order and no plan.  just making things that look good and hopefully in the process, finding a new appreciation of baking.  feel free to join me in the Bake 20 Challenge.

bake 20: the perfect apple pie

just in time for fall, the perfect apple pie (& crust).  one of our neighbors happens to be an excellent chef/baker and was super-excited to teach me the secrets behind a picture-perfect apple pie.  my only regret?  that i didn't take any photos during the process.  total blogger failure.  oh well, the pie turned out fabulously- and really, that's all that matters.

recipes: apple pie filling & apple pie crust

adjustments: we made the double crust recipe for this pie (bottom and top crusts) and for the filling, we actually added everything into a bowl and didn't cook the ingredients on the stove prior to adding it to the pie.  by doing this, we were able to pile the filling high to give the pie that story-book effect.  i also omitted the nutmeg from the filling.  not that i have an aversion to it or anything, we just chose not to use it.  for the apples i used a combination of granny smith and cortland.  & since i love tart pies, so we also went easy on the sugar.

review: from the minute we pulled it out of the oven, the pie was gorgeous.  picture-perfect, golden, and smelled like heaven.  i brought it to game night and everyone loved it.  i would love to find a reliable crust recipe that doesn't require crisco for future pies...so i'll be on the hunt for that.  otherwise, the crust was flaky, had nice flavor and the tart apple filling would have perfectly complimented vanilla ice cream.

this was #7 of the bake 20 challenge.

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over the next five months i'm going to try my hand at 20 different baked goods.  there's no specific order and no plan.  just making things that look good and hopefully in the process, finding a new appreciation of baking.  feel free to join me in the Bake 20 Challenge.

bake 20: german chocolate mini cake

last week my dad celebrated his birthday.  while we couldn't be there to join him in the festivities, we did celebrate on a small scale, in our own way & in his honor.  

in general, my dad isn't a huge fan of chocolate.  he can usually take it or leave it- but in all seriousness, who leaves it?!?  however, every year, on his birthday, my mom baked my dad his all-time favorite cake- german chocolate.  

wanting to do something special from afar, i decided to try my hand at this annual delicacy.

recipe: baker's german chocolate cake (i actually used the one from the chocolate box)

adjustments: wanting to make this cake perfect for two people, i opted to use this technique for the perfect mini-cake & fell in love.  like seriously.  not only does it produce an absolutely adorable cake, it's the perfect size for a family of 2 to 4 people.  the mini cake technique is a total keeper in our house.

review: perfect & just as i remembered.  eating a piece brought back a flood of childhood memories around the dinner table honoring one of the coolest men i know.  it's pretty rad that tastes & scents can transport you through time so quickly.

ps. happy belated birthday dad! xoxo

pps. this is #6 of the bake 20 challenge.

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over the next five months i'm going to try my hand at 20 different baked goods.  there's no specific order and no plan.  just making things that look good and hopefully in the process, finding a new appreciation of baking.  feel free to join me in the Bake 20 Challenge.

bake 20: grapefruit pound cake.

this past february, one of my beloved co-workers came into the office raving about a fantastic grapefruit cake she found in the most recent cooking light magazine.  since i tend to lean towards all things citrus, i knew this was the perfect recipe for me. the only problem, and as mentioned before 400 thousand times, i'm not much of a baker.  so the recipe sat, tucked away in one of my favorite cookbooks, waiting to be found. 

last weekend, we had a small dinner party with a couple of our neighbors.  i made our famous fish tacos complete with spanish rice and beans.  but for dessert, i was struggling to find something that would compliment this baja menu.  & then i remembered the grapefruit pound cake.

recipe: grapefruit pound cake

adjustments: i didn't make any changes to the batter, but did decide to cook it in a bundt pan.  for the glaze, i doubled the juice and only once i was in the glaze-making process, did i realize i didn't have enough powdered sugar.  so i used what i had for a juicier glaze.

review: wow.  this cake is rockin'.  it's moist and light and perfectly satisfying.  everyone loved the first bite and later, helped themselves to more.  this cake will be made again.  probably in the very near future.

this is #5 of the bake 20 challenge.

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over the next five months i'm going to try my hand at 20 different baked goods.  there's no specific order and no plan.  just making things that look good and hopefully in the process, finding a new appreciation of baking.  feel free to join me in the Bake 20 Challenge.

bake 20: homemade pop tarts.

yep, you read this correctly.  i made my own pop tarts!  & know what?  they're like 3,000 times better than the store-bought versions.

on sunday, i had a sudden urge to bake something.  i'm actively trying to make some of the many recipes i'm pinning these days, so when the urge arrived, i made my way to the fantastic world we call pinterest.  once in my archives, i knew the minute i saw the pin, homemade pop tarts were the something i wanted to make.

recipe: i found this recipe via smitten kitchen

adjustments: considering this was my first time making puff pastry from scratch, i would have done a few things differently.  the only salt i had on hand was sea salt.  colossal mistake.  while the pastry tastes ah-mazing, it's a bit too salty & there are random salt chunks in unsuspecting bites.  considering i opted to make the sweet version of these, saltier isn't better.  also, i chose to mix the dough by hand.  next time, i'm going to pulse it in a food processor.  i think this would have yielded a more consistent dough and quite honestly, much less of a mess.  i will say this, mixing by hand is therapeutic as long as your anxiety doesn't return when you're scraping butter from your fingers with the side of a bowl.

review: unbelievable.  i opted to use fresh fruit in the center of my pop tarts (peach & fig) and am i glad i did.  the puff pastry is flaky and when baking, they make your whole home smell like yummy goodness (the perfect, we're-trying-to-sell-a-home scent) & when toasted, (in a toaster oven of course) your home once again reminds you of your favorite bakery.  these are definitely a keeper.  i can't wait to experiment with different fillings (both sweet and savory) & continue practicing the art of pastry dough.

this is item #4 of my bake 20 in 2012 challenge.  i still have a long way to go!

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over the next five months i'm going to try my hand at 20 different baked goods.  there's no specific order and no plan.  just making things that look good and hopefully in the process, finding a new appreciation of baking.  feel free to join me in the Bake 20 Challenge.

bake 20: healthy carrot bran muffins.

unfortunately, we didn't have much of a weekend.  i worked a wedding on friday and saturday while a. spent the day finishing up his flight hours* and prepping our home for an open house.

however, on sunday, after dragging our tired butts out of bed, we managed to pack a whole lot of r&r and some much needed quality time into 24 hours.  after almost 11 months since a. returned home from afghanistan, we're still cherishing every minute we have together.  while a. is getting out of the army at the end of this month, there's still so much uncertainty with what the future holds for us & with that, we've vowed to embrace this time and enjoy one another's company.

even though it was ridiculously hot, i braved a bake 20 challenge and decided to try my hand at this healthy muffin recipe.  we are doing our best to eat local, whole, and healthy & figured a hearty but yummy muffin would be a nice way to start the day.  

adjustments: i substituted wheat bran for the wheat germ only because i didn't have any germ on hand & chose to use golden raisins opposed to the california brown raisins, due to taste preferences.

review: these are fantastic but don't expect them to be sweet at all.  they are hearty, moist and satisfying; the perfect little breakfast treat.  due to the lack of sweetness, we spread honey on them and man, that made everything that much better.  for the next batch, i'll consider adding a tablespoon (or two) of honey to the batter.

*a. is almost finished getting fixed-wing private pilot license.  by next weekend, he should be an official airplane pilot!

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over the next five months i'm going to try my hand at 20 different baked goods.  there's no specific order and no plan.  just baking things that look good and hopefully in the process, finding a new appreciation of baking.  feel free to join me in the Bake 20 Challenge.