How I bake

[conuly]

It's often said that in order to be a good baker, you have to follow recipes. Precisely.

That's not exactly true, though. It's mostly true (which is why it's better to bake using scales instead of measuring cups, as you get the same amount of flour/sugar/baking powder every time, which isn't the case when working by volume), but it's not completely true.

I am an experimental baker. Every time I bake something, I end up tossing something different into the batter. Maybe it's a small thing, like using brown sugar instead of white (it's not healthier, I just think it tastes better). Or it's a big thing - like realizing I have a cup of applesauce to use up and deciding to toss it in, then deciding that what this batch of oatmeal cookies (with applesauce!) really needs is some peanut butter*, yeah!

Sometimes, the results can only be described as interesting. Other times, I only wish I'd bothered to write this shit down, because I have no idea how to replicate the results. Most of the time, though, it comes out okay - not fantabuliffic, but perfectly edible and yummy, and maybe a little better than the original.

This is also teaching me more about what the various ingredients do, too. Adding bananas makes it moister, adding flaked coconut makes it drier, and soy milk doesn't boil so you can't make rice pudding with it.

So, if you're tired of your dull baking routine, I suggest you take a page from my book. Start a batch of cookies, then, midway through, go to your pantry or fridge, close your eyes, pick something at random - and then decide if it's worth the risk to toss it into your cookies. (Hint: If it's anchovies, you should probably pass.) You might be surprised.

*_{This is how I found out that peanut butter burns at a lower temperature than margarine.}

Comments

[ladyshrew.livejournal.com]

Have you had anchovy cookies before? :-D

And another thing not to add to cookies are Skittles.

[conuly]

Well, garlic cookies turned out to be not so bad (if you totally ignored what you'd put into them! The garlic made them very moist)

[ladyshrew.livejournal.com]

That is . . . disturbing!

[conuly]

We made it in Kidz Cook. I sat there going "Are you *sure* it says *garlic*? until Johanna snapped at me "Yes! I can read!" and even then, I wasn't convinced.

[ladyshrew.livejournal.com]

LOL. Yeaaaaaaaaaah.

[sayga.livejournal.com]

i bake like you. if i feel like being "healthier" i decrease the sugar. once i was making zuchinni bread and added a cup of shredded carrots. it was great and i do it like that every time now. a TBSP of peanutbutter in my oatmeal cookies makes them chewy. a couple big spoonfuls of Nutella makes them really dry and not so good.

[kibbles.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I made bacon brown betty once. That's not what it was SUPPOSED to be but that's what it was dubbed.

Cooks Illustrated magazine, and America's Best Recipes cookbook is EXCELLENT for explaining what different things do, why they work, why something else works differently, and so on. That's why its my favorite.

[pne.livejournal.com]

This is also teaching me more about what the various ingredients do, too.

Yeah.

I mean, how do you think you came up with all these different recipes? Handed down on Mount Sinai on stone tablets?

More likely people experimenting, trying things out, see what works, and telling others about their wacky new creation.

[failstoexist.livejournal.com]

that method reminds me a lot of alton brown's food network show (good eats) where he discusses the science of the cooking and how to make a food item that is more/less of a certain quality using different ingredients/temperatures/tools. it's fascinating, really.

[ladyshrew.livejournal.com]

Have you had anchovy cookies before? :-D

And another thing not to add to cookies are Skittles.

[conuly]

Well, garlic cookies turned out to be not so bad (if you totally ignored what you'd put into them! The garlic made them very moist)

[ladyshrew.livejournal.com]

That is . . . disturbing!

[conuly]

We made it in Kidz Cook. I sat there going "Are you *sure* it says *garlic*? until Johanna snapped at me "Yes! I can read!" and even then, I wasn't convinced.

[ladyshrew.livejournal.com]

LOL. Yeaaaaaaaaaah.

[sayga.livejournal.com]

i bake like you. if i feel like being "healthier" i decrease the sugar. once i was making zuchinni bread and added a cup of shredded carrots. it was great and i do it like that every time now. a TBSP of peanutbutter in my oatmeal cookies makes them chewy. a couple big spoonfuls of Nutella makes them really dry and not so good.

[kibbles.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I made bacon brown betty once. That's not what it was SUPPOSED to be but that's what it was dubbed.

Cooks Illustrated magazine, and America's Best Recipes cookbook is EXCELLENT for explaining what different things do, why they work, why something else works differently, and so on. That's why its my favorite.

[pne.livejournal.com]

This is also teaching me more about what the various ingredients do, too.

Yeah.

I mean, how do you think you came up with all these different recipes? Handed down on Mount Sinai on stone tablets?

More likely people experimenting, trying things out, see what works, and telling others about their wacky new creation.

[failstoexist.livejournal.com]

that method reminds me a lot of alton brown's food network show (good eats) where he discusses the science of the cooking and how to make a food item that is more/less of a certain quality using different ingredients/temperatures/tools. it's fascinating, really.