Baking. Or rather, learning how to bake. I quit smoking after years of cynical enthusiasm, so I needed something else to do with time that would otherwise be occupied by coating my lungs with a fine layer of delicious tar and carcinogens. Well, okay...and I love food. Hehe.
So besides the random posts and gardening photos, I will be posting recipes that have turned out well for me with a picture of how it turned out. If I can do it, anyone can. ;) I will also make tags, because in this economy using whatever is in the cupboard is awesome, but rifling through a recipe book trying to find something to make with buttermilk for instance is a huge pain in the tookus.
That said, let's rock. ;)
BUTTERMILK COFFEE CAKE
Reference: Better Home & Gardens New Baking Book w/ variation.
Prep: 30 minutes Bake: 35 minutes
Makes: 18 servings Oven: 350°
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups packed brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
2/3 cup butter or shortening
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
2 beaten eggs
1 1/3 cups buttermilk
1/2 cup chopped nuts (I used almonds)
1/4 teaspoon almond extract* (My special addition. It was an awesome idea.)
1. Grease the bottom and 1/2 inch up sides of a 13 x 9 x 2-inch baking pan; aside. In a large mixing bowl combine flour, brown sugar and salt. Cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. If this kind of confuses you, you can use a fork or just caveman it up and use your paws like I did. Set aside 1/2 of the cup crumb mixture, because you're gonna use it for topping later. Stir baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and nutmeg into the remaining crumb mixture.
2. In a small mixing bowl combine eggs and buttermilk. Buttermilk smells like @$%, so you want to go ahead and John Wayne through this stage and just get it done. Add egg mixture once it's all mixed and light yellow to dry mixture, mix well. Last minute, add that almond extract. Man, this stuff will make your kitchen smell great and as an added bonus make it scrumdiddlyumptious. Spoon batter into the prepared pan. Stir together reserved crumb mixture and nuts. Sprinkle over batter. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 35 to 40 minutes or until a wooden toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Serve warm and expect it to be devoured within a day. It is easy to make and seriously good. :)
Currently listening to: Patti Smith - "Land: Horses/Land of a Thousand Dances/La Mer (de)"
Current reads: "The Mystery of Grace", Charles De Lint
"The Reader", Bernhard Schlink
"The Lives They Left Behind: Suitcases from a State Hospital Attic", Darby Penney
Makes: 18 servings Oven: 350°
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups packed brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
2/3 cup butter or shortening
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
2 beaten eggs
1 1/3 cups buttermilk
1/2 cup chopped nuts (I used almonds)
1/4 teaspoon almond extract* (My special addition. It was an awesome idea.)
1. Grease the bottom and 1/2 inch up sides of a 13 x 9 x 2-inch baking pan; aside. In a large mixing bowl combine flour, brown sugar and salt. Cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. If this kind of confuses you, you can use a fork or just caveman it up and use your paws like I did. Set aside 1/2 of the cup crumb mixture, because you're gonna use it for topping later. Stir baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and nutmeg into the remaining crumb mixture.
2. In a small mixing bowl combine eggs and buttermilk. Buttermilk smells like @$%, so you want to go ahead and John Wayne through this stage and just get it done. Add egg mixture once it's all mixed and light yellow to dry mixture, mix well. Last minute, add that almond extract. Man, this stuff will make your kitchen smell great and as an added bonus make it scrumdiddlyumptious. Spoon batter into the prepared pan. Stir together reserved crumb mixture and nuts. Sprinkle over batter. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 35 to 40 minutes or until a wooden toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Serve warm and expect it to be devoured within a day. It is easy to make and seriously good. :)
Currently listening to: Patti Smith - "Land: Horses/Land of a Thousand Dances/La Mer (de)"
Current reads: "The Mystery of Grace", Charles De Lint
"The Reader", Bernhard Schlink
"The Lives They Left Behind: Suitcases from a State Hospital Attic", Darby Penney
No comments:
Post a Comment