Baking Again

While the kitchen is smaller than I am used to, I have been baking more. There is something to be said for a small kitchen that is well organized. Mostly that it is not my kitchen. Smaller can be better and I am working my way towards getting it organized as best I can. It does have a pantry and a place for our chest freezer and I am so thankful for that!

I was so worried about baking at high altitude. I read up on it and found there are several things you can do to compensate. Since the air pressure is less here the water boils at a lower temp and we have to brew our tea for a longer time. Tea is all sorted. As for baking the goods are going to raise quickly and easily due to less air pressure, pressing back on it. You want the baked goods to not rise quite as much and set faster. So this means less leaveners, and a higher oven temp. Both of those have been easy to do. I just tap off a bit more of the leaveners and raised the oven temp by five degrees. Since it is dry here I have been adding a bit more liquid than I had to in wet Oregon. Not really measured just splash, splash, wetter dough.

First up for Christmas I made my beloved dinner rolls. For these I just made sure I had a wetter dough. They were deemed worthy.

Also since it is dry here it is best to get things bagged up and not sit around too long. By dry I mean we have less than 20% humidity in here some days. I know I am getting a few humidifiers and you may want to invest in lotion company stock because I will be buying more! 

I found a bookstore while out and about one day. It may not be Powell's but it does have some local interesting books. There is a recipe for Sopapillas in it. Sopapillas are puffed up fried dough usually served with honey. They are the best local food item I have found. Yeah the chiles are wonderful here and you get asked red or green, but the Sopapillas and honey? Pure heaven. 

Next up D thought we should try baking in the bread machine and see if that is different. Once again we had to add water while it was mixing but it came out fine. Maybe not perfect but still tasty and able to make some nice sandwiches.

But my true victory and love Pumpkin Bread! And I had eggs this time so none of that weird peanut butter as a binding agent pumpkin bread. That stuff tasted like peanut butter bread and fooled no one. It was fine but peanut butter tastes like peanut butter no matter what you mix it with and why you mix it in.

Back to my favorite bread. Yum yum. I am so happy that D went vegetarian for a few years because it made him try different foods that he never would have touched before. My major bonus from that time? He likes nuts in baked goods now. I never realized how much I missed them till I got them back. I am still thinking twice about putting raisins in pumpkin bread like this recipe lists as an option. I may try it and love it but not happening for a while!

We both agree my scones are better here. Something about the higher temp gives a caramelized shell that I like. He just likes a more baked scone. 

I made some gingerbread alpaca cookies but the decorating just looks horrible so they are tasty enough to eat but not to post I guess. Gingersnaps are on my to bake list but I like a softer cookie so these may not live up to the Great British Bake Off snap standard. When I am baking for me and D that should be OK right?

Unrelated but I do have to brag that I finally once again am caught up in my knitting journal. I feel so put together when that happens! I also have one and a half socks to show for my knitting efforts so far. Not a pair but a sock. Oh well I'm happy so that is all that matters.