Summer Fruit Galette...

Another easy recipe using available fruits! I think my fruit, Pluots, were too ripe as the crust sprang a leak and the juices oozed out, (note to self, use a lipped sheet next time). Although it wasn't as pretty as I would have liked it did not last very long. It tasted great, I like Dorie's pie dough, it is easy to roll out. I found my splatter screen was 13" and one of the pot lids was 8 1/2" which made measuring a snap. I decided I needed to make another galette and used nectarines that were firm. This made a much better presentation, but the dough still leaked a bit, not as much as last time. I liked the ginger marmalade, it went well with the fruits I chose. The bottom of the galette stayed crisp, that was nice. This recipe is so easy for Summer parties, I have decided to make 2 double batches of the pie dough and freeze them so I can put one of these together in just a short time after the dough thaws. I may add additional flour to the dough and see if that helps the leaking; will not use as much custard either as that may have contributed to the problem. All in all a VERY good recipe and everyone who received a piece liked it very much. Thank you to Michelle in Colorado Springs, for a winner!

My New Love, Friands...

I found a post about a tutorial on making French Macaroons, went to the site and found an online Dessert Magazine (free) with incredible dessert recipes and photos. The first recipe to catch my eye was Summer Berry Friands, WOW. These were quick to put together, and tasted wonderful. I could not find friand pans and was not paying $3 - $4 for timbal pans, for a recipe I had never tried; so, at Crate & Barrel they had 2.75 ounce condiment cups for .95 cents. I bought 8 and they worked great! I have since found silicone friand sheets for $18.00 and may purchase them that way. The tutorial for the macaroons is informative and I plan on making some soon.

Ready for the oven...

Just finished baking!

Cherry Rhubarb Cobbler...

This was a quick and easy recipe! Thank you to Amanda from Like Sprinkles on a Cupcake for choosing a fun recipe. I was not sure if I wanted to make this one or not; I have never liked rhubarb and my mom always made me eat it. She grew it in the backyard and then stewed it, yuck. The first few bites were OK, then a weird tart taste and then no way it was going down my throat, but I figured if Dorie made something with rhubarb it must be good, hopefully. The cherry rhubarb combination was very good, I think I would use more ginger next time because it didn't come through as much as I would have liked, maybe some fresh grated would be a nice addition. I added a teaspoon of Kirsch (cherry liquor) and I would add more next time, if I make it again. My husband liked the cobbler but felt the topping lacked something, again the ginger was not as pronunced as we would have liked, maybe the addition of cinnamon or allspice or maybe cardamon. It tasted too much like wheat bread for us, just our taste buds I guess; I might try all regular flour next time, just to please our palate.

Saturday's Show...

Tomorrow is my big day, I have been dieting for 16 weeks, working out 6 days a week for 7 months and doing cardio 2 x 45 minutes 7 days a week for 10 weeks, whew! Looking forward to some cheat meals next week and baking more often. I have finally figured out that life is a balance between what you want to do and what you should do. These competitions keep me in check and give me a goal to work towards a couple of time a year. I will be taking the rest of the year off from competition and will be working on next year; I am planning on 2 shows in March and 1 in October. That means I can get through the holidays not having to diet so hard, that's not fun. Anyway, will post on Tuesday, I have already made the Cherry Rhubarb Cobbler, taken pictures and just have to put it all together in the post.

Chocolate Pudding

This is my first TWD recipe and it turned out great! My DH gets to eat the lions share of the pudding; and from his comments after eating the first ramekin I don't think it will last very long. I like using the bittersweet chocolate because the pudding did not have that cloyingly sweet taste. I made the recipe as written but did have a problem with too much liquid in the food processor. Dorie's directions indicated to add the warm milk mixture slowly while the processor was running; I have a 14 cup food processor and I had to stop adding the milk or it would have overflowed. I had just under 1 cup more milk to add, so I just finished the whole pudding in the sauce pan with no problems. I topped the pudding with unsweetened whipped cream and grated a bit of bittersweet chocolate on top. This would be excellent in a tart or pie shell, with whipped cream on top! I think I will use chocolate with coffee flavor next time for a different taste.







Getting Ready...





Cooking...











Ready for the refrigerator...

Skor Toffee Baking Bits

I have been looking all over for Skor Baking Bits, they have disappeared from all my local markets. I checked with Hershey and they informed me they are no longer available in markets. What would we do without the Internet? A quick search and there they were; of course I had to buy 12 lbs., LOL. I have frozen 9 lbs. and the rest are in sealed bags; at least I have the toffee bits. I like to put them in chocolate chip cookies, sprinkle them on frosting or ice cream sundaes.

Chocolate Pudding ala Dorie

I have gathered all my ingredients and will be making the pudding tomorrow. I was glad I read the comments and checked the size of my food processor. Fridays I finish early and can bake all I want, I usually leave work around 10 am, but I start at 5 am, which means I get up at 3:45, LOL. It's very humid here today, something we are not used to in Southern California; yes, we are weather weenies. I'm still eating very clean and have only 9 days to go for my competition. Can't wait for French Toast Sunday morning, then we can go to the fair the following week, yummmmmm! Anyway, my DH is looking forward to the Chocolate Pudding and is quite happy I joined TWD. I will try to catch up on previous reciped as best I can, till tomorrow, happy eating!

My New Oven...

Finally, I have a new oven! My old one cooked so uneven it was frustrating to say the least; everything took twice as long to cook. I can't believe the features this oven has, 7 baking levels, 3 racks and a proofing feature for yeast breads and such. My DH said we should make sure it worked and maybe I should make some brownies, LOL! Yes, it worked and they were done at the time the recipe indicated. I compete in figure competitions and my next one is in 2 weeks. I can't have anything good to eat, just clean eating for a few more days; but wait until it's over, I will be baking all the time. Well, not all the time, I still have to eat healthy. Don't get me wrong, I don't make recipes healther, I make them with full butter, sugar and such. Desserts or treats are just not an everyday occurance, so when I make them, I enjoy them! Today is the 4th of July and I am making a 3 berry crisp; yes, (I know I shouldn't), I will have a small serving, it is a holiday afterall.