Day ELEVEN: Top-Of-The-Morning Cinnamon Rolls

I started to feel like baking was becoming a chore, rather than the adventure it first felt like. So in my efforts to make it adventurous again, I took a break for a few days and rekindled my love for the hobby.

A few days ago, right before my epiphany, I tried making dough for homemade cinnamon rolls. I had a hard time getting the dough to rise, so I threw it in the fridge and figured I'd take it out later and dissect the problem. Later turned into five days. Sue told me I may have killed the yeast when I was mixing the butter, milk and water together. The recipe calls for the mix to be between 120-130 degrees. I checked mine and found it at 140 and rising. I didn't think that would make that big of a difference, but it really DOES matter. I decided to scratch the old dough in the fridge and start over completely.

Today, I gathered almost all of the ingredients I'd need and headed over to Sarahbeth's house for our baking extravaganza! I started with the dough to allow it enough time to rise. An hour and a half later, it doubled in size! Good thing SB was monitoring the warmth of the mix... it was perfect. As I rolled out the dough and added the butter and cinnamon/sugar, I started to get excited. I think it's because I've never made a dough before! I rolled it up in one long 'log' and cut it into one inch sections. It looked so pretty! I threw it in the oven later and after it cooled, I brushed on the glaze mixture (honey and melted butter). I was a tad disappointed with them as they were a little dry. Next time, MORE BUTTER!

I have seven cinnamon rolls left in the fridge. Maybe tomorrow morning I'll revise them a bit before baking. We will see how they turn out!

Day TEN: Cheese Squares

When I picked this recipe, I had now idea what I was up against. I've never made cheesecake or anything even close to it, so I was a little nervous. You always hear these HORROR stories about cheesecake recipes... it was mushy, the texture was off or the flavor wasn't right. But to my surprise, it turned out pretty fabulous! There's a layer of crust made with ground walnuts, the cheesecake filling, and then the crust again as the topping. The only thing I might change next time is replace that top layer with fresh strawberries. YUM. I took it to Starbucks this morning and Jeremy, Rob and April really enjoyed it! It always feels good when others like what you've made.

This recipe's a keeper :)

Day NINE: Applecake

Besides seeing cutouts or actual recipes from magazines, when gma hand wrote them into her notebooks, I have no way of knowing if they are really HER recipes or someone else's. All of these are 'hers' in my opinion. She made and shared them with others!

Today I made an applecake. Who doesn't love a warm apple dish? I started with the batter for the cake and then sliced apples very thin to lay over it. For the topping it was just brown sugar, butter and cinnamon. I figured, that sounds pretty great right?!

WRONG!

It was pretty much inedible. I brought it over to Sarahbeth's to try (Kim also stopped by for a slice) and we all agreed that it was not good. I can't blame myself... I just did what the recipe told me to do! But boy, this one was gross.

I ended up tossing the rest. I guess they all can't be spectacular!

Day EIGHT: Crispy Polynesian Butterscotch Cookies

I know, I know... cookies again. But I saw the ingredients and decided I HAD to take them on. They have oatmeal, corn flakes, butterscotch and walnuts in them... YUM! The recipe also calls for coconut, but I accidentally forgot it. I found this recipe in one of gma's many spiral bound notebooks. It was from the newspaper, so of course she had it taped in there. :)

The batter was a little runnier than the chocolate chip cookies, so I wasn't sure how they'd turn out in terms of consistency. They ended up pretty flat, but tasted AMAZING. I prefer my cookies a little crunchy on the outside and chewy on the inside, but these were a good 'crispy' consistency. I suppose that's how they should be, it's in the name! The remaining almost three dozen went to work with me and I think they really enjoyed them. One stated that they were "diabetes waiting to happen". That made me laugh, because that MUST make them good!

This is definitely a recipe I'll be repeating in the future! Thanks, Grandma!! :)

Day SEVEN: Chocolate Chip Cookies

Feeling a bit behind because of our trip, I decided to double up on the recipes last night. I was especially excited for this recipe because I have been making Sarahbeth's choc chip cookies for a while now and I was eager to compare the two. Grandma's cookies were really good! They tasted very similar, just a difference in texture. I tried taking them out early and letting them flatten on the cookie sheet, but they didn't get as flat as I would've liked. Either way, they were still a little crispy on the outside, chewy on the inside. I made three dozen and Jon took them to work today. I like being the 'cool' wife who bakes for the guys... AND it spares me the calories :)

Day SIX: Lemon Bars

Lemon bars... Mmm. Need I say more?? :)

Lemon bars have always been a favorite of mine and I especially LOVE my grandma's recipe! Some are made with just two layers: a crust and a filling with powdered sugar on top. Gma's are made with three layers: a crust, filling, AND a glaze.

As I was reading her recipe, I noticed she didn't note how many bars (or what size pan) it yields. I decided to use a 2-qt oblong Pyrex because I didn't want a 9x13 pan to go to waste. When I was pouring the crust into the pan, I noticed there was a LOT there... so I cut back the amount. After it baked, it grew higher! I pat it into the pan, hoping to flatten it. Then I prepared the filling to the same thickness. I let it cool and glazed the top. The taste was spot on, but the crust ratio was still a bit much. Now I know for next time, the recipe yields a 9x13 pan. I wasn't sure if it needed to be refrigerated right away but Jon suggested I should.

Well, I took it out this morning and it didn't look very appetizing. The glaze looked a little off and the crust was chewy. I was totally disappointed and now I have to throw the rest away. Boo.

It was the first time I had ever made lemon bars and I didn't do my gma's recipe justice. I'm disappointed, to say the least. I guess I know what to do and what NOT to do next time...

- The first picture is me attempting to get a 'pretty' shot of a lemon bar.
- The second is me attempting to cut from the middle to make the 'perfect bar'. It didn't go quite the way I wanted. Oh brother...

Vacation

Hey everyone!

My family and I are taking a 2-day trip to the Dells starting tomorrow! We're so excited to get away and spend some family time together. I will return on Tuesday with another spectacular Patty creation. I love you all and thanks for following!!

Mo

Day FIVE: Layered Banana Pineapple Dessert

Today I thought I would give the old oven a much needed break. As you know, she has been working overtime lately. I also wanted to incorporate some much needed nutrition into today's recipe. Bananas, sugar, pineapple, whip cream, strawberries.... you know, all the necessities! haha

It was fun making something that didn't involve the temperature in my house to rise. And it looks so pretty! The recipe was easy, quick and didn't require me to learn new vocabulary either. I don't remember my grandma ever baking this one, but it was another handwritten recipe. Ahh, I love it :) It didn't call for the strawberries on top, but I figured it would look pretty and of course, taste good too. I took some to the Torke residence and I plan on sharing more tomorrow. It's a very refreshing dessert... I give it a B. But I didn't eat dinner, so the three bites I had of it were REALLY GOOD!

Day FOUR: Carrot Cake

After yesterday's small glitch with my ingredients, I figured it was time for a trip to the grocery store. As I unpacked the groceries, I realized I forgot a key component in my recipe today. Where is my head lately?! So rather than make another trip, I switched days and did Grandma's carrot cake today.

It's been years since I've had it, but I always remembered it being moist and delicious. The recipe calls for 'grated' carrots. First of all, do I own a grater? Yes. Ok, so how am I going to grate baby carrots?? Jon laughed, "Why would you buy those for grating?" haha ...I didn't buy them, I knew we had them at home, so I thought "I'll figured it out"! Then I remembered our food processor. PERFECT! It 'grated' three cups of carrots in 10 seconds. NICE! As I skimmed through the recipe, I saw that it called for salad oil. What the heck is that?! And dates... ok, is that a vegetable or a fruit? THEN she tells me to grease a tube pan. What?! I don't remember eating carrot cake that was shaped like a tube! Grandma Val to the rescue...

Salad oil = vegetable oil
Dates are a fruit.
Tube pan = bundt pan

If anything, I'm actually learning something on my journey. I LOOOOVE my grandma's old vocabulary. I would never have known any of those terms if it weren't for these recipes. Who knows, I might need that info somewhere down the line. In fact, I find myself sounding more and more like her with age in her silly sayings or phrases. I love her :)

Carrot cake with cream cheese frosting was a hit! I was fortunate enough to 'deliver' a little piece of Grandma to a few people today. Blessing my friends with Grandma's food means so much to me. I want to live and breath her through these recipes. I just wish she were here when I have questions about them. I know she would've got a kick out of me thinking I would actually bake the bread in a tube. Jon's not a fan of carrot cake, but I give it an A!

Day THREE: Peanut Butter Cookies?

I learned a few things today as I was baking...

1. Have ALL of the ingredients on hand.
2. If you're going to substitute an ingredient, know what you're doing!
3. Read the recipe CORRECTLY!!

I came across Grandma's peanut butter cookie recipe. As I skimmed through the ingredients, I noticed I didn't have lard. What can substitute for lard? Crisco? Well I didn't have any of that. Butter? I only had one stick left and it was already being used in the recipe. Oh boy, I really wanted to make this work! So I decided to add 1/4 cup applesauce. A lot of people do that in place of butter because it's healthier. I did it out of desperation. After I mixed the first few ingredients, I realized that I was short on peanut butter too. After scraping every lick of peanut butter out of the container, I was still short. Man, I was definitely not on top of my game tonight.

Kim and Joe stopped over for a bit and I put her to work. I know, I'm a horrible friend, but I was desperate. She said my batter was stickier than normal. Probably because it was too warm. She helped me roll the dough into balls and dip them in sugar... boy, was she a lifesaver! I'd still be baking those things if it weren't for her help!

4.5 dozen cookies later... the taste test.

Kim: They're good, but they don't taste much like peanut butter.
Mo: I never told you, but I was short on peanut butter.
(We all had a good laugh.)

Joe said he liked them, but his opinion doesn't count. He'll eat anything! Jon gave them a B+ but said they might have been an A- if he were really hungry. He's so funny. I thought they were pretty good. They didn't taste like Grandma's, but they were close! :)

Day TWO: Crumb Cake

I LOVE paging through my grandma's recipes. Some of her books have tabs marking her favorites, others have little notes by them. "Great!" or "Try this!" There are also loose recipes in between. It was a little overwhelming, but as I saw her handwriting and read her little notes, it was as if she never left...

I knew I wouldn't have a ton of time to bake something today, so as I thumbed through her recipes I found something that looked easy. Crumb Cake. This time, it was a newspaper clipping that she cut out and taped to her lined notebook (she's adorable). It looked pretty easy and I knew I had the ingredients on hand, so I baked it and took it to work with me.

It was a typical crumb/coffee cake. A little plain with cinnamon crumbles on top. Not bad, but not the most SPECTACULAR dish I've ever baked. They liked it, but the girls told me to stop bringing desserts or I'll make them fat. haha! Sorry ladies, it's only day TWO! I stopped at Sarahbeth's so she could have a slice. No complaints there. Jon gave it a solid B. Fair score.

I'm excited to keep going!

Day ONE: Banana Bread

I thought I'd bake my very favorite of my grandma's recipes on the first day of this journey. Banana bread. It is HANDS DOWN the best banana bread I have ever had. It's moist, tasty and is deliciously fattening. That's what I call PERFECTION! I decided to double the recipe because I had a ton of rotten bananas to utilize... and wah lah! A bundt pan and loaf pan later, was the familiar look and smell of grandma's delicious bread. Well the smell was right on, as was the taste... but the look was only familiar to me. A tad dark on the outside edges. This was never the case for Grandma's bread so why does this happen to me? I actually Googled my problem and it says to use lighter colored bakeware or adjust the temp throughout the allotted baking time. Neither of which I tried. Like I said, the taste is spot on, it's just a little dark on the outside.

Day one: complete. I'm excited to take this journey and I'm up for the challenge! It's going to be fun going down memory lane through my grandma's cookbooks, but also very emotional. My head is already pounding today and crying only intensified it. It's hard missing her and I hope that a little bit of healing will come with this challenge...

Here we go... enjoy the ride! :)