52 Weeks of Baking
My dad loves berry pies, so had to make him one for Father's Day. Fresh seasonal items used were blueberries and lemons (picked from my tree). The rosemary was from my yard too, but that thing grows year round 😋
Other berries used were the frozen Costco mix of blackberries, raspberries, strawberries, cherries and pomegranate, on a homemade crust.
The ice cream was a custard base, with rosemary steeped in the milk & cream. I like experimenting with unique flavors of ice cream, and this one was a hit with my family.
[Image description: a close up of a slice of double crust berry pie with a dollop of melting ice cream on top.]
Recipe. I used regular honey and added toasted walnuts.
Hi bakers! This week marks our second seasonal ingredients challenge. Showcase something that is in season where you live (or, barring that, something that is themed on the season it is where you live). If you're not sure what's in season where you are there are tons of resources online, or you might even hit a local farmer's market and choose something!
For example,,,
Simple Cherry Cake - Using fresh cherries which are currently in season in New York
Easy Kiwi Tart - Kiwi is in season in New Zealand
Lychee Baked Yogurt - Lychee (aka litchi) is in season in India now
I just read that the original tollhouse recipe from the 70s had water in it, so I added some. Presumably that's the way Grandma would have been accustomed to them. Mom said these were one of her faves.
Recipe. My crust had yeast in it because I forgot the nature of the challenge.
Hi bakers! This week's challenge is Celebration of Life, where we celebrate the life of a loved one by making something they love/d. This can be for someone who has or has not passed on. We'd love to hear about your relationship to this person and why you chose to make what you did.
Ordinarily I would post a few sample recipes here, but given that this is something so personal, I will forgo that this week.
Happy baking!
Flatbreads are, shockingly, quite flat and thin. They are usually unleavened (no yeast or rising agents), although there are some exceptions like pita. They alsp typically do not use rich ingredients like butter or eggs.
Quick to make, healthy to eat, they can be a great side to soak up sauce, pick up a dip or sandwich some meat / veggies. Since they are thin, they can be made on a griddle or grill instead of an oven.
There are a variety of flatbreads across cultures. Try pita and for bonus points make gyros. Or make some naan on a skillet - and discover how easy and tasty a base for pizza it can be.
For something richer and more substantial, try these flaky scallion pancakes
Let us know what you'll be making this week and what you're going to pair it with for a full meal.
I made the mistake of not trying these when they were fresh. My mom did and thought they were great. I did not enjoy the following morning.
This is another of those creative weeks. The sky's the limit on what you can bake, and extra points if it looks like the sky!
You can try focaccia art of flowers. Or cupcakes decorated with piped roses. Use dried flowers or herbs to decorate a cake. Make a chocolate mud pie with gummy worms. A galaxy cake to celebrate the night sky or the Northern lights.
It's spring in the northern hemisphere, a walk on a nature trail or a trip to the beach may bring unexpected inspiration. Good luck with whatever you choose to bring to life!
Made for eurovision, and it was a fail in every way. The cake was top flat to cut in 3 layers, the custard never set, and, as you can see, the marzipan cracked apart.
This week, pull out all the stops and dress (your bake) to impress! A showstopper is a dish that is delicious, elaborate and over-the-top gorgeous. So this is the week to stretch yourself : clear your calendar, get out your premium ingredients, put on your creative thinking caps and go at it.
If you're looking for inspiration, check out some memorable showstoppers from the Great British Bake-Off : https://www.lovefood.com/gallerylist/207527/ranked-great-british-bake-offs-most-spectacular-showstoppers-ever
Sorry for the infrequent posts. I lost my job and am trying to move out to Cleveland. Add some other personal stuff to the mix and it has been a rough month for me.
But these are a gift for my best friend's birthday this weekend. She's an absolute coffee fiend. I'm not big on tropical flavors at all so I'm not really impressed by them, but here's hoping she likes them.
Notes from baking these, but my powdered egg substitute was not useful. I had a lot of issue gettting the dough to come together and ended up using way more oil than is usually necessary for biscotti. They al holding shape, but they were definitely more crumbly than i was originally hoping for.
Recipe. Pretty standard bun.
This weekend is Cinco De Mayo - so perfect timing to celebrate the cuisine of Mexico. (At least that's what us Americans believe. This may well be one of those immigrant holidays that are more celebrated in the US than in the country of origin).
There is the iconic Tres Leches cake.
Or chocoflan.
And of course churros.
For something a little lighter try Conchas or Bolillo. Or Gorditas.
Whatever you make, consider pairing it with a good tequila for best effect :)
This cake is delicious. If you're not big on overly sweet desserts, I recommend it. And if it's not sweet enough, a dusting of crumbled maple candy helps.
Hi bakers! This week, we’re going tropical, by incorporating flavors and/or ingredients native to the tropics. There’s a wide range of produce that grows in tropical climates, including, but not limited to coconut, durian, guava, jackfruit, lychee, mango, papaya, passionfruit, persimmon, pineapple, rambutan, and tamarind.
Here are some recipes that utilize tropical flavors and ingredients:
Peach mango pies
Guava and cheese pastelitos
Pandan coconut cake
Tamarind millionaire’s shortbread
Vegan jackfruit casserole
Scalloped pineapple
Happy baking!
Hello everyone! For week 17, we’re working with candied sugar and caramel creations. For this week, you could opt to make any sort of sugar-based decoration for a bake, like homemade marshmallows for these s’mores cupcakes, homemade honeycomb toffee for this salted caramel cake, or an elegant spun sugar decoration for a variety of different recipes. Or, you could choose to make a recipe incorporating homemade caramel or sugar confections, like this caramel-syrup-topped flan, these peanut brittle cookies, or these salted caramel brownies.
If you’re looking for some handy references, here’s a guide to each of the stages of cooked sugar: https://www.theflavorbender.com/cooked-sugar-stages-candy-temperature-chart/, and if you’re interested in using isomalt instead, here’s a reference on what it is, and how to work with it: https://www.webstaurantstore.com/blog/3588/what-is-isomalt.html
Happy baking!
Been meaning to make a baklava for a few months, and figured this was the perfect time to do it! The phyllo dough took me a bit to figure out, but once i realized you just need to starch the shit out if it while rolling and just keep stacking it, it worked out great! My bottom layer is fucked, the middle one a little thick, but the top layer was absolutely magical
Made with the spinach topping and optional eggs. I used regular mozzarella and feta cheese. It was very good.
I added a splash of vanilla. Served with cream or ice cream it's really good. My mom didn't care for it. Jovial has a lot of good looking recipes.
Hello bakers, welcome to week 16 – ancient grains week! So, what exactly are ancient grains? The Whole Grains Council states that, while there is no official definition of ‘ancient grains’, they define an ancient grain as one that has remained “largely unchanged over the last several hundred years”. Grains that fit this classification include quinoa, teff, farro, spelt, buckwheat, chia, millet, barley, amaranth, oats, and sorghum. King Arthur has a fantastic guide to baking with ancient grains, including common uses and textural effects of each ingredient, however if you’re looking for more suggestions, here are a few below:
Spelt bread
Oat and millet flour ricotta biscuits
Strawberry cream and coconut quinoa tart
Farro and ricotta tart
Amaranth, ricotta, and greens pancakes
Happy baking!
Hi all! This week is another regional week, this time focusing on traditional and modern Turkish recipes! Turkey is a nation nestled in between the continents of Europe and Asia, meaning it has a wide variety of culinary influences, namely Mediterranean, Balkan, Middle Eastern, Central Asian, and Eastern European. Popular baked goods include simit (Turkish bagels), börek (pastry made of layers of flaky dough such as filo), pide (flatbread that can be stuffed based on the region), baklava (layered filo, nuts, and sugar-syrup), knafeh (sweet cheese and sugar-syrup soaked spun pastry), and lökum (Turkish delight). Example recipes for these can be found below, and as always, if you’re from Turkey or are familiar with Turkish baking and would like to share more information or resources down below, we’d love to hear from you!
Mutlu pişirme! (Happy baking!)
Simit
Börek
Pide
Baklava
Knafeh
Lökum
Been super busy recently and have fallen behind on my baking so i decided to do a two-for-one and make zebra cakes! I even made the cake mix from scrath with gliten free flour so my friend with Celiacs could try one!
Welcome to week 14!
This week's challenge is inspired by the International Edible Book Festival, a delightful celebration where literature and baking collide in the most delicious way possible.
Edible Book Day, celebrated on April 1st each year, encourages book lovers and bakers alike to combine their passions for literature and culinary arts, so let your favorite literary titles, characters, or authors inspire your baking creations.
Although the festival is mostly looking for book-shaped treats, feel free to use the books as inspiration in whichever way you’d like, book-shaped or not.
Here are some ideas to get you started:
How to make a book cake
Zucchini Brownie Spell Book
Decorated Book Cookies
Fruit leather books
Misc decoration ideas
Happy baking, and may your creations be as delicious as they are inspired!
Yeah they look more like mice or bears. I cobbled together 3 different recipes to make them with heavy vanilla flavor and tangzhong. Didn't occur to me that would affect their ability to hold a shape. Oh well, they taste good.
Welcome to week 13, bakers! This week's challenge is all about animals. Whether you're making something animal-shaped, drawing inspiration from the animal kingdom, or whipping up treats for your furry friends, it's time to get creative.
Looking for some inspiration? Here are a few ideas to get you started:
Animal decorated anything (here are a few ideas jammed together)
Dog Shaped Cookies (I almost died of cuteness overload when looking for ideas when I saw this)
Bear Claw Pastry
Zebra Cheesecake
The possibilities are endless, so whether you are going for decoration, flavor or name (think elephant ear cookies or pigs in a blanket), let us know what you come up with!
Happy baking!
I have never used any LLM's, and didn't fee like starting, so i went with a random recipe from my go to baking site. Unfortunately the batter ended up WAY too stiff and nothing i did allowed me to pipe these suckers out, so they just sorta ended up as regualr cookies, but delicious none the less.
I do think piping would have made them better though. The center of the cookies wasn't nearly as good as the crispy outsides, and piping them would have really increased the surface area.
Recipe. Was a big hit for my grandpa's birthday.
Sponge Cake : Make a Genoise or Victoria or Angel Food or another type of sponge cake
Welcome bakers to week 12! This week, we're diving into the world of... Sponge Cakes!
Many cakes— Genoise, angel, chiffon, joconde —fall into the realm of sponge cake, which is basically a cake made with egg whites, flour and sugar that classically relies on air for leavening. The most basic version doesn’t contain fat, but variations will add it for moisture. Favored for its versatility, sponge cake is tender and bouncy and will soak up the flavors of anything it’s paired with.
Not sure where to start? No worries! Here are some ideas:
Angel Food Cake
Victoria Sponge Cake
Boston Cream Pie
Mamón
From Swiss Rolls, to cupcakes, Trifles, Batterberg, Pandan Cake, Cotton Cake, Tres Leches and foods from all over the world, there are endless alternatives for what to make.
Happy baking!
I had a strawberry cake that I needed to figure out frosting for. I asked for a lemon cream cheese buttercream and got a serviceable recipe. It didn't include salt, but I can't fault the AI for that, considering too many humans leave out the salt.
Cake has two different destinations, so I cut it in half and frosted the cut sides.
Welcome bakers to week 11! This week we leave our bakes up to chance, as you either cook up a recipe generated by your favorite AI app, letting algorithms and data lead the way, or take a leap of faith by selecting a recipe at random from your cherished cookbook collection or preferred cooking website.
What does it mean to get an AI recipe? You could ask for directions and follow whatever the AI says, you could just ask for a random baked good and then look for a recipe elsewhere, or you could use an image AI generator and try to recreate the decorations of something.
(As a quick warning, if you do decide to make a recipe generated by AI, if you are following it’s directions, do check with similar recipes to see if everything will be baked correctly or if any key ingredients are missing)
If you want to go with a random recipe, you could roll a die to figure which cookbook, which page you are going for. Or look for a random date on your favorite website and see what was published that day. You could even try to do a random search of this subreddit’s history and do the first one that comes up.
Will your AI sous chef concoct a culinary masterpiece that surprises and delights? Or will the luck of the draw from your cookbook yield an unexpected gem that becomes a new favorite in your household?
Whatever you choose, hopefully it ends up being a recipe you enjoy.
Happy baking!
Sorry i am way late on this one. I asked my uncle in Japan (he's American, just a 65 weeb currently backpacking through Japan with my aunt for their retirement) for advice on something to make. He was currently in Hiroshima and told me to try making this local street food. Unfortunately i didn't realize how hard it would be to get some of these ingredients in rural Ohio, but i finally got everything for this recipe. luckily there is an amazing little Asian grocery store in Findlay that hooked me up with everything i needed and i am incredibly happy with how they turned out!
Hello all,
I'm pretty late, but wanted to share my baking experience. On Sunday I made this giant Kasutera Cake. I tried the recipe by emojoie (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=840D3AcTmcM), which I found through Ruby Bhogal's Instagram Post.
As I don't have a square cake pan I just estimated the baking time. turned out 1 hour was not enough, the cake was still veeery soft in the middle. Well, I cut the middle and ate it all by myself, liked the batter really much. The guests got to eat the rest and enjoyed. This cake is just as cloudy, soft, melt in your mouth as advertised. I really liked it. Will bake again, maybe for 1:15 hrs then.
Not a tower, but technically vertical.
I made this pretzel/potato chip moon pie recipe for Christmas a few years ago and it was a big hit. I decided to experiment with making some of them smaller and turning them into cookie pops. It sort of worked. I remember them coming out so much better looking last time, even my larger ones. This is why I hate making the same recipe twice. Still taste great, though.
Welcome bakers to week 10! This time, we're embarking on a towering adventure with our aptly named challenge: Tower Bake!
Let your imagination soar as high as your baked creations! Tower Bake is all about pushing the boundaries of traditional baking by constructing impressive, towering treats that defy gravity and dazzle the taste buds.
So, what could you whip up for this week's challenge? The possibilities are as endless as the layers of a towering cake! Here are just a few ideas to get you started:
Tall Cake: here are some instructions if you are aiming for a cake with lots of layers
Croquembouche
You may try to achieve a tall Stack of pancakes
Kransekake
Happy baking!
These rich truffles have a little bit of brandy as well as sour cream to create a luxurious and rich chocolate treat!
I swear to dog, I've been making sourdough for four + years and I still can't get it right.
Hi bakers! Welcome to week 9. This week, your challenge is to make something using at least one fermented ingredient. This includes a wide variety of ingredients, like...
Yogurt
Pickles
Vnegar
Sourdough
Cottage cheese
Wine
Miso
Buttermilk
Sourdough
...and much more! As always, here are a few sample recipes.
Chocolate Sourdough Cake
Brown Butter Miso Chocolate Chip Cookies
Vinegar Pie
