duking it out for a piece of the pie

MY PERSONAL BAKING LOG TO SHARE THE FUN OF IT WITH FRIENDS.

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MEDRONHO

You don’t have to dig deep into the Asian/transatlantic treasure chest to find exotic fruit. Recently in Portugal I discovered the fruit of the strawberry tree. Not only is the name ‘strawberry tree’ confusing but so is its fruit: medronho. 

It looks funny, has a rather firm skin that looks cute and amusing at the same time. Inside the fruit is yellow and soft. As for the taste, it’s not uber sweet. It has tiny seeds inside but you don’t obviously recognize them. It struck me as pretty neutral, only the texture change from skin to interior was interesting as well as the appearance. After a few I felt pretty stuffed and couldn’t keep on eating them endlessly. However, Europeans have their own unknown exotic fruit! Good to know at least.

SCONES

Shops closed on a Sunday, it’s raining outside and you’ve got nothing at home for breakfast. So glad I learned to bake, now there’ll always be breakfast. I am amazed what you can do with a little flour, baking powder, baking soda, butter, sugar and milk. I added hazelnut for some flavour. Had this with tea, makes such a darkish Sunday worth the get up. 

FRANKFURTER KRANZ This cake really got the looks and kitsch. However, I still love it for some reason. Can’t wait to try it for the first time! This has been a fun project. More to come. NOTE: it’s really delicious. Just make sure to use the bestest ingredients or your flavours will come be off. Vanilla pound cake, vanilla buttercream and caramalized crunchy hazelnuts, topped with whipped-cream and candied cherries. It is cut in half horizontally and filled with a thin layer of buttercream. 

FRANKFURTER KRANZ

This cake really got the looks and kitsch. However, I still love it for some reason. Can’t wait to try it for the first time! This has been a fun project. More to come.

NOTE: it’s really delicious. Just make sure to use the bestest ingredients or your flavours will come be off. Vanilla pound cake, vanilla buttercream and caramalized crunchy hazelnuts, topped with whipped-cream and candied cherries. It is cut in half horizontally and filled with a thin layer of buttercream. 

FRANKFURTER KRANZ

making of.

I made my first baking experience at home in my mum’s kitchen. What I would always use was this only baking book we had at home. It’s a standard book from the GDR that you’d find in almost every household. My grandma has the exact same one and probably our neighbour does so too, still.  Today I prepared a Frankfurter Kranz which is a very traditional German cake. I believe the urge to bake it results from these baking book memories since it is the cake you can see in the very background, topped with cherries and cream. I have actually never ever eaten it nor has anyone in my family ever baked one.  Assembly of the cake tomorrow. I am excited! Can’t wait to take a picture of it. Can’t wait for the 70ties kitsch.

I made my first baking experience at home in my mum’s kitchen. What I would always use was this only baking book we had at home. It’s a standard book from the GDR that you’d find in almost every household. My grandma has the exact same one and probably our neighbour does so too, still. 

Today I prepared a Frankfurter Kranz which is a very traditional German cake. I believe the urge to bake it results from these baking book memories since it is the cake you can see in the very background, topped with cherries and cream. I have actually never ever eaten it nor has anyone in my family ever baked one. 

Assembly of the cake tomorrow. I am excited! Can’t wait to take a picture of it. Can’t wait for the 70ties kitsch.

WHITE CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES

with dried apricots for emi’s birthday.

LEMON POUND CAKE This oven is prone to underbaking. Even when you check it, it’s just never really perfectly done. Still, delicious cake!!

LEMON POUND CAKE

This oven is prone to underbaking. Even when you check it, it’s just never really perfectly done. Still, delicious cake!!

LEMON POUND CAKE

I haven’t been baking in so long. When there’s only frustration about technology // printer not working what better option is there than to go back to artisanal craftsmenship? Licking delicious raw batter from a spoon, buttering pans and pushing the pan into the oven. I’ve missed that. Time for some quality time with friends and midnight cake eating now!

PLUM TART on puff pastry with vanilla pastry cream

PLUM TART

on puff pastry with vanilla pastry cream

BROWNIES This is in the middle of making brownies: batter with added cashew nuts, chocolate chips and orange-soaked cranberries. They were good, too strong in orange flavour for my taste and a little underbaked. Still figuring out this oven….

BROWNIES

This is in the middle of making brownies: batter with added cashew nuts, chocolate chips and orange-soaked cranberries. They were good, too strong in orange flavour for my taste and a little underbaked. Still figuring out this oven….

APPLE TART If I am lucky I find time to bake once a week these days. It makes me somewhat sad since I used to bake almost each day. However, on the good side, I can still fan these apples….

APPLE TART

If I am lucky I find time to bake once a week these days. It makes me somewhat sad since I used to bake almost each day. However, on the good side, I can still fan these apples….

I just returned home from a late night walk. I was food hunting. I recently spotted this pear tree. I realised its fruits would fall directly on wasteland behind a fence I had perfect access to. I really don’t care if somebody spotted me crawling through the bushland with my camera light shining bright. It might have looked like me having a pee in the bushes. I am not mental. I just actually did what everyone’s only talking about: I lived sustainability. I am constantly amazed how trees grow fruit and then just drop it when they are ripe. There were many pears half eaten up by animals which makes me happy. There were too many moldy and rotting though. Which is a catastrophe. The tree just produces and nobody cares. Nobody harvests what is given so naturally by nature. I grew up in a garden where I lived with seasons and was taught how to use up food and produce. It would hurt too much to just watch these lovely and delicious pears rot away! They are free and better than the perfect plastic food in the supermarkets wrapped in plastic. That’s my five cents for today. I’m glad to get my good vitamins crawling through wasteland! There’s nothing better than feeling connected to nature and an ongoing cycle…

I just returned home from a late night walk. I was food hunting. I recently spotted this pear tree. I realised its fruits would fall directly on wasteland behind a fence I had perfect access to. I really don’t care if somebody spotted me crawling through the bushland with my camera light shining bright. It might have looked like me having a pee in the bushes. I am not mental. I just actually did what everyone’s only talking about: I lived sustainability. I am constantly amazed how trees grow fruit and then just drop it when they are ripe. There were many pears half eaten up by animals which makes me happy. There were too many moldy and rotting though. Which is a catastrophe. The tree just produces and nobody cares. Nobody harvests what is given so naturally by nature. I grew up in a garden where I lived with seasons and was taught how to use up food and produce. It would hurt too much to just watch these lovely and delicious pears rot away! They are free and better than the perfect plastic food in the supermarkets wrapped in plastic. That’s my five cents for today. I’m glad to get my good vitamins crawling through wasteland! There’s nothing better than feeling connected to nature and an ongoing cycle…

CHOCOLATE SABLEE COOKIES started off with some simple basic cookie to check the baking qualities of this new oven. While I’ve been baking with an convectional gas oven mostly, it is different using an electric one for sure. These cookies turned out nicely prepared with a great sandy texture. The cocoa powder could have been more intense though which would have given the cookies a more intense colour too!

CHOCOLATE SABLEE COOKIES

started off with some simple basic cookie to check the baking qualities of this new oven. While I’ve been baking with an convectional gas oven mostly, it is different using an electric one for sure. These cookies turned out nicely prepared with a great sandy texture. The cocoa powder could have been more intense though which would have given the cookies a more intense colour too!

BUTTERMILK BLACKBERRY HAZELNUT MUFFINS

CHANGE OF KITCHEN

I recently moved and wasn’t surprised at all having equal amounts of personal belongings and kitchen tools. Stay with me until I make this oven work. It’s full of burned crumbs and ashes! (note: not anymore) And yes, I forgot my marble board. :(