Thanksgiving baking

Ah, the feast of thanks is upon us. And so is my favorite baking season of the year. This week is my busiest baking week of season and I have it all planned out. Not only will I be baking three pies for Thanksgiving (and of course my family favorite cheesy potatoes) but I will also be spending the weekend heralding in the Christmas season with a cookie baking session. I am so excited!

But first, Thanksgiving pie. My husband and I will be spending Thanksgiving with his family and I will be bringing dessert. Go figure, right? I have chosen to do two different pies this year. I got lucky on the pumpkin pie recipe because it yields two pies. Of course it came from Martha Stewart (I think I need to broaden my recipe sources. Eh, I'll get there). I will also be making my favorite apple pie, Apple Crumb Pie, which I made earlier this year.

I'm actually not a huge fan of pumpkin pie. However, there are some non-traditional options you can try if you're feeling adventurous. For example, pumpkin chocolate chip cookies. I made a batch of these earlier this month. Ryan had been asking for cookies and my mom chimed in with a request for something chocolatey. I really wanted to try something with pumpkin so this worked for all three of us. The recipe is found here and originally calls for a chocolate drizzle. I wasn't feeling up to the challenge of rigging a double boiler so I just added the chocolate chips right into the batter. A revision that saved time and still tastes good = success!

These turned out a bit more cakey than I like but they seemed to be a hit. I will have to have an experiment in texture one of these days. The trick I believe is in the amount of leavener you use. My domestic goddess mentor, Liz, has some knowledge on this that I have heard before but have not yet fully retained. I feel a lesson on baking soda versus baking powder is due. And I think I might add a little more pumpkin pie spice. I like my pumpkin desserts to have a bit more kick than these turned out to have. So an experiment in spices should be in the works soon, too.

I hope to hear all the great baking stories that I am sure will happen this week. Get in that kitchen, enjoy the time you have, work with your hands, and give thanks for the blessings our wonderful God has given us!

Happy Thanksgiving!

And Happy Baking!

Caramel Glaze Cookies

In preparation for a bridal showing, I attempted my first recipe from my cookie cookbook 1 Dough, 100 Cookies (a Christmas gift from my mother-in-law. You can find it at Cost Plus, World Market). I wanted to try the Caramel Glaze Cookies the moment I saw the picture in the cookbook. They looked amazing. Here is what I ended up with:

Beautiful, aren't they? The dough was a very basic sugar cookie dough. Flour, butter, sugar, egg, vanilla, and salt. This was the first recipe that I actually hand beat everything; no stand mixer! It was surprisingly easy and a little fun to do it differently. Plus I didn't have to haul out my mixer, which I love by the way. I made a glaze on the stovetop. It was my first attempt ever. I brushed the glaze on the cookies three times and then drew a design with a fork. I was excited when I pulled them out of the oven because they looked great!

Well, looks are deceiving. These were a total flop! I am not ashamed to say it. I am calling this whole thing an adventure, right? I think a couple things went wrong. One, I didn't let the glaze burn up enough. I later read that the sugar should be almost burnt in order to make great caramel glaze. I might have to do further reading and try various recipes before I can have any real say on how to make a caramel glaze. Second, these were rolled way too thin. That I can easily fix for next time.

Flops are ok. Mistakes happen. All you have to do is get back in the kitchen. I knew I had to since I promised to bring something to the shower. But more on that later.