i love baking

Welcome to my first ever long-term themed blog, all about what happens when I try to bake. Mostly the results are good- I have some great teachers (Martha, Julia, Betty). Sometimes the results aren't very good.. if you've seen Cake Wrecks, you'll know what I'm talking about. But I'll let the pictures and my tasters do most of the talking. Today I'll start with an intro.

I've loved baking since... wait a minute.

First you need to know that I've never been able to cook. I can recall several occasions that I completely forgot I was cooking something, walked away from the kitchen to start on some other task, only to be reawakened by the scent of something burning to a crisp. I've killed many grilled cheese sandwiches this way. I've also bought stew meat thinking it would work in a stir fry. My biggest kitchen catastrophe was when I put cooked potatoes and milk in a vitamix blender to mash, and made glue D:

My problem with cooking is that so much is left up to interpretation, personal taste, and the ability to pay attention when nobody is telling me what to do. It kills me to admit this because I really believe I am a creative person. However, I am learning to embrace the fact that creativity and originality has its limits: I can draw and paint, but I am terrible with color; I can bake and decorate a beautiful cake, but I cannot make the same mashed potatoes twice (rest assured I now have a masher and do make some tasty mashed potatoes).

Baking is so different. You have the same basic ingredients over and over, but each time a new and very specific set of instructions which result in something marvelous. I like to think of baking like music. There are only so many notes, but each piece is different and beautiful in it's own way as long as you follow the music. Also like music, baking is as much about technicality as it is about presentation, which is where creativity comes into play. So, really, baking is the best of both worlds- technical mastery coupled with creativity. By the way, I'm not a musician so feel free to shoot me if I'm wrong.

And now to the nostalgia- I've been intrigued by baking since elementary school. My BFF Keira and I would go to her house after school and rummage through her mother's spice cabinets, looking for ingredients to make a cake or brownies. We knew there were certain things that would make the cake rise, but weren't sure what, so we experimented with baking soda and vinegar, chocolate and flour and made some pretty interesting concoctions. Our first real baking was done with a box of Jiffy Blueberry Muffins. I remember feeling so accomplished, ha! As time went on, there were so many fails and learning experiences, a lot of time spent watching and helping my oldest sister bake our birthday cakes and other treats, and eventually creating some of my own traditions (semi-homemade desserts and fabulous chocolate chip cookies), it's hard to keep track.

A turning point came last year, when Brad bought me a stand mixer for my birthday. I was so excited because I had always wanted one since the days in Keira's kitchen with an older than old yellow Kitchen Aid mixer. I chatted with my friend Lavryn about my new gift, who at some point in the conversation informed me she was going on a diet. What! She's in perfect shape, and doesn't diet! Then she went on to explain her diet involved baking all of her own desserts from scratch because at least that way she knew exactly what was in them. Ha!!

Equipped with my new love, the stand mixer, I stole her diet plan and began baking my own cakes and cookies whenever I wanted something sweet. I would bring all the extras into work and miraculously didn't gain a pound as long as I continued to work out. Best. Diet. Ever.

Over the course of the year I have mastered only a couple of things with my new mixer: white cake, chocolate cake, red velvet cake, cream cheese frosting, 7 minute frosting, and swiss meringue buttercream (vanilla, raspberry and strawberry variations). I've made French Almond Macaroons a couple of times with varying results- thankfully both were delicious. I'd like to work on the macaroons some more, a good yellow butter cake, chocolate frosting, vanilla bean frosting, and a caramel cake. I'd also like to learn how to make a good pie crust without shortening and also experiment with some finer french pastries.. I say experiment because I don't have much faith that anything will turn out.

Next blog I'll list the recipes I plan to try this year and the books they come from. They'll be heavy on the Martha, Julia, and Cook's Illustrated side. Wish me luck.. I still don't have a food processor!

Cheers,
Colleen