John's pumpkin pie

Nothing is more iconic at Thanksgiving than pumpkin pie.  Not even the turkey.  Turkeys are available all year round, but you have to wait until the fall for pumpkins to become available. 

I love pumpkin pie.  Ever since I was old enough to care about baking, my Mom would let me make the crust from the iconic Betty Crocker cookbook for the pie and my sister would make the filling.

But alas...my fiance is not much for pumpkin pie.  He doesn't like the spices.  Pumpkin, mixed with sugar, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg and ginger- it all means good and delicious things to me- but John, John does not care for them.  He loves the texture, just not the spice. 

So what am I to do on Thanksgiving for John?  Pumpkin pie is so iconic- dare I mess with it? 

As a Sugar Lovin girl, I must.  So here it is.  John's pumpkin pie without the crazy spices.

John's Pumpkin Pie

Ingredients:
1 9" baked pie shell (any recipe, but I like this one)
1 tablespoon gelatin powder (such as Knox)
3 whole eggs, separated
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1 1/4 cup cooked, or canned pumpkin (or prepare fresh, see below)
1/2 cup milk
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
∏ tsp vanilla extract
1/3 cup powdered sugar

1 cup whipping cream for garnish (optional)

Method:

 
Soak the gelatin 1/4 cup cold water. Beat the egg yolks slightly and combine in the top of a double boiler, the brown sugar, pumpkin, milk and the salt and spices. Cook and stir these ingredients over boiling water until thick. Stir in the soaked gelatin until dissolved. Remove from the cook top and chill until mixture begins to set.

Whip until stiff, but not dry the 3 egg whites. Gradually stir in the: 1/2 cup white sugar, then fold into the pumpkin mixture. Fill the pie shell. Chill several hours to set.

Serve garnished with: Whipped cream

French bread- the baguette

I truly believe that in life, there is nothing, nothing better than a freshly made french baguette.  A baguette, lightly buttered or served with cheese, can solve all my problems, especially when paired with a good glass of red wine. 

 (A close second for life-problem-solving foods: peanut m&m's).

Here's my top 3 reasons for making your own homemade baguette:

1.  While no baguette ever baked here will ever taste the same as those I ate in Paris, all basic baguette recipes consist of the same ingredients.  Parisian baguettes benefit from unenriched, unbleached, plain old milled flour from a slightly different wheat (usually soft wheat) then we typically can buy.  Plus, the Parisian water table will always be different from ours, lending a different taste profile.  But regardless, the familiarity of French bread remains the same and its always amazing.

2.  For some reason, they don't get as hard and crusty as store bought baguettes the day after- you know the "hard and crusty" I'm talking about.  The kind that scrapes your gums when you eat it.   When I make baguettes at home, they usually go moldy or get eaten before they get stale, as long as I keep them in gallon Ziploc bag.   

3.  Finally, to make bread is easier than making most pastries.  Bread is far more forgiving than pastry knows how to be.  Your dough isn't scraping the bowl clean?  Probably needs a little more flour.  Your dough is crumbly?  Needs a little more water. 

So, if you have a little time, you can make a little baguette. 

Basic French bread

Ingredients:
1 Tbsp Butter
1 packet Active dry yeast, or 2 tsp.  (Make sure to buy Active dry, not instant active!)
1 tsp Sugar
1 cup Warm water
3 1/2 cups AP flour or Bread flour
1 Tbsp Salt
1 Tbsp Cornmeal

Method:
1.  Using butter, grease a bowl and set aside.  Combine yeast and sugar with water and allow to ferment for 4 to 5 minutes, or until frothy. 
2.  Combine yeast mixture with flour and salt in bowl of mixer with a dough hook and mix on medium speed until dough forms and wipes the side of the bowl clean.  Balance mixture with extra flour if too sticky and extra water if too crumbly.
3.  Place dough in greased bowl, cover with saran wrap and a damp towel.  Place in warm place and allow to rise until doubled in size, about 2 hours.
4.  Split dough in half.  Punch down dough and form into baguette loaves by rolling from the center outward.  Place on baking sheet dusted with cornmeal and cover with dry towel.  Place in warm area and allow loaves to double in volume.
5.  Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.  Bake loaves for 25 to 30 minutes on upper rack.  For crustier bread, bake bread with a casserole dish of water on lower rack. 

Long overdue: pecan brittle and then some

When I logged in today I was shocked at how long it had actually been since I had sat down to write about my Sugar Lovin pastry dealings. 

Too long.  October 14th.  3 weeks!  But in my defense, the past three weeks have been spent moving and working like a mad woman, and there really wasn't enough time to sit down and write about my pastry life. 

While I wait on pictures to share with you from the baby shower we catered on 10/24, I'll share a little bit about the last few weeks and my improved brittle recipe.

The weeks following my last post were characterized with packing.  And then more packing.  I also had family in town.  And then my last weekend in Pittsburgh was 100% about work.  I worked Friday and Saturday at the bakery finishing my last shifts and then Sunday was our catering gig (can't wait to share our recipes for lavender cupcakes with honey buttercream and chocolate cupcakes earl gray buttercream).  The next thing you know, the moving truck was sitting outside and we were completely packed up and ready to go. 

We arrived down here just to unpack, hang out a little and then I had to send the fiancee back to Pittsburgh for a time undetermined while he looks for work.  In those three weeks, aside from the cupcakes we made and a batch of not-so-good caramel shortbread, I haven't baked a thing. 

Last night I finally broke down.  I am living with my fiancee's mom while we are in separate states and I've been a little wary of using her kitchen, but we had been planning on making pecan brittle all week and it was just time to do it. 

The last time I made brittle, I followed the recipe exactly.  I made it using all light corn syrup.  The result?  It was just sugary tasting candy with peanuts.  I wasn't impressed.  This time, I decided to split it up a little.  I used half honey and half dark corn syrup and it yielded a much nicer result. It's got a complex flavor in the candy part that makes it much more enjoyable to eat. 

See below for a Sugar Lovin worthy pecan brittle.  You will need a half sheet pan AND a candy thermometer to do this right!

Salted Pecan Brittle

Ingredients:
2 Tbsp plus 1 cup Butter
1/2 cup Honey
1/2 cup Dark corn syrup
2 cups Sugar
1 cup Water
2 1/2 cups Toasted pecans, halved
1/4 tsp Baking soda
2 Tbsp Sea salt

Method:
1.  Using 2 Tbsp of butter, grease a half sheet pan completely and then set aside.  In a large, heavy bottomed sauce pot, combine honey, corn syrup, sugar and water over high heat.  Bring to a boil, stirring constantly, then reduce heat to medium.  Add your candy thermometer and stir occasionally, until mixtures reaches 280 degrees F, or the soft crack stage.
2.  Quickly and carefully, mix in the pecans.  Allow mixture to reach 295 degrees F on the candy thermometer and then remove from heat.  Mix in the baking soda and  then carefully spread mixture evenly on the half sheet pan.  Allow to cool for 10 minutes, then sprinkle generously with sea salt.  Allow mixture to cool completely (i.e.- the pan should be at room temperature) before removing from the pan. 

Tips:  You can really use any toasted nut in this brittle, so try hazelnuts or cashews instead!