Baking frenzy, blog hiatus (involuntary, that is)!

My radiant and beloved sister in law Kathy and her new husband Charlie.

We took a trip to the Tampa Bay, Florida area for a family wedding--here's a picture of the happy couple!   While we were there we also saw Smitty's mom and other sisters and brother, assorted nephews, and nieces, and new grand-nieces and even catch up with old friends.  The icing on the cake was visiting my cousins in central Florida.   What a wonderful trip!  


I came home to find my computer locked up with viruses, my email program crashed, and I was unable to update my blog.  But the baking went on!!  Here's a thumbnail sketch of what has kept me busy while Smitty rebuilt my laptop:

---

Walnut Fougasse (foo-ghass)  This semi-flat bread, about 3/4 inch thick is soft inside with a crisp crust.  Best of all is the deep walnut flavor, thanks to the chopped walnuts and the walnut oil in the dough.  The shape is intended to resemble an ear of wheat--come on, suspend your disbelief!  Evidently, this is a French traditional loaf shape, according to Wikipedia.  


The recipe is from the Bread Bible.  This is the first time I had made it.  

Sour Cherry Pie from the Baking Bible--this was an assignment that the Alpha Bakers baked while I was in Florida, but I'm showing it here because I'm so far behind!  Here is a breakdown of the process:  

The crust is Rose's aptly titled Perfect Flaky and Tender Cream Cheese Pie Crust.  The filling is a mixture of sour cherries, lemon juice, almond extract, sugar, cornstarch and concentrated cherry juice (more on that in a moment).  Because fresh cherries aren't available right now, I used canned fruit and it turned out perfectly.   

Rose's recipe called for the optional addition of "Michelle's Miracle Cherry Concentrate."  It's only available online, and of course shipping is as expensive as the product these days!  So I improvised.  I'm a Girl Scout, after all.


I purchased tart cherry juice--note that the label says "from concentrate!"--and boiled it down to a syrup.  The result is amazing!  I added it to the pie filling as if it were the one Rose specified.  I am thrilled with the results!  I froze the leftover syrup for future pies.  Surprisingly, it didn't freeze solid, but remains a thick liquid in the freezer.

The instructions called for a "pastry jagger" to cut the lattice strips.  What the heck is a "jagger?!" 


But guess what--I actually have one!  All this time I called it my zig-zag pastry cutter wheel, or even a pinking wheel--as in pinking shears (think those scissors that make zig-zag cuts to finish fabric edges).  

---

The "jagged" lattice strips are woven on the pie and then sprinkled with a little sugar for extra crunch.

The best cherry pie I've ever had!!  Immediately noticeable is the depth of flavor, which has to be from the cherry juice concentrate.  And as always with Rose's recipes, the next thing you appreciate is the fact that it's not overly sweet.   She always hits the right balance of sweetness, for my palate, anyway!  The recipe is on page 200 of the Baking Bible.

Just before Easter, I baked a big batch of Rose's Mediterranean Matzoh to share with our friends and neighbors, Penny and Katelyn.  Although they weren't baked in a kosher kitchen,  Penny and Katelyn took them to a Passover Seder meal.   


Stay tuned for a separate blog post about this!  For now, let me say that they were DELICIOUS!  Find the recipe in the Bread Bible.

Cran-Raspberry Upside Down Cake with Raspberry Italian Meringue--another Alpha Bakers' Assignment.  See the details about this wonderful cake by clicking on the Alpha Bakers' tab at the top of this page!  That post was dated April 7.

Pita Bread!  This addictive recipe can be found in the Bread Bible.  Read all about it by clicking on the Bread Bible Alpha Bakers tab at the top of this page.  

Stay tuned for much more!!  

I really appreciate your comments!  Thanks so much for visiting my blog!