equal opportunity chocolate-eater

That's right--I don't discriminate. Dark, bitter, milk, semi-sweet, white, I'll devour them all. I have my preferences, of course, but who doesn't?

Behold, the Leaning Tower of Bread.

I know there are some haters out there who strongly feel that white chocolate is inedible and make a big deal about the fact that it's actually not chocolate at all. I ask them, though, does anything pair with macadamia nuts as naturally and as marvelously as chunks of white chocolate? I don't think so. Is white chocolate raspberry cheesecake not a heaven-sent creation? Indeed it is. We mustn't ignore this creamy white confection, regardless of whether or not it's inappropriately-named.


Now that I've properly praised white chocolate, I can move on to my latest concoction. I've returned once again to the recipe making use of my sourdough starter and a pudding mix. Past versions have included oreo pudding and oreo bits, coconut cream pudding with macadamia nuts and white chocolate chips, and butterscotch pudding with dried apples. I can't help myself--it's the quickest and easiest way to use a fed Eb and it offers so much in the way of possible combinations.


This time, I used some white chocolate pudding mix, macadamia nuts (even though I've already done something similar, I couldn't resist), and chocolate chips (semi-sweet, for the record, and just for the sake of those irrationally against white chocolate consumption). Soft, moist, chocolate-heavy, and with a salty crunch, this bread is everything a breakfast or even dessert loaf should be.

Whacadamia Nut (white chocolate + macadamia nut...get it?) Bread
1/2 cup oil
1/2 cup applesauce
1/2 cup milk
1 cup sourdough starter
3 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup sugar
2 cups flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
2 (3.4 oz) boxes instant white chocolate pudding
1 cup chopped macadamia nuts
1 cup chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 325F. Grease down whatever molds you intend to use (I filled up 8 mini loaves).
In a large bowl, mix the oil, applesauce, eggs, milk, starter, vanilla, and sugar.
In a separate bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, salt, baking soda, pudding mix, nuts, and chips. Add this to the liquid mixture and stir thoroughly.
Pour the batter into the prepared pans and bake until done. Apparently, this takes at least an hour for regular loaves, and took around 45 minutes for my mini loaves. Cool completely before slicing.

Meanwhile, if you're unfamiliar with blonde ducks, you should head on over to A Duck in Her Pond and check it out.


Every post written by Miranda (affectionately known as the Blonde Duck) is awesome--she writes amazingly creative stories and displays good eats as far as the eye can see. There's also a little interview with me.

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"change is inevitable...

...except from a vending machine."

I love that.


The proof is in the pudding, or in this case, the gingerbread. If ever there was any question that a person's tastes change over time, I've selflessly stepped up and provided an example of it.

Let's wander back to last year, when I made a batch of sourdough ginger gingammonbread. Even with a lovely glaze, I found it difficult to really enjoy. Fast forward to last week and a similar recipe. Wonder of wonders, I liked it, even without a glaze! It was moist and fragrant, sweet and a little bit tangy. Granted, a robust cinnamon scent would've been preferred, but hey--a bit of ginger's all right every now and then.


See that? I'm growing.

Mendenhall (what the heck is that?) Sourdough Gingamuffins
(adapted from this recipe)

1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup brown sugar, firmly packed
1/2 cup molasses
1 egg
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons ginger
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1/2 cup hot water
1 cup sourdough starter
1 cup dried fruit (I used cranberries and golden raisins)

Preheat oven to 375F. Line a muffin tin with cups.
In a large bowl, cream together the brown sugar and butter. Blend in the molasses and the egg, beating continuously; set aside.
In a separate bowl, combine the dry ingredients together and blend into hot water. This will yield a pasty, doughy mixture. Beat this thoroughly into the creamed mixture.
Finally, add the sourdough starter slowly, mixing carefully to maintain a bubbly batter. Dust the dried fruit with flour and lightly fold into the batter. Spoon or pour the mixture into the muffin cups and bake about 20 minutes or until a tester comes out clean.

My ginger of choice:

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oreo shmoreo

I have a confession: I don't really like Oreos. If I could just lick scrape out the innards and pass the dry, grainy cookie part off to someone else, that'd be peachy keen with me.


So what was I to do with a little bottle of Oreo pieces meant to be used as an ice cream mix-in? Huh?

Here's what I, Queen of Imagination Lackers, did--I got a box of Oreo pudding mix, fed Eb, and knocked out some miniature muffins using the recipe that has now pretty much earned a permanent spot in my memory bank.


Chocolate goo? Check. Cream goo? Check check.

The flavor of the Oreos was actually quite subtle, which suited me just fine. The little breadlets were moist and faintly twangy from the sourdough and just sweet enough to justify eating them for breakfast or dessert.


Bella approves.

I do declare, this recipe just wins.

SourDOUGH OreO Muffins(oh)
1/2 cup oil
1/2 cup applesauce
1/2 cup milk
1 cup sourdough starter
3 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup sugar
2 cups flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 (5.1 oz) box instant Oreo pudding mix
1 cup Oreo pieces

Preheat oven to 325F. Grease down whatever molds you intend to use (I filled up 4 mini loaves and one miniature muffin tin).
In a large bowl, mix the oil, applesauce, eggs, milk, starter, vanilla, and sugar.
In a separate bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, salt, baking soda, pudding mix, and cookie pieces. Add this to the liquid mixture and stir thoroughly.
Pour the batter into the prepared pans and bake until done. This took around 45 minutes for my mini loaves and about 30 minutes for the muffins.

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behold, the power of butterscotch pudding

Remember that pudding-based sourdough bread I made a while back? I said that I’d try it again, and I did.


This time, the pudding being put to use was butterscotch-flavored. I know made-from-scratch is always better, but that’s a somewhat complex recipe and the boxed version is awfully tasty. Awfully--such an appropriate adverb since I feel guilty for enjoying something with so many chemicals, modified starches, preservatives, and the like.

But enjoy it I do, and I suspected that it would make for a knockout bread. I considered using chocolate chips or toffee bits as an add-in, but in the end I opted for diced dried apples. Had I used the sweet stuff, the end result might’ve been too rich (not for me, mind you, but for those of typical palates).

The bread was fantastic. There was definitely a subtle caramel-brown sugar-butterscotchy thing going on, but it was never the slightest bit overwhelming. The apples contributed a nice tart zing and the overall texture was lovely.


So soft. So satisfying.

Was it better than the version made with coconut pudding? Gracious, that’s a toughie. If you threatened to take away my cinnamon if I didn’t pick one or the other, I’d have to say the tropical version takes it by a hair (not by a hair found in any of my baked goods, of course)(I always wear a hairnet when I cook...don’t you?).

Butterscotch Friendship Bread
(personalized from this recipe)

1/2 cup oil
1/2 cup pear baby food
1/2 cup milk
1 cup sourdough starter
3 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup sugar
2 cups flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
2 (3.4 oz) boxes instant butterscotch pudding
1 cup chopped dried apples

Preheat oven to 325F. Grease down whatever molds you intend to use (I filled up 8 mini loaves).
In a large bowl, mix the oil, pear puree, eggs, milk, starter, vanilla, and sugar.
In a separate bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, salt, baking soda, pudding mix, and apples. Add this to the liquid mixture and stir thoroughly.
Pour the batter into the prepared pans and bake until done. Apparently, this takes at least an hour for regular loaves, and took around 45 minutes for my mini loaves. Cool completely before slicing.

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pudd'nhead

My respect for the Amish has just risen, and it's all due to an idea that may or may not have even started with them.


I know you've heard of Amish Friendship Bread, the chain letter of the baking world. Although I don't have the actual starter used for such breads, I do have Eb, and he hasn't let me down yet.

The most exciting thing for me about this notion of Amish Friendship Bread isn't the fact that you're supposed to pass some starter on to friends and neighbors. Nope, what thrills and interests me is the fact that pudding mix is involved in the recipe.

Does it add moistness or bulk, or is it merely there for a little extra flavor? After one go-round, my theory is that it's there for all of the above reasons. The bread is definitely moist and dense, more so than what I usually find in my sourdough breads. Further, the flavor provided by the pudding mix (coconut cream, in this fabulous case) was the best part of the final product as far as I'm concerned.


Good googa mooga...literally.

Heck, just think of the variations here! This time, I used coconut cream pudding, macadamia nuts, and white chocolate chips. Next time, I'd like to try butterscotch pudding with toffee bits and dark chocolate. There's banana cream pudding, oreo pudding, pistachio pudding, lemon pudding, white chocolate pudding, cheesecake pudding. So many nuts, so many baking chips, so many possibilities. Just thrilling.

This particular version was amazing--it disappeared so quickly at work that for a moment, I was afraid someone had just gone ahead and dumped it all in the trash (what can I say, that's the way my mind works). The macadamias provided a nice salty crunch, and the white chocolate chips were there for a pleasant burst of sweetness. As I'm a big fan of coconut (not only eating it, but also smelling like it--I consider it a wonderful incentive to wear sunscreen), the fact that its subtle but distinct flavor permeated the loaf was the best part for me.

Say...do the Amish even use store-bought pudding mixes?

Tropical Friendship Bread
(personalized from this recipe)

1/2 cup oil
1/2 cup applesauce (I used Beech-nut Homestyle Cinnamon, Raisins & Pears)
1/2 cup milk
1 cup sourdough starter
3 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup sugar
2 cups flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
2 (3.4 oz) boxes instant coconut cream pudding
1 cup chopped macadamia nuts
1 cup white chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 325F. Grease down whatever molds you intend to use (I filled up 8 mini loaves).
In a large bowl, mix the oil, applesauce, eggs, milk, starter, vanilla, and sugar.
In a separate bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, salt, baking soda, pudding mix, nuts, and chips. Add this to the liquid mixture and stir thoroughly.
Pour the batter into the prepared pans and bake until done. Apparently, this takes at least an hour for regular loaves, and took around 45 minutes for my mini loaves. Cool completely before slicing.

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ayples and banaynays

Remember that song? I'm not crazy, I promise--there is a song.


Moving on. I made another sourdough bread, complete with a special ingredient and a smidge of a disappointment.

I had high hopes for this bread. Bananas, apples, banana-peach-applesauce. That sourdough twang. Cinnamon. Awesome. And truth be told, it does taste magnificent...if you can get it to your mouth.


Yeah, it's crumbly. Quite crumbly. My slices (cut waaaay too thin) practically disintegrated upon contact. I attribute this to two things. First of all, the fat involved is shortening, which I should've known isn't the best at holding things together based on my experiences with it in pie dough. Secondly, I forgot to rehydrate the dried apples, so they undoubtedly sucked out a lot of the moisture that should've been present.


How misleadingly sturdy it looks.

These belated epiphanies aside, I think I'll try this recipe again. The flavor's there, dang it. However, I won't make the same mistakes, and I might go with muffins instead of loaves.

Ayple and Banaynay Bread
(adapted from this recipe)

1/2 cup shortening
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1 banana, mashed
1/2 cup applesauce (I used Beech-nut Homestyle Peaches, Apples & Bananas)(go team!)
1 cup sourdough starter
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 cup dried cinnamon apples, rehydrated and drained well

Preheat oven to 350F and grease whatever pan you'll be using.
In a large bowl, cream together the shortening and sugar, add the egg and mix until blended. Beat in the banana, applesauce, sourdough starter, and vanilla. In a smaller bowl, stir together the flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda, and cinnamon. Add the flour mixture and diced apples to the wet ingredients, stirring until just blended. Pour into pan of choice, whether it be a 9x5" loaf pan or a tray of mini-loaf molds. Bake for 1 hour for one big loaf, 35-40 minutes for mini loaves, or until toothpick comes out clean. Cool completely before attempting to slice.

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the case of the sinking streusel

When I think of a streusel topping, an image of a crumbly, golden brown sprinkling of absolute delight promptly comes to mind.


Well, it promptly comes to mind right after this:


By definition, a streusel is a crumbly mixture of fat, sugar, and flour and sometimes nuts and spices that is used as topping or filling for cake. So naturally, that's what I was expecting to see when pulled my coffee cake muffins with a streusel topping out of the oven, but it's not what I got. Nope, I got something far more exciting--craters!


My guess is that because the proportion of sugar-to-flour was so lopsided, the sugar overwhelmed the binding power of the flour (hee--that rhymes) and that resulted in those sunken pits of caramelized goodness. Whatever the reason, you'll find no complaints here. In addition to that sweet surprise, the muffin itself was quite lovely--light, moist, and spicy, full of nutty crunches and fruity chews.


Bonus--Eb got a workout.

Cratered Coffee Cake
(adapted from this recipe)

2 cups starter (hello, Eb!)
2/3 cup vegetable oil
2 eggs, slightly beaten
1 cup sugar
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon cinnamon (don't you judge me)
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup pecans, chopped
1 cup dried cranberries

Pseudo-streusel:
1 cup packed brown sugar
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon cinnamon (I repeat, don't you dare judge me)
1/4 cup margarine

Preheat oven to 350F. Grease and lightly flour a 9x13-inch baking pan, line a muffin tin with cups, or spray down your silicone baking molds.
In a large bowl, stir together the starter, oil, eggs, and sugar. In a smaller bowl, combine the flour, cinnamon, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Stir in the pecans and cranberries and toss to coat. Add the flour mixture to the wet mixture and mix well; break up any flour clumps that form. Pour into the prepared pan(s) and sprinkle with the topping (see below).

To make the pseudo-streusel, combine the brown sugar, flour, and cinnamon in a mixing bowl. Cut in the margarine until the mixture resembles very coarse crumbs.

For a cake, bake the batter for 30-40 minutes. For muffins, bake 20-25 minutes. For mini muffins, bake 15-18 minutes. Test with a toothpick for best results, but be sure to test the muffin part and not the caramel caverns.


I heart hearts.

And hey--don't forget about the giveaway!

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the only thing irish about these...

...is the color of the frosting. Sad. And here's a question--why is green associated with St. Patrick's Day anyway? Anybody? Bueller? Bueller?


[Hey, speaking of Matthew Broderick (aka Ferris Bueller), his father was of Irish descent! So that makes two weak links to Ireland in this post!]

I make no bones about the fact that I'm extremely uncreative, and this is just further proof of that. I wanted to make something for St. Patrick's Day and use my sourdough starter (known fondly as Eb) at the same time, and this is the best I could do.


Meh, whatever. The end result is delicious. And speckled. AND if I happen to forget to wear green today, I can just smear some frosting on my face and avoid getting pinched (and have a snack for later).

Rainbow Banana Bread
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 cup sugar
1 egg
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 cup mashed banana
1 cup sourdough starter
1 tsp vanilla
1 1/2 cups mini chocolate chips and M&Ms, dusted with flour

Peanut Butter Frosting (drool) + a drop or two of green food coloring

Preheat oven to 350F. Line muffin tin and/or spray loaf pan(s).
In a large bowl, whisk together the oil, sugar, egg, bananas, sourdough starter, and vanilla. In a smaller bowl, combine the flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda, and cinnamon. Add the flour mixture to the wet mixture, stirring just until blended. Fold in the chocolate and spoon into muffin cups (or loaf pan). Bake for about 20 minutes (30 minutes for mini loaves) or until a toothpick comes out clean.

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

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whoopsidaisies!

That's what I said when this batch of bread came out of the oven...


...and that was putting it mildly.

Don't judge me too harshly, but I'm a sucker for "Notting Hill," and my favorite part (aside from the press conference scene at the end) is when the delightful Hugh Grant is attempting to shimmy over a gate and failing miserably. "Whoopsidaisies!" he says. It gets me every time.

Yes, this bread can only be classified as a big ol' "Whoopsidaisies!" Lesson learned: Don't use baking powder that's over three years old, and if you stubbornly insist on doing so, at least make sure you sift it.

Other mistakes: I didn't bake the bread long enough and shouldn't have spread the batter out into six mini loaves--the end result was more like a batch of way-too-moist and sticky rectangular hockey pucks.


I should've known that I was in for trouble when I had to dig my baking powder out with a knife. I foolishly soldiered on, though, not even pausing to break up the chipped-off clumps of the stuff. The result was the green, vomit-like growths you see above. They were scattered throughout my loaves, which had such potential--they were flavored with apple-blueberry baby food and speckled with dried blueberries.

I'll give you the recipe anyway, and maybe you'll have enough sense to use unexpired ingredients. The flavor wasn't bad at all, if you stayed far away from the parts tainted by the pesky baking powder. So I guess it wasn't a complete failure, and hey--at least Eb got a work-out. Speaking of sourdough, my big brother finally named his starter, cleverly dubbing it Barack Dough-bama. :)

Sourdough Blueberry Bread
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup light brown sugar, firmly packed
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 cup apple-blueberry baby food
1 cup sourdough starter, at room temperature
1 cup dried blueberries, coated in flour

Preheat the oven to 350F. Generously grease or spray a 9x5-inch loaf pan.
Sift the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon into a small bowl.
In a larger bowl, whisk together the egg, vanilla, vegetable oil, apple-blueberry baby food, and starter. Add this wet mixture to the dry ingredients and stir just until moistened. Fold in the dried blueberries and pour the batter into the prepared pan. Bake for 50 to 60 minutes, covering the loaf with foil during the last 10 minutes if necessary to prevent overbrowning. The bread is done when a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

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i've got a lovely bunch of coconuts

I could never, ever pick a favorite candy bar. No way, no how.


Three Musketeers Mint, Reese's anything, Milky Way Midnight, Skor & Heath (is there a difference between those two?), Whatchamacallit, NutRageous. I don't discriminate.

Another winner in my book? Mounds.

Sweet, chewy coconut. Rich, dark chocolate. A whole lotta yum.


Eb needed something to do, so I went looking for and found a new recipe using sourdough. I made two changes to the enticing muffin recipe that I found; one was intentional and one was by mistake. First of all, having been inspired by the Mounds bar, I opted to flavor the muffins with coconut rather than include walnuts. Secondly, I failed to read ahead, so instead of melting the chocolate and stirring it in, I simply tossed the chopped chocolate into the batter willy-nilly. That'll teach me to ass-u-me.


I was extremely pleased with these muffins. My error had no adverse effects on the final products; in fact, I don't think they could've been better. I happen to be a fan of chocolate chunkage, but if you're not, feel free to follow the original recipe exactly. A future project using this recipe might be creating a black-bottom-type cupcake, flavoring the cream cheese with coconut. Decadence? I think so.

When all is said and done, though, I think I'd still rather have a Mounds.

Mounds Muffins
(based on these beauties)

2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 1/2 cups sugar
3 eggs
1 cup sourdough starter
1 teaspoon vanilla
3/4 cup milk
4 ounces dark chocolate, chopped
1 cup coconut, toasted if it pleases you

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease or line two muffins trays.
Combine the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, soda, and salt in a medium
bowl; set aside.
In a large bowl, cream the butter with the sugar until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the eggs, one at a time, mixing to blend between each addition. Add the starter and vanilla and mix to blend. Mix in half of the dry ingredients, then the milk, then the remaining dry ingredients. Toss in your chopped chocolate and coconut and stir just until evenly mixed.
Fill the muffin cups with 1/4 cup batter each and bake for 20 minutes,
rotating halfway through baking. The muffins are done when puffed and a toothpick inserted into the center of one comes out clean.
Let the muffins cool 10 minutes in the pans, then transfer them to racks to cool completely.

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roll me out the door

My ideal roll has a soft and fluffy interior and a crusty, crunchy, browned exterior. Believe it or not, Eb accomplishes this quite nicely.


It's pretty easy, too--I simply use my recipe for whole wheat sourdough bread, but instead of dividing it into loaf pans, I pinch off little balls and let them rise in a round cake pan.


Voila--the resulting rolls are just the way I like 'em.


They pair pretty darn well with some pepper jelly, too...


...as does turkey, ham, cheese & crackers, and a heck of a lot of other things.


It's good stuff. Magical, even. Maybe if I can wrest the recipe away from the fella (yes, fella) who made it, I'll share it with ya'll.

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back in black

It's been far too long since Eb made an appearance, wouldn't you say? Never fear, he's still alive and kicking, and he's currently contributing to some very moist and magnificent muffins.


I've found that you sure don't come across the combination of bananas and blackberries very often, and that's too bad. The sweetness of the bananas nicely balances the tart, tart, tarty-tart blackberries. Throw in some of that tangy sourdough flavor, and you have a real winner on your hands (and in your mouth)(but hey--not on your hips).

Added bonus: Blackberries have a knack for making foods right purty, too.


Blackberry Banana Muffins
(adapted from this recipe)

1 1/2 cup banana baby food (ah, perks...)
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1 cup sugar
1 egg, beaten
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup sourdough starter
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups fresh or frozen blackberries

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease or line your baking vessel or choice (I used a mini-muffin tin and a mini-loaf pan. Apparently mini = marvelous.) Mix the oil into the bananas in a large mixing bowl. Add in the sugar, egg, vanilla, and starter. Stir in the flour, salt, cinnamon, baking powder, and baking soda. Add the blackberries, and stir until just incorporated. Divide the mixture into the prepared pan(s). For mini-muffins, bake for about 20 minutes. For mini-loaves, bake for about 25 minutes. For loaves, bake for about 1 hour. Rely on the toothpick test. My yield was 24 mini-muffins and 6 very short and squat mini-loaves.

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how bad could it be?

Really. If chocolate is involved, chances are good that a recipe will yield something quite delicious, or at the very least, edible.


The results of this experiment were no exception, although they were lacking in visual appeal...


I found a recipe for sourdough chocolate cake, but since cake is not conducive to grabbing and stuffing in one's mouth while running by the "freebie table" at work, I decided to try to turn them into brownies. To achieve this, I cut the eggs and baking soda in half. Like I said, it was an experiment. (Apparently I'm a scientist through and through.)

Putting the batter together was an interesting and unique process. My favorite part was adding the baking soda to the warm chocolate mixture and seeing it swell up and practically grow out of the bowl. The least enjoyable part was checking on my creation halfway through the baking time and seeing a surface full of dimples pits craters.


I saw it through, though, and it all worked out okay because they taste fabulous. There's a rich, chocolate flavor and a texture somewhere between cake and brownies. Hence, I give you...cownies.

Sourdough Cownies
(based on this recipe)

1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup hot water
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup butter or margarine
2 cups sugar
2 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 1/2 cups sourdough starter (active and bubbly)

To prepare the chocolate mixture, heat the chips and water in the microwave or on the stove. Bring to a boil, stirring occasionally. Stir in the baking soda--beware, the mixture will foam. Let cool to lukewarm.
Meanwhile, cream together the butter and sugar until fluffy. Add the eggs and beat well. Mix in the vanilla, cooled chocolate mixture, and starter. Add the flour, cayenne, and salt and blend until the mixture is uniform.
Pour the batter into a greased 9x13-inch baking pan. Let set in a warm place for 30 minutes.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and bake the bars 35 to 40 minutes, or until a pick comes out clean.

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no goodies for you!

That's right, another Seinfeld reference. (Ironically, this episode was on just last night.)


I've decided to cut my co-workers off for awhile as a form of passive-aggressive punishment. They simply aren't displaying enough, or frankly, any gratitude for my baking efforts.

Granted, these muffins weren't my best creation, but there was still time, money, and care involved. So in an attempt to spur some appreciation, I'm going to put a temporary kibosh on the baking.


Okay, enough of my subtle vindictiveness and on to the muffins. They are yet another example of Eb's capabilities. However, for the first time, I think he was too potent for his own good. The sourdough flavor was just a bit overwhelming for my tastes, and it definitely overpowered the apples. I couldn't even detect the cinnamon, which is clearly unacceptable.

Other than that, they were super-moist and had an excellent texture. I topped them with some granola I had hanging out in my cabinet, and that provided a welcome crunch. If I make these puppies again (for a more worthy crowd), I'll boost the sugar and cinnamon and perhaps use a streusel topping instead of that granola.


Too Sour Sourdough Applesauce Muffins
(adapted from here)

1/2 cup butter, softened
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 eggs
1 1/2 cups sweetened applesauce
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 1/2 cups sourdough starter
1 3/4 cups flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
2 cups granola

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line or grease muffin cups, bundt pan, or whatever type of baking vessel floats your boat. (I made 24 mini muffins, 12 regular muffins, and little 5 diamond loaves.)
In a large mixing bowl, cream together the butter, sugar, and eggs until light and fluffy. Add applesauce, vanilla, and starter and mix well. In a separate bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix thoroughly. Pour into the prepared pan(s) and sprinkle the tops with granola. Bake until the toothpick test is passed. (My mini muffins took about 20 minutes, and the regular muffins and mini diamond loaves took about 30 minutes.) Cool on a wire rack.


How do you like them apples?

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sour squared

You'd think that the combination of a sourdough starter and lemons would lead to an extremely sour product. Ah, the power of sugar.



Yes, my friends, Eb has returned. I continue to be amazed by his versatility. His goal this time was a lemon cake. For the record, I (along with the babies in this hilarious, must-watch video) am not a huge fan of lemons, but the recipe I found was unique and interesting, so I gave it a shot.


(I felt the need to add blueberries simply because they make everything better, pair so well with lemon, and are extremely photogenic.)

I was a little bit hesitant to take that first bite of finished product, but my fears were unfounded. In fact, if I hadn't made it myself, I never would've known that a sourdough starter was involved. There was a bit of that telltale tanginess in the background, but nowhere near the amount I expected. Lemon was definitely the predominant flavor, but the overall effect was actually pleasantly sweet. And of course, the glaze didn't hurt.


I took most of the cake to work and it was devoured. You'd think these people never get fed. Unfortunately, I'm beginning to take issue with the fact that my co-workers have stopped thanking me for bringing in these goodies. A girl likes to feel appreciated! I'm sorry to say that I can be a bit of a spiteful person, so if I don't get some gratitude soon, I'll be forced to stop feeding them.


Sourdough Blueberry Lemon Cake
(based on this recipe)

Cake:
1/2 cup butter, room temperature
1 cup sugar
Grated rind of 1 lemon
2 eggs
2 1/2 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/3 cup lemon juice
1/3 cup water
1 cup sourdough starter
1 cup blueberries

Lemon glaze:
1 cup powdered sugar
2 teaspoons lemon juice
2 to 3 tablespoons water or milk

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spray a 9-inch loaf pan or a mini loaf tray.
In a large bowl, cream the butter with the sugar and grated rind until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition.
In a separate bowl, combine the flour, salt, and baking soda. In another small bowl, combine the lemon juice, water, and starter. Add the dry ingredients to the butter mixture alternately with the lemon mixture, beating until fluffy. Coat blueberries with flour and fold into batter. Pour into the prepared pan and bake 1 hour, or until bread tests done (my mini loaves took about 40 minutes). Let the bread cool in the pan on a wire rack for 10 minutes.

For the lemon glaze, combine powdered sugar, lemon juice, and enough water to make a creamy frosting and mix thoroughly.

Remove the bread from the pan and pour on the glaze.

I'm contributing this to YeastSpotting, a weekly feature of the wonderful blog Wild Yeast.

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gingammonbread

Here's a Friday morning poser for you (TGIF, by the way): Why is it called gingerbread when the ingredients call for just as much cinnamon as ginger? That's cinnamon discrimination, and I won't stand for it! Henceforth, I shall refer to any such creation as gingammonbread instead.


This gingammonbread is particularly unique because it's made with a sourdough starter. That's right, Eb is back again. I'm really trying to find every possible usage for a sourdough starter, and I was delighted to find a recipe for sourdough gingammonbread. It has all the necessary components--ginger, cinnamon, and molasses--with the added use of a starter.


I must confess that I'm not too keen on gingammonbread. The culprit is the molasses--the taste just makes my face scrunch up (quite an unattractive look, I assure you). (There does seem to be one exception to my distaste for molasses and that, oddly enough, is molasses cookies. I'm not sure what it is about them, but the flavor of the molasses just doesn't bother me. But I digress.) As far as gingammonbread goes, this was good. The sourdough flavor wasn't too strong, it just made the other flavors a little more complex. It was also extremely moist, which I consider a good thing in cake-type breads.

My beloved Mamboni always tops her gingammonbread with a lemon glaze, so I went ahead and did that too. As it turns out--surprise, surprise--the Mambourine does, in fact, know best. The glaze made all the difference. Good call, Mammy.


(I wouldn't mind a dip in that pool...)

The person responsible for the original recipe called it Alaskan Sourdough Gingerbread, but since I'm not Alaskan and since I don't condone cinnamon discrimination, I've renamed it as I see fit.

Virginian Sourdough Gingammonbread
(adapted from this recipe)

1/2 cup brown sugar, firmly packed
1/2 cup butter, room temperature
1/2 cup molasses
1 egg
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons cinnamon
2 teaspoons ginger
1/2 cup hot water
1 cup Eb-like creation

1 1/4 cup powdered sugar
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1-2 tablespoons water, if needed

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Grease up a 8x8-inch baking dish or mini loaf pan.
In a large bowl, cream together the brown sugar and butter. Add the molasses and egg, beat until well blended, and set aside.
In a separate bowl, combine the dry ingredients and blend into the hot water. Warning--you'll end up with a gloppy mess. Beat this mess into the creamed mixture like there's no tomorrow. Gradually add your Eb, mixing carefully to maintain a bubbly batter.
Pour into the prepared pan and bake for about 30 minutes or until the toothpick test is passed.
For the icing, whisk the lemon juice into the powdered sugar and gradually add the water, if needed. Spread over the cooled gingammonbread and try to let it set before cutting.

P.S. Please visit this post on my good friend Katie's site, The Kitchen and Beyond. She needs to pick your brains for some good frozen entree ideas.

P.P.S. I'm submitting this to Sunita for her Think Spice event, celebrating its one-year anniversary. Cinnamon rules.




P.P.P.S. Did you know that Julia Child was once a covert operative? My respect for her just grew even more.

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