Blueberry Muffins

I really liked these Blueberry muffins, however they taste nothing like a muffin. Andrew's coworkers were convinced I had made a mistake, but I am pretty sure I didn't. Andrew just said it was like eating butter. The batter was light and fluffy (I loved touching it). They were great little puffs when they first came out of the oven. But within minutes they had settled and a little concave dimple appeared on the top of each (really just a little pocket to hold some jam). These muffins are not pretty and the two I took to work were a crumbly mess. I am glad I went with paper cups. But I just loved them, and they got a good review from the people I split them with. I love butter biscuits and I think it was the fresh melted blueberries in a biscuit was the appeal to me.

By the way, I am so excited I have learned how to keep the mess in the kitchen down to a minimum. When beating butter, it stays in the bowl and off the walls. Only we found a weird spot on the living room carpet, it took some time, but it was identified as chocolate ganache, so apparently off the floor is the next hurdle.

Apple & Raspberry Galette

I needed a dish for a pot luck and decided a fruit Galette would be a great treat.

I was so impressed with the croissant texture the crust had when I made the Tomato & Cheese Galette, however this one was not the same at all.

I must have overworked the dough. When I was rolling out the dough I noticed it didn't have the big butter bits that remained last time. It must have happened so fast. Or I just needed a humbling experience as I was getting pretty cocky in my baking skills.

The crust was bready, not flakey. It was very tasty. I cut it into triangles and it was easy handheld apple pie. 

I sent some with Andrew to work, but he brought half back home. He said it was too good to share. Far cry from his dislike of the Tomato & Cheese.

Irish Soda Bread

I was a little intimated about making this bread even though it was the easiest recipe. The book said it had to be eaten right away or it would turn to stone!?!? I was concerned about how fast was fast, as there was no way we could eat a loaf of bread in one sitting... or could we?

My plan was to make a breakfast treat for my co-workers on St. Patrick's day. So I got up at 5am and started baking.

Unfortunately I had forgotten to buy buttermilk and the yogurt in the fridge was vanilla so I made my first big substitution - I had really been

 trying to avoid my bad habits. I know that when a recipe calls for a tablespoon of buttermilk I have successfully used milk with lemon. I was nervous to try it with such a large quantity. The only real problem that occurred was the dough was too wet (so no x on the top). The dough was a crazy sticky mess and really hard to clean off the counter after. But other than that, the results were terrific. 

We had fresh out of the oven pieces for breakfast, and I was able to get the bread to work still warm. 

Elaine had just been to Ireland and I was excited to hear her review. She said the colour wasn't as white as her recipe, but the taste was as good as she ate there. Yeah!  Thumbs up all around.

Mint Chocolate Nightcaps

I'm not sure what I liked better - the finished product or the batter bowls. This is a very yummy batter, and I was embarrassed that I couldn't hold myself back.

I used a tablespoon measure to scoop the dough on the trays but I must have overfilled because I only got 12 verses 24 cookies. You can imagine how big these these are. That is a dinner plate. Not really the dainty little cookie they are probably suppose to be.

The recipe is pretty easy and I didn't have any problems. I was a little surprised at how light the mint taste was. The assemble just before eating is causing problems in sending them off to the coworkers to eat rather than us stuffing our faces.

Overall this cookie was a big hit in this house. 

Tomato & Cheese Galette

Mmmm... I just woke up from my dairy induced coma. All that butter and cheese was just dreamy. Good thing there were tomatoes and I can pretend it was healthy.

I have no experience with Galettes. I wasn't 100% sure what it was.

My best description would be a croissant with garden freshness, and smothered in cheese. Yum!

Andrew didn't like it. I pushed him for details, but he just said it wasn't great and rather I didn't make it again. 

I used a food processor for the dough. I was concerned I would overwork it if I made it by hand.

There was an issue with the oven smoking. The high heat and oils dripping from the tray was a bit of an issue. We were surprised the smoke alarm didn't go off. Really happy the Galettes didn't have any charring. 

Overall the recipe was really easy and I loved the final results. I am definitely going to try a fruit Galette in the future. 

X Cookies

I was pretty excited about attempting the X Cookies. I had no idea what figs tasted like and if I even  liked them (yeah I do!). Also, the X Cookies just don't sound like a cookie I would ever reach for to eat. But I have full trust.

I didn't realize the time involved in these little treats and starting at 7:30 pm was a bad idea. When it was past my bed time I started getting cranky and had only finished 3 portions, I had to start an assembly line method. It was a long hall to get through all 12 portions.

All counter space was used to the fullest:

One for mixing - A wooden spoon was sacrificed here. The poor thing just couldn't scoop the dough out of the processor and snapped in half. My processor was just way to small for all the ingredients and I should had mix in batches. I now know for next time.

One for rolling and assembly - I think these challenges are going to teach me patience. I am not good at following so many steps, and can't believe how many times I would forget to egg wash.

One for the trays - All those "X"s it was hard to not start making "O"s.

It was all worth it and I love the final results. I think the best description of the cookies was from a coworker who commented they are a great cookie for those who don't like figs and raisons, you get the flavour but it's just a taste. Everyone liked them; which is a good thing because I have a mountain of them left.