Baking Craftiness: I Get Inspired...

Every single time I visit I Am Baker. Every time there is inspiritation overload! I read the blog and see the photo’s and instantly want to go home and try my hand at whatever it is she had created!

But the day I saw this post, it was just before throwing a wedding shower for A. And I always wanted to try out decorating cookies with Royal Icing. And I was apparently feeling very brave… I used Amanda @I Am Baker’s sugar cookie & icing recipe and I found a very detailed ‘how-to’ at Sweetopia’s site here! Of course Amanda also has a great tutorial up as well right here… it just wasn’t up until after I made A’s cookies!

Let me start by saying the sugar cookie recipe was delicious! Not overly sweet, they complimented the icing recipe very well! My friend R-Jo came over to help me decorate them, and I think we did a pretty good job for our first time! What do you think?

(R-Jo's Masterpiece's)

(we made this one specifically for A. The initial's represent her and her new hubby. It was a joint effort that we were really quite proud of!)

We were so nervous, I think it took us 4 hours to finish decorating them, but I will definitely try making them again! Hopefully I’ll have a reason to soon…

#48 a.k.a. My Grandpa K.'s Craft

I’ve mentioned my Grandpa K before. Not just in my blog about my 101 in 1001, but also when I told you about my Grandma K. I don’t really remember off the top of my head what my grandpa did before he retired (although I’m sure I’ve asked before). What I do remember, is that after he retired, he painted. And he baked. And sometime after he passed away, my family got the Joy of Cooking book that he used to cook. And then when I moved, I moved it with me!

So, I’ve had this cookbook in my possession for a little over 5 years and not once have I cooked anything from it which is why, on my list of 101, #48 was to make one of my Grandpa K’s bread recipes. He just made the best breads and now that I've tried that, I want to make one of the pie recipes. I can only hope to make a pumpkin pie as good as Grandpa's!! But one thing at a time, and the other day it was bread! Take a look at the process and my results!

My roommates have recently moved out, so the first thing I did was unpack some of my cooking things starting with my nesting bowls! I just love using this for baking!

Next is the Joy of Cooking book opened to the page for the French Bread recipe. Can you see all the fingerprints and bits still left all over the pages? *sigh* dreamy...

Ok, so the first step was actually scalding the milk? I had never done that before, so I actually looked up what in the world that meant and then I was so nervous that I was going to burn it, I didn't take a picture =o( But then you let the milk cool to 85 degrees, and that was less stressful, so here it goes!

While it was cooling, I started to activate the yeast with some warm water in another cup. I had to let it sit like that for 10 minutes!!

 While waiting to mik all the liquid together, I mixed the flour salt and sugar together, then made a hole for the liquids to pour into... It always makes me thing of building sand castles...

 

mix it up!!(see that little pile of flour? I'm really proud of myself because that's the only flour I spilled the whole time I was making this bread!)

Then you have to let them raise and shape them into loafs and slice them a little with some scissors! Then they have to raise AGAIN! You have to have patience to make this bread...

Cook it for a while and 'voila'! Looks good doesn't it? My friends (aka guinea pigs) thought it was!