http://iheartbaking.com Just another WordPress weblog Mon, 23 Jan 2006 17:13:21 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en Though I’m aware that you wouldn’t know it by this site, The Sister ™ and I were quite prolific bakers during the holiday season. Below is a good sampling of our goodies. If you look in the middle of the bowl and to the right you’ll see my dark chocolate ... http://iheartbaking.com/2006/01/christmas-baking-revisited/ One throughout the years buys chocolate, sometimes indiscriminately, other times with dark chocolate precision. Nearly always the chocolate chip cookies or brownies or ganache or truffles turn out very close to layperson’s perfection. One begins to think that this chocolate thing isn’t that hard. Then the chocolate reminds the ... http://iheartbaking.com/2006/01/misadventures-in-chocolate-beware-of-the-cocoa-percentage/ Although I love to bake and often rove the internet for recipes and baking tips, I must admit to being farely well displaced from the world of food blogs. However, I recently stumbled upon Slashfood. It’s updated frequently throughout the day making it an everyday read. And ... http://iheartbaking.com/2006/01/foodie-site-review-slashfood/ I really don’t know the name of them, but they are fantastic and simple. Two Ritz crackers with a layer of peanut butter in between and covered with chocolate. It makes for a super combination of salty and sweet. I used milk chocolate Ghirardelli chips melted in ... http://iheartbaking.com/2005/12/chocolate-peanut-butter-ritz-cracker-thingys/ I know it’s been quiet around here. But, really, it’s the calm before the holiday baking storm. On my short list are cinnamon rolls and candy including truffles. Truffles are a surprisingly easy candy to make relative to the oohs and aahs they generate. ... http://iheartbaking.com/2005/12/gearing-up-for-holiday-baking/ I’m happy to report that the Spiced Pumpkin Cheesecake recipe noted earlier is in fact excellent (or “outstanding” depending on to whom you are speaking). What follows are a few action shots. The pecans post-toasting. To toast the pecans, I placed them evenly on a pan and baked them ... http://iheartbaking.com/2005/11/reporting-back-on-the-spiced-pumpkin-cheesecake-with-caramel-bourbon-sauce/ When someone asks me for seasoning assistance, my first question is always “did you salt it?” Salt is without a doubt the most important seasoning in cooking and baking. Unsalted savory dishes can be salvaged by a sprinkle at the table, but an unsalted baked good cannot be ... http://iheartbaking.com/2005/11/salt-is-the-salt-of-the-earth/ The Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays are an excellent excuse for making overly dramatic desserts that one would probably never make any other time of the year. As I was in my favorite local kitchen store today, all of the specialty chocolates, toffees and baking ingredients started to get me ... http://iheartbaking.com/2005/11/recipe-to-try-spiced-pumpkin-cheesecake-with-caramel-bourbon-sauce/ The part of the cheesecake most often left on the plate is the crust. Don’t let this happen to your cheesecake. In that vein, one word that should NOT be in your cheesecake vocabulary is “shortbread.” Shortbread crusts, frankly, are awful. They’re not very sweet, they’re ... http://iheartbaking.com/2005/11/the-cheesecake-crust/ As a regular feature on I (heart) baking, I’ll be bringing you lovely nuggets of inspiration from The Best Cookbook Ever ™, also known as The Best Recipe Cookbook. Have I mentioned I love it?* So what’s great about this particular cookbook? Every recipe I’ve tried in it ... http://iheartbaking.com/2005/11/this-week-in-the-best-recipe-cookbook/