De Baking Psychopath

The original Gus, with his friends Stomach Ache and The Pox. This is it, I've finally fallen off my rocker. I've joined the ranks of some of the most superstitious, self-made alchemist, and cult-like group of people out there: Keepers of Sourdough Starter. Before there was commercial baker's yeast, before there was even beer brewing from which to skim off yeast, sourdough was THE original way of capturing yeast ( Saccharomyces cerevisiae ) for breadmaking. Nowadays most legit fancy bakeries still maintain some mother starter for their yummy loaves, and therein lies part of the reason why they produce yummy bread that is different than what you can make at home and why they're still in business. Amongst laypeople, however, it is now a less common occurrence, no doubt because our parents' and grandparents' generation heralded the new technologies of mass-produced bread and commercial yeast with great enthusiasm. However, I've come across many st...

This was a dessert created out of necessity but turned out quite delicious in its own right. The task was to come up with something that was dairy free and gluten free. A flash of memory reminded me of the faux cheesecake a high school teacher of mine came up with when she had just moved to Taiwan many years ago and could not get any American cream cheese. So instead, she used fresh tofu. It ended up being a lighter and healthier version of the classic dessert that was so enjoyed by her family and guests, that even after she gained access to cream cheese again, she would substitute half the cream cheese with tofu. So to achieve my goal, I paired an all-tofu version of the recipe with a nut crust and homemade blueberry jam for a very respectable fancy dessert! For even less calories, you can substitute the sugar with Splenda. The softer and silkier your tofu, the less prominent the taste of the tofu will be; I used firm tofu one of the two times and it ended up much firmer and ...

Remember my quest to recreate the walnut rolls of my youth ? These came very, very close to the right texture and sweetness! I think I would just need to omit the cranberries, substitute in a little bit of whole wheat flour, and knot up the rolls, and I'd be dang close to the original.  But enough about my nostalgic quest, these rolls were awesome in their own right. The walnuts and cranberries are always a great flavor combo, and the softness and stretchiness of the bread made these some of the best rolls to come out of my oven. They made a really welcome and enjoyable addition to Thanksgiving dinner and next-day breakfast, both by themselves or slathered with butter. Walnut Cranberry Rolls (adapted from Brown Eyed Baker , original source Bon Appetit magazine) Ingredients : 3 & 1/2 cups bread flour (more may be needed later) 1 tablespoon light brown sugar 1 & 1/2 teaspoons dry active yeast  1 & 1/2 teaspoons salt 1 & 1/2...

Last year, I asked Michael to pick up some pumpkin puree. He came back with pumpkin pie filling (already with sweetener and spices), which would be fine if I made pumpkin pie, but I generally use my pumpkin for non-pie recipes. Luckily, the company has some nice recipes on their website for alternate uses for the pie filling, such as this pumpkin quick bread. I used a cup of chopped apple as the "stir-ins" and sprinkled raw pumpkin seeds on top. The bread was moist and flavorful with a really nice crunchy top crust. You can find the recipe here .

The hubby has a new job! And right after he started, Boss Appreciation Day rolled around and everyone at work chipped in to throw a little dessert party in honor of the supervisors. He did all the hands-on work for this recipe, with just a few guiding tips from me, who stood in the background sneezing up a storm (in a direction away from the cookie-making area). They were a big hit, and the cayenne really gives a boost to the warm fall spicy flavors in this cookie. We made them too big to be crunchy, but the sturdy chewiness was very satisfying so we didn't really mind anyway. The browned butter is just barely noticeable as a nutty aftertaste in the cookie, and it really gives it more depth of flavor. Aren't these just picture-perfect with the crackly tops? Good job, spousal unit! Brown Butter Gingersnaps (adapted from Cookie Madness ) Ingredients: 12 tablespoons unsalted butter 2 cups + 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour 2 teaspoons baking soda 1/2 ...

This is our new sandwich bread! I recently was lucky to get my hands on a Pullman bread pan and immediately set out to recreate the nicely quadrilateral breads of our youth in Taiwan.  This style of bread, made in a long loaf pan with a lid, is originally French in origin, I think. The Japanese, being the Francophiles they are, made this butter and milk-enriched bread a common item in their bread shops, and the Taiwanese, being the Nipponophiles we are, grew up buying it from all the Japanese and European style bakeries on the island. I used the well-rated recipe on King Arthur Flour's website for my first try, and the only three changes I made were that 1) I used rice flour (non-glutinous) instead of potato flour because I was too lazy to go out and get some, and 2) I let it rise twice before forming the loaf and letting the dough proof in the pan (3 rises total), and 3) I used powdered goat's milk instead of the nonfat dry milk in the recipe. ...

Nob Hill Chinatown Gate Curry Truck Taco Truck Inside the Ferry Building Oakland Bay Bridge Long pier jutting into the bay Mission tower in the distance Biscoff Coffee Corner, only one in the US! Gull, eying everyone's food "The Rock": Alcatraz They paid $6 for this old street car ride. Rip-off. Ferry building in all its glory Do you see that freaking hill in the background? The 45 degree angle incline?! Interestingly shaped building downtown Gigantic church in Japantown Sanrio store! The old school bakery I got the gigantic pork buns from Rows and rows of jam! Farmer's Market bounty Avocados galore Mushroom, mushroom! The Occupy SF movement, in their dirty tents and sad doggies Another interesting building

This doesn't even include the loaves of sourdough bread, assortment of Chinese bakery items, and fancy cookies I hauled back. I ate and am still eating well from SF.

This year for National Bundt Day and our department's yearly fall luncheon, I made the Double Apple Bundt Cake from Dorie Greenspan's Baking: From my home to yours . The double apple comes from shredded fresh apple and apple butter in the batter. Instead of raisins, I added 1 cup of frozen cranberries. And to frost it, I topped the cake with my favorite caramel frosting . In full disclosure, this bundt was a Frankenstein bundt! I unmolded the cake when the recipe said I could, but it was so steamy and delicate that I totally cracked it into several pieces trying to get it onto my cake carrier! Good thing the frosting covered up all the seams! Luckily no one really noticed or cared, but they did notice the taste. It was sooo good: moist, full of sweet apple and spice flavors, the tart cranberries were a great contrast, and the caramel frosting just reinforced the fall apple flavors. I got a lot of good feedback and requests for the recipe.  Happy Bundt Da...