THROWBACK RECIPE: Great Grandma Ruby's coconut poundcake

 

This post is a reprint from my genealogy blog PRESERVEYOURTREE

My Great-Grandmother Ruby died a year before I was born. I am sad I never got to meet her. From what I understand she was a pretty remarkable woman. 

Apparently she was an amazing cook.

I was perusing our old family cookbook, looking for some Thanksgiving inspiration.

I realized a lot of the recipes that had been submitted, all belonged to Ruby!

These recipes were such family favorites that even years later were still being made and Of course, they HAD to be included in the cookbook!

ingredients

• 2 sticks margarine, softened
• 1/2 cup crisco
• 3 cups sugar
• 6 eggs
• 3 cups flour
• 1 cup milk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 2 teaspoon “other flavoring” (coconut, almond whatever you prefer)
• 1 cup flaked coconut

Directions

Do NOT preheat oven.

1. Cream together the margarine, crisco and sugar.
2. beat in eggs, one at a time, mixing well in between each addition.
3. Alternate flour and milk, mixing well in between each addition.
4. Mix in vanilla and flavoring
5. fold in coconut.
6. pour batter into greased and floured tube pan/mold
7. Place into cold oven

Set the oven to bake at 300 degrees

Bake at 300 degrees for 1 1/2 hours, or until toothpick comes clean.

Throwback recipe found in grandmas stash: Frankenmuth fruit bread

REPOSTED FROM MY WEBSITE PRESERVE YOUR TREE 

Have you ever been to Frankenmuth, Michigan?

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History of Frankenmuth

From Wikipedia: “The area was settled and named by conservative Lutheran immigrants from Roßtal area of Franconia in Germany.  The group of settlers left Germany aboard the Caroline on April 20, 1845, and arrived at Castle Garden in New York seven weeks later. They traveled via canals and the Great Lakes from New York to Detroit and arrived in August 1845. Sailing then on the Nelson Smith, the settlers made their way to Saginaw and traveled over land to what is now the city of Frankenmuth. “

Also known as Michigan’s Little Bavaria, this area attracts millions of visitors every year. “The strong influence of Franconian-style architecture can be found in most areas of the city. Most buildings in the commercial district, as well as many homes, feature stylistic interpretations of the timber-framed buildings found in the Franconia region of Germany…”

There are festivals, parks, restaurants, shops and more.

One of the best things about a visit to Frankenmuth is a visit to one of their local restaurants and bakeries.

Frankenmuth’s classic German breads, rolls, pastries and candy are eaten by the ton.

The traditional bread served in their well known restaurants is called Stollen, which is a traditional yeasted fruit bread made with nuts, spices and dried or candied fruit.

recipe found

I am in possession of my Grandmothers old wooden recipe box. It is chock full of classic favorites that she collected throughout the years. When she passed away 20 years ago at the age of 84, I was given the box as she had promised me as a child.

As I was rifling through it looking for a throwback recipe to post , I came across this cutting, taken from the Flint Newspaper. Judging by the typesetting, the color and pictures, I am guessing it to be from the 60s or 70’s.

Warning, this is TIME CONSUMING and not for the faint of heart. However, it does make a delicious bread, and your efforts will be rewarded.

ingredients

• 1/4 cup warm water
• 1 package active dry yeast
• 3/4 cup warm milk
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• salt: 1/2 tsp
• 1/2 tsp ground cardamom
• 1 egg, slightly beaten
• 2 TBSP shortening
• 1 cup candied fruit
• 1 cup raisins
• 3 1/4 – 3 1/2 cups flour

instructions

• put dry yeast in mixing bowl and sprinkle the warm water over it to dissolve.
• stir in milk, sugar, salt, cardamom and egg.
• add shortening, candied fruit and raisins.
• wish a wooden spoon add half the flour
• with your hand, mix in remaining flour.
• turn out onto a lightly floured surface.
• knead until smooth and elastic.
• round the dough up in a greased bowl, cover and let rise until doubled in bulk.(about 1 1/2 hours)
• punch down
• let rise again 45 minutes
• shape into a round loaf
• place into greased 8 or 9″ round pan
• cover and let rise AGAIN 45 minutes.
• preheat oven to 350 degrees
• Brush with egg-yolk glaze** and then bake about 40 minutes, or until light brown.

**egg yolk glaze: beat one egg yolk with 2 TBSP cold water.

Bon Appetit!

:

GREAT BRITISH BAKING SHOW- SEASON 11 EPISODE 2- BISCUIT WEEK (spoilers)

Biscuit week,(or cookies as we call them here across the pond in America) was a hectic rush of flour, sugar, caramel, coconut, molds, sculpting and prayers.

11 bakers 3 rounds and what seemed like 9 million cookies.

SIGNATURE BAKE:  This week the signature bake for biscuit week was the Florentine cookie.  The florentine , or lace cookie, is typically made of dried fruits, nuts and combined with a caramel, baked and then typically backed with chocolate or drizzled.  A florentine should be neat, thin and have a nice crispy snap to them. Paul specifically pointed out that he prefers dark chocolate when making florentines because the amount of sugar makes them so sweet you need the bitterness of the dark to mellow it out. 

each backer had to make 36 identical Florentine cookies.

DAVE-  Mango, mixed nuts and sesame seeds with feathered 3 chocolate.  Judges said they were thin, crispy, and the 3 chocolate feathering looked very nice. Good snap, good flavor, just needed more texture.

HERMINE-  Mango and coconut dipped in pink chocolate and airbrushed with trees.  Judges : scruffy looking, needed longer in the oven, some tough texture a little too chewy.

LAURA- Salted Caramel with almonds and raisins, using milk chocolate to coat..  Had never made them before.  Judged as good classic florentine, Paul loved the flavors but would have done dark chocolate over milk chocolate.

LINDA-  making her sisters favorite with ginger, ground her nuts very fine.  Judges said she needed more texture because there was none. But it had good flavor and good snap.

LOTTIE: Quarantine Florentine.  Her grandparents favorite cookie. Her flavors of nuts, ginger and sour cherry earned her high praise and even the Paul Hollywood Handshake! Paul said he couldnt find fault with them. Perfect snap, delicious flavors and very neat.

MAK-  Mango, Cashew and Cumin, decorated with a peacock feather.  Needed Longer in the oven, they were too chewy, they liked the flavors, but it just wasnt a florentine.  His peacock feathers looked more like tennis rackets.

MARC-  Pistachio and ginger with a ruby chocolate, his florentine came out neat and pretty but had no snap. However they were surprisingly delicious with the ruby chocolate.

MARK-  Macadamia and mango topped with white chocolate and cardamom.  He left his macadamia nuts chunkier, was worried to go too small. Judges thought they were too lumpy and needed more fruit. They had a good snap but the white chocolate was too dominating of a flavor.

PETER-  Modeled after his favorite dessert Sticky toffee pudding,  his florentines were filled with nuts and dates . They needed more time in the oven, and the flavors were original and delicious, just no snap.

ROWAN-  Orange, raspberry , cherry and almond, decorated by little waistcoats made from modeling chocolate.  Oh rowan rowan...again too much.  Judges said they were too thick and there was no snap.  good flavor, but again he tried to do too much and he just needs to simplify. 

SURA-  Almond and pistachio with cardamom, saffron and rosewater.   Looks amazing, lots of flavor, well balanced but no snap.

TECHNICAL CHALLENGE-  Set by Prue.    

Each baker had to make 12 coconut macaroons.  6 of the macaroons had to be filled with chocolate and drizzled with chocolate on top, and the other 6 had to have mango curd piped onto it. 

Difficulty was knowing how long to bake. The macaroon needs to be a nice light golden brown and just crunch on the outside, but still be slightly moist and sticky on the inside. They also had to be careful not to overblend their coconut, or to make their curd too runny.

11. ROWAN.  too soft, underbaked and bad piping.

10. PETER-  neat and tidy but underbaked

9.  MARC-  untidy, sizes weren't consistent, and needed a longer bake

8.  LOTTIE-  too small and underbaked

7.  LAURA-  good consistency in sizes, but a little underbaked, too squishy.

6.  SURA-  needed consistency in her sizes, but tasted good

5.  HERMINE-  a little hard but still chewy

4.  LINDA-  overblitzed coconut in her mixture but still good bake and consistency

3.  MAK-  uniform consistency, good flavor, excellent.

2.  MARK-  good caramel color, great job, spot on.

1. DAVE-  Very neat, delicious flavor, really excellent.

SHOWSTOPPER CHALLENGE

 Each baker has to shape and mold cookies to make a 3-D  biscuit tablescape for a memorable meal.  They want delicious cookies that are shaped and highly decorated, tricking the eye.  4 hours to complete the challenge.

DAVE-  Mexican Tablescape with bright colors, intricate bowls and plates.  Judges loved it. Delicious flavor, believeable and wonderfully decorated.

HERMINE-  Sakura tablescape. The molding looked clumsy, but the decoration looked nice. Pau was not convinced on the flavor.

LAURA-  Nan's 80th birthday tea party celebration.  Nice bisuit but the concept was very plain and Paul felt like she could have done a lot more in 4 hours than a cake stand and some teacups.

LINDA-  Tea in Amsterdam.  Using a flakier rosewater shortbread instead of a sturdier cookie. It was extremely pretty, but the dough was overworked.

LOTTIE-  Viking tablescape.  Poor Lottie  had trouble unmolding her viking ship.  They liked her tablescape, Paul thought it was a little too rustic looking, but the gingerbread was good and had a nice flavor.

MAK-  Indian Chai Tea service.  Mak didnt mold his cookies, he did a lot of flat sculpting and building. Judges deemed it clumsy and needing of more care. He did have good flavor though.

MARC-  Basic Breakfast for 1 "toast and tea".  Overall did a great job, judges called it Brilliant.

MARK_ Ethiopian Coffee Ceremony tablescape.  Liked the flavor, but paul said "bit strong innit?" as Prue coughed her way through it.

PETER-  Gingerbread Scottish Haggis.  Looked great, delicious, well baked and tasty.  As always complimented him on originality and cleverness.

ROWAN-  90th birthday Lighthouse and shells breakfast tray.  Again Rowan refused to simplify . His lemon biscuit had a lovely flavor but was overworked. Paul said Rowan could do better.

SURA-  Ramadan Tea set made from Speculoos biscuits.  Great snap, great flavor, but looked rushed, especially the icing.

WHO WAS IN DANGER??  Rowan and Mak.  Rowan wont listen to advice. Mak is steady but clumsy. Rowan has potential if he would listen, Mak is steady but lacks artistry.

WHO WAS IN LINE FOR STAR BAKER?  David, Mark and Marc.  David was 1st in technical, had a good signature and good showstopper.  Mark and Marc both did well on their concepts and flavors. 

STAR BAKER:  Dave

ELIMINATED:  Mak

You can watch a new episode every Friday starting at Midnight on NETFLIX here in the US. 

OCTOBER IS PIZZA MONTH

 

October is National Pizza Month!! That means through the month of October this site will be posting various pizza recipes, crust recipes, ideas and pizza related things(kitchen gadgets and grilling gadgets to make your pizza life easier).

So stay tuned!!

AMAZON PRIME DAY SNEAK PEEK!!

 *DISCLAIMER: As an Amazon Affiliate , I may make a small commission from any purchases made off of the links in this post.  Thanks!!

PRIME DAY!!! who doesnt love it?  Here is a sneak peek from now until October 14th, it is up to 40% off of AmazonBasics Kitchen Essentials!! Click on the link below to go and check out their kitchen essentials and goodies!!

Silicone baking mats, coffee makers, dishes, kitchen gadgets and more!!  Get what you need to get cookin'!!

Prime Day Deal Sneak Peek: Kitchen

MULLED CIDER DAY (Plus recipe)

 * As an affiliate I may make a small commission on any qualifying purchases made through links on this page.  Thank you!!

  September 30th is MULLED CIDER DAY!! Last night we went to a farm near us and they had fresh pressed apple cider for sale.  We ended up coming home with 2 gallons, and I discovered that today was mulled cider day!! Perfect coincidence!  I love mulled cider(We call it wassail) in the fall. If we go out anywhere and they have hot cider or wassail, I am all over it.  One of my favorite things.  This apple farm we used to to to had SLUSHIE cider!! It was amazing. 

WHAT IS MULLED CIDER?

 Mulled cider is a traditional hot drink made from apple cider and flavored with spices like citrus, clove, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Traditionally the cider used is a "hard cider", meaning there is alcohol involved, but you can use regular apple cider for a chilly weather drink that everyone can enjoy.

Mulled Cider comes from the pagan tradition of Wassailing. Traditional wassail was made from mulled ale, curdled cream, roasted apples, cloves, ginger and nutmeg and sugar. It was typically served in giant silver or pewter bowls. The term wassailing usually refers to the pageantry of carrying in the giant bowl with pomp and circumstance and splendor. A song was sung and then everyone partook of the wassail bounty.

Today Wassail generally refers to a hot apple cider stewed with various spices and fruits.  

Does anything smell better than a pot of wassail on the stove?  The whole house smells like autumn and thanksgiving and Christmas all rolled into one.  Cold fingers being warmed by the mug of spiced cider, a fire crackling away in the fireplace, maybe friends are over for a bonfire.  Hot Mulled Cider/wassail is the perfect treat.

Best part...if you make too much you can store it and reheat the next day!

This recipe uses 1/2 gallon of apple cider, so recipe yields about 8 cups

YOU WILL NEED:

1/2 gallon Apple Cider

1/2 lemon, sliced with peels.

1  small orange  sliced, with peels. 

10 whole cloves

3 star anise

3 cinnamon sticks

1/4 cup fresh cranberries

1 nutmeg pod, lightly zest the surface to scratch it up a bit

2 TBSP brown sugar

you will also need a mesh strainer.

in a large pot, combine the apple cider and brown sugar. Stir until sugar is dissolved.  Bring to boil over medium high heat.  As it starts to come to a boil add the remaining ingredients and reduce heat to medium and let boil for 5 minutes.  Reduce heat to low and let simmer..the longer the better.

when ready to serve, pour cider through mesh strainer and into mugs. You can garnish with a cinnamon stick or a citrus slice if desired.

**You can try various spices for your own version.  Some people use ginger and allspice berries, some people only use orange, some people omit the cranberry. Some people love cinnamon and clove.  It is up to you how spicy and how detailed you want your cider to be.

** Dont feel like going through all that work?? There are premade mixture!! You just add it to your cider or hot water. stir and boil!! Or you can get premade spice blends with real bits of dried fruit and spice pods etc.

**Like the smell but not the taste?? Get a wassail/hot mulled cider candle!!

** Plus you need cute apple mugs to drink it from

GREAT BRITISH BAKE OFF- SEASON 11, EPISODE 1. CAKE WEEK RECAP ( AND sPOILERS)

 FINALLY!!  I  have been eagerly anticipating the newest season of Great British Bake Off!!

Season 11 will be uploaded one episode at a time every Friday here is the United States , on Netflix.

A few changes have been made to the Bake Off format.  They have pitched their tent in a new location (Down Hall), and each contestant will live 24/7 there in their own little bubble together.  So depending on how far they make it into the competition they could be away from their families for a week or for 7 weeks!!  Thats crazy! 

ROUND 1- SIGNATURE BAKE.  For the  first bake of the new season the bakers were assigned  their take on a Battenberg Cake.   Traditionally Battenberg Cake is rectangular and made from 2 complementary flavors, arranged in a way to reveal a design when cut.  It is then covered in Marzipan (a fondant type covering made from eggs, sugar and ground almonds) and decorated.

Prue declared Battenberg a lovely cake to start with, and is typically a marzipan lovers favorite cake (Hers included)

Paul wanted to see a smooth marzipan, start contrast in color and a punch of good flavors.

Battenberg is difficult to make, it requires a good sponge that isnt overbaked but sturdy enough to hold its shape when  cut and stacked.  Cake cant be too warm or too cold when it is cut either.  So there is a lot to think about when making one!

DAVE-  An Espresso Martini . Chocolate liquer and vodka flavored cakes

HERMINE-  Chocolate and Orange cakes. In her marzipan she used orange marmalade instead of eggs.

LAURA- Raspberry Ripple and Coconut Cake

LINDA- Tribute to her deceased cousin, cake made to look like ambulance.

LOREIA- Bubble Gum and Cream Soda with BRIGHT BLUE marzipan.

LOTTIE- Rhubarb and Custard Cakes, inside is a star shaped pattern.

MAK-  Lots of middle eastern flavors like ginger and orange, covered in a pistachio marzipan instead             of the traditional almond.

MARC- Sour Cherry and Chocolate Walnut Cakes with rosewater Marzipan.

MARK- Turkish Bazaar inspired cake, with orange, pistachio, cardamom and pomegranate flavors.

PETER- Gluten Free dark chocolate and orange cakes with a polka dot marzipan covering.

ROWAN- Mozart inspired Magic Flute BB cake. Dark night sky marzipan covering with an intricate                     temple inspired cake inside.

SURA- Lemon and Orange cakes with traditional marzipan decorated with sculpted marzipan fruits.

________________________________________________________________________________

SO Rowan looks like he bit off more than he could chew. When he took his cakes out and started to cut, a few of them were still almost raw inside, so he resorted to putting them into the microwave to dry them out a little bit.  This means he ran way behind and had to alter his temple design quite a bit.

Sura's cake completely bubbled over in the oven. 

Lotties cakes were so moist she was having issues to keep her star shape looking clean and crisp.

many of the bakers were having issues frosting their layers and keeping them together, rolling their marzipan and wrapping them neatly and cleanly.

ROUND 1 JUDGEMENT:

DAVE- The coffee overpowers and Paul said it just blended the wrong way.

HERMINE- Her marzipan was delicious with the use of marmalade instead of eggs. Judged well and a                     pleasure to eat.

LAURA- No real distinctness in her sponges. Flavors ran together and wasnt real neat.

LINDA- overbaked and dry.

LOREIA- striking color and layers but the flavors were just too intense and overpowering.  Bone Dry                     and too thick marzipan.

LOTTIE- Despite the messy star pattern the colors were wonderful. Her cakes tasted the same but had a                 good sturdy rhubarb jam.

MAC- Pistachio was overdone with the pistachio marzipan. But had a good ginger spice cake.

MARC- The decorations were too busy, and the rosewater marzipan was overdone. 

MARK- Good texture.

ROWAN- Heavy Sponge, too wet.  He had to go with a "deconstructed temple" since he ran out of                         time. But they liked the look of the marzipan covering.

PETER - Very Neat. Lovely Texture. Gluten Free flours tend to make great sponge. Great and Well                         Done.

SURA- Really pretty and neat, good texture and a really lovely piece of cake.

TECHNICAL CHALLENGE: 6 identical Pineapple Upside Down mini cakes.

 Light buttery cakes with a perfect caramel, topped with a pineapple ring, maraschino cherry and whipped cream. 

Get the caramel too dark it can become bitter and can make the sponge too hard to get out of the tin.  Too much caramel the sponge wont rise, too little the sponge wont have flavor.

POOR LINDA... Her syrup was dark, and she put in too much syrup n her tins so her poor little cakes wouldnt rise, then she had to piece them together at the end. 

the last few minutes of the challenge everyone was furiously fanning their bakes with their cookie sheets, pacing and saying things like "oh dear".  Everyone had hot cakes and many had issues with their whipped cream melting and falling off.

POOR MARK!! As sura put her cakes on the table she went to shoo a fly and knocked into Mark, dropping all but 2 of his cakes. WHOOPSIE!!  She felt so bad she was crying.  But they told Paul and Prue what happened so they were able to judge his 2 standing cakes, picking the best one.

JUDGEMENT:

12: Linda (didnt rise, not properly cooked, patchworked together, too much caramel)

11. Marc- (Very dark, stuck in tin and bitter)

10. Loreia (too light)

9. Dave (just OK)

8. Mak (problem with heat. doughy)

7. Mark (over-caramelized but nice height)

6. Laura ( Dark in Places)

5. Hermine (Nice and light. well balanced. good flavor)

4. Lottie ( Neat and uniform)

3. Rowan (Neat, nice color, nice cake)

2. Peter (Good color, good caramel, good piping)

1. Sura (Well balanced, lovely)

SO FAR LOREIA, MARC AND LINDA ARE IN BOTTOM THREE(Per paul and prue)

SHOWSTOPPER CHALLENGE. Cake Bust made to look like their personal celebrity hero.  Needs to be made and sculpted from cake and decorated with a fondant or icing.   Cake needs to be well baked but have good structure to withstand the weight and pressure. Also needs to have good internal structure to hold the cakes up. Prue says too much frosting is a no-no it can make the cake too sweet.

DAVE- Tom DeLonge . Dark chocolate and Mint.

HERMINE- Lupita Nyong'o. Chocolate and Coffee

LAURA- Freddie Mercury.  Lemon and Elderflower

LINDA- Bob Marley. Lemon and Orange

LOREIA- Louise Bennett-Coverley. Chocolate and Chili

LOTTIE- Louis Theroux.  Coconut

MAK- Bill Bryson. Lemon and Madeira

MARC-  David Bowie as Ziggy Stardust. Chocolate.

MARK- Charles Darwin. Ginger spice with coconut buttercream

PETER-  Sir Chris Hoy. 

ROWAN-  Marie Antoinette.  Chocolate and cherry with choux buns for hair.

SURA- David Attenborough.  Coconut with raspberry buttercream.

 Poor Rowan. Another overpromise.  Choux buns were a total bust so he had to improvise on her hair.

Lottie made a skull head and then covered it with fondant and sculpted, making a much more realistic looking cake.

Hermine sculpting looks ridiculous, but her fondant work on Lupitas dress is legit.

Freddie Mercury is losing his head and has beaver teeth. Laura is having a hard time keeping his head upright.

David Attenborough fell over, so Sura propped him up on a roll of frosting bags, so it looks like a travel pillow.

JUDGEMENT:

DAVE:  Toothpaste and chemical taste from the mint. "Let yourself down on texture and flavor"

HERMINE: Chocolate cake is amazing, fondat on dress looks real. Face not so much.

LAURA: giggled at poor Freddie's head. But very moist and delicious and Paul loved the flavor.

LINDA:   Delicious, and all the elements of a good sponge. Citrus with lemon curd is delicious.

LOREIA: Doesnt really look like her, and chili is overwhelming the chocolate.

LOTTIE: Recognizable, good flavors but overbaked.

MAK: Lovely flavors but very dry

MARC:  Does NOT look like Ziggy.  Dense and overbaked but great flavor.

MARK: Well baked, well done.

PETER:  excellent. Spot on. great concept, witty and well done.

ROWAN: Pauls advice "Say less, do more" Lovely cherry flavor, tasty cake"

SURA:  Good flavor and texture.

STAR BAKER:   Peter wins star baker this week with a good signature, 2nd in technical and a spot on show stopper.

GOING HOME:   Loreia.  Came down to Overbaking and Overflavoring.  Paul saw a lot of potential in Loreia, but as a judge could get involved and tell her to pull back or watch her stuff. 

Loreia: " I am proud. I did quite well to get here and I stayed true to myself".

Great way to start off season 11!!

Easy Honey Glazed Vegetables

 

Eat your vegetables so you can grow big and strong...

This is an easy and delicious way to use up those leftover garden veggies (Or storebought...you know the ones you keep meaning to use, but they look at you all pathetic every time you open the fridge).

This recipe has you almost doing a blanch on the vegetables first to tender them up so you arent hovering over the frying pan all night waiting for them to cook down. The longest part is waiting for the water to boil!!

YOUWILL NEED:

4 or 5 Carrots- peeled and quartered

1/2 pound of Asparagus, trimmed and woody ends discarded

2 cups Sugar Snap Peas, washed.

3 TBSP Butter

4 TBSP Honey

1.5 TBSP white Balsamic vinegar

salt and pepper

IN a large pot of salted boiling water, boil carrots 3 minutes.  Then add asparagus and snap peas, boiling for 1 more minute.   Remove from heat and drain well.

IN a large nonstick skillet, melt butter over medium heat. Stir in honey and vinegar until combined well. Add vegetables and season with salt and pepper.  toss and make sure everything is coated well. Let cook about 2 minutes.  Reduce heat to low and let simmer another minute.

Transfer to serving bowl and ENJOY!!

GREAT BRITISH BAKE OFF SEASON 11

 I cant even tell you HOW EXCITED I AM  for Season 11 of GBBO to hit netflix this Friday!

I am a HUGE fan.   Across the pond they will have access to it 3 days earlier every week, which is going to be SO HARD TO IGNORE SPOILERS!!

What we know so far (here in America anyways)

Steely Eyed Silver Fox and King of Bread Paul Hollywood, and queen of bright color blocking and chunky necklaces Prue Leith are back as main judges.   SO watch out for the claggy bakes, soggy bottoms, booze up the desserts and make those calories worth it!

Everyones favorite shag haircut emo comedian Noel Fielding is returning as host.  A familiar face we are missing this year is sweet little Sandi Toksvig, who left GBBO to focus on other projects.

Replacing Sandi is a familiar face to some, Matt Lucas. (my family knows him as Nardole from Dr Who).  Apparently he is a GBBO enthusiast and rumor has it that on first day of filming made himself sick taste testing everyones bakes! 

Format will remain the same . Round One, signature bake.  Each contestant makes their best version of whatever that weeks theme is.  

 Round 2, blind technical.  Paul and Prue choose a rather difficult item for the contestants to make (sometimes it is quite obscure), give them limited instructions (usually it will just say "bake", but no temps or times.  Or Make creme pat but no recipe...really testing contestants knowledge of baking) and then blind taste test each one and rate them on how well they understand the science behind baking.  

3rd Round is showstopper. Each contestant goes all out and really wows the judges with their creations.  (remember Paul Jagger's  bread lion everyone??)

Each episode one contestant gets awarded star baker, and one contestant goes home.

So here is the lineup for season 11:

DAN: AGE 30. Armoured Guard from Hampshire  Strengths lie in bread and clean decoration

HERMINE:  AGE 39.  Accountant originally from Benin, West Africa, currently living in London. Love of high end patisserie!

LAURA: AGE 31.  digital Manager from Kent. Loves strong flavors and putting modern twists on old favorites.

LINDA: AGE 61.  Retirement Living Team Leader from East Sussex. Strengths are classics and home comfort cooking

LORIEA: AGE 27. Diagnostic Radiographer from  Durham. Rarely follows a recipe and makes jamaican food

LOTTIE: AGE 31. Pantomime Producer from East Sussex with a dark sense of humor and is a perpetual perfectionist

MAKBUL: AGE 51.  Accountant from Greater Manchester. Great at pastries and loves to incorporate honey from his own hives into his baking.

MARC: AGE 51  Bronze resin sculptor from Cornwall. After losing a leg in a motorbike accident, took up baking bread as a form of therapy. 

MARK: AGE 32  Project Manager from Liverpool. His baking style is influenced by his irish heritage and he has an affinity for african and asian flavors as well!

PETER: AGE 20  Accounting and finance student from Edinburgh. Also a competitive badminton player, Peter has been cooking seriously since he was 12. He loves to use traditional scottish ingredients whenever he can.

ROWAN: AGE 55 Music Teacher from Worcestershire. Passionate about french patisserie, he also has a love or recreating 18th century Georgian era recipes. He loves to use flowers in his decorations.

SURA: AGE 31. Pharmacy Dispenser from London. iddle eastern and asian influences is a hallmark of her food. Loves to improvise and inject personality into each recipe and particularly enjoys fragrant floral flavors like cardamom, rose and orange blossom.

Looks like a great bath, cant wait to watch and have a follow up blog post tomorrow!!

HOMEMADE LICORICE

September 23rd is National Checkers Day, and I started thinking about checkers. Black and red pieces, and how could I incorporate that into my recipe for the day.  The black. The red.  LICORICE. It was a no brainer.  

I love licorice.  I guess the real question is Twizzlers or Red Vines?  But thats store bought waxy licorice, I really enjoy the old fashioned candy store homemade licorice.

I am not a huge fan of the dark anise flavored ones, but It depends on how strong the flavor is. I do like the fruity flavors..  One time we were driving through Idaho (Before we relocated out here), and stopped off in this little town outside of Bear Lake.  We got a package of Huckleberry Licorice and we devoured it.

SO I went on the trusty Google and found a few recipes for Licorice, they are all pretty much the same, the basic gist is water, sugar, more sugar and anise extract. I have posted the one that looked the most traditional.  DO you know how hard it was sifting through the riffraff of licorice recipes? Gluten free, keto, all natural(pick your own licorice root, distill and 5 days and collect steam droplets with a fairy knife blah blah blah).  This recipe I am sharing below was the most straight forward and basic of recipes without all that extra steps and stuff.  Then depending on what you want to make, you can switch out the type of flour, the color of corn syrup, substitute honey for molasses, fruity extract for the anise.  This recipe is a good basic go to recipe to start with.

dark traditional licorice from food52.com :YOU WILL NEED:

• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, plus extra for greasing the pan
  
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
  
• 1/4 cup dark corn syrup
  
• 1/4 cup sweetened condensed milk
  
• 2 tablespoons molasses (use blackstrap for the strongest flavor)
  
• Pinch of kosher salt
  
• 6 tablespoons whole-wheat flour
  
• 1/2 teaspoon black food coloring gel 
  
• 3/4 tablespoon anise extract (use 1 tablespoon for a stronger flavor)

1. Line a 9 x by 5 x by 3-inch bread loaf pan with parchment paper, leaving excess to form handles for easy removal.
2. Grease the parchment paper with extra butter.
3. Clip a (calibrated) candy thermometer to the side of a heavy 2-quart saucepan, being sure that the gauge is not resting directly on the bottom of the pan.
4. Add the butter, sugar, corn syrup, condensed milk, molasses, and salt. Turn the heat to medium and bring to a gentle boil. Stir the mixture frequently to prevent scorching in the corners.
5. Once the mixture reaches 240° F, remove it from the heat, and immediately stir in the flour and black food gel. Once they're fully incorporated, stir in the anise extract.
6. Pour the mixture into the buttered loaf pan and let it set in the fridge for 30 minutes.
7. Remove from the pan, and either dice it into squares or slice it into ropes and twist.

Thats your basic licorice recipe.  You can use honey instead of molasses, regular corn syrup and white flour, and fruit extracts instead of anise for fruity flavored licorice.

Make a pan and see what happens!!