The Time I Tried (AND MADE) Sweet Potato Pie

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DSCN0070 RIght, so we all know that my relationship with yams thus far in my cooking career has been rocky at best.  But, I had some leftover from the weekend before and when life gives you yams...

Never mind.

So for starters I would just like to note that not only is that a homemade crust, but it was no-roll, and it took me thirty minutes. THIRTY MINUTES. And it was all thanks to Joy The Baker!

This time around I boiled those potatoes for 40 minutes, and then cooked them some more! If you can stick a sharp knife straight down the middle of one of those jokers with absolutely no resistance whatsoever, you've done your job spectacularly, my friend.

From there it was totally smooth sailing. 50 minutes later and...

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Voila! A pie that spilled a little in transit from the counter to the oven, but that tasted AMAZING!  (And was completely gone after two days.) Not too shabby for my first try at pie, wouldn't you say?

I'll tell you something: it made me immediately forget all about the nightmare that was the weekend before.

I, Sydney, blogger and home cook, will never fear the yam again.

Progress!

What You'll Need:

  • 2 cups mashed cooked sweet potatoes
  • 3/4 cup packed brown sugar
  • 1/2 cup granulated sugar
  • 1 1/4 teaspoon ground coriander
  • 1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
  • 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1/8 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter, melted
  • 2- 5oz cans evaporated milk (1 1/4 cups evaporated milk)
  • 3 large eggs
  • 1 Tablespoon vanilla

Get the recipe here!

Happy baking!

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The Time I Tried (and Failed) to Make Sweet Potato Cupcakes

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DSCN0056 You guys I tried. I really, really tried.

Every weekend I make it a point to bake. I love to bake. (You know this, you follow me.) So there I was, just like every weekend, perusing my hundreds of recipes that I've collected online when suddenly, I found it: a recipe for light and fluffy sweet potato cupcakes. I knew I had to make them.

So I make my grocery list, I go to the store, and already I run into a problem: It's winter, and canned sweet potato is no longer available. No matter, we have a blender, so I grab three yams, and I go on my way.

Something I wish I had known before I tried to puree my own vegetables:

YOU HAVE TO COOK THEM FIRST.

Given the fact that my love for cooking is admittedly still in its early stages, this little kitchen trick is one I'd never learned. So there I was, adding water to a blender and pureeing those yams like there was no tomorrow. And puree them I did...kind of.

DSCN0057So as you can see, my should-be smooth puree was a tad bit on the chunky side. But not one to give up, (ESPECIALLY SINCE I HAD ALREADY PURCHASED YAMS TO PROVE I COULD MAKE THESE BABIES.) I forged on ahead. The cupcakes might have a little texture to them, but they were going to be great, I just knew it.

Then arose the next problem...in the form of buttermilk. Now, I don't know if you're like me, but I never find a use for buttermilk. I'll buy it for a recipe, then never, ever use it again. Then a friend of mine mentioned a way to make my own, and being a huge lover of DIY, I jumped on that!

"Just add a tablespoon of vinegar, fill up the rest with milk, and let it sit for a while," she said. Okay, easy enough.

Just to be sure, I looked up a few recipes confirming exactly what she'd told me, with just one speed bump: one recipe said 5-10 minutes, and one said 15, but the rest was right.

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I decided to wait ten minutes. The recipe said that I should see it curd, but I didn't. I figured that since I'd done it all right, that it was buttermilk, and forged ahead. OH BOY was that possibly the biggest mistake.

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My cupcake mixture ended up being far too watery for the average cupcake, but as I put it in I thought, "Hey, no big deal. You've never made sweet potato cupcakes, and maybe this is just their way." Wrong. So wrong.

DSCN0062Into the oven my babies went. Uncooked is how they returned to me.

The funny thing was: cooked on the bottom and top they were, but mushy in the middle as well. I just couldn't understand it! What had I done so wrong? What had I done to deserve such a tragedy? How could they smell just like Thanksgiving, but a watery one at best? And then it hit me like a sack of yams: the "buttermilk." 

Of course. I never let it curd, and this was my result. I felt defeated and a little sad: everything I'd made up until this point had turned out fabulously, and then this.

So now, if you've made it this far, you may be saying to yourself, "What's the point?"

The point, my beautiful or handsome reader, is that even though this experience got me down, even though I totally failed, I still carried on. I still looked up recipes the nest weekend, and I'm still happy.

 

This blog serves as a documentation of my journey as a cook, but it also serves as a way to share. I know there are other future cooks and bakers out there that want to do more, but are too afraid they'll fail. And let me tell you: you might. I did, and still do. But that's half the fun isn't it? Failing is part of learning, and learning is an everyday occurrence for even the best cooks.

 

Keep at it. Always cook. Always bake. Always do it with a smile on your face.

 

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My Date With Oatmeal Raisin

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Ah, oatmeal raisin cookies: a staple of my childhood. I am a big fan of a crunchy on the outside, chewy on the inside, cookie. Too much crunch and you've lost me. Too chewy, and it's probably time to stick it back in the oven. But when done just right, you've got me right where you want me.

I am a HUGE (honestly, that might be an understatement) fan of The Smitten Kitchen, and just found the best recipe for the thick, chewy, oatmeal raisin cookie. (That sort of rhymes if you read it a certain way.)

This is how I spent my Saturday:

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DSCN0049For this post, there are no "after" pictures because as soon as they were done, most of them were eaten by me and my housemates. Nonetheless, my experience was great.

What I Learned:

1. This recipe was an adaption of the one found on the back of the Quaker Oats box. (I know, not really that important, but I found it interesting, so here you go.)

2. Oatmeal Raisin dough is fun to work with.

3. Chill your dough before you bake it. I chilled mine for 30 minutes, and I promise, it totally helped with the thickness.

4. Parchment paper is my new best friend and cleanup was a breeze. (My beloved cookie sheet is permanently stained with the shapes of 12+ Christmas trees from a baking adventure long ago. I didn't butter as well as I thought, and now I'll always be reminded. Side note within this side note: those christmas tree cookies were DELICIOUS.)

What You'll Need:

  • 1/2 cup (1 stick, 4 ounces, or 115 grams) butter, softened
  • 2/3 cup (125 grams) light brown sugar, packed
  • 1 large egg
  • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 3/4 cup (95 grams) all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1/4 teaspoon table salt (I often use a half teaspoon, but I like more salt in my baked goods)
  • 1 1/2 cups (120 grams) rolled oats
  • 3/4 cup (120 grams) raisins
  • 1/2 cup walnuts (65 grams), chopped (optional)

Check out the recipe here!

Happy baking!

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The Time I Made Shortbread

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My love for shortbread knows absolutely no limits. It's buttery (especially when I make it), but light enough that you can eat a few pieces, and it still feels like a snack.  

Over the holidays I decided to try my hand at it, and the results were marvelous!

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What I learned:

1. Making shortbread is so simple, and so easy to do! And if you make a mix large enough, you can have shortbread cookies for days and days!

2. Shortbread dough can be a bit tough at times to work with. It is ESSENTIAL that your work space is well-floured before rolling out your dough. If it isn't, you'll constantly have to pull dough off your rolling pin. Trust me on this one. It's sticky.

3. My life motto: The more butter, the better.

These little cookies were perfect for my afternoon tea party!

What You'll Need:

  • 1  Cup Butter
  • 3/4  Cup Powdered Sugar
  • 1  Teaspoon Vanilla
  • 2 1/2  Cups  All-purpose flour

Check out the recipe here!

Happy baking!

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Wishes For My Kitchen

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Wish # 1: I wish that my kitchen could be half as organized as this one.

And I know I'm not alone in wishing this. The older I get, the more things in the kitchen I accrue, and before I know it, I'm digging through piles of pans, just trying to find one. But that's the problem with living on your own isn't it? Finding a place for everything is tough, and finding a good solution for more space is a tricky business. Soon, everything does have its place, but it always tends to be the place for everything. And you never want to throw anything away, because you never know when you might need it. If I could just have everything in front of me, not buried underneath countertops, I would be one happy cook.

Whoever came up with this is an absolute genius.