Anyway, I'm back, and before I head off on my Thanksgiving vacation I promise to be more diligent about sharing.
First off is the homework project I did after my first class on quick breads. Teacher recommended trying out an apple version of the blueberry streusel muffins so that's exactly what I did. I baked a batch to give to a co-worker who just had a baby. They came out pretty well although probably slightly over mixed. Or it needed more sugar since the apples I used weren't too sweet. Regardless, they weren't as good as the blueberry ones we made in class, but they were decent.
You probably can't tell from the dark pictures, but they really were just fine.
The big problem lay in the streusel topping. I unfortunately had used old walnuts without realizing it. Now I know the importance of tasting! Or at least marking when I first use ingredients...
Needless to say, my co-worker did not see these muffins. The inside of my trash can did though.
Practice session #2 came out much better. I attempted the carrot cake Teacher demo-ed in class. I decided to practice frosting the cake too, so I decided on a 2 layer cake with a cream cheese frosting.
The cake came out moist and flavorful, just like Teacher's. The frosting job was mediocre, but I don't make layer cakes very often so I will just keep practicing until I get it right. Also, I only had one single 8 oz packet of cream cheese so couldn't make very much frosting, which I needed if I was to create those thick layers you always see in magazines. Taste-wise, it was probably better this way since the cake doesn't need gobs of frosting but stingy frosting certainly doesn't make for the prettiest cake.
Oh well. That's why they call it homework. The more I practice, the better I'll get, so I'll just keep chugging along.
And I didn't forget about practicing scones as homework! Next up will be the three kinds of scones I baked to compare recipes and to practice my butter rubbing technique. Fun times.
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