More Baking

In my last post I was making Beautiful Burger Buns from King Arthur Flour. I had a hard time working with the dough. I had used the smaller amount of water given since it was a rainy day, and the dough was very stiff. Certainly not the spongy dough the recipe said it should be. Nevertheless, Husband liked the finished hamburger buns. They were much more substantial than store bakery buns.

Yesterday I decided to try a new batch. I used the greater amount of water called for, and had a much softer, stickier dough. The buns turned out much softer and lighter. I also remembered to brush them with butter before and after baking. My only regret was that I did not read through the yield before starting, and therefore did not double the recipe. (It only makes 8 buns a batch.) Oh, well. I usually do not think it worth the effort to make a single batch of bread, although  sometimes the ease of a single batch makes up for having to do it twice. We had a couple fresh out of the oven for dinner with our chicken patties. 

The previous day I had made pies with the few apples we had from our trees. I had dreaded the task since our apples were not at all smooth. I knew they would be beastly to peel, and that I may have to cut out many spots. Add my inability to make decent crusts, and you get the picture. As usual mixed the crust, and things went fine until it was time to roll and put them in the pan. No spring to them even with a little butter thrown in. I do the best I can to fold and crimp the edges and get the pies in the oven.  They did not look the best, but they taste really good. Later on  the thought occurs to me that I use bread flour for everything to avoid having two containers of white flour in my crowded cupboards. I wonder if that is why my dough has no spring. I will have to experiment.

The previous day I also cut down the High American Cranberry bush from my flower bed. It was a bittersweet moment. I was concerned that its roots would eventually break apart my new concrete curbing. Also, the forsythia  bush which I had cut down four or so years ago had managed to send out shoots which were growing in the cranberry bush. I did not want the two growing together, and it was impossible to separate them. Because I only chopped out the bush, I know I will be digging roots and cutting stump and suckers for a few years to come. The plus side, though, is that the two rose bushes planted nearby will have the chance to take the limelight.

The new concrete border already has a crack in it, and not in a place where I would expect it. So disappointed.