Just Baking

The other day, I got a request: “A beer cake, would be nice.” Were my ears deceiving me, beer and cake?  My brain was not making the connection, beer & cake who would have thought it but why not? Don’t you find it strange that wine is top of the list, followed by spirits when […]

Triticale is a man-made crop bred from wheat and rye. Since the late 1800’s breeders have been trying to create a crossbreed from rye and wheat, hoping to capture the best qualities of both. From rye triticale derives hardiness and a higher lysine content while wheat gives it a higher grain quality and […]

I was recently introduced to a new potential superfood, chia seeds.  Like most people, my first reaction was chia what?  Is that the same as a chia pet?  In a way, yes.  Chia pets are grown using the chia seeds, but as it turns out, these tiny little bits of food pack quite a bit […]

Emmer and Einkorn are wheat varieties that are among the oldest cultivated grains. Evidence points to both grains being first domesticated in what is known as the Fertile Crescent, a curve shaped area that centers on the Middle East. Einkorn domestication traces to the Karacadag Mountains in Turkey about 11,000 years ago and […]

Probably best known as the main ingredient in the flatbread injera, teff has been cultivated in Ethiopia for thousands of years. Gluten-free and full of nutrients like iron, calcium, lysine, and many others, teff is used by many athletes to enhance their training diets. It is common in the diets of the very […]

My great-grandmother never made her blueberry muffins for me, but I found her recipe while looking through my mother’s recipe box a few years ago. I made the recipe and was an instant admirer of the muffins — delicate and moist, the sweet batter hugging each and every blueberry.
I decided to make the muffins […]

Quinoa (pronounced keen-wa) is the seed of a leafy vegetable of the Goosefoot species, which is also related to spinach and rhubarb. Like spinach the leaves can be eaten. However, the plant is raised for its seed.
Quinoa has been grown and harvested in the Andes Mountain region of South America for 6,000+ years. Prized by […]

Amaranth is a grain that has been cultivated in Central and South America for thousands of years. At one point the Spanish explorer Cortez tried to eradicate it with little success. Amaranth is starting to be cultivated in other areas. It is high in protein and has the amino acid lysine. […]

Looking for ways to use up that leftover eggnog sitting in your fridge?  Here are a few:
Bake up a batch of my favorite new cookie of the holiday season:  Eggnog Cookies.  I haven’t had a chance to test out the recipe myself, but the ratings are high (A sure sign the recipe is a winner!).
Make popovers!  The […]

Baking is a bit intimidating for a lot of people.  I’ve known people who can cook a really good bit of fish or season a steak to perfection, but ask them to make some rolls to have on the side and they become instantly sullen.  I think the reason that baking evokes so much fear […]