hopped up on sugar

The bad thing for me with baking is that I can't stop myself from tasting batter or dough. Stealing little bits of cookie dough here and there. I'm sure I could get three or four or ten more cookies from the bits I pinch off and taste.

And the price, of course, is a queasy feeling at the end of the night - too much sugar, and now feeling too fat to tolerate. Ugh.

Still, baking is fun.

Jeph egged me on some, and it's a good thing I did take some time to hunt down a couple of new recipes and an older one I haven't done in a while. Frankly, my baking tonight is horrid, I think. It looks a mess, though it tastes alright. Not a good effort, and proof that practice is necessary with all things. Also, I need a bigger kitchen that is better stocked!

I was hoping to use three things in particular tonight: candied ginger, dried apricots, and chocolate. One out of three. Ah well. Up first: Candied ginger and cardamom bars.
If anything, this recipe demonstrated to me that I need a few other pan sizes (I had to use a different one than the recipe called for) and a bigger food processor. Still, the dough did taste good. I think they'll be rather rich.

Next came two lime loaves. My Mum used to make lemon loaves years ago. Sort of a simple pound cake/quick bread scented with zest, then the citrus fruit of choice would be juiced and the juice mixed with granulated sugar to make a glaze to poor over the loaves fresh from the oven. These did not rise to lovely mounded loaves, a function of the pan, perhaps. Or maybe I really was sucking badly tonight. I'll wrap them and pop them in the freezer, I think.


Finally, raspberry swirl cookies. A bit of fussing with, but they smell good right now, just out of the oven. Plus, the doughtasted the best of all three!

:-)

They have coconut and walnuts in them - I'm on a walnut thing these days (also, feta, radishes, and mint) - and they cook up to resemble little cinnamon rolls.

I like that they're not spiced, though. Conrad's office should enjoy them.

I either need a salt lick now, or a nunch of water before bed. 3 miles again tomorrow morning!