Bake 2019 - November

I started the month with some gluten free, low carb scones.  They were really good.  Just a simple vanilla flavor.  They called for almond flour and stevia.   I was really impressed with this recipe.  Good with butter, jam, and lemon curd. 

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Cookies will always and forever be my favorite bakes.  I can pretty much make my chocolate chip cookies without the recipe.  I had some Halloween sprinkles to use up so I made these sprinkled chocolate chip cookies.  I shared these with Matt's family.

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These croissants are just okay.  I followed a Sally recipe and it didn't really work.  I am finding that some of her bread recipes don't work well for me.  I think there are a few factors - ingredients, location, bake time, and proof time.  I need more time to let the dough proof, maybe it's a midwest difference or a yeast difference.  These chocolate croissants look okay but when you cut into one it's really dense (not enough time proofing) and doughy (not enough time baking).

These plain croissants are lighter but still a bit doughy.  Maybe I didn't roll these up tight enough.  

I'm going to freeze these.  I'll let them thaw overnight which will give them more rise time and rebake them for about 10 minutes.  That's how the croissants from Trader Joe's come so it could work.  

UPDATE:  I tried that trick and they are still gross.  Bummer!

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Another low carb baking experiment.  These are low carb cheddar bay biscuits.   Instead of plain flour it calls for almond flour.   These are super good!  Especially with a bowl of beef stew. 

I am looking for low carb baking recipes that don't have weird ingredients.  In most cases, I'll make normal baking recipes and eat less.  But every once in a while it's nice to have some lower carb options.

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Impromptu Indoor S'Mores!  Easy and quick way to get a sweet dessert on the table.  Literally, throw a handful of chocolate chips into a dish and add some marshmallows and bake at 450 for about 9 minutes or until the marshmallows are browned.  I cut these large marshmallows in half but you could toss a handful of mini marshmallows on there.  Serve with graham crackers.

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No photo of my pumpkin chocolate chip bread.  I've made it before and it's always a hit.  So good that I took some to work and so did Matt just to prevent me from eating it all.  LOL!

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Making cornbread in November can only mean one thing.  Time for Miss Dorothy's famous stuff.  I'm making a double batch to take to Thanksgiving Thursday and Friendsgiving Saturday.

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I tested out another low carb recipe.  This one was for cranberry shortbread bars.  It used almond flour and stevia in the crust and topping.  It also used stevia in the cranberry jam I made.  Lesson learned about stevia... a little goes a LONG way.  I should have cut the amount in half even though the recipe said to use that or an erythritol sweetener.  Stevia is much sweeter than sugar and erythritol.

Still good, just going to make this 32 servings instead of 16.  Maybe next time I'll try the almond flour shortbread with a low/no sugar jam.  UPDATE:  We couldn't even eat all of these cut up into tiny bites.  I tossed them and feel bad for the friend I shared them with as my guinea pig.  

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Here it is - Miss Dorothy's stuffing.  Unbaked but in all it's glory.  It's just delicious!

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Pie time!  The first pie is a pecan pie with chocolate chips.  I tried a fancy braided crust and it turned out well.  I'd roll it a little bit thinner next time.  This pie was tasty and a hit even with kids.

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The second pie was pumpkin cream pie.  I played with a Pioneer Woman recipe.  I followed it mostly but I added more pumpkin to the pudding mixture.  I also made a brown sugar whipped cream to go with it and didn't get a photo of that bit.  It was a hit as well.

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I learned that sometimes low carb baking just isn't worth it.  Just make the real deal and enjoy less of it.  I can't believe it's already December!  I've got a long list of bakes ahead of me.