Baking with Lisa
  • Strawberry Cream Cake
  • Chocolate Chip Cookies
  • Green Tea Pudding
  • Gingerbread Cupcakes
  • Buttermilk Bread with Kumquat Preserves
  • Rhubarb Upsidedown Cake
  • Pecan Roulade
  • Flan
  • Apple Pancake
  • Korova Cookies
  • Angel Food Cake
  • Granola
  • Butternut Squash Pie
  • Spice Cake
  • Sour Cherry Pie
  • Devils Food Cake
  • Banana Cake
  • Cranberry Walnut Bread
  • Green Tea Pudding Cake
  • English Muffins
  • Peanut Butter Brownies
  • Linzer Cookies
  • Eggplant Tomato Tarts
  • Banana Cake
  • Spice Cake
  • Quick Breads

  • October7th

    3 Comments

    Double Chocolate Loaf Cake

    Posted in: Cakes, Quick Breads

    Chocolate Loaf

    A beautiful photo spread featured on Design Sponge led me to Matt Lewis and Renato Poliafito’s second cookbook, Baked Explorations. Tina Rupp’s gorgeous photo of their double chocolate loaf cake inspired me to try this recipe.

    At least three of the many baking books on my bookshelf contain a recipe for a simple-yet-decadent chocolate loaf cake. I’ll confess- I didn’t like any of them; one was bland, one was too squishy, and the other crumbled as I tried to slice it. Despite their convenience, chocolate loaf cakes don’t have the same luster as mousses, souffles, fondants, or pots de creme.

    Here, at last, is a chocolate loaf I can get excited about- one that’s rich, dense, and best enjoyed with a glass of milk, a cup of coffee, or (even better) a big scoop of ice cream. The original recipe pairs it with a peanut butter/cream cheese spread, but it would go equally well with some boozy fruit or a smear of jam. In fact, it’s almost too rich to eat by itself. I would suggest using good quality chocolates and cocoa to get the full effect.
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  • July31st

    3 Comments

    Angel Biscuits

    Posted in: Quick Breads, Savory Things

    Angel Biscuits

    Do you ever remake a recipe only to find it doesn’t remotely resemble what you remember? I made a variation of these biscuits on a sunny afternoon in Southern California. They were flaky and layered, perhaps because I envelope-folded the dough a few times. I distinctly remember having trouble getting the dough to come together.

    This time around, the dough was so wet it was impossible to knead. I patted the mass into a uniformly thick rectangle, cut it into biscuits, and hoped they wouldn’t spread beyond the confines of the baking sheet. The finished biscuits were crisp on the outside, fluffy in the middle, and prone to crumbling. They would go well with fried eggs and bacon, but they’re too delicate to split and fill with sausage gravy. I’m not sure I liked them more than the herbed variation, but I definitely preferred the texture. I’d recommend looking for a lower-gluten self rising flour instead of all-purpose.

    I’ve only tried two biscuit recipes- this one, and Cooks Illustrated’s drop biscuits. I think my technique needs improvement before I can judge which recipes I really like…
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  • April21st

    1 Comment

    Fresh Mango Bread

    Posted in: Quick Breads

    Fresh Mango Bread

    According to Allen Susser’s The Great Mango Book, mangoes are a member of the cashew family. Of the sixteen varieties he mentions, I am only familiar with three. The only varieties I ever see at the store are Tommy Atkins and Ataulfo mangoes (aka champagne mangoes). Not surprisingly, the National Mango Board lists these as the most available varieties in the US.

    Mangoes have a limited shelf life- when they’re perfect, many people seem to think they’re overripe. Luckily, this means I regularly see them on sale. Ataulfo mangoes are my latest obsession. They were on sale last week, so I used them for several fruit salads and this Fresh Mango Bread from Dorie Greenspan’s Baking From my Home to Yours. It wasn’t my favorite recipe- It didn’t really highlight the fruit’s flavor and texture. Granted, I was short on mango and added some blueberries to make up the difference. I also omitted the golden raisins. The bread does have a nice caramelized crust, and it makes a good snack with a smear of salted butter. You can find a nice write-up of the recipe here.

    If you have a good mango recipe on hand, let me know!

  • April16th

    3 Comments

    Carrot-Zucchini Bread with Candied Ginger

    Posted in: Quick Breads

    Carrot-Zucchini Bread w/ Candied Ginger

    While I like zucchini more than the average American, I’ve always had a distaste for zucchini bread. In the summer, zucchini seems to be a word that’s uttered with horror. Someone once told me, “where we live, you have to make sure you lock your car. Otherwise, you come back and it’s full of zucchini.” Every time i’m given a loaf of zucchini bread, I can’t help feeling like someone’s trying to unload their burden on me. It doesn’t help that zucchini bread has a tendency to be oily and excessively vegetal.

    This zucchini bread recipe gets a helpful addition of carrots (for color), cinnamon, and candied ginger (for zing). Instead of candied ginger, you could substitute chopped walnuts or pecans. If you (like me) hate mincing big chunks of candied ginger, you can order small pieces from vendors like Penzey’s or King Arthur Flour. I’ve also seen discounted diced candied ginger at TJ Maxx, Homegoods, and Marshalls. (My mom also found a 8oz bottle of Nielsen-Massey vanilla for cheap!).

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