A New Day (04/22/2020)

So, here is where it begins! Very tired, a bit of an emotional day with headaches. I think a lot of people can relate. Starting the day off with "Mom, what's for breakfast". And it doesn't stop after this! A couple of loads of dishes, made a loaf of bread; not a lot that compares to the nostalgia of a fresh loaf of bread baking in the home. I love my bread machine!! This one is my second, I still have my first in the basement. My hubby bought this for me about 6 years ago. It's a Kenmore and has a couple more options than my first one. I was happy to see that you can get a replacement knead bar if needed. I have a terrible habit of ignoring the beeps and not removing the bar. I have a small cut in it when I was tearing into a loaf a few months ago. Really didn't get a lot else done today, just trying to rest and take it easy.

Made some yummy bars today though. I dug through my moms cookbooks recently in search of a favorite recipe from my childhood. My sister and I would alternate in making these super soft tasty Ginger bars. Today, I played with the recipe a bit and made a different bar. This was a little taller, a little fluffier but not as fluffy as a cake, a bit more dense. Topped this with a drizzle of orange flavored icing. Oh my, had too many of the "tastings"! So, here's my recipe...

Soft Ginger Bars

1 cup sugar
1/3 cup shortening (for this project, I changed it up and used Nutiva Shortening. It's a butter replacement in baking recipes, made with coconut and red palm.)
- Cream these together.
Add
1 egg
1/2 cup molasses
- Blend thoroughly.
Add
1 t cinnamon
1 1/2 t ginger ( I like a little more kick in mine!)
1 t salt
3 1/4 cup of flour
- Mix these. The mix will be very dry. As you are stirring, add
1 t baking soda that has been mixed with 4 T hot water.
- Mix.
Start adding no more than 1 cup of water. Be careful with this. You should have a stiff batter that is spreadable. Line a baking pan with parchment paper, I used a pan at about a 11x7 and got about an inch and a half in height.
Bake at 350 for about 15-20 minutes.

For the drizzle, I ball parked this but
approximately 1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 t orange extract
- Blend
Start adding a teaspoon of milk at a time to get a consistency of syrup.
Drizzle over your bars and enjoy!



I think patterns and recipes need to be played with, especially ones you've already made in the past.

Dinner tonight will be brats cooked on the grill with homemade chili sauce, Nathans onion rings and plain salad. I messed up, looked at the clock and thought it was nearing 5p.m. so dinner will get reheated and served :-) Gotta love days like this!!

Have a great evening and God bless!!