chealsea1950sbaker

[chealsea1950sbaker]

1950's blueberry muffins

My head feel clear, I am feeling better than I did the other day. I am excited that this is my last blog. Baking has been a challenge for me and I look forward to not bake for a while.

I start by cutting a 1/4 of a cup of shortening place into the clear bowl, mixing it with a fork, watching the white shortening come through the little spaces in the fork. I continue to mix until it becomes a fluffy white cloud, gradually adding sugar. Mixing that until the crystallize sugar and comes together to the shortening. I crack two eggs off the counter, watching the egg yolk slide into the bowl. Also, we can mixing up the ingredients together, the snowy white shortening sugar mix turns into a fluorescent yellow.

I pour 2 cups of flour to the bowl as I continue to read the recipe to see where I need to add milk.After i read again, I realized I Made a big mistake as the two eggs supposed to be a separate bowl with the milk added mixed together and then, at the end. I add the eggs mixture of sugar and shortening instead. Instead of starting all over, I took this as a learning opportunity. I decided to continue with this to see how it turns out this could either go really good or really bad I start mixing the flour with the rest. The stuff it is very clumpy and not at all like muffin mix, after I mix a little bit, I add 4 teaspoons of baking powder which seems like a lot.

I cannot find a measuring cup for the milk, so I just kept adding milk until there is moisture back into the batter. Mix pretentious. I add more milk to the bowl. Continue with you my right arm becomes sore.  

Under the tap, I run some water to clean off the blueberries, placing them into the bowl and I begin to mix so the evenly through the whole batters. I get out my muffin tray, start lining the tray and pour them into my muffin liners.

The yellow muffin batter with blueberry chucks bakes at 400. I keep an eye for them. I take them out, notice the muffins and undercook, I place them back into the oven again for another 5 minutes. This time they are done. I allow for the muffins to cool. Once cool, I took a bite, to my surprise they were good.

[chealsea1950sbaker]

1950's Hot Cross Buns

Out my living room window, the sun it is setting. Creating a golden colour in the sky. I can tell winter is coming as my apartment seems to get cold and colder every day. The floor feels like ice. This is one of the unfortunate about living in a basement apartment. Two pairs of socks on my feet and a pair cherry red slips, the ones with the warm white wool on the inside of them. Thats how you know it's cold, when I have to socks or anything on my feet. A navy blue hoodie with white wool called and oodie, oversized and falls below my knees to keep me warm.

As I begin my next baking challenge on this day it has not been the easiest for me as I am suffering the flu. I have never felt so sick in my adult life. My throat feels like is swollen shut, the pressure in my ears feels like my ears are going to burst. My nose dripping like a faucet and my arms and legs felt like static was running through them. My body has been so weak where I can barely move or have no energy at all. Thinking my brain has turned in mush as I can not think. However I suck it up, even thought I just want to lay in my bed, I begin.

Reaching for a pot under my oak brown cabinets, my head pounds like its knocking on someones door. Once the pot is in my hand, I slowly bring myself up to place the pot on the stove. The room is spinning as I move my head up. This is different as I have never had to boil ingredient for a recipe yet. Or I think I am supposed boil it. I add one cup of milk to a black pot that I have heated up over the stove, add a pinch of salt, 1/3 cup of butter and half a cup of sugar. I mix with a little strength I have until everything is melted and dissolved together. The mixture in the pod gets off a yellowish colour with some spots of white from the milk. Butter is slowly dissolving the more I stir. As a mixture in the pot is simmering I start doing the next step

Slowing I move two steps to the corner where the magic clear bowl is. I place 1/4 of a cup of warm water from the sink into a bowl. In this second, I look over to my pot, I can see it’s the steam rising from it. The bubbles of the mixture slowly bubbling up looking like a melted marshmallow. This is my sign to turn the stove off. I let the mixture cool down. Back to the bowl, two packages of activity dry yeast needs to be added. I have never worked yeast before so this is something new to me. I begin to mix the water and yeast, the color of the water and yeast represent a medium double double (if you are Canadian, you'll understand).

Mixing is not hard, the water and yeast dissolved fast, however, I kept mixing the yeast I just got a huge smell of something that just smells like vomit I can’t I can’t describe it how awful it smells but it smells like vomit. It was so gross that I almost had to stop and throw it out. But I was not going to give up.

I brought the part of the milk mixture over to the bowl and poured into the clear bowl. When pouring I can see the butter and milk separating mix. pieces of white and yellow dividing. Once poured in I all mixed together giving it a dirt water colour. Now I add 2 1/2 cups of flour. Mixing the flourI get a huge whip of the yeast vomit smell making me gag almost having to hold my breath, as someone who is sick and I can barely breathe out of my nose I just can’t imagine how strong is actually smells.

After 2cups of flour, the dough was still wet, I add another 2 cups of flour and 2 eggsnand repeat. My least favourite part, kneeing, The dough, like slime through my fingers, sticking to everything. I need to knee for 10 minutes but I end up only doing it for 2. I am exhausted, the dough sits for 2 hours to rise. I try to do some school work but I end up just laying on the couch looking at the wall.

After the 2ish hours, I preheat the oven to 375, I pick up the dough and roll into a ball, placing the ball into a pan for the oven. I make three balls. My hands feel gross and sticky. I create an egg wash for the buns and place into the oven for 30 minutes.

Honesty I forgot to time it, but I could smell the buns which just smell like bread. I take them out of the oven to let them cool. I did not take a bite as I knew I wouldn't like them as I am a picky eater. My boyfriend walks into the kitchen, I can hear him laughing. "What?" I ask. "What did you make?" he answered.

"Hot cross buns for my project."

"They dont look like it." He joked. I can heard him take a bite, immediately he spits it out back into the pan.

"These are editable!" He shouts.

[chealsea1950sbaker]

1950's Fudge Bars

I am finishing up getting ready for work as I leave the bathroom I can smell the brownies being baked in the oven they seem to be done. Open the oven and poking a fork through the brownies as the dish is still in the oven. Pulling the fork out from the baked brownies, there’s nothing left on the on the fork. I turn the oven off grab my pink dirty old oven mitts pull the brownies out of the oven. The heat coming off of the baking dish feels good as it’s been such a cold morning. I place the brownies on the counter letting them a cool and I began to create the next part of this project, fudge topping. 

As I am breaking up the unsweetened chocolate, this time the chocolate fall into pieces much easier then when I was making the brownies. Looking at the chocolate my curiosity got the best to me and I decided to take a bite to see what it taste like. I knew it wouldn’t taste good but I certainly enjoy dark chocolate so I thought I would not mind unsweet chocolate as I enjoy the bitter taste. I took one small bite and immediately tasted like dirt. I try to swallow it down, trying to be tough however that didn’t work. I started gagging on it almost choking it was coming out of my mouth I ran to the garbage and I spit it right out. Still having a taste of dirt in my mouth I grab some water hoping that I can rinse it the taste out doesn’t really work so that I run and grab something else. I was cooking my lunch which was just some french fries as a grab a french fry take a bite to hopefully they with the taste of it which is kind of helped but I could still taste on for awful unsweetened chocolate in my mouth.

Placing the pieces of chocolate into another pink bowl and adding a little water to the bowl. I walk over to the microwave, placing the bowl in the microwave to warm up the chocolate. 

I set the chocolate in the microwave for about one minute. As it heats up I begin to clean up my mess from the prior baking that I just did. Taking a sip of my green tea I hear the microwave beep letting me know that the chocolate is done. I grab the pink bowl which is hot. I try not to burn my hands pulling the bowl out. Once the bowl is place on the corner I began to stir. As I stir the dark brown chocolate it has become very chunky and does not look appetizing I decide to add some more water to see if that helps. With adding more water, reheat the chocolate. Mixing the chocolate, the color changes from the dark brown to a nice milk chocolate brown. I add 3 cups of sugar, mix that all together and pour the fudge mix on top of the warm brownies.

[chealsea1950sbaker]

1950's Brownies

The early morning sun rises peeking through my white blinds. The chill of the late fall breeze creeps through my home . I am awoken by my petite black cat as she jumps on my chest and purrs in my face, reminding me that she needs to be fed. I roll out of my warm cocoon that I have created with my blankets and into the cold as I begin to get ready. 

As I enter the kitchen my cat meows for food. I feed her favourite chicken dinner wet cat food and I begin to walk to the pantry. I begin to grab ingredients I need for today’s baking. It’s brownies which are my favourite baked goods! I am looking forward to this. At this point I memorize almost all the ingredients I need as the ingredients seem to be the same almost every time.

Opening my phone, I’m double checking that I have all my ingredients until I noticed that I don’t have baking powder but I have baking soda and I know that if I use baking soda it will not be the same. 

I begin to feel a bit of panic as I don’t really wanna go back out to the grocery stores as I’m comfortable in my home and rather not leave. I also have to go to work soon and my plan was to bake my brownies in the morning. I’m having contradicting thoughts in my head as if I should go out right now to get the baking powder or wait after work. The stress of waiting after work is building up as I have other assignments that I need to do tonight and I would rather not be baking in the evening. When I get after work as I’m so exhausted. I can’t make up my mind what I wanna do, I am fighting with myself.

I finally come to a conclusion. I decide that if I go right now I can still create my brownies in time before work. I run to the bathroom getting to start getting ready. I can getting dressed, fix my hair and running out the door within five minutes. I jump into my car, I don’t even let it warm up. I am freezing as I’m driving my way to the grocery store. The sun is so bright, it is hard to see.

As I enter grocery store, it’s quiet, hardly anyone is shopping which I like. I head right to the bakery to see if I can find some baking powder. Surprisingly there was none. I start to panic again not knowing what I was going to do. I could go to the other grocery store that is five minutes down the road but again, I really don’t wanna do that I just wanna be home. However, I am now hyper fixated on getting this baking powder so I had back into my car again and driving down the road to the next grocery store. Once I arrive to the second grocery store again running down to the bakery aisle and to my luck, I found the baking powder I pick it up and head to the checkout paying for it and heading back home.

Within 10 minutes I am home. Quickly, I take off my boots, my jacket, and place the baking powder on the counter and begin to get ready to bake. I reset the oven to 350 and I grab my clear baking bowl. Opening my phone again to read the instructions, it tells me that I need to melt 2 squares of chocolate into hot water over the oven with a bowl. However I do not have big bowl to do this with so I decide to do it in the microwave I understand this is not very 1950s however this is the best I could do for now. I place a stick of butter Into the pink glass bowl. I try to break 2 pieces of unsweeten chocolate, which seemed impossible. That or I’m just weak. instead, I cut the chocolate up with a knife and break them in little pieces. Placing the pieces of chocolate into the same pink bowl with the butter. Throwing the bowl into the microwave. Setting the timer for 2 minutes, I began working on the other part of the recipe.

Cracking the two last eggs off my counter, watching the egg yolk slide down counter and the dark oak wood cabinets, to the floor as. I cracked the second egg I noticed a piece of shell to fallen the bowl. as I try to grab for the shell I can feel the slimy egg yolks between my fingers.

The microwave beeps. I push the door of the microwave. The steam from the bowl rises and exits of the microwave. I pull the bowl out of the microwave, carefully trying not to burn my hands. The overwhelming smell of melted butter tickles my nose making my stomach turn. I place the bowl on the counter, next to the clear baking bowl. I mix the chocolate and butter mixture until everything is melted. There is not clumps, just smooth chocolate. I take the chocolate cover fork form the chocolate bowl. I use it for mixing the eggs and sugar cup of sugar together. The egg and sugar looking like a gain fluorescent yellow. I add the chocolate and butter mix. The hot pink bowl against my hand makes it hard for me to get the last drops of chocolate into the bowl. The bowl as it becomes uncomfortable to hold. 

I began mixing everything together. Then add 1 cup of flour, a pinch of salt, baking power and vanilla. (The last three I did not use measure spoons/cups) Once everything is mixed in the brownie mix. The brownie batter looks thick with a nice cream texture as I stir my fork around picking up blobs of brownie batter and watching it slowly fall back into the bowl.

Grabbing a pan, I grease it, the stream for the spray grease fills the air into the sunbeams from my kitchen. I pour the brownie batter in the pan. as its pouring, I start to think I used too big of a pan. There is no turning back. Continuing to pour, and spreading all the batter evenly over the pan. I open the oven door, placing the cool pan into the warm oven.

I wait for it to bake. I drink my green tea and eat my lunch. I began to smell the fresh baked brownies cooking. This smell fills up my house. Pulling the oven door, the red light from the element shines on the brownies. I take my fork, poking to see if they are done. Nothing comes off the fork. I pull the brownies out and let them cool.

Taking a knife, I cut a piece of the brownie, placing in on my plate. Digging my fork in, taking a bite, the soft chewing brownie makes my mouth water.

[chealsea1950sbaker]

1950's Applesauce Cake With Butter Frosting

The morning fog rolls in from the bay. One of the disadvantages of living so close to the ocean. The sun is trying to peek through the clouds. The grey clouds make my kitchen feel dark, even with the curtains open.

I began to bake another cake, however this one uses applesauce. This was weird to me as applesauce has a weird consistency but I am feel optimistic. Grabbing the clear baking bowl, I read what I need to do. I reach over to pre-heat the oven to 350. I am reading, I need to mix 1 3/4 cups of flour. The white all purpose flour feels soft like silky as it touches my hand, digging for a cup of flour. I pour the first cup of flour, then taking a a 3/4 cup digging back into the bright yellow flour bag, pouring the 3/4 cup into the bowl.

Next I need spices. I only have cinnamon so that will do. Instead of using a measuring cup/spoon I just shake the small glass spice jar. Little bits of brown begin to sprinkle on top of the white flour. The smell of cinnamon reminds me of all. Next I add a pinch of salt and a pinch of baking soda.

As I continue, I read that I need to add 1/2 cup of shorten and 1 cup of sugar to a separate bowl and mix. Opening my dark brown cabinets I reach for another bowl. I add the shortening and the sugar, as I start to mix the two it becomes hard. The shortening is not melting into the sugar, it is not turning a light fluffy texture like it said. Instead its becoming a mess, the shortening grease slipping into my finger nails making me grind my teeth. The white grainy sugar is flying all over the kitchen. I take a break, a deep breath, I read again.

After reading the recipes again, I was never supposed to mix the shortening and sugar separate from the other bowl. I add the mess of the shortening sugar mixture into the clear bowl. Using a whisk to mix the cake mix, it was hard. The shortening becoming stuck into the whisk. Continuing to mix, I notice a black dot in a piece of shortening, then I feel something wet run down my hand. Looking at my hand, I see a dark brown drop running down. I am not sure what it was. I wash my hands, and investigate the whisk and bowl. Removing the black shortening, I look through the bowl to see any more. I do not so its on with the show.

Adding one egg to the bowl, cracking the egg off the counter, pushing my thumbs into the crack to open the egg. The egg yolk starts squirting out the side of the shell. Once added, I mix again but with a spoon which works better. Finally I add 1 cup of applesauce. M

Mixing the it begins to have the fluffy light texture however the cake mix looks more like banana bread texture. I heard a beep from the oven meaning the oven is done preheating. next to my oven, i bend down, searching for my baby pink loaf pan. the clinking of all the pans hitting each other as I search for the pan. Once I found the pan I grease it with some spray oil and pour my cake mixture in the pan. Opening the oven door, and i feel the heat on my hands has i place the pan onto the top rack of the oven.

As its baking, I start making the frosting. 2 cups of icing sugar, 1/2 cup of butter, cream and vanilla all mixed into one bowl. I used a smaller bowl, icing sugar was flying all over the counter. Cream was added giving it a yellow tint to the frosting and was i started to mix it looks more like frosting you buy from the store.

The Cake bakes for an hour. I can smell the cinnamon. Pulling the hot pan with oven mits. I allow for it to cool for 5 minutes then I start frosting. I frosting is melting which is what I wanted. However, it is slipping off the cake and I am unsure how it will look after its cooled.

After cooling off, I came back to check on the cake and to my surprise the cake looked fine. Taking my knife, I slice a piece. My fork digging in to the soft cake, I take a bite. The taste of apple cinnamon touches my taste buds. It was amazing. The best cake I have very tasted! The texture of the cake was not spongey it was fluffy, like a bread. I was feel overwhelmed with joy, so much that I want to make it again.

[chealsea1950sbaker]

1950's Cream Cheese Pound Cake

The morning sun beams through the windows of my small apartment. My apartment feeling warm and toasty which is not typically for early November. Living in Canada we see our first snow fall in mid October. Its early November and the temperatures are in the mid-teens. Still sweater weather, but thats globe warming I guess.

This morning I was proud of myself, normally I leave everything to the last minute. If I'm not doing it the day its due I wont be motivated to work. However this morning I began making my cream cheese pound Which sounds good but also weird for someone who doesn't like cake. The sponge texture of pound cake in my mouth just makes me want to puke. Cake seems easy to make, easier then cookies and at least my boyfriend will eat it.

As I began to pull my ingredients out of the fridge, I glad a cold block of cream cheese and set in on my warm counter top. Next I glad a stick of butter. Eying the green tin foil label, about to unwrap it. I noticed the gold writing on the greasy stick. "Garlic and Herb Butter" How could I be so dumb. This isnt butter! Its garlic butter! At least I noticed before placing it into the bowl. This means I have to go back to the local grocery store. Once returning home again, I began my cake making experience.

Looking at the recipe off my phone, the picture looks like a torn piece of paper. It asks for one stick stick of butter, 2 sticks on margarine. I start thinking to myself, "whats the differences between butter and margarine? Why do I need both?" A block of cream cheese 3 cups of sugar, 3 cups of flour, one teaspoon of vanilla, one teaspoon of lemon and 6 eggs. 6 EGGS! Why so many eggs. I have never used more than 3 eggs before. Feeling confused, I continue reading. The recipe just tells me to add all ingredients and mix. I began with the hard block or cream cheese and stick of butter. Then I guess how much 2 sticks of margarine would be. I reach for the bag of sugar, adding 3 cups to the clear plastic bowl. Next the 6 eggs. Cracking each egg of the counter and dropping the egg yolk into the bowl. Before I add flour, I began to mix. I do not own and electric mixer, which would be a good investment. Mixing by hand isnt bad when the mix is easy. With the hard blocks it was impossible to get the clumps of butter and cream cheese out. I kept mixing. Mixing until my right hand began to cramp. Nothing was working.

I added one cup of flour then I mixed. My hand was in pain. I added another cup of flour, my hand begins to throb. Still clumps. I throw the bowl into the microwave for 15 second. Take the mild warm bowl out, mixed. Repeat. Still clumps of cream cheese. I give up. I added another cup of flour and the lemon and vanilla. I mixed for another minute as thats all my hand could take. Then I add the cake batter into my pink cake pan. Then Oven has been pre-heat at 325. The warmth from the oven hits my face was I open the oven door. I place the pink cake pan on the top rack and allow it to bake. It requires the bake for 1 hour and 30 minutes which the last 30 minutes it needs to be covered.

The cake is in the oven, walking to the bathroom, run the hot water and take a hot shower. The hot water turns my pale skin red. The walls are moist, water dripping down them. As I dry off, I can smell the cake. I lost track of time. The scent takes me to the kitchen. I open the hot oven door. The cake looking golden. I pull it out of the oven, place it on the stove allowing it to cool. The strong smell on lemon hits my nose, making my stomach turn. I keep myself busy as the cake is cooling. Once done cooling I cut a slice. Still warm and moist, sunshine yellow with chucks of cream cheese. It taste just like a creamy lemon cake. As for someone who doesnt like cake, this cake was not bad and I believe a success!

[chealsea1950sbaker]

1950's Sugar Cookies

As I enter my kitchen, the dim orange light shining above my head. I grab my phone to look at the recipes. As I begin to read the recipe, i try to memorize all the ingredients. I start by opening the fridge, the cool from the fridge hits my face. I reach for the eggs, milk and butter and place them on the brown marble counter next the clear bowl. I walk to the the pantry, the creak of the the door opening. I look for the baking soda, sugar, flour and vanilla.

Reading the recipe, it calls for the egg, sugar, mike and vanilla together. I open the carton of eggs and reach for a cold egg. I crack it off of the counter. The goop of the egg slowly pours into the bowl. Next I add a cup of sugar, a teaspoon of milk and a 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla. Before I mixed them together, I read the recipe, it doesnt say to mix so I began to add a cup 1/2 of flour, a teaspoon of baking soda and a pinch of salt. Next I need to add butter however in the recipe it did not say if the butter need to be melted so I did not melt it. As I began to mix the dough it began to look very clumpy. At this point I knew this might work out.

Once the dough was mixed to the best I could, I pour the beige clump was poured on plastic wrap. Rolled, into a long stick, placed in the cold freezer for 2 hours.

After 2 hours, I preheat the oven to 375, I take the dough out from the freezer. I grease the pan and place six lumps on the pan. Once the oven is pre-heated I place the pan in the oven. after 15 minutes, i take the cookies out of the oven. I open the the oven door, and i can see it, I see the mess. The cookies turned into one big mess. I was a little upset has I followed the recipes, I could not understand what went wrong. As I had a feeling this baking was going to go wrong the felt of sadness drop in my stomach. For this there is no resolution at the moment. I can try again however I sure try a different recipe. This is only my second 1950 recipes however i have noticed they way they bake is different from what i am used too.

[chealsea1950sbaker]

Peanut Butter Cookies

As I begin to grab all my Ingredients, my brain is spinning, trying remember all the ingredients. Opening and closing the fridge, reading over the list over and over because I want make these cookies rights. Baking is something I struggle with, being ADHD, I just want throw everything into a bowl. I have a hard time with direction to as I feel like skip over a lot as my mind cant not read more than 2 sentences. So this is how my journey of making this 1950′s style peanut butter cookies went.

According to the recipe I needed to start with 1/4 cup of shortening plus one cup of sugar and mix into a bowl. I began to mix with a whisk however that was an awful idea as the shortening and sugar was clumping into the whisk. I Switched to a fork which worked much better. After the shortening and sugar was somewhat mixed, I needed to add 1/2 cup of peanut butter, 2 beaten eggs, 1/4 cup of milk and 1 teaspoon of vanilla. The eggs had to be beaten before added into the mix of shortening and sugar. I added he beaten eggs, milk, peanut butter and vanilla to the shortening and sugar mix. 

Now for the next step. To add the 1 1/2 cup of flour, 1 teaspoon of cinnamon and 1/2 teaspoon of baking soda. This is where I began to lose focus. I was supposed to mix the eggs, flour,  cinnamon and baking soda into the eggs, then add it to the mix. Despite this mistake the cookie dough seemed okay. It was sticky and i believe that is a good thing.

I greased a pan with some spray oil from costco. Once I started placing the dough on the pan I could feel that sticky the dough. The dough once placed on a pan seemed so liquidly. I started to have a bad feeling. The oven has being preheating at 350 and I place the cookies. Now I forgot to time the cookies and I actually forgot they where in the oven. When I realized I forgot the cookies I turn to my boyfriend who is sitting on the couch next to me and say “Oh Shit! The cookies!”  I jumped up for the couch and turn the oven off and take then cookies out. 

To my surprise the cookies were too burned, a little over done but not black and still edible. However these cookies did not look pretty at all, they taste fine surprisingly but definitely do not look like the picture.