Danish Pastry!
First night:
1. Put baby to bed.
2. Wait for baby to go to sleep.
3. Quietly get everything out of fridge/pantry.
4. Stare at recipe.
5. Stare at recipe again.
6. Walk away and go play on the computer.
7. Finally buckle down. Time to get this done!
8. Make dough, do all the stuff to it.
9. Go to bed
Second Night:
1. Get out dough.
2. Roll out, cut, put in raspberry/blackberry mixture and cream cheese.
3. Realize should have done that part on the baking sheet. S*@T!!!
4. Try and move pastry. Get very annoyed with ugly blob.
5. Wait for proofing... waiting.... waiting...
6. Need to go to bed. Bake. Bed.
Next Morning:
This doesn't look the way it's supposed to I don't think... Oh man. This sucks! Frustrated and disappointed. Tastes ok, would not make again.
Yup, this months baking challenge was a doozy! I had a hard time the first time around and I think maybe my yeasty beasties might have died in their cold milk bath. I don't use a lot of yeast so I didn't know at the time. I was really deflated and sad about the whole thing. We didn't even eat it all! Here are a few pictures for you to have a gander at.
Tim said that I should try again, I wasn't so sure. I was thinking I should just write it off to being a new experience and not have to worry about it anymore. But I tried it again!!! It's fabulous! This time it worked out perfectly! I used the apple filling that was recommended. Although I did drain all the liquid out of it after my previous experience with the berries and all their liquid (Help Tim!!! It's bleeding!!!). I bought some Sugar in the Raw to put on top this time. I would definitely recommend it. It tasted great and was just a little crunchy. Also, I used Julia Child's instructions and only made the braid 10 x 16 inches instead of the recommended 15 x 20 inches. I think it folded much better and looked prettier in the end.
Here are the photos of my second try.
Braiding:
Waiting for Proofing:
After Proofing outside on the trunk of my car for an hour:
At the 10 minute mark of baking (turning around in the oven):
Fresh out of the oven:
Dessert! Yummy!:
The second time around was a much better experience! It turned out wonderfully this time. Light, and oh so flaky. Just the way I like my pastry. One of the best things I think I have ever made. This time Tim and Riley had eaten a lot of the main braid before the first day was even over! There was enough for breakfast the next day and that's about it. We also had about half of the one of the little braids left and one full mini braid I'm giving to my friend. We didn't even finish the ones I made last week so I guess there's the proof that this time around is way better! Thanks to Kelly of Sass & Veracity and Ben of What's Cookin'? for hosting this month's challenge!
Comments
fran z (not verified)
Sun, 06/29/2008 - 17:29
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It appears from others posts
It appears from others posts that the 2nd time is the charm! I'll have to try again also. Tasty looking braids!
HoneyB (not verified)
Sun, 06/29/2008 - 17:46
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I'm so glad you gave it
I'm so glad you gave it another try! Your 2nd try looks awesome! I did the same thing you did - I assembled mine on the counter! I was lucky it didn't really affect how my braids looked however. AND they tasted AWESOME!
Lorrie (not verified)
Sun, 06/29/2008 - 17:58
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Looks great! you did an
Looks great! you did an amazing job!
Ally (not verified)
Sun, 06/29/2008 - 19:16
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Glad you gave it another
Glad you gave it another try! The second one looks so professional!
Harmony (not verified)
Sun, 06/29/2008 - 19:29
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Your braid looks really
Your braid looks really pretty.
Tarah (not verified)
Sun, 06/29/2008 - 20:53
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Gorgeous! Awesome job!
Gorgeous! Awesome job!
Aparna (not verified)
Mon, 06/30/2008 - 05:59
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Your first attempt ensured
Your first attempt ensured you had a delicious braid the next time, so I'd say it was woth the effort. Easy for me to say, I know.:)
marika (not verified)
Mon, 06/30/2008 - 08:04
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Beautiful
Your photos are just gorgeous - beautiful job!!
giz (not verified)
Mon, 06/30/2008 - 12:44
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Danish Braid
Your braid does look pretty decent, I must say. I'm loving that sugar on the top. It gives it that polished look. And how about that smell when it was in the oven.
Madam Chow (not verified)
Mon, 06/30/2008 - 14:03
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It looks wonderful, and I
It looks wonderful, and I really like Tim's attitude! It's wonderful to have someone who roots for you! The sugar in the raw is a nice finish, too.
breadchick (not verified)
Tue, 07/01/2008 - 14:22
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Well done on the braids!
Well done on the braids!
Rebecca (not verified)
Tue, 07/01/2008 - 17:47
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Lovely!
Those photos are totally cookbook-worthy.
Jen Yu (not verified)
Wed, 07/02/2008 - 11:44
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Beautiful!!
Beautiful!!
Ben (not verified)
Thu, 07/03/2008 - 16:24
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You are a true daring baker!
You are a true daring baker! I am glad your second batch turned out perfect. Thank you for baking with us :)
Claire (not verified)
Fri, 07/04/2008 - 21:23
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Looks great! I'm impressed
Looks great! I'm impressed that you completed it twice. Wonderful.
Lisa (not verified)
Fri, 07/04/2008 - 21:40
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It certainly ended up better
It certainly ended up better than it started! The sugar was a great touch.
Maura (not verified)
Tue, 07/08/2008 - 14:45
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Yum!
That looks delish! Great job!
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