Collect needed items:

Recipe:
8 ounces Baking Chocolate
2 sticks of Butter, 4 ounces each
2-1/2 cups Sugar plus 2 tablespoon
6 eggs, beaten
1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract, I generally add 1 Tablespoon
1 teaspoon Salt
1-1/2 cup Flour
1 cup Walnuts plus 4 tablespoons (if desired) I don’t add nuts often.

Preheat the oven to 325 ° F. Lightly grease the baking pan and set aside.

Gently melt the baking chocolate in the microwave using short bursts of time, unless you just made your baking chocolate. Set aside and melt your butter. Stir the butter into the melted chocolate and allow to cool to room temperature.

Once the baking chocolate and butter mixture has cooled to room temperature, add the sugar and stir until the sugar has been completely incorporated. Add the beaten eggs and gently stir until the eggs have been mixed into the batter. Stir the vanilla extract and salt into the mixture.

Now, add the flour and gently fold the flour into the batter. We don’t want to mix the batter too much, otherwise we will have a very tough brownie because the gluten in the flour has been developed. If desired, you can fold the nuts into the batter, leaving the 4 tablespoons to sprinkle on the top before baking.

Evenly spread the batter in the pan. Bake for approximately 35 minutes. There should be a light crust on the top of the brownies and a toothpick, inserted in the center, should come out clean. Allow the brownies to cool before serving. If you are like me and impatient, feel free to eat the brownies after they have cooled sufficiently to slice, about 2 hours. If you can wait, these brownies really taste great if they have had 24 hours to “age”. This allows the flavors to mellow.

Sit down with a glass of milk or a cup of hot chocolate and enjoy!

Melted baking chocolate.

Preparing to melt the butter.

Adding the butter to the baking chocolate.

Mixing the butter and baking chocolate.

Adding the sugar to the baking chocolate mixture. The sugar has been completely incorporated. Mixing the eggs into the batter. The batter is ready for the flour. Adding the flour to the batter. Continuing to mix the flour into the batter. Scraping the batter into a greased pan. Brownies after baking.

Mixing sugar and baking chocolate/butter together. Adding the eggs. The eggs are almost completely incorporated. Adding the salt and vanilla extract. Begining to mix the flour into the batter. Completely mixed batter. Spreading the batter into the corners of the pan. Only crumbs are left after the staff has eaten all the brownies!

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Collect needed supplies:
Cocoa Butter
Hershey’s Cocoa: Special Dark
Hershey’s Cocoa: Natural Unsweetened
SACO Premium Cocoa: A Special Blend of natural & Dutched Cocoa
Mixing bowl
Microwave safe container (I’m using a Pyrex liquid 2 cup measure)
Spoons
Rubber Scraper
Scale

Recipe in percentages:
40% Cocoa Butter
60% Cocoa Powder

We have 3 cocoas we will blend. Since we will make brownies next, I’m going to blend these like this:

40% Hershey’s Cocoa: Natural Unsweetened
40% SACO Premium Cocoa: A Special Blend of natural & Dutched Cocoa
20% Hershey’s Cocoa: Special Dark

This will give use a unique blend of flavors to round out our brownies. If you happen to have black cocoa (think Oreos) then limit this cocoa to 10-15% of your blend. Black cocoa is very single sided in flavor. Go ahead and use what ever cocoas you have available and that you like the flavor of.

We need 8 ounces for brownies. 40% of 8 ounces is 3.2 ounces, this is the cocoa butter. 60% of 8 ounces is 4.8 ounces, this is the cocoa. We now need to figure the amounts of cocoa by variety.

4.8 X 40% = 1.92 ounces
4.8 X 20% = 0.96 ounces

1.92 ounces Hershey’s Cocoa: Natural Unsweetened
1.92 ounces SACO Premium Cocoa: A Special Blend of natural & Dutched Cocoa
0.96 ounces Hershey’s Cocoa: Special Dark

Weigh all of the Cocoa Powders into the mixing bowl, stir together and then set aside. Weigh the Cocoa Butter into the microwave safe container. Heat in the microwave using short time bursts until the Cocoa Butter is melted. Now that the Cocoa Butter is melted, gently pour it over the mixed Cocoa Powder and stir to combine all the ingredients thoroughly. Check and make sure there are no more lumps of powder that need to be broken up.

Cool, stirring periodically. When this mixture is cool to the touch on the upper lip, the baking chocolate is ready to use in baking.

Otherwise, pour into storage containers and label for use on another day.

Enjoy!

Collect needed supplies.

Weighing the Hershey's Cocoa: Natural Unsweetened.

All three cocoas after being weighed.

Adding melted cocoa butter to the mixed cocoa.

Mixing the cocoa butter into the cocoa.

Continuing to mix. Checking for any lumps of cocoa.

Almost completely mixed. Finished baking chocolate.

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Enjoy!

I love my daughters, but they drive me crazy. Nothing in the kitchen seems to end up where I think it should be. My wife asked me to bake something over the weekend.  I decided to make Cornbread from scratch. As I started working in the kitchen, I couldn’t find the measuring cups that I needed for the recipe. “Honey, where is the 2/3 cup measure? I can’t find it.”  Blast! So, my wife says “Why don’t you make it by weight?”  Other than it is going to be a pain in the patootie to convert, that is a great idea. After searching the kitchen, the various flour and sugar bins in the pantry and still coming up with nothing, a conversion was in order. I used a 1 cup measure to determine the weight of each major ingredient per fluid ounce. I then made these conversions for each ingredient. Once I did the math, it was time to use my skills. The following is that converted recipe. Northern Style Cornbread, By Weight Ingredients 150 grams sugar 7 grams salt 75 grams butter or margarine 10 milliliters vanilla extract 2 large eggs 285 grams flour 135 grams cornmeal 15 grams baking powder (double acting) 325 milliliters milk

Cornbread in the skillet after baking. A slice of cornbread. Yummy!

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400°F. If using a cast iron skillet, preheat the skillet as well.
2. Combine the sugar, salt, butter and vanilla extract in a mixing bowl until creamy.
3. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition.
4. In a separate bowl combine the flour, cornmeal and baking powder.
5. Add the egg mixture to the dry mixture and stir lightly with a spoon.
6. Add the milk and mix with a spoon until just blended.
7. Pour into heated, greased skillet or 8×8 inch pan.
8. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until toothpick comes clean.
9. Turn out of pan or skillet and serve warm.

You can see the photos, they are all that is left of the cornbread. Not even a speck large enough to feed a mouse remains.

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Collect needed supplies:
White Granulated Sugar
Molasses (I’m using Grandma’s Unsulphured Original Molasses)
Mixing Bowl
Mixer (Hand style or Stand style)
Measuring Cups
Measuring Spoons
Cooking Spray or Oil
Container for finished brown sugar

Recipe:
1 cup White Granulated Sugar
1 – 2 tablespoons Molasses

Measure sugar into the mixing bowl. Before measuring the molasses, lightly coat the measuring spoon with the cooking spray or oil. Now measure the molasses and then pour over the sugar in the mixing bowl. Mix well until you can’t see any more clumps of molasses. Now you shouldn’t be able to tell the difference between the brown sugar you just made and brown sugar purchased at the grocery store.

Molasses Notes:

You can use any molasses you desire. The Grandma’s Unsulphured Original Molasses will create a golden or light brown sugar, while a more robust variety up to blackstrap will create a dark brown sugar.

Submit your photos and text for the guest written Embedded Melt & Pour Soap Challenge! Submissions will be accepted through October 18th at blog@thesage.com. The submissions will be released October 19th through October 23rd. Each guest writer will receive a $25 gift certificate.

Collect needed items.

Sugar measured into the mixing bowl.

The measuring spoon sprayed with cooking spray.

The molasses didn't stick to the measuring spoon! Starting to mix the molasses and sugar together. A light brown sugar using 1 tablespoon of molasses. Light brown sugar on the left and dark brown sugar on the right.

Molasses and sugar ready to be mixed together. There are still clumps of molasses that need to be mixed. Dark brown sugar using 2 tablespoons of molasses.

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Collect needed items:
4 batches of fresh Soy Milk
Large cooking pot
Measuring Cup
Stirring Spoon
Measuring Spoons
Water
Nigari (Natural Magnesium Chloride)
Tofu Mold
Weights
Cheesecloth
Stove

Pour all four batches of the fresh Soy Milk into the large cooking pot and place the pot on the stove. Turn on the heat to medium high and heat the Soy Milk until it begins to simmer.

While the Soy Milk is heating, measure 1 cup of hot water and add 2 teaspoons of Nigari to the hot water and stir until dissolved. After the Soy Milk has reached a simmering point, remove from the heat. Slowly stir 3/4 of the Nigari and water mixture into the Soy Milk and then stop stirring. Wait for 2-3 minutes. Gently stir the forming curds and add the last of the Nigari and water mixture to any milky areas left in the pot.

After the Soy Milk has separated into curds and whey, an amber colored liquid, transfer to the tofu mold lined with cheese cloth. Cover the top of the curds with the cheesecloth and place the lid onto the tofu. Place a weight on top of the lid and allow to sit for approximately 20 minutes.

After allowing the tofu to sit for 20 minutes, empty into a tub of cold water and allow to sit for another hour. Now the tofu can be stored in the refrigerator as long as the soaking water is changed daily.

You can eat the tofu as soon as you separate the curds from the whey.

Notes:
I apologize for the missing photos of me adding the Nigari, but I didn’t realize that the camera was fogged up from all the steam rising from the Soy Milk.

I used 2 teaspoons of Nigari since 1 teaspoon was not sufficient to make the Soy Milk clump. You can start with 1 teaspoon of Nigari in 1/2 cup of hot water and see if that works for you.

Enjoy!

Pouring Soy Milk into my stainless steel pot.

Soy Milk after the 3/4 of Nigari has been added.

Stirring the curd and whey.

Preparing the curd to be pressed.

Adding the weight to press the curd. Transfering the tofu into cold water.

The pressed tofu still in the cheesecloth. Tofu sitting in cold water.

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This machine is fantastic and definitely worth the money put into it. If you are a little reluctant about purchasing this, we calculated that it could cost no more than $2.00 for a gallon of Soy Milk! Such a savings that the machine will pay for itself many times over! This cost is including a premium vanilla extract. If you are making Soy Milk for soap, then our cost was calculated at 36 cents for a gallon of fresh Soy Milk. You read that right, 36 cents a gallon. Don’t you wish you could power your car for 36 cents a gallon?!

Collect needed items:
Dried Soybeans
Water for soaking and for making Soy Milk
Container for soaking the soybeans
SoyaPower Plus Soy Milk Maker, including items that come with a small translucent pitcher, a mesh strainer, and a measuring cup.

Measure one scoop (a scoop is included in the box) of dried soybeans and then soak the dried soybeans in water for 8 to 12 hours. Once the soybeans have been soaked, drain the extra water and set the soybeans aside. Fill the SoyaPower Plus Soy Milk Maker with the required amount of water between the two lines on the inside of the pitcher. Add the soybeans and close the Soy Milk Maker, making sure you have locked the latches. Press the button that states “Soy Beans” and allow to run until finished processing, approximately 15 minutes. After the SoyaPower Plus Soy Milk Maker is finished, it will start beeping. Unplug the machine and remove the machine head from the pitcher. Place the mesh strainer over the translucent pitcher and pour the Soy Milk into the pitcher and allow the mesh strainer to sit for several minutes while the remaining Soy Milk drips out of the soybean pulp, also known as okara. I feed the okara to our chickens, but you can also use the okara for other foods like bread, burgers, cookies and more.

Now we have fresh Soy Milk! You can use this Soy Milk for making soap or tofu, or if you want to drink it, I have a fantastic recipe for a Vanilla Soy Milk that I love to drink or pour over cereal!

Making Vanilla Soy Milk:
One batch of fresh Soy Milk (about 5 cups)
Sugar
Vanilla Extract
Salt (I use Real Salt)
Measuring Spoons

Add 3 tablespoons of sugar, 1 tablespoon Vanilla Extract and 1/4 teaspoon salt to the fresh Soy Milk. Stir until all ingredients are blended together. You can drink the Soy Milk warm, or you can chill it in the refrigerator. Yummy!

Before buying the SoyaPower Plus Soy Milk Maker we went to the web and did a lot of research. We also talked with our Soy Milk making friends. We found the SoyaPower Plus Soy Milk Maker to be the best model to buy. It is the best value (currently on sale AND free shipping) and the easiest to use. While we did find similar models (machines that can make rice, nut and other bean milks) we just couldn’t find a machine that offered more. We figure that a machine that does so much, comes so highly recommended by current users, doesn’t have a filter basket to clean, is the best value for the dollar AND has free shipping should be our recommendation to you. As you can see, Vanilla Soy Milk is my favorite. If you get a SoyaPower Plus Soy Milk Maker, let us know how you like your Soy Milk. I’ll post recipes here. Don’t forget to send us photos of your Soy Soap!

Tomorrow, I’ll show you how to make a face mask with the okara!

Enjoy!

Water between the lines on the metal pitcher.

Soaked soybeans.

Soybeans in the pitcher.

Don't get a soy milk maker with a stupid basket!

Side view of the Tornado Grinding System.

Locking the machine head onto the pitcher. Pressing the Soy Beans button. The machine head after blending. Fresh okara. Adding Vanilla Sugar.

The SoyaPower Plus is now on. Once finished, open the latches. Pouring the Soy Milk into the mesh strainer over the pitcher. Adding 1/4 teaspoon of salt to the fresh Soy Milk. Stir, stir, stir!

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I did substitute blackberries for the blueberries, but the change of the berries didn’t change the desired slice-able pie. The resulting pie was enjoyed and quickly eaten by our staff.

Makes one 9-inch pie

Foolproof Pie Dough
2 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour (12 1/2 ounces), plus more for work surface
1 teaspoon table salt
2 tablespoons sugar
12 tablespoons cold unsalted butter (1 1/2 sticks), cut into 1/4-inch slices
1/2 cup vegetable shortening , cold, cut into 4 pieces
1/4 cup vodka , cold
1/4 cup cold water

Measure 1 1/2 cups of flour, salt and sugar into the food processor bowl. Pulse briefly until the ingredients are blended. Add butter and shortening and pulse until the flour mixture has been completely coated with butter and shortening. At this point, I think it looks like coarse cornmeal with some large clumps. Add the last cup of flour and pulse again until mixed. Pour the crumbles of dough into a medium mixing bowl. Add cold vodka and water to the crumbled dough and press with a rubber scraper to blend. Mix until the dough is tacky and holds together. Divide the dough into two halves and roll into balls. Flatten the balls into disks and then wrap with plastic wrap and refrigerate for a minimum of 45 minute and a maximum of 2 days.

Once the pie dough has chilled, remove one disk of dough from the refrigerator and unwrap. Place the chilled dough on floured work surface and roll the dough into a 12 inch circle, leaving the dough about 1/8 inch thick. Gently place the dough in a pie plate and adjust the dough to fit in the pie plate, while leaving the overhanging dough. Refrigerate while working on the filling.

Blackberry Filling
6 cups fresh blackberries (about 30 ounces)
1 Granny Smith apple , peeled and grated on large holes of box grater
2 teaspoons grated zest and 2 teaspoons juice from 1 lemon
3/4 cup sugar (5 1/4 ounces)
2 tablespoons quick-cooking tapioca , ground
Pinch table salt
2 tablespoons unsalted butter , cut into 1/4-inch pieces

1 large egg , lightly beaten with 1 teaspoon water (optional for a glaze)

Before preparing the blackberry filling, adjust the oven rack to the lowest position and place a rimmed baking sheet on the oven rack and pre-heat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.

Place 3 cups of blackberries in a medium saucepan and place on the stove, turning the temperature to medium heat. Use a potato masher and mash the berries several times to aid releasing the juice from the blackberries. Cook until approximately half of the berries have broken down and thickened. You will have to continue to mash and stir the berries while they cook. Once the berries have reached this point, remove from the heat and allow to cool while you prepare the apple.

Peel the green apple and then grate using the large holes of a grater. Place the apple into a clean kitchen towel and wring dry. Dump the apple into a large bowl and add all blackberries (cooked and uncooked), lemon zest, lemon juice, salt, sugar and ground tapioca to the bowl. Stir until all ingredients are thoroughly combined. Pour the filling into the chilled dough in the pie plate. Place butter over the top of the filling and set aside while you roll out the second disk of dough.

Remove the other disk of chilled dough from the refrigerator and unwrap. Place the chilled dough on floured work surface and roll the dough into a 11 inch circle, leaving the dough about 1/8 inch thick. Gently place the dough over the pie filling, leaving an overhang of pie dough. Trim the pie dough using kitchen shears or a paring knife, leaving 1/2 inch overhang. Fold dough under itself so you create an edge that is flush with the rim of the pie plate. Press the edges with either your thumb and forefinger or with the tines of a fork to ensure the edge of the crust is sealed.

You can brush the egg mixture over the top and sides of the pan if you desire a golden glaze after baking, but it is not necessary.

Place the pie on the heated baking sheet and bake for 30 minutes. After the pie has baked for 30 minutes, reduce the oven temperature to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and continue to bake until the juices bubble and the crust has browned, 30 to 40 minutes. Transfer the pie to a wire cooling rack and allow to cool to room temperature, at least 4 hours. Slice the pie and enjoy!

Notes:
Vodka allows the dough to stick together without adding more water that will make the crust a complete soggy mess. The vodka does not contribute any flavors and cannot be substituted. You can use either fresh or frozen berries. Simply do not thaw the berries and they will behave just like fresh berries in the finished pie. If you are having a hard time grinding the tapioca, use a spice grinder, mortar and pestle, or a small food processor.

I would really like to show you a picture of the finished pie, but it was eaten before I could take a picture of the beautiful pie.

Enjoy!

Flour, salt and sugar in the food processor.

Cutting the cold butter.

Cold butter added to the flour mixture.

Cold vegetable shortening added to the flour mixture.

Starting to pulse the butter and shortening into the flour.

Dough looking like coarse corn meal.

Adding the last portion of flour to the dough.

The dough in a mixing bowl.

Adding the cold vodka and water to the dough. Continuing to mix the dough. Wrapping the dough with plastic wrap. Placing rolled out dough in the pie plate. Both cooked and uncooked blackberries in a saucepan. Starting to scrape the saucepan. Filling in the chilled pie crust.

Mixing the dough to incorperate the fluids. Completely mixed dough that has been divided. Rolling the dough out after chilling. The pie filling ingredients waiting for the berries. Pouring the berries into the bowl with the other filling ingredients. A closeup of the mixed filling. Crimping the edges of the pie crust.

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These cookies are soft sugar cookies. They are a favorite with the staff here at MMS. Since these cookies are so soft we won’t be able to ship these in orders. But since I am giving the recipe, I hope you will understand.

The World’s Softest and Best Sugar Cookie

2 cups regular granulated sugar

1 cup vegetable shortening

1 cup sour cream

4 beaten eggs

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 tsp salt

1 tsp baking powder

2 tsp baking soda

6 cups all-purpose flour (unbleached, unbromated please)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Cream together sugar and shortening. Add sour cream and mix well. Add beaten eggs and vanilla. In a separate bowl combine all dry ingredients. Stir dry mixture into creamed sugar mixter. Finished product will be a like a big dough ball. The mixture should not stick to the sides of the bowl. If it does add some more flour. You need to be able to pick it up and roll it with a rolling pin without the dough sticking to the pin. Sprinkle flour onto flat surface and separate dough into thirds. Shape one piece of dough into a ball and place on floured surface. Flour your hands and flour dust the top of the dough so the rolling pin does not stick. Gently roll out the dough to about 1/4 inch thick. Cut with cookie cutters or use a drinking cup for a regular circle. I love to eat the dough so make sure you make enough for dough cookies and baked cookies!!

I use parchment paper on top of my cookie pan. Place the shaped cookie dough onto cookie pan.

Place in oven and bake for 8 minutes!!! You do not want them to get brown at all. When your timer goes off open the oven door and press gently on one of the cookies and if it feels somewhat firm they are done. I have never had to bake them more than exactly 8 minutes. The thicker cookies might take more baking time though. Cool on wire racks or paper towels.

I use homemade Cream Cheese frosting for my cookies. But you can use any kind you like.

Cream Cheese Frosting

4 oz cream cheese, cool room temperature
2 tbsp butter, room temperature
1 tsp vanilla extract
Powdered sugar (up to 4 cups)

Beat together cream cheese, butter and vanilla. Add 1 cup of powdered sugar and beat until well blended. Gradually continue to add more powdered sugar until it has reached a consistency that you want. For me I usually only end up using 2 cups of powdered sugar, but feel free to add a whole bag if you like stiffer and sweeter frosting. If the mixture gets too thick you can always add about 1 to 2 tbsp of milk. Then spread onto your cookies and you get to lick the bowl and the beaters clean.

Don’t forget to add colorful Valentine’s sprinkles to each cookie!

As you can see, the MMS staff enjoys these cookies. I won’t say how many Kenny and Bryce have eaten before the photo shoot, but I will say their sugar high has their production counts at the top!