I've baked off and on my whole life. But, in recent years, things haven't been going so well. I've concluded that I would flunk out of pastry chef school on the first day. If I had to roll out dough for a living, I'd be living without any dough ($). Is it this annoying rolling pin that always sticks no matter what I do? Is it the temperature in my house? Is it bad luck? Is it just me?
The wunderkind decided that this year, Santa needed gingerbread men instead of a traditional cookie. I have been nervous about this project. Hey! Maybe that's it; psyching myself into failure? Last night, I dreamed about having to roll gingerbread dough. So, bright and early I got my gingerbread baker hat on. Needless to say, it's been a stressful and trying endeavor. Just like I thought it would be.
I chilled the dough for 2 hours, just like the recipe said. Time to roll it out and then freeze it...this dough is sticky, soft, not really like a cookie dough at all. Then, there's my <bleep> rolling pin with gingerbread goo stuck all over it. I improvise with a plastic cylinder sprayed with Pam. I got it rolled out into a thin sheet, but it wasn't pretty. Then, after the 20 minutes in the freezer, separating it from the parchment paper was quite a feat. Took me and Neil together. And, as we all know, the purpose of parchment is that stuff doesn't stick to it.
So, we managed to get 4 gingerbread men into the oven. They look like they are supposed to; a Christmas miracle!
But, the remainder of the dough in the fridge is weighing heavy on my mind. Should I bolster myself to fight with this dough again and crank out as many little men as possible? Or, assume that Santa doesn't need more than 4 gingerbread men and just call it a day? And, before someone tells me that Martha Stewart has a good, easy recipe let me say this: I officially loathe M.S. but I DID go to her site and used this recipe. Damn, maybe it IS just me.
Merry Christmas everyone!
The wunderkind decided that this year, Santa needed gingerbread men instead of a traditional cookie. I have been nervous about this project. Hey! Maybe that's it; psyching myself into failure? Last night, I dreamed about having to roll gingerbread dough. So, bright and early I got my gingerbread baker hat on. Needless to say, it's been a stressful and trying endeavor. Just like I thought it would be.
I chilled the dough for 2 hours, just like the recipe said. Time to roll it out and then freeze it...this dough is sticky, soft, not really like a cookie dough at all. Then, there's my <bleep> rolling pin with gingerbread goo stuck all over it. I improvise with a plastic cylinder sprayed with Pam. I got it rolled out into a thin sheet, but it wasn't pretty. Then, after the 20 minutes in the freezer, separating it from the parchment paper was quite a feat. Took me and Neil together. And, as we all know, the purpose of parchment is that stuff doesn't stick to it.
So, we managed to get 4 gingerbread men into the oven. They look like they are supposed to; a Christmas miracle!
 |
| Yeah, we decorate cookies in our bikinis...what of it? |
 |
| R) my cookie L) Viv's Santa cookie |
 |
| The Miraculous Gingerbread Men |
But, the remainder of the dough in the fridge is weighing heavy on my mind. Should I bolster myself to fight with this dough again and crank out as many little men as possible? Or, assume that Santa doesn't need more than 4 gingerbread men and just call it a day? And, before someone tells me that Martha Stewart has a good, easy recipe let me say this: I officially loathe M.S. but I DID go to her site and used this recipe. Damn, maybe it IS just me.
Merry Christmas everyone!
No comments:
Post a Comment