Preparations for the baking frenzy

[wiseheart]

Last night I grounded half a kilogram almonds, hacked two hundred gram walnuts and a hundred gram peanuts. All by hand, as the oh-so practical electric hacker capitulated when it had to face the things. They always got under the blades, the blades got stuck and I was afraid the engine of the whole thing would burn out. There's a reason why I usually buy ground almonds, even it they most likely have other ingredients mixed under (or else they wouldn't be cheaper than whole ones, right?) It saves me a lot of hard work; but these had been in the freezer for a while (I probably bought them on sale in a moment of insanity) and needed to be used up.

In the morning I had the pleasure to hack 220 grams of dark chocolate to pieces, which caused the usual mess. Then I cooked the rice, as it needed to be already cooled for Mary Berry's Panang chicken fry, grated the zucchini, peeled and cubed the potatoes for the potato cream soup and made the salad. All this before our talkative chiropodist lady would arrive. Which turned out to be a good thing, as it made me so exhausted that I didn't care how slowly she worked and how much she talked, spending the whole session in some kind of haze.

But now all the necessary preparations have been finished. When I start the actual baking (probably during the weekend), everything will be ready, and I can make the first 5 sorts of cookies in one go.

Comments

[manue7a.livejournal.com]

That's a lot of hacking and chopping!
Hopefully there will be only soft food in the future that doesn't require re-shaping.

[wiseheart.livejournal.com]

Hardly! Have you seen my baking masterlist? Most of the stuff involves nut of some sort, chocolate and/or candied fruit... *g*

[meathiel]

I wish you could send biscuits via internet ... *lol*

[wiseheart.livejournal.com]

I would totally do it! After all, the biscuits go to at least 8 different families (and counting...), so what's one more place? :))

[noadvertising.livejournal.com]

Oh my, chopping chocolate, and dark one at that, is the worst thing with baking!

[wiseheart.livejournal.com]

The only thing that is even worse is grating chocolate. Which is why I'm gonna make my Schokoladensterne with dark Raspelschokolade. Granted, it is much more expensive that way, but oh the pains I'll spare myself!

[noadvertising.livejournal.com]

for grating I hav kept my moms old grater, where you put the chocolate into the slot, keep it down with the muddler and begin to crank. Works wonders, no labour, no dirt!

[wiseheart.livejournal.com]

Alas, I never owned such a useful thing. And the kitchen appliances you can buy today are expensive and useless.

[artemis10002000]

Omg that has been so much hacking and cutting and grinding! Your poor hands must be hurting now. No wonder you were exhausted.

I hope you can get some rest before the actual baking frenzy begins!

[wiseheart.livejournal.com]

And this is just for the first round! ;) But I'll have two non-baking days before it starts.
Nice to hear from you, BTW. Are you all right? I hoped you'd participate in picowrimo again, but you didn't come.

[artemis10002000]

I don't think I'll be around for Pico this time, I have had very little energy for writing or fandom things at all lately. Alas.

I'm alright, I have just been constantly busy since the past months it has been either having both parents here, cleaning in preparation of a visit or recovering from a visit, with little time in-between.

[wiseheart.livejournal.com]

Oh, dear, that doesn't sound good. Are you planning to bake something for Christmas or will you be too flattened from the recent months' stress?

[artemis10002000]

I will have, since family will be expecting it,, but probably only be starting when father is visiting. He said he is planning to come early this year anyway, already around the 20th or so. So I will be slotting the baking when I don't have any time to myself for other things anyway.

[elmey.livejournal.com]

I'm tired just reading the list of things you did today :) I'm gonna go ask Peter to cook tonight :D :D

He's not a particularly good cook, but at least it's a break.

[wiseheart.livejournal.com]

Household is mostly my task, now that Mum is limited in her abilities. She still does what she can, admirably so, but, well... time doesn't stand still for anyone.

[red-day-dawning.livejournal.com]

I’m tired just from the thought of all that work. Great job.

[wiseheart.livejournal.com]

Just the first step on the way to baking fulfilment. But at least no grinding of almonds on the horizon anymore. The other nuts aren't half as hard to handle.

[adafrog.livejournal.com]

Oh wow.

[wiseheart.livejournal.com]

Every obsession has its price. *g*

[elwenlj.livejournal.com]

At least you now have all the nasty stuff out of the way, and can enjoy the process of creating.

[wiseheart.livejournal.com]

You mean the first batch of the nasty stuff, right? This is for the first 5 on a list of 42 (and counting...) *g*

[mirasaui.livejournal.com]

Oh dear, I have to chop chocolate for the brownie recipe tomorrow. Never done that before. If you say it makes a mess and your are an experienced baker, I cannot imagine what a nightmare that will be fore me, lol.

[wiseheart.livejournal.com]

Who knows perhaps there are better methods to do it — I just don't know those! ;)