Baking bread in the new kitchen

This is why Yoli was so insistent on having one long, uninterrupted countertop space — even though it may have violated the sacred “kitchen triangle” principle.

Baking with the kids.

Ludi and Josie each had plenty of room to work on their own dough balls. They had fun shaping them however they liked (mostly abstract).

And we all had fun eating them this morning! (I had mine with honey)

When cakes don’t come out right

Yoli wants everyone to know that her cakes don’t always come out right. Usually it’s because she forgets to add a key ingredient. Such was the case last night as she was baking a special cake for Valentine’s Day.

Yoli forgot to add sugar, but didn’t realize it until after she pulled the cake out of the oven and saw it had not risen very much. So she had to bake another one, this time with all the ingredients.

You can see a comparison of the good cake (left) and the messed-up one (right) in the photo above.

Fortunately, we have girls whose palates are not particularly discerning, especially when it comes to pastries.

Yoli offered them some of her “bread” and they have been happily chowing down on it ever since.

Yoli’s culinary creations

Ale cheddar boule

Here’s a little photo gallery of various — mostly baked — foodstuffs Yoli has made over the years. (Truth be told, this really only scratches the surface Yoli’s culinary adventures. Usually we forget to take photos!)