Honest notes from a home baker with one standard oven, one modest stretch of counter, and fifteen years of doing it the hard way.
After a year and a half of weekly baking, here is what the KitchenAid Classic 4.5 Quart Tilt-Head Stand Mixer does well, where it shows its age, and who should buy it.
Two mixers, one kitchen, fifteen years of Sunday baking. Here's how I'd actually choose between a stand mixer and a hand mixer.
A home baker's honest list of the ways a tilt-head stand mixer earns its counter space, from cookie batches to bread dough.
Honest notes from a home baker with one standard oven, one modest stretch of counter, and fifteen years of doing it the hard way.
A home baker's step-by-step method for kneading bread dough in a stand mixer, with honest notes on what went wrong at first and what fixed it.
What nobody tells you about the 4.5-quart tilt-head stand mixer, from a home baker who has put it through two years of real batches.
Honest notes from a home baker who has used the Escali Primo Digital Food Scale every week for a year.
A home baker's honest side-by-side after a year of weighing every batch, with the rows each tool actually wins.
Ten honest reasons a home baker switched to weighing, and why the Escali Primo is the scale she reaches for.
One small scale, one standard oven, and the end of fifteen years of dense cakes.
A home baker's honest, step-by-step method for switching your favorite recipes to gram measurements, with the Escali Primo scale I've used for a year and a half.
What nobody tells you before you buy a kitchen scale, from a home baker who has used the Escali Primo every week for a year and a half.
A long-term review of the 5.5 quart Overmont enameled cast iron Dutch oven from a home baker who has used it weekly for months.
Overmont Dutch Oven vs Baking Sheet for Bread. Honest notes from a home baker with one standard oven.
Why the same loaf that goes flat on a baking sheet turns out tall, crusty and bakery-close inside a 5.5-quart enameled cast iron pot. Honest notes from a home baker with one standard oven.
The first loaf I ever baked that sounded like bread, and the pot that did it.
A step-by-step method for getting a crackly, bakery-style crust out of a standard home oven, using a preheated covered pot to trap steam.
What nobody tells you about the 5.5 quart enameled cast iron Dutch oven after a year of weekly baking in an ordinary kitchen.
A long-term review of the OXO Good Grips Silicone Baking Mat after hundreds of batches in one standard home oven: how it holds up, what it replaced, and who should skip it.
I kept a roll of parchment in the drawer for years. Then I bought the OXO silicone baking mat and started noticing which jobs each one actually does better.
A home baker's honest list of ten reasons she reaches for a reusable silicone mat instead of the butter dish.
Honest notes from a home baker with one standard oven and a fifteen-year habit of scraping cookies off the pan.
How to stop cookies from spreading on the sheet pan with the OXO Good Grips Silicone Baking Mat. Honest notes from a home baker with one standard oven.
I used the OXO silicone baking mat for over a year. The honest version: it replaced most of my parchment, softened my cookie bottoms, and earned a permanent spot on my shelf.
I spent six months with a Taylor oven thermometer in one standard electric oven. Here is what it told me about my baking, my dial, and the way I preheat.
A home baker's honest comparison of a Taylor oven thermometer and the dial she trusted for years. Spoiler: the dial was lying.
Your oven dial is probably lying to you. Here is why a 3-inch analog thermometer fixed my baking, and why I reach for mine on every single bake.
A home baker's honest story about the simple little dial that fixed her cakes, her bread, and her oven trust issues.
A home baker's honest guide to finding out what your oven is actually doing, with one reliable thermometer and a Saturday morning.
Honest notes from a home baker who spent a year and a half with the Taylor analog oven thermometer in a standard electric oven.
After a year and a half of weekly baking, here is what the KitchenAid Classic 4.5 Quart Tilt-Head Stand Mixer does well, where it shows its age, and who should buy it.
What nobody tells you about the 4.5-quart tilt-head stand mixer, from a home baker who has put it through two years of real batches.
Honest notes from a home baker who has used the Escali Primo Digital Food Scale every week for a year.
What nobody tells you before you buy a kitchen scale, from a home baker who has used the Escali Primo every week for a year and a half.
A long-term review of the 5.5 quart Overmont enameled cast iron Dutch oven from a home baker who has used it weekly for months.
What nobody tells you about the 5.5 quart enameled cast iron Dutch oven after a year of weekly baking in an ordinary kitchen.
A long-term review of the OXO Good Grips Silicone Baking Mat after hundreds of batches in one standard home oven: how it holds up, what it replaced, and who should skip it.
I used the OXO silicone baking mat for over a year. The honest version: it replaced most of my parchment, softened my cookie bottoms, and earned a permanent spot on my shelf.
I spent six months with a Taylor oven thermometer in one standard electric oven. Here is what it told me about my baking, my dial, and the way I preheat.
Honest notes from a home baker who spent a year and a half with the Taylor analog oven thermometer in a standard electric oven.
