Category Archives: Oakland

Holiday Baking List 2021

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Holiday baking season is here!!!!

If you would like to place an order, please email me at bakerlovesjazz@gmail.com

LOCAL ORDERS ONLY!!!!

Please allow 5-7 days in advance for all orders.

Orders for Christmas must be placed no later than Friday, 12/17/2021

Orders need to paid for in advance of pickup. I accept Cash App and Venmo.

Featured Desserts

McNannygocious Pound Cake – $30 (a jewel of a cream cheese pound with rich flavor!) (Half cake – $17.50)

Eggnog Pound Cake – $30 (half cake – $17.50)

Lime Cream Cheese Pound Cake – $35

7 Up Cake – $35 (half cake $20)

Banana Bread or Banana Chocolate Chip Cherry Bread – $35

Classic Rum Cake – $40 (half cake $20)

Eggnog Rum Cake – $40

Chocolate Eggnog Rum Cake $40

Lunchroom Butter Cookies – 6 for $12/a baker’s dozen for $25

Chocolate Chip Cookies – 6 for $12/a baker’s dozen for $25

Jack Daniel’s Smoky Bacon Mac and Cheese

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https://breadboozebacon.com/jack-daniels-bacon-mac-cheese/

INGREDIENTS

WHISKEY CANDIED BACON:
10 slices bacon
1/2 cup Jack Daniel’s Tennessee Whiskey or whiskey of your choice
1 cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper

MACARONI & CHEESE:
1 pound macaroni pasta
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon Jack Daniel’s Tennessee Whiskey
2 cups milk
3 cups medium or sharp cheddar cheese
4 slices provolone cheese
1/2 teaspoon paprika
Salt and pepper to taste

INSTRUCTIONS

CANDIED BACON:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with foil and coat with non-stick cooking spray. In a small saucepan, bring 1/2 cup Jack Daniel’s to a boil. Reduce heat to medium, and simmer until reduced to 2 tablespoons. Remove from heat. On a plate, combine brown sugar and cayenne. Dip bacon into Jack Daniels and then press each side into brown sugar mixture to coat. Place on prepared baking sheet.Bake for 7 minutes, then flip and bake for about 5 minutes. Watch the bacon so it doesn’t burn!! (The sugar will run all over the pan, and the bacon with have a shiny lacquered look.) Remove the bacon to a plate coated with non-stick cooking spray to cool completely. Chop bacon; set aside.

MACARONI:
Bring water to a boil in a large pot. Add macaroni and cook until al dente. Drain pasta; set aside. While pasta is cooking, melt butter in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Add flour, and whisk to combine. (You will have a tight roux.) Add 1 tablespoon Jack Daniel’s and whisk into roux. Whisk in 1 cup milk until combined. Add remaining milk. Whisk frequently until sauce thickens and begins to bubble. Add cheeses; whisk until cheeses melt and sauce is smooth. Add paprika and salt and pepper to taste. Pour sauce over pasta, and add bacon. Stir until pasta is completely coated in sauce. Add more salt and pepper if desired.

NOTES
Watch your bacon like a hawk! The sugar can go from awesome to burnt quickly if you’re not paying attention.

NOTES FROM JAMES
I totally skip the candied bacon and just air fry the bacon and chop it up. The flavor it adds is wonderful. I am a little heavy handed with the Jack Daniel’s (only when cooking!!!) It will burn off once it cooks down. It freezes well.

Holiday Baking List 2020

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I am baking this holiday season!.

If you would like to place an order, please email me at bakerlovesjazz@gmail.com

LOCAL ORDERS ONLY!!!!

Please allow 5-7 days in advance for all orders. Orders for Christmas need to be placed no later than Friday, 12/18/2020.

Orders need to paid for in advance of pickup. I accept Cash App and Venmo.

Featured Desserts

Classic Pound Cake – $30

Eggnog Pound Cake – $30

Lime Cream Cheese Pound Cake – $35

7 Up Cake – $35

Rum Cake – $35

Eggnog Rum Cake – $40

Chocolate Eggnog Rum Cake $40

Lunchroom Butter Cookies – 6 for $12/a baker’s dozen for $25

Chocolate Chip Cookies – 6 for $12/a baker’s dozen for $25

Banana Bread or Banana Chocolate Chip Cherry Bread – $30

Fox Theatre Oakland Grand Opening

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Fox Theatre Oakland Grand Opening Gala 08

After 10 years of work and millions of dollars in renovations, the Fox Theatre in downtown Oakland reopened on 2/5. In addition to being a music venue, the Fox Theatre is home to the Oakland School for the Arts.
I did not attend the opening gala last week, but you can click here to see photos from opening night.
For more information:
http://www.foxoakland.org/
http://www.thefoxoakland.com/

Cozy

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Cozy

I got a shot of my favorite Samoyeds relaxing at Walden Pond Book’s on Grand Avenue in Oakland. I usually stop at the bookstore on Sundays to see them after morning walk. They are adorable and very friendly.

My Apprenticeship – Part 1

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Preparing the lattice, originally uploaded by in2jazz.

This photo was from my first night apprenticing at Bakesale Betty. My personal goal is to sharpen my baking skills. Also, this is a far cry from being a computer geek. It was a lot of work but very fun. More photos here.

My task for the evening was prepping rhubarb pies. Betty started me out cutting out dough in circles and pressing it into the pie tins. Next, I prepared the rhubarb filling which consist of 25 pounds of rhubarbs, sugar, freshly squeezed orange juice, and orange zest. I mixed the rhubarb filling in a very large steel bowl with a large paddle which was like an oar. I rowed through the mixture and poured it into the pie shells. I took a dinner break and feasted on Betty’s pasta with portobello mushrooms (very yummy!) then she showed me how to make the lattice to cover the pies. I had never made a lattice before. It was much simpler than I expected but it took me a couple of pies to get the hang of cutting away the extra dough. The final touch was brushing the lattice with cream and spreading sugar on the top of each pie. I loaded each cookie sheet of pies on the rack and placed the rack into oven. I prepped a total of 13 pies. I learned from Betty that it is not about speed but quality when baking.

Betty’s oven rack is amazing. The rack spins in the oven so the baked goods cook evenly. Here are the finished pies:

Rhubarb Pies

Betty gave me a couple of the pies I made and some other baked goodies to take to work with me. My co-workers loved everything and asked that I give Betty their thanks. Thank you to Betty and everyone at Bakesale Betty for a great experience. I definitely look forward to doing it again.

Bon appetit!

Feeling Orange

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Feeling Orange, originally uploaded by in2jazz.

This is my new orange silicon loaf pan and I made banana bread in it. Being an old school baker, I was a little caution about trying this type of pan. I got it for $10 so I would not feel too bad if I did not like it. Preparation for use is the same as with a steel or aluminum. Place a light coat of cooking spray in the pan before adding the batter. Also, place a cookie sheet under the pan since it will wobble. Amazingly, this pan can handle up to 500 degrees. Notice how the silicon pan expands to accommodate the bread which means it will not rise as high as it would in an aluminum pan. After cooling for a bit, the banana bread came out of the pan very easily. I may have to try out the silicon bundt pan though I am partial to my cast aluminum bundt pans. I added about 10 minutes to my baking time. The bread cooked evenly without any mushy spots.