Try using half shortening, like Crisco and the other half butter. Also chill the dough but if you are not using double acting baking powder, chances are your rising ingredients have expired. It only last a certain time. Sometimes when I leave the dough in the frig for a week, that happens to me also. Better off freezing any dough that you make way ahead of time.

Happy Baking,
Chef Paulette

Greg,
Unfortunately, the only way to combat the garlic in your chili is to add both more tomato product and some more beans. Be sure to reseason, but not to add more garlic.

Hello Greg-
Erica had it right. If your chili becomes kind of liquidy after adding the broth, try to finely crush some tostada or taco shells, and stir them in. May need a bit of cumin to fight the garlic too.
Rod

There’s really not much you can do — even making a second batch unseasoned and adding it to the over-peppered soup. Sorry, but I think you need to start over again.

Your oven should be hot and large enough to conduct heat to both roasts without any problem, so I wouldn’t think you needed to add much, it any, roasting time to the recipe, especially if the roasts have some space in between them.
Check them for an internal temperature of 150F or so., then let them sit to finish cooking once they are removed from the oven, 165F being your ultimate goal for food safety.
And have fun cooking!

Hi Rich,

Well the first thing that comes to mind is good old lemonade.

Lemonade concentrate: 1 cup lemon juice, 1 cup sugar, 1/2 cup hot water - dissolve sugar in water, mix with lemon juice - freeze. When you need lemonade, mix concentrate with 4 cups cold water and PRESTO!!! Add lemoncello for a delicious “adult” lemonade cocktail!

Garnish with candied lemon, rolled in sugar.

Lemon juice freezes really well so go for it and portion the juice into ice cubes, then after frozen, wrap. Use lemon juice (we use frozen at the restaurant all of the time) for seasoning aiolis, sauces, risotto, etc.

Back to the candied lemon - segment the lemon into wedges and remove all pith. Then, poach the segments in REALLY heavy simply syrup gently. Roll them in granulated sugar and after 10-15 minutes, you will have homemade candied lemon drops.

I’ve also made lemon chips. Slice the lemon very thinly and poach in simple syrup briefly 5 minutes or so, very gently. Remove from the syrup, dust powdered sugar onto them and put in an oven at a VERY LOW temperature until the powdered sugar melts and the slice starts to dry out. It’s important to have the slices on a baking sheet lined with a silpat non-stick mat. Once the slice is dried, let them sit out overnight, and BOOM crunchy lemon slices.

I hope you have a great time cooking and these ideas appeal to you. Thanks for visiting ChefsLine.

Regarding the simple syrups….

For a basic simple syrup: To prepare, bring 1 cup of water to a boil. Stir in 1 cup of sugar. Heat, stirring occasionally, until sugar is dissolved.

For a heavy simple syrup: To prepare, bring 1 cup of water to a boil. Stir in 3 cups of sugar. Heat, stirring occasionally, until sugar is dissolved.

When first placing your turkey in oven, do not put foil on. You want the skin to seal first, there fore allowing the moisture to be trapped in side. Once the skin is brown, you may them put foil to prevent burning. Remember to cook your turkey to 165+. To ensure fully cooked.

Actually, Nikki, canned pumpkin is better because you can add and control your own spices. And the spices used with pumpkin go under the category “a little goes a long way” because they’re pretty pungent. You don’t say how large your trifle is, but the ratio of the spices for a pumpkin pie, for instance, would be 1 tsp. cinnamon, 1/2 tsp. ground ginger, 1/4 tsp. ground cloves. Don’t forget to add salt and granulated sugar (not brown, unless the recipe calls for it).

There could be a couple of reasons why your cakes are not rising. First, have you calibrated your oven? You should check it with an oven thermometer that 350 really is 350. Second, and perhaps most important, is that you may be overbeating your batter. Are you mixing my hand or with an electric mixer? Also make certain to add your eggs one at a time, waiting to add the next until it is fully incorporated. And third, altitude can affect the way your baked goods rise. I happen to live at 3800 feet above sea level and I have to add flour and subtract some liquid in order to get my breads and cakes to rise properly.

Vicki,
It sounds like you may need to replace both your baking powder and baking soda and try again. Sometimes chemical leaveners don’t hold up so well in storage or get old. Additionally, you didn’t say what other ingredients were included. Usually cakes require structure that is beaten. This happens by incorporating air into the fat (like butter) or by folding in whipped egg whites. If your cake recipes don’t use a method to create structure, your result will no doubt be short.

Katie,
It depends on how big your crockpot is.

But assuming the crockpot can hold it the answer is yes. But keep in mind that you’re essentially going to be steaming (as opposed to roasting) the ham. Here’s what I think I’d do:

Stir together 2 cups of apple cider and 2 tablespoons of soy sauce.

Put the ham in the pot, _then_ add enough of the cider mixture to fill the pot to a depth of 3/4-inch. Add a cinnamon stick, a half dozen cloves, and a one-inch piece of ginger, cut in half.

Set to low and give it 3 hours to heat through.

Check the liquid level on occasion to make sure the pot doesn’t go dry, but the liquid can (and will) cook down. Dip each slice of ham in the cooking liquid just before serving.

Teri,
First, you don’t _have_ to marinate the turkey. The purpose of marinating is to add flavor and the longer it’s marinated the more flavor you get (16 - 24 hours is best) and two - three hours probably won’t make much difference.

Brining is similar but it’s primary purpose is to add moisture and tenderize the meat. Again, for a whole turkey, 8 to 10 hours is best.

However, one of the great things about frying a turkey is that the hot oil really does seal the surface to some degree and the bird will be moister and more flavorful than the same bird would be if roasted.

Just make sure the turkey is as dry as you can get it (use lots of paper towels) before frying.