Our $50 King Arthur gift card winner, Joni, said that she might need to pick our brains about how best to use her gift card.  We decided that it might be fun to pretend like we were the winners and spend $50 on our favorite things from King Arthur.  Over the years of buying and baking with King Arthur products, we each have a list of favorites and must-have-on-hand-at-all-times items.  This week, we’ll take you along on our fictitious King Arthur shopping spree!

from  Kris B.

I started by making a list of all of the things that are my favorite items from King Arthur, those things that are specific to them, that I can’t find elsewhere.  As I was making this initial list, I was not paying attention to cost.  I figured that Once I made my list, Id start whittling it down to $50.  To my surprise, the five items that I chose totaled $50.76 (without shipping, which is an additional; $12).  I though I did pretty good!

Here is my list:

Baking Parchment Paper ($22.95)

I buy this 100 count pack of pre-cut parchment to line my baking sheets.  It seems expensive, but I think I have less waste and it makes the perfectionist in me happy.  In the past, I have found myself wrestling with the rolls of parchment that are then supposed to tear on the serrated box edge.  For me, they never tear straight and are rarely exactly the right size.  With the pre-cut sheets, the size is always perfect and the edges are always straight!  Also, if you do need to cut the parchment, It is much easier to cut a flat sheet than one that has spent its entire life on a roll.  I often cut these larger sheets into small squares for display and plating.

Pizza Dough Flavor ($8.95)

Homemade pizza is a favorite at our house.  The King Arthur Pizza Dough Flavor adds a hit of cheese and garlic flavor to your dough.  On a Friday night when you are tired, don’t really want to spend a lot of time in the kitchen, and homemade pizza sounds better than delivery, adding a teaspoon or two of the Pizza Dough Flavor to your favorite Crust recipe is a tasty touch with no extra work.

Cake Enhancer ($5.93)

Cake Enhancer is a rice starch combined with vegetable based fatty acids.  It makes baked items softer, more moist, and last longer.  Essentially, the Cake Enhancer acts as a stabilizer.  This is probably something that I would not have tried without being nudged by it being an ingredient in a specific recipe that I was making.  Now I use this with almost every cake I make.  The package instructions direct you to add 2-4 tablespoons to cake batter or bread dough.

Princess Cake and Cookie Flavor )$5.95)

This is an emulsion, an alcohol free flavor, making it stronger than an extract and it doesn’t bake out.  This is an ingredient I discovered when making The King Arthur Flour Animal Cookies.  Animal Cookies are the ultimate comfort food to me.  I was excited to find the King Arthur recipe.  The first time I made it, I did not have the Princess Cake and Cookie Flavor that was called for.  I didn’t think that was a big deal at the time.  I made the Animal Cookies.  They were just OK.  I then decided to order this flavoring and see if it really made that big a difference.  Yep!  It does!  I love this stuff.  Even if you only make animal cookies, it is worth it!

Buttery Sweet Dough Flavor ($6.95)

This is a “secret ingredient” that Tracey turned me onto.  Like the Princess Cake and Cookie Flavor, the Buttery Sweet Dough Flavor is also an emulsion with a hint of butter, vanilla, and citrus.  If you/ve ever wondered why your coffee cakes and sweet breads don’t have the same intense flavor as those that are prepared commercially, this ingredient is why.

If someone wants to give me a $100 gift card, my list could go on!

It seems a little unfair to tell you all how we’d spend a $50 gift card when you don’t have one.  So, we are offering A SECOND CHANCE to win a $50 gift card!  If you entered but didn’t win last week, here’s another chance.  Leave a comment on this post and tell us which product(s) you want to try.  

We’ll give away this second $50 gift card on Friday February 1.  The rules are the same – one entry per person per post between now and then!

from Tracey G.

Ok – I had a hard time with this one, it took me a few tries to get close to $50 and not go way over! I kept texting Kris whining that I didn’t know what to cut from the list! I wanted it all, I didn’t want to cut anything , but I had to. And for full disclosure & transparency here, my total comes to $50.70, not including shipping. I called that good, I didn’t think .70 over was too bad!

My list also originally included the pre-cut parchment sheets, they’re awesome. And like Kris said, I too feel like there’s less waste. I got really tired of wrestling with the rolls as well. Once I tried the pre-cuts I never looked back, they’re just all around easier in my opinion. And they hold up really well through multiple batches of cookies (and bagels!) or whatever else you’re making multiples of! Unfortunately, to fit within the budget, I cut them off the list – but since Kris had them on hers, I had to add my praise for them as well!!!

And now, to my list. I chose by way of “general” baking. There’s a lot of things I have that are a bit more specific for certain things and/or a category- like bagels etc. These are things that I get from KAF only, and that have become things I can’t live without because they come in handy for multiple uses!

Vietnamese Cinnamon ($6.95)

This cinnamon is something I can’t live without. It beats the pants off the grocery-store cinnamon I’d normally kept around. It smells like the red-hot candies and is exactly what cinnamon should smell and taste like in my opinion. It holds up so well in baked goods, no way does its flavor get lost in translation! And the 3 oz. container is a great size!

Vegalene Food Release Spray ($10.95)

This product was a fabulous find!!! When I bought my nice Bundt pan, I didn’t want to use regular non-stick cooking spray because if the yucky sticky residue it can leave, that never seems to want to wash off! I hate that residue with a passion. So, I did a bit of looking around the KAF site, and I found this spray. It doesn’t leave a residue and it’s a really good sized can for the money! I use it on any of my pans that I don’t want all gunked-up and it performs wonderfully!! I highly recommend this product!

Instant ClearJel ($6.95)

This product is great for as a thickening agent for your fruit pies – either baked or not! You can use it to thicken without having to cook it! I use it a lot for a quick fruit topping. I always have frozen berries around so I defrost some in the microwave, and while they’re defrosting I mix some of the Instant ClearJel with a bit of sugar. When the fruit is ready – and juicy, I stir it in and voilé, a beautifully thickened fruit topping for ice cream, yogurt and I even can use it like jam on toast! This is something I will always have on hand!

SAF Red Instant Yeast ($5.95)

This stuff is great – and much more cost-effective than the little packets I used to buy in the grocery store! I will say I didn’t realize how much 16 oz. was when I first ordered it, it’s a LOT! But it keeps so well either in the fridge or freezer that it’s no problem at all. I first kept it in the package and placed it all in a zip-top bag, but I eventually invested in a container with a good seal to store it in.

Lemon, Lime & Orange Citrus Oils ($16.95)

These little gems are a fabulous thing to have around!! I didn’t purchase mine in this handy little set, I started with the Lemon Oil, and once I saw the potential for it, I bought the Lime Oil and Orange Oil. I use them for all sorts of things – if I want my blueberry topping I made to have a hint of lemon, I add a drop. I use the Lime Oil in a “sauce” for a favorite Mexican dish by combining a drop or two with either plain Greek yogurt or sour cream and adding a generous amount of cumin. These have totally taken the place of citrus zest in so many recipes! It’s really nice because I don’t have to keep a bunch of citrus fruits on hand “just in case” I want to make something. You can use them all to add flavor to just about anything you desire. And even though 1oz. might not sound like much, considering you only need drops most of the time, that 1 oz. will last a VERY long time!

Heavy Duty Dough Scraper ($2.95)

This was something I’d bought to get me up to free shipping during one of KAF’s free-shipping promotions – and it’s been one of the best purchases! I use it to cut brownies, bar cookies and baking pan cakes when I don’t want to scratch my non-stick coating. I use it as a bench scraper, I use it to cut yeast doughs – it’s a handy little tool for a small price!!

I too could go on and on about a lot of other items, but I’ll save them for another time!!!