Procrastination Thy Name is Baking

Anything to avoid figuring out how to fix that dang plot!

Procrastination is the bane of a writer’s life. We shilly-shally, we delay, we stall, and we dawdle. Anything to avoid filling that blank page, strengthening that plot, or jazzing up that boring character.

I’m in the thick of trying to nail down the elusive plot of my current WIP, and my own procrastination device is baking. So with winter on the cusp of blasting New England into frigid oblivion, my oven is on overdrive. Here’s my latest handiwork.

Spicy Chocolate Cookies

Just when I thought I’d pinned down my protagonist, I changed my plot and had to reevaluate her motivations and inner struggles. No easy task. What pulled me away from my laptop? These spicy chocolate cookies from Martha Stewart. The secret ingredient is cayenne pepper, and it’s pretty much my favorite cookie recipe of all time.

Lemon Meringue Wreaths

While I was trying to make the central puzzle in my plot more realistic, meringues were my go to procrastination device. Mine are a variation on this recipe from Pretty, Simple, Sweet.

Once you get the hang of using a piping bag, these dainty confections are a breeze to make, and with some homemade whipped cream and fruit, a dessert your guests will gush over.

Lemon Olive Oil Cake

I have commitment issues when it comes to pinning down my characters’ identities and flaws. I choose one, and then I choose another, and then I go back to the original idea. While having my own inner struggle with my protagonist’s inner struggles, I tackled this recipe from The View from Great Island.

This super moist cake comes together in one bowl, and if you don’t have a springform pan just use a 9 inch cake pan, but be sure to use a parchment circle on the bottom, and grease and flour the pan generously.

Chocolate Chip Cookies with Chocolove Dark Chocolate

Figuring out where and how my protagonist lived was another conundrum I had to contend with after I changed my plot. I avoided that decision when I baked up a batch of my favorite chocolate chip cookies. Except this time I halved the number of chocolate chips and added chopped pieces of a Chocolove Strong Dark 70% bar to the batter.

A couple of months ago, someone online raved about Chocolove bars for baking and based on the tasty results, they were right on the money.

Beef Stew with Apologies to Ina

Yes, I know I said baking was my procrastination device, but cooking is as well. As fall was in full swing and I was building the profile of my villain, I found myself craving beef stew.

In the past I’ve had mixed results with beef stew but then I came across Ina Garten’s recipe, and rediscovered why the Barefoot Contessa is cooking royalty. Even though I changed her recipe by replacing the garlic, bay leaves and sun-dried tomatoes with tomato paste and a generous hit of Penzey’s Bangkok blend, the resulting dish was a savory, beefy triumph.

Best of all the two hour braising time forced me back to my laptop, and crafting that dangerous villain. It just goes to show procrastination can be defeated if your cooking/baking times are low and slow.