It can of course be argued that cookies and biscuits are pretty much the same thing. To a Brit, the word biscuit actually means “cookie”, but then it also means “cracker” and also, on occasion, even “biscuit”. Why do they use one word to denote all those different things? Who knows? It’s not like the […]
READ ONI went on a history bender this last weekend, getting deep into two extremely worthwhile books: David McCullough’s excellent 1776, and Joseph Stevens’ 1863: Rebirth of a Nation. Ruminating on old New England got me in the mood for some good old-fashioned: Hermit Cookies …while thinking on the South made me realize last week’s threat […]
READ ONThe ‘big meeting’ was cancelled, so I headed home early…got in around 10:00 last night. The long drive home gave me plenty of time to think on this week’s recipes. I shall post them shortly.
READ ONI’m headed up to Chicago for a few days on a mixture of business and more business, so the posting will be light (maybe nonexistent) until Tuesday or so. Until then, please amuse yourselves by rummaging around in the archives, there are some 150 posts there and every last one of them is gold baby. […]
READ ONThe one piece of specialized equipment that éclairs require is a pastry bag and tips. Now, I’ve used many types of pastry bags over the years, from cheapie little paper doo-dads to elaborately-stitched European wunderbags. The conclusion I’ve come to: nothing beats a Ziploc for its combination of versatility and price. Just clip one of […]
READ ONI can’t stay away from Peeps, which, I know, means there’s something deeply, deeply wrong with me. The trouble is, I find the idea of popping the little speckled birdies in my mouth more fun than actually eating them. I think it’s because no matter when I get mine, they always seem a little (or […]
READ ONOf course if it were only cornstarch, milk, and sugar that went into pastry cream, all we’d need to do is put the pot on the stove, turn on the gas and stir. But there is the somewhat (and I mean only somewhat) tricky matter of the eggs, which require that we do some tempering. […]
READ ONOne of the main pleasures of pastry cream, at least to me, is that it’s not actually as rich as it seems. It’s mostly milk thickened with a few egg yolks and lots of corn starch, which is what’s primarily responsible for it’s thick, though not overly heavy, mouthfeel. A nice change of pace from […]
READ ONOne of the things I hear most from readers is: “I’d love to be baking with you Joe, but they just don’t let inmates into the kitchen without a work pass.” The other thing I hear most often goes something like this: “Joe, I’d love to bake more, but I have a hard time getting […]
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