So then, imagine you’re a military rations purveyor to the US government circa 1865. The Civil War just ended and your hardtack business has tanked. You’ve got dozens of hard-earned dollars invested in your state-of-the-art baking equipment and need to find a way to re-purpose it for peacetime use. Could crackers be mass-marketed to ordinary […]
READ ONIs this a Joe-style afternoon snack or what? Home made pretzels are another one of those things that will amaze you for their simplicity and make you wonder if you can ever be happy with the store-bought variety again. As you already know from the recipe below, my version calls for a stater. You want […]
READ ONYou may have heard a rumor that you can only make truly authentic pretzels by using dangerous chemicals. That’s pretty much true. Lye has been an important part of the pretzel-making process for hundreds of years. However it’s not essential. You can make very serviceable pretzels without it. This recipe includes instructions for both. It’s […]
READ ONOh, lovely, lovely spoon bread. I like it plain, the wife and daughters prefer theirs with honey…I don’t think you can go wrong either way. And is it ever easy to make. Start by bringing your milk to the boil. Turn off the heat and begin to pour the cornmeal in a steady stream, whisking […]
READ ONIt’s debatable where spoon bread first originated, though it is known where the world’s best spoon bread is served: right here in Kentucky at the Boone Tavern in Berea. This spoon bread has been drawing crowds to the Boone Tavern for over 60 years. 3 cups whole milk 1 1/4 cups (5 1/2 ounces) cornmeal […]
READ ONNow that’s what I call a big ol’ pile of fresh-baked goodness. For a summertime mezze (Middle Eastern appetizer) party, homemade pitas can’t be beat. Sheesh! There I go getting all Martha Stewart on you again. Plain old chicken salad sandwiches work great on them, too. One of the really nifty things about pitas is […]
READ ONI was fiddling with pita over the weekend and came up with this new formula. It’s much faster than the original version, assuming you have some refreshed and active starter hanging around. I put sourdough in quotations since a bread that’s not made with a starter that’s local to the San Francisco Bay area can’t […]
READ ONIf Neolithic man could make flat bread, odds are just about all of us can too. If you’re convinced you’re one of those people who’s simply not capable of making palatable bread, your self-image is about to change. The formula is: 16 ounces unbleached all-purpose (AP) flour (substitute whole wheat four for up to half […]
READ ON11 ounces (2 cups) White Lily all-purpose (NOT self-rising) flour OR a combination of 5 ounces (1 cup) all-purpose flour plus 6 ounces (1 1/4 cups) cake flour 1 teaspoon salt 1 tablespoon baking powder 1 teaspoon sugar 2 ounces cold butter, cut into small pieces (or for best results, 1 ounce butter and 1 […]
READ ONCobbler has come to be synonymous with a too-sweet top crust over a too-sweet filling. The result is, er…you know. This recipe sweetens both of the key elements only slightly, so as to let the taste of the fruit shine through. For the biscuit topping: 6 ounces (a generous cup) all-purpose flour 1 1/2 ounces […]
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