It’s my new environmentally-friendly term for recycling content that’s been on the blog before. Like it? I knew you would! What does it have to do with the here and now? you may ask. What it has to do with, frankly, is that I’m getting into a new work situation, one that’s going to make […]
READ ONPlenty more requests came in over the weekend to add still more entries to the “Flour Basics” content area, especially some having to do with less traditional types of grains and flours. Like what? Well, a partial list could include wheats like spelt, kamut, emmer and einkorn to non-wheats like millet, amaranth, buckwheat, cassava, barley, […]
READ ONI’ve had numerous requests to put up some sort of table comparing American flour types with their French, German and Italian counterparts. And while I’d love to comply, I’m not sure that much real data exists on that, for all the reasons I spelled out last week. However, because there are no lengths I won’t […]
READ ONI’m out of town for a few days. Have a lovely weekend. When I get back…tarts!
READ ONFor that matter, what’s gluten? The next time you make a batch of bread or pizza dough, pinch off a little bit and work it between your fingers under the kitchen faucet for a minute. A good proportion of the dough, mostly water-soluble starch, will wash away. Yet a small rubbery ball will remain. That’s […]
READ ONPeople love to make Italian breads — pizza especially. And for that, the serious ones tend to seek out Italian flour, the kind that’s known as Italian “00” flour. As to what exactly that is, there is quite a bit of confusion. Search around the web a bit and you can find all kinds of […]
READ ONThe thing that most Americans want to know when they talk about French flour is: what can they do to approximate French “Type 55” flour? That’s the kind that’s most commonly used for baguettes and even many pastries (it’s akin to an American all-purpose). That’s an extremely difficult thing to do for reasons I discussed […]
READ ONI’m no expert on Continental flour, however I know enough to know that it’s a darn confusing business trying to puzzle out an equivalency when you’re working with a European recipe. The next couple of posts will shed some light on what some of the differences — and similarities — are between American and European […]
READ ONPumpernickel flour is a bit of a one-trick pony in the kitchen, though I’ve seen it used for crackers and even cookies at times. As you’d expect, it’s a very coarse blend of whole grain rye and wheat flours, designed to create dense loaves of that splendid ethnic delicacy known as pumpernickel bread. How dense […]
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