I know what all of you are thinking out there, don’t think I don’t. You’re saying to yourselves: in order to get a carbon dioxide-producing leavening reaction you need both an alkaline and an acid. I only see soda (an alkaline) in the ingredients list. Where does the acid come from? I’m glad you asked […]
READ ONThe apple fritter may be an Old World classic, but the pumpkin-corn fritter, that’s a strictly New World concoction. Could the early settlers have made such a thing? Well, looking over the ingredients list, there’s almost nothing here they wouldn’t have had access to. Maize, that’s a for sure. Pumpkin, no doubt there either, the […]
READ ONThe apple fritter may be one of the oldest fritters known in Europe, but since the term “fritter” refers more to a technique than a food, it’s easy to see where there’s been quite a bit of variation. Medieval and Renaissance tables featured all manner of fritters, from fruits to root vegetables, pieces of meat, […]
READ ONI did tell you how amazing a home-made caramel fondue is, didn’t I? No? Well it is, though you don’t see it too often (that napalm thing probably). But caramel sauce, slightly warmed in the microwave, is a delicious and safe (if messy) experience. Tart apples, bananas, pineapples, even bits of fudgy brownie if you’re […]
READ ONThe thing I love about that Sarah Moulton caramel sauce recipe is that it gives you just enough for one standard-sized squeeze bottle, plus at least an extra tablespoon or so for….oh who the heck knows? Spreading over an apple slice that your daughter didn’t finish, dunking a banana in, or just scraping up on […]
READ ONWhy is it that you have to take at least a little whack at Emeril every time you mention him? I dunno, but ya just gotta. Bam!
READ ONI’m heavily inspired by yesterday’s covered bridge festival experience to try to stretch the fair food season just a little further. So why not fritters? The fritter is a time-tested restaurant go-to, especially for urban pastry chefs looking to inject a little country authenticity into their dessert menus. The corn fritters weren’t half bad yesterday, […]
READ ONBut then non-wheat substances aren’t the only way to “shorten” a dough. You can also do it with fat, which coats the ends of gluten molecules, keeping them from bonding to one another. This is the science behind what are known as “short crusts” and “short breads”, and where we in America get the word […]
READ ONReading yesterday’s post That Mysterious Secret Ingredient, a good friend (and baker) observed that I wasn’t terribly clear about the role that non-flour substances (like corn starch and almond flour) play in doughs of various types. In particular, she felt that the term “tenderizer” sounded misleading. Since I hate to confuse simple matters, I’ll try […]
READ ONI’ve had cause for celebration lately, so I went out this afternoon and bought a new baking book, one I’ve been hearing quite a lot about. It’s Baking by Dorie Greenspan, and if you haven’t heard of Dorie Greenspan, you need to stay in more. Baking. There really aren’t enough superlatives to describe Dorie Greenspan […]
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