Author: joepastry

Doughnuts!

I have more fun making them than just about anything else. And what with three young nephews in town visiting for Derby weekend, how could I restrain myself?

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The World’s Most Dangerous Baker

Somebody out there doesn’t like me much. That fact was demonstrated plainly late Friday evening, when whoever-it-was launched a spam attack on the joepastry.com site, causing a server shutdown that took me (or really my tech hero Dave) the weekend to work out. I can’t imagine the mentality of someone who would want to torpedo […]

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And he’s off…

I started late and I’m wrapping up early today since it’s race weekend. Tomorrow is the Derby, but today is the Oaks, the phillies-only race that Louisville residents enjoy as a private pleasure before the big crowd hits town for the Derby. At the moment it’s pouring, which won’t stop the race, though it will […]

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Let’s Just Keep This Between Us

I’ve never made brown sugar biscuits before, but I’m pretty sure I’m going to have to keep it under my hat as it were. I live in the South now, where people take their biscuit-eating (and making) very seriously. True biscuit purists would never, ever add sugar to a baking powder biscuit. Yes, some might […]

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Cuckoo for Cocoa Fat, Part 2

Goodness gracious it’s been a big couple of weeks for the Keepin’ it Real Lobby. I may not agree with’em, but you’ve got to hand it to them, they’ve been flooding the zone like pros. First there was the LA Times editorial, then the NPR radio spot, then the Washington Post article, the Bloomberg piece, […]

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Short Stuff

So what’s “short” about shortcake, or short bread, or shortening for that matter? A short cake is “short” because it doesn’t rise very high. That sounds like a glib answer to that question, but it’s true. Fat, by gunking up the bonding sites at the end of gluten molecules, prevents strong gluten networks from forming. […]

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Horse Sense

One of the great advantages of being a resident of Louisville the week before Derby is being able to rise before sun-up and go watch the horses warm up at Churchill Downs. Standing in the dirt while the horses fly down the track…well let’s just say it’s one of those take-your-breath away moments that are […]

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For the Week of April 30, 2007

Well it’s that magic time of year again, the Kentucky Derby. I know absolutely nothing about horses, but if you live in Louisville, you have no choice but to join the party. That means plenty of local buffet table specialties like Benedictine, pimento cheese sandwiches and bowls of burgoo. Copious mint juleps are obviously a […]

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Site Update

For those of you wondering if my categories (volume-to-weight charts, pizza recipes, book lists, etc.) and links are ever coming back, they are. The same stomach bug that struck the pastry household last week (happily there was plenty of yogurt around) seems to have struck my developer as well. The good stuff should all be […]

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