A Life in Baking, Pastry, and Libations.
Inspiration: This dessert was the final course of a vegetable-centric five course meal that featured produced grown in New Jersey. I read about a ‘peas and carrots’ themed dessert done by pastry chef Bill Corbett in Dessert Professional (when it was published as Pastry Art and Design magazine). The idea stuck with me for many... Continue Reading →
For anyone who’s made ricotta or Greek yogurt, you know that the process yields a lot of whey. At least half of the milk separates into whey that is usually poured down the sink because, well, what can you cook with it? Enterprising chefs have found many uses for whey, ranging from broths to meat... Continue Reading →
Brioche is technically a French pastry (although I tend to use it in my repertoire as a rich yeast bread). Its high egg and butter content gives the pastry a flaky crust and tender crumb and although it is excellent when served plain, I also like to change the flavor of the dough with the seasons. For spring, I... Continue Reading →
“Panettone, the Italian part-bread, part-cake monstrosity that is…inevitably on sale for a knock-down price right up until spring…tastes like Gandhi’s flip-flop after three months in the desert.” --Julie Bindel A most unfortunate description of the Italian Christmas bread that relegates it to the lowly ranks of American fruitcake and German stollen—stale, dry and with little flavor.... Continue Reading →
Parker House rolls are a traditional American bread that was developed at Boston's Parker House Hotel (now the Omni Parker House) during the 1870s. As the hotel never bothered to trademark the recipe or the name, the roll has become the standard bearer for soft dinner rolls with international cooking tomes and American bakeries boasting their... Continue Reading →
I’m an avid coffee drinker and by extension, a lover of tea cakes. Tea cakes are simply flavored, barely sweetened, and dressed with a light glaze or unassuming sprinkle of powdered sugar. Depending on where you live, a tea cake can mean different things. In England, tea cakes are light yeasted breads with dried fruit... Continue Reading →
Buttery. Salted. Caramel. 