cookman

The ingredients on Fage yogurt say basically milk and active cultures. Given this, wouldn't it be possible to make one's own version of this yogurt by innoculating it into milk? Is the yogurt processed in some way after it is made to give it its unique firmer texture, or could one recreate it by draining the homemade Fage-based version? Anyone tried to make their own?

Here's the Link to the USA distributor. You can try contacting them for a price.

Bittman's original recipe: 430 g flour 345 g water 1 g yeast 8 g salt

I'd like to ask some of the pros how they feel about baking choux in a regular vs. convection oven. I recently made Pichet Ong's choux recipe, and baked some in each type of oven. The choux cooked in a regular oven kept a smoother contour, rose a little less, and were paler brown in the "stretch marks" that show up on the side of the puffs as they rise. I had surmised that the puffs cooked in a convection oven might not do as well since the circulating air might dry out the top of the puff prematurely, before it had a chance to maximally rise. However, the batch baked in the convection oven rose a bit higher, but they seemed to expand out first from the perimeter of the puff, then the center rose, giving the final product a more "exploded"/irregular upper surface. The "stretch marks" on these puffs, however, baked as brown as the rest of the puffs. What's everyone's preference for the best type of oven to use for choux?

For those who have tried making this pie: Any reason not to use a pie crust that has been partially baked before filling? I almost never make a pie that doesn't have the crust at least partially blind baked before filling. I assume that would be fine here, but thought I'd inquire of those who have already baked this pie.

RLB has updated her blog with a few additional trials of this bread: Click Here and here.

Can someone explain the rationale in the original recipe for flipping the dough upside-down in the pot before cooking? I thought the point a rounding a loaf and stretching the exposed top surface was to help trap the gasses relased by the yeast, and therefore increase oven spring. When you flip it over into the pot, it seems that you are deflating the loaf and negating the point of rounding the dough in the first place.

Does letting the dough rise in an oiled bowl change the texture of the final crust?

Try cooking the bread until the internal temperature is 210 degrees, and let it cool to room temperature before eating.

Paula has a chapter on this topic in one of her cookbooks. To paraphrase her: Wash new molds in soapy water, rinse, and dry. Grease interiors heavily with vegetable oil, put molds on a baking sheet and bake at 350 for 1 hour. Invert molds on a wire rack and return to oven for 5 minutes. Turn off oven and leave molds until cool. Before using each time, molds should ideally be seasoned with a beeswax/oil mixture.

I have used this recipe and rolling technique with great success. Grissini

Does anyone know if there is an ideal temperature at which this NYT dough should be allowed to rise?

Go ahead and use the rapid rise yeast. It should work fine.

Interesting. I would think that the condensation that formed as the almonds warmed up would make the almond flour too moist.

Gotta ask: what is a Swedish nut grinder?

Here are a few recipes that look interesting: Here, here, or here.

Great idea. I've been thinking all along that the best way to get the proportions right here is to ask Bittman to ask Jim Lahey at Sullivan's Street Bakery to convert the recipe he gave out to metric (weight) measurements, for us compulsive eGulleteers.

Rapid rise yeast is the same as instant yeast. Rapid rise yeast is more finely granulated than active dry yeast, so it does not need to be dissolved in a liquid first. It can be added directly to the dry ingredients.

I took my loaf out of the oven an hour ago. It is beautiful and exactly as Leahy said it should be . I used a 5 qt oval le Creuset and had no problem. I think 4.5 qt might work but definitely nothing smaller as the dough might hit against the lid. I think the recipe does not call for enough salt. That is the only fault I can find with it and easily remedied. Ruth ← Did you use regular table salt or kosher salt?

Sugar and shelf-stable trans fats, unfortunately. ← Is that what gives the peanut butter cookies its texture? ← Actually, the smooth creamy texture of commercial peanut butters is more a product of the very fine particle size to which the peanuts are ground, and the emulsifiers that are added to it. Regarding the presence of trans-fats in commercial peanut butter, the quantitites are so low as to be physiologically insignificant. According to the USDA's Agricultural Research Service: Link In passing, it should also be noted that butter and cream contain natural trans-fat (created by microbial hydrogenation in vivo) in easily detectable quantities. As I recall, the contration of trans-fats in milkfat is around several percent -- orders of magnitude higher than the concentration in peanut butter. ← Great info, Patrick! (Man, is there no topic that exceeds the bounds of this guy's knowledge!!!)

In light of the upcoming Thanksgiving, I'd like to make cranberry caviar. I know that cranberry is naturally very acidic, so do I need to adjust the pH for proper spherication? Is there an ideal pH in general that one should shoot for?

Sounds a lot like the techniques described in Suzanne Dunaway's book, No Need To Knead. Amazon link here. I've tried several of her breads, which require little to no kneading, with excellent results.

Love the tea caviar!! I second the motion on begging you to show us how you did the spherifcation of the tea!

I use the same (Bob's Red Mill) at home, but used much finer at school, and I can tell the difference in the product. So now, I buy the Bob's but still grind it with my sugar to make it finer. ← What do you think works best: food processor, coffee grinder? Is there a food mill that would do a better job of fine grinding?

Does anyone know a really good way to make your own almond flour? In a pinch, I grind blanched almonds with a little bit of the recipe's sugar (to absorb the oils) in a food processor. The result is OK, but not nearly as fine as what can be purchased as almond flour. You can definitely tell the difference in a very fine-textured cake. Any suggestions?