cakewalk

Also made a Pullman loaf last night, part semolina. Could have let it proof a bit more before baking, but I get impatient. This has been my go-to sandwich bread for several years now. The semolina, together with the fact that it contains no dairy at all (unlike most Pullman loaves, which are traditionally made with milk), give it a texture that I love. I usually slice it and then freeze the slices.

I never heard of champ. Great name. Anyway, looked it up on one of my favorite blogs: http://www.thedailyspud.com/2010/03/03/dont-cry-for-me/ I definitely see it in my future. Mashed potatoes, or any sort of potatoes, for me cries out for one thing: good black pepper, and lots of it. I'll eat my potatoes with butter or without, baked or boiled, I care not a whit. But lots and lots of freshly ground black pepper, that is non-negotiable.

I didn't make the cream cheese-filled one, just the cinnamon-sugar. Next time I'll go for the cream cheese filling. It did sound good, but I think all that sour cream in the dough made me hesitate. (Although I guess it's not called Fat Tuesday for nothing!)

Thanks all. No babies. I'm too neurotic, I keep worrying about someone choking on it!

I've been meaning to bake a King Cake since I learned about them, but I always forget, and then the day passes. So this year I finally did it. I used the recipe from Southern Living. The dough is extremely soft, which is what happens when you add 16 ounces of sour cream to any dough. I'll cut into it later, I'm curious about its texture and taste. There are so many recipes for King Cake, and they're all so different. Is there a "standard" for them? (I'll probably freeze the second one.)

He has a disclaimer: "Warning: this comic occasionally contains strong language (which may be unsuitable for children), unusual humor (which may be unsuitable for adults), and advanced mathematics (which may be unsuitable for liberal-arts majors)." His computer-related/scientific stuff often goes way over my head (I'm one of those liberal-arts majors), but he is so on-point about so many things. (Even food.)

"To Taste" http://xkcd.com/1639/

Coffee and Trader Joe's Triple Ginger Snaps. I haven't had them in ages, but I was just there and impulsively bought them. They're just as good as ever.

In general in the US, from lowest to highest protein level, there's cake flour, pastry flour, all-purpose flour, and bread flour. I've never noticed protein levels on the packaging of any flour here. The brand used would definitely make a difference. I mentioned previously that I have always used Hecker's all-purpose flour, and once I switched to King Arthur AP flour. One of my cakes (a cake I had been making for years) was tough and just plain awful. The thing is, of course, that the cake was simply not the same cake that I was used to because of the different flour. King Arthur AP flour has a much higher protein level than Hecker's, and that was the reason for the difference.

Triplicate!

Triplicate!

Those baumkuchen upthread are stunning. How are those ridges formed on the outside? When I travel, I love to go to supermarkets and grocery stores. To me, it's on the same order as going to museums. (But more dynamic. ) I also have dietary restrictions, and anyway baking is my thing much more than cooking, so pastry shops and bakeries are more important than restaurants. I was recently in Italy for a short visit, only in Rome and Venice. Rome was pastries, Venice was cookies. Nirvana. Also, outdoor produce markets. In Venice I had the most beautiful fresh figs I've ever eaten in my life, and I lived in Jerusalem for 20 years so I've eaten my share of figs, both dried and fresh. When looking for a restaurant, I will usually go in the opposite direction of any tourist crowd I see. I can remember many times when all I wanted was to sit down in a restaurant that was quiet and comfortable and far from the madding crowd, food being at best secondary to my mind, but I've been surprised at the good meals I've found in these instances.

It's a little bit like The Cat in the Hat Comes Back, after they let out the little cat "Z" to do his work. I looked out the window this morning and the streets are plowed and everything is calm and orderly. Now I'm about to go out, so I'll see what it's like to cross the street, always a big challenge in NYC after a snowstorm!

I have that pan, and I also have the Nordic War Pro Cast Bavaria bundt pan. I like both patterns a lot. I use either baker's Pam or Baker's Joy and have never had an issue when releasing them from the pan, although I remember reading about the lecithin a while ago and I keep meaning to buy some (but keep forgetting). My issue with Bundt pans in general is this: while I think the cakes look stunning when they're whole, I don't particularly care for the way the slices look. I generally find the slices to be clunky looking, and I can't get around that. I also have a Pullman loaf pan, the larger size (I think it's 13x4x4), that I got from King Arthur several years ago. I love it. And it might not look it, but it holds the same amount of batter as an Angel Food cake pan, so it would hold the batter for most bundts, I guess. I make angel food cakes in the Pullman pan (without the lid), and I love the way they turn out. The slices are so much more elegant. It also holds about 1 1/2 of most loaf cake recipes. Edited to add: with Bundt cakes, I find it helpful to overbake just a little, like a minute or so, rather than underbake. It doesn't dry out the cake but it helps when releasing from the pan.

Not nice out there at all. I live across the street from the Hudson River, and the winds are really fierce. I do sometimes worry about the windows holding up! Took my dog out earlier, she was Not Amused. It's nice to watch a storm from indoors, it always makes me feel so grateful. Anyhoo, I did bake bread last night, but was not thrilled with the result. (My errors, of course.) It's a Carol Field recipe, she calls it Sicilian Bread, it is basically a semolina bread. I love semolina. She does warn against using regular semolina, saying that fine semolina is needed. I had only about half the quantity necessary of the fine semolina, so for the rest I used regular semolina. I think more water would have helped. Also, it's quite over baked and dry. I baked according to her instructions, but the difference in flour certainly mattered. (Also, it was almost 2 in the morning and I wasn't paying attention.) She calls for 2-3 tsp salt, and since I usually find that most breads need a bit more salt than called for, I used 3 tsp. I think 2 1/2 tsp would have been better. Well, it is not bad toasted and buttered, but not a particularly successful bread. Oh well. I will have to buy some more fine semolina, try this again and actually follow her instructions!

I live in NYC. I don't think it's going to be so bad here, but since I just got my Rancho Gordo Marcella beans I figured it was time to give it a go. Soaked overnight and just finished a simple cooking with celery, carrots, onions, sage, S&P, a bit of olive oil and then a touch of balsamic. The amazing part is that I didn't eat the entire pot while standing at the stove. Then I'd really be in a fix, what with the storm and all. Also made some oatmeal muffins, since that oatmeal thread gave me a hankering for them. I'm going to bake a loaf of bread tonight, just straightforward bread, no poolish or anything, probably a Pullman loaf. I went to the store just to get milk, because one can't be expected to drink coffee without milk, now can one? During the last two storms here (summer hurricanes) I remember that the stores were crowded with young "kids" (twenties or so), and what was their necessity?: beer! That aisle was almost empty Ah, youth. At least we know that Glenfiddich is better suited to the task at hand.

I love oatmeal, but I love it "straight" - without sugar or raisins or anything sweet. It's a quick breakfast and I sometimes even eat it as a snack. For one serving I use 1/2 cup Quaker old-fashioned oatmeal and 1 cup of water with a little salt. Zap it in the microwave for 3 minutes. Stir and done. I add a bit of milk after it's cooked (about as much as I would add to a cup of coffee). Most people would gag at this, but I absolutely love it. I started eating it when I started bike riding, it was a healthy and quick breakfast before going out on a ride. I haven't been on my bike in quite a while now, but I still love oatmeal this way.

I brushed the tops with a whole egg mixed with about a teaspoon or so of water. Plenty of sesame seeds still fell off, it's inevitable (take a peek under the rack), and some more fell off when I put them in a bag, but enough stayed on. I think the key is to brush the entire top of the roll with the egg wash, including the sloping sides, and to use way more seeds than you think you need. They'll continue to rise after you sprinkle the seeds on, so what seemed like a dense covering of seeds will become much more sparse when they're fully risen.

I made hamburger rolls, which I intend to use for salmon burgers next week, I'm assuming they'll freeze well. The recipe was for "light brioche hamburger buns" and they look great (haven't eaten any yet), but I'm not sure why they're considered a brioche. The recipe has one egg and 2 1/2 Tbs of butter. Even Reinhart's "Poor Man's Brioche" has four eggs and 1/2 cup of butter, and proportions of flour, yeast, liquid are not so different in the two recipes. Oh well, the rolls look very good, so no complaints. The recipe said to make eight, but I made ten and I think they're a good size. (The dough weighed 82 grams for each roll.)

Four-hour baguettes. They took closer to five hours, but it's a bit chilly in here today. Recipe calls for all-purpose flour, but I hardly had any left (how did that happen?) so I used bread flour. I think they came out nice, and they're very good, although next time I'll add a bit more salt.

But presumably your father is also ordering a meal, right? He's not there just to mix himself some lemonade with "freebie" items, hang out for a few hours, and then go merrily on his way. It's the expectation of free stuff that is strange, not the expectation of tasty stuff when a person is buying. I agree that the latter should be a given, and if it isn't, well, we do what we can. (Please pass the salt ... )

Interesting that this was pre-internet, and of course it stays in your mind. But it's so commonplace now. People will generally buy their tea these days (or maybe not, I don't really know), but the rest is classic. Laptop and notebook on the table, sit there for hours on that one cup of tea. A couple of weeks ago I ran into a friend and we wanted to go get a coffee, but we went from one coffee shop to another with no luck. Each table had one person at it nursing a cup of something and their laptop! They were clearly entrenched and not going anywhere.

I guess I'm just not willing to risk it. (I'm a wimp at heart.) I'm making a loaf now that I've made many times before, it's simple and always good. It starts with a sponge of 1 cup bread flour, 1 cup whole wheat flour, 1/2 tsp yeast, and 1 cup water. Mix, let that sit for 12-16 hours at room temp, not in the fridge. She suggests letting it sit for 24 hours if the room is chilly. The sponge, after 12-16 hours, is pretty depleted. I mixed that last night, and in a couple of hours I'll add the rest: 3 1/2 cups bread flour, 1/2 cup rye flour, 1 Tbs kosher salt, 1 Tbs honey, and 1 1/2 cups water. No further yeast is added. I guess the additional flour is feeding the pooped yeast again. Let rise about three hours, shape, then let rise another 45 minutes or so before baking. Makes a nice large loaf, nicely flavored bread. I don't know what would happen if I mixed the whole thing together at one time and let it ferment 12-16 hours. Not sure what would happen with only 1/2 tsp of yeast and so much flour. Or would it be the same, use up the food source and then, after 12-16 hours, need more flour in order to have a second rise? But I already added all the flour the recipe calls for. I'm sure someone with more knowledge about the science of baking could answer that. I'm not curious enough to see what might happen here, because I already know it makes a nice loaf the original way. I experiment with other things, but I'm usually less willing to experiment with bread. Don't know why, maybe because it takes so dang long, I just want the bread already! Good luck, keep us posted if you try it.

Good question, but I'm not sure what the answer is. Found this conversation here: http://www.thefreshloaf.com/node/12436/why-use-preferment As you can see, there is disagreement, but all the points made are interesting. Some dough recipes do call for the entire batch to rise in the fridge before using the next day. I'm thinking of the brioche dough I use, and I think most brioche doughs go for an overnight chill, which would enhance flavor, etc. Also brioche has butter, eggs, and sugar so the yeast needs more time just to do its work. Not all preferments are done in the fridge, some sit overnight at room temp. I think the desired outcome would dictate how you'd treat the dough. Try the preferment both ways, small part and full batch, and note the differences.

And I thought this topic was Fish and Chips with salmon. I remember a good friend of mine (originally from New Zealand) reminiscing about fish and chips wrapped in newspaper. I think Simon used to post on eGullet back in the day.