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Anna N

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  1. Anna N
    Here. A man buys a snack and ends up in hospital with cyanide poisoning. What were they thinking when they sold these as snack food.
  2. Anna N

    Dinner 2017 (Part 6)

    Anna N replied to a topic in Cooking

    I scrabbled through my freezer praying that somewhere in there was just one more Jamaican patty. Nope. So cheddar and tomato toasties it is.
  3. Anna N
    Sautéed peppers and onions with sausages. Sausages were cooked sous vide and then browned stovetop.
  4. Anna N
    The grandchild has declared it to be good. I don’t have anything to compare it to to know if it looks as it should look.
  5. Anna N
    So here is the chocolate brioche. Once again I forgot the glaze! I was very reluctant to call proof on this. It’s strange dough to work with. The other startling thing was that when I was about to pull it from the oven thinking it was done, I took its temperature. I really, really thought my thermometer had died. The internal temperature was 120°F after almost 30 minutes in the oven. I grabbed my other very reliable for thermometer, both of them Thermapens and it agreed. I covered the top with foil and continued baking it in my GE profile oven. Took, I think, another 15 minutes to reach 195°F which point I did pull it. It has gone home with my grandchild and I’m hoping she will send me a photograph and a report. I really should have tried it before sending it off but she can put on such a puppy dog face and I just melt.
  6. Anna N
    Thanks Chris. I wondered about the chocolate chips because that’s all I have on hand i.e., High quality chocolate for making Bonbons. But since my daughter was out shopping I got her to grab me some baking chunks of dark chocolate. Can’t hurt I don’t suppose OK I have some Dutch processed and some dark doesn’t seem that it matters a whole lot. Probably missed reading about it somewhere. Yes. My suspicion was that you were working everything by hand. I think I will have to stick to the machine for physical reasons. Besides doesn’t cause me any grief anyway. Hoping some of my questions will help others when they get to baking with their books. Where are they all anyway?
  7. Anna N

    Cheese graters

    Anna N replied to a topic in Kitchen Consumer

    I know I have thrown mine into the Thermomix which is really a food processor on steroids and it certainly grinds it up but perfect? I guess it depends on what you’re looking for. If you’re going to melt it anyway…
  8. Anna N
    This is the crumb from the rather unsuccessful Farmer’s bread. I like the taste, the texture and particularly the crust. I am hoping the one that is in the refrigerator being cold proofed will be a little more successful in terms of loft. Even so I do not consider this a complete failure. I’ll eat it if nobody else will.
  9. Anna N
    @Chris Hennes A few questions for you. Did you use bake-proof chocolate chips question I’m guessing not since you have been able to modify your cocoa percentage. Do you think it matters? What type of cocoa did you use? Dutch process or natural or perhaps black? Not seeing a reddish tinged so guessing not Dutch process. Are you mixing everything by hand?
  10. Anna N
    I will have to try that one no matter what.
  11. Anna N
    @Chris Hennes I am not drawn to the peculiar and unusual inclusions but that grain bread speaks to my very soul.
  12. Anna N
    So this was not a success and I have no one to blame but myself. It is the Farmer’s bread proofed at room temperature. As I suspected, it developed a crust while it was proofing covered only by a cotton dish towel. But I don’t think that’s the cause of the problem. It goes into the banneton seam side down and is baked seam side up without being slashed. There was no crust on the seam side. No. I think inattention is the culprit. I was trying to keep too many balls in the air and failed to notice that the Cuisinart steam oven was still set at 425°F on the bread cycle when it should have been at its maximum of 450. As a consequence of this, at least I believe, there was almost no oven spring. I had preheated the cast aluminum plate it was baked on. On the plus side it came out of the linen-lined banneton with no problems! As you can see I was very generous with the flour. But I get a second chance with this bread because there is another 500 g undergoing a cold proof in my refrigerator. And now the chocolate brioche is ready to be rolled into a loaf and put into the pan.
  13. Anna N

    Food Funnies

    Anna N replied to a topic in Food Media & Arts

    Not sure where this most appropriately belongs but here seems a reasonable fit! Only in Canada?
  14. Anna N
    Thanks. My fingers are crossed so tightly I may be able to do nothing for the rest of the day until I get my breads baked. Couldn’t leave it at just chocolate brioche. I also have a Farmer’s bread on the go made only with levains. I have one proofing at room temperature and one cold proofing in the refrigerator. The recommendation of course is for cold proofing but the book also suggests that if you are going to proof at room temperature you leave it uncovered. I find that idea so nerve-racking that I have thrown tea towel over it I know. Oh ye of little faith. Anxiously awaiting your results.
  15. Anna N
    Chocolate brioche dough ready to be refrigerated. If elasticity is a good indication of good gluten development then the gluten is well developed in this dough.
  16. Anna N
    Thank you. I was already well into the process when I saw your response to my request for gotchas. I am using a Bosch compact mixer and I am extremely solicitous of it. I didn’t need to read the manual to know that high speed was not where it was likely to stay for very long so I immediately reduced the speed to something I found comfortable to watch and hear. The temperature held steady at 25° for quite some time but then crossed over to 28° shortly after I read your comments. It had been mixing for better than 16 minutes but I did not feel the gluten was fully developed. I stopped the mixer covered the bowl and stuck it into the refrigerator. The freezer is not an option at this point. The instructions for this dough do stress adding the butter in three stages alternating with the sugar and salt mixture but does suggest mixing it only to medium gluten development before adding the butter and salt sugar. Then suggests that you continue mixing to full gluten development. I am going to leave the dough in the refrigerator in the bowl for 30 minutes and then continue mixing and hope to reach full gluten development and a fully emulsified dough. Hard to express how much I appreciate your coaching.
  17. Anna N
    Ha ha. I am the one who gives the gifts she just receives them but she does it so well.
  18. Anna N

    Dinner 2017 (Part 6)

    Anna N replied to a topic in Cooking

    The same as I had for lunch — only better— because I remembered the cheese.
  19. Anna N
    Poached eggs on toast. These were farm-fresh eggs so I poached them conventionally.
  20. Anna N
    That’s very helpful. Thank you, Chris.
  21. Anna N
    So I am carefully reading the recipes for both the master brioche and the chocolate brioche. The mixing directions for the master brioche which are referenced in the chocolate brioche call for a final mix on high speed for 15 to 20 minutes. There is no such direction in the mixing directions for the chocolate brioche. Can somebody comment, please? The master brioche recipe is on page 136 and the chocolate brioche is on page 160 of the kitchen manual.
  22. Anna N
    My plans for tomorrow are considerably less ambitious. I am hoping to pull off the chocolate brioche. I’ve made brioche in the past and I have read everything in the books (I think) about how to get the best out of one’s efforts. But if anyone is aware of gotchas I'd love to hear them.
  23. Anna N
    Does this help? You will have to scroll down. Click.
  24. Anna N
    Thanks to @ninagluck! A different and delicious way to enjoy winter squash. Here and here.
  25. Anna N
    Kimchi omelette.
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