eG Foodblog: Darcie B - Bakin' with bacon

[Abra]

It's so nice to see a baking blog, and a bacon baking blog is extra fun. And you have the most amazingly clean kitchen! Is it always like that, or did blogging inspire a major clean-up?

I suggest you make Daniel's bacon toffee cake. I'm dying to make that one myself, and would love to do so vicariously. If I bake it myself I'm afraid I'll have to eat much more than my fair share of it.

Our butter comes in sticks that are each 1/4 cup, so for 1 cup of butter, you would use 4 sticks.

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Oh dear, NO! Not to be unnecessarily picky, but for those not in the US who might be struggling with weird US measurements: a stick/cube is 1/2 cup. One pound of butter (4 cubes/sticks) is equal to 2 cups.

[Rebecca263]

Our butter comes in sticks that are each 1/4 cup, so for 1 cup of butter, you would use 4 sticks.

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Oh dear, NO! Not to be unnecessarily picky, but for those not in the US who might be struggling with weird US measurements: a stick/cube is 1/2 cup. One pound of butter (4 cubes/sticks) is equal to 2 cups.

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Most of the time I find Abra's measurements to be true, although I don't buy butter very often. However, a few weeks ago my sister bought a pound of butter that WAS in 8 short sticks! I think the butter was not American, though, but Italian. And then to see these posts... how funny!

[Darcie B]

It's so nice to see a baking blog, and a bacon baking blog is extra fun.  And you have the most amazingly clean kitchen!  Is it always like that, or did blogging inspire a major clean-up?

I suggest you make Daniel's bacon toffee cake.  I'm dying to make that one myself, and would love to do so vicariously.  If I bake it myself I'm afraid I'll have to eat much more than my fair share of it.

My kitchen is usually that clean at least once a week. I guess I am one of THOSE kind of people. I have four cats and hate the thought of little feet on the counter, so I am pretty compulsive about cleaning. We don't have any kids so it's just the two of us to clean up after (plus the four furry ones).

Edit to add: bacon toffee cake is intriguing, but might not make it as the b-day cake. My sweet tooth is so strong it's actually sweet teeth!

Edited January 26, 2006 by Darcie B (log)

[Rebecca263]

Hi! Regarding cookies made with duck fat. Yes, a friend somehow came across this and sent me a copy of the recipe. He said that over the December holidays he made a batch with goose fat, and that they are good, but not fantastic. I'm not really intrigued enough to render some fat for baking, as it's just me and kiddle most of the time, and she isn't a big cookie eater. When her friends visit, they prefer banana bread and such, I've found. The recipe is a raisin cookie. I don't know if it's copyright protected, or not. I suppose PM's for requests would be in order, if anyone has a dire need!

[Darcie B]

Just checking in before bed. I decided to bake bagels and they are almost ready to stuff in the fridge for a good night's rest. I have photos to post of dinner and the bagel making, but forgot to bring home the gadget to download them to the computer (DOH ). Pictures tomorrow when I get to work.

I said in an earlier post I might try to make macarons this week for the first time. I am constantly trying out new things and have a list of things I want to do but haven't yet. The biggest ones right now are roasting my own coffee, making macarons, making a joconde and wrapping it around a filling for a neat standalone dessert (inspired by Wendy DeBord in the Baking and Pastry forum), making a standing rib roast with meat from Lobels (anyone care to guess why I haven't done thi$ one yet?) and blowing sugar. I'm sure there are more that my sleep-deprived brain can't remember.

There have been a lot of things I have checked off my list, but as soon as I check something off another thing gets added.

What are your as-yet-unachieved culinary goals?

Edit to add: I forgot croissants! I want to do croissants...

Edited January 26, 2006 by Darcie B (log)

[Marmish]

Darcie,

I bake two birthday cakes a month for work. I was promoted within my building and I didn't want to have to send everyone birthday cards because I am horrible with keeping up with that. I have sweet teeth, too, and this also allows me to selfishly indulge in baking. I even took a cake decorating class this year. This month I made a pear spice cake with lemon honey cream cheese frosting, and a banana cake with a chocolate sour cream frosting. The Peninsula Grill cake is on my to do list.

[Daniel]

Darcie,

I am really enjoying your blog.. I too would like to pay my respects to the Peninsula Coconut Cake..

Edited January 26, 2006 by Daniel (log)

[ruthcooks]

I really need one of those. I am forever wondering how Americans measure things like butter and lard in cups, I always make such a mess. This is the answer! I want one!

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The other answer about how to measure lard or Crisco or butter-not-in-a-stick is to fill a 1 cup or 2 cup glass measuring cup with ice water (without the ice) to the point at which the room left equals the amount of fat in the recipe. For example, to measure 1 cup of fat, fill the 2 cup with 1 cup water. It's best if you have at least as much water as you need fat. Then add fat to the ice water until the measurement is a full 2 cups. Then pour out the water.

There may be a smudge or two of the fat left on the cup, but it's much less messy than packing the fat.

Your kitchen is so beautiful, Darcie. May I ask why you decided to put tile on your island? I've always done almost everything on an island--when I've had one--and would want that surface to be smooth. It is attractive, to be sure.

Please tell us more about your job. Are you a private chef to the judge, or is your primary function to cook for the formal dinners? And are you full time or as needed?

[Darcie B]

Your kitchen is so beautiful, Darcie.  May I ask why you decided to put tile on your island?  I've always done almost everything on an island--when I've had one--and would want that surface to be smooth.  It is attractive, to be sure.

Please tell us more about your job.  Are you a private chef to the judge, or is your primary function to cook for the formal dinners?  And are you full time or as needed?

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Thanks! I put the island in before I did the rest of the kitchen and was on a tight budget so I used tile. Then I did the rest of the kitchen using Corian. I left the tile because I liked having a surface on which I could place hot objects without worry.

It would be nice to have a smooth surface for rolling out dough, etc., but I really haven't any problems with the tile so it will remain for now, although I have thought about replacing it with some kind of stone (I will never again get Corian).

My actual job title is Judicial Assistant. So basically I am a federal judge's secretary although I do more varied tasks than the standard typing and filing. I volunteer to cook and bake at various functions so my boss is not taking advantage of me. I get compensated for things I do out of the office (not by the gov't so don't worry about your tax dollars being misspent ).

I never thought I would end up as a secretary after four years of undergrad and 1 year of grad school, but I was a systems administrator before and due to wages being low here, I actually make much more as a secretary . This job also allows me to do a lot of work for a nonprofit that the Judge and I are both involved with, so it all works out (except my ego takes a beating).

[Darcie B]

I finally got photos uploaded so I can show you what I've been up to.

First, dinner last night. I made a sausage, potato and kale cream soup, one of my DH's favorites. Don't tell anyone but it's my imitation of the Olive Garden Toscana soup.

Saute some shallots in EVOO (imagine Rachel Ray saying it - or not).

Add mild Italian sausage. Note the liquid gold standing at the ready.

Add potatoes and broth and put in a few herby type things.

Add kale, some cream and enjoy...

with some wine...

I promised to show you some of the area's markets. I'll start with the place I get a lot of my meat. I complained upthread about the paucity of butchers in the area. This place is pretty good but they don't start with whole cows and pigs as I would prefer. Therefore they can't get all the cuts I want, but they will cut to order and save me chicken backs for stock and are generally very accommodating. Plus, this is one of two places I can get chicken and pork that haven't been "enhanced."

They carry Boar's Head deli meats

They asked that I didn't take a photo of their meat case because it was kinda empty (they do most of their business on the weekends).

[Darcie B]

I decided that last night would be a good night to make bagels. The dough has to rest in the fridge at least overnight, so it makes it a decent weeknight project if you get started early.

I haven't made bagels for quite some time because if you don't make them with high gluten flour you shouldn't even bother trying. Local stores don't carry high gluten and I'll be darned if I pay more for shipping than for the flour itself. The first few times I made bagels I ordered Sir Lancelot high gluten flour from King Arthur Flour. Then I tried subbing bread flour with added gluten and the bagels were not as dense and chewy.

Then, on the way back from the mountains last weekend, I stopped by a bulk foods store about an hour north of here and spotted this:

Glory be! And it's cheap, too!

I use Peter Reinhart's recipe from The Bread Baker's Apprentice. First you make a sponge with flour, water and yeast:

This sits for two hours while you go to a friend's house and drink vodka in front of a roaring fire.

Upon your return, you add more yeast, flour, salt, water and barley malt syrup. This should be available at nearly any health food store.

I have taken to weighing my flour because I am hopelessly inaccurate when I measure. I use an old analog scale that a coworker gave to my husband. He painted it to match my kitchen:

Sidebar: I had the dickens of a time getting a good photo of the darn scale because the flash reflected off of the face. I improvized a flash diffuser by using a piece of white paper held on by Scotch tape. Here is what it looks like without the diffuser:

So you don't need a fancy lighting system, just some Scotch tape.

Back to baking. This dough is really stiff and is a challenge for anything but a heavy duty stand mixer. Don't try this with your Osterizer or you might kill it. I use a Kenwood aka Rival aka Delonghi and this dough gives it a workout. The Kenwood is noisy like a Moss gearbox in an E-type to begin with, and it really whines with this dough. I know the dough is done when the mixer starts to not only sound like but also smell like an old English car.

Actually you knead it about six minutes in the stand mixer. Don't walk away or the mixer might follow you.

Once the dough is kneaded, you cut it into 12 pieces. I use a bench scraper:

Then you form it into balls. The method Reinhart uses (that I use too) is to cup the dough in your hand and, using the resistance of a clean, dry countertop to create surface tension, roll it into a smooth ball.

As you roll it, the outside will get smooth and taut and the underside will close up. This is not a great picture and by the time it took to get the photo, the underside of the ball had started to open a little. It will not open if you leave it on the counter.

You let these little balls rest for about 20 minutes, covered with a damp tea towel or paper towels. Then you shape the bagels. There are two basic ways to do this. You can just punch a hole in the bagel and twirl it to enlarge the hole, or you can roll out a rope, overlap the ends, and roll those together. I use the latter method.

Note how large the holes are in the beginning.

Edited January 26, 2006 by Darcie B (log)

[Darcie B]

Now the bagels have to rest and pass the "float test" before you can retard them in the refrigerator. Retarding is putting the dough in a cold environment to slow down the rising and allow some of the tasty enzymes in the dough to develop, enhancing the flavor.

It's supposed to take 20 minutes or so until the bagels will float when you place them in a bowl of cool water. I guess floating means they have risen enough so when you retard them they will still develop properly. Well, no dice after 20 minutes.

Or after 40 minutes.

Or after 1 hour....

By then it was 12:15 a.m. and I was no longer in a happy baking mood. I had ruined one of the bagels drying it off after it didn't float (the paper towel got hopelessly stuck to the bagel). I decided that they would probably be ok if not spectacular, and stuck them in the fridge until the morning.

I got up, turned on the oven and started a large pot of water to boil, which is the next step in bagel making.

Here are what the bagels looked like when I removed them from the fridge. You'll note they rose some in the fridge and the holes are a lot smaller.

I boiled them for about 1 1/2 minutes on each side, in water that had been alkalinized with baking soda. Apparently this is what gives them their sheen.

Then I sprinkled some with toppings...

And popped them in the oven. About 15 minutes and 1 rack switcheroo later,

I had to toast mine (I just love the contrast between the crunchy and chewy), and topped it with a mixture of cream cheese, honey, walnuts and a pinch of nutmeg.

These aren't the best I have made but they are still better than Lender's.

[Nicolai]

WoW, you make me go hungry.

Very nice blog.

[lesfen]

WOW! Those are gorgeous!! I'm always so impressed by homemade bagels!!

[Jensen]

Oh my. You've made making bagels look so easy!

[eJulia]

Great Blog! Thanks for all your hard work.

Please don't forget the traditional pet photos!

[Darcie B]

Great Blog!  Thanks for all your hard work.

Please don't forget the traditional pet photos!

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Yay! I was waiting for someone to ask...

Our pslightly psycho calico, Callie (hey, we didn't name her, the former owners did)

Our old gal and scaredy cat, Lucas (her eyes look funny 'cuz I tried to fix them in Photoshop)

Our newest addition, Bubby aka CJ (Cinnamon Jaguar)

And finally, the one who is the most like a foodie, Kleine Scheisse. She begs for chicken, turkey, bacon and ham. She looks truly injured if you don't give her a bite. She is so round she looks like a soccerball with legs.

We just lost our old man, Cleo, who was 20 3/4 years old, last month. He was a true gourmand. He only ate certain types of cat food, and certain flavors of even the finest. I don't care what they say about dogs, he was really man's best friend.

[Darcie B]

Oh my. You've made making bagels look so easy!

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To me they are a lot less fussy than, say, ciabatta, which I can't seem to get right. There really isn't a lot of hands-on time with bagels, they go overnight in the fridge and bake up pretty quick the next morning (you can actually keep them for up to 2 days in the fridge.)

If you have a good mixer, they are pretty easy!

Edited January 26, 2006 by Darcie B (log)

[Kouign Aman]

After this experience, how important do you think the 'float' test is? You make bagel-making look fun, but I cant imagine hanging out for hours waiting for them to pass their water-safety tests.

editted to add: I'm laughing with pleasure at the name of your foodie-cat.

Edited January 26, 2006 by Kouign Aman (log)

[Darcie B]

After this experience, how important do you think the 'float' test is?  You make bagel-making look fun, but I cant imagine hanging out for hours waiting for them to pass their water-safety tests.

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I can notice a little difference in the density (is that the right word?) of the bagels when they float than when they don't. They seem more dense and chewy (in a good way!) when they float, but they are still pretty darn good when they don't. I certainly won't throw them out because they didn't float.

This is the only time they haven't floated within at least an hour. I think two factors came into play: our kitchen is very cold right now, and the dough was a little wetter than it should have been. One probably shouldn't go to the neighbors and drink vodka while the sponge is rising...

The coldness of the kitchen was probably the biggest factor. It was probably only about 60 degrees in there last night.

[Megan Blocker]

Wow...homemade bagels...you rock, Darcie.

Fabulous blog - it's great to see so much baking!!!

[daniellewiley]

Our butter comes in sticks that are each 1/4 cup, so for 1 cup of butter, you would use 4 sticks.

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Oh dear, NO! Not to be unnecessarily picky, but for those not in the US who might be struggling with weird US measurements: a stick/cube is 1/2 cup. One pound of butter (4 cubes/sticks) is equal to 2 cups.

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OK, that's what I thought!! And then I said to myself, "better check on google, because you wouldn't want to screw it up."

and my googling yielded what I wrote.

ARGH.

thanks abra.

[Darcie B]

Surprise! My coworkers surprised me with a birthday celebration. One brave soul even baked a cake for me (Texas sheet cake, from scratch, with real butter!). Most people are afraid to cook for me so I am thankful. It was really quite good. We had cappucino punch, Texas sheet cake, French vanilla ice cream, and fruit salad.

My friend took me to lunch at a nearby Mexican place. It is just your standard, dumbed-down Mexican joint but I like it. I forgot to take a photo, sorry!

Also, she brought me Krispy Kreme donuts for breakfast. What a friend!

[Genny]

Happy Birthday Darcie!

I love the primer on the bagels. Since there are only 2 of you, do you freeze the baked bagels or just bring them to work? There are only 2 of us plus a kitty as well so I don't bake so much due to fear of waste.

I love the kitties. The psyco kitty looks, well, kind of psycho with the ears back! Funny that you waited for an express request for photos while the rest of us were just waiting patiently

Your potatoe, sausage and kale soup looks fabulous. What herbs do you use in it? I saw bay but the rest looked like a heap in the center and I couldn't distinguish anything.

What cake have you decided on???? Have you made any cakes covered with fondant and the "fancy" designing? Is it on THE LIST? (I'm sure we all have those lists!!)

(Oh, btw... pretty hands ::smiles shyly:

[Abra]

Happy Birthday To You! Nice bagels, too. I've never seen the "float test" method, nor the baking soda in the water, but I only got that particular book recently. Now I've got to try that recipe. Were the bagels pretty crowded in the pan, or is that a photo-illusion?

I happen to love Texas sheet cake, myself. It's so lowbrow, and so delicious and easy. What birthday cake have you decided on? And what the heck is cappucino punch?