Pignoli, amaretti, sfogliatelle. Oh My! Are you as mad for Italian cookies and pastries as I am? If so, you might enjoy this Glossary of Italian American Bakery Specialties that I put together for armchair or genuine travel. Growing up in New England, where a sizeable percent of the population claims Italian heritage, I was exposed to Italian sweets from a young age. My appetite for nutty things comes from eating Jordan almonds, biscotti and
Monday, February 25
Martha Bakes Almonds Episode with Martha Stewart
On March 16, 2019, I will be talking about almonds with Martha Stewart on her television show, Martha Bakes! For the eleventh season of her PBS program, Martha Stewart has chosen her favorite baking ingredients. Each episode features a single ingredient such as almonds, lemons or dried fruit. Martha invited experts to stop by her kitchen to chat about each one. Martha Bakes Almonds Episode with Martha Stewart focuses on all the types of almonds
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Wednesday, November 16
Country Baguettes
Tomorrow November 17 is Homemade Bread Day! No month-long frenzy of home baking would be complete without a recipe for Country Baguettes. In fact, the bread we make at home most often is this one, a long fermented dough mixed in the food processor using Charlie’s patented dough mixing method. The dough mixes in a snap, 45 seconds in fact, using a food processor fitted with the metal blade. Then it ferments for a good
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Monday, November 07
Country Wheat and Rye Boule
The miracle of bread making is how a wet mess of a dough bakes into a billowy loaf of bread. If you’ve been baking along with me, you are ready to tackle Country Wheat and Rye Boule. This is the monster loaf we all crave, one with a dark, caramelized crust, big holes and a chewy crumb. When I teach people to make bread, most are looking for something rustic, perhaps with some whole grains and
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Friday, October 14
Working with Wheat Flour – Flour Absorption
Different brands and types of flour absorb different amounts of water. If you use bread flour in place of all-purpose flour, or if you add stone ground whole wheat to your dough, you have to be prepared to adjust the amount of water you use when making bread. When you are working with wheat flour, you’d be wise to become familiar with the concept of flour absorption. The absorbency of flour varies from grain to
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Think Like a Baker – Wheat Flour for Bread Baking
Learning about wheat flour helps you become a better baker. Wheat flour is made from wheat berries, the small seeds from which the next crop of wheat is grown. The berries are milled into fine flour. Each tiny wheat berry consists of the bran, the germ and the endosperm. Bran is the tough outer coating that protects the wheat berry in a hard shell. There are several layers to the bran that are removed when
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"Let no man fancy he knows how to dine Till he has learnt how taste and taste combine."
-Horace, Satires, 2.4They're here!
