playing with technique

When I was helping my Mom finish her Christmas shopping, I bought myself a new cookbook.  I know, surprise!  It is called Bien Cuit:  the Art of Bread.  I will not say that the breads in this book are earth shattering but I will say that the attention to technique is fabulous.  I love Zachary Golpers attention to detail and explanations of technique.  I have not put this book away since I opened it about two weeks ago.  Yes, it took that long.

He weighs his ingredients, which I am really liking because it gives me the consistency of starters I like.  He does what he calls rolling and pulling which is exactly how I knead.  Do not know where I learned that especially since one of the people he trained with was a MOF.  He does folds the dough about three times for each type he makes.  And his dough is not like the Tartine bakeries cookbooks where the hydration is so high that it is a pain to work with.  It is a nice soft dough.

The only thing I have changed is that I only use levain or sourdough.  I have not active dry yeast in the house.  Every recipe has worked so far and turned out well.  I have a feeling even my every day sandwich bread will turn out better the next time I make it using his techniques.

The pane dolce in these pictures is just lovely.  I am making it again tonight.  Once I leave the computer I have dough to put in the refrigerator.  I will bake it tomorrow night.  I am going to have to twist his directions and shape when it comes out because  I do not have room in my refrigerator for shaped dough to rise.  I need a refrigerator just for baking.

I made a chocolate loaf and a walnut currant loaf using his techniques.  So good!  More bread to be made!  My overflow bread friends are waiting.

more seconds for me!

I came home a couple weeks back and the boyos presented me with a second.  This time a cutting board.  They are branching out again.

Desert walnut, which has a story that includes border patrol behind it.  Story needs to be told over adult beverages.  End grain.  Two inches thick.  

I do not think I will be warping this one.  I have warped cutting boards in the past.  I still use them in that shape but always think I need to replace them.  I only wish this was a bit more rectangle.  But then it was an experiment and a second.  I am not going to be picky about that.

Just not good enough to sell to a customer for the price that they wish to sell it for.  It has already taken some abuse and it still looks like new.  But then I do cook about every day.

I am their most picky customer for sharpenings too.  Oh well.

made from what we had: a chimera

Last winter?  The winter before?  The chimera I had got broken.  Boyos were involved and I did not ask the details.  There has been talk ever since about getting another but I came home one day and this was what had been built for me. 

It started out with a full top but it got cut out so a round steel plate can be put there, with handles.  Better for cleaning after cooking with fire.

I have started playing with cooking with fire.  The pot on top of the chimera is pictured here before cooking.  It had white beans, red beans, kabacha squash, and seasonings in it.  Water.  Over the fire. 

The make shift grill top was just two pieces of scrap steel.  Add wood.  Add fire.  Make sure the water does not boil off and even with beans that have not been soaked, there will be cooked beans for the evening meal.

When I started building fires like this and kicking boards to feed the fire, I got called a bad ass. 

I'll take it!

The beans turned out really well.  There was a taste of smoke from the smoke that added a lovely depth.  The boyos enjoyed them too.  Eating bowls of rice and beans around the fire.

bread pudding because I could not see croissants go to waste

This Christmas there seemed to be a lot of talking about Moms going on.  Part of that was the elusive hunt for the sour cream raisin pie.  And it was the first Christmas without my Grandma, my Mom's Mom.  My Dad's Mom was one of those cooks who never measured anything.  I get given a lot of crap for doing the same.

Finishing off the book portion of the Christmas shopping, my Mom took us to her favorite bookstore.  I could have spent all day there!  New books.  Used books.  Places to sit and read.  Places to eat.  Library downstairs.  Yes, really.  

We had lunch there and the salad I had there actually was big enough to feed everyone salad for dinner after I ate off of it.  Both my Mom and I had croissants for dessert.  Her's was almond.  Mine was chocolate.  But these were large croissants and there was about half of each left over.

After they sat on the counter back at the house for a day, I decided it was time for bread pudding.  But then I pulled a Grandma.  I cut them up into bite sizes pieces.  I beat an egg.  I dumped in maybe a half cup of heaving whipping cream.  Mixed that with maybe a quarter cup of sugar.  A couple teaspoons of vanilla was added to the mixture and then the croissants were added.  I let that soak for a bit.

After the soaking, into an oven proof casserole and I baked at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for about 30 minutes or until there were golden crunchy corners.  I like golden crunchy corners and so does my Mom.  She nibbled on this for the next couple days.  She was still nibbling when we had to leave.

Sorry.  This is the closest to a recipe I can write down.  I am becoming my Dad's Mom.  But that is not a bad thing.  Either Grandma for that matter!  Both are missed. 

a gift of time and memories.

We are back.  I would say that the holiday did not go as planned.  That is not a bad thing.  The weather on the mountain was very wet, wild, and wooly.  It had been under flood conditions for days as we got up there.  We actually spent Sunday night with my parents and then stayed. 

We spent the four days before Christmas preparing for my family and some of their friends to descend on my parents.  I helped decorate the tree.  We helped wrap all the presents.  I helped with shopping for prezzies.  I baked and cooked for Christmas dinner.  I helped make lefse with my Dad.  I experimented with sour cream raisin pie, trying to recreate a thirty year old memory and I am very close.  It was a Christmas of experiences, laughter, love, and memories.  It was what I always hope for Christmas to be and so lovely when it happens. 

Which is why I spend so much of my time at my sewing machine in December making gifts.  I usually cannot be their but I can give something I have made.  One request I received was for linen hand towels.

I started out with a piece of linen 18 inches by 30 inches.  I did some research and found that is the largest size of hand towel.  I then hemmed each side.  The biggest problem was just finding some nice linen.  A weight that would wash and wear well.

Then, folded, rolled, and tied.  Into a box and shipped.  I actually have a lot more sewing to do to finish prezzies but I find everyone enjoys to have the holiday extended.  Surprises in the mail.  I got to do my favorite part with my parents, the preparation. 

That is a gift.