Archive for December, 2009
Pears don’t always get the appreciation they deserve when it comes to baking. A ripe pear is juicy and tender, and no matter how tasty, it can be difficult to imagine a ripe pear holding up as well as an apple in a pie or cobbler or other fruit-heavy dish. But pears can really shine in baked goods, with their sweet and delicate flavor. The trick is usually just to save the very ripest pears for eating and take those that are still a little bit firm (i.e. will not squish under light pressure) and bake with those.
I used a mixture of fresh pears and whole cranberries in this cobbler. Both fresh and frozen cranberries can be used. The combination of winter fruits in a dessert that is served hot is the perfect dish for a cold evening by the fire. The fruit mixture is lightly sweetened with brown sugar and even more lightly spiced with ground cinnamon. I didn’t want to overdo the spices to allow the great flavors of the sweet pear and tart cranberries to come through clearly. A little cornstarch helps ensure that the juices from the pears thicken up just a little during baking.
The topping for this cobbler is similar in consistency to a cookie dough. This means that it is difficult to spread onto the fruit, unlike more cake-like batters. Instead, break the dough up into chunks with your fingers and distribute them evenly over the fruit. You should have enough to just about cover the entire cobbler and the topping will spread as it bakes, giving the dessert a “cobbled-together” appearance.
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There are a number of good books about baking artisinal breads out there, but Baking Artisan Pastries and Breads is one that is focused on pastries – breakfast pastries, to be specific – and not the same peasant breads and baguettes that you’ll find in other artisan baking books. It’s great to have a book that is more specialized and doesn’t devote only a couple of pages to things like croissants and danishes.
The cookbook is divided up into two primary sections – Basics and Baking – and each further divided into several chapters on Ingredients; Equipment Techniques; Quick Breads, Muffins and Scones; Enriched Dough; Laminated Dough; and Fillings, Glazes, Toppings and Spreads. The Basics section is very comprehensive and describes in-detail just about everything you might want to know to be able to make the recipes in the book. It’s a great place for beginners to start, but it’s a good reference in general. There are plenty of photos that illustrated all the steps described. The Baking section of the book is where you’ll find the recipes. They, too, are heavily illustrated. The recipes are given with metric, weight and volume measurements and are written out carefully, adding tips where necessary to ensure that you’re proceeding the right way as you bake. The recipes are detailed and easy to follow along with.
The book also includes a DVD where many of the techniques described in the book are performed. This resource makes the book incredibly easy to use – not to mention very unique – because it is as close as you could come to taking an actual cooking class on this subject. The demos primarily cover the topics mentioned in the Basics section of the cookbook, but also include detailed information on how to make full recipes. You’ll find a tutorial for croissants, for instance, on the DVD. It will be a huge help to anyone who is a visual learner, whether you’re experienced or still a beginner.
I hope that everyone had a lovely holiday weekend with friends and family. I know that I did! And I certainly got lucky in the gift department this year. I received several outstanding cookbooks, fancy stackable sanding sugars from Williams Sonoma and a couple of antique pieces of pastry-making equipment – a pastry cutter and a moon cake/pastry mold – that a relatively thoughtfully picked up for me on a trip to Southeast Asia earlier this year. There were a fair number of chocolate bars in my stocking, and of course it was also wonderful to spend some quality time with my family.
If I absolutely had to choose, my favorite thing would have to be my new Shun Chef’s knife. I can’t say no to a good knife and, in addition to being a fantastic instrument, it looks gorgeous. Now, I just need to put a knife block on my wish list for next year!
Since we’re sharing, what did everyone else get for Christmas? Books, baking equipment, homemade goodies? I certainly hope that a copy of The Baking Bites Cookbook made it under a few trees, too!
Merry Christmas, everyone!
I hope your holiday is filled with good cheer and good food. And I have no doubt that it will be.
This morning, I wanted to share one of my favorite ornaments from this year, my adorable Cupcake Tree Christmas Tree. You can actually recreate the look by placing a cupcake stand on top of a cake plate – preferably a green one. Just don’t forget to get a star to poke into the top cupcake to finish off the look! You can still buy these online and, while it’s a bit late to start adding to your tree today, it’s never to late to put a little present away for yourself for next Christmas.
It’s hard to resist a good shortbread. It shouldn’t be too crumbly or too crisp, and it must have a rich butter flavor. This recipe makes just a small batch of shortbread that is pretty close to that good, middle-of-the-road shortbread that is well balanced, flavorful and should appeal to absolutely everyone.
This shortbread uses melted butter, which I browned on the stovetop to give it a toasty, nutty flavor that adds a lot of richness to the finished cookies. To be honest, skipping the browning step doesn’t hurt the shortbread too much, but it doesn’t take much time and the results are well worth it. The recipe was inspired by some Dutch shortbread I had, which a Dutch friend made and shared with me. After a little bit of research, I was able to find some recipes similar to the shortbread she made online and used those as a starting point for my version. The browned butter was an element that I couldn’t resist adding to enrich the overall flavor.
This shortbread is baked in a pie or tart pan and is cut into wedges to serve. It is good right away, but will also keep well in an airtight container for a couple of days.
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