Stirring

It's remarkable when a sudden realization occurs which changes something you've done a certain way for a long time.  I was making a batch of lava field brownies.  Part of the process is a furious stirring of the brownie batter which must be done for long enough and with enough energy to create a specific texture and consistency, and I always prefer to do it by hand since using a mixer doesn't generate the result I'm looking for.  I love these brownies, but I don't particularly look forward to this part of making them.  It's simply not easy.  Well, as I made this batch, I stumbled onto a way to make that part of the process easier.

As I began stirring the batter and started to rev up the pace, I was thinking about how challenging it was to get all the batter from the sides of the bowl while still maintaining the energy of the process.  I took a few swipes around the side of the bowl with the curved-tip spatula I was using.  And entirely by accident, I found that by holding the bowl a certain way and pushing the spatula into the side of the bowl that was also pressed up against me, I was able to turn the bowl directly into the motion of the spatula in a way that quite of lot of force and speed was generated while at the same time allowing me to clean the side of the bowl and push all the batter into the center.  I was amazed at how much easier it was to generate that force and consequently how much less time it seemed to take.

Now, in reality it still required the same amount of time, but since I wasn't expending as much energy it seemed to go much more quickly.  It still requires a good amount of energy but the difference is enough that I was excited by the discovery.  I will need to test it a few more times to really be confident that it will work the way I want it to each time.  However, there was no doubt that the batter achieved the texture and consistency I needed, and the brownies came out just as I wanted.

It illustrates an important fact.  Sometimes we think we know the best way to do something, and we are so confident that we are deaf to others' suggestions or blind to possibilities that might be apparent if we weren't so stubborn.  It's always important to me personally that I give myself opportunities to try things in new ways, whether that's a new interpretation of Beethoven's Waldstein Sonata or a new twist on preparing brownies.  No matter what the activity, it means allowing myself to learn something new, even if it fails.  But when it succeeds..... eureka!
 

Cookie scoops

As a classically-trained pianist, I tend to freely discuss how much I enjoy my own excellent piano (as well as any other exceptionally good instruments that I come across).  It is the most important tool I use in music.  I know auto mechanics rave about their own favorite tools sometimes.  And carpenters will happily spend several minutes to compare one saw to another, one hammer to another, before adding it to their tool assortment.  Everyone,  professional or hobbyist, loves their tools.

Anyone who works in a kitchen in any capacity is just the same.  Kitchen tools of all types might be prized by anyone whether a professional or an anonymous home cook.  Many people seem to gravitate towards specialized tools that look cool but only perform a single function.  For me, I like tools that perform a variety of functions and are simple.  One of my favorite tools are my cookie scoops.  I use them for anything that would benefit from consistent portioning.   So in addition to cookies, I might use these for fillings in hand-tarts or egg salad sandwiches.  I will use them to form rice balls or truffles.  The uses for these simple tools are many and varied.  But the best use is still the original use ... cookies.

I love cookies.  There are very few things that are so simple yet so enjoyable.  They are generally not time-consuming to make, and they often require very few ingredients.  Yes, there are more complicated cookies, but to me there is nothing quite as enjoyable as a simple chocolate chip cookie, or a snickerdoodle, or an oatmeal or peanut butter cookie.  They are small so you always have a choice to eat just a bit, or you can indulge and eat a dozen if you desire.  I could rhapsodize on the subject of cookies for a long long time.  I really am amazed that even something so basic as a butter cookie or shortbread can be comprised of so few ingredients and be so uncomplicated and yet so enormously satisfying.  I've always thought that if had to make only one thing every day for my entire life, it would be a contest between bread or cookies.  I'm not sure which one would win.  Fortunately, I'm sure I will never have to make that kind of decision.

I remember one weekend in the past I made nine different types of cookies, just me in the kitchen, no one else providing assistance.  It was pretty fun, although by the end I was ready to sit and just eat a few with a glass of milk while I watched some Star Trek for a while.  The point is, though, that they take a relatively small amount of time, and give such immediate satisfaction (very different from breads which can takes hours or even days sometimes), and there are such a variety of flavors that can easily be made simply by adopting small changes in your ingredients that I find it impossible to get tired of making them.  Sometimes I get up in the morning and I just want to make a few different kinds of cookies, and to me that would be a day well spent. 

Viva la cookie.       

Waffle Day

Today is March 25th.  This day is exactly 9 months before Christmas.  Or 3 months from last Christmas.  But I always like to look ahead to the next Christmas. 

It is also Waffle Day.  In Sweden, Norway and Denmark, it is traditional to eat waffles on March 25th which is the date of the Feast of the Annunciation.  (You can read all about that important religious date that by meandering through various online encyclopedia sites.)

It seems we don't know precisely when waffles came into being, but we do know that long ago the Greeks cooked small flat cakes between two iron plates over an open fire.  Later this practice spread through medieval Europe and they were known as wafers.   

Since then they've been cooked all over the world, and recipes have been tweaked to create distinctive styles in many different regions.

I mention this tonight simply because I'm in the mood for waffles.  And pancakes.  And biscuits and gravy.  I think breakfast foods make wonderful dinner meals, don't you?  But nothing sounds nicer right now than a wonderful big waffle with real maple syrup, a large pat of rich butter, and a sprinkling of powdered sugar.  It's a bit late in the day to think about making them tonight, but maybe in in the morning. 

Anyway, good night for now.  Enjoy a waffle and feel happy.  There are a lot of challenges in our world right now, but good food will always help us enjoy the moment.

Favorites

What a month this has been.  The covid-19 pandemic is affecting our lives all over the planet.  Just yesterday, Kansas City, where I am located, announced a stay-at-home directive to begin in a couple days.  30 days of very little going on in the city except for essential activities, although will it really be only 30 days?  Our fingers are crossed.  It is a time of uncertainty, of challenges, of ......

I have already arranged for remote lessons with many of my piano students.  And I am contemplating days ahead of good movies and television, working in the yard and garden, watching the birds on all the feeder stations, looking out for the spring arrival of the hummingbirds, piano practice and lots of good cooking of my favorite comfort foods.

For a while before I set up Bruce Bakery and Bistro, I contemplated calling this endeavor simply Bruce's Favorites.  In fact, many times when I write a blog entry, or an item description on www.brucebakeryandbistro.com, I say "this is one of my favorites".  After a while, it seems to be a constant refrain and maybe even gets a bit old to some.  But it is true.  I don't make a particular food just to be able to say I know how to make it.  I don't care about making a food unless it really is one of my favorites.  For one thing, how can I really judge how good something I make is if I don't even like to eat the item I am making.  But in the end it really comes down to how I want to spend my time and what I want to share with people.  So I make my favorites.

This past week I made a chocolate tart, brownies, egg and cheese burritos, grilled cheese sandwiches, and many other yummy comfort foods.  Today I'm thinking about snickerdoodles.  Fortunately I have plenty of milk; otherwise I'd have to go out and get some because I must have milk to go with my snickerdoodles!  It's one of my favorites.

Almond tart shell

tart crust ready for rolling out

Wow, what a week this has been in the news.  As our lives are all affected by the current covid-19 crisis, home is more important than ever, and making satisfying food is good for our physical health as well as our emotional health.  Today I contributed to my emotional health by making a wonderful tart shell.  This crust has all the usual things found in a crust (pie or tart) with the addition of one important ingredient:  ground roasted almonds.  I love roasting almonds.  The aroma from the kitchen is amazing.  Mixing up the dough and tossing in the ground nuts, seeing the dough come out speckled from the almonds, tasting it, it's a great experience to make tart dough.

tart crust partially rolled out

The dough has to be chilled overnight after it's made.  But when it's brought out, this particular dough can be rolled out just about right away, even still chilled.  In fact, if you wait too long and it warms up, you'll want to pop it back into the fridge so it can be handled more easily.  When rolling, I put plastic wrap under and over the dough.  This means flour does not have to be added to keep it from sticking to the rolling surface or the rolling pin.  Roll in all directions to create a rough circle -- it doesn't have to be too perfect.

checking the size

I always put the tart pan on the rolled out dough to check the roll-out size.  This is just about right.

preparing for lifting and placement

Then I remove the tart pan bottom and place it on the rolled out dough after removing the top layer of plastic wrap.  I will lift the bottom layer of plastic wrap and the dough and the pan bottom all at once, and then invert it and place it into the tart pan frame.

ready for trimming

Once in the pan, you mustn't stretch the dough against the sides.  Whatever you stretch will shrink later.  You should instead lift the edge gently and let it settle down against the bottom and sides of the pan, and only then press just a bit to stabilize the placement.

starting to trim

Then I take a small plastic spatula and drag across the edge of the pan pulling from inside the pan to outside.  This trims the dough so that it is level with the top of the pan, but also pulls it into the scalloped edge of the pan frame (which has been greased lightly).

looking good

As you can see, it rapidly starts to look very nice, very elegant.

When finished, you have a great looking tart shell ready for baking.  The scraps ... well, I toss those into the fridge to be used later for small little projects, or I toss them out for the squirrels.  They love it.

ready for the oven

I put a piece of parchment paper over the shell and fill it with rice.  Some people like to use beans or pie weights, but rice is what I prefer.  The weight of the rice helps to keep the dough from puffing up while cooking.  Now it's ready for the oven.

a few more minutes in the oven, but without the rice weight

After about 25 minutes, I removed the parchment paper and the rice, and let the tart shell finish baking.

looks great and has a great aroma

When it comes out, it has nice color, nice texture, and a nice aroma.

excellent

As you can see, it's a beautiful shell ready for a filling ... almost.  First I'm going to paint it with melted chocolate.  This will help seal the crust so that moisture  from the filling won't make the bottom soggy.

good enough to eat even without filling

Now it must cool so that the painted chocolate firms up. Then it's ready for filling.

the finished product

And here it is.  One triple chocolate tart with whipped cream.  The filling is important, but just as important is a great crust.  Almonds, painted chocolate, a great bake, the crust is excellent.

Everyone grab a plate and a fork.  I'll cut and serve.

Have a great week everyone!

Lemon and bread

mis en place for lemon-filled bread

Today was a rainy cold damp day, but inside everything was much nicer, especially since I made lemon-filled bread today.  Every bread is special but for those who like filled breads, this is especially nice.

First, a bread sponge is made using yeast, sugar, salt, water and a small amount of flour.  After this is mixed and covered, it sits for a short bit and becomes all bubbly and creamy, and considerably greater in volume.  Then it is combined with eggs, butter, vanilla, more sugar and more flour, and mixed until it is a shaggy mound of dough.  After kneading for a handful of minutes, we have a slightly moist dough that is smoother and is ready for a rise of at least 90 minutes.

After rising, the dough has just about doubled in volume and is quite poofy.  It is then deflated a bit and divided in half since this makes two 15-inch loaves.  Each half needs to be rolled out into a rectangle which is easy to do since the dough is quite amenable to being tugged into shape to create rough corners.  After rolling to a size of about 10 inches by 15 inches, the filling is added.  In this case, there are two fillings.  One is a cream cheese-based filling and on top of that is a layer of lemon curd.  They are both spread down the center of the entire 15-inch length, leaving a bit of uncovered dough at each end.  Plenty of dough is left uncovered on either side of the filling as well since this has to be cut into strips that are then folded over the middle portion of dough containing the filling.  Then this all sits for another 45 or 50 minutes.

After the second rise, each loaf is brushed with an egg wash and sprinkled with Swedish pearl sugar before going into the oven.  Then, just 25 minutes later, the loaves are ready to come out.

15-inch lemon-filled bread loaf

You don't have to wait long to dig in.  Only 20 minutes is needed for cooling and then you can start slicing.

slice of lemon-filled bread

And there you have it.  A beautiful soft bread with a filling that is a little tart, a little sweet, and a little creamy.  With this sitting on the kitchen counter all day, there is very little that can be done to persuade people not to grab a slice every time they pass it.

Bread can make any day a great day!

Living in interesting times

Swedish oatmeal cookies

I had a college professor who frequently tossed out a well-known saying that, I am told, originated in a country on the other side of the world:  "May you live in interesting times."

Well, the news is certainly full of enough stories this week that I think it could be said that we are all living in "interesting" times at the moment.  But when things get too interesting, just reach for a cookie.

Cookies are great.  This week I've made a lot of one particular kind:  Swedish oatmeal cookies.  There are several things about this cookie which are really effective at creating something memorable. 

First of all, room-temperature butter and sugar, plenty of both, are creamed for more than five minutes.  That's a long time.  By the time the creaming is finished, the mixture is smooth and silky and takes on the texture and viscosity of mayonnaise.  It looks amazing.

Second, cake flour is used instead of all-purpose flour.  With it's low protein content, relative to other flours, this flour helps to make this cookie pleasantly soft, even with all the oats and even if it winds up in the oven a bit longer than it should.

Third, rather than raisins, which many people toss into oatmeal cookie dough, I toss in miniature dark chocolate chips, preferably a very high-quality brand.  My first choice is always Valrhona for this particular cookie.  The size of the chip and the intensity of the flavor seem to go perfectly with the oats.

I made quite a few of these this week for family and friends who really enjoy them.  And I kept some back for myself as well.  I've been munching on them off and on throughout the day.  I think that cookies are one of those great treats which are satisfying no matter what mood I am in.  And certainly this week with all the crazy things going on in the world, a comfortable treat in the form of a cookie, or two or three, is just what is needed to make us all feel a little more grounded and a little more relaxed.  So eat a cookie and feel happy.  Maybe eat some broccoli first if you need the vegetables, but make sure to get that cookie afterwards. 

 

Brownies and cat treats

double chocolate brownies and lava field brownies

Today was a fun busy day.  My morning and afternoon were devoted to listening to piano concerto recordings and making brownies, three different kinds.  I followed that up with a late afternoon and evening of piano students, each of whom commented on the aroma of warm fresh brownies that greeted them when they entered the house.  I love when aromas of great food fill the house.  It is one of those things that really make a home feel like a home.

As for the three different kinds of brownies I was working with today, I baked one kind for the simple reason that I wanted to come to a decision on the exact size I wanted to give out to people.  Another was because I wanted to play with a couple ideas I had to tweak an existing different recipe.   And the third was to evaluate whether or not I wanted to add a new brownie to the Bruce Bakery and Bistro menu.

For the first, I decided on the size.  Each brownie will be 1/4 of the 8x8-inch pan, a nice large size that will be immensely satisfying.  For the second, the tested tweaks were pretty nice, but nothing I am going to keep.  Each time a test is done on a recipe, however, whether successful or not, is still a good thing.  After all, what better way to continue to learn and improve one's craft than by experimenting with new ideas.  For the third, I decided to add it to the menu soon.  In fact, I will probably do a "brownie week" sometime in the near future where I offer multiple types of brownies and nothing else for that week.

Between all those brownies and the teaching and then a run on the treadmill just a short while ago, I'm feeling ready for a good sleep tonight.  After all that, I might also be a little groggy when I first get up tomorrow morning, especially since we just moved the clocks ahead a couple days ago and I'm still getting accustomed to that change.  Sometimes when I'm a bit groggy in the morning, I almost make a comical mistake which I will explain here.  I have a routine I follow each morning, several things I do to get ready for the day, always in the same order.  When I'm a bit groggy for whatever reason, I do them on autopilot almost, so used to the routine am I.  Well part of that routine includes taking a morning multi-vitamin.  The important part to realize here is that I have a small serving tray on a kitchen counter which has a bottle of vitamins and a few other things on it including a small bag of cat treats that I give to Tom the cat with every meal.  I can be honest and admit that on more than one occasion, when I have had a groggy sleepy start to my day, I have grabbed the cat treat bag by mistake and pulled out what I assumed was a vitamin, only realizing my error at the last moment.  There I would stand with a cat treat in one hand, a cup of water in the other, smiling and wondering when the day will come when I don't catch my mistake and get to learn what these cat treats taste like.

Here's hoping tomorrow is not that day.  If you are reading this, I hope that brings a smile to your face as you remember your own comical happenings on sleepy mornings.  Now I am heading offline to eat a quick brownie and then prepare for sleep.  Good night, everyone.   Sleep well.

Roasting nuts

roasted almonds fresh from the oven

Today I am making a batch of sweet tart dough.  This batch is large enough that it will be divided into three portions and frozen, ready to be pulled out at a later date to be baked for three different tarts.  I will freeze two portions today and the third will be used to make a lemon tart that uses the entire lemon including the skin.  I know, I know, that sounds odd.  The first time I ever made it, several years ago, I thought there was no way it would work.  But it does, and it's incredible!  For anyone who loves citrus desserts, it's a winner.

The tart dough is lightly sweet and is made with flour, butter, powdered sugar, vanilla, salt, eggs, and most importantly ... almonds.  Before I grind up the almonds, I am roasting them.  The tart dough can be made with raw natural almonds or blanched almonds, but I prefer to take raw natural almonds and roast them myself.  It's an easy thing to do.  Any nut can be roasted the same way, although you might want to adjust cooking times if you have smaller nuts versus larger nuts.  For the most part, though, you can roast any nut at 350 F for about 10 minutes, give or take.  The roasting intensifies the flavor, and when you pull them out of the oven the aroma is amazing.  For a short bit your kitchen will bask in the aroma, but after a while it dissipates ... "sigh".

The nuts are ground up using a food processor after they are roasted, and they make a perfect additive for the tart dough, imparting flavor and texture.  The sweet tart dough can be used for a variety of different tarts.  And they are all great. 

Excellent or even average

"average" banana bread slices

Someone recently asked me a question about people who won't eat certain foods unless the foods meet specific expectations as measured by gourmets.  I had a very simple response to that.

Even "average" food is pretty darn good, so why refuse to eat it?  Does anyone really have to be a food snob?

That doesn't mean that I eat everything.  Everyone who knows anything about my food preferences knows that I haven't yet come to terms with Brussels sprouts.  Or liver.  And I can't imagine eating tripe.  So I'm not talking about people who just don't care for some foods.  What I'm talking about is someone who won't eat a fast food taco since it's not a gourmet item but will eat the fanciest taco they can find on a three-star restaurant's menu despite the fact that sometimes it is 10 times the cost but nowhere near 10 times the quality.

The other day I tested a recipe for banana bread that I wanted to try out.  It came out only "average", but it was still banana bread and well worth the time to make and eat, even it would have been my second choice to eat if I had also made my favorite recipe that same day.

spiced flatbreads

I'm not saying a fast food taco is on the same level of a gourmet taco, even though sometimes it might be.  Not every item that is labeled gourmet is significantly better than one that is not.  By the same token, not every fast food item is as low quality as some people would like everyone to think.  And to be honest sometimes I'm just in the mood for a cheeseburger that is nothing special, just a plain old fast food cheeseburger.  There is nothing wrong with that.  Sometimes it hits the spot.  Just like a box of crackers from the grocery store might be something I'm craving even though I could just as easily make some lavash crackers or spiced flatbreads.  

fudge brownie

I dearly love the foods I make, and I'm eager to devote the time to make them from scratch.  I love my own brownies way more than anything I would find in a box in the grocery aisle or even at the bakery counter.  But when I'm in the mood for something that is not from a scratch-kitchen, then I'm OK going ahead and satisfying that craving. 

After all, even "average" food can be really good, and certainly extremely satisfying when that is what you crave.  So indulge in the gourmet foods from an excellent kitchen, but just as easily give in to your desire for something else when the mood strikes.

   

Cookie time and temperature tests

This past week I have eaten lots and lots of portions of cookies, key word "portions".  Why?  Well, here's the reason.  The cookies in the above photo are oatmeal chocolate chip cookies that I have listed on the Bruce Bakery and Bistro menu.  A couple weeks ago, I was making a batch and on a whim I decided to cook a single cookie at 350 F instead of the 325 F temperature setting that I normally use for these cookies.  As I mentioned in a recent post, I like to reserve portions of whatever I am making to use for experiments, tweaks, "what-ifs".  Well, I was intrigued by how this cookie came out after being subjected to more intense heat than usual.  That started me on a trek of several days of experiments with this cookie during which I varied temperature, time, and even the type of material it was baked on.

First I compared cooking this on foil sheets versus parchment.  I've always baked these on foil sheets but the ones baked on parchment during this experimental period were very nice.  I still prefer the ones on foil, but it is nice to know that cooked on parchment they still come out as delicious cookies, albeit with some small but noticeable differences.  (A small note here: cookies in general are rarely ever cooked on foil.)

Then I began working with temperature and time variations, only cooking on foil, no parchment.  I tested various times cooked at 325 F and 350 F temperature settings, and then sampled cookies side by side.  In the end, this whole run of experimental batches didn't change how I cook this particular cookie.  After all that was over, it still came down to my favorite cookies being those cooked at a 325 F setting for 17 minutes.  However, what I found incredibly interesting was that unlike most cookies which have a rather narrow range of optimal time and temperature settings (within which they are good/excellent and outside of which they are noticeably average at best and oftentimes much worse than that) these cookies were very good at both temperatures and ranging in time from 13 minutes up to 19 minutes.  These sound like small variations, but when it comes to something as small as a cookie, a little extra time or a little heat, or the opposite of both, can have a dramatic effect.  However, these were delicious and had wonderful textures.  There were differences, of course, but nothing so dramatic as I expected from direct experience with a multitude of cookie recipes over many years. 

Tonight I finished the last batch in this experiment.  I cut cookies in half and ate portions from each of the different bakes.  Over the past several days, I ate many many cookie portions.  Thank goodness I didn't try to eat all the cookies in their entirety.  I love these cookies, but I've had enough of them for a while -- well, maybe for a day or two at least.  After all, these are really good cookies. 

I added it all up: over the last 10 days, I made 9 individual batches.  And I had to sample each of those batches multiple times since I was also checking out differences between dough that was chilled versus dough at room-temperature.  Even eating only portions, that came out to a lot of cookie sampling.  All I can say about that now that it is over is this:  tomorrow I am making banana bread.