Pasteurization

Today is December 27.  On this date in 1822, Louis Pasteur was born.  He was a chemist, a biologist and a microbiologist.  He had many extremely important accomplishments including the creation of the first vaccines for cholera, anthrax, and rabies.  And he also developed the technique we now call pasteurization.

By heating a liquid such as milk to a sufficiently high temperature and holding it at that temperature for a short span of time, but not too much, pathogenic micro-organisms are destroyed.  Then the milk is cooled very quickly to just a few degrees above 0 Celsius.  This gives the milk a longer shelf-life and makes it safer to drink.  The same thing is done to fruit juices.  Read up on the process and you will find it to be a fascinating subject.  

There are actually a few different types of pasteurization that utilize different levels of heat and time.  There is even ultra-pasteurization.  Cream is often found in cartons labeled "ulta-pasteurized" in the dairy section of your favorite grocery store.

Some people prefer to drink raw milk that hasn't been pasteurized.  I, myself, have had raw milk many many times in my life and loved it.  No matter whether raw or pasteurized, I will drink milk anytime night or day.  It is by far my favorite beverage -- however, that's a subject for another post.

But thanks go out to Monsieur Pasteur for his discovery of the process which makes it much more likely to find milk and juices at the grocery store whenever we are looking for them.

Chestnuts roasting

Chestnuts roasting on an open fire.....

As big a fan as I am of Christmas and of the carol that sings of chestnuts, I have to admit that I've never actually eaten one.  In fact, no one I've ever known has admitted to eating one.  How odd is that....

Here are a few facts about chestnuts.  They are high in antioxidants that I understand become even more potent once the raw nuts are cooked.  They are also high in sugars and fiber, as well as potassium and phosphorous, and they even have a small amount of iron.  They also have anti-inflammatory properties due to the presence of those aforementioned antioxidants.  They grow on deciduous trees which are members of the beech family and which are native to milder regions of the northern hemisphere.

I understand you should not eat too many these as this will result from a bit of gastrointestinal distress due to the resultant gases from digesting them.  Dogs loves chestnuts apparently, but again they should not eat too many or they will also experience a bit of discomfort from the resultant gases.

One of these years perhaps I will actually try roasting them.  Until then, I will be content to listen to the carol every year.

Merry Christmas, everyone!

 

Molasses spice cookies

Today I am making molasses spice cookies.  These are one of the most popular cookies I make, and not just around the holidays.  To start with, flour is mixed with baking soda, cinnamon, allspice, ginger, and black pepper ... yes, that's correct, black pepper.  Set this aside.  Now we need butter softened to room temperature and then creamed in the mixer until soft and thoroughly creamed.  To this is added brown sugar and molasses.  (I always use unsulphured molasses.)  A spatula will be necessary to occasionally scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl to ensure complete mixing.  Then the egg is added.  At first it will appear that the egg will not be easily combined with the molasses mixture and it will look like a broken mess.  But mix it for a minute or two, and then added the dry ingredients all at once, but only mix slowly at this point, on the slowest speed of the mixture.  Once it appears that all the ingredients are incorporated, remove the bowl from mixer.  Now take the spatula and scrape the sides and the bottom of the bowl and gently mix in any remaining flour.  There is almost certain to be some at the bottom, but don't use the mixer for this.  We don't want to overwork the flour.

And here's how the dough appears when the mixing is completed.  It's a bit shaggy, very soft, and a little clingy on the hands.  So we need to chill this for a few hours.  Once it's chilled, then it can removed and portioned.  I make every cookie with precisely 36 grams of dough that is rolled into a ball.  The balls of dough can be kept in the fridge for a few days or frozen for a month.

The balls of chilled dough do not need to be warmed up before cooking.  The oven is set at 350 F.  The balls of dough are rolled in granulated sugar, and the flattened just a small amount after placement on the cookie sheet.  Once flattened, I always put a little green sparkling sugar on top, right in the center. 

After cooking exactly 12 minutes, they are ready to come out of the oven.  They need to cool for a few minutes on the cookie sheet before being placed on a cooling rack to finish cooling to room temperature.  Want to eat them right away?  Go ahead.  😀  Warm or cooled, they are excellent.  But when still warm they won't be as firm so hold them carefully so they don't bend and fall out of your hands.

This is a great cookie and very easy to make.  Just don't overwork the flour and don't cook them too long.  

Have a great pre-Christmas weekend, everyone!

More posts coming

 

Good morning, everyone.  It's been a few weeks since I've done a posting.  But I will be returning to my normal activity level this week with posts coming more frequently. 😃

This week I'm planning to make a few different cookies, some banana bread, and some gingerbread.  I have so many things I want to make as part of Christmas celebrations.  I'm also going to be testing out a few different mac and cheese recipes with different combinations of cheeses.  And I'm really hoping to make some pizzas as well.  

Here we are in the middle of the Christmas season and I can think of few things better than celebrating life by making lots of good foods and passing them out to friends and family.  It has been a challenging year with the pandemic affecting everyone is so many ways.  But as we end the year, we can be grateful for many things and look forward to a new year ahead.

So that's it for now.  But I will post again in a few days.  Have a great start to your week, everyone!