“Good bread is the most fundamentally satisfying of all foods; and good bread with fresh butter, the greatest of feasts.” James Beard (1903-1985) Mom used to bake bread quite often when we were growing up. As a young kid, this activity seemed marathon-like. We had to wait forever for the yeast to rise, sometimes twice. I’d watch Mom combine the yeast with water and flour, stir it rapidly and then cover the bowl with a raggedy old orange dish towel. Like a cub following its mother, I’d wander behind her into our secret “furnace room”. … [Read more...]
Baking Basics: Chocolate Chunk Scones
December 2, 2011 By 4 Comments
Are you familiar with the way your particular oven cooks? Or, do you simply use your oven for pan storage? Do you have individual measuring cups for non-liquid measurements? Or, do you simply use your Pyrex measuring glass for everything? Do you really know the difference between Baking Soda and Baking Powder? When baking, should you use eggs that are room temperature only? In just four short hours, I not only got the answers to these questions but, I was instrumental in baking (from scratch) over 5 different items … [Read more...]
Brussels Sprouts w/ Bacon and Maple Syrup
November 30, 2011 By 7 Comments
Do you know any children who willingly eat Brussels Sprouts? I have no recollection of my mom even handling these vegetables when I was young. However, by reputation, they were automatically placed way, way, way down on the bottom of my "Do Not Eat" list, right behind spinach. But, even Popeye eventually got me to try spinach. Unfortunately, I would go almost 40 years without ever having tried Brussels Sprouts (or even spell it correctly)--until last summer. I was out at a restaurant and by complete accident, I ate one sprout that … [Read more...]
Honing Your Knife Skills
November 28, 2011 By 6 Comments
Have you ever fashioned a knife like scissors to saw open a UPS delivery box? I have. Are all your kitchen knives thrown in a drawer, unprotected? Mine are. Do you even know the proper way to hold a knife? When to use a certain knife? How to sharpen a knife? When I realized that I had been using a knife whose tip had been lost a couple years ago as I was hacking through duct tape on a package, I decided to take a class called “Knife Skills 1” at the Institute of Culinary Education. Up until My Judy the Foodie, my … [Read more...]
