Tips for Painless Breadmaking

May 3, 2010 | Posted as Baking at 9:02 am | Comments »

In my last post, I sang the praises of my favorite Crocs shoes for baking, which never fail to ensure that my legs and feet are taken care of during particularly grueling baking marathons. What I didn’t pay enough attention to, apparently, was what all the kneading was doing to my back and shoulders.

Until last night. I awoke at 3:30 a.m. in agony. My left shoulder burning, I could barely move my arm. Pain, pain, pain. I remember thinking, groggily, that “pain” meant “bread” in French- and how appropriate it was. Yes, I ordinarily think this way.

It was my fault, of course. I hadn’t done upper-arm exercises in weeks months, so what was I thinking jumping right into half an hour of kneading extremely heavy dough?

I’m much better today, thanks to visualization techniques (and a good dose of painkillers), and I’m chalking it up as another lesson learned.

Tips for Painless Breadmaking

• Be smart about kneading. If I had more upper-body strength (and, I’m sure, less butter-fat), I would have breezed through the hardcore kneading session yesterday. I should have waited until my heavy-duty mixer got back from the shop (tomorrow!) before attempting a breadmaking spree.
• Make changes carefully. Despite having made that bread recipe nearly a hundred times perfectly, I decided yesterday to replace more than half of the usual all-purpose flour with some nice, gluten-rich bread flour. It made the dough extra heavy, and a little too dense.
• Timing is everything. Because I wanted to serve at least one of the loaves of bread for lunch, I didn’t let the dough rise enough on its first rise (it’s a double-rise recipe). This, too, probably contributed to its heaviness.
• Get help. When I was nearly done kneading the dough, my husband walked into the kitchen and asked if I needed any help kneading. He took over for the last few minutes, but I should have had him take over much earlier. He does, after all, have all those “guy muscles”.

Do you bake bread regularly? What are your tips for easy homemade breadmaking?

My Favorite Baking Shoes

May 1, 2010 | Posted as Baking, Kitchen Smarts at 10:27 pm | (1) Comment »

I’ve just prepared two loaves of bread. Because my heavy-duty mixer is off being repaired, I did it the old-fashioned way- by hand, kneading for half an hour, blasting Nirvana on the kitchen speakers to get my mind off the burning in my arms. My hands are sore, my back is aching- yet my legs and feet are surprisingly fine. Why? Because of these shoes:

These are the crocs Women’s Tully Clog (in “Mushroom/Dahlia” style) and they’re all I ever wear nowadays on baking days. No laces to tie, no clasps to do or undo, they slip on so easily I’m hardly aware of them- and, most importantly, soft, soft, soft.

I used to favor open-toed shoes, until I spilled one too many hot liquids on my feet. These are close-toed, but with little holes to ensure your feet stay cool in them. Plus, they’re much prettier, imho, than the regular “clown-y” looking Crocs. I’ll even admit that I’ve worn these out of the house a few times- to run to the grocery, or to grab an after-dinner Haagen-Dazs with the husband. The subdued color of this style means they don’t draw too much attention to themselves.

Do you wear special shoes for baking or cooking?

Moroccan Preserved Lemons

April 28, 2010 | Posted as Make it Yourself, Recipe at 9:57 pm | (3) Comments »

When life hands you lemons, do as the Moroccans do, and preserve them!

The truth is that there are few things in life I love more than a bowl full of lemons. They’re such a beautiful, versatile fruit- zest them, juice them, slice them up thin… I can think of a dozen things I can do with a fresh lemon right off the top of my head. And one of those things is to preserve them.

If you’ve never cooked with preserved lemons, be forewarned: you’re likely to become addicted, seeking out their singular goodness in every stew you make from hereon out. Yes, they’re that good. And so easy to make!

Homemade Moroccan Preserved Lemons

You’ll need a lot of lemons, the number of which depend on the size of your container. My husband and I purchased a large glass jar for this, but any airtight container should do. I recommend glass, ceramic or stone- not plastic or metal.

Scrub the lemons clean, then quarter them, but make sure to leave them attached on one side, sort of like a blooming flower. Sprinkle each lemon generously with sea salt, rock salt, pickling salt or kosher salt. Don’t use fine table salt.

Pack the lemons tightly into the container, adding spices if you like (totally optional)- examples would be bay leaves, a cinnamon stick, some coriander seeds… whatever you like.

Or leave them plain. Which is what I like.

You want to push the lemons down constantly so they release their juices, and ultimately become completely covered in their own juices. You can also squeeze some more lemon juice on top of this.

Keep in a cool, dark place (I am forced to use the refrigerator). They will be ready in about a month.

Halabos na Hipon, or The Tastiest Steamed Shrimp Ever

April 27, 2010 | Posted as Recipe, Seafood Recipe at 5:31 am | (1) Comment »

Fresh shrimp is one of those things that I’d rather not do “too much” to. Like a good steak or some organic free-range chicken, it’s an ingredient I like to really taste. And it’s pricey enough.

To me, shrimp doesn’t get much tastier than this: Halabos na Hipon, a Filipino dish my husband and I (and every FIlipino I know) grew up with, is fresh shrimp at its most basic: steamed in its own juices. These are usually served unpeeled on large platters, with or without a dipping sauce, meant to be peeled with your fingers and popped in your mouth as you chatter away.

Its one of my favorite memories of Family Sunday lunches… and my fingers always smelled shrimpy for days after, despite constant hand-washing.

Shrimp cooked this way, without even water to dilute its natural flavor, is unbelievably tasty. You will love it.

Filipino Halabos na Hipon

1 kilo fresh shrimp
1 whole head garlic, minced
1 yellow onion, chopped
salt & pepper to taste
vegetable oil

Wash and clean the shrimp, but don’t peel. Combine in a large saucepan with garlic, onion and seasonings. Cover and cook over medium heat. Stir once or twice to make sure the shrimp is nice and wet (from its own juices!) and not sticking to the pan. You want to cook it for 5 minutes tops. Then sprinkle some oil around, saute a bit, and serve.

*Note: I realize that instructions like “sprinkle some oil around” and “saute a bit” are not exactly good recipe speak. But Filipino cooking is like that- delicious recipes passed on by teaching.

Make It Yourself: Lemon Meringue Pie

April 26, 2010 | Posted as Baking, Pie at 4:59 pm | (2) Comments »

Mmm… pie. Is there anything a slice of pie won’t fix? I’ve always felt that pie- good pie- is one of the best man-made inventions ever. I’m particularly fond of cold pie- taken straight from the chiller, often sans plate, eaten directly from the pie pan with a fork or spoon.

I know, I know. I can’t help it, though- pie does this to me. Especially great pie, like this dream of a Lemon Meringue Pie.

Have you ever had homemade Lemon Meringue Pie? It’s life-changing. But only if you really, really like lemons. And I do.

And here’s the thing: Lemon Meringue Pie seems like it’s a difficult thing to make from scratch. Its beautiful billowy gorgeousness can make it look like it’s made by a pro, but I promise you, this is one of the easiest pies there is. Especially if you start with store-bought frozen pie-crust.

Gorgeous Lemon Meringue Pie

For Lemon Layer:
4 egg yolks
1/3 cup cornstarch
1 1/2 cups water
1 1/3 cups sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup lemon juice
1 tablespoon finely grated lemon zest

For Meringue Layer:
4 egg whites
1 pinch cream of tartar
2 tablespoons sugar

1 (9-inch) pre-baked pie shell

Preheat your oven to 375F. You want to preheat for at least 15 minutes.

In a medium sized bowl, whisk egg yolks. Set aside.

In a medium saucepan, combine cornstarch, water, sugar, and salt, whisking to combine. Put over medium heat, and- while stirring frequently with a wooden spoon- bring to a boil. Remove from heat, and SLOWLY whisk this hot mixture into your bowl of egg yolks. You’re tempering here, so do it slowly. You don’t want scrambled eggs.

*At this point, you want to make your meringue, so you can put it over the filling while the latter is still hot. In your mixer bowl, combine egg whites and cream of tartar. Beat until soft peaks form, then gradually add sugar, and continue beating to stiff, glossy, beautiful peaks.

Return the lemon filling mixture to the saucepan, put over LOW heat, and stir constantly for about a minute. Remove, and stir in butter, lemon juice and zest. Pour into pie shell, and top with meringue. Make sure you spread the meringue well to the edges of the crust (no holes!)

Bake 10 to 12 minutes, or until golden.