Sweet Blog Archive: February, 2010

02/25: Doin the wave

When I was little I thought the Easy Bake Oven was the most magical piece of cooking equipment EVER.  Bake a cake with a lightbulb–Brilliant!  Of course I never got one because my mom didn’t see the point of it.   It’s kind of ironic coming from a woman who seemingly bought every soon-to-be-relegated-to-the-back-cupboard kitchen gadget on the market at the time (back in the the 70’s that is).   For whatever reason, she’s still hanging on to the sandwich maker (not to be confused with a George Foreman grill), despite not having used it in over thirty years.

Now, one of my favorite kitchen appliances, aside from my Kitchen Aid mixer, is the microwave.  I consider it essential.  Yeah, I know most people use it primarily for reheating, defrosting, and popcorn.  Such was my scope of usage in the beginning, when mom brought home that first behemoth nuke box with it’s jumbo manual dials.  I foolishly attempted to “bake” in it–zucchini bread.  UGH!  My poor dad practically lost his dentures trying to chew into that anemic rubbery loaf.  Needless to say I suspended further culinary experimentation–that is until I became a chef.

While I did learn how to do everything the “classic” way cooking school–melting chocolate over a bain marie– in the my real world the microwave rules.  Unless I have to melt 10 lbs. of chocolate in one shot, I prefer to just do in the microwave on low setting.  Ditto for gelatin, especially when I’m making marshmallows.  Instead of standing over a stove stirring a pot of lemon curd for 10 minutes, I zap it.  No, it’s not a travesty.  Done properly, it works just well as the old school method.

I had to duke it out with one of my chefs at one point over the necessity of ever having a microwave in the kitchen.  He was a purest who was totally dead set against it.  I think he had visions of the cooks nuking steaks to oblivion–not exactly outside the realm of possibility.  But given my lack of stove space and need to multitask I finally convinced him to let me buy a cheap Costco microwave, which I’m proud say is still working fine after four years of constant use.  Hey, I figured if famed pastry chef Jacques Torres can use one so can I–and apparently so can my mom.

My mom the gadget queen makes sweet mochi (Japanese sweet glutinous rice cakes) in the microwave.  At first I was skeptical, but I have to admit it’s pretty genius.  Take some sweet glutinous rice flour, whisk in sugar and warm water, zap in the microwave for 2 1/2 minutes, and voila you’ve go the makings for mochi.  Pan roast some sweet rice flour until just golden, dust your hands with it and you’re ready to fill the mochi “dough” with whatever your heart’s desire.  I’m thinking I’d like to try some sweet black sesame paste.

Ahh, (almost) instant gratification.

Posted February 25th, 2010  |  Leave a Comment

02/05: Cooking up love?

Around this time of year, you can’t walk into a store, go online or turn on your television without being reminded that the most sacred of all Hallmark holidays is fast approaching–Valentine’s Day.  I have to make it past a gauntlet of every imaginable variation of bright pink and red hearts to get the dairy case or paper towel aisle at the supermarket (okay, maybe not so much if I could afford to shop at Whole Paycheck).  Yes, and I too join into the act, baking endless pans of red velvet cupcakes and hand-decorating dozens of heart-shaped cookies for those eager to ply their sweetie (or potential sweetie) with some fancy sugar to set the mood.  It’s all very romantic.  Unless you are unattached, then it all seems like a bunch of hype, or worst an indictment of your singleton status–kind of like that scene in Bridget Jones’ Diary when Bridget has to endure dinner with a bunch of “smug marrieds” who repeatedly question her ability to find a mate.

Wouldn’t it be great if there really was a recipe for love?  Some fool-proof magic formula that yielded the most gratifying, warm, intoxicating feelings of joy and passion that lasted a lifetime?  Don’t get me wrong, I’m not talking about concocting some kind of “love potion”–that stuff resides squarely in the cheesy realm of  the movies (remember Love Potion No.9?).  Besides they always ends up biting the user in the ass anyways.

We all have a mental shopping list of things we want in the ideal partner.  Some of those things can be seen as primary ingredients, like intelligence, sense of humor, or kindness.  Other things are variable, such as seasonings or as a friend of mine likes to say “your flava”–tall, dark, blond, athletic, built, lean, vanilla, chocolate, artistic, etc.   What if you could come up with a relationship recipe of just the right combination of ingredients, measured and mixed under the right conditions, that would always yield the perfect outcome?  What if it were just as easy as creating the perfect chocolate cake or the best pie crust?

Crazy idea, I know.  I was in the midst of perusing the latest issue of Cook’s Illustrated–waiting for my Valentine’s Day cookies to bake no less–when I came across an article about unlocking the mystery of the baking the best chewiest brownie.  I won’t go into the details of how the writer went about his investigation.  Suffice it to say it involved a hell of a lot of scientific research and experimentation, not to mention seemingly endless pans of brownies.  It got me thinking about whether or not one could apply the same principles to finding the right person and creating the perfect relationship–if you had all the basic ingredients in front of you.

Well, first of all, as great as a recipe may seem, ultimately it is the skill of the baker or cook that determines the outcome of the dish.  Some people are really adept at following directions and can usually produce a decent dish.  Whether it is exceptional is pretty subjective.  Does it make them happy?  Some people may follow the general idea of the recipe but like to improvise as they go along, throwing in a pinch of salt or a dash of cinnamon.  It may not seem to go with the dish, but then happy accidents do happen–the problem is if you don’t pay attention to the process you may not remember how to recreate the magic.  And then there are those who are impatient for the dish to cook, turning up the heat to hurry things along only to ruin it–I’ve been guilty of that.

Yes, a recipe is a nice idea.  But human beings, unlike a butter, eggs, and chocolate, are volatile, wonderfully unpredictable substances.  We are always changing, adjusting to the environment around us.  We can’t be measured, mixed, or manipulated, though we frequently try–often to unsavory results.  Better to leave that for the chocolate cake.

Posted February 5th, 2010  |  Leave a Comment