As some of you may have noticed, I haven't been blogging recently. I'm taking a bit of a break, the reason being my schnozz,specifically a deviated septum. Work load has been at the limit and thus with illness and stress,can make a less than happy puppy! But to get better... to lift my spirits before heading to the doc for some minor surgery, I have been cooking and baking, as well as visiting the farmers market too. All to say that won't fill this post with lots of words, but rather offer ... Read Full Story
As any regular reader of this blog might guess, pizza has always been a favorite for me. It can be interpreted in so many way. And its derivative names comes in so many different languages! Here's my own addition to those pies and names. This pie is an off shoot of two cultural mainstays; a marriage of sourdough Neapolitan pizza with Alsatian ingredients of a flammeküche, a pizza with no borders!
This will be going to Zorra 1 x umrühren for her pizza BBD 2 year anniversary, viel spaße!(Got t... Read Full Story
Bread and beer are, by far, two of my favorite food and drink. They are intertwined by virtue of similar ingredients and fermentation processes The... Read Full Story
In just a few months I will be taking a Artisan baking course at SFBI. I signed on with the encouragement of fellow bloggers/bakers, MC and Susan. It wasn't hard after an interview I had recently with it's founder Michel Suas.So when I saw both Susan and MC making a sprouted wheat grain bread from a whole grain workshop they both attended, I really wanted to try it. A while back, I had tried a sprouted grain, rather unsuccessfully. It left me worried of the biological hazards I might ... Read Full Story
My latest experiments in rye bread have been relatively good. I took out my notebooks from school and followed my archaic notes, going for a 70/30 percent rye-wheat combination loaf. Both my teachers, David Norman and Nick Greco had shared duties teaching us the different parts of the course. David was a numbers man, Nick a hands on baker. We would get formulas from the handbook, but most often got a more personal lesson, with each teachers own variations and experience filling in the blanks.... Read Full Story
Since trying a prune and hazelnut bread at Montreal's Olive et gourmando, I have been craving it. The recollection on my palate lingered and most recently a fabulous example of such a bread was showcased on my friend MC's fabulous blog. After she made it I just had to give a try. I found this formula on a French baking forum on which I was once a member, giving me access to the professional formulas.Though my starter is usually active and refreshed twice daily, I had it stored over ... Read Full Story
Before enrolling into culinary school, I enrolled in the U.S. Army. There, I learned how to shoot an M-16, throw grenades, and explode landmines. I also learned to both sling hash and biscuits. Biscuits, you see were great for knocking tiles off the roof of the NCO club, terrific target practice to attain rank as "biscuit sharpshooter!" It's been about 20-plus years since I left the military and flung myself head first into the food business. A lot of what I learned is still i... Read Full Story
