bread
Amateur bread bakers often struggle to create a crisp crust that gives way to a soft crumb beneath, using high-hydration dough and various techniques to infuse steam into the early stages of baking. Recently, I became aware of a shortcut that uses a crunchy topping to achieve something similar. While
bread
One of the best aspects of my buttermilk bread dough is it's versatility. It works equally well in loaves, rolls, and even cinnamon rolls. It's a classic, soft white bread with a bit of sweetness and richness, but no one would confuse it with a cake
bread
Bagel dough is typically characterized by low hydration dough, with a hydration (weight of water/weight of flour) typically hovering around 60%. This results in a dense texture that many associate with bagels, but can make the dough hard to work with.I made a batch my traditional bagels, but
bread
While I prefer alkali-boiled bagels, I have this lingering feeling that their crust is a bit softer than the ones I boil in neutral water. In an attempt to (excuse the term) neutralize this effect, I cooked my latest batch of baking soda boiled bagels for 30 minutes instead of
dessert
Skillet lasagna is a weeknight favorite in my household, but one skillet's worth typically involves half a typical 1 pound container of ricotta. What do do with the other half? Lemon ricotta cookies are an easy solution. I based this version off a recipe from the New York
bread
Instead of throwing out leftover bananas, they are best used up in banana bread. If you don't have 3 large ones sufficient for this recipe, freeze them until your stock is adequate. This is a tweaked version of a recipe that I enjoy ever time. It has a
dessert
Chocolate chip cookies are great, but there is something about M&M cookies (the colors, the candy crunch) that adds another dimension, especially for kids. I adapted my favorite chocolate chip cookie recipe for these cookies. While I prefer the chocolate chip version in larger form and slightly under
bread
Homemade bagels are never perfected. They can always be tweaked and improved upon. The goal posts shift. Tastes evolve. New ingredients and techniques highlight different strengths and weaknesses.My current recipe is based off of this recipe by Bruce Ezzell. The main difference from my initial forays into home bagel
dessert
Cinnamon rolls are almost unversally loved, but also subject to strong personal preferences. The most controversial aspect is the dough: some prefer a rich, brioche-like bread while others like to contrast of a leaner dough with the sweet filling. My family falls somewhere in the middle. After trying a range
bread
The New York Times recently had a piece about baking bagels with lye. Given my predilection for homemade bagels (and strong support of the use of lye) I took a look at their recipe for Baron bagels. While I've had good success with Peter Reinhart's recipe
Summer is a bountiful time for fruit, but there's only so much plain fruit I can eat. Jam is a great way to store fruit for year-round use, but there are times when I need more immediate satisfaction. Pie is the obvious solution. For summer, I've
dessert
It would be fantastic if one could just melt chocolate wihtout much attention and mold it into whatever use came to mind, but that's not the case. Chocolate that has been simply heated without regard to temperature can form a streaky mess with off flavors. The right way