Jaques Pepin
By far, Jacques Pepin is one of my favorite chefs, instructor, and author. His current television and very comprehensive book, Essential Pepin, is a excellent source of information. It continues Jacques’ never ending passion for cooking, teaching, and helping the average cook to become … Continue reading
Kneadless Bread?
No knead bread is a surprising straight forward process that is being written about, and has been identified as a method of making bread that is very old. Yes, this is an old technique that is getting a new life … Continue reading
Gill – A unit of measure
One of the sides of reading old books and doing research on food history, is finding out things that have been pretty much eliminated by our modern language. One such thing is a unit of measure referred to as a … Continue reading
Christmas Cookies Anyone?
Christmas is truly a wonderful time of the year for me. I love to bake Christmas cookies, desserts, and meals. This year will be no different. In fact, my children, 10 and 12 will be in the kitchen with me … Continue reading
What is Shortening? Yesterday and today
Originally, “shortening” was a term applied to a solid fat at room temperature such as lard (pig fat either rendered or not), butter (more likely margarine), or hydrogenated vegetable oil, that was used in baking to prevent cross linking of gluten molecules to make a crumbly pastry. Today Continue reading
“Betty Crocker Cookbook” – 1950
The very first cookbook I remember is my mother’s copy of the Betty Crocker’s Picture Cook Book by General Mills. My mother cooked many a dish when I was young and frequently went to this book. By today’s standards it needs some updating, but other things are still taught today and are excellent techniques.
As an example, measuring flour Continue reading
The Beginning…
“This is my invariable advice to people: Learn how to cook- try new recipes, learn from your mistakes, be fearless, and above all have fun!”
― Julia Child, My Life in France
I love to cook, bake and spend time in the kitchen. Both family and friends are always welcome to come and Continue reading