STIR THE POTS

Panettone en Français

Panettone is a distinctly Italian masterpiece steeped in tradition and artistry. In my own efforts to achieve this level of skill, I have  tried following Italian masters of those traditions. My technique has had its ups and downs. And this year's first effort was unorthodox, using an array of resources as well as it giving it a French approach, such as Thomas-Treffi Chambelland founder of the L'ecole international de boulangerie's book on bread, levain and more. I've relished using his set of books, even if I have to translate sporadically on google. This foray into panettone made the mystery and secrets of this art so easy to do even in French.

 

Scrap Dough

"Discard" is a term used by some bakers for excess sourdough. I think it's a terrible name as it reminds me of waste, something no one in the world of food much wants to encourage. Recently I found out that a niece of mine in Switzerland had quit her bakery apprenticeship at what was supposedly a first class establishment. I asked why she had quit.  It seems waste was rampant, discarding trimmings. Discard wasn't recycled or used. She was disgusted and couldn't see herself in that vicious circle. Thinking about her commitment and passion, I experimented with croissant scraps - incorporating them into a milk dough. Viennoiseries, for instance, can be layered into non-laminated dough, introducing a different feel (feuilletages) of flakiness. No waste, just pastry... kaboom! 

Preserving In Oil

Sottòlio is a method of preserving vegetables in oil, usually bathing them in vinegar as a pickling agent. With a batch of vegetables going south - from peppers to artichokes - I decided it was time to give this method a chance. Simultaneously, I was introduced to a way to making the Lebanese dish known as "labne," something in between a yogurt and a cheese. It worked perfectly with my preserved vegetables. Together these imbibed goodies are wonderful for salads, antipasti side dishes or just on bread as a shmear. Delicious. 

Goat Butter

Goat butter has always interested me in the possibility in baked goods, why you ask ... But seriously, I love goat and sheep cheeses, they have a different flavor, and easier to digest then cow's milk. The trail of my endeavors go way back, I found in my local supermarket both goat milk and butter. I'd sneak in a pound of butter into my basket, my partner doesn't like goat anything, childhood development issues it seems.. And many of those  projects failed and I reconsidered the price quotient and waste, that is until recently when my Viennoiserie game caught fire and was at peak, that I snuck in some goat butter if found at the grocery from a UK dairy and laminated it precariously. It was a bit leaky, and I crossed my fingers. Here's what I got..golden layers.

Sour Pickles

I've made pickles in the past, including this variety. My first batch was a bit salty. But I got tired of buying  industrially-produced German  pickles. They're "okay" but not nearly as satisfying as the homemade pickles I've had throughout the years.  Having in the past overdone the salt, this time I vigilantly focused, measured and followed a recipe exactly to the last gram. I also slowed down the fermentation. Finally with hours turning into days and weeks, I am ready to open them They look so good in the jar, inspiring delicious visions of corned beef and pastrami sandwiches. 

Poppy Seed Roll

Poppy seed rolls are a goody that I  first enjoyed at New York City's legendary Lower East Side Jewish delis and bakeries.  But later I discovered great poppy seed rolls could be found in the Polish enclave of Greenpoint in Brooklyn. I remember biking over to the neighborhood with my buddy, Michael, visiting a great Polish bakery, Rzeszowska, which has now since closed.  I often yearn for a sliver of this treat. Recently, using some extra laminated brioche dough mix of poppy seed (masa makowa) filling, I rolled up a loaf. It was a success - the meeting of poppy seed with light French brioche. It made me think of the old saying; "let them eat cake."

Brioche Feuilletée

A project this past summer was baking varieties of "brioche feuilletée." It's a laminated brioche dough in which the baker holds back part of the butter in its building. During hotter weather, any butter-rich Viennoisserie can be tricky. It's recommended to keep the kitchen air conditioned and maintain dough chilled between the folds.  Always remember to measure and weigh dough to loaf pans size accordingly, as these doughs grow. What's so pleasing is the feel the light airy baked pieces, golden and flaky made from levain.

Special Breads

Among my few but favorite possessions are a series of baking books. They go back to my Culinary school days and include both pastry and bread baking books. The two bread books alone are packed with years worth of baking methods and techniques. When first purchased, they seemed an expensive but worthwhile investment in my career, though at the time I focused on becoming a chef. Just starting out, I also had minimal excess money at the end of each month.

Fast forward 30-years and I have gained a bit of knowledge from experience, but also grown passion for specific areas, especially around baking bread. Looking recently at the second volume of my bread books I noticed the name of co-author Eric Kayser, a wonderful baker whose bakery in Paris I visited years ago. Later he came to New York where I followed him, as well.  Sadly there's this recent news on his bakery chain (and others), that remind me of the impact of this terrible pandemic. And yet still we bake. Here are some examples of classics of this fully French-filled repertoire from the books, the formulas that have recently inspired another immersion. Below are some photographs of the results. 

Return To Work

My workplace gave us employees a phone call a few weeks ago. "Come back to work!"  I am now acting as both the morning baker as well as lunch and evening chef, as we are trying to save on bread. Why? We are only at 25-percent capacity using outdoor seating. Though next week we'll move indoors but we're still cost-conscious. This new practice  has given me more responsibilities but also the chance to experiment with  fresh levain. Our menu is paired down, less innovative, but we try to make the best with limited hands and time, precision and no waste.

Beef Cheeks

Planning for a last minute dinner, we did our meat shopping at Harlem Shambles, a boutique butcher with several locations around New York City. Asking about the different cuts of meat, the butcher talked me into beef cheeks. I owe those butchers a big thanks, as those beef cheeks led a French-inspired menu that left each guest with a happy belly and a smiling face.