There has been a lot of internet chatter these days about New York style bagels and how to recreate them at home since Cook’s Illustrated posted their test results and evaluation.
Well, in order to compare a formula to a New York bagel, you have to have eaten enough of them to know what the ‘real deal’ actually is. If the comparison is to a major chain like H&H then you are not really achieving greatness. I grew up in a neighborhood next to Coney Island in Brooklyn. The area was a mix of Irish, first and second generation Sicilian, second and third generation Jewish immigrants. If there were two things we knew well, it was pizza and bagels! The best bagels came from a bagel bakery at the end of Cropsey Avenue called, unsurprisingly, Cropsey Bagels. Unfortunately, they are no longer in business, which is a huge loss to bagel fans everywhere. They made the perfect bagel. First, these bagels had height! They sat at least five inches from the table. They had a beautiful, shiny, golden glow. The crumb was light, soft and tender, and the taste! They had a complex flavor profile that reminded me of a mild yet malty sourdough. The only other bagel I have had that came close to this bagely perfection came from Bagel Train, in Suffern, New York— Thankfully, they are open and doing quite well. There are many places to buy bagels around my home. None of them come close the magic of Cropsey Bagels. I knew, if I wanted it, I had to try to recreate them at home. I tried a number of recipes, but, so far, the one I like the best comes from The Culinary Institute of America’s Artisan Breads At Home book by Eric Kastel. However, I made a few small modifications. First, I make the malt-boil, I add more malt syrup than the recipe calls for (by 2 Tablespoons). Next, I put the bagels into an ice bath when they come out of the boiling water, then I will roll them in my toppings (my "everything" topping comes from King Arthur Flour) I ALWAYS proof overnight. The longer they rest, the more the flavor profile will develop. So if I want them on Sunday morning, I start Saturday morning and let them proof for like 15 hours in the fridge. I’ll take them out about one hour before baking, and I bake them directly on top of a hot steel in a 500-degree oven. Rolling them is a bit tricky, but after a few tries, you get the hang of it.
0 Comments
I was looking in my pantry at a package of macadamia nuts that I brought back from Hawaii this winter and thinking about cookies. I made a Cranberry Macadamia Cookie a few years ago that I really loved, but I couldn't remember where I wrote down the recipe. So I decided to try Epicurious' version instead.
I replaced the butter with Earth Balance Baking Sticks and omitted the white chocolate chips (it's almost impossible to find dairy free white chocolate). The cookie dough itself has a nice balance of chewy:crispy. They spread a little more than I'd have liked in the pan, but overall - it's a good cookie. Every week, I bake a batch of sourdough bread to eat during the week. Lately, I've been using Peter Reinhardt's Bread Baker's Apprentice recipe, which is a 3-day formula. I love this recipe because it gives me a deliciously flaky crust with a soft but structured crumb and a complex "sour" flavor.
For this morning's loaf, I decided to have fun with the scoring. I channeled my inner Tim Burton and decided to play with double spiral patterns. I'm really pleased with the results. It even gave me a hint of an ear on the loaf.
Wash the clams thoroughly in cold water. The clams should be closed tightly. If one is open a touch, tap on it. If it closes again, it’s fine. If not, toss it. In the bottom of a six-quart sauce pan, add the wine, clam juice, butter, garlic and herbs (reserving some of the parsley to garnish the dish at the end). Season the liquid (remember to go light on the salt with clams) Add the clams into the bottom of the pot. Cover and bring to a boil. Have a clean bowl ready and next to the stove. Start checking the clams at about 6 minutes. Remove any that have opened. At this point, I watch them – uncovered, because they are going to start opening. You don’t want to leave any clams in the pot once they have opened because they will overcook and get leathery. Discard any clams that don’t open after 10+ minutes. Once all of the clams are out, pull out the garlic from the liquid and add it to the bowl with the clams. Then line a strainer with a cheesecloth or a paper towel and pour the liquid through the strainer into your bowl with the clams. You do this to remove any sand that may have come from the clams when they opened. I like to finish them with a dab of butter/Earth balance, fresh parsley and some freshly grated black pepper. If I were to serve this over pasta, I’d reduce the strained liquid down into a slightly thicker sauce, and then pour it over the clams/pasta. I love to eat this with some crusty bread to sop up the liquid. Ingredients:
This morning, I found an article in my Facebook newsfeed from Epicurious called How To Make Dinner in a Rice Cooker. Considering I make dinner in a rice cooker at least once a week, I figured I’d check it out. They have some great ideas in this article – including a few that I haven’t tried. But it inspired me to share some of the simple rice cooker meals that I make. Springtime Rice
Combine in rice cooker, set it and forget it. Buttered Rice With Toasted Seaweed
Enough toasted Nori to mix into the rice Cook the rice, add the Nori to the finished rice in the bowl. (aprox 2 sheets) Coconut Rice Pudding
Set the rice cooker, remove the finished pudding and serve. You can serve this hot or cold. Steel cut Oats with Frozen Berries This is a wintertime favorite. I like this when it’s so cold outside that I need something warm and filling with a touch of berries to remind me that summer will come again.
Sometimes I'll dress the bowl with some real maple syrup, other times just a pat of Earth Balance (or butter). I have to thank Nancie McDermott for this recipe. While it’s different from the recipe she shared in my Craftsy course with her, I never could have gotten to this stage without her original recipe and her help.
Traditional Pad Thai uses certain ingredients that are difficult to find in the U.S., like tamarind, garlic chives, dried shrimp and a Thai pickled radish that I don’t know the proper name of. I can find tamarind paste sometimes in the Latin or Asian markets. I don’t live close enough to a really good Asian market to find dried shrimp and if I want garlic chives, I have to grow them myself. So, my version has some adaptations based on ingredients that more readily accessible. Shrimp Pad Thai
Soak the noodles in a large bowl filled with cold water for about 30 minutes. Make sure the water covers the noodles completely. The will become soft – but still leathery and change color from ivory to bright white Prepare the sauce: in a medium bowl, combine the fish sauce, soy sauce, honey, Tamarind, juice, lime juice, vinegar, paprika, and chili. Using a whisk, stir to mix everything well and dissolve the honey into a fairly smooth sauce. Place a serving platter for the finished noodles by the stove, along with a a pair of long-handled metal tongs for tossing the noodles. Prepare the remaining ingredients and have them handy by the stove. When you are ready to cook, drain the noodles well and place them by the stove. In a large wok, heat 2 tablespoons of the oil over medium heat until hot. Add the garlic and toss well until it releases its fragrance. Scatter in the shrimp and toss well. Cook the shrimp until they are firm and bright pink but not cooked through - about 1 minute. Remove the shrimp from the wok and set aside. Add the drained noodles and pull the mass of noodles apart to expose them to the hot pan. Add the shrimp stock and cook by tossing now and then and spreading the noodles out to expose them to the heat. When they begin to curl, whiten, and soften, stir the sauce mixture well and add about half of it, pouring it in around the sides of the pan. Toss well and cook, scooping and tossing and pulling the noodles apart to cook them evenly. Add a little more stock, pouring it around the sides in small amounts, to discourage the noodles from sticking. Add the remaining sauce and toss well. Lift the mass of noodles on one side, and pour the remaining oil onto the hot pan. Turn the pan to coat it with the oil, and add the beaten eggs. Turn the pan to spread them out, and let them cook undisturbed until they begin to set. Let the noodles cover the eggs and cook briefly. Then toss and scoop to mix the eggs into the noodles. Add half of the bean sprouts, and toss well. Add the green onions and half of the peanuts, and toss well. Scoop the noodles onto the serving platter. Pour the reserved lime juice over the noodles, and garnish with the remaining bean sprouts, remaining peanuts, and lime wedges. I like to finish it with some minced basil too. Serve hot.
Perfectly Poached Eggs
For perfect poached eggs, the most important step is to use fresh eggs. There are many tricks, gadgets and assorted cheats that people use when poaching eggs, like: · Putting them into plastic wrap before placing them into the water, so they retain their shape. · Using a poaching pan (which is really more like a double boiler) · Nuking them in a water bath in the microwave · Straining the raw egg first before putting them into the water Wonder How does a fantastic job of summarizing all of these different egg poaching methods in their poached egg blog. Each method has its merits, but I’m a fan of the old fashioned, traditional method that Alton Brown demonstrates to us here: Don’t have time for the video? His recipe (which I use every time) can be found here. I discovered this drink last summer, purely by accident. I had a very watery watermelon that I cut into chunks and put into a bowl. When I took it out of the fridge a few hours later, it was 2/3 full with watermelon juice. So I strained the juice into a cup, thew in some watermelon chunks and a few mint sprigs - and added vodka and ice. A friend came by and between the two of us, we must have knocked down at least 3 tall glasses of this cocktail each.
Well, I saw some small watermelons at the Farmer's Market this morning and bought one. When I came home, I was thinking about how lovely this drink would be with gin. So I poured some Bombay gin into the bottom of my glass, added the ice, watermelon chunks, mint sprigs and watermelon juice. I was right. It's incredible. 1 1/2 thumbs Bombay Gin 1/2 cup watermelon juice 1 mint sprig (approximately 6 leaves) 1/2 cup watermelon chunks Ice (to taste) Mix in a 12 ounce glass and serve cold. Spring vegetables are particularly awesome -- not just because they taste great (and they do) but because it's the first time in six months that we are able to eat, fresh locally grown produce again.
This winter was particularly long, cold and snowy. The ground froze nearly three feet down. So when the thaw started, the water tables were extremely high. Two months later, they remain high, which is why we are able to have lush green lawns and vibrant spring flowers with very little rain. The spring has been especially kind to the asparagus. I went out into the field with my friend Sue (she runs Pine Hill Farm in Blooming Grove, NY) to help her pick asparagus this week. When I took my CSA share home, I ate it right raw, right out of the bag-- it was so tasty! One of the easiest ways to cook asparagus is on the grill. Here's how I do it... Sue's asparagus was so tender that it didn't even need a trim, but if yours is woody at the bottom, take a peeler and shave off the skin at the bottoms. Ingredients: 1 large bunch of Asparagus, trimmed 2 tablespoons olive oil 1 tablespoon Balsamic Vinegar Salt and Pepper to taste Put the cleaned, dried asparagus into a long flat dish with 2" sides. Season them with salt and pepper and coat them with the oil and vinegar. Let them sit for about 20 minutes while you preheat your grill. Add them to a very hot grill and watch them carefully because they can burn quickly. Remove them at the early signs of caramelization. Return them to the oil and vinegar marinade and serve. |
DebI'm a home cook with a lifelong passion for learning, exploring and experimenting in my kitchen. You can find me at @Debs1 on Twitter and @Debs121212 on Instagram. Categories
All
Archives
July 2020
This website uses marketing and tracking technologies. Opting out of this will opt you out of all cookies, except for those needed to run the website. Note that some products may not work as well without tracking cookies. Opt Out of Cookies |