Thank You Stephen!
Posted on June 30, 2008
Filed Under Uncategorized | 1 Comment
(Stephen Durfee, pastry chef and host extraordinaire!)
For the past 5 days Jeff and I have been in the Bay Area promoting our book Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day.
While we were traveling in California my dear friend Stephen Durfee, who happens to be a former teacher, my mentor and a James Beard winning pastry chef at The French Laundry
Let me not leave out Emily Luchetti who so generously lent us her pastry kitchen at Farallon to do our baking. She too has been an inspiration to me as a pastry chef from back when she was at Stars
Not even 12 hours after coming home and unpacking, I am packed up and leaving again tomorrow morning. This time to Florida. Yes, Florida in July. Partly to promote the book on TV in Tampa, but most importantly to celebrate my grandmother’s 90th birthday!!!
Thank you all for your wonderful notes and questions while I have been away. I will continue to check in and write when I can.
Thanks! Zoë
White Peach and Raspberry Pie, Pure Summer!
Posted on June 24, 2008
Filed Under pie, dessert, recipe | 19 Comments
After a winter of nothing but citrus, I’m about ready to go crazy, which my husband claims I did during this past week’s trip to the market. I came home with a case of white peaches, a pile of plums and so many blueberries and raspberries that my kitchen looks like a fruit stand at the farmers market. I can’t resist, it is summer and I love fresh fruit! First I made a bunch of Brioche muffins studded with the peaches, plums and berries. But the real reason I bought all the fruit was to make pies. I love them, all of them and pies with ripe fresh fruit are my all time favorite summer dessert.
The first trick to a successful pie is a perfect crust, something I am always searching for. Unlike some families I didn’t inherit a pie dough recipe from my grandmothers. I got cookies and cakes and brisket, but no pie. So over the years I’ve tried nearly every recipe that I’ve ever seen. This time I used one found in the latest baking book by Dorie Greenspan Baking: From My Home to Yours
And to make the pie: Read more
Perfect Pie Dough 101 - lattice top
Posted on June 23, 2008
Filed Under basic, pie, recipe | 24 Comments
With very few ingredients you can make one of America’s most beloved desserts, the pie. We start with the crust, the frame which holds the filling, in this case white peach and raspberry. It should be tender and flaky, buttery and a lovely compliment to whatever you have put inside. I am forever hunting for what I consider the perfect pie crust. There are as many recipes as their are households. Every family seems to have their own prized recipe. If you are having a tough time recreating your grandmother’s crust, it may not be the fault of the recipe, but the technique you are using. Try following my instructions on how to make this dough, I got the recipe from Dorie Greenspan’s latest tome Baking: From My Home to Yours
Claudia’s Cake! part 2 fondant flowers
Posted on June 17, 2008
Filed Under cake | 16 Comments
Thank you all for the lovely comments on Claudia’s cake. It was so much fun to make. Now I will show you how to make the flowers. I used rolled fondant, but you can also use pastillage/gum paste, which will dry faster and harder. They are used in exactly the same way, but the pastillage/gum paste can be rolled much thinner and will hold up better.
What you will need: Read more
Claudia’s Cake! part 1 rolled fondant
Posted on June 10, 2008
Filed Under cake | 34 Comments
My neighbors Cynthia and Trent asked me to make a cake for their mom’s birthday party. Of course I wanted to do it, but as they described the style of cake she wanted I got down right giddy about it. “Something bright, colorful and wildly whimsical” were the words they used to describe her taste. Immediately I thought fondant! It isn’t my favorite thing in the world to eat, but it allows so much creativity with color, shapes and dimensions that you can’t always get with buttercream or other icings. Not to mention they were driving this cake about an hour away and in the heat of summer fondant is a great traveler.
There are a few things to know about fondant, but it really isn’t difficult to work with. I’m going to show you step by step how I put this cake together. You may want to start with something slightly less over-the-top, but maybe not!
What you will need: Read more
Come Get Your Hands in a Bucket of Dough!
Posted on June 3, 2008
Filed Under classes, press | 4 Comments
(Bret, Suvir Saran, Me and some of the wonderful students at the last class we taught at Bret’s Table)
Come to Bret’s Table on June 11th and roll your sleeves up. We’ll be making dough and baking bread. It is a wonderfully intimate kitchen, decked out with great equipment and a glass of wine. Bring your ideas and questions and we’ll tailor the night to what you want to learn. This is the beauty of a class with only 10 students. If you bring your own 6 quart bucket you can fill it with dough to bring home and continue baking. Read more
Outrageous Mocha Buttercream!
Posted on May 29, 2008
Filed Under cake, recipe | 29 Comments
This may be the most delicious buttercream I’ve ever made. I wish I could take all of the credit for it, but it is from Carol Bloom’s The Essential Baker
Baking Bread in Chicago, Seattle and San Francisco in June.
Posted on May 23, 2008
Filed Under classes, Artisan Bread book | 12 Comments
(photo of chocolate ganache bread (page 195) by Mark Luinenburg for Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day)
Jeff and I are heading out on the road in June. We’ll be in Chicago, Seattle and San Fransisco doing demos, teaching classes and baking bread, what we love most. Below is the the itinerary as of now. Our publisher seems to be adding new events all the time so please check back in the next week to see what else they have in store for us. Hope to see you!
Springtime Crêpes and Michelle Gayer’s “Salty Tart” Bakery!
Posted on May 19, 2008
Filed Under dessert, recipe, breakfast | 14 Comments
My friend Michelle, pastry chef extraordinaire (more on that later!), and I went to Porter & Frye for a little late night bite to eat. This was a spontaneous get together, a stolen moment between work and mothering. I’ve been wanting to try Porter & Frye because the executive chef, Steven Brown, is my ex-boss and one of the most talented men I have ever had the good fortune to meet. He, unfortunately had already put in his 12 hour day and wasn’t there when we arrived at nearly 10:00pm. But, his sous chef and pastry chef were still working and willing to whip something together for us. Read more
Balsamic Roasted Strawberries
Posted on May 18, 2008
Filed Under dessert, recipe | 12 Comments
This time of year the rhubarb is popping out of the ground and I am impatient to eat those first tender stalks with their natural sweet partner, the strawberry. But, there are no strawberries yet, at least not in my garden. In order to satisfy my craving I go against my desire to use only the freshest ingredients from local sources. It is a philosophy I adhere to as much as possible. However, I live in MN and that means I am VERY limited as to what I can eat during the 8 months of the year when nothing grows. I am determined to learn home-canning this year, then I’ll have summer fruits in February. Until then I do buy fruit that is not grown here, or anywhere near here. Read more
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