Moon over the Simple Needs Alleyway
Tired Baking Bootcamper
Archive | September, 2010
Bakery Bootcamp Photos Part One: Randy’s Pasteries
28 SepI promised Randy he would get his own day on Mod Meals because of the variety of pastries he made – and the lack of attention he sometimes got from working by himself in the back. I joked the entire night that Randy never took breaks – although he did take a break around 5am to check the moon, peak at the sun coming up and grab a hot piece of Oat Molasses Bread with butter. Randy might get two days because his work was so photogenic!
Cheddar Chive Scones hot out of the Oven!
Sticky Buns!
Chocolate Croissants
Baking Bootcamp at Simple Kneads Bakery
26 Sep
One of the most hidden gems in our downtown is a small artisan bakery on the 200 block of South Elm Street. Almost every Friday, I treat myself to a walk down the street for a baguette at Simple Kneads. Very much like this blog, Simple Kneads isn’t all about the food – it is about the experience. The bakery has the unique ability to excite almost all of your senses. Feeling and seeing the warm glow of oven heat radiating against the walls, the smell of freshly baking breads and pastries and the sound of customers sharing stories of how the bakery brings back the fondest memories. And of course the tastes…
As you can imagine, leaving the bakery each Friday has left me with a profound sense of curiosity and strong desire to experience what it like to actually bake the bread. I expressed these feelings to both friends and coworkers and they all said the same thing, “Do you know the hours?” I knew that professional baking couldn’t be what they make it in the movies but I had a mission to prove this to myself. It couldn’t be as romantic as it is on the big screen. Life in a bakery couldn’t be a movie styled by Susan Spungen. It wasn’t the classic scenes I hold so dear – Jack Nicolson and Helen Hunt’s last words in As Good as It Gets (“warm rolls“), Tom Hanks’ love letter (email) to Meg Ryan in You’ve Got Mail describing the way that flour comes out of the New York City streets from bagel shops like clouds in early morning, or Meryl Streep making chocolate croissants for Steve Martin in the after hours scene in It’s Complicated.
I brought up the idea of working in Simple Kneads to my friend Haley who works there during the day behind the counter. The title of the email was “Am I crazy?” As a fellow food lover and writer, she responded encouraging me to do it. She assisted me in approaching the bakery owner, Bill, a couple days later and I brought up the idea of allowing me to shadow his team for a night to observe their process. I wanted to lend a hand, get a feel for their work – and mostly, get the urge to bake out of my system. I signed up for a night shift starting at 1am and getting off at 9am. So this past Friday, I took a break from home cooking and joined the baking team at Simple Kneads.
The baking team is made up of four bakers – each with his own shift, duties and baking schedule. Randy is the master of all pastries. On Friday night he made hundreds of breakfast pastries – including a variety of danishes filled with cream cheese and fruit compotes, sweet and savory scones, cinnamon buns, sticky buns, muffins, vegan muffins, and of course, croissants — chocolate croissants.
Mike and Bryan start the night together as a dynamic baking duo. They have a master schedule on the wall of all the bread they need to make throughout the night, rising times, baking times – and ultimately tasking themselves to get it all done in time for Farmer’s Market pick up around 5am. Bill, the bakery owner, arrives at 3am to pitch in and help execute getting everything ready to pick up, deliver and open the store. Together the three of them make hundreds of loaves of hand made breads using traditional European techniques. Friday they made baguettes, whole wheat, French white, asaigo peppercorn, molasses oat, sourdough, olive and many more.
Between listening to the BBC radio (their chance to pick up news during the night) and switching to Led Zeppelin and The Talking Heads (their “Saturday Morning Mix”) around 3am, they exchange thoughts on good food, music and politics. Every nervous feeling I had about coming to an unknown place to work with strangers in the middle of the night was broken down by their friendliness and passion for their work. They are proud of the products they make and happy to share their stories. We chatted about everything from their wives, their sleeping schedules and their feelings on peanut allergies. I asked them how much bread they ate considering how much time they spend making it – they all admitted they eat the bread daily. And included me in the late night ritual of snagging a favorite loaf just out of the oven and smearing it with room temperature European butter for a “midnight snack.”
To food lovers, Bill, Randy, Bryan and Mike just may be the unsung heroes of the world. Between high moon and sunrise while most of the world is fast asleep, they sneak in to make some of the most charished treats and exit before any customers arrive. They head off to make their wives breakfast, or to the farmers market or even to their next gig before the stories are shared and compliments are given.
So, unexpectedly, I’m concluding this post with a confession. I was wrong! Bakeries, or at least this one, are as romantic as the movies make them! I had the most incredible time on Friday night. Rarely did I feel tired – just energized by their teamwork, passion and kindness. My only regret was not buying a couple loaves to go. I was craving toast when I woke up from my nap.
My gratitude to all the folks at Simple Kneads for satisfying my craving, including me in their process and sharing their enthusiasm. I’ll share my photos this week.
Lee Brothers Cheese Straws
22 Sep
Growing up my mom used to rave about the cheese straws from Rhodes Bakery in Atlanta. I remember thinking they were only for special occasions. Indeed, with all the cheese, flour and butter – they should be. And, what could more special than a train ride to Charlotte to see Lady Gaga? I went on a wild web search looking for the recipe from Rhodes but found nothing. Over and over, I found people making the Lee Brother’s recipe and decided that I would try it. Actually, I tried Smitten Kitchen’s adapted version of their recipe – and it worked quite well. Not quite as good as the ones I remember but delicious. Two batches made plenty for the trainride and drinks in the hotel plus enough leftover for my puppy sitter.
Cheese Straws from Smitten Kitchen
Adapted from The Lee Bros. Southern Cookbook
1 1/2 cups (about 6 ounces) grated extra-sharp Cheddar cheese
4 tablespoons (1/2 stick or 2 ounces) unsalted butter, softened and cut into 4 pieces
3/4 cup flour, plus more for dusting
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1 tablespoon half-and-half (I used cream, because I had it on hand; suspect milk would work just as well)
1. Preheat oven to 350°F.
2. In a food processor, combine the cheese, butter, flour, salt and red pepper in five 5-second pulses until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Add the half-and-half and process until the dough forms a ball, about 10 seconds.
3. On a lightly floured surface, using a lightly floured rolling pin, roll the dough into an 8- by 10-inch rectangle that is 1/8-inch thick. With a sharp knife (or a pizza or pastry wheel; both worked great), cut the dough into thin 8-inch strips, each 1/4- to 1/3-inch wide (dipping the knife in flour after every few inches ensures a clean cut). Gently transfer the strips to an ungreased cookie sheet (though I lined mine with parchment), leaving at least 1/4-inch between them. The dough may sag or may break occasionally in the transfer, but don’t be concerned — just do your best. The straws can be any length, from 2 to 10 inches.
4. Bake the straws on the middle rack for 12 to 15 minutes, or until the ends are barely browned. Remove from the oven and set the cookie sheet on a rack to cool.
5. Serve at room temperature. Cheese straws will keep in the refrigerator, in a sealed container, for two days. They will not last an hour at a party.
Tomato & Basil Tea Sandwiches
22 Sep
My culinary friend, Ruth, served these tiny tomato sandwiches for a fundraiser we threw together years ago. I never forgot how good they were – and how elegant they came together with so few ingredients.
Without knowing at the time, Ruth made two good points about entertaining and cooking through this most simple dish. She caters events, so she knows some secrets to conserving time. She made the mayo, cut the bread and marinated the tomatoes the night before. We just assembled right before guests arrived. (This is also a great project for awkward people who show up early to parties.) She also demonstrated that flavor can be added to a dish without being an “actual ingredient”. Ruth used onion to add flavor to the tomatoes but didn’t include them on the sandwiches. Everyone likes onion flavor but doesn’t want to bite into a secret raw onion at a cocktail party! Great idea!
Now that all her secrets are on the world wide web, here is her recipe. Thanks Ruth!
Ruth’s Tomato & Basil Tea Sandwiches
Ingredients:
- 1 loaf thinly sliced white bread (Pepperidge Farm)
- 6 or 7 roma tomatoes
- one half small yellow onion
- 2 handfuls fresh basil
- 1 clove garlic
- 1 cup mayo
- 1 lemon, juiced
- salt and pepper
- olive oil
Assembly: The night before, slice the tomatoes and combine with sliced onion. Season with salt, pepper and a splash of olive oil. Marinate overnight. Using a food processor, mince half the fresh basil and garlic clove. Stir in mayo and lemon juice. Season with salt and pepper to taste. The next day, cut the white bread using a biscuit cutter about the same diameter of the roma tomatoes. Smear both sides with mayo and top with tomato (discard onion) and a fresh basil leave. Serve immediately.
Fried Chicken Fingers with Sour Cream & Horseradish Dipping Sauce
21 Sep
If there is one thing my childhood friends go “gaga” for at my parent’s house, it is my Mom and Dad’s fried chicken. My Mom actually has to promise my good friend Michael that she will make him fried chicken and mashed potatoes when he returns to Gainesville for the holidays (it is really her plea to see him once a year).
One of the best things about fried chicken at my parents house is that they make so much of it that we eat it for picnics the next couple days. It is good after a long day of shopping (me and Mom) or a fishing trip (my sister and dad). And, it is almost as good cold as it is hot.
If it couldn’t get any better – just wait. I can’t have this chicken without my parent’s good friend Judy’s Sour Cream and Horseradish Dipping Sauce. It is unexpectedly delightful and simple to assemble. I like mine extra spicy but you can make it to your liking.
Since people go ‘gaga’ for this chicken – I thought it would be the perfect treat for our train ride on the Carolinian to Charlotte for the Lady Gaga concert. I made the chicken and dipping sauce the night before and packed it right before our trip. disposable paper boxes, a little tissue paper and recycled mustard jar for the dipping sauce made the perfect container. The last thing I wanted to do was bring dirty dishes back on the train.
Tommy T’s Fried Chicken Fingers with Judy B’s Sour Cream and Horseradish Dipping Sauce
Ingredients:
- 1 pint buttermilk
- 3 to 4 splashes tabasco sauce
- 2 or 3 pounds chicken tenderloin
- 2 or 3 cups flour
- salt and pepper
- cayenne pepper
- half pint sour cream
- hot fresh horseradish
Assembly: Soak chicken in buttermilk and tabasco for 24 hours. When ready to fry, coat the chicken with a mix of plain flour with some salt, pepper and cayenne (to taste). Fry in a in a deep cast iron pan with hot canola oil (about 350 to 375 degrees). Don’t crowd the pieces. Once the first side looks good, turn the heat down to low and simmer the chicken for about 5 minutes , then turn the heat back up to crisp the other side. If cooking chicken with bones, you will need to increase the cooking time. The slow cooking is really what makes it good, but you’ve got to have the grease hot when you finish and take out the pieces, or they won’t be crispy. Lightly salt when they come out of the oil. Use a deep cast iron pan if you have one—it holds the heat better. Cool completely before you refrigerate.
Mix sour cream and horseradish together to your taste. Serve on the side for finger licking good chicken.
Train Ride to the Monster Ball Menu
19 Sep
This weekend thousands of “little monsters” traveled to the Queen City to the Monster Ball (aka Lady Gaga Concert). My friends and I made a weekend out of it – planning a train ride from the Gate City to the Queen City, a night with Lady Gaga and a sleepover in Uptown. The train ride down on the Amtrak Carolinian wasnt complete without a full Southern picnic. I brought my absolute favorite family picnic item – homemade fried chicken and some new snacks I thought would pair well. I made most of the menu the night before and assembled the picnic in disposable boxes right before we took off. Everything on the menu was best cold or at room temperature – a perfect pair to cold beers.
After a hilariously fun and exhausting night, we all arrived back today admitting that our favorite part of the trip was our train ride down. Perhaps it was the anticipation of Gaga or the first cold beer of the day — but maybe it was the MMoM picnic!?! Either way, I highly recommend taking the train on your next trip! And don’t forget the picnic!
Train Ride to the Monster Ball Menu
Greensboro Depot's View of the Gate City
- Homemade Fried Chicken Fingers with Sour Cream Horseradish Sauce
- Tomato and Basil Tea Sandwiches
- Lee Brothers Cheese Straws
- Solo Cup Adult Beverages
