My Orange Cranberry Loaf Day

As the world knows we had a monster blizzard today in northern New Jersey. It was a perfect day to -what else but bake. I had wanted to use my loaf pan and make a sweet bread. I turned to an old friend - Pillsbury.

This is an easy make. The mix only needs a cup of water, two eggs and two tablespoons of vegetable oil.I then beat it with my trusty wooden spoon about seventy to eighty strokes to create a well mixed batter.It was then poured  into a well greased (I used I Can't Believe It 's Not Butter) eight by four loaf pan,

and then set it into a 375 degree F oven for fifty minutes. It came out perfectly as you can see from the  top view.The sides rose well and it had the perfect center crack to it.

Another plus was the dense crumb, thick and rich , more like a pound cake than a bread. As you can see it was good with a fat slick of more I Can't Believe It's Not Butter.

I like this  mix.It was easy and quick to use along with producing a cranberry and orange rich bread. The taste is phenomenal and the mix comes loaded with craisins  - dried cranberries.I definitely want to try their other flavors, such as their apple cinnamon, chocolate swirl, cinnamon, swirl and date breads. They make a nice breakfast with a cup of tea or coffee.

That's what I did with my snow day. Anyone else do any fantastic baking or cooking? Let us know here at FP.

A New Writer

The New York Times Food section has a new writer. Yotam Ottalenghi has joined the staff and with him will undoubtedly come interesting and fun recipes. Today's article will be no different with his spins on dessert. He gives cooking and creating an exotic vibe - perfect for the multicultural and always exciting Food section.

Chef Ottolenghi is much more than a cook. He's an entrepreneur. Visit his website and be dazzled by what's sold there. There are handmade heart shaped lollipops, seaweed and lavoosh  a kind of Armenian bread. There is also  a whole section of recipes.from starters to vegetarian from desserts to savory. His is a website that's hard to leave. He is a Jerusalem-born chef who studied at the London based Le Cordon Bleu and started with the first Ottolenghi deli n Knightsbridge, His cooking and recipes are a combination of Middle eastern, Syrian, Israeli, Armenian Lebanese, Turkish and Iranian. His cookbooks, such as Jerusalem reflect this with its' recipes of life. Today his premiere article is all about desserts and they have a Middle Eastern vibe. He promises more and more recipes with ingredients such as tahini along with spices and lemons, staples of Eastern Mediterranean cooking.Save his will be for interesting desserts to give dinners a  real eye opening finish.

Today's recipes are different, and not your typical dessert ones. Chef Ottalenghi gives us a refreshing granita. Like many Middle eastern desserts,it has rose petals along with pomegranate seeds and Pom juice.Mint is added for a refreshing bite. It's cooking everything down into a syrup and then straining it. As with a coffee granita, the liquid is frozen for two to three hours.a fork is used to separate the clumps and then  it'refrozen for two more hours. It's then scraped again  with the fork times being dragged across the top. This process is repeated  until the liquid is frozen into separate crystals throughout  which will take an extra eight to ten hours.Another  exotic sweet is pastry nests with poached pears, feta and saffron cream. This is an exotic take on classic poached pears with the nests made from kataifi pastry. or shredded phylo dough, These are spaghetti like strands that nestle the fruit. The pear , itself, is poached with such spices as cardamon , cinnamon, star anise, and a pinch of saffron. The saffron is also  added to the cream made with feta and a mix of mascarpone cheese and heavy cream.Slivered pistachios are aprinkled on top for crunch and texture.

Chef Ottolenghi is going to be a fun and fascinating fixture at the Food section. He'll bring a new vibe to dessert making, infusing classic recipes with a Middle eastern vibe. It'll be not just delicious sweets but ones full of flavor too.

It's All Baloney

One of the classics of the American lunch scene is bologna or baloney.It's graced many a sandwich and has been on many a picnic. This also fed many an office worker  and school kid too over the decades.

Baloney or bologna is as many cold cuts, from, no surprise - Bologna Italy. It's derived from mortadella, the delicately flavored larded and pistachio-studded sausage. America bologna or baloney does not have this, instead it is finely ground pork, although now it can be made from beef,  and even chicken and turkey. There are also soy and venison versions too. It's distinctive flavor comes from a melange of such spices as black pepper, nutmeg, coriander, allspice and myrtle berries.Most Americans are used to eating German bologna or fleischwurst which only has garlic in to season it.There is a polony type, eaten in Britain and South Africa, which is made with a mix of beef and pork. The cold cut is big in Central and eastern Europe too, where it is called pariser and made with either, poultry , beef or pork. Not surprisingly, there is also a halal version made with turkey, chicken or ham. Home chefs can also get a ring version of bologna. This is a smaller ring and usually used in making hors d'ouevres. Many Yanks had their first taste thanks to Oscar Mayer, the famed meat company started by Oscar and his brother Gottfried in the late 1880;s Now they even have a jalapeno (!) baloney for some interesting eating.

Many love a simple baloney sandwich. Nothing beats it, fresh cut, from Boarshead or packaged from Oscar Mayer on a Kaiser roll that's been slathered with a good mustard.It's good on white bread, such as Pepperidge's Farms; but even better on their pumpernickel and rye.Of course, there is fried bologna which many people love Try slicing it into strips and then add barbecue sauce for a take on pulled pork. Serve on Hawaiian rolls with a side of pickles or cole slaw. You could also try it the way great Cajun chef, Emeril  Lagasse , baked with Dijon mustard and brown sugar. This involves a six and a half pound bologna ( the ones you see hanging in a deli or butcher shop) and baking it for five hours ,plastered with the sugar and mustard.These give it a nice crust and makes for a tasty sandwich after, which is what Chef Lagasse recommends.Bologna can be made at home, using chuck roast or ground beef along with liquid smoke, garlic, and onion powder. everything is gorund together with ice water and then formed into a log.Afterwards, it's wrapped in plastic wrap and put into the fridge for twenty-four hours. The wrap is then removed and baked in a 300 degree Farenheit oven for  half an hour. The heat is then reducue to 250 and slow baked for an additioonal two and half more hours.


Baloney or bologna is the classic cold cut.It's delicious any way , from fried , baked or just cold from the container. Slap it on a favorite bread or roll.,  Add  a lick of mayo or mustard, then enjoy, it in a tasty sandwich.

Glaze or Frosting?

One of the toughest choices a home baker has to make is how to finish a cake, cupcake or cookie/ Do you go with the satiny, glossy glaze or the fluffy, buttery frosting? Therein lies the question. what works?.

I tackled this question last month, going into a great deal about the different types of icing out there. Now I will be making spice cake cupcakes from a Duncan Hines mix. Originally, I wanted to top them off with a frosting. Since the cake has more or less the same spices as carrot cake a cream cheese frosting would make sense. It has a tang to it that would work well with the cinnamon, allspice, coriander, ginger, and nutmeg. I even planned to use my new cake decorating set from Wilton, dreams of curlicues and roses dancing in my baker's head, Unfortunately, the frosting may be a bit overpowering in taste, the spices and the blend of cream cheese , butter  and vanilla competing with each other. Should I go with a plain buttercream?  Not enough oomph, and too dull. What about another spice cake topper - maple buttercream which sounds too super sweet. It is  -  paired with confectioners and in some recipes  - brown sugar. The taste alone would drown out the cake - not something I want in a frosting.

Inspiration came in the form of my favorite bakery. The B&W Bakery of Hackensack, New Jersey  has recipes from the original German owners. Even though the current owners are now Korean, they kept many of the original ones for cakes and icings. One is a spice cupcake with a chocolate icing glaze. Bingo!!! That 's what I want. The dark, earthy cocoa  notes will work well with the spices, highlighting them,, instead of smothering their different and unique flavors.It also won't' be that sweet either  since a few glaze recipes are only comprised of chocolate and whole cream. The question is what would be the best glaze? There are several recipes I found on the web. There is the one mentioned above that requires only scalding the cream and adding semi-sweet chocolate chips. I am leaning towards that one. Another calls for granulated sugar and cocoa powder. These are sifted together  and then warm water and butter are added to give it that liquidy glossiness. What is good about using a glaze is that it's easy to use on any baked good.  Just dip the cupcake tops into it, then twist them to get rid of the excess . That's it. No fancy squiggles or buds. It's easy and the cupcakes will look elegant as oppsed to just cute. I may add a candy heart on each cupcake, but that will be enough .

A  chocolate glaze is going to be perfect for my spice cupcakes. It'll not only highlight the cakes' flavor but also give them a lovely, classy look. Perfect to look at and perfect to eat.

Deep Nutrition A New Spin On Healthy Eating

Can food determine if we'll have perfect children? Is vegetable oil the cause of autism? These are some interesting questions posed and answered in a new  riveting book on dieting. It not only gives us advice and recipes but food for thought.

Deep Nutrition:Why Your Genes Need Traditional Food (Flatiron Books Publishing 2017) is a provocative book written by Dr. Catherine Shanahan M.D. that explores foods' impact on not just our bodies but our lives as well. Some chapters may be read with a raised eyebrow and a head scratch. According to Dr. Shanahan , even reproduction and producing the perfect baby is all down to what we eat. She recommends that there be at least three years age difference between children so all kids in a family get the benefits of the nutrients in their mother's body. It's that kind of philosophy that is eye opening.There are also chapters that deal with autism and the reason for it - which is vegetable oil. As we all know it is bad for us, and she goes into great detail as to why and what we can sub in its place.  A good chunk of the book is also focused on sugars and why they're bad along with their effect on the body and mind. She also goes after starches too and explains in great detail why they're bad. Dr. Shanahan is pro-carb along with giving advice on good and bad fats.

The book does have some recipes, namely salad dressing and sauerkraut. The doctor is big on fermented foods because probiotics are vital to gut health. There is also one for bone beef broth , or basically Paleo bone broth It is a tasty one because she adds mirepoix , the holy trinity of French cooking along with her version of a bouquet garni. What is surprising is that she does greenlight cold cuts with their nitrates and fats.She also OKs sausages and ham - again most dieticians and nutritionist would warn against this.Most will enjoy her meal charts that offer only three to five hundred calories and a number of different choices. The book provides a list of her favorite raw foods which readers will like too. There are such tasty choices as prosciutto, real milk and cream along with ice cream. Some may even like her list of organ meats such as chicken and duck liver pate along with blood sausage and lamb's kidneys fried in butter Yes, Dr. Shanahan recommends even hamburgers but they must be eaten in the original Hamburg style , without the bun and with  mushrooms in a demi-glace sauce.Also allowed are chicken with dumplings and turkey with gravy.It's not a bad diet if you can just give up any store  bought baked goods.fermented foods also are recommended  and she is big on them,suggesting kimchi and pickles.

Deep Nutrition: Why Your Genes Need Traditional Ford posing interesting ideas about the effects of food on every part of the human body.

is a truly riveting book.It's not your average diet and recipe book. It's much deeper,

Any Sharp Knife Sharpener A Sharp gadget

Knives are an integral part of any kitchen, whether home or restaurant. They always need to be sharp in order to slice  and dice, chop and mince. All this work makes them dull . Luckily there is a gadget out there that can restore sharpness/

Any Sharp Knife Sharpener is a neat, compact little gadget that's so small that it fits in the palm of your hand.mIt comes in the variety of colors and has a suction bottom that lets it attach to any surface. That means that home chefs can use two hands when honing their knives. There's also a long lasting polymer guiding top that won;t harm any blade. and is soft.There's also less chance of any accident happening too, with the Any Sharp honing to a perfect angle.Even those who have never sharpened a knife before will have great success with it, The directions are easy to follow , providing the knives are sharpened east to west or right to left.

Does it work? Look at the picture below. I used the family paring and slicing knife which hasn't been sharpened in a while . Look

I also used it on my Farberware knife.Unfortunately, I can't set the video just right but you can see how  it work

Knives are a vital part of any kitchen. They need to be precise and sharpened after many uses. Get the AnySharp knife sharpener  to hone your parers and carvers. 

Tout Les Eclairs

One of the most delicious pastries to enjoy is the French eclair. A true Gallic one, filled with delicate cream inside an airy puff of a choux shell is hard to find, non? Not anymore. There a fantastic new cookbook that has every kind of eclair from traditional to the innovative.

Award-winning pastry chef, Christophe Adam has written a very easy to follow book Eclairs,Easy Elegant and Modern Recipes (Robert Rose Press ) all about his signature dish, The classic French pastryParis features everything from popcorn stuffing to sexy eclairs. that feature not the traditional dark chocolate icing ,but a sexy sugar screened picture of a voluptuous Madame Noel or Mrs. Santa.It's no surprise that his good friend is Dominic Ansel, the creator of the famed and wanted cronut. Chef Adam, shares the same high-spirited sense of inventiveness and fun.The cookbook reflects his innovative style with such interesting and nontraditional ingredients as hazelnuts and passionfruits. Unlike some loftier pastry chefs, Chef Adam explains how to make the eclairs in simple language any home chef can understand along with providing detailed pictures of how-tos.What I like about it is the book is that he as a detailed and illustrated list of tools needed as well as his encouragement to go off script and come up with your own original fillings and toppings
, named after lightning,  has been elevated to gourmet status thanks to a sprucing up. Hist patisserie L'eclair de Genie, in the Marais section of

The eclairs themselves are in a rainbow of colors. The choux dough can even be dyed itself to create bright pink shells.perfect for strawberry or raspberry filled eclairs. There is a lemon filled one that has a gaily decorated shell complete with streusel balls and Swiss meringue dots. Apricot eclairs would be a nice treat for any Spring party. The filling is a mix of apricot puree with soft dried apricots and whole cream.Black currents are usually reserved for tarts but Chef Adam makes them an integral part of the eclair filling. The same goes for figs.passionfruit and raspberries. Of course there is the traditional chocolate ones made luxurious with the addition of whole cream and butter. It's decorated with small  squares of gold sugar dusted chocolate. For total fun, whip up the ever fun crunchy chocolate eclairs filled with ganache but topped with silver sugar coated chocolate pop rocks. Caramel , the flavor of the moment is also a filling.with a layer of caramel fondant on top. .There is even a sweet Valentines 'Day themed one where there are heart halves gracing the icing. Keep in mind that all the eclair recipes require gelatin sheets or powder.They can be found at some grocery stores , including Wal-Mart. They are used for thickening the cream so they 're a more solid,,  instead of being gooey and runny.

Eclairs are the new star of the pastry chef. Chef Adam has turned them into flights of delicious fantasy with his innovative recipes and ingredients. Now everyone can experience them in his new  easy to follow cookbook.