Wednesday, February 9, 2011

Cooks vs. Bakers: A Theory?



In our admittedly limited experience, few cooks are bakers and few bakers are cooks. We have no convincing theories of why this might be, except that many bakers in our experience are generally science-minded. One baker explained that in cooking, a little more of this or a bit less of that, a few minutes longer over heat, or a few minutes less, do not make a big difference in cooking. In baking, they asserted, precisely measured ingredients and accurate temperatures and baking times are critical. Comments on this matter would be welcome.

Ana Darcy Méndez is science-minded, as you might expect of one who navigated to Earth from her planet 25 light years away. She is an imaginative cook but also a meticulous and creative baker. The photo above is of one of her recent efforts. The Czech grandmother's kolache recipe elsewhere on this blog was conveyed to us by Ana, with great glee. Most recently, she tells us that she has made quite delicious corn tortillas without using masa harina, the traditional (lye-treated) corn flour. Further details may follow eventually. (Or not.)

There are many more recipes and recipe ideas in the right column under the picture of cranberry/apple pie a la mode!

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