A baking story told in 8 parts. Part I

Being asked to do something, there’s little chance I’ll say no (things I’ve said no to in the past: chugging a container of raw eggs, meeting Paris Hilton, dating a cheesemaker).

So when I was asked if I’d like to participate in a bake-off at The Drake, I said yes.

Problem is, I don’t bake.

I don’t have a sweet tooth either, so I don’t know what most stuff is supposed to taste like. As a restaurant reviewer, I have tasted thousands (yes, thousands) and even finished them with delight (I wish pastry chefs got more acclaim at their restaurants), but my ideal dessert is honestly meat, vegetables, salad, pickles or anything salty.

So naturally my anxiety levels were off the charts. How the hell was I going to do this? I have been cooking for over two decades and had only baked about 10 times up until now – and  always with near to disastrous results (the Pecan Pie of May ’10) and most certainly, teary eyes and a promise to never bake again.

Cooking both relaxes and challenges me, while baking confuses and frustrates me. It’s perfection food, of which mine is most certainly not.

So I said yes, thinking that there would be hundreds of people asked to compete and that I could blend into the back of the crowd with my scorched pies or hardened bars. And there’s nothing I like more than meeting new people who want to talk food in excruciating detail, so absolutely I will make a fool of myself and enter a baking competition.

The bake-off was based around a new cookbook, Bourke Street Bakery: The Ultimate Baking Companion, from a famous bakery in Australia.

Make a recipe from it, I was instructed. Make a test batch and write and tweet about it. Then make 50 – 60 individual servings for competition night.

Huh.

Pretty intimidating, but okay. I’ll just make really easy chocolate chip cookies. That way, I can’t really screw up and it won’t take over my life.

The book arrived and while beautiful, it contained only recipes I left to my talented sweet-toothed friends, like Diana who makes chocolate soufflé and hand-crafted ice cream.  I quickly passed over the big bread section at the front that goes until page 143. I can’t even handle premade pizza dough, never mind Baguettes, Brioche and Potato Schiacciata. The pastries section freaked me out even more – Croissants? Bear Claws?

#*@!

Now what?

I combed through the thing 3 times and the simplest recipe I could find was Financiers with Strawberries (page 322).

These little almond cakes – also known as friands – were pretty complicated, as far as I was concerned. Ground almonds, fruit topping? That was already too much to contemplate.

And this is all before starting to shop or cook.

Oh Lord.

Bake-off test batch

Okay, so I’ve learned a few things from the test batch I’ve made for tomorrow’s competition:

1. Baked goods look pretty good before they go into the oven.

2. They look very different when they come out.

3. Our oven is a whack job.

4. Even though this batch has its problems (too crisp on the outside, pan not greased enough), my neighbours and fella eat ‘em up.

5. It is not at all cheating to use a certain Chef Whiskey to help you in the kitchen.

Bourke St. Bakery bake-off

Despite cooking for over 2 decades, I have never competed in a cooking contest.

Until now.

And it’s not just a cook-off, but a bake-off.

I have written about my adventures in baking here over the last while:

- Reading books about food can be dangerous

- Finger lickin’

- Totally baked

- Balls!

I am not a baker.

And have you seen my oven? It has the stability of Kate Gosselin.

But I am not deterred.

In fact, I am going to try so very hard to get this right.

I can do this.

I’ll be making a test batch this weekend and writing about it here.

Stay tuned.

Thanksgiving dinner

This year, I really wanted to do something other than turkey.

Don’t get me wrong – I think turkey is phenomenal and wish that I made it more frequently throughout the year – but after years of Thanksgivings and Christmases turkey-centric meals, I really wanted a change.  I also wanted something modern, because I tend to always rely on comfort food classics and the usual suspects.

The other change was that I didn’t spend weeks planning out the sides and thinking about it.

See, my birthday almost always falls on Canadian Thanksgiving weekend, so sometimes I’m not entirely sure what night we’re having it until the day before, or sometimes of, so I’ve learned over previous mishaps to go with the flow a little more.

I shopped for fresh vegetables on Monday morning in the neighbourhood and didn’t plan out anything until an hour before I started cooking.

Had I gone completely insane?

Perhaps.

Because the capon was small (2 lbs. boneless), I knew it wouldn’t take too long to cook, so I just kind of winged it and I can’t believe how well it all worked out.

It was the.best.Thanksgiving.dinner.I’ve.ever.made.

Ever.

Menu

Lemon-Sage Roasted Boneless Capon

Trio of Tomato Confit with Mushrooms, Basil & Balsamic

Crisp Organic Green Beans

Baked Potatoes with Green Onions

Stuffing

p.s. I made a Portuguese soup for Thanksgiving Day lunch – kale, kielbasa and black bean. Crazygood.

p.p.s. Usually I think something;’s going to turn out and it doesn’t. This meal completely surprised me. And I couldn’t duplicate it even if you paid me. That drives me crazy, but makes me appreciate the good meals all the more.

Changing it up

I don’t know how women in the Fifties did it.

Shopping at the same one or two stores every week for groceries – I’d want to kill myself.

I feel like if I’m going to shop and cook for my family, I can’t be going down to our local Loblaws every time.

Don’t you find that you simply can’t get everything in one place? I’ve come close at places like Fiesta Farms. But I like the organic sprouts from The Big Carrot and the baba ganoush at Sun Valley, the guacamole at Max’s and condiments and nuts from Domino’s at the St. Lawrence Market.

It would make things more efficient, but certainly, if you love to cook, not as much fun.

This week, I took a GO Bus to Aurora, where I met my best friend who lives in Uxbridge, and we drove to Newmarket to check out Nature’s Emporium Wholistic Market (pictures above and below)

You probably would compare it to Whole Foods because of its size and the types of foods they carry. But I saw a ton of products I haven’t seen there. And a wider range, I think. The prices were great. Not cheap, mind you, but the specials are insane.

Yes, it was a long way to go but it’s easy when you have your best friend as a reason to go anywhere. She could say, “I see they have a new bakery in Orillia,” and I’d tell her that I’m getting on a bus right now and remember your cloth bags.

And really, that’s the point of my post. We have so many damn errands and things to do, you might as well as enjoy shopping for food.

There are times when grocery shopping is just as much a chore as doing laundry or cleaning the apartment, but for the most part, it is a chance to discover new ways to do things.

I may have a cupboard full of the usual suspects, but tonight they will be transformed by my seemingly simple, but still exciting Newmarket purchases – pomegranate juice, organic chicken stock, and grapefruit tea.

~Tonight’s Menu~

Puree of potato and squash soup

Organic chicken with pomegranate jus

Root vegetables with grapefruit tea aioli