It is done. I graduated from baking school – with honours. I didn’t even fall off the stage. And for the first time in months, I’ve got time to do stuff. It has been an adjustment; I mostly sit around and make lists of stuff I should do, and then wander aimlessly doing other stuff. On the plus side, I’ve had a lot more time to enjoy all that is 2.0. The other night, for example, he came home from work and cheerfully exclaimed, “There’s a two ton hairball at work! They’re cutting it apart with chainsaws because it’s too heavy to lift!”

(This is why I’ll never be a famous food blogger. You’re not supposed to write about hairballs.)

2.0 once turned to me and said, “Of all the cats, I think effie would have the best handwriting,” and then waited expectantly for me to concur.

Another time, as we stood weeding in the garden, I heard him yell, “This tastes bad… real bad!” And then saw him slurping back the stem juices of a potentially poisonous perennial.

It’s what we do, this to and fro. He’ll look and me and say, “I AM the boss of you… right? Honey? RIGHT?” And when I put my hands on my hips and stare at him, I’ll hear him whimper, “But WHY can’t I be the boss of you?”

I really want to say that people who eat our perennials don’t get to be boss, but I doubt it would make any difference.

That said, 2.0 is delightfully helpful, and will always go above and beyond to assist around the house.

movita: That bathroom has been cleaned for the guests.

2.0: That’s okay, honey, I’ll go outside.

movita: Or use the upstairs bathroom?

2.0: I guess…

See? Helpful.

On the weekend, I put flannel sheets back on the bed for 2.0 and I. It has been cold here, and I wouldn’t want my little helper to get chilled at night. Soon enough, we’ll be complaining about the sort of humidity that makes you want to rest facedown on the floor all day. In the meantime, we’ve been eating comfort food – most comforting is the fact that I’ve got time to cook in my own kitchen again.

This soup will warm your bones. It is smoky and nourishing. It will take the chill off cool nights. It will give you all the energy required to write lists of the things you should be doing, but would rather not.

. . .

Split Pea Soup

Serves 4-6.

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 carrots, diced
• 2 celery stalks, diced
• 1 medium onion, diced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 3/4 cups dried yellow split peas
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 8 cups water
• 1 kilogram (2 lb.) smoked ham hock, skinned
• 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar (optional)

Notes:

• there is no salt in this recipe – the ham hock does a nice job of seasoning this soup. If you feel the soup requires salt, add a pinch when you are stirring in the balsamic vinegar
• you could use a smaller ham hock, but I wouldn’t go any larger in order to ensure that the meat cooks through and is well submerged in the soup as it cooks
• the balsamic vinegar is optional – I find it brightens and rounds out the soup

Mise en place – begin by getting organized. Measure out all of your ingredients. Dice your veggies, skin the ham hock (use a very sharp knife and watch your fingers). 

In a large Dutch oven, heat the olive oil over medium heat, then cook the carrots, celery, onion and garlic, stirring occasionally, until softened. (About 10 minutes.)

Stir in the split peas, bay leaves, thyme and pepper, stirring constantly for 2 minutes (be careful, the peas like to snap when they get hot – don’t leave unattended). Add the water and ham hock. Bring to a boil; reduce heat, cover and allow to simmer, stirring occasionally, until the peas are very soft and the soup is thickened – about 2 hours. (The peas will become mushy – almost like a puréed soup without the need for a blender.) Flip the ham hock occasionally to ensure it cooks through on all sides.

Discard the bay leaves. Transfer the ham hock to a cutting board and let cool enough to handle. Remove all meat from the bone, dice, and return it to the soup to heat through. Discard the bone and any fat. Stir in the balsamic vinegar.

You can find this recipe alongside four more of my most popular recipes in this ebook:

Remember what it was like when you had time to sit down with a cup of tea? To sit down at all? Lately, those days seem few and far between. I’ve started my work term at a bakery about 45 minutes outside of the city, and my Real Job duties hit a feverish pitch at this time of year. There are lists everywhere. Dance costumes litter the second floor of our house. Chores have been left undone. Things – all sorts of things – are piled everywhere. I did, however, manage to sort through my kit from baking school, and I thought you might enjoy seeing what I had to lug around on my back all year. Et voilà:

a. gum paste/fondant tools  |  b. circular pastry/cookie cutter set  |  c. bench scraper  |  d. bowl scraper  |  e. lames  | f. digital thermometer  |  g. timer

The sound of those timers going off  – which I often referred to as the call of the Boulanger Bird – will forever haunt me. FYI, we took the internal temperature of every bread we baked, making our instant read thermometers one of our most used tools of the year.

a. measuring cup  |  b. water spritzer  |  c. measuring spoons  |  d. ice cream scoop  |  e. circular pastry tips  |  f. closed star pastry tips  |  g. decorating comb  |  h. pastry brushes

All of our mise en place/scaling was done by weight, so our measuring cups and spoons felt positively primitive when required. I believe the decorating combs caused more injuries than anything else in our kits.

a. small pallet knives  |  b. large pallet knives  |  c. spatulas  |  d. candy thermometer  |  e. squeeze bottles  |  f. whisks

That green electrical tape marked most of my equipment – it was a waterproof way to keep track of it. I can’t tell you how many times I heard, “if it’s green, it’s Rachael’s!” 

a. French knife  |  b. serrated knife  |  c. kitchen shears  |  d. zester  |  e. peeler  |  f. French rolling pin  |  g. ruler  |  h. rasp  |  i. paring knife  |  j. (not pictured) oven mitts. I forgot about the oven mitts.

Those knives could cut stuff just by threatening to – they be scary ass sharp. Thus leaving one in the sink area was grounds for immediate dismissal from the program.

Some personal additions: a. notebook  |  b. bar mops/butt towels  |  c. Tylenol  |  d. lens wipes  |  e. blistex  |  f. sticky notes  |  g. electrical tape  |  h. finger condoms  |  i. bandaids  |  j. pens/pencils/sharpies  |  k. socks knit by Rosie Beaucoup

Every day at school I wore socks knit by Rosie Beaucoup in my steel-toed clogs. It was nice having a piece of her with me every day – especially on the hard ones. Thanks, Mummy!

So, lets talk muffins. This is a re-take on a recipe I posted about two years ago, but I’ve added some Greek yogurt into the mix for you. This is because a) Rosie Beaucoup told me to, and b) Greek yogurt is very trendy right now. Peer pressure works, people. I learned that at college. These muffins are soft and cakey, and not overly sweet. When feeling especially decadent, I’ll slather a little butter on ’em when they are still warm. I’d recommend using walnuts in the topping (their ever-so-slight bitterness gives a nice balance to the muffin), but you can use pecans if you like. They are perfect for breakfast, or alongside an afternoon tea break.

Let’s kick back for a while, shall we? I think we deserve it…

. . .

Coffee Cake Muffins

adapted slightly from a recipe handed down to me by Rosie Beaucoup, original source unknown

print and bake

Make 12 muffins.

For the filling/topping:

• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 1/4 cup finely chopped walnuts or pecans
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

For the muffins:

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup butter (1 stick), room temperature
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup plain, fat-free Greek yogurt
• 1 teaspoon vanilla

Mise en place – begin by getting organized. Measure out all of your ingredients, make sure your butter is at room temperature. The batter for these muffins is thick and sticky – it’s a get-your-hands-dirty recipe. 

Preheat oven to 375°F. Grease or line a standard muffin tin (12 wells). If your muffin wells are very shallow, you may need to adjust the portioning of the batter and filling/topping, so the muffins don’t overflow.

In a small bowl, make the filling/topping by rubbing together the brown sugar, walnuts or pecans, and cinnamon. Set aside.

In another bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Set aside.

In the bowl of your stand mixer (or with a hand-held mixer), cream together the butter, sugar and eggs on medium speed (3-5 minutes). Add the Greek yogurt and vanilla and mix well to combine. Add the flour mixture, and mix to combine.

Spoon about 1 tablespoon of the batter into the bottom of each muffin well. The batter is thick – just press it down/spread it with your fingers a little if necessary. Sprinkle 1 teaspoon of the filling over top of the batter. Top with about 1.5 tablespoons of the remaining batter – spreading a little with fingers if necessary. Sprinkle the remaining filling/topping over top of the muffins.

Bake for 25 minutes or until golden and a cake tester inserted into the centre of the muffin comes out clean.

Allow to cool slightly, and then remove from pan and allow to cool on wire racks.

Don’t forget to enter!

Deadline: May 31, 2013

Remember September? When we all thought baking school was going to kill me? Remember those ridiculous lockers? We battled with them all year. It took a few weeks to master taking a run at ’em to get our gear wedged in. (Forget about getting it back out.) There were uniforms, kits and textbooks, wine tours and our first loaves of bread. At the end of the month I gave myself a 10% chance of graduating.

Everything was in quantity. Why make one if you can make a hundred? There were… challenges. I felt sick every morning for about three months. We were supported by gas ranges, 60-quart mixers, proofers, deck ovens and convection awesomeness.

There were holiday bake sales and seasonal treats. Exams and assessments. I finally stopped feeling sick in December. We became efficient. We learned about timing products, marketing and running a bakery outlet. We sold thousands of baked treats. Things that were hard in September began to feel easy. I gave myself at least a 25% chance of graduating by the time Christmas rolled around.

There was a lot of snacking, and I still managed to lose weight. We learned about all things culinary – not just baking. We started to laugh more in the kitchen. And cheer! We took courses in baking theory, communications, computers and small entrepreneurship.

Cakes. Lots of ’em. They almost made up for eight months without sleep.

There were bagels, biscotti, and breads shaped like animals. We mastered European and advanced breads, and had the expertise to question recipes and methods. We were able to think on our feet, spot mistakes, and adapt when necessary.

There were miraculous jelly rolls, swans, feats of dough rolling and an amazing school library.

There was mise en place every day, my legendary San Andreas Fault pie, sweet presentations and friends waiting at home.

There was team work. And celebrations. And a stormy morning which found us all but alone on the campus, so we shared breakfast and talked shop.

Now the kitchen is quiet. I feel like I closed my eyes for but a moment, and now it’s all over. I think I will miss it all…

A few weeks ago, I made a product list for my portfolio. Here are the highlights:

Breads

Old Dough/Pâte Fermentée/Biga · French Loaves · Baguettes · Plié Breton · Pain de Campagne · Pain au Levain · Pain Rustique · Pain Pugliese · Pain d’Epi · Fougasse · Pullman Loaves & White Pan Bread · Rosemary Olive Oil · Kaiser · Whole Wheat · Raisin · Cheese · Cracked Wheat · Golden Flax · Rye · Stollen · Panettone · Italian Loaves · Ciabatta · Focaccia · Bhaturas · Tandoori Rotis · Naan · Parathas · Chapatis · Lavash

Cakes

Swedish Yule Logs · Jelly Rolls/Sponge Cake · Genoise · New York Cheesecake · Chocolate Layer Cake · Black Forest Cake · Angel Food Cake · Pound Cake · Fruit Cake

Cookies

Checkerboard Cookies · Speculaas · Biscotti · Sand Cookies · Sugar Cookies · Lebkuchen

Decorating Mediums

American Buttercream · French Buttercream · Royal Icing · Marzipan · Gum Arabic Glaze · Gum Paste/Pastillage · Fondant

Other

English Muffins · Country Biscuits · Morning Glory Muffins · Cinnamon Buns · Pizza Dough · Bagels · Pretzels · Sweet Yeast Dough · Danish Dough · Choux Pastries · Gingerbread · Pies · Linzer Torte · Gluten Free Muffins, Breads and Cakes

So, I can bake some stuff. And many variations of that stuff. We head off to work terms next week – I’m betting it will feel like September all over again. I’ve got a few more baking school stories to share in the coming weeks, and some recipes waiting in the wings. In the meantime, why don’t you hit your own kitchen and make me a graduation cake? Because I’m, like, 90% sure it’s gunna happen.

How’s about a little baking school update? I’m on a new team – there are four of us. We’re basically the Spice Girls. There have been some oven mitt hive-fives and baking success all round. In the past three weeks we’ve learned to make: pain au levain, pain rustique, pain pugliese, ciabatta, gluten-free baguettes and flatbread, gluten-free muffins and cakes, sweet dough, bagels, pretzels, english muffins and pizza dough. It has been epic fun. Next week, we hit the Station of Dread. I don’t know what happens over there but there have been tears and a LOT of cursing. Yikes.

I’m also learning all about spreadsheets and other computery stuff. So now I’m organizing my entire life into columns. We’ve started our small entrepreneurship class, which means we’re working on business plans and generally getting our creative on. And finally, our communications class will be focusing on human relations. Because the worst part about working with the public is the public.

Next, I would like to apologize for many years of wishing for snow days. It was very selfish – I realize this now. I have to leave my house before dawn every day, and I’ve had a few white-knuckle drives to school in the snow and ice. I basically weep the entire time. I love, love, love snow days, but colleges and universities don’t get them. I guess people only care about little kids. Huge mistake, as I don’t know very many of those little crappers who would bake you anything. Nothing I’d eat, anyway.

So, I offer up these cookies AS A REPLACEMENT FOR SNOW. Mrs. Rutherford made them for 2.0 at Christmastime. They were pretty awesome, so I asked her for the recipe. I’m going to give you the link below – I didn’t really change anything, but I’ve made some notes for you. The cookies are a nice, tender, vanilla-y cookie, dipped in a tart lemon glaze and then dipped in coconut. Easy, and pretty adorable on a plate.

Also, last week I walked into the men’s washroom at school. I thought I was walking into the dish pit. I was not.

. . .

Snowball Cookies –  click here for the recipe from Sweet Potato Chronicles

Head on over to Sweet Potato Chronicles for the recipe – there’s a lot of cool stuff over there. When making the snowball cookies, I recommend breaking the butter and cream cheese up into small pieces when adding them to both the cookie dough and the glaze – it makes them easier to incorporate. I also found that I had a lot of glaze leftover, so you might consider halving the recipe. I didn’t use the full amount of coconut recommended either. I’d just put a nice pile in a dish and add more as required. Go forth and bake!

I survived the cake station. You were probably wondering – perhaps even fretting – so I thought I should tell you that yes, I survived the final station of my first baking school rotation. I was uber prepped. I didn’t sleep all week. My jelly roll got rolled, my black forest cake got tricked out, and my angel food cake was a delight. I mise en placed the crap outta that station. I took organization to the next level. When one of my teammates was struggling with his products, my chef instructor jabbed his finger toward me and yelled, “DON’T YOU HELP HIM!” I was elated. I mean, I felt bad for my teammate, but the mere suggestion that I have a working knowledge of anything at school – which could, in turn, be useful to someone else – made me wanna bring in ‘da noise and possibly ‘da funk.

Now we’re onto gingerbread. Bigger teams, new people to work with. Two weeks to create massive gingerbread displays for charity. For the first time since starting school, I hardly feel like barfing at all. Aside from gingerbread architecture, we’ve had a crash course in all things ginger related: royal icing, fondant, gum paste, marzipan, and sugar work. It’s basically a ginger sweatshop – complete with Christmas carols and snacks. Of course, all of this merriment makes me worry that something very, very bad must be around the corner…

So, to celebrate all things ginger, I made you some cake. Actually, I tested this recipe out in the summer – when I had time to eat and stuff. This cake is best served with lashings of whipped cream or a huge scoop of ice cream – I think all gingerbread is. Honey replaces the molasses of a traditional gingerbread, and it is only lightly spiced. Like all cakes, you don’t want to over bake it – so keep a close eye on it at the end – dry gingerbread is icky. The top of this cake will likely start to brown well before the cake has cooked through, so once the colour is golden, lay a piece of tinfoil overtop of the pan – don’t press it down, just lay it over top – and it will prevent the cake from over-browning.

Also, my class was debriefed last week. That might sound like a panty raid, but it’s not. It’s a chance to find out your marks and where you stand in the class. You’ll be happy to know that I’m not a total doofus and that my “enthusiasm is appreciated.” Who knew nausea and anxiety could be so easily confused with gaiety?

. . .

Honey Gingerbread – print and bake

Yields a 9 x 13 baking pan.

• 2 1/2 cups cake flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup butter, room temperature
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 cup honey
• 1 large egg, room temperature
• 1 cup buttermilk

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease a 9 x 13 x 2 inch baking pan. I like to line my pan with parchment paper as well.

In a large bowl, sift together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, ginger and salt. Set aside.

In the large bowl of your stand mixer, on medium speed, cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy – about 3-5 minutes. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl. Add the honey, and beat on medium speed for one minute. Scrape down the sides and bottom of bowl. Add the egg, and beat on medium speed for one minute. Scrape down the sides and bottom of bowl.

Add one third of the flour mixture and mix until well combined. Add 1/2 of the buttermilk, and mix until well combined. Add another third of the flour mixture, mixing until combined. Add the rest of the buttermilk, mix until well combined. Add the last of the flour mixture and mix until well combined. Be sure to scrape down the sides and bottom of bowl after each addition.

Spread the batter evenly into the prepared baking pan, smoothing the top with your spatula. Bake for about 35 minutes – until a cake tester inserted into the centre of the cake comes out clean. Allow to cool on a wire rack.

Serve warm or cold, topped with a dollop of whipped cream or a scoop of ice cream.

NOTE: if you find the top of the cake is browning too deeply before the cake has finished baking, cover the top gently with a piece of tinfoil – don’t allow it to touch the surface of the cake, and don’t press it around the edges of the pan. Just set it gently on top of the cake pan to prevent the top of the cake from burning.