KitchenSavvy

Insalata Caprese Six Ways

2009-07-12T19:31:00-06:00

Those who follow this blog know that one of my all time favorite salads is Insalata Caprese. Two years ago, I wrote a post about the joy of fresh foods from our local Farmers' Market and how much I enjoy making a Caprese salad with fresh ingredients.

For those readers who don't recall the previous post, an Insalata Caprese is nothing more than sliced fresh tomatoes, basil, mozzarella cheese and olive oil, seasoned with a little salt and pepper. If you wish, you can add a little balsamic or wine vinegar to brighten the taste, but I often let the acidity of the tomatoes round out the flavor of the dish, without adding vinegar.

It is said that we taste first with our eyes. Well, last fall when Pat and I traveled Europe, I had several Caprese Salads. It interested me how different restaurants interpreted the same ingredients in different ways. Here are pictures of six of the Caprese salads I had:

Viaduc Cafe, Paris, France	Terrazza del Chiostro, Pienza, Italy
I Quattro Gatti, s. Gimignano, Italy	Unknown Restaurant, Venice, Italy
Osteria Enoteca Ai Artisti, Venice, Italy	Emerald Princess, Somewhere in the Mediterranean

The first of these salads, top left, was served in Paris at le Viaduc Caf, 43 Avenue Daumesnil, 75012, where it as billed on the menu as a mille-feuille of tomato and mozzarella, playing off of the visual of a layered napoleon.

The salad at Quattro Gatti in San Gimignano looked most like what I serve at home, so I quite liked its appearance, but I think of all of them, my favorite was the one served at the Terrazza del Chiostro in Pienza. The garnish of pesto in the two corners frames the salad, making it tempting even before it is tasted.

The rest of them? Pretty much uninspired. While I liked much of the food on board the Emerald Princess, the Caprese salad looked more like a tired poached egg served on wilted greens.

These pictures show clearly how the same ingredients, more or less, can be presented in various creative ways, and the effect that appearance can have on how we anticipate a dish will taste.

If you have food or cooking questions, send them to Questions@KitchenSavvy.com
Due to the volume of questions received, not all can be answered.
© Lost Hobbit Enterprises 2004 onward

Storing Fresh Eggs

2009-06-24T18:47:00-06:00

What is the best way to store fresh, uncooked eggs?
--Sharon

Eggs should be bought from the seller's cooler and kept in the refrigerator, at a temperature between 32°F (0°C) and 40°F (4°C). They should be consumed by the "best before" date on the package, or if there is no date within one week of purchase.

Some sources recommend not using the egg holder that is built into the door of some refrigerators, since the eggs are exposed to warm air each time the door is opened. I'm not sure how much difference that makes to the shelf life, but I still prefer to keep the eggs in their original carton so that I know what the "best before" date is. If you do keep them in the package they came in, never move eggs from an older carton into a newer one. If you do that, you may end up with eggs that have been "upgraded" several times and are no longer safe to eat. I keep my eggs on the lowest shelf, since it is a little cooler than higher shelves.

According to Harold McGee, eggs that are stored on their side have a bit better chance of the yolk being centered when they are hard boiled. If this matters to you, then store the eggs in their original carton but stand the carton on edge.

While there is some romance to the idea of a wire basket of fresh eggs on the counter, this should not be done. Eggs spoil much faster at room temperature. Also, don't buy eggs that have been left out for display, for instance at the local farmer's market, as you don't know how long they have been at room temperature or maybe even warmer.

If you have food or cooking questions, send them to Questions@KitchenSavvy.com

Due to the volume of questions received, not all can be answered.
© Lost Hobbit Enterprises 2004 onward

A Pizza Find

2009-05-25T20:13:00-06:00

For years, I have been trying to make a good thin crust pizza. When my wife and I were in Italy several years ago, we really enjoyed a pizza we had in Rome, near the Trevi Fountain. The crust was so thin and crisp that it was almost cracker like.

I tried everything I could think of to make a crust like that -- varying the water/flour ratios, making the dough with or without olive oil, rolling the crust thinner, using different oven temperatures, placing my pizza stone on a rack as high as possible in the oven, super-heating the pizza stone for a few minutes using the boiler before putting the pizza into the oven, even changing the order of ingredients on the pizza. These all made some difference. None of them gave the crust I was looking for.

Then, this past weekend, I pulled "Brother Juniper's Bread Book" by Peter Reinhart off the bookshelf and turned to his section on pizza. In the inset on Memorable Pizza there was a suggestion I hadn't even thought of trying -- that the pizza stone should be put on the bottom shelf or even right on the floor of the oven and pre-heated for at least 20 minutes at 500°F (260°C) or higher.

Since I use parchment paper to keep the crust from sticking to my peel (actually an old piece of 1/8 inch plywood) I have to keep the temperature at or below 450°F (232°C), but I could certainly try putting my pizza stone on the floor of my oven. My oven is electric, but the heating element is under the floor so that isn't a problem. Other than that, I made a plain lean pizza dough with just water, flour, yeast and salt. No fat, no sugar and no flavorings. I rolled a thin crust and assembled the pizza in the traditional North American order of sauce, ingredients and finally the cheese on top, and baked it for 13 minutes.

I knew as soon as I sliced the pizza that this was the missing link. I could hear the knife crunching through the crust. The result was the cracker thin, crunchy crust I had been trying for. Because the stone had been heated directly by the element, the crust cooked quickly, before the other ingredients could make it soggy, as sometimes happens.

I know there is still some room for improvement. Next time, I need to let the dough relax a bit more as I roll it out, and I think I'll try adding a little oil. Both of those should help the overall texture, but I'm pleased with the result so far.

So, if you have been trying for that thin crunchy crust too, try lowering your pizza stone. It may just be the secret you are looking for.

If there is nothing to get in the way, try putting the stone right on the floor of the oven. If you have an electric oven with the element above the floor then you will need to use a rack in the lowest position and put the stone on that. If you are worried about safety, or the warranty on your oven, you may prefer to use a rack at the lowest position.

If you have food or cooking questions, send them to Questions@KitchenSavvy.com

Due to the volume of questions received, not all can be answered.
© Lost Hobbit Enterprises 2004 onward

Making Cinnamon Rolls with Self-Rising Flour

2009-05-11T19:36:00-06:00

I have a question about self-rising flour. I have a recipe that calls for yeast and warm water. I was wondering if I can substitute self-rising flour and avoid all the yeast and it's complications (like water at 110 degrees etc.)? The recipe is for cinnamon rolls.

Thank you so much for your help.

--Shannon

Self-rising flour is a lower protein all purpose flour with baking powder and salt added in. The amount of salt varies by maker.

You could substitute self-rising for bread or regular all purpose flour but what you will end up with will be more like a cinnamon tea biscuit. In bread making, proteins in the flour form glutens that trap carbon dioxide gas produced by the yeast, similar to a balloon filling with air, to make the product rise. During baking, evaporation of alcohol also produced by fermentation of sugars by the yeast cause the bubbles to inflate further. Because yeast produces lots of gas over a long period, the gluten structure is needed to trap the gas and make bread recipes work right.

Unlike bread, cakes, biscuits and cookies don't rely on gluten to trap gases. Instead of releasing lots of gas over a long period, baking powder releases relatively less carbon dioxide fairly quickly, mostly as the product is baking. Starch in the flour or proteins from other ingredients like eggs set as the gas is released. A balance of ingredients, temperatures and timing need to work together to make the the product set.

Self-rising flour is used in cakes and biscuits, not breads, and shouldn't be kneaded like bread. If you do knead it, any gluten that forms will work against the baking powder, resulting in less rise and a flat, tough result. So if you replace the yeast and flour in your recipe, you shouldn't knead the dough, which in turn means that you will end up with a cake or biscuit like texture.

Beyond that, you will likely need to reduce the amount of liquid since lower protein flour absorbs less water. The amount of water you want to use will be enough to make a dough the consistency of rolled biscuits. You will also want to reduce the salt in the recipe if your self-rising flour contains salt. The exact amount you need to reduce it by is not easy to predict but may be as much as 1/2 teaspoon per cup of flour.

You may find that you need to alter the amount of fat in the dough, too, to get a satisfactory texture.

Finally, you may need to increase or decrease the amount of sugar in the dough to get the right balance of flavors.

The exact amounts for all of these changes is hard to predict, since they depend on the initial recipe, as well as other factors and personal tastes. A better starting point might be to begin with a recipe for rolled biscuits using self-risng flour and take it from there, rather than starting with a yeast recipe.

If you have food or cooking questions, send them to Questions@KitchenSavvy.com

Due to the volume of questions received, not all can be answered.
© Lost Hobbit Enterprises 2004 onward