  |
|
|
|
****JavaScript web menu drop down DHTML menu generated by NavStudio. (OpenCube Inc. - http://www.opencube.com)****
|
Baker Profiles Mutsumi Takehara, head pastry chef at San Francisco's renowned Slanted Door restaurant, says her career track shifted from working with animals to creating delectable desserts because "I've always loved desserts, so I began taking baking classes for fun. I ultimately decided to pursue a baking certificate. Veterinary practice and baking are both founded in logic and chemistry, so the shift was natural." Mutsumi traded classroom training for hands—on experience when she joined La Farine bakery in Oakland, Calif. After starting as a counter clerk, Mutsumi was soon in the kitchen, preparing everything from bread to eclairs. After a six—month internship at famed Berkeley restaurant Chez Panisse, she became an assistant pastry chef at Rubicon in San Francisco. In 1999 she was named head pastry chef there. Mutsumi found her niche two years later at Vietnamese—fusion restaurant, Slanted Door, where she combines Eastern and Western styles to create unique desserts. Her Japanese heritage influences her dessert philosophy. "In Japan, people eat desserts that are much lighter than those in the United States," she says. "I enjoy creating desserts that are refreshing and cleanse the palate." Mutsumi says fruit desserts are delicious all year 'round, and are especially pleasing during warm months. "There are so many delicious fruits available in the summer, so take advantage of what's in season!" she says. Mutsumi suggests that bakers taste the fruits they plan to use. "With so many great fruit varieties, you'll discover those you like best by tasting," she says. In addition, she encourages bakers to use the freshest, ripest fruits possible. She doesn't refrigerate her fruits, but keeps them in a bin outdoors to fully ripen fully before baking. Mutsumi says she believes the best ingredients are essential for beautiful results. "I appreciate great ingredients, so I've always used C&H Pure Cane Sugar." Top
Flo has always found the sweetest inspiration in her home kitchen. "I baked for the joy of my family and friends," explains Flo, who has also received culinary training at the prestigious Ecole le Notre near Paris and the Richemont Professional School in Switzerland. After 10 years of sharing homemade desserts with the special people in her life, Flo discovered she was baking more than her family could eat! As an additional creative outlet, Flo opened a catering business, Occasional Baking, out of her home. As her business — and demand for her delicious bite—sized desserts — grew, "sweet miniatures" became her trademark. Inspired to share her baking enthusiasm and know—how with others, Flo penned two acclaimed books, The Simple Art of Perfect Baking and Sweet Miniatures: The Art of Making Bite—Sized Desserts, and now teaches her baking techniques and sweet miniatures in culinary classrooms across the country. Whether baking chocolate tulips for her grandchildren or creating lemon meringue tartlets with students, Flo uses only C&H Pure Cane Sugar. "I don't have to think twice about using C&H pure cane sugars," she says. "I love ingredients that are natural — and with C&H I can count on consistent results!" Flo recommends baking just one bite—sized treat when you start to create miniature desserts. "In minutes, you will know how your cookies will spread or how beautiful your pastries will look, she says. After you taste the results, you can always adjust baking time or add ingredients to create a perfect batch. Her second expert tip is to share your homemade desserts with others. "Memories happen over desserts, and memories are the most special gift you can give." Top
Alice studied chocolate, pastry, and desserts at the prestigious École le Nôtre, near Paris, and then made her culinary mark on the Bay Area as the founder of Cocolat, a Berkeley dessert and pastry shop that she ultimately expanded to seven Bay Area stores over 14 years. After selling Cocolat in 1990, Alice found inspiration in her home kitchen. She has become one of the country's most respected cookbook authors and is the only two—time recipient of the prestigious James Beard Cookbook of the Year Award. While Alice's culinary repertoire includes impressive creations such as Triple Chocolate Mousse with Carmel glazed Hazelnuts, she believes the simplest desserts can be the most elegant. Her divinely moist Espresso Swirl Brownies, with their deliciously gooey texture and coffee flavor, prove simplicity and decadence can go hand in hand. To give your brownies a luscious texture, Alice recommends baking them for only twenty minutes at 400° F and then cooling them in a pan of ice water. "The ice keeps the brownies from rising and creates a crisp crust on the outside, while leaving the brownies soft and creamy on the inside," she explains. The baking technique, dubbed the "Steve Ritual," was discovered as a happy accident by her assistant's husband, Steve. When his less—than—trusty oven overheated during a college brownie—baking session, Steve attempted to save the brownies by throwing them in the freezer— with delicious results! Alice emphasizes using quality ingredients as the key to baking consistently delicious brownies. Whether baking for her daughter Lucy or testing a recipe for her latest cookbook, Alice always uses C&H Pure Cane Sugar. "I use it because I can count on the results!" she says. Top
While traditional French truffles are not made with sugar, Jean—Marc broke the tradition with this local favorite when he created a unique recipe using C&H Sugar and cream to make the sought—after caramel flavor. He realizes that all kinds of sugar are available from bulk warehouse retailers and local grocery stores, yet trained chef Jean—Marc only trusts time—tested, quality—assured C&H Sugar when creating the celebrated caramel truffle. Casimira explains that some people are hesitant to try this non—traditional truffle. “Every time customers come to the store they are surprised that it is not chewy, but that it actually melts in your mouth.” The secret? Casimira says, “I think it’s because of the C&H Sugar.” Her husband agrees, explaining that cane sugar has a better finish and consistency than beet sugar. Jean—Marc has observed that C&H Pure Cane Sugar caramelizes better than beet sugar when creating the caramel that Chocolatier Magazine has said, “quickly melts into a rich buttery softness in your mouth.” Top
Now a star at Farallon, the upscale seafood restaurant on San Francisco’s Post Street, Emily earned her celebrity status the old—fashioned way: working on “the line”—restaurant—speak for production and assembly work in the kitchen—for seven years after attending cooking schools in New York and France. Today she’s the author of many cookbooks, including the recently published Passion for Dessert. She also participates in Bakers Dozen, a consortium of top bakers, and teaches seminars around the country. Emily admits that even while she was a sous—chef at San Francisco’s famed (and departed) Stars restaurant, “I always saw the pastries out of the corner of my eye. I just knew that pastries were where I belonged.” Her guiding principle: “I approach desserts according to what the palate feels. It’s all about taste, taste, taste!” Desserts that showcase fresh, seasonal fruits are characteristic of Emily’s recipes. But, she adds, “I don’t think I could survive without ice cream and chocolate chip cookies!” C&H Sugar is a staple in Emily’s kitchen, both at home and in the restaurant. “You can’t make dessert without C&H Pure Cane Granulated Sugar,” she says. “C&H cane sugar is pure and natural and works very well to accent the sugars in fruit.” Emily’s outlook on baking is as refreshing as her recipes. “I want to show people that baking is fun and easy,” she says, “and that recipes shouldn’t be intimidating.” Top
Fran Gage Fran mastered dessert during her years running the acclaimed San Francisco bakery, Patisserie Française. A former nurse, Fran caught the foodie bug while touring the French countryside on motorcycle more than 30 years ago. She watched restaurant chefs in France and Brussels and spent two weeks at the La Varenne cooking school in Paris. She studied Julia Child cookbooks, and upon returning to the United States, traded in her stethoscope for an oven mitt and started baking professionally. She baked from her home, filling restaurant pastry orders until 1984, when she opened the Patisserie Française, the successful and award—winning bakery which she ran until 1995. A bakery fire ended her retail baking career, but she turned her energy into writing, and her author skills recently made her one of the San Francisco Chronicle’s “100 Reasons Why We Love the Bay Area.” Fran is also the author of Bread and Chocolate, a contributor to The Baker’s Dozen Cookbook and writer for Saveur and Fine Cooking. For more information or to purchase Fran’s book, please visit Amazon.com. Top
The San Francisco Chronicle named him one of the “Top Five Pastry Chefs in the Bay Area.” He most recently contributed to the Baker’s Dozen Cookbook in addition to writing articles for Fine Cooking, Gourmet and other top magazines. He is on the road from coast to coast teaching pastry classes at the country’s top cooking schools. And, he is working on another book in addition to his “Room for Dessert” (HarperCollins). David focuses on quality and flavor of seasonal ingredients, using an abundance of fresh fruits such as mangoes, kiwi, passion fruit, kumquats showcased in simple presentation—desserts with clean lines. “When you search out the best ingredients, do as little to them as possible and serve them in a straightforward way, the presentation follows naturally,” explains David. David thinks that pure cane sugar is one of these “best” ingredients! David is an especially big fan of our new Baker’s Sugar, and he uses this ultrafine pure cane sugar whenever possible. He also loves our Washed Raw sugar and mentions so in his book, “Room for Dessert.” See David prepare his showstoppers this summer at select Sur La Table stores in California, Oregon, Utah and Washington. Visit Sur La Table to see the complete schedule. Visit David at www.davidlebovitz.com. Top
Talk to Carolyn live on November 26 on Radio Disney. Carolyn will appear on "KidTalk with Dr. Mary" to offer baking tips for kids and their parents and discuss why baking together is such an important family activity! Check your local Radio Disney station for time and channel. In California, listen to "KidTalk" at 7:00 p.m. on AM 1310 KMKY (San Francisco) and AM 1470 KIID (Sacramento).
Creating the goodies that fill these baskets provides Frieda with some of her most cherished memories. “My sister and I love to hold baking marathons during the holidays,” she explains. “During our bake—a—thons, there’s so much warmth and love in the kitchen. We often bake for a week straight, preparing hundreds of treats for our family!” Frieda also enjoys spreading sweetness in her community, during holidays and beyond. Throughout her career as a restaurant manager, regular customers would often arrive to find special baskets of homemade treats at their tables. She also enjoys surprising the staff at her local bank with festively decorated cookies on Valentine’s Day. This Easter, Frieda baked 200 sugar cookies to share with residents at the local Convalescent home in Folsom, California. Joined by a friend dressed as an Easter Bunny, her surprise delivery was a huge hit with the lucky recipients! Frieda draws inspiration from the joy she brings to others by sharing desserts. “It’s so rewarding to offer someone a homemade treat. It’s the time, effort and special thought that make a difference,” she says. Frieda also believes using the best—tasting ingredients is key to creating delicious, gift—worthy desserts. She recommends using nuts, such as walnuts, almonds and pecans, to add delicious flavor and texture to desserts. “ Peanut brittle and banana nut bread are all—time favorites in my family, so it’s no surprise that I love to bake with nuts,” explains Frieda. “Nuts provide wonderful crunch and flavor, and also add protein,” she says. C&H Pure Cane Sugar is also a staple in her kitchen. Whether preparing a sumptuous chocolate pecan pie or a batch of sweet sugar cookies, she uses C&H pure cane sugar exclusively. “I use C&H because I can always count on delicious results!”
“I grew up in an Italian—American family that loves food, so cooking has been a cherished part of my life for as long as I can remember,” says Linda, who fondly recalls the time she spent as a girl with her grandmother in the kitchen as her “first apprenticeship.” “My goal is to share the techniques that help make cooking and sharing dishes a joyful—and delicious—experience.” Linda, who has run her own home—based cooking school for the past ten years and was named “Cooking Teacher of the Year” by the International Association of Culinary Professionals, has inspired countless cooking enthusiasts. In her acclaimed new cookbook, Cooking School Secrets for Real World Cooks, she shares delectable recipes, including sumptuous desserts such as Bittersweet Chocolate Bread Pudding with Kahlúa Sauce, as well as a treasure trove of tips and tricks. It’s no surprise Linda has dedicated her life to teaching; she earned a master’s degree in education and worked as associate dean at Occidental College in Los Angeles before attending the California Culinary Academy. In her varied career, she’s served as a private chef, managed a restaurant, and worked in the catering and public food service departments of the University of California San Francisco Medical Center. Linda combined her two passions—education and food—when she returned to the California Culinary Academy as dean. In 2004, she was invited to join COPIA: The American Center for Wine, Food & the Arts in Napa, California. Linda currently serves as the Julia Child Director of Culinary Programs, the organization’s primary food resource for the public, media, academics and professionals. While we can’t wait to discover the secrets in her book, Linda shares her golden rule with us. “Always use the highest—quality ingredients available,” she says. “I always use C&H Pure Cane Sugar. Quality chocolate, real vanilla and pure cane sugar are the foundations of a truly memorable dessert.”
"If it's extra rich, I eat small portions and I'm quite happy," says Judy. "My number—one rule is not to scrimp on the highest quality ingredients. When I bake, I want the real stuff—real butter, real vanilla, C&H Pure Cane Sugar." Inspiration came early. "My mom was a wonderful baker," Judy says. "She made cookies, cakes and pies. I still use her recipes for pumpkin and lemon meringue pies." In high school, a sewing class Judy wanted to take came partnered with a required cooking class. Although she wasn't happy about it at first, the cooking class "turned out to be a great thing." She earned a history degree from UCLA (the university had dropped its home economics major) and then taught history. She married a teacher and had two children. When her children were young she took cake decorating classes and brought goodies to her kids' classrooms. The kids (and teachers) loved everything—and wanted more. So did her colleagues when she went back to work for the City of Los Angeles. She retired in 2003 but still bakes often for lucky relatives, neighbors, and friends. This great home baker has fun in the kitchen but is serious about her equipment. "Invest in good measuring cups and spoons because baking requires exact measurement," she advises. Her "must—have" utensil? "A microplane that grates citrus rind. You also can find microplanes in different sizes to grate other ingredients, such as chocolate or nuts." Judy is always thinking about the next recipe and the occasion for sharing it; because family is at the center of her life, it's usually a birthday or anniversary. Recently, she was preparing something special for her grandson Zachary's second birthday. In the oven: lemon and chocolate cupcakes. "And I'll frost them with C&H 5—Minute Frosting!" she added happily.
There's something about the challenge of "do—it—yourself" that can arouse either excitement or intimidation, but for Beverly Ellen Schoonmaker Alfeld the idea is pure delight. Bev, better known as Jamlady, is a home canning enthusiast who relies on C&H Sugar as a key ingredient. Bev has compiled her creative creations into The Jamlady Cookbook, filled with tips for preserving and canning, plenty of mouthwatering recipes for jams, jellies, and pickles, as well as recipes that call for preserves as a key ingredient. Bev takes great pleasure in the nostalgia of heritage and family history, so it's no surprise she's been inspired by both sides of her family. Her grandfather, father and uncle were excellent gardeners. Her mother, aunts and grandmother took their produce and canned them into sweet or savory preserves to save, sell and share. Bev eventually began experimenting in her own garden; she tried different techniques and styles of preserving and became equal parts artist and scientist. As soon as she sold her first jars at a local farmer's market in Illinois, she became a popular vendor. People came in search of "the Jamlady," and the name stuck. The Jamlady Cookbook overflows with Bev's knowledge of the history and science of preserving, and it instructs on how to do it safely. One safety tip from Jamlady: "Use C&H Sugar in preserving, it keeps the pH levels within a safe range." Sounds scientific? Bev is sure to give step—by—step instructions on proper technique in her recipes.
Why does Jamlady choose C&H Sugar? "It just melts best—and in preserving that's important." Visit www.jamlady.com Chocolatier Michael Mischer isn't afraid to try new things. Yes, his delicious handmade truffles include familiar dark chocolate and espresso flavors, but he also offers more adventurous lavender—and—honey and hot chipotle varieties. Located in Oakland, California, Michael Mischer Chocolates is a chocolate—lover's paradise—a popular spot to satisfy a quick chocolate craving or hand pick a six— or twelve—piece truffle assortment for a gift box. Michael began his career in his native Germany with a classical apprenticeship under a pastry chef, learning about ingredients and flavors. After moving to the United States and working in a number of pastry shops, including one of his own, Michael chose to work specifically with chocolate. He opened Michael Mischer Chocolates in May 2004, offering a rotating variety of 18 truffle flavors, all—natural designer chocolate bars, and other unique treats. "I'm always listening to what people might enjoy with their chocolate, and then I experiment," Michael says. "Some ideas are successful and other fail. But it all starts with two things: listening and selecting quality ingredients." Michael uses Criollo fine flavor cocoa beans, a rare variety from South America. "I spend a few more dollars for quality ingredients," he says. "I know the result will reflect the ingredients I use and the care I put into creating it." The same is true, he says, of baking at home: "Don't skimp on ingredients. I choose high quality chocolate, C&H Pure Cane Sugar, and fresh local ingredients." Michael's tip for those of us baking with chocolate at home is simple: don't burn it. He recommends melting chocolate in a double boiler over low heat, or even in a microwave. In either case, keep an eye on it so the chocolate doesn't overheat. He also suggests bringing eggs and butter to room temperature before adding them to a recipe. "It encourages them to combine better," he observes. "Trust me, you'll yield great results." Visit www.michaelmischerchocolates.com Ask anyone in the Temescal neighborhood of Oakland, California, and you'll hear an enthusiastic endorsement: Bakesale Betty has the best sweet treats in town. Australian native Alison Barakat, also known as Bakesale Betty, is famous for delectable treats that combine fresh fruit and C&H Pure Cane Sugar: vanilla shortcake served with seasonal fruit, banana bread with cinnamon crumb topping, and sticky date pudding (a classic Down Under dessert). Betty shares with us her fabulous Pecan Pie recipe—try it with C&H Pure Cane Brown Sugar, Golden or Dark Brown. The bakery now occupies a corner at a busy intersection, but it started more informally. Alison (or Betty) and her husband, Michael Camp, began their business by selling baked goods at local farmers markets. The response was so positive that in the summer of 2005, Michael and Betty decided to open a retail shop in the neighborhood where they live, hiring two friends to help out. They now have about 30 employees, most of them live near by. The secret to their success? "We find it valuable and important to be a positive part of our community," Betty says. She credits word of mouth in the neighborhood for the new customers who walk through her doors. The newcomers could be friends of the firefighters who work next door to the shop who, occasionally, are lucky enough to receive firehouse deliveries of midday snacks. Others may work at the nearby children's hospital, where Betty donates goodies to annual fundraising events. (They just had to come back for more.) Of course, it hasn't hurt that Bakesale Betty's owner is a striking presence in the shop. It probably has something to do with her hair, which is a memorable shade of blue. Betty and her crew are proud to use only premium ingredients in their creations. "We use C&H Sugar because it's the best—we wouldn't consider using anything else," Betty says. Sharing the gift of quality with her neighbors is how she helps build a better community. Imagine traveling the globe collecting recipes for decadent desserts and prized baked treats. That's the enviable avocation of our featured baker, Nick Malgieri. A professional baker for more than thirty years, Nick collected recipes from 39 countries—most of which he visited personally—and shares them in his award-winning cookbook, A Baker's Tour. His mission: to bring the world of baking to American home bakers. "Baked goods know no national boundaries," Nick says. "They are as at home right here in the United States as they are in their country of origin." Representing North and South America, Europe, Asia, Africa, and Australia, the recipes in the cookbook include Nick's personal favorites as well as traditional national recipes such as Lebanese Mamoul, pistachio-filled butter cookies. "Cookies are truly international, not to mention popular," Nick says. "In fact, every country has so many varieties that it was difficult to choose among those available." With their light, buttery texture and a surprise crunch hidden within, Mamoul add an exotic twist to a familiar classic. Mamoul are traditionally made in carved wooden molds, but Nick saves you a trip to a specialty baking store, instead recreating the effect by piercing each cookie with a fork. "Sometimes you have to take foreign baking methods and find common American substitutes that provide the same result," he says. More ambitious bakers may want to attempt the Prinsessens Kramkake, or A few of the ingredients in A Baker's Tour may be unfamiliar to American bakers. Good news: Nick includes ingredient explanations (and substitutions) and preparation guidelines in the book's introduction. His tips give even novice bakers the confidence to create international specialties at home. With a familiar ingredient, brown sugar, Nick prefers letting each baker choose dark or golden brown according to personal preference. Note that the molasses flavor is much more pronounced in C&H Pure Cane Dark Brown Sugar than it is in C&H Golden Brown. To explore more of the world of baking, pay a visit to Nick's website, where he posts a new recipe every month and invites readers to send him their baking questions.
Karen Hamilton has nine grandchildren, which means her Baldwin, Michigan, kitchen is often covered in sticky fingerprints, spilled sugar, and flour. The three youngest kids—two 3-year-olds and a 6-year-old—love spending time making goodies with their grandma, and their enthusiastic pouring and mixing leave a bit of a mess. Not that Karen minds. "I love how excited the kids get in the kitchen," she says. "Their favorite things to bake are cookies and cakes, so I'm always keeping an eye out for new recipes like the ones on C&H boxes and the C&H website." When the C&H 12 Special Memories Sweepstakes was posted online, Karen bookmarked the page and visited it frequently, hoping to win one of the twelve prizes. She improved her odds by frequently sharing recipes through email and by mailing in her entries. Her perseverance paid off: In September 2006, Karen was selected as the winner of $2,000 to spend on groceries. The windfall was timely. Karen lives on a fixed income, and the cash allowed her to enjoy the holiday season and focus on giving to her family. To express her gratitude, Karen has offered to share one of her favorite family recipes with other bakers. Karen's Fudge Cake, which is baked and served on a rimmed cookie sheet and topped with fudgy frosting made with C&H Powdered Sugar, is a favorite of her grandchildren. "We're making it for the baby shower celebrating Grandbaby Number 10!" Karen says proudly. This year marks the 24th consecutive holiday season that Sandra Ventura will open her Pico Rivera, California, home to friends and family for her famous cookie exchange. The coffee and conversation are always warm and inviting, but the guests will tell you it's the competitive spirit that keeps them coming back. The rules are uncomplicated but strict. Sandra asks her guests to bring a dozen cookies for each of the 10 to 12 other participants, and one additional dozen for the "tasting panel." Louis, Sandra's husband of 26 years, serves as the panel's unofficial chairman. After conferring with a couple of friends, Sandra's brother and niece, and anyone else who wants to join in on the fun, Louis awards the top prize to the cookie that meets the panel's toughest criterion: After you've finished it, how much do you want another one of those cookies? "The judging is lighthearted, but everyone wants to win," Sandra says. "And in the end, the competition encourages us to become better bakers." As a cookie-exchange veteran, Sandra shares this tip with novices: "Be sure your cookies can be easily transported to and from an exchange. Drop or bar cookies are the best because they don't stick together or fall apart like frosted or delicate cookies." Sandra prefers fine-grained C&H Baker's Sugar because "it melts and mixes well into any recipe." If this season brings you to your first cookie exchange, Sandra has a foolproof recipe for Cowboy Cookies, her gift to you this season. What's the secret of creating sensational desserts that combine unusual flavors and look as fabulous as they taste? "Cook with confidence," is Elizabeth Falkner's prompt response. "It's important to stretch your limits to learn new things or try something familiar with a few new flavors and textures." The San Francisco Bay Area pastry chef, restaurant owner (Citizen Cake, Citizen Cupcake, and Orson) and cookbook author practices what she preaches. The recipes in her just-published cookbook, Demolition Desserts (Ten Speed Press, Berkeley), are anything but timid, and their names—Tiramisushi, Sammysnaps, Lemania Cupcakes—are as bold, creative, and playful as their execution. One way to boost your confidence, says Elizabeth, is by using quality ingredients like C&H Pure Cane Sugar. "I've cooked with both cane and beet sugars, but I prefer cane," she confides. Next, master a few professional tricks. In her chapter on cupcakes, Elizabeth shares a secret she says results in "rock-star cupcakes with attitude." First, load a plastic squirt bottle with a filling such as pastry cream or Elizabeth's Toffee Filling. (Cookware stores sell the bottles; an eight-ounce size works best.) Next, place it in a shallow warm-water bath to soften the filling. Snip the bottle tip to create a quarter-inch opening and gently poke the bottle into the top of a cooled cupcake. Gently squeeze until you feel the cupcake plump up with filling and take on weight. Finish by generously frosting the cupcake to cover the hole. Once you've practiced a few times, you're ready to follow Elizabeth's advice and create your own creative combination. Ideas can come from anywhere. "I'm inspired by so many things," Elizabeth says, "from new combinations of sweet or savory flavors to music, art, and architecture." Now go out and confidently create something delicious! What motivates a critically acclaimed chef to step out of the limelight and into the fluorescent lights of a school cafeteria? For Chef Seth Bixby Daugherty of Eden Prairie, MN, the answer is simple: the chance to help people eat real food—food that isn't overprocessed, full of artificial ingredients, and laden with unnecessary fat and salt. "I'm not a nutrition expert," Seth is quick to clarify, "but I do know that real food simply tastes better and provides better nutrition than processed alternatives." C&H Pure Cane Sugar is one of the real food ingredients that's always in Seth's pantry. Seth's passion for real food is matched by his concern for children. A father of two himself, he quit his job at an upscale Minneapolis restaurant, in 2006 to devote his energies to overhauling the Minneapolis school lunch program. He and his wife, Karen, started the Real Foods Initiative to help find cost-effective and kid-friendly substitutes for standard cafeteria fare. One happily received change: replacing deep-fried potatoes with roasted garlic-rosemary potatoes. Now Seth is joining forces with The Great American Bake Sale to take his message to a wider audience. On March 30, Seth helped the Mall of America, in Minneapolis, host The World's Largest Bake Sale. "I have training and skills that can be used to make a difference," he says. "The Great American Bake Sale is a way to get real food to kids who simply don't have enough." He also finds time to teach the next generation of chefs enrolled in the culinary programs at The Art Institutes International. Seth shares this original bake-sale recipe for Mulberry Crunch with us to try at our own bake sales. Cable television's Food Network, which is sponsoring The Great American Bake Sale along with C&H Sugar, offers this Snow-Flecked Brownie recipe to try. Find more recipes and learn more about Share Our Strength's Great American Bake Sale on the Share Our Strength website. Here's a recipe worth duplicating: Mix together one good idea, six premium ingredients, a heaping spoonful of elbow grease, and a pinch of good luck. Bake till done ... and walk away with a $1 million grand prize! That was the winning formula for Carolyn Gurtz, 59, of Gaithersburg, MD, the winner of the $1 million grand prize in the 43rd annual Pillsbury Bake-Off. Carolyn's Double-Delight Peanut Butter Cookies took top honors out of tens of thousands of recipes submitted, impressing the judges at the finals with their "layers of peanut butter flavor" and their "delightful taste that combines two classics—a snickerdoodle and a peanut butter cookie." Carolyn's been prepping for the big time virtually all her life. Her parents taught her to bake when she was seven, and she fondly remembers helping her dad flip rabbit-shaped pancakes. A regular contestant in local cooking competitions such as Maryland's Montgomery County Fair, she's been entering recipes in the Pillsbury Bake-Off for 15 years. One of Carolyn's baking rules: always use the very best ingredients, like C&H Pure Cane Sugar. She loves all of the varieties: brown, granulated, and confectioner's. Carolyn says she shed tears of joy when she learned she'd been selected one of the 100 finalists. The happiness extended to the Dallas finals in April, where Carolyn enjoyed the camaraderie and support of her fellow contestants. Winning the contest, Carolyn says, was "a total, total shock." But at least one person wasn't surprised. Carolyn's son Michael was the first to taste the winning cookies. His verdict: "Boy, these are winners!" Since its inception in 1949, the Pillsbury Bake-Off has recognized more than 4,000 finalists. The contest is held every other year, so aspiring bakers have plenty of time to perfect their recipes before the 44th Bake-Off, in 2010.
Double-Delight Peanut Butter Cookies Recipe
Prep Time: 45 Min INGREDIENTS
¼ cup Fisher® Dry Roasted Peanuts, finely chopped DIRECTIONS
As a child growing up in Palermo, Sicily, Nick Stellino spent hours in the kitchen perfecting his family’s best-loved recipes. That early training served as excellent preparation for Stellino’s successful career as one of the most acclaimed Italian chefs and cookbook authors of our time. But before stardom came apprenticeship. Nick left a lucrative job as a Wall Street stockbroker in 1991 and started his restaurant career as a lowly dishwasher. He gradually learned the trade and moved up the ranks; soon he was soon cooking alongside legendary chefs in some of the best kitchens in the United States. Stellino recalls those jobs as “heaven,” but they weren’t quite enough. “I wanted to share my enthusiasm for Italian cooking with more people,” he says today. Television gave him the opportunity he was seeking. Since 1995, Stellino has invited viewers into his Los Angeles home through his popular PBS series, Cucina Amore, and most recently Nick Stellino’s Family Kitchen. But the private Stellino emerges during the holiday season, when he cooks for those closest to him: his family. “The holidays are a time for me to put everything aside and focus completely on my family,” he says. “As the host, it’s my job to make sure that everyone spends enough quality time together, so at the holiday table, I’ll mix up the seating. I like to seat elders and teenagers in close proximity, which gives everyone a chance to share great stories and strengthen family bonds.” He adds with a laugh: “Money comes and goes, but a family, your family…that is forever!”
Discover more of Nick Stellino’s dessert ideas when you order his Sweet Secrets recipe booklet; look for our offer on 5-pound bags of C&H Sugar. And get to know him better by visiting his website, where he shares his favorite recipes and cooking tips.
Just how motivated and determined is Rosalie Seebeck? Well, take a look at her strategy for winning the C&H Sugar Cake Baking Contest at this year's Oklahoma State Fair. She entered not just one contest category, or even two or three. She entered all six categories, each with a different recipe. Were the judges impressed? You bet! In addition to winning Best of Show, the competition's top honor, Rosalie also received first- or second-place prizes in almost every category she entered. But that's not even the most extraordinary aspect to Rosalie's success. She didn't just create and bake six recipes—she also grew many of the ingredients on the land surrounding her Bethany, Oklahoma, home. "I organically grow my own fruit and I have my own pecan trees," she explains. "And I have 12 hens, so I never have to buy eggs. In fact," she adds, "I rarely have to go to the grocery store, since I produce much of what I eat." And she doesn't let any of her hard work go to waste: she finds smart, economical ways to preserve what she grows by freezing, canning, or pickling nearly all of it. "I was the oldest of seven children," Rosalie says, "so I learned to economize while helping my mother cook for such a large family. Now I share that tradition with my three children and seven grandchildren." Rosalie's passion for baking and cooking doesn't stop at cake. She's entered a number of cooking contests throughout the years, creating winning chicken, beef recipes, and ice cream recipes. But if she could be said to have a specialty, it would certainly be baking. Her family and friends call her a baker extraordinaire, and she constantly receives requests for her famous recipes, which she gladly shares. "Cooking is a true passion of mine," Rosalie says. "I love sharing my recipes so that others can enjoy the dishes just as much as I do." Take Rosalie's advice. Enjoy the recipe for her winning Butter Pecan Cake, made with C&H Pure Cane White Granulated Sugar—one ingredient she can't find in her backyard. And be sure to pass it along to friends and family, too!
Popular home and food expert Sandra Lee, host of the Emmy-nominated television series Semi-Homemade Cooking With Sandra Lee on Food Network, has revolutionized the way people think about cooking and entertaining. Sandra's Semi-Homemade® philosophy was born out of the challenges she faced in her childhood. As the oldest of five children, she was responsible for caring for her siblings and managing the household finances. Forced to live on welfare and food stamps, Sandra quickly learned how to turn budget-friendly packaged foods into delicious meals for her family. These early experiences laid the foundation for what would eventually become her trademark — Semi-Homemade®. Her background led Sandra Lee to become a spokesperson for Share Our Strength's Great American Bake Sale®. "Participating in this event is a great way for people to give back to their communities," Sandra explains. "By hosting bake sales, individuals are making a difference in the lives of more than 12 million American children at risk of hunger." She adds: "This campaign is near and dear to my heart, because I experienced hunger and a lack of food during my own childhood. Helping provide children with their next meal is a beautiful thing. I hope we can all join together to make a positive difference in the lives of America's children."
Don't let time run out on this special free issue offer! To learn more about how you can help Sandra and Share Our Strength end childhood hunger, visit the website and sign up to host a bake sale in your neighborhood.
"It was the best vacation of my life," says a happy Jennifer Roberts of Barstow, California, one of five grand-prize winners of C&H Sugar's Sweetest Napa Valley Getaway Sweepstakes. Her prize was a complete surprise, because Jennifer's mother had entered her in the sweepstakes without letting her know. "I got a call saying I was selected as a winner, but I had no idea what I'd won until I called my mother," Jennifer recalls. "Thanks, Mom!" During their five-day culinary adventure in May, Jennifer and the other winners were treated to the best tours, food, wine and—of course!—desserts that Napa Valley has to offer. The high point: a private cooking class with TV chef and cookbook author Nick Stellino, who joined the sweepstakes winners at the Culinary Institute of America at Greystone, where he cooked a meal and shared expert cooking tips and techniques. "He was such a wonderful gentleman!" Jennifer says, adding, "I can understand why he is successful. He has such talent!" Her favorite part of the trip? Jennifer singles out her visit to the wine caves at Hall Winery, where she discovered a beautiful sculpture made from a bronzed tree trunk. "I was so impressed with the use of local art throughout Napa," she says. "It was great to see the community embracing local artists." Now that Jennifer is back home, she's beating the summer heat not with Napa Valley wine but with her signature iced tea. She makes each batch by adding five bags of black tea, two bags of green tea, and one cup of C&H® Pure Cane Granulated Sugar to three quarts of boiling water, then adding ice to bring down the temperature. "It's a perfect, easy drink for the summer," she says. "My husband loves it!" If Jennifer Roberts's Napa Valley experience makes you wish you'd been there, visit our website throughout the year to learn about and enter upcoming sweepstakes!
Many people who buy Anita Chu's cookbooks—Field Guide to Cookies and Field Guide to Candy—are surprised to learn about her day job: she's a consulting structural engineer for a firm in San Francisco. "At first I saw baking as a way to exercise my right brain after a day in the 'number space,'" Anita says. "But then I realized that engineering and baking are similar. Both involve precision. And some desserts, like wedding cakes, are architectural!" Bay Area native Anita, now 32, started baking while she was a student at UC Berkeley. "My mother, who'd immigrated from Hong Kong, was a great cook but she didn't do American baking," she says. But Anita had always been fascinated by the dessert recipes her mother skipped over, so she taught herself to bake as a way to relieve the stress of studying. Encouraged by enthusiastic feedback from her friends, she quickly moved from basic cookies to more advanced recipes. In 2005 Anita decided to take her hobby to the next level. She enrolled in Tante Marie's Cooking School in San Francisco, where the rigorous curriculum focused on classic French patisserie. After graduating, she worked full time at a small bakery in Berkeley. She also fine-tuned her photography skills and launched her blog, Dessert First, "as a way to motivate myself to keep baking and taking photos." In three years her fan base has grown to more than 1,000 readers a day. She also maintains Facebook and Twitter accounts to stay in touch with readers and friends. Anita left the bakery to write the two Field Guides, which required intensive research and testing. (She enlisted a group of lucky friends to help test and taste.) For the candy guide, "I learned a lot about cooking with sugar," she says—such as the exact temperatures at which different stages such as thread, soft crack, and caramel occur. She distilled her findings into a handy chart on Page 20. With no cookbook writing in her immediate future, Anita is devoting her energies to another big project: her wedding in May 2010. No, she won't be baking the cake, she says, laughing. "But I know so many wonderful pastry chefs now that I'm thinking of inviting them to contribute to a mini dessert table at the cocktail reception!"
The New York Times lists her as one of the best-selling cookbook authors of all time. Health magazine called her one of "The Five Women Who Changed the Way We Eat." In 2007, she was inducted into the prestigious James Beard Cookbook Hall of Fame. For more than 30 years—ever since the publication of The Moosewood Cookbook and The Enchanted Broccoli Forest—Mollie Katzen has been championing healthful eating and natural ingredients. Lately, she's been focusing on education. In 2003 she helped create Harvard University Dining Services' Food Literacy Project, which aims to help consumers make informed choices about food. Her newest cookbook, Get Cooking is aimed at beginning cooks; its 150 simple recipes include 10 delicious desserts anyone can make. Baked goods are no exception to Mollie's real-ingredients philosophy. "I prefer to use natural cane sugar in my baked goods rather than compensate with larger amounts of an artificial sweetener," she says. "Natural ingredients such as butter and sugar offer wonderful taste and texture that cannot be replaced." And she adds: "The key to making healthful choices is to keep moderation in mind." Mollie's Buttermilk Banana Bread is her take on the classic quick bread—a treat for breakfast or any time of day. "Banana bread was invented for overripe bananas," Mollie says. "If you have a few extra bananas that are turning soft, don't throw them out. In just a few minutes, you can transform them into banana bread batter." Add flour, buttermilk, butter, and brown sugar to create a hearty and delicious loaf to share. Mollie recommends topping the bread with a generous serving of fresh, in-season fruit. For more information about Mollie, or to purchase any of her cookbooks, visit her website.
You may consider yourself a good home baker—maybe even a very good one! But could you take on the ultimate challenge: a wedding cake? Seattle resident Ann Scranton, 32, had been baking for just a couple of years when she volunteered to do just that. Not only did she (and her cake) rise to the occasion, she has since gone on to create five other wedding cakes for friends and colleagues. All it takes, she says, is patience and practice—lots of practice. "If I'm using a technique or a recipe that I haven't used before, I always, always, always make a sample cake," Ann says. "It's usually just the smallest tier, but it's worth it to me because I learn things about the recipe or the process that save me a lot of time, money, and headache. Also, it lets the couple see what the cake is going to look like, and make changes to the design." As a child in Northern California, Ann baked a little—"helping Mom with cookies, that sort of thing. And one Thanksgiving when I was in high school, I baked the pumpkin pie. It was a big triumph—the edges of the crust were mostly unburnt!" She started baking in earnest after college, starting with family favorites, doctored cake mixes, and cookies. A couple of years later a college friend—who had done Ann's hair and makeup without charge for Ann's wedding—became engaged, and Ann offered to bake her wedding cake. "At that point," she recalls, "I had been baking for a couple of years, and fancy layer cakes didn't scare me. But I'd never done anything with a piping bag!" She signed up for cake-decorating and wedding-cake classes at a Seattle-area community college, and dived right in. Not only was it her first wedding cake, it was for a "destination" wedding, a three- or four-hour drive from Seattle. "I wasn't about to drive across the state, in the heat of summer, with a fully decorated cake," Ann says. "So I took the baked cake layers—white cake with chocolate chunks—and all my gear with me. Luckily, the groom's mom had a big stand mixer I could use for the frosting! I got it frosted and covered in fondant the night before the wedding, and then piped on the decorations and stacked it the next morning. I loved the color of the cake, which was the same as the bride's dress. And I don't think there was a bit left because people came back for more!" You can see a photo of that beautiful seafoam-green cake—and Ann's other creations—at her blog, Sugar and Wool. Yes, as the title suggests, Ann is also an enthusiastic knitter! Ann's advice to wedding-cake novices: "Take a class and give it a try! If you're really nervous, make a cake for no reason, or ask a friend to throw a party so you have an excuse. Then you can start with a recipe you're already comfortable with." For inspiration, she suggests looking at bridal magazines and at TheKnot.com. She also recommends finding a specialty store in your area—she likes Seattle's Home Cake Decorating—where you can browse and ask questions.
In southern Florida, Chef Allen Susser is known for serving guests innovative seafood dishes at his namesake restaurant, where his signature "new world cuisine" blends the bounty of South Florida ingredients with Caribbean and Latin flavors. He's also famous for being named one of Food & Wine magazine's Best New Chefs in America and for winning the James Beard Foundation's Best Chef Award, Southeast Region, in 1994. Before he opened Chef Allen's in Aventura, he worked in some of the finest kitchens around the world, including Le Bristol Hotel in Paris and Le Cirque in New York City. But even his fans may not know that Chef Allen has also devoted himself to ending childhood hunger in America. He has worked with Share Our Strength for 23 years, starting as a guest chef at the organization's annual Taste of the Nation and later organizing local events for the Great American Bake Sale. In 2009 he was named a GABS "rock star" fundraiser after his Aventura Mall bake sale raised more than $10,000. Born in Brooklyn into a family that treasured food, Chef Allen loved eating and cooking even as a very young child. "My fondest memories from childhood revolve around food and my discovery of different ingredients," he says. Now, he adds, "I want all children to be able to have that same experience. As a chef, I saw an abundance of food out there and I wanted to harness it to make a difference." Chef Allen's work with Share Our Strength has helped inspire his community to become involved in the organization's mission. "We are trying to make a difference, and that feels great," he says. Want to try one of the recipes that wowed Chef Allen's bake-sale customers? His Gingersnap Cookies, made with C&H Pure Cane Granulated Sugar and C&H Pure Cane Powdered Sugar, is a delicious treat that will impress your own bake-sale patrons, too.
When she accepted a summer internship at C&H Sugar's quality-assurance lab, Creighton University sophomore Rachel Wilhelm was looking for real-world science experience. She got that and much more—including the opportunity to coordinate our successful bake sale benefitting Share Our Strength. "The bake sale was the biggest thing I worked on all summer," reports Rachel, whose efforts helped C&H raise $1,775 to end childhood hunger. But it wasn't just about the bottom line. "I got to meet almost every single employee face to face," Rachel says. "I felt proud to know such kind-hearted, dedicated people!" Those adjectives describe Rachel as well—as do "enthusiastic," "hard-working," and "outgoing." A biochemistry and Spanish major who hopes to become a doctor, Rachel is currently a chemistry teaching assistant and an avid volunteer whose causes include Habitat for Humanity and (through her sorority, Delta Delta Delta) St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. As a Creighton University Magis Ambassador, she helps with events and welcomes important guests to the campus. She also sings in a church choir, runs and works out with friends, and—"when I have time"—sews and bakes for relaxation. And she works part time as a desk receptionist at one of the freshman dorms! Rachel had heard about C&H from her father, who recently became our human-resources manager. Still, she wasn't sure what to expect from "this old and mysterious refinery on the edge of San Francisco Bay." The surprises were all good ones. During her second week on the job, she toured the Moku Pahu, a Hawaiian sugar ship that's been serving C&H for decades. Throughout the rest of the summer she performed daily tests on the refinery's water supply, worked on Safe Quality Food Institute materials in preparation for an audit, and helped market a safety picnic. And then there was the lab. "It was amazing learn about the chemistry of sugar and see how hard the employees work," Rachel said. "And it was interesting to use skills I'd learned in high school and college labs to test the products being sent to customers. This was the real deal!" Most impressive to her: "So much care goes into making the product perfect for the customer! On the very off chance that something is wrong with the product, C&H is always responsive to customer complaints—proving that customer satisfaction really does matter!"
 Claudia Ossa Claudia Ossa describes herself as a "real foodie." She's passionate about everything that relates to food—preparing it, sharing it, eating it. Although she has traveled abroad in search of the next great bite, it's back home in the San Francisco Bay Area where she puts her passion into practice. After a stint in culinary school, Claudia supplemented her kitchen know-how by watching the informative and humorous Alton Brown on Food Network. She must have picked up some of Brown's familiar enthusiasm and antics, too: Her warm manner is nothing short of infectious. Claudia will be spreading that warmth around on her new social networking and review site, RealFoodies, which will launch early in 2011. Until then, she's posting weekly on the RealFoodies blog, TastyBits, where she chronicles her eating and cooking adventures. In her spare time, she shares her talents as a chef-volunteer Share Our Strength's Cooking Matters™, a national program that teaches families who face hunger how to prepare healthy and affordable meals. The program plays a critical role in Share Our Strength's No Kid Hungry™ Campaign to end childhood hunger in America. In the six-week Cooking Matters class Claudia co-taught, 21 women in their late 20s to late 70s learned how to shop for groceries and prepare family meals within their budgets. Claudia was the chef instructor; her co-teacher was a nutritionist. The class was facilitated by the Pacific Coast Farmers' Market, and everyone in class left with a big bag of groceries after each lesson so they could practice their new skills at home. "I got a lot of positive feedback from students who went home and prepared the recipes they learned in class," Claudia reports. One of the primary lessons of the class "is to buy whole and pure ingredients as much as possible when you grocery shop," Claudia says. C&H Pure Cane Sugar fits the bill. "For a sweet ending to my last class, I decided to teach the apple crisp from the Cooking Matters cookbook," Claudia says. "It is a wonderful winter recipe because you get to use lots of apples that are in season. And nothing beats a nice and sweet oatmeal crumble!" You too can try the Apple Crisp recipe. Be sure to use C&H Pure Cane Golden Brown Sugar! You can read more about Claudia's teaching experience on her blog, where she includes photos and more information about the class.
 Abby DodgeCookbook author and pastry chef Abby Johnson Dodge has quite a culinary résumé. She studied at La Varenne, the famous cooking school in Paris, and later worked under superstar French chefs Michel Guerard and Guy Savoy, specializing in pastry. She's a contributing editor to Fine Cooking magazine and founded the magazine's test kitchen. And she's written about baking and cooking for more than three dozen special-interest publications. But those credentials tell just one side of the Abby Dodge story. As the video tutorial on her website, abbydodge.com, demonstrates, she's utterly down to earth and approachable, with a playful sense of humor that comes across in her motto: "Baking the world a better place, one recipe at a time." Abby began baking as a young girl, spending Sunday afternoons with her mother baking brownies, chiffon cake, and other treats from recipes torn out of women's magazines. "Luckily," she says, "I had three older brothers who were all eager tasters!" Those early experiences influenced Abby's decision to study baking in Paris and build a culinary career. Eventually, though, she returned home and began writing her successful cookbooks for kids and adults. She now lives with her husband and two children in the same Connecticut town in which she grew up. There's nothing fancy about Abby's baking philosophy: that baking can and should be simple and enjoyable. "With all my projects, my goal is always to encourage bakers of every skill level to dive into baking and dessert making–to show that it can be easy, fun, and very rewarding," says Abby. To that end, all of her recipes share some basic elements. They're as beautiful as they are delicious. They have easy-to-follow instructions "with lots of helpful visual clues to guide the baker." And each recipe includes "loads of flavor variations" to encourage even novice bakers to try new combinations "and even experiment on their own!"
 Ellen Jackson
The recipe for Ellen Jackson's professional life might read something like this: Take one undergraduate English major; form into a six-year publishing career in New York City. Add a degree from the New England Culinary Institute and season with a baking demonstration by renowned pastry chef and cookbook author Emily Luchetti. Roll out into 12 years as a professional pastry chef in restaurants from New Orleans to Portland, Oregon. And then the recipe gets really interesting. "When my feet got tired and my back began to ache," Ellen writes on her website, foodprintstyle, "I turned in my rolling pin for a different sort of career in food. These days I write about it, and make it smile for the camera." "It's a natural fit," she told us. "I love food and I love words. Now I get to bridge those two worlds." Since she made the switch, Ellen's delicious words and pictures have appeared in Edible Portland, Culinate.com, and the food section of The Oregonian. She's also an accomplished food stylist who has co-authored several cookbooks, including The Grand Central Baking Book, which features recipes from the Pacific Northwest's acclaimed Grand Central Baking Company. And she continues to develop recipes, some of which she shares on her website. "Cooking and baking have always been a part of my life," says Ellen. In the early 1990s, when she was checking out cooking schools, she attended Emily Luchetti's baking demonstration in San Francisco. "She sparked an interest I wanted to cultivate," Ellen says. But during Ellen's two years at the New England Culinary Institute in Montpelier, Vermont, the curriculum was geared to earning a general culinary degree. "The program offered just one unit in basic baking and another on pastry technique," Ellen recalls. "Which was fine since I wasn't focused on a career in baking and pastry at that point." After culinary school, Ellen got a job as a line cook at a Portland, Oregon, restaurant. Within a few weeks, though, she switched to the pastry kitchen: "It was a better fit. It didn't take long for me to realize that the discipline and precision of baking and pastry were for me." She liked the morning hours, too. Eventually she owned her own wholesale baking business. As a professional baker in high-end restaurants, Ellen focused on consistency and perfect technique. In her current career, she says, she can focus exclusively on high-quality seasonal ingredients. "Fresh is always better," she says. "Seasonal fruits, local eggs and butter. But the other ingredients need to be excellent, too. I have always preferred to use C&H Sugar—especially the superfine sugar. It's foolproof for meringues!" Her new life, says Ellen, is a happy balance of baking, recipe development, and writing. Key to that balance is a healthy lifestyle that includes eating wisely and exercising (important when you bake for a living!). Naturally, she still enjoys sweet treats—such as this refreshing Chocolate-Chocolate Mint Ice Cream recipe, which she developed for us using C&H Organic Light Agave Nectar.
 Krystina Castella
For cookbook author and kitchen impresario Krystina Castella, whipping up a batch of cookies—or baking cupcakes or cakes—isn't an end in itself. No, the fun really starts after the pans come out of the oven and Krystina gets to work frosting, embellishing, coloring, and constructing. The results may be whimsical or breathtakingly beautiful, but they're always as amazing to behold as they are delicious. Krystina has a secret advantage in the kitchen: She's an industrial designer who graduated from the prestigious Rhode Island School of Design (RISD) and is now a professor of industrial design at Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, California. She has designed furniture, toys, clothing, and housewares; with her husband, Brian Boyl, she produced a children's book, Discovering Nature's Alphabet, that reveals the surprising patterns in rocks, leaves, and branches. "My professional design work is all about experimenting in plastic and metal," Krystina told us. "I start with an idea that I want to explore further. Cookies, cupcakes, and cakes are just another medium to work with." But don't worry about her creations being too challenging for non-designers to reproduce: she also excels at breaking down her process into clear, easy-to-follow steps. Krystina learned to bake in the Brooklyn kitchen of her Italian grandmother. "She baked for the nuns at the convent down the street and delivered cakes to neighbors and friends because she loved sharing her creations," Krystina said. "I learned from her that if I perfected baking, I could make people happy, too." She baked with her Girl Scout troop and for swim-team fundraisers; for her Sweet 16 party she made a huge cake for more than 150 people. When she met her husband-to-be, he dubbed her "Cakie." Surprisingly, Krystina came late to cookie baking. As she explains in the introduction to her 2010 cookbook, Crazy About Cookies, when she was eight years old she heard a 4-H jingle that went something like this: "It takes a lot of work baking cookies, but you can buy them so easy in the store." "Every time I considered making cookies," Krystina writes, "I thought of the commercial and figured, 'I'll just buy them.'" Instead of baking cookies she sold Girl Scout cookies door to door, eventually earning a merit badge for selling a thousand boxes. Although she enjoyed collecting cookie cutters and decorating books, she limited her from-scratch cookie baking to chocolate chip and oatmeal raisin cookies. Meanwhile, she published two successful cookbooks, Crazy About Cupcakes and Pops! Icy Treats for Everyone (For more about those books, see our January 2008 and July 2008 newsletters.) It was finally time, she decided, to take out the box of cookie cutters and start gathering cookie recipes. "I changed them, tweaked them, and then started developing my own recipes and cookie ideas from scratch," she said. "As I got into it I realized that not only was I having fun—I was becoming downright obsessed. My years of fearing the cookie were over—in a big way." Which doesn't mean she's abandoned her other baking obsessions. Krystina's research for her next book, Crazy About Cakes, allowed her to revisit that fabulous Sweet 16 cake—and to experiment with creative cakes for just about every other occasion on the calendar, too. The book will be published November 1; we're planning to buy copies for all the bakers on our holiday gift lists!
 Mitchell Hughes
Mitchell Hughes's path to a successful culinary career had an unconventional start and a romantic turning point. A native of San Francisco, he worked for 14 years as an immunology technician for a medical laboratory in Southern California—not the usual preparation for a creator of spectacular desserts. Then came a vacation in Paris with his partner, which opened Mitchell's eyes to a different kind of science: the science of baking. When the vacation was over, he traded his lab coat for a baker's smock and chef's hat at the California Culinary Academy in San Francisco. Not only has he never regretted the decision, the transition from scientific lab to pastry kitchen felt surprisingly natural, Mitchell now says: "Both science and baking are very exacting. That fits my personality to a T." After graduating from CCA in 1997, Mitchell found work at local bakeries and at Whole Foods before being hired in 2000 by Spun Sugar, a baking-supply store and school in Berkeley, California. He's now the executive pastry chef there, whipping up the fancy cakes, confections, and cookies that are sold in the retail store. But Spun Sugar is much more than a pastry shop: It's "a 911 hotline for all bakers," Mitchell half-jokes—a resource for everything the adventurous home baker needs, from specialty chocolate to the ingredients for gum paste, from sprinkles to spatulas, from flavored oils to edible glitter. It's also a busy school, offering two to three hands-on classes each week, all year round. Mitchell's classes in baking and chocolate-making are among the most popular. "I grew up in a family of teachers," Mitchell says, "and I always expected to become a teacher myself—but only after many years of other work. It turned out I was bitten by the teaching bug much earlier than I'd planned!" "Students love Chef Mitchell's easygoing style, sense of humor and above all his baking and confectionery talent," says Spun Sugar instructor and retail-store manager Tracy Wirta. "He's always willing to help our customers and students with their questions." Chef Mitchell's skills were showcased in a recent "Caramel Heaven" class at Spun Sugar. He explained that while caramel seems simple—the only ingredients are sugar and water, sometimes with the addition of butter and cream—consistent results can be elusive unless you understand the process. Successful caramel depends on the right cooking temperature, Mitchell says, and the right temperature depends on an accurate candy thermometer, digital or analog. "It's important to trust your thermometer," he adds. To check your thermometer's accuracy, clip it to the edge of the pan you'll be using for caramel. Then boil water in it. Water boils at 212°F at sea level, Mitchell reminds us, "so if your thermometer says something different when your water boils, you'll need to adjust the temperature you bring your caramel to." If you live above sea level, refer to this chart to learn the boiling temperature where you live. As you make your caramel, keep a close eye on the temperature: sugar heats fast and burns even faster. Chef Mitchell brings caramel for candy to 250°, and caramel for apples between 246° and 248°. When the mixture reaches the appropriate temperature, stop the cooking process by pouring the caramel into a bowl, submerging the bottom in an ice bath, and stirring until the caramel cools. Excellent caramel begins with excellent ingredients—and of course that includes sugar. Some recipes specify superfine sugar for silky-smooth results, but Mitchell says C&H Granulated Sugar also works well—in fact, he prefers it. Follow recipe directions carefully: different types of caramel require slight ingredient or technique adjustments with a big impact on the final results. For example, C&H's recipe, Caramel Apples, has relatively little butter, which creates a gooey consistency that adheres well to apples. The larger proportion of butter in our Caramel Sauce recipe makes the sauce perfect for pouring and dipping. Check out the Spun Sugar website for photos of Chef Mitchell's creations and for information about events. And be sure to check out the class schedule—it's worth planning a Bay Area vacation around. Who knows—maybe you, like Mitchell, will be inspired to find a new career calling!
|
Profiles
Mutsumi Takehara
Flo Braker
Alice Medrich
Chef Jean—Marc Gorce & Casimira Gorce
Emily Luchetti
Fran Gage
David Lebovitz
Carolyn Weil
Frieda Wisshack
Linda Carucci
Judy Sliter
Beverly Ellen Schoonmaker Alfeld
Michael Mischer
Bakesale Betty
Nick Malgieri
Karen Hamilton
Sandra Ventura
Elizabeth Falkner
Seth Bixby Daugherty
Carolyn Gurtz
Nick Stellino
Rosalie Seebeck
Sandra Lee
Jennifer L. Roberts
Anita Chu
Mollie Katzen
Ann Scranton
Chef Allen Susser
Rachel Wilhelm
Claudia Ossa
Abby Dodge
Ellen Jackson
Krystina Castella
Mitchell Hughes
|
©2011 C&H Sugar Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Find Us on Facebook
Follow Us on Twitter
Norwegian Princess Cream Cake
