Notes On A Meal » Baking

Sugar, part 3

Lemon Tart — Thu, 03 May 2012 03:30:26 +0000

From a culinary perspective, sugar is a very important ingredient so understanding how it reacts while being heated, melted, dissolved, etc is very crucial. One of the most integral parts of this is an understanding of what happens in a simple sugar and water solution. In this case, the sugar molecules have a tendency to bond to each other in orderly arrays and form dense solid masses (crystals). When sugar crystals are dissolved in water, H2O molecules have a tendency to overcome this bond between sugar molecules and form their own bonds. If the sugar molecules become too crowded with the water molecules, they begin pairing off with each other and form crystals once again.

Sugar, part 2

Lemon Tart — Tue, 01 May 2012 18:57:02 +0000

There are several different types of sugars, all with various qualities and sweetness levels. Different sugars give different impressions of sweetness with sucrose being the longest to be detected on the tongue and the most lingering of the bunch. By comparison, fructose registers quickly and strongly but it also fades very quickly. But before we talk more about the complexities of sugars, lets define all of of them:

Moroco Chocolat, Toronto

Lemon Tart — Tue, 10 Apr 2012 21:38:28 +0000

Let’s just say, that if Willy Wonka and Alice in Wonderland had a baby, well, it would look a lot like Moroco Chocolat!!!! Located just behind the store fronts of Yorkville Avenue, this venue calls out to every adult’s inner child while still allowing them the sophistication that the neighbourhood endorses. It’s cute, whimsical and it will satisfy your every want and need as it morphs from pastry shop, to restaurant, to lounge; all in one day.

Read more on Moroco Chocolat, Toronto…

New and exciting at Ma Maison

Lemon Tart — Mon, 02 Apr 2012 21:41:43 +0000

So it’s been a while since I’ve updated the Ma Maison cake and pastry line-up, so here goes…. Also, drooling over the pictures is a good way to pass time on excruciatingly long Mondays!

What is a macaron?

Lemon Tart — Sat, 17 Mar 2012 23:18:30 +0000

So all week I’ve been posting about these wonderful little desserts but I haven’t even answered the most basic of questions: What is a macaron?

Before I get into details, I would like to point out that we are talking about French macarons as opposed to the North American coconut counterparts…. those are spelled with an extra “o” (as in macaroons) and they’re slighly less exciting and diverse.

History of the macaron

Lemon Tart — Thu, 15 Mar 2012 17:04:26 +0000

Their name comes from the Italian word “maccherone” which means to beat or crush, used here in reference to the nut (predominantly almond) flour that these desserts are made with.

Although the history of the macaron is a little foggy, most sources agree that they date back to the early 1500′s when Caterine de Medici’s Italian pastry chefs were brought over to France after her marriage to Henry II. The chefs began creating cookies made of almonds, egg whites and sugar. It wasn’t until about 400 years later when chef Pierre Desfontaines, of the famous pastry shop Laduree, had the brilliant idea to create a ganache sandwich using this wonderful almond cookie.

Macaron Day 2012, Toronto

Lemon Tart — Mon, 12 Mar 2012 16:19:00 +0000

What is macaron day?
It’s very simple: top pastry shops in Toronto team up for a good cause and give out these amazing little pastries to everyone who walks through the door. This year 25% of all the proceeds of macaron day will be donated to the Red Door Family Shelter (http://www.reddoorshelter.ca/).

Read more on Macaron Day 2012, Toronto…

The Grizzly Project, Barcelona

Lemon Tart — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 23:30:03 +0000

This is a very interesting clip on the design and making of a chocolate grizzly bear by the Barcelona Pastry Guild School for the World Chocolate Masters competition this year. Enjoy!

Whole wheat, banana berry muffins

Lemon Tart — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 04:03:58 +0000

Simple and very very healthy, possibly also somewhat tasty, these muffins are a great way to start the day. Should mention that they are egg free and can very easily become dairy free or gluten free. I made mine with wheat germ, blueberries, dried currants and coconut but the possibilities are endless as long as you remember to balance out flavors. Another good combination would be carrot, orange and ginger.

Food Pairing Site

CHEFinBERLIN — Mon, 26 Dec 2011 15:20:46 +0000

Food Pairing

This is a site for pairing foods and drinks – great for chefs and bartenders. Foodpairing shows tasty food pairings based on scientific data – it’s amazing because it takes the worry if “this tastes good with that”. They hold food pairing workshops and also match ingredients to brands.