30 July 2007
Formula for Zucchini Bread
Remember that we are professional bakers so all of our formulas for baked goods are done by weight. This means on a scale, not cups and teaspoons. If you need a quick and easy conversion tool you can visit www.gourmetslueth.com to turn weights into volume.
Zucchini Bread
Yeilds 7 small loaves
Preheat oven to 350˚F
Grease 7 small loaf pans/24 large muffin tins.
2# AP Flour
1 oz Baking Powder
1 oz Salt
1 oz Cinnamon
½ oz Nutmeg
Sift all that together
1.5# Eggs
1.5# Brown Sugar
7.25 oz Milk
7.25 oz Vegetable Oil
1 oz Pure Vanilla Extract
or Rub the contents of one bean into the sugar
2.75# Finely Grated Zucchini
Cream the Eggs and Sugar, mix well
Add Milk and Oil, mix well
Add the extract and Zucchini, mix well
Then add the dry ingredients to the wet 1/3, 1/3, 1/3.
Fill the tins ½ full and bake until done (45-60 minutes).
Enjoy this formula. You can make lots of these loaves and wrap them well for storage in the freezer. It’s what we did and we are still lovin’ them all.
On a personal note, good job Alex. Your Uncle Chris loves you and is so proud of you. Keep up the great work. Love, Uncle Chris.
29 July 2007
Our Little Buddy, the Tomato Worm
While searching out any companions to our little inmate I took the time to clean up the tomato plants. This is the amount of tomatoes we are currently taking from our plants every other day. Pictured here are Yellow Cherry Tomatoes, Husky Red Cherry, Red Grape and Yellow Globe Tomatoes. There is no shortage with just these three plants, and still we have four plants making large tomatoes that we have yet to tap. And in the back ground of this bowl of tomatoes is one of my recent summer coolers. It is a Kiwi Pear Sauvignon Blanc. This is a great summer wine that is sweet and best served very cold with a splash of club soda and friends. More on wines later.
28 July 2007
A Chef's Garden
Here is where all of your hard work in the beginning pays off. This is Matt taming the OOC (Out Of Control) Pineapple Sage. This plant is a very healthy grower. From mother’s day till now, late July, that plant has grown from seedling to about two feet in diameter and a foot tall solid bush of beautiful leaves. In the foreground are the squash and zucchini plants. These have already yielded a dozen large beautiful fruits each. Under Matt’s back side is the pepper bed. Jalapeno, Habanero, Ancho, Red Chili Peppers, Hot Cherry Peppers and an Ichiban Eggplant for good measure. The bed of fallen tops to the right is a bed of onions, both red and yellow.
Pictured here is Matt looking over the tomato plants. Yes, looking over. These are already as tall as our fence and then some. These plants where hardy 4-6 inch tall plants purchased from a garden center around mothers day. We are growing Park’s Whoppers, Mr. Stripey’s, Grape, Husky Cherry, Roma, Yellow Globe and Yellow Cherry tomatoes. We are already harvesting Yellow Cherry, Red Grape and Yellow Globe tomatoes. And we have also taken our first eggplant!
These are our OOC Yellow Squash and Zucchini plants. Both have given us close to a dozen fruits each! Some Zucchini have been as large as a man’s forearm. Well some men's forearms are bigger than others, but you get the idea.
24 July 2007
Where I'm at...
I live in Colorado. Darn. It is my nature to be a gipsy. A thousand dollars to whoever figures out every school I have ever been to. Good luck with that. But I feel roots growing beneath my feet. There is an ancient Buddhist proverb which says “Dig where you are and you will find a well.” I’m digging.
These pictures say so much about me and what I love most in life. The power of our Mother Nature to wrap her healing arms around you and bring you back down to earth.
The love of a good friend. Preferably a mute friend with lots of hair. Dogs will work here too. Savannah is the most amazing pet known to mankind. References here are no problem and this fact is infallible and cannot be disputed. Your dog never talks back. Does not care if you stink. And in fact, prefers that you do. Did I say, never talks back?
The warmth of the sun. No explanation required.
And the energy of downtown. Yep, that's Denver from a crane. Love him. People, people and more people. It is the greatest social experiment of all times. Who’s right? Who’s wrong? Hurry up! Slow down. Fat? Skinny? Pretty? Pretty dumb!! I love it and look at the skyline from my drive in to work each day just as a professional athlete looks at the stadium. “I’m going in! Look out every body.”
And So It Begins...
Although I love all things food and the power of it, my heart is going to the pastries. I love the detail oriented work and finishing of each little part. And the science of it all is where I really get off. Pictured here are some of my recent favorites.
The first is a “reconstructed” chiffon pie. Chiffon is defined as an airy fluffy meringue mixture. So this is brought to the final product through the dried meringue based, which was coated in dark chocolate ganache to seal out the juices from the caramelized banana’s. This was formed in acetate and topped with a Peanut Butter Mousse. The garnish is a simple Peanut Florentine.
Next is my modern interpretation of a glass of champagne for dessert. This is a simple layered mold of champagne “jello” with berries. Seems easy right. Try it sometime and you will get RAVE reviews from your friends and colleagues.
And last is a beautiful example of an amazing European Holiday Cake. This cake is wrapped in fondant over German Buttercream. The fruits are a sign of how fresh this gateau truly is. Always use only the freshest ingredients and you can never go wrong.