January 3, 2011

Happy New Year and How Baking Works

Happy New Year everyone!  As you can see, my blog entries dropped over the holidays. From cooking a massive holiday/birthday meal to setting up my own cookie factory, let's just say I'm glad the holidays are over. The fact that I've literally eaten my way through December is why I'm glad to be getting back to normal again (though I do have the day off today).

Santa was good to me and I received many amazing gifts: one of them being the textbook "How Baking Works" by Paula Figoni. The book literally breaks down the theory of baking - from measuring to accurate temperatures to the chemical reactions of the various ingredients. I've been baking for awhile now and am fairly comfortable following recipes, but I would love to create my own.

I just started the book and it's like being back in school again - though now I'm studying something I'm passionate about. I'll provide updates as I go through it, but 22 pages in and I have to say it's been awhile since I've been a student proper. While the content is interesting, the writing is a tad dry. I can't wait to get to the experiments though.