Baking Basics and Beyond

I have never met Pat Sinclair, but I feel like she just spent the weekend with me in my kitchen, teaching me the fine points of baking.  Her cookbook, Baking Basics and Beyond, is like the most comprehensive set of basic baking classes, all wrapped up in 300 beautifully-illustrated pages!

The book begins with what could be called Baking 101 – a practical introduction to ingredients, equipment and techniques.  Each of the book’s chapters (including Biscuits and Scones, Pies and Tarts, and Custards and Bread Puddings) is like a separate class, beginning with its own introduction that provides the basics you will need to prepare the recipes like a master baker.  There are even more tips provided in each recipe – Pat Sinclair includes tons of Baker’s Notes and Secrets to Success to help even the most novice baker create sweet masterpieces.  Seriously – I am about as beginner as bakers come – and I felt like Pat was talking me through each recipe as I prepared it, guiding me and giving me tips along the way.  Her passion for baking envelops the whole book, and is completely contagious!  I asked Pat about her love for baking, and how beginners can ensure success every time:

RC: What do you think it is about baking that brings so many people comfort?

PS: I think the smells of baking remind everyone of home. Especially when mom baked as we were growing up and the smell of chocolate chip cookies filled the house. Also so many of our holiday traditions include families baking together or serving traditional foods that have been enjoyed by many generations.

RC: You offer so many helpful “Secrets to Success” with the recipes in your book – what is the “Secret to Success” for baking in general?

PS: Baking requires accurate measuring more than anything. Using the proper way to measure dry ingredients and liquids ensures the proper proportion of ingredients. I always recommend preparing a recipe exactly as written the first time before trying any variations. Proper time and temperature are also essential.

RC: So many cooks say they prefer savory cooking to baking because they don’t like dealing with the precision required for baking.  What would you say to these cooks to convince them they will enjoy baking?

PS: Satisfaction from baking comes with the results. Savory cooking is something we do everyday. I find it very rewarding to pull a loaf of crusty bread or a fruit pie bursting with juicy summer fruits from the oven. Baking provides more of a challenge but the results are worth it.

RC: If you could spend one uninterrupted day baking your favorite foods, what would you bake?

PS: Breads, especially yeast bread. Caramel sticky buns and cinnamon swirl raisin bread are something i’d like to eat every day. But I’m also a big fan of cheesecakes and buttery cakes.

Fueled by the inspiration that fills the pages of Baking Basics and Beyond, I headed to my own kitchen to prepare some of Pat Sinclair’s recipes for myself – and was thrilled with the outcome!

The Almond Tea Loaf is one those treats that looks basic at first glance, but once you taste it, you realize it is something very special.  Almond paste gives it amazing flavor and texture, and a sweet, warm glaze spooned over the loaf after it comes out of the oven takes it completely over the top!  Everyone should have a few recipes like this in their arsenal – sure-fire successes that are simple to put together and taste spectacular!  And for that reason, with permission, I have included the recipe at the end of this post.  Trust me – you NEED to make this Almond Tea Loaf!

Pat’s Raspberry Cream Cheese Coffee Cake is pure, decadent happiness!  The coffee cake itself is so good I would eat it without all of the bells and whistles…but then I would miss out on the cream cheese filling, raspberry jam and sweet icing that make this the perfect treat to accompany a leisurely weekend cup of coffee.

The most unique recipe I prepared from Baking Basics and Beyond is the Gingerbread Nectarine Cobbler.  The recipe calls for fresh nectarines and mixed berries, but Pat explains that in the winter, she sometimes prepares this recipe with frozen sliced peaches and blueberries.  Since it is definitely winter here in New Jersey (I baked this as snow was falling outside), I opted for the peach/blueberry route – and fell completely and totally in love!  I love the contrast between the distinctly winter comfort food flavor of the gingerbread and the summery feel of the peaches and blueberries!  This cobbler will definitely be on my Thanksgiving menu this year!

Owning a copy of Baking Basics and Beyond is like having your own personal baking instructor on call 24 hours a day.  Filled with both sweet and savory recipes, this book is an enormously valuable resource to beginner bakers, home cooks, and even more advanced bakers who want to refine their skills.  I am so excited to continue baking from this book – the Toffee Bars are on my agenda this weekend!

And now…as promised…the recipe for Pat Sinclair’s fabulous Almond Tea Loaf! 

Almond Tea Loaf  (Reprinted with permission from Baking Basics and Beyond, Second Edition, by Pat Sinclair, Agate Surrey, December 2011.)

Makes 1 loaf (12 to 16 slices)

• 1 ½ cups (182g) all-purpose flour
• ¾ cup (150g) sugar
• 2 teaspoons (10mL) poppy seed
• 1 teaspoon (5mL) baking powder
• ¼ teaspoon (1.25mL) salt
• ½ cup (114g) butter, room temperature
• ¾ cup (177mL) milk
• 2 eggs
• 1 teaspoon (5mL) almond extract
• ½ teaspoon (2.5mL) vanilla
• ½ cup (118mL) crumbled almond paste, from a 7-ounce (196g) package

Glaze

• ½ cup (100g) sugar
• ¼ cup (59mL) orange juice
• 1 teaspoon (5mL) almond extract
• ½ teaspoon (2.5mL) vanilla

Heat oven to 350 degrees F (180 degrees C) with oven rack in middle. Lightly spray a 9×5-inch (22.5×12.5cm) loaf pan with nonstick cooking spray.

Place flour, sugar, poppy seed, baking powder, salt, butter, milk, eggs, almond extract and vanilla in bowl of a heavy-duty mixer.  Beat on Low speed until blended.

Increase to Medium speed and beat 2 minutes, scraping sides of bowl occasionally.  The batter will be smooth.  Add almond paste.  (If it is very firm, I usually chop it finely in my food processor.)  Pour batter into prepared pan.

Bake 50 to 60 minutes or until golden brown and a toothpick inserted in center comes out dry.  The bread may be beginning to pull away from pan sides.

Cool on wire cooling rack 10 minutes.  Run a spatula around sides of pan to loosen bread.  Place rack over the bread and invert so bread falls onto the rack.  Remove pan and turn top side up.  Place a tray or waxed paper beneath to catch the glaze.

Glaze

Combine glaze ingredients in a small saucepan and heat until sugar is dissolved.  Simmer 30 seconds.  Pierce bread generously with a skewer.  Slowly spoon warm glaze on top of bread, allowing it to soak in.  Cool completely before slicing.

Tags: baking, Books, comfort food, Cookbooks, cooking, Dessert, Favorite dishes, Food, Recipes, Reviews