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The Dominion Post, Morgantown, W.Va., Kathryn Johnston Real Flavor Column: Honoring Baking Role Models

Posted on: Wednesday, 22 February 2006, 09:00 CST

By Kathryn Johnston Real Flavor, The Dominion Post, Morgantown, W.Va.

Feb. 22--I HAVE FOND MEMORIES of learning to bake as a child. My mother was an excellent cook and baking was a good introduction to the mysteries of the kitchen. Baking was also a good introduction to life skills such as patience, precision and organization with an end result that could be enjoyed by the whole family. Mom taught me to bake some of her specialties including banana bread, nut bread, waffles, pumpkin pie, caramel nut cookies and German chocolate cake. But she wasn't my only teacher in the kitchen. Our neighbor, Aunt Bee, would baby-sit for me and would turn those sessions into baking lessons. One of my very first baking projects was to make meringue shells with her. It was an easy recipe that taught me some basic techniques about using the mixer and handling egg whites. It also was a fun activity, drawing circles on brown paper for the shapes of the shells, plopping the batter into the circles and making little nest shapes with a spatula. The results were tasty, too. The crispy, sweet dessert shells were great to fill with berries, pudding or ice cream; topped off with a dollop of whipped cream. It's fun for adults, too, and can make a simple but elegant dessert. I still have the recipe in my little kid writing from 1968. Did you miss learning to bake as a child? Or, would you like to teach your children or grandchildren to bake? An excellent resource is "Martha Stewart's Baking Handbook" (Potter, 2005.) This book is full of illustrations for each recipe and detailed instructions to make your baking project a success. These illustrations lead the beginner or more experienced baker through a review of the basic procedures for baking. I can guarantee that you'll be hungry after you flip through these pages. Martha truly has a winner with this one. The beginning of the book has an excellent description of baking tools and techniques. It was fun to read through the lists of essential tools and mentally check off each one, "have it, have it, need it." Martha's techniques are much like those I recall learning as a child. For example, I remember creaming butter and sugar and Aunt Bee telling me to feel the batter occasionally to check the grittiness to see if the sugar was starting to incorporate. You could easily use this book as a teaching tool or to expand your own understanding of baking. You can also look for more baking tips and recipes from Martha at www.marthastewart.com under "Baking 101" in Baking Tools and Techniques or use the Recipe Finder for access to many more recipes. Martha is a great role model, but I also have my mother and Aunt Bee for thank for teaching me to bake at a young age. My husband enjoys cooking also, but mostly appreciates the results. He often equates cooking with alchemy. He usually doesn't want to see the overripe bananas that go into the banana bread, but he certainly enjoys the results. Martha's book is a great explanation of how the most mundane of baking ingredients can end up with stunning, delectable results. AUNT BEE'S MERINGUE SHELLS 1 cup sugar 1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar

4 egg whites Beat egg whites until smooth. Gradually mix sugar into egg whites and beat until sugar is dissolved. Rub a little between two fingers to see if sugar is dissolved. Cover two large baking sheets with brown paper, draw circles for shapes. Spoon meringue onto the circles, making nest shapes with a spatula. Bake one hour in 275-degree oven then leave in the oven with the door closed for 1 1/2 hours. Serve with filling of pudding or ice cream, fresh fruit or berries. Makes 16 shells. KATHRYN JOHNSTON is a caregiver, cookbook collector, former consultant and a member of The Dominion PostFood Panel. Contact her at food@dominionpost.com.

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Copyright (c) 2006, The Dominion Post, Morgantown, W.Va.

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Source: The Dominion Post (Morgantown, W.Va.)

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