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My favorite one is
called a ball whisk and it makes smooth puddings, custards, and gravies, with no
lumps. Another new favorite is a flat whisk, which is also good for sauces. Both
whisks can be found at kitchen stores or take a look at them on
www.amazon.com/kitchen.
SHORTENING AND PIE CRUST
Many of you know that I prefer to
avoid hydrogenated fats in my cookbooks and in my personal cooking. So, I was
overjoyed to see that Crisco now makes a non-hydrogenated shortening.
Previously, I was using the non-hydrogenated shortening sticks or buttery sticks
made by Earth Balance for my pie crusts.
I found that the non-hydrogenated
Crisco works quite well with my gluten-free pastry crust (found in all of the
2006 editions of my books). However, it definitely produced a wetter crust than
the Earth Balance choices. In fact, I had to chill the dough for a couple of
hours before I could roll it out without sticking to everything. Even though all of my
cookbooks suggest chilling the pie crust dough before rolling it out, I
often skip this step when time is crucial.
But, if you use this particular
Crisco shortening, my advice is to add a tablespoon or
two of flour to the dough or cut the milk in half for an easier-to-handle dough.
SUMMERTIME READING SUGGESTIONS
I've previously mentioned my favorite
culinary-related novels, but I have some new ones for your summertime reading
pleasure. A new author named Laura Durham, a real-life wedding planner, wrote
two comedic novels called Better Off Wed and For Better or Hearse.
They feature Annabelle Archer, a wedding planner who helps the police
solve murders that take place in connection to weddings. If you like food (who
doesn't??) and who-done-its with a little comedy, you'll find yourself
giggling through both of these books.
Another author you might enjoy is Jan
Karon, whose homespun novels are set in Mitford, NC. Her characters are
down-to-earth and the story line often revolves around food. Her readers wanted to know more about these dishes so
she actually wrote a cookbook with the recipes that are mentioned in her novels,
along with the scenes that mentioned the food.
The result is the Mitford Cookbook and Kitchen Reader. It's
delightful and easy to read. The Southern recipes aren't gluten-free but they
can inspire us to cook our own versions.
GETTING TO THE BOTTOM OF THINGS
I'm doing a ton of baking these days
while I work on some major projects. I've done lots of experimenting to rid our
gluten-free baked goods of soggy bottoms. I've learned that many dishes benefit
from being baked for a short time on the bottom rack of the oven. This helps
brown the bottom of the crust and make it less likely to soak up the juices of
whatever is put on it.
What types of dishes should be baked
on the bottom rack? Pie crusts benefit from baking the first 15 to 20 minutes on
the bottom rack, then shifted to the next rack up for the remaining baking time.
Pizza crusts especially benefit from starting out on the bottom rack. For my
pizza recipe, found in all of my cookbooks, the first 10 to 15 minute baking of
the crust should be on the bottom rack. After adding the toppings, move the
pizza one rack up and finish baking.
I also found that dishes that require
a bar base (such as Lemon Bars) can benefit from a bit on time on the bottom
rack. If you bake the Lemon Bar crust on the bottom rack it holds up to the
lemon pudding that bakes on top. The result is a firmer, less soggy bar. Of
course, all of these dishes that require browning work better in the gray (not
black) nonstick pans that encourage such browning.
FOOD FOR THOUGHT
"I often remind myself that my
gluten-free lifestyle is far healthier than my previous way of life. I'm
convinced that it's the reason for my current good health. For the last
few weeks, I've been very involved in caring for my 4 year-old grandson and my
daughter-in-law during a difficult pregnancy. This, in addition to some MAJOR
work projects, fully consumes my time but my good health allows me to take
part fully in this joyful, but demanding stage of life. And, I know that my
good health will serve me well after the baby is born and I'll have the stamina
to be a helpful
grandmother. So, if you sometimes resent your gluten-free lifestyle, just
remember that it might be the key to good health later in life. Doesn't that
make it worthwhile?"--Carol Fenster, Ph.D.
WHERE IN THE WORLD IS CAROL?
I'm delighted to be quoted in the
June, 2006, issues of two major magazines: Reader's Digest in "When Food Turns
Fatal" and Women's Health in "New Healthy Foods: Super-Easy Recipes." Both
articles mention my newest cookbook, Cooking Free (Avery, 2005)
On June 9, I'm demonstrating some of
the foods served at Afternoon Tea. Attendees at the annual conference
of the Gluten Intolerance Group in Salt Lake City, UT will sample gluten-free
cream puffs, miniature tea sandwiches, and decadent and delicious English
trifle. Some of these dishes will feature grains that we don't commonly
associate with afternoon tea such as amaranth, millet, or teff. But these
grains, and many others, can be easily incorporated with delicious results. For more information about the conference, go to
www.gluten.net.
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