Author: petebakes

bread

soft pretzels

did you know that people in philadelphia eat 12 times as many pretzels as the average american? if you’ve ever been to an eagles, sixers or phillies game, you’ve seen the guys on the street selling them on the median – and while it would probably turn off most people, anyone from the area knows you can’t go wrong with a street pretzel. go ahead, buy a few. you won’t be able to stop after the first one. pretty good, huh? maybe you should get a few more.

the $550 million pretzel industry can be traced back to german immigrants that settled in southeastern pennsylvania. they’ve been churning them out by hand since the 1800s. it takes a skilled hand to get it right, but with a little practice you can get close.

i’ll admit, my pretzels were pretty ugly, but they still tasted great. next time i might try a few different toppings, like cinnamon and sugar or almonds, but it’s hard to improve on perfection. in fact, i usually keep my pretzels plain – NEVER MUSTARD. i can’t be the only one who hates it.

are they as authentic as the soft pretzels you can buy from the guy under the overpass in center city philadelphia? not quite, but they’re a quick and easy solution when you don’t live too close to the real thing. but rest assured that when i head home for the holidays, i’ll be replenishing my supply.

savory

pizza! pizza! pizza!

is it really worth making your own pizza? i’ve had some friends that have gone completely cold-turkey on places like pizza hut and dominoes and others that just can’t be bothered to go out and get their own ingredients and try it themselves. i’ve also heard arguments over the cost of making your own versus ordering out, and for me, it’s got to come down to taste. i don’t mind shelling about a bit more for a great pizza, and i especially don’t mind shelling out a bit more if i can make it myself. kramer was really onto something.

the cost of making your own pizza really balances out when you consider that making dough ahead of time can save you a ton of trouble. peter reinhart’s dough uses just a few simple ingredients and can keep in your fridge for days or freezer for months so you can whip up a pizza whenever it strikes your fancy. it’s a never-fail dough that handled better than i could have anticipated. plus, you can just empty your cabinets and pile on whatever weird combination of toppings that you’d like without fear of being judged by the delivery guy.

the key to homemade pizza is getting the dough to cook quickly and at an extremely high temperature. pizzeria ovens hit 800 F, you can still get a great crust at home. most commercial ovens only reach 500 or 550 F, but using a baking stone or baking tile s definitely helps.

my first pizza attempt included caramelized onions (flavored with a bit of balsamic vinegar), mozzarella and white sauce (recipe below). after it came out of the oven i quickly topped it with fresh arugula. feel free to pile on the greens, as they’ll wilt a bit once they hit the hot pizza.

over the past few years, i’ve really developed a taste for white sauce pizzas over traditional red. i also like my pizzas swimming in mozzarella cheese.

after i added the arugula, i grated some fresh parmesan reggiano that immediately melted into neat little pools of deliciousness. you can also see above where i cut the pizza and sliced directly into my wooden peel. whoops.

pizza number 2 was the same as pizza 1, except i added some crumbled and lightly fried sweet italian sausage. let me just say: BEST PIZZA EVER. since these pizzas, i’ve made 3 more: 1 with sun dried tomato pesto and basil, one with traditional red sauce and lightly fried crispy eggplant, and another with sausage and pineapple. i’m looking forward to trying out squash and bacon as a combo. what are your favorite toppings?

pie

deep fried apple pie

there are only a few absolute rules of food. for example, everything will always taste better with bacon. another rule is never turn down pie. take this to heart and your life will improve dramatically. but what if you already love pie but it’s just not extreme enough for you? default to another absolute of food, namely that everything can be deep fried.

deep fried pies are basically fruit empanadas. the filling is cooked ahead of time and then wrapped inside a simple pastry dough. apple pie is my all time favorite, and the filling is so good that it’s hard to not just dump it all on a big bowl of vanilla ice cream…or forget the ice cream and just walk around the house eating the filling with a spoon. to be totally honest, i went the easy route with the dough when i made these, using pillsbury biscuits that i rolled out into rounds. i have provided a recipe for a great dough below though in case you want to use it.

now while i’m over my initial fear of deep frying (everything i can get my hands on), i can understand why this could be a little too extreme for some (wusses). whether it’s for health reasons or a phobia of hot oil burns, i won’t judge you too harshly if you want to bake the mini pies instead. either way, there won’t be any left at the end of the day.