The truth is, they intimidate me. I stand in the specialty flour section, looking at the bags, then grab my bag of good ol' unbleached all-purpose, go home and make cookies.
Happily, I received this book:
Good to the Grain: Baking with Whole-Grain Flours
by Kim Boyce. Kim (a former pastry chef at Spago and Campanile) has taken all of the mystery away from those exotic bags of flour in the grocery store. The book is divided up by grain, such as:
- whole-wheat flour
- amaranth flour
- barley flour
- buckwheat flour
- and 8 more...
{I didn't know Muesli could do that.}
You can win one for your very own!!! Just keep reading!
I made Pear and Buckwheat Pancakes; they were fluffy and delicious! And, I felt so GOOD eating them...even with a side of bacon! ;)
Pear and Buckwheat Pancakes
{from Good to the Grain}
Dry Mix:
1 c. buckwheat flour
1 c. whole-grain pastry flour (I used unbleached, all-purpose; Kim says that's OK.)
3 TBSP sugar
2 tsp baking powder
3/4 tsp salt
Wet Mix:
2 TBSP unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly
1 & 1/4 c. whole milk
1 egg
2 medium ripe pears
Finish:
1 stick unsalted butter, melted
1/2 c. honey
Sift the dry ingredients into a large bowl.
Whisk the melted butter, milk and egg until thoroughly combined.
Peel the pears. Using the large holes of a box grater, grate the whole, peeled pears into the milk mixture. The pear juice should fall into the milk along with the grated pears.
Add the wet ingredients to the dry and gently combine with a rubber spatula.
Meanwhile, melt the butter & honey together in a small saucepan and cook until boiling, emulsified and slightly thickened, 2 to 3 minutes. Pour honey butter into a serving pitcher and keep warm.
Heat a cast iron pan or griddle over medium heat until water sizzles when splashed on the pan. Rub the pan generously with butter. Working quickly, dollop 1/4 cup mounds of batter onto the pan.
Once bubbles have begun to form, flip and cook until bottoms are golden brown.
Wipe the pan with a cloth before the next batch and rub the pan with butter again.
Serve the pancakes hot with the pitcher of honey butter.
I think this cookbook has opened a whole new world of possibilities in my baking.
{But, never fear, I'm not giving up my all-purpose!}
Now you can win a copy of Good to the Grain: Baking with Whole-Grain Flours! A random entry will be chosen on Friday, March 12th at 10pm CST. Good luck!!!
! A random entry will be chosen on Friday, March 12th at 10pm CST. Good luck!!!Earn up to 2 entries in the giveaway:
- Leave a comment here telling what specialty flour you've always wanted to try or already love.
- Tweet about the Giveaway: "Gorgeous Good to the Grain Cookbook Giveaway at Bake at 350! http://ow.ly/1g7iD" and leave a separate comment letting me know you tweeted and your twitter name.
{Disclosure: I received a complimentary copy of this cookbook for review. The opinions expressed are my own.}