It’s baker vs. baker in Day 7 of The Piglet Tournament of Cookbooks hosted by Food52 — food blog and recipe collective — with “Bravetart: Iconic American Desserts” by James Beard nominee Stella Parks in a bakeoff against “Tartine All Day: Modern Recipes for the Home Cook” from Elisabeth Prueitt of the revered Tartine bakery in San Francisco.
Classic as the goodies in “Bravetart” may be, they bring modern to the kitchen with an education on favorites like angel’s food cake and homemade Cracker Jack. Parks presents well-tested recipes and breaks them down for the modern home cook. She offers ways to tweak and make them each our own, but for the foundational recipe doesn’t mess about. Ultimately, the desserts are what they’ve always been: true to their roots.
“Tartine” works to turn modern into classic by bringing us Prueitt’s favorite home recipes, filled with the makings of a hip grocery aisle — hello, previously unknown supergrains. It’s not just baked goods and desserts, but unfortunately “Tartine” isn’t as up front as it could be about the number of new items you might need to add to your pantry in your effort to make Prueitt’s modern recipes home staples. While au courant, “Tartine” misses the opportunity to educate at the level “Bravetart” brings.
“Bravetart” is as reliable as the dessert section of “Joy of Cooking,” but with history and pictures. “Tartine” may be inspiring, but it’s “Bravetart” for the win, because returning to iconic is just my sort of modern.
Chopped chocolate chip cookies
Parks says a pinch of nutmeg and sprinkle of salt bring out the “butterscotchy” flavor this classic. Combining dark and milk chopped chocolate is the way to go. Parks writes: “You can bake the cookies until they’re golden brown and crunchy, but I prefer to pull them while they’re still a wee bit pale so they stay soft and fudgy, crisp only around the very edges.”
2½ cups roughly chopped mixed dark, milk, and/or white chocolate (not chips)
2¾ cups all-purpose flour
2 sticks unsalted butter, soft but cool
1 packed cup light brown sugar
1 cup white sugar
2 teaspoons kosher salt (half as much if iodized), plus more for sprinkling
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon baking powder
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
⅛ teaspoon grated nutmeg
1 large egg
Adjust oven rack to middle position and preheat to 350 degrees. Set a handful of chopped chocolate aside. Place remainder in a medium bowl, sift flour on top (if using cup measures, spoon flour into the cups and level with a knife before sifting), and toss to combine.
Combine butter, brown sugar, white sugar, salt, baking soda, baking powder, vanilla, and nutmeg in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Mix on low speed to moisten, then increase to medium and beat until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. With the mixer running, crack in the egg and continue beating until smooth. Reduce speed to low, add flour/chocolate, and mix to form a stiff dough.
Divide into 32 2-tablespoon portions or 64 1-tablespoon portions. Arrange on parchment-lined aluminum baking sheet, leaving 2 inches between them. Sprinkle with reserved chocolate and a pinch each of kosher salt. Bake until the cookies are puffed and pale gold around the edges but steamy in the middle, about 15 minutes for large, 12 minutes for small. Or, for crunchy cookies, continue baking until golden, 3 to 5 minutes more.
Cool on the baking sheets until set, about 5 minutes. Enjoy warm, or store in an airtight container for up to 2 days at room temperature. Makes 32 3-inch or 64 2-inch cookies.
Make ahead: Divide the portioned dough among several heavy-duty zip-top bags and refrigerate for up to 1 week, or freeze for up to 6 months. Let stand at room temperature until quite soft, and bake as directed.
— Reprinted from “Bravetart” by Stella Parks with permission from W. W. Norton & Co.
Granola bark
These are good for breakfast, tea, bedtime snack or, really, any time. Prueitt writes her recipes like “Joy of Cooking,” listing the ingredients as you need them, interspersed between instruction. If you’re not used to this, it’s easy to think you have all the ingredients needed, only to turn the page and see another list. The best advice she gives is to read the recipe entirely before moving forward.
Prueitt notes: The recipe works without the egg white, but the bark is slightly more crisp with the egg white.
1½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
3 cups rolled oats (not quick-cooking)
1¼ cups almonds, chopped
1¼ cups unsweetened shredded coconut
½ cup flax seeds or chia seeds, whole or ground
¼ cup sesame seeds
½ cup almond flour or hazelnut flour
Combine the cinnamon, oats, almonds, coconut, flax or chia seeds, sesame seeds, and almond flour or hazelnut flour in a large bowl.
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Line a 13-by-18 inch rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone mat.
½ cup maple syrup or honey, or ¼ cup of each
½ cup coconut sugar
¼ cup water
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
½ teaspoon sea salt
Combine the maple syrup or honey or a mix of both, coconut sugar, water, vanilla, and salt in a small saucepan and bring to a boil, stirring to dissolve the sugar and salt. Remove from the heat and let cool to warm room temperature.
⅓ cup olive oil or vegetable oil
1 large egg white, whisked until frothy
Spread the mixture evenly across the prepared baking sheet. Using another same-size baking sheet or the bottom of a pot, press the mixture down firmly to compact it before baking. Bake for 45 minutes or longer, until dark golden brown, rotating the sheet after about 15 minutes to promote even browning. While the granola bakes, open the oven door a couple of times to release steam.
Set the baking sheet on a cooling rack until the surface of the granola is crisp. Leave the oven on. If the surface is still tacky to the touch once it has cooled, return the pan to the oven and continue baking for another 10 to 15 minutes, checking every 5 minutes. Don’t let the bark get too dark, or it’ll taste bitter.
Once cool, break the bark into pieces and store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 weeks, or in the refrigerator for up to 1 month. Makes about 16 servings.
— Reprinted from “Tartine” by Elisabeth Prueitt with permission from Ten Speed Press.
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