A few pointers from Chef
Simon Clarke, Allergic Living’s Food Editor
SO YOU THINK YOU CAN’T COOK
When people tell me that they are afraid of cooking and especially baking, I always reassure them that anyone – I do mean anyone – can cook. In fact, if you put your mind to it, you can learn to do everything a kitchen pro can.
Consider this: if you did the cooking task that you find most difficult every day the way the pros do, you would soon have it mastered. That goes for all the basic skill sets: knife skills, measuring, multi-tasking at the stove ….
Put simply, practise, practise, practise and have FUN along the way. Don't be afraid to make mistakes – learn from them, and then move on to the higher skill tasks.
I’ve worked in many kitchens, big and small, with some highly regarded chefs, and I can tell you that everyone makes errors, from the top, all the way down to the bottom. The best of the best, including those TV chefs with the god-like status – even they’ll mess up now and again. We are all only human.
So what have you got to lose? Go for it – start simple and move up!
WORKING WITH PASTRY
Pastry can be a tricky beast, so here are a couple
of suggestions to make the roll-out go smoothly.
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Heat is your enemy. Keep that in mind, and that it’s everywhere in the kitchen, especially on your hands. So once you have your pastry dough made, don’t handle it too much.
– If you can take it, submerge your hands in a bowl of iced water before handling your dough. This lowers your hand temperature long enough to get the job done.
– Another trick? Work on a cool surface when rolling out your dough. This is why many pastry chefs prefer to work on marble counter – always nice and cool. Granite or glass also are good.
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Don’t add too much flour. There is a real tendency to throw in too much flour, especially while rolling. You always need to add a little flour, but keep it to a minimum.
When you “dust” and re-dust the work surface and rolling pin, that really does just mean just a light dusting. The smallest of amounts. A good rule – which holds true for all of cooking and baking – is this: add a little at a time; you can always add more, but you can’t take it out once it’s in.
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Another tip: try rolling out pastry with a sheet of parchment paper between the dough and the pin. This will stop the rolling pin from sticking and will also help you achieve a consistent thickness. You can also buy a sheet of baking cloth. This is made from cotton and serves the same purpose. Sometimes this comes as a sleeve for the pin, which also works well.
GLUTEN-FREE PASTRY
With gluten-free anything, I feel that it’s important not to compare the gluten-free item with the wheat-flour counterpart. They truly are different things in every way. Pastry is no exception. The science of the dough is not the same, the handling and the end product are all a little different. So when setting out to make gluten-free pastry, don't go in expecting otherwise.
- I’ve noticed that gluten-free pastry tends to be a lot wetter than wheat-flour pastry. It’s quite damp and sticky. Therefore, when rolling pastry, use a sheet of parchment paper between the dough and the rolling pin to prevent the pin from sticking. Or, use a sheet of baking cloth for rolling out.
- Once rolled out, wrap the dough onto your pin and unwrap over your pie plate, letting the dough
fall into place. - For a gluten-free pizza crust, try pressing the dough out by hand and if you can, use a pizza stone.
SAFE CHOCOLATE NOTE
From Dory Cerny, AL Senior Editor
Here are some of our favorite allergy-friendly chocolate choices for baking:
• Enjoy Life Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips – free of all top allergens, plus gluten and casein). www.enjoylifefoods.com
• Nonuttin’ 70% Dark Chocolate Chunks and Semi-Sweet Chocolate
Chips – free of all top allergens except soy. www.nonuttin.com
• Vermont Nut Free Chocolates Chocolate Chips, Unsweetened Baking Chocolate, Candy Melts
and Cocoa Powder – free of peanut and tree nut. www.vermontnutfree.com
• President’s Choice Decadent Chocolate Chips – free of peanut and tree nut. Processed on dairy-free
line, but not dairy-free plant. www.presidentschoice.ca