What the king ate after the speech:
A Stilton from purveyor Neal’s Yard. Photo
courtesy Whole Foods Market.

We’ve received dozens of recipes for themed cocktail recipes for Oscar parties. For example, combine gin with Earl Grey Tea, and call it The King’s Speech cocktail.

Fatigued at the idea of 12 different “Best Picture” cocktails, we’ve published just two over the past month.

But the idea of an Oscar-themed cheese board caught our interest. Here are suggestions from ArtisanalCheese.com, one of the finest online cheese purveyors, on how to create an Academy Awards cheese board:

While she is an experienced baker, in her rush she grabbed baking soda instead of baking powder. It’s an easy “oops.” Some recipes use both leveners, but if only one is called for, be sure that it’s the right one. Baking calls for very precise chemistry.

So what’s the difference between baking soda and baking powder?

Both baking powder and baking soda are chemical leavening agents that cause batters to rise when baked, by enlarging the bubbles (gases) in the batter. Sometimes you want a little rise (in a cookie, for example), sometimes a lot (in a fluffy layer cake).

Baking soda, also known as bicarbonate of soda and by its chemical name, sodium bicarbonate, is about four times as strong as baking powder.

It’s used to neutralize the acid in recipes that contain an acidic ingredient (for example, brown sugar, buttermilk, chocolate, citrus juice, chocolate, fruit, honey, maple syrup, molasses, sour cream, vinegar and yogurt.)

The acid-neutralizing quality is what makes baking soda, dissolved in a glass of water, a cure for upset stomachs. It’s the key ingredient in Alka-Seltzer, launched in 1931. There’s also aspirin in Alka-Seltzer, but take extra tablets for the headache portion of a hangover.

Check that label twice to be sure you’re
adding the right leavener. Photo courtesy
Clabber Girl.

The cornstarch absorbs moisture so the chemical reaction does not take place until a liquid is added to the batter. Baking powder creates a better rise than baking soda. Nearly all baking powder made today is “double acting,” containing two different types of acids that react at different times and make the baked good fluffier.

The first acid creates gases when mixed with the liquid in the recipe, the second type creates gases when the batter is exposed to the heat of the oven.

 
Using the wrong leavener can cause bitterness and/or toughness and a compact (not fluffy) crumb. Once you’ve made the mistake (and we did, when we started to bake), you’ll never do it again. We still keep checking back and forth from the recipe to the can or box: Soda, soda, check. Soda, soda, check. Only then do we add the leavener to the batter.

Go for the unsalted butter (photo courtesy Kasey Albano | SXC).

Some recipes call for salted butter, others for unsalted butter. Does it make a difference which you use?

Yes, and the answer is that unsalted butter produces more consistent results.

The salt content of butter varies from brand to brand. There can be as little as 1/4 teaspoon salt per four-ounce stick of butter, or as much as 3/4 teaspoon. You can’t tell by reading package ingredients.

Recipes that specify salted butter use less added table salt. Recipes with unsalted butter make up the difference with added salt.

But in order to make recipes consistent—especially recipes in which the amount of salt can make a difference, such as delicate cookies and cakes—it’s better to use unsalted butter and add a consistent amount of salt each time.

REVERSE TIP: If you have only unsalted butter but need to convert it salted butter to for a recipe, do what the dairies do: Add 1/4 teaspoon of salt per four ounces of butter.

For table use, you can also can take coarse sea salt or kosher salt and sprinkle it atop a bar of salted butter.

This term is often used by consumers to refer to butter that has no salt. But “sweet butter” is a misnomer, because any butter made with sweet cream (instead of sour cream) is sweet butter.

The appropriate terms to use are unsalted butter or sweet cream butter; but the latter term has disappeared from industry use. Stick to unsalted.
 
 
More About Butter

Ninety percent of food allergies are caused by the “big eight”: eggs, fish, milk, peanuts, tree nuts, shellfish, soya and wheat (gluten).

There are some great allergen-free mixes for those who want to bake for allergic loved ones. See our reviews of Cherrybrook Kitchen and Pamela’s Gluten Free.

If you don’t have time to bake, consider ordering from Egg-Free Epicurean.

The bakery banishes three of the big eight from its handmade, tasty, ready-to-eat cookies and blondies: no eggs, peanuts or tree nuts.

Cookie loving kids and grownups now have access to something sweet and satisfying that’s as good as what everybody else gets. No one would suspect that the eggs are missing. We not only ate every crumb, we’d gladly eat more (and we have no allergies).

Celebrate with egg- and nut-free treats
from Egg-Free Epicurean. Photo by River
Soma | THE NIBBLE.

Order yours at EggFreeEpicurean.com.

The more the word gets out, the more Egg-Free Epicurean will be tempted to make even more varieties.

• For more allergen-free baked delights, try Mariposa Baking Company.
• Allergic to wheat and other gluten-laden grains? See all of our gluten-free product reviews.

Dark green spinach leaves, yellow tomatoes
and red radicchio turn a sandwich from blah
to wow. Photo courtesy Royal Rose Radicchio.

“Top Chef” judges regularly comment on a bland presentation, telling cheftestants that the dish needs color.

It’s up to you, the home chef, to decide what kind of colorful vegetable or fruit complements your dish.

Take a quick scan of the produce aisle: The fruits and vegetables that catch your eye are one way to start.

Easy choices:

• Red, Orange & Yellow: bell pepper, carrot (use curls for garnish), chile, grape, kumquat, pattypan squash and other miniature vegetables, radicchio, tomato (conventonal, cherry, grape, sundried)
• Green: Many choices in lighter and darker hues, from vegetables to fresh herbs

No time to acquire colored fruits, vegetables or fresh herbs? Look at your spices and dust the plate with a pinch of basil, curry, paprika, turmeric or other colorful favorite.