9.19.2010

Learning to Bake: Lessons from King Arthur Flour

Being the terrible baker that I am, I very graciously (and mighty eagerly) accepted an invitation from Megan to spend to spend the day at the headquarters of King Arthur Flour in Norwich, Vermont.  Along with 9 other Boston-based bloggers (Jen, Alicia, Meghan, Michelle, Daisy, Kerstin, Elina and Bridget), we all headed north to spend the weekend kneading, rolling and mixing through three baking classes (featuring "how-to's" on pizza dough, homemade crackers and whole wheat brownies) and a fun evening out for dinner.  It was kind of like a giant sleepover party full of lots of laughing, ton of fun, and of course, food, food, food!  Our weekend in the country was picture-perfect and I could devote a week's worth of posts (at least) to writing all about it but I thought the best way to share all of my learnings, observations and just things that I enjoyed was via pictures and a list of 25 things (listed in no particular order):
1. Vermont is beautiful
2. Absolutely gorgeous

3. King Arthur is located in Vermont and it's America's Oldest Flour Company 
4. And they have a "Live Help" feature on their website and a hotline to help save any baking catastrophe
5. Lunch is always best when freshly made

6. When measuring flour, lightly dust it into the cup and level it out with a flat surface 
7. When making yeast based doughs (pizza dough shown here), knead gently don't beat the dough up!
8. Separate your ingredients in the bowl so if you get interrupted, you'll know where you left off
9. Us food bloggers take LOTS of pictures
10. But in the kitchen is where are the happiest
11. Cooking/Baking with the freshest ingredients is always the best
12. Homemade crackers are light years better than store bought 
13. Slingin' pizzas into an outdoor oven ROCKS
14. I very badly want one of these for my non-existent back yard
15. There's something SO satisfying about making your own pizza from scratch
16. These were in fact, the best brownies ever
17. Did I mention how many pictures we Bloggers take?
18. After a day of baking, a celebratory glass of wine (served out of a pint glass, naturally) is very necessary 
19. As is a good hearty 3 course meal (after all, a day of baking is hard work!)
20. A good hearty breakfast of blueberry and cream cheese strata with bacon is a great way to start the day
21. The leaves are already starting to turn and fall in Vermont
22. Zoe, of the Norwich Bed and Breakfast, came dangerously close to being brought back to Boston
23. Sheep are a skittish bunch
24. Whenever you get the opportunity to learn from a pro, do it.
25. And cooking/baking with friends is the best
Special thanks to the folks at King Arthur for showing us around and helping me to get a little more comfortable baking in the kitchen.  I'm excited to take what I've learned this weekend into my Small Boston Kitchen and see what bakes up!  Thanks to all who made this fantastic weekend possible!

11 comments:

Meghan@travelwinedine said...

Yay! This is a great recap and makes me want to be back in VT!

Delicious Dishings said...

Woohoo! So proud of all you accomplished this weekend! And so, so happy you came. Loved hanging out and baking together. Great recap! (See you Tuesday!)

Bridget said...

Awww love the recap! It was so great to meet you and I had such a blast spending the day with everyone. Omg, I wish I got to meet that dog!! :) Hope to see you soon!

Jen said...

Love your list of 25 things! What a perfect weekend we had!

Kristen said...

Well this is fun! Why couldn't I think of something creative and witty like this. Instead I'll be posting recaps all week long ;)

Fun and Fearless in Beantown said...

This is such a cute recap! I can't wait to put on my apron and do some baking this weekend!

MichellePC said...

I love how you formatted the recap of your weekend - looks and sounds like it was informative and a lot of fun! I love how King Arthur has emergency help on their website, too - I definitely have had my baking catastrophes in the past!

Kimmy Bingham said...

Gorgeous weekend!

Beth B. said...

That dog is adorable!!!

Anonymous said...

Oh this looks like so much fun!! I went to Hanover High School so those are my old stomping grounds.

Kerstin said...

Great recap - it was such a fun weekend and so nice meeting you!!

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