[Baba Paste and Babas]
...Julia says that
'babas and savarins always seem to delight guests'...and since my Mom was coming for a visit...I thought they'd be perfect for dessert...
...and as so often happens with Julia...she suggests a specific type of cooking device that is not in the typical American kitchen...
...she suggests using a cylindrical Baba mold...2 inches tall and 2 inches in diameter...which of course I don't have...
...but I do have a popover pan...that I bought at Goodwill when we still lived in West Virginia...I was going to 'experiment' with some vegan popovers...but I never have and it's just been sitting on the shelf...not exactly the right dimensions...but close...
...let's get started...melt some Earth Balance...and let it cool to tepid...
...Julia says to use fresh yeast and to mash it...so hers must have been a cake...I used Bread Machine yeast...and of course I didn't have to mash it...
...but I mixed in just a bit of warm water to make a paste...with the sugar and salt...
...then added some flax seed goo...one egg's worth so 1/4 cup...
...then the melted Earth Balance...
...and then mix in the flour and she specifies a wooden spoon for this mixing...
...probably a good idea as it's a very sticky dough...
...then you begin the kneading process...which was really different because I'm not used to 'kneading' a sticky dough like this...
...but basically you keep pulling the dough up and then slapping it back against the sides of the bowl...
...after a few minutes (about 5) the dough will detach from the bowl...
...completely...and when you can stretch it to a foot and twist it...it's ready...
...so Julia warns you to be careful if you're doubling the recipe...
...then you cut a cross in the top...
...sprinkle it with flour...
...cover it with several layers of damp towel...and leave it in a warm draft free place to rise for 1 - 2 hours...
...when it has doubled...
...gather the dough to the center of the bowl with cupped fingers...
...butter the inside of the cups with Earth Balance...
...then gently break off about a Tablespoon of dough and place it in each cup...
...which doesn't look like much dough...
...Julia says to let it rise until it comes above the tops of the cups...but because mine are a little bit to big that didn't happen...
...and Julia says to be careful...and
'do not delay or it may collapse'...
...then bake until lightly browned and slightly pulled away from the edges...
...unmold to a cake rack and cool to warm...
...they need to be still warm for the next step...
...aren't the pretty...and they smell divine...
Substitutions:
Earth Balance for Butter
Flax Seed Goo for Eggs
Recipe here:
Mastering the Art of French Cooking pp. 658-660
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