The precision of baking appeals to software industry veteran
There are two reasons our Cook of the Week, Darrell Yarborough, from Arlington Heights, prefers baking over cooking. First, after a process-driven career in the software industry, he likes the step-by-step precision required for baking, and second, Darrell is an Anglophile who loves nothing more than a properly-made scone.
"Most Americans have never had a properly-made scone. We have those hard triangles. A good English scone is more a fluffy biscuit, and when you put cream and jam on it, it's lovely."
Not surprisingly, Darrell is a self-described disciple of the "The Great British Baking Show."
"I've been watching it long before it became a hot item in America," he laughs. Darrell's love for all things English is partially founded in his ancestry, and partly in his passion for that country (particularly London) where he has traveled many times. A transplanted southerner, Darrell still retains a bit of a drawl, even after years in Chicago.
Darrell's first introduction to cooking was from the pictures in his mother's 3-ring Betty Crocker cookbook. He loved looking at the cakes and desserts. A high school job at the local grocery introduced him to produce and foods he had never seen before.
"I realized that pizza was something you could get the ingredients for and then make - even your own crust!"
But his real zeal for baking came "late in life, the last 10 years or so," he smiles. Darrell took a few baking classes and watched the Barefoot Contessa, Martha Stewart and Nigella Lawson to hone his skills.
All this practice has led to a love for making cakes and cookies, the occasional pie, and scones of course. "When I bake something, I make a huge quantity. When you bring a big plate of homemade cookies or a cake into work, you are a hero!" He laughs," the only way to get unpopular with me is not to eat my food!"
Today we are the lucky recipients of some of Darrell's favorite recipes. Try his English scones or his Sticky Toffee Pudding, which is only pudding in the English sense. To us, this concoction of dates and brown sugar looks and tastes like a soft, moist cake. Also, he shares his partner's favorite, a German chocolate cake with coconut pecan frosting.
Darrell has learned a thing or two when it comes to baking:
"I have better luck if I weigh the ingredients - invest in a kitchen scale - because I am a computer nerd it's easy for me to do the conversions, but the King Arthur Flour website has a good conversion page if you need it."
Next, go ahead and invest in the large standing mixer. "The small one costs nearly as much as the large one!" Finally, look to the internet when looking for unusual ingredients. "Ingredients used to be hard to find, but now with Amazon Prime, I never worry about it. I can find Black Treacle - which imparts that particular taste - so it is worth it!"
Aside from baking, Darrell is the chief cook in his home.
"I don't cook anything lavish. I have a few standbys. I've had my lasagna recipe for a long time. Or, I'll make a pork loin on the grill and serve it with stuffing or rice." During the holidays, Darrell loves introducing his extended family and guests to more exotic dishes like cauliflower au gratin topped with Swiss cheese, chestnuts and bread crumbs. For Christmas brunch, he serves up his Crème Brule French toast, made more delicious by using crusty baguettes.
Of some of his guests, he says that "They have not been exposed to the joys of southern cooking, by that I mean lots of butter and heavy cream. I don't eat that way all the time, but when it comes to the holidays, I don't like to hear low-cal."
Next up, a lesson from his niece on how to make French macarons. Could this Anglophile become a Francophile?
On ne sait jamais! (You never know!)