Item
A tale of the babka
Title (Dublin Core)
A tale of the babka
Disclaimer (Dublin Core)
DISCLAIMER: This item may have been submitted in response to a school assignment. See Linked Data.
Description (Dublin Core)
If you had asked me if I was a baker prior to the year 2020, I would have unequivocally said no. A cook? Yes. But a baker? Absolutely not.
But that was before the global Covid-19 pandemic. I worked in the cruise industry prior to the pandemic and I travelled a lot for my job. I was not home enough to really jump into and try to master baking. Following mandatory quarantine in March 2020, I suddenly had extra time on my hands. Further, I was laid-off from my job in early June and ended-up with even more time on my hands. Like so many around the world during quarantine, I took up baking. But unlike the many who tried sourdough, I started with making standard wheat breads and then went straight to enriched breads like babkas or challahs.
The photos I am attaching here show my progression as a baker. My first babka was fine and tasted great, but as you can see, I have improved in technique and in flavor over time. My favorite babka recipe comes from King Arthur Flour. As a new baker, I relied on the King Arthur Flour website for flour and yeast tips, baking tools, and recipes. I was too hesitant to add walnuts the first time and I accidently used a quick-rise east instead of standard yeast. As time went on, I felt more comfortable adding walnuts and raisins. I also felt more comfortable working with the dough to perfect the twisting technique of the babka.
I relied on trial-and-error for most of my recipes, but I also watched all episodes of the Great British Baking Show and found some videos that gave me the basics of flour, yeast, and water. My family were very surprised by this newfound baking skill. But they enjoyed tasting the results. I have enjoyed bringing people together over food – and I have enjoyed giving loaves as gifts.
I am still trying new bread recipes and plan on continuing to bake even as life slowly returns to our new normal.
But that was before the global Covid-19 pandemic. I worked in the cruise industry prior to the pandemic and I travelled a lot for my job. I was not home enough to really jump into and try to master baking. Following mandatory quarantine in March 2020, I suddenly had extra time on my hands. Further, I was laid-off from my job in early June and ended-up with even more time on my hands. Like so many around the world during quarantine, I took up baking. But unlike the many who tried sourdough, I started with making standard wheat breads and then went straight to enriched breads like babkas or challahs.
The photos I am attaching here show my progression as a baker. My first babka was fine and tasted great, but as you can see, I have improved in technique and in flavor over time. My favorite babka recipe comes from King Arthur Flour. As a new baker, I relied on the King Arthur Flour website for flour and yeast tips, baking tools, and recipes. I was too hesitant to add walnuts the first time and I accidently used a quick-rise east instead of standard yeast. As time went on, I felt more comfortable adding walnuts and raisins. I also felt more comfortable working with the dough to perfect the twisting technique of the babka.
I relied on trial-and-error for most of my recipes, but I also watched all episodes of the Great British Baking Show and found some videos that gave me the basics of flour, yeast, and water. My family were very surprised by this newfound baking skill. But they enjoyed tasting the results. I have enjoyed bringing people together over food – and I have enjoyed giving loaves as gifts.
I am still trying new bread recipes and plan on continuing to bake even as life slowly returns to our new normal.
Date (Dublin Core)
March 21, 2021
Creator (Dublin Core)
Sarah Peterson
Contributor (Dublin Core)
Sarah Peterson
Event Identifier (Dublin Core)
HST515
Partner (Dublin Core)
Arizona State University
Type (Dublin Core)
Photos and link
Link (Bibliographic Ontology)
Controlled Vocabulary (Dublin Core)
English
Food & Drink
English
Home & Family Life
English
Economy
Curator's Tags (Omeka Classic)
Food is Life
bake
baker
babka
bread
enriched dough
family
recipe
celebration
laid off
time
Contributor's Tags (a true folksonomy) (Friend of a Friend)
Food is Life
baking
bake
baker
babka
bread
enriched dough
cozy
family
recipe
cinnamon
breakfast
eastern Europe
brown sugar
celebration
coffee
Collection (Dublin Core)
Foodways
Linked Data (Dublin Core)
Date Submitted (Dublin Core)
08/07/2021
Date Modified (Dublin Core)
08/08/2021
This item was submitted on August 7, 2021 by Sarah Peterson using the form “Share Your Story” on the site “A Journal of the Plague Year”: http://mail.covid-19archive.org/s/archive
Click here to view the collected data.