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Our series, “Just Like Grandma Used to Make,” explores why we’re craving Grandma’s cooking now more than ever—and why we should all embrace our comfort-food cravings.
Many people have fond memories of their grandmothers in the kitchen, whipping up something sweet that would make her whole house smell like heaven. And that something sweet always went directly into her grandchildren’s mouths. Why were Grandma’s baked goods so delicious? We spoke to chefs and everyday people about what they learned about baking from their grandmothers, and over and over again we heard the same things: it’s less about time-saving hacks and more about patience, seasonality, simplicity—and definitely not counting calories.
Don’t take shortcuts
“[My grandmother] took the time, she took no shortcuts, and she was just patient,” saidGason Nelson, a New Orleans-based private chef who says his grandmother made “the best apple pie ever,” in addition to a rotation of Creole classics. “She took the time to knead the dough, to chill the butter. Now, you can just go buy pre-made pie crust and it’s just not the same. So I learned from my grandma to be true to the dish that you’re making. If you’ve got to knead the dough with your hands, then knead it. If it’s supposed to sit in the refrigerator for 30 minutes and rest so the butter can tighten up, do that. Don’t take no shortcuts. ‘Cause all the small things that might seem tedious are things that make a big difference.”
Add a pinch of salt
The magic of ice water
Rachael Narins remembers her New York City born and bred grandmother Marcelle Narins as “the world’s best baker”—it’s even imprinted on her gravestone. “She always dipped her hands in ice water before she baked,” said Narins, the Los Angeles-based founder ofChicks with Knivessupper club. “She thought it helped keep her nail polish from chipping. But it actually has a scientific purpose, because it helps stop butter from melting when you handle pie crust. It cracked me up but later I realized how smart it was.”
Don’t fret about fat
Healthy eating is all about balance, but when it comes to baking, the one thing everyone agreed on is that grandmas putallthe fat in their desserts with no second thoughts about calorie count. What they did do, though, was use real ingredients. New York-based food justice advocate and chefYadira Garciarecalled her grandmother making her famous Dominican tres leches cake. “It’s a really moist, spongy yellow cake that’s wet, which sounds weird but is the most delicious thing. It’s got all the indulgent things you would think of: condensed milk, coconut cream, whole milk, butter, sugar, eggs. But when she was making these things, she was grabbing eggs from her farm. She was getting fresh milk. She wasn’t thinking about how many calories Dominican cake has in it. She was making these things for joy and for pleasure and for memories.”
Keep it simple and seasonal
Better with bacon
Bacon fat, it turns out, can even make desserts better. “My momlovedher grandma’s apple fritters,” saidEatingWellfood features editor Carolyn Malcoun. “She finally got her to teach her how to make them and my mom measured everything as she went. She got home, made the fritters and was like, ‘Ugh, these taste nothing like my grandma’s.’ She then had an aha moment: There was a can of bacon fat on her stove and she realized her grandma fried her fritters in the fat andbam!Perfect fritters next time.”
The secret to moist cake
Acclaimed Institute of Culinary Education chefSeamus Mullenhad two classically trained chefs as grandmothers. “I’m not much of a baker, but the few things I do bake are old family recipes,” Mullen said. “My paternal grandmother would make lemon pound cake, which is also one of my favorite desserts to this day. Right before slicing and serving it, she’d make a lemon simple syrup, and she would pour that over the cake so it would make it super moist and infused with lemon flavor.”
Get your hands dirty
We’ve got so many kitchen gadgets now, but grandmas’ main tools were their hands. “My mum (who is now a grandmother), taught me how to make real Scottish shortbread and apple crumble at an early age,” saidEatingWelldigital content director Penelope Wall. “Shealwaysused her fingers to rub the butter into the dry mix, so that’s how I’ve always done it for shortbread, crumble, biscuits and scones. I actually didn’t even know pastry cutters existed until my 30s! She also taught me not to overmix my scones andbarelymix the cream into the butter crumble before baking so they don’t get tough and are super tender.”
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