A home for hobbyist bakers
An Irvine bakery's cooking class has students coming back for second helpings.

Author: CATHY THOMAS

My mind drifted back to my eighth-grade homemaking class . We made doughnuts and they tasted like stale sandwich bread soaked in Crisco. Somehow, looking at this crowd, my expectations were loftier.

E ight students were at the white-tiled table in the room behind the kitchen. Each wore a black apron and comfortable shoes designed for kitchen work. Each looked eager and confident.

It was 6:30 p. m. on a Wednesday, and Blackmarket Bakery in Irvine was offering one of its participation classes. The teacher, baker-owner Rachel Klemek, passed out focaccia, then took her place at the head of the table, a packet of recipes in hand. The topic: breakfast breads - two based on yeast dough, two scone-like delicacies, and one coffeecake.

An ambitious bill of fare for one evening's work, I thought. So, I asked the group if they were regulars.

"None of us are regular," joked Judy Walker of Santa Ana Heights, who explained that she had retired from the corporate world three years ago and indeed, had taken several classes at Blackmarket Bakery.

"I've taken eight or nine classes," added Mark Van Sambeek, a plast! ic injection mold maker from Orange. "I've learned a lot from Rachel, such as really good ciabatta and challah, sourdough and multi-grain breads."

Moving from student to student, I learned that each had attended earlier classes at the bakery. And although each had day jobs that were unrelated to baking, they shared a common passion for baking as a hobby.

Klemek started by presenting the sponge, a mixture of water, flour and yeast that would be used as a component in making dough for the doughnuts.

"I've made the sponge to give you a shortcut; Ingardia (Brothers Produce) delivered fresh yeast this morning," Klemek explained, pointing out the large container that held the mixture that had already doubled in volume. "Double the quantity of yeast if using fresh.

"And be sure the oil is hot enough when frying the dough; if it isn't hot enough they will be greasy. And when you cut them out, make sure you don't use extra flour on the dough, because the flou! r will burn."

As Van Sambeek asked a question about cutting out doughnuts, a technical query about whether to twist or push straight down, my mind drifted back to my eighth-grade homemaking class. We made doughnuts and they tasted like stale sandwich bread soaked in Crisco. Somehow, looking at this crowd, my expectations were loftier. Junior high students rarely consulted the recipe. This group looked like they were memorizing it.

Next Klemek explained the ins and outs of making cinnamon buns. She said they could either knead the dough using a stand mixer or knead by hand, but if using a mixer to be sure to use low speed. And she cautioned her students to roll the filling-stuffed dough into tight cylinders.

"These are low-fat, right?" asks Walker with a snicker, commenting on the decadent ingredients.

Klemek smiled. She looked wise and in charge, her pristine black baker's cap covering most of her close-cropped hair. Her black chef's jacket was adorned with one of the company's logos, a takeoff on pirate-themed skull an! d crossbones. The emblem depicts dangerous-looking crossed daggers cradling a sweet little layer cake.

A sweet but serious symbol seems appropriate. Klemek, 36, is the mother of four. She is a graduate of the baking program at the Culinary Institute of America in the Napa Valley and was a morning baker at Zov's Bakery in Tustin, before opening her bakery in September 2004.

After briefly chatting about the remaining recipes -- a classic coffeecake, ginger scones and rosemary corncakes, and reminding them about safety precautions, she divided the students into three teams to tackle the recipes.

Walker immediately headed for the scale (to weigh flour for the doughnut dough), a Salter brand that weighs up to 11 pounds of ingredients. I asked her if she preferred weighing ingredients for pastries rather than using the old measuring-cup scoop-and-scrape method.

"I bought one (scale), and it's so much more fun, and more accurate," she said. "I use it for ba! king ... and for measuring stuff for my koi pond."

The scales we ren't the only pieces of equipment that differed from those found in most home kitchens. The bowls in the stand mixers were big enough to bathe a 2-year-old child. The flour and sugar were stored in enormous, rolling plastic containers that just barely fit under a high worktable.

Large convection ovens let out a roaring cloud of superhot air when they were opened, but the primary noise was culinary talk mixed with laughter.

Soon doughs were made, doughnuts were cut and cinnamon-slathered sheets were rolled into spirals. The scones, coffeecake and corncakes were baking by 8:15, and soon the remaining goodies would go in the ovens, too.

On the stove, a large pot of canola oil was heating for the O-shaped rounds of dough. A digital thermometer was set to signal 350 degrees.

Klemek tested a small disk in the oil, a "hole" cut from the center of one doughnut. She wasn't happy with it, so the students continued their kitchen cleanup while the dough chilled ! a little longer.

With countertops clean, doughnut discs were soon bouncing in the hot oil, then drained and dusted with cinnamon sugar.

Mmm. Warm, sweet wonders they were. I gobbled one up.

Airy inside and subtly crisp on the outside, it had just the right amount of cinnamon coating.

Trust me, it was nothing like those eighth-grade grease balls from home economics class.

Cinnamon-Sugar Doughnuts

Yield: 2 to 3 dozen doughnuts and doughnut holes (depending on size of cutters)

For sponge:

5/8 cup water (5 ounces)

1 1/4 cup all-purpose flour (5 ounces)

2 1/2 teaspoons dry active yeast (1/4 ounce)

For dough:

1/4 cup milk (2 ounces)

2 1/2 teaspoons dry active yeast (1/4 ounce)

6 egg yolks

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour (11 ounces), divided use, plus additional flour for dipping cutters

1/3 cup minus 1 tablespoon sugar (2 ounces)

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

4 tablespoons butter, melt! ed (2 ounces)

For greasing bowl: Vegetable oil

For lining pan: Parchment paper

For frying: Canola oil

For topping: Cinnamon sugar (sugar mixed with ground cinnamon to taste)

Cook's notes: Equipment needed includes stand mixer with dough hook, rolling pin and thermometer for deep-fat frying.

Procedure:

1. Prepare sponge: Stir water, flour and yeast in medium bowl until yeast dissolves. Cover and set aside until doubled in volume.

2. Prepare dough: In stand mixer fitted with dough hook, combine milk, yeast and egg yolks. Add sponge and mix. Remove handful of flour from the 2 1/2 cups and set handful aside. Sift together remaining flour with sugar and salt. Pour sifted ingredients into mixer bowl with milk mixture; add melted butter. Mix on low speed 4-6 minutes, until smooth and elastic. Or, you can knead dough in bowl, taking 6 to 8 minutes total. Dough should be medium soft (not too firm), so check texture before adding reserved handful of flour (if needed).

3. Grease large bowl with vegeta! ble oil. Place dough in bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Set dough in slightly warm place and let dough rise until doubled. Gently punch down dough and turn out onto parchment-lined sheet. Wrap with plastic and refrigerate (it's easier to work with chilled dough).

4. Roll dough to 1/2- to 3/4-inch thickness on parchment paper. Cut out doughnuts with 2 round cutters (1 smaller for the "holes") that have been lightly dipped in flour. Leave O-shaped dough on parchment and cut square of parchment with knife or scissors around doughnut, leaving it attached to paper. (Keep portion of dough that you aren't working with covered with plastic.) Place dough (attached to paper) on sheet lined with kitchen towel. Repeat with remaining dough. Try not to use any additional flour when working with dough as it will burn when fried, making outside too dark. Let doughnuts rise in warm place until slightly less than doubled in volume (this will be quick because of softness of dough).

!
5. Heat oil to 350 degrees in large, deep pot on medium-high heat. Cautiously drop dough with parchment paper attached into oil (paper will separate from dough as it heats in oil). Fry doughnuts about 4 minutes on 1 side, then turn and fry 3 to 4 minutes or until golden brown. Do not crowd pot. Drain on paper towels and toss with cinnamon sugar while still warm. Serve immediately.

Nutritional information (per doughnut): Calories: 121 (51 percent from fat), fat 6.9 g, protein 1.6 g, carbohydrates 13.3 g, fiber 0.2 g, sodium 89 mg, calcium 10 mg

Source: Rachel Klemek, Blackmarket Bakery, Irvine

Classic Coffeecake

Yield: About 12 to 14 servings

For streusel:

1 1/2 cups walnuts or pecans (6 ounces)

1/4 cup sugar

1/4 cup brown sugar

For batter:

8 ounces (2 sticks) butter, plus 1 tablespoon melted butter for greasing pan

1 3/4 teaspoons baking soda

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

2 1/2 cups sugar

4 cups all-purpose flour

3 large eggs, l! ightly beaten

2 cups sour cream

For lining pan: Parchment paper

Cook's notes: Equipment you will need includes stand mixer with paddle, food processor, rimmed baking sheet and 9-by-13-inch baking dish.

Procedure:

1. Prepare streusel: Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Spread nuts on rimmed baking sheet. Bake until lightly toasted, about 6 to 8 minutes, shaking pan halfway through baking time; watch carefully because nuts burn easily. Cool and finely chop. Combine nuts with sugars in small bowl; set aside.

2. Prepare batter: Grease 9-by-13-inch baking pan with 1 tablespoon melted butter. Line bottom of pan with parchment paper. Raise oven temperature to 350 degrees.

3. In bowl of electric mixer fitted with paddle attachment, cream remaining butter, baking soda, baking powder and salt on low speed. Once butter is softened, add sugar and mix on medium speed 3 to 4 minutes, until light and fluffy. Scrape down sides of bowl with rubber spatula! and mix again briefly to ensure that no butter chunks are lurking at bottom of bowl.

4. Turn mixer to low and add flour and eggs alternately in 3 batches. Mix until just combined. Stir in sour cream.

5. Spoon half of batter into prepared pan and spread to even it out. Sprinkle with half of streusel. Pour remaining batter over streusel, smooth with knife to make even layer, then top with other half of streusel. Bake 40 to 50 minutes or until firm to the touch, nicely browned and crunchy.

Nutritional information (per serving): Calories 298 (51 percent from fat), fat 16.8 g, protein 6.5 g, carbohydrates 30.1 g, fiber 1.2 g, sodium 268 mg, calcium 34 mg

Source: Rachel Klemek, Blackmarket Bakery, Irvine

Ginger Scones

Yield: About 12 scones

3 1/4 cups all-purpose flour (14 1/2 ounces), plus more for dusting work surface

3 1/4 cups cake flour (14 1/2 ounces)

2/3 cup sugar

2 tablespoons baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

12 ounces (3 sticks) cold butt! er

1/2 cup candied ginger, chopped (5 ounces)

1 tablespoon minced lemon zest

2 cups buttermilk

Egg wash: 2 eggs beaten with 1 tablespoon water

Cook's notes: Equipment needed includes stand mixer fitted with paddle, pastry brush and rolling pin.

Procedure:

1. Combine flours, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt in large mixing bowl of electric mixer. Mix on low speed to combine.

2. Cut each stick of cold butter into 4 to 6 chunks. Put butter in bowl with dry ingredients. Mix on low speed until butter chunks are the side of large pea (not too small). Do not let mixture get to the "fine meal" stage or scones will be mealy.

3. Add ginger and zest. Mix on low speed just until dispersed. Turn mixer off and add buttermilk. Mix on low speed just until dry ingredients absorb liquid. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

4. Flour work surface. Transfer dough to floured work surface. Using floured rolling pin, roll dough 3/4 inc! h thick. Cut into 5-inch-wide rectangle. Cut rectangle into triangles.

5. Place scones on parchment-lined sheet and brush with egg wash. Bake in preheated oven about 18 minutes, but check after 10 minutes and rotate pan so scones brown evenly.

Nutritional information (per serving): Calories 480 (34 percent from fat), fat 18 g, protein 9 g, carbohydrates 70.3 g, fiber 0.9 g, sodium 340 mg, calcium 40 mg

Source: Rachel Klemek, Blackmarket Bakery, Irvine

Rosemary Corncakes

Yield: 12 wedges

3 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

1 3/4 cups cornmeal

3/4 cup (lightly packed) light brown sugar

1 tablespoon plus 1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons chopped fresh rosemary

12 ounces (3 sticks) cold butter

1 egg

1 egg yolk

2 tablespoons honey

1/2 cup plus 2 teaspoons heavy cream, divided use

For lining pan: Parchment paper

Cook's notes: Equipment needed includes food processor fitted with metal blade, whisk, pastry brush and rolling pin.Procedure:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In food processor (or stand mixer with paddle), combine flour, cornmeal, brown sugar, baking powder, salt and rosemary. Process on low to incorporate.

2. Add butter and pulse (or mix on low) until butter chunks are the size of large peas. Transfer mixture to large bowl and make well in center. Whisk egg, yolk, honey and cream in measuring cup. Pour egg mixture into well. Using one hand, draw in the dry ingredients and mix until just combined.

3. Turn dough out onto floured surface and knead together gently into ball. Roll dough into circle about 3/4 inch thick. Cut corncakes into triangles by cutting circle into 12 wedges. Place wedges on parchment-lined baking sheet. Using a pastry brush, brush wedges with 2 teaspoons cream. Place a little tuft of rosemary into each corncake. Bake in preheated oven 20-30 minutes, or until slightly browned and firm to the touch. If desired, serve with cheese.

Nutrition! al information (per serving): Calories 495 (49 percent from fat), fat 26.9 g, protein 5.7 g, carbohydrates 55 g, fiber 1.4 g, sodium 342 mg, calcium 45 mg

Source: Rachel Klemek, Blackmarket Bakery, Irvine

Cinnamon Rolls

Yield: About 12-14 rolls

For dough:

1 1/2 cups milk (12 ounces), divided use

4 ounces (1 stick) butter

4 eggs

1 1/4 teaspoons dry active yeast (1/8 ounce)

About 6 1/2 cups bread flour (2 pounds 1 ounce)

2/3 cup sugar

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

Vegetable oil for greasing bowl

For filling:

4 ounces (1 stick) softened butter

1/4 cup ground cinnamon

1 1/2 cups brown sugar

For topping:

5 ounces cream cheese, room temperature

3 ounces (3/4 stick) softened butter

2 1/4 cups powdered sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/8 teaspoon salt

Cook's notes: Equipment needed includes stand mixer fitted with dough hook, rolling pin, saucepan, knife and rimmed baking sheet.

Procedure:

1. Prepare dough: Put ! 3/4 cup milk in saucepan with butter. Heat over medium heat just to melt butter. Pour milk-butter mixture into large bowl of stand mixer fitted with dough hook. Add remaining milk. Check temperature of mixture; it should be body temperature or lower (less than 100 degrees). Add eggs and yeast. Mix to combine.

2. Add flour, sugar and salt; mix dough 4 to 7 minutes on low speed or until smooth and elastic. Grease large bowl with vegetable oil. Place dough in bowl; cover with plastic wrap and let rise in warm location until double in volume.

3. Meanwhile, prepare filling by combining softened butter, cinnamon and brown sugar; set aside.

4. Roll dough out to 6 inches wide and 1/3 inch thick. Smear filling onto dough, leaving 1-inch margin on each side without filling. Roll tightly, starting at 1 "plain" edge (free of filling). When almost completely rolled up, dip finger in water and run wet finger on edge. Continue rolling. (The damp edge will help cinnamon r! olls stay rolled up.)

5. Cut crosswise into 1-inch-wide slices. Place on parchment-lined rimmed baking sheets, cut side down, leaving a 3-inch margin between slices. Cover loosely with plastic wrap. Set aside in slightly warm location until when poked with finger, the indentation stays in place. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

6. Bake in preheated oven 8 to 12 minutes. While rolls are baking, prepare topping: In stand mixer fitted with paddle, combine cream cheese, butter, powdered sugar, vanilla and salt. Mix until smooth and completely combined. Spread topping on cinnamon rolls as soon as they come out of oven.

Nutritional information (per roll): Calories 360 (50 percent from fat), fat 20 g, protein 4 g, carbohydrates 40 g, fiber 1.1 g, sodium 350 mg, calcium 27 mg

Source: Rachel Klemek, Blackmarket Bakery, Irvine

Blackmarket Bakery is at 17941 Sky Park Circle, Suite E, Irvine. Their goods are available at many farmers markets and by telephone order at (949) 852-4609. To find out about their made- from-scratch cake! s, candies and other baked goods, go to www.blackmarketbak ery.com . Information about cooking classes can also be found on the Web site. Private cooking classes can be arranged.

Call: (714) 796-7770

E-mail: cthomas@ocregister.com

A home

for hobbyist

bakers

To find the recipes for Cinnamon Rolls and Ginger Scones, go to www.ocregister.com/food

Caption:
Blackmarket Bakery's Classic Coffeecake

A KEY STEP: From left, students Judy Walker, Mark Van Sambeek and Helen Miller prepare dough during a class at Blackmarket Bakery in Irvine. The bakery offers a variety of hands-on classes.

The teacher: Baker Rachel Klemek, owner of the Blackmarket Bakery, led her students through five different breakfast breads during a recent class.

Register Food Editor

Copyright 2005 The Orange County Register
Record Number: 78483523