Churning Cream

Butter
Churning cream/milk and that's what you'll get. Some swear by it, some often relate it to FAT, cholesterol.
An integral ingredient definitely, used in its various states to achieve vastly different results, albeit with the same awesome(the rare few might beg to differ) flavour. Often used melted/clarified to saute and fry. The distinctive flavour of beurre noisette/beurre noir often brings guilty comfort.
In pastry, butter sticks not to be missed. Integral to creaming, majorly useful for leavening, significant in many baked goods, both used in minimal amounts and as the 'major player' in the creations both for its flavour amongst other properties. It's hardness/temperature is also most significant in this aspect. With vastly different results coming from the state butter is used.
The flavour is undeniable, sheen and 'body' is also what butter brings to sauces. just stirring in cubes of butter to sauces will rapidly increase its viscousity and imparting the unique flavour.
Simply just spread on bread, it makes bread much more appetising, but of course, when it's soft. unless one enjoys the process of pushing your butter knife against the butter and bread till your bread goes out of shape, what a sight certainly though.
Well, there is not much to suggest about butter, or is there? Used simply and widely, considered staple definitely. Admittedly, the fat content of butter should be considered. But then again, there's no replacement for flavour.
What do you think of butter? Love the flavour? or hate the fats...

'Perfect sticks, once melted, shape forever altered.'
Food , A Constant in Life

Broken,yellow & white

It's humble yet can be so influential. So unique yet so common. Its separate parts work fine by themselves, yet offer such flavour together.
Eggs. Eggs are often overlooked as an ingredient due to how 'common' it is, somewhat like the status of 'water'. What's special about eggs is, rather than flavour, often it's used for its characteristics. Such as increasing volume, thickening, liaison etc. Kinda sound like an amateur trying to discuss the topic. But nonetheless, just amazed at how versatile an egg is and yet stubborn at times. Yolk & white, separate they produce massively different results. With how delicate an egg is, handling often becomes a skill too. Especially when intentionally separating its part. I daresay no one has a 'perfect' record.(Unless you haven used enough eggs.)
How yolks and whites co-exist and yet interfere so much with each others function when mistakenly mixed but yet cooks together so deliciously reminds of a married couple. Made up of entirely different components, but living together, sometimes used 'lovingly' together, while 'quarrelling' with each other at times.
For the usage of eggs, there are countless. usually though, for us, eggs serve as a breakfast staple,scrambled,omelette,softboiled etc. These breakfast specials often already showcase how well eggs blend with other ingredients, like a versatile dancer, adept at different styles displaying its qualities with varying 'partners.
Other than as the main dish to be eaten, cakes and custards are often how we encounter eggs being used. For cakes though, rather than taking the main lead conspiciously, it takes the supporting role to ensure the final product is a success. because when you see a beautifully crafted cake, maybe a wonderful chocolate lava cake, and take the first bite, no one will lavish praises about the significance/quality of the eggs. For custards, eggs serve to thicken them but yet little will think about the eggs involved when eating a cream brulee or any dessert with pastry cream involved.
Then there are sauces. Eggs emusified with oils and other flavouring agents to form sauces such as hollandaise,mayonnaise etc. Here the thickening abilities of eggs are once again showcased.
How eggs are manipulated to develop flavours,century eggs/salted eggs, also creates another question. Does the porous egg shells mean that MANY flavours can already be infused into eggs or other process done to the eggs to develop something different from what we have now. What flavours would be interesting with eggs? sweet eggs?
Different people likes to have their eggs in different ways and often different 'doneness' too. It's common to see people sipping coffee while having their eggs and kaya toast. Other favourites that are egg based include tea leaf eggs, oyster omelette,carrotcake etc. The significance of eggs is so apparent in our everyday meals. Are there any other innovative/less known methods of using eggs? Do share if you have any ideas you think is worth experimenting, no matter how crazy.

Just like meringe, that bit of 'yolk' in life could stop you from 'whipping up in volume'
"Food,A constant in life"

pictures

Some pictures to share

Boulanger/Patisserie

A basic necessity in Cuisine/Dining definitely includes Bread, much less so for Singapore than Western/French dining. No matter, for the first article, we shall discuss Bread and also bakeries in Singapore and France. Too, to be discussed is their importance to dining and food culture.

Bread is not high on the ‘want’ list of the average Singaporean teenage consumer. Probably, bread is associated more with Burgers than anything else. Otherwise, it’s usually considered a convenient food to curb hunger or a cheap takeaway, something you bring from home if you want to save money on food. Often you’ll see Bread being given out as ‘refreshments’ during events. That’s the social standing of Bread in Singapore it seems. Let’s just examine some of the ingredients used for breads sold in Singaporean stores. They include: cream cheese, ham, hotdogs, fish/chicken ‘patties’, chocolate nibs, cream, the famous pork floss. Usually it’s these ingredients being baked on dough to create the many soft ‘breads’ we see in being served on those trays for you to choose and pick. Despite the many names of these breads, they usually involved a play around of these ‘basic’ ingredients adding with flavouring agents like chilli sauce and the ilk. Thus, it’s seen that Bread in Singapore is one of the products that fall into the ‘Consumer Personalization & Product Variety’ Trend in Singapore. This trend, in its gist, means having such a wide variety of flavours to cater to everyone’s choices. Many other popular food products fall under this trend: namely doughnuts, bubble tea, yogurt, ice cream etc. (This trend will be discussed in detail in another entry.)

Back to Bread, when people buy bread in Singapore, they are spoilt for choice, there are promotion posters for $1 breads (mainly at stores at MRT Stations, pretty ironic how they don’t allow people to eat on trains yet sell these convenient foods/snacks at almost every station on the island, as if tempting people to flaunt the rules). Thus, when you look at Bread in Singapore, there is almost every flavor you can think of, but yet it’s a repetition somehow, there is no history about these breads. Just novelty. Culinary19 feels that the health value is not high too, the breads and cakes in these heartland stores seem to be just meeting demand for convenience, and the number of them in each area is alarming. What, like 4 stores selling the same Breads within the same area?

Next, let’s talk about the ‘Branded’ Breads, these are the BreadTalk, Four Leaves etc. Bakeries you usually see in shopping centres. They appear to have ‘better’ innovation with their products in terms of names, presentation of their shops. But in essence, Culinary19 feels that the breads are no different from heartland stores, except for possibly the Prices. The pastries and cakes too, seem to be repetitive amongst the many different chains, several tarts, chocolate cakes and the ilk of it. Usually if one wants a pastry is that considered to be authentic, or has more of a standing in cuisine, one has to go to a more distinct, high priced pastry shop or restaurant. The examples here include Canele , Bakerzin and the likes of it. But do the products really justify the prices? Or is it just a matter of demand not being met by heartland stores. With heartland shops focused on the ‘soft breads’ with various convenient ‘toppings’, pastries are usually minimal. It thus appears that the Bread/Pastry sector in Singapore is divided into three clear definitions with their price range.

Heartlands/Mrt Stations	-	Prices: Low-Average
Shopping malls	Eg: Breadtalk, Four Leaves etc	Prices: Average
Niche restaurants/cafes	Eg: Canele, Bakerzin etc	Prices: High

In the eyes of Culinary19, it seems that Heartland stores and Shopping mall stores are actually selling identical products, with difference only on branding and locations. For the niche restaurants and cafes, the products might not be Magnificent, but often are hard to find elsewhere. Thus, there are people who have to buy at those prices for pastries, and apparently they do not mind much. Thinking in the shoes of people similar to us at Culinary19 though, pastries as such then become a ‘once in a while’ treat due to the inhibitive prices.

Now then, let us examine a Boulanger/patisserie in France. It’s just a simple shop front that people pick from the extensive display of pastries and breads. The breads however are unlike what is ‘on display’ in Singapore. There are sold in loaves of different shapes, and each name seems to suggest a history or specific making method. The breads often share the same characteristics of a hard crust and irregularly regular air sacs. For the people in France, it’s a staple and every morning there are people about carrying loaves of baguette etc. For the pastries, there is a similar but extensive variety in the different stores. Examples of pastries include: éclairs, baba au rhum, mille feuille, caneles, macarons etc. The significance of these stores are how these ‘niche’ pastries you do not find easily in heartlands in Singapore are widely available. Obviously the culture is different, henceforth this. However, the point here is, is it possible to offer such pastries too at more affordable, everyday prices in Singapore. Since in France, these shops are like everyday heartlands bakeries in Singapore.

At Culinary19, we feel it’s a possible venture. Of such a Boulanger/patisserie idea taking off in Singapore, offering such pastries and breads to everyone, especially demographics like Culinary19, possibly filling in the gap in between heartlands and shopping mall stores while offering pastries. What do you think about the Bread/Pastry scene in Singapore? Feel free to air any personal views at our discussion board.

That’s all for the first article on Breads and Pastries. Watch for more updates.

Culinary19

Food, A Constant in Life

Start of A Journey

A first post, on the day before I leave on my journey to France. A part of my exploration as an aspiring culinarian - To the home of modern Cuisine.
This next 5 months ar a test as to whether I'll continue walking down this path, it could possibly mark either a turning point or a springboard.
This isn't meant to be so personal, but well, I'll just discuss food issues on the next entries.

For now, this is it. Internship at Villa Augusta. Will updates as much as possible then, while I'm there. France does sound exciting, doesn't it?