How to make the perfect feast

After availing my friends and colleagues with the tales of my wonderful turkey and stuffing this past Sunday for Easter, I received numerous requests for the recipes I used.  I will outline below the recipes I based my process on and any important modifications I used.  You follow this exactly and I promise you you'll receive accolades and gratitude at your next holiday feast.

1.  Stuffing Bread
This stuffing is a long process.  Mostly because for it to be over the top brilliant, you need homemade bread and, specifically, you need Wild Rice and Onion Bread by Peter Reinhart.  Just make it in loaf pans.  Don't worry about trying freestanding.  Once the recipe is complete and the bread has cooled to a comfortable temperature, cut it into small cubes.  Spread the cubes sparsely over a counter top.  Leave them out overnight so they really dry out and become a bit crusty.  The texture in the final stuffing is better.  Without drying them they almost become a bit soggy.

Wild Rice and Onion Bread from Peter Reinhart's Artisan Breads Every Day

6 cups (27 oz / 765 g) unbleached bread flour
2 1/4 teaspoons (0.6 oz / 17 g) salt, or 3 1/2 teaspoons coarse kosher salt
2 tablespoons (0.66 oz / 19 g) instant yeast
1 cup (6 oz / 170 g) cooked wild rice or another cooked grain
1/4 cup (2 oz / 56.5 g) brown sugar
11/2 cups (12 oz / 340 g) lukewarm water (about 95°F or 35°C)
1/2 cup (4 oz / 113 g) lukewarm buttermilk or any other milk (about 95°F or 35°C)
1/4 cup (1 oz / 28.5 g) minced or chopped dried onions, or 2 cups (8 oz / 227 g) diced fresh onion (about 1 large onion)
1 egg white, for egg wash (optional)
1 tablespoon water, for egg wash (optional)

Do Ahead

Combine all of the ingredients, except the egg wash, in a mixing bowl. If using a mixer, use the paddle attachment and mix on the lowest speed for 1 minute. If mixing by hand, use a large spoon and stir for 1 minute. The dough should be sticky, coarse, and shaggy. Let the dough rest for 5 minutes. 

Switch to the dough hook and mix on medium-low speed, or continue mixing by hand, for 4 minutes, adjusting with flour or water as needed to keep the dough ball together. The dough should be soft, supple, and slightly sticky. 

Transfer the dough to a lightly floured work surface. Knead the dough for 2 to 3 minutes, adding more flour as needed to prevent sticking. The dough will still be soft and slightly sticky but will hold together to form a soft, supple ball. Place the dough in a clean, lightly oiled bowl, cover the bowl tightly with plastic wrap, and immediately refrigerate overnight or for up to 4 days. (If you plan to bake the dough in batches over different days, you can portion the dough and place it into two or more oiled bowls at this stage.)

On Baking Day
Remove the dough from the refrigerator about 2 hours before you plan to bake. Shape the dough into one or more sandwich loaves (see page 23), using 28 ounces (794 g) of dough for 4 1/2 by 8-inch loaf pans and 36 ounces (1.02 kg) of dough for 5 by 9-inch pans; into freestanding loaves of any size, which you can shape as bâtards (see page 21), baguettes (see page 22), or boules (see page 20); or into rolls (see page 25), using 2 ounces (56.5 g) of dough per roll. When shaping, use only as much flour as necessary to keep the dough from sticking. For sandwich loaves, proof the dough in greased loaf pans. For freestanding loaves and rolls, line a sheet pan with parchment paper or a silicone mat and proof the dough on the pan. 

Mist the top of the dough with spray oil and cover loosely with plastic wrap. Let the dough rise at room temperature for 1 1/2 to 2 hours, until increased to about 1 1/2 times its original size. In loaf pans, the dough should dome at least 1 inch above the rim. If you’d like to make the rolls more shiny, whisk the egg white and water together, brush the tops of the rolls with the egg wash (see page 135) just before they’re ready to bake.  

About 15 minutes before baking, preheat the oven to 350°F (177°C), or 300°F (149°C) for a convection oven. 

Bake the loaves for 10 to 15 minutes, then rotate the pan; rotate rolls after 8 minutes. The total baking time is 45 to 55 minutes for loaves, and only 20 to 25 minutes for rolls. The bread is done when it has a rich golden color, the loaf sounds hollow when thumped on the bottom, and the internal temperature is above 185°F (85°C) in the center. 

Cool on a wire rack for at least 20 minutes for rolls or 1 hour for loaves before slicing.

2.  Stuffing

My Favorite Bread Stuffing

By Mark Bittman from the How to Cook Everything iPad app

230 g butter

1 cup chopped onion

1/2 cup chopped pecans (my modification; original calls for pine nuts or walnuts; pecans are delightful)

1 loaf of wild rice and onion bread cut into cubes and dried

1 tablespoon minced sage leaves

salt and freshly ground pepper

1/2 cup chopped green onions

1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley

(don’t skimp on the parsley and sage; find and buy fresh; DON’T use dried)

One recipe here is good for stuffing a fairly large turkey, around 17 lbs.  For anything over 10 people, cook one recipe inside the bird and one recipe in a Pyrex dish in the oven.

1. Put the butter in a large, deep skillet over medium heat.  When melted, add the onion and cook, stirring, until it softens, about 5 minutes.  Add the nuts and cook, stirring almost constantly, until they begin to brown, about 3 minutes.
2. Add the bread cubes and the herb and toss to mix.  Turn the heat down to low.  Add the salt, pepper, and green onion.  Toss again, taste, and adjust the seasoning.  Add the parsley and stir.  Turn off the heat.
3. Pack into the bird and roast with it according to roasting recipe for particular bird.  Can also bake in an ovenproof glass or enamel baking dish for about 45 minutes at 350-400F.

3.  The Bird

Nigella Lawson's Spiced and Super Juicy Turkey

From her outstanding book Feast.

Ingredients
For the turkey:
10 pints 11 fluid ounces (6 liters) water
4 1/4-ounces (125 grams) table salt
3 tablespoons black peppercorns
1 cinnamon stick
1 tablespoon caraway seeds
4 cloves
2 tablespoons allspice berries
4 star anise
2 tablespoons white mustard seeds
7 ounces (200 grams) caster sugar
2 onions, quartered
1 (3-inch) piece ginger, cut into 6 slices
4 tablespoons maple syrup
4 tablespoons clear honey
Handful fresh parsley leaves, optional (only if you've got some parsley hanging around)
1 orange, quartered
1 (9 to 11 1/4-pound) (4 to 5-kg) turkey
For the basting glaze:
2 3/4 ounces (75 grams) butter
3 tablespoons maple syrup

(DO NOT skimp on any of the seasonings.  FIND THEM in your grocery store.  Don't substitute.  All I ever substitute is I just use regular granulated sugar and instead of star anise I use about 2 teaspoons of anise seed.

Use only the highest quality maple syrup.  Aunt Jemima is NOT maple syrup.)

Place the water into your largest cooking pot or bucket/plastic bin and add all the turkey ingredients, stirring to dissolve the salt, sugar, syrup and honey. (Squeeze the juice of the orange quarters into the brine before you chuck in the pieces.)

Untie and remove any string or trussing attached to the turkey, shake it free and add it to the liquid. Add more water if the turkey is not completely submerged. Keep the mixture in a cold place, even outside overnight or for up 1 or 2 days (DO 2 DAYS) before you cook it, remembering to take it out of its liquid (and wiping it dry with kitchen-towel) a good 40 or 50 minutes before it has to go into the oven. Turkeys - indeed this is the case for all meat - should be at room temperature before being put in the preheated oven. If you're at all concerned - the cold water in the brine will really chill this bird - then just cook the turkey for longer than its actual weight requires. (IF YOUR BIRD IS BIG, I RECOMMEND TAKING IT OUT IMMEDIATELY UPON WAKING IN THE MORNING)

For the basting glaze:

Place the butter and syrup into a saucepan and cook over a low heat, while stirring, until the ingredients have melted and combined.

Brush the turkey with the glaze before roasting, and baste periodically throughout the roasting time.

(This is where I stepped in and added my own personal flare that put this turkey over the top.  Obviously, stuff the bird with the delicious stuffing above.  Then put your hands under the skin above the breast and break the tissue connecting the skin to the meat so that you open up a space under the skin.  Put 1 stick of garlic butter under the skin over each breast.  Yes, 1 stick per breast.  Make sure it is at room temperature.  Should be easily squishable.  Squish it under the skin and massage it in well so it is spread out and completely covering the space under the skin.  Then take a package of bacon.  Good stuff.  Not crap like turkey bacon.  The fattier the better.  Lay 1 strip over the top of the turkey and continue laying strips side by side until the top portion of the turkey is covered.  I put one layer going left to right and one layer pointing front to back.  Ended up using all but 6 strips of bacon in the package.  Then toss that puppy in the oven.  I leave mine uncovered until the final high temperature burst at the end.  I uncover it at that point to give it a final browning.)

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.

Cook the turkey for 30 minutes at this relatively high temperature, then turn the oven down to 350 degrees F and continue cooking, turning the oven back up to 425 degrees F for the final15 minutes or so if you want to give a browning boost to the skin. For a 9 to 11-pound turkey, allow 2 1/2 to 3-hours in total. But remember that ovens vary enormously, so just check by piercing the flesh between leg and body with a small sharp knife: when the juices run clear, the turkey is cooked.

Just as it's crucial to let the turkey come to room temperature before it goes in to the oven, so it's important to let it stand out of the oven for a good 20 minutes before you actually carve it.

(Some amendments here.  Aside from the initial baste, I don't rebaste the turkey.  You have a cup of butter and 3/4 of a pack of bacon doing that for you.  You will notice that her cooking times seem short for most people accustomed to the rules of their mothers and grandmothers.  But we all know those people made dry turkeys :-)  Although this turkey is almost impossible to dry out, there is no point in overcooking it.  Nigella's cooking time guidance is below and I rely it almost religiously.  It is perfect almost every time.  You start with the high temp 1/2 hour, down to 350, and then last 15-20 minutes back at the 425.  To check doneness, you can pierce the bird near the thigh and hope its juices run clear. However, if you fear bacteria as much as I do, you should measure the temperature.  I rely on the temperature at both breast and thigh.  Meat thermometers lie.  They will make you dry out your turkey. If the temperature at breast AND thigh is 165F, you are good to go, as long as you have a good probe thermometer.  By which I mean you need a good probe thermometer.  Buy one.  I did and I'm as cheap as they come.  

When you hit the 165 mark take the bird out and put it on a cutting board or counter top or something.  Tent it with foil completely.  It should rest for 30-60 minutes in foil.  Although this cools it slightly, the juices get drawn back into the turkey and it adds such a perfect finishing touch you don't want to miss this step.  

Now, onto the gravy!  (Oh, yeah, you have to carve the turkey too.  Figure it out.  You use a large knife and the mitts God gave you.  After cutting nice orderly pieces off the breast which, just a warning, will squirt butter at you testifying to their uber-juiciness, start tearing away at the rest of the beast like a savage with your fingers.  An hour under the foil tent will leave it warm enough to use your fingers and not scald them.  Leave no piece of turkey on the bone.  It's so good if you leave any on the carcass, your guests will sneak into your kitchen later to scavenge for remains.)

Weight of bird     Cooking Time
2/25kg/5lb            1 ½ hours
3.5kg/8lb              1 ¾ hours
4.5kg/10lb            2 hours
5.5kg/12lb            2 ½ hours
6.75kg/15lb          2 ¾ hours
7.5kg/17lb            3 hours
9kg/20lb               3 ½ hours
11.5kg/25lb          4 ½ hours

4.  The Gravy

I've always been horrible at making gravy.  Horrible.  Finally, I decided that my wife might be smart so took some advice from her as her gravy is always perfect.  She taught me the roux method of making gravy.  And now anyone who has mocked my water thin gravy in the past will roux the day they did so.  (Groan....)

Again, I rely on the genius of Nigella Lawson.  

Allspice Gravy
Also in Feast.

Ingredients

Giblets from turkey (not including the liver)

2 pints water

1 tablespoon allspice berries

1/2 teaspoon black peppercorns

3 fresh bay leaves

1 (1/2-inch) cinnamon stick

1 stick celery, halved

2 carrots, peeled and halved

1 onion, halved, but not peeled

3 teaspoons salt

1 orange, zested and juiced (dig the pulp out and throw that in there too)

Place the turkey giblets, water, allspice berries, black peppercorns, bay leaves, cinnamon stick, celery, carrots, onion, salt and clementine zest and juice into a large saucepan and bring the mixture to a boil. Cover the saucepan with a lid and reduce the heat so that the mixture simmers gently. Cook for 2 hours.

Remove the saucepan from the heat and strain the gravy stock through a sieve into a clean large measuring jug. This should give you about 1 liter of stock.

(The first time you do this, you will realize how juicy this turkey is.  When you open that roasting pan at the end, the bird will be damn near drowning in its own juices.  I had a 17 lb turkey and it gave me EIGHT CUPS of drippings.  Now, this is where I differ from Nigella, and to my advantage.  This is my wife's process.  

You've got your stock from above set aside.  Once turkey is out, scrape everything off the bottom of the roasting pan.  Pour it all into a large measuring Pyrex to determine how much you have.  Make sure to strain through a large-holed sieve just to pull out some of the larger chunks.  

Add the flavor stock from above.  This will give you your final volume.  

Now, for every 4 cups of drippings/stock, measure 1/4 cup of flour and 1/4 cup of butter.  Please don't use margarine.  If you use margarine I will find you.  You just roasted a turkey with a cup of butter and a pack of bacon.  You think the butter in the gravy will put you over the daily fat limit?  Newsflash.  You're already there, and it's a great place to be.

In a large saucepan, melt the butter.  Slowly add in the flour, whisking vigorously so it remains a smooth consistency.  As you get to the last addition it will be quite thick and almost pasty.  Now the key part.  Over medium heat, SLOWLY add the dripping/stock mixture.  SLOWLY.  Especially at first.  I was adding like maybe a tablespoon at a time until about the first 1/4 of liquid was added.  The whole time you have to whisk like a madman.  NO LUMPS I TELL YOU.  Keep adding.  As you get near the end, suddenly your gravy will emulsify and you will get this wonderfully thick, creamy looking gravy that tastes positively divine.  Taste and add a bit of salt and pepper if needed.  

Of course, since you are not an industrial food producer, you don't have an emulsion stabilizer to add to your gravy.  And that's okay.  As the gravy sits, the parts will somewhat separate and you'll see oil on top of the other components.  That's normal.  A quick stir fixes that.  Or you can be a jerk and slowly pour off the buttery goodness onto your plate and leave everything else for the rest of the table.  Your choice.)

There you have it.  Is this easy?  Nope.  Is it quick?  Not even a little bit.  You have to start preparing like 3 days in advance of the meal.  Is this turkey healthy?  Hell-to-the-NO.  Is it the most delicious and moist turkey you will ever eat?  You bet.  The gravy is like nothing you've ever tasted and the stuffing is so good blood relations will come to blows over the last scraps.  

Besides, a feast is a feast.  It is meant to be glorious.  It is meant to be memorable.  It should be something your children dream about when they are older.  Something they tell their friends about when they talk about holidays.  Something they long to carry on when they are parents and hosting their own feasts.  Who gives a flying buttress whether it's healthy?  Anything that takes this much work and time to produce has to be enjoyed guilt free.

By popular demand

I've never had more requests for a recipe than I did for the cinnamon buns I made recently.  So, I shall post it below.  I hope posting the full reference to the author's book and imploring you to purchase it for its many other wonderful recipes is enough to avoid any sort of copyright problem!

Adapted from "Artisan Breads Every Day:Fast and Easy Recipes for World-Class Breads" by Peter Reinhart

Note: If I put the weight in brackets, I would highly recommend weighing that ingredient versus measuring it volumetrically.  It will make the dough much more consistent between batches and closer to the intended consistency in the recipe.

Sticky Buns

Sweet Dough
6 1/4 cups (28 oz) unbleached all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons salt
6 tablespoons (3 oz) sugar
5 teaspoons instant yeast
2 cups plus 2 tablespoons lukewarm whole milk (about 95F)
1/2 cup melted unsalted butter

Combine the flour, salt, and sugar in a mixing bowl.  Whisk the yeast into the milk until dissolved, then pour the mixture into the dry ingredients, along with the oil.  If using a mixer, use the paddle attachment and mix on the lowest speed for 30 seconds to 1 minute.  If mixing by hand, use a large spoon and stir for about 1 minute.  The dough should form a soft, coarse ball.
Switch to the dough hook and mix on medium-low speed, or continue mixing by hand, for 4 minutes, adding flour or milk as needed to create a smooth, soft, slightly sticky ball of dough (Note: you shouldn't need much flour; will be slightly sticky at first; just a little flour should make it smooth enough to work with)
Increase the speed to medium and mix for 2 minutes more or continue stirring for about 2 minutes more, until the dough is very soft, supple, and tacky but not sticky.
Transfer the dough to a lightly floured work surface and knead for 1 minute, then form into a ball.
Place the dough in a clean, lightly oiled bowl large enough to hold it once doubled.  Cover with plastic wrap.  Allow to rise at room temperature until doubled in size OR refrigerate overnight.

(Note: The above is fairly detailed just for your info.  Honestly I just stirred it until it all came together.  Then I kneaded it with my fingers until everything seemed mixed in.  Then I plopped it on the counter and added a bit of flour and kneaded it until it was smooth and everything was incorporated.  In total took me about 5 minutes.)

If you put the dough in the refrigerator, take it out about 3 hours before you plan to bake.  If not just take it straight from the bowl.  Put onto the counter and divide it in half, forming each piece into a ball.  Cover each ball with a bowl or plastic wrap and let rest for 20 minutes.

On a floured work surface, roll each ball of dough into a 12x15-inch rectangle.  If the dough starts to resist or shrink back, let it rest for 1 minute, then continue rolling.
(Note: I really recommend actually measuring out the space.  It makes the dough the best shape and the buns the perfect size.)

Make cinnamon sugar by whisking 3/4 cup (6 oz) of sugar with 3 tablespoons of cinnamon.  Melt roughly 1/4 cup of butter and brush the surface of the dough with it.  Sprinkle the cinnamon sugar over the surface, leaving a 1/4-inch border.  Roll up the dough like a rug, rolling from the bottom to the top to form a tight log.  Now make the slurry.  (I make it ahead of time so it is ready to roll and the buns don't sit on the counter too long while you make it.)

There are 3 slurry options.  I'll put them all here but the Honey Slurry is my favorite.  With all of them you mix all the ingredients until it's a smooth slurry.  You then pour half into one 9x13-inch baking pan and the other half into another.  Spread it evenly along the bottom.

Creamy Caramel Slurry
1/2 cup (4 oz) sugar
1/2 cup (4 oz) light brown sugar
1/2 cup whipping cream
1 tablespoon melted unsalted butter
1 tablespoon light corn syrup

Honey Slurry
1 cup melted or liquid honey
1 cup melted unsalted butter
1/4 teaspoon salt
(You can also make Honey Almond Slurry by adding 1 teaspoon almond extract)

Sticky Bun Slurry
1/2 cup (4 oz) sugar
1/2 cup (4 oz) brown sugar
1/2 cup melted unsalted butter
2 tablespoons light corn syrup
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon lemon extract (optional)

Once the slurries are poured into the pans, cut the log of dough into 1-inch slices and place them on the slurry with the nicest side down.  (Divide each log into 12 sections.  Each portion of 12 buns will fit into 1 9x13.)
Cover loosely with plastic wrap and let rise at room temperature for about 2 hours.  Just watch the buns and once they are noticeably swollen and are expanding into each other, they're ready to go.

Put your oven rack on a low position, not the normal middle position.  This is required to caramelize the slurry and cook the bottom of the buns enough.  Preheat the oven to 350F.

Bake for 12 minutes.  Rotate the pan 180 degrees for even baking.  Bake for another 13 minutes.  The slurry will melt, bubble, and caramelize, and the visible dough will be a dark golden brown.

Remove the pans from the oven and let them cool for 2-3 minutes in the pans.  Place a platter or pan over the top of the baking pan.  It should be large enough to cover the baking pan.  Wearing oven mitts, flip the entire thing over to release the buns and caramel onto the platter.  Now the glaze is on top.  It is INCREDIBLY hot at this point so, although you will be tempted, do NOT taste test it.  Learn from my experience!

Cool for at least 15 minutes before serving.

Bread 101

After posting my bazillionth picture of homemade artisan bread on Facebook, a truly life changing bread from the excellent book Tartine Bread by Chad Robertson, I got some requests by friends to share my tips and tricks on making outstanding homemade bread.

I won't profess to be an expert on baking bread.  What I will say is I've done an incredible amount of reading on the subject and made hundreds of loaves, many of which completely and utterly failed, before I arrived at the above result.  What I have learned I have learned partly from experimenting but mostly from excellent resources on the topic.  So I won't discuss here my own tips and tricks but instead will guide you to the best resources and you can take it from there.

The only things I will mention are some very basic rules about making bread at home.  First of all, there is no way to do it quickly AND do it well.  If you want excellent bread, you have to be patient.  You also cannot use a bread machine.  That is trying to add simplicity and convenience to the process, antithetical to the bread making experience.  I would also argue that with the exception of a very few recipes, you cannot use a stand mixer.  For success, you need to use your hands.  It is the only way to gain an appreciation for the state of the dough which, as you'll learn, is key to success.

Which brings me to my next point.  Baking bread from recipes is not like baking muffins or cookies.  For the most part, baking recipes, if followed to the letter, always work out the same between batches and between individuals.  Bread is not the same.  The best bread books will have an ingredient listing like "3 cups flour plus or minus a few tablespoons depending on wetness or firmness of dough".  So you add the basic ratio of ingredients but then have to adjust based on the humidity in your kitchen, absorbency of the brand of flour you use, ambient temperature, etc. all of which impact how firm or wet your dough is.  This is an appreciation you can only gain with practice.  I have had many loaves flop because I did not follow the instructions for obtaining the right properties in the dough and instead followed the prescribed quantities of ingredients exactly without making adjustments.

Finally, there are some tools you MUST have.  One is a baking stone.  You can either buy one from a specialty kitchen store or purchase a piece of unglazed floor tile from a flooring store.  You also need a cast iron pan or other dish that you can put in the oven up to 500F without damaging it.  This is for holding water to create a steam-filled oven when baking freestanding loaves (in contrast to loaf pan loaves).  One friend asked me if a proofing box is a necessity.  It is not.  It is a luxury.  It certainly helps take your bread to the next level and simplifies some aspects of the process.  But for breads using commercial yeast, it is not necessary.  You can get good results turning your oven to 200F for 1 minute, shutting it off, and then proofing inside the oven with the oven light on.  However, if you are attempting to make naturally leavened bread (commonly known as sourdough, although this isn't always true because not all naturally leavened breads have a sour flavor) you NEED a proofer.  Particularly if you are attempting to raise a starter in the winter.  To keep your starter healthy you need consistent control of temperature.  I don't know if it is a coincidence but my attempts at natural leavening never worked until I got a proofing box.

That's it.  The rest of any specialty bread equipment you might come across is not necessary to have.  It's fun, but not necessary.

Now for the best part.  The resources.  Before attempting naturally leavened breads, you need to master commercial yeast breads.  For that purpose, there is no better resource than Peter Reinhart, author of The Bread Baker's Apprentice, an absolutely indispensable tome on the art of bread.  His other books are also great, particularly Crust & Crumb, but they are not necessary.   For the best experience, you should attempt and succeed at breads of differing characteristics.  I would consider the following recipes a must before moving on in your bread baking experience.  Baguettes, bagels, ciabatta, focaccia, a basic French boule, brioche, croissants, whole wheat freestanding loaf, whole wheat and white sandwich loaves.  This variety will give you an appreciation for recipes with varying degrees of hydration and use of enrichments like eggs and large amounts of butter.  You'll also employ different proofing, shaping, and baking techniques.

When you have mastered those recipes and want to move onto wild-yeast bread, ditch Reinhart.  I had an absolutely miserable experience with his wild-yeast techniques and was about to give up on it.  Reading bread forums on the Web confirmed my suspicions.  Reinhart is a master of commercial yeast bread recipes but his sourdough techniques yield mixed results.  An absolutely outstanding resource is Northwest Sourdough's series of e-books.  I started with #1 and went from there.  Every recipe I've tried from her books has been a resounding success, and her method for catching and raising a wild yeast starter is in my opinion perfect.

Once you've mastered that, then you can move onto something truly incredible.  Tartine Bread.  Wow.  This bread is very different from any other you've ever eaten.  The hydration is quite high, so the dough is incredibly difficult to work with.  In fact, up until I actually baked the loaf I was sure it was going to be a complete failure.  But I followed his directions and encouragement to the tee and the result was something I can't really describe.  He attempts to mimic the experience of a commercial steam injection oven by having you bake the loaf inside a Dutch oven.  You invert the lid, put the loaf on there, put it in the oven, and then put the larger part of the pot on top of the lid.  In the first 20 minutes that the loaf is baking, all the steam it lets off is trapped in the small space and contributes not only to a unique caramelization of the crust but to an oven spring I have never seen before.  When I put the loaf in the oven it was about 3 inches thick.  When it finished it was over 6 inches thick.  And that led to the large, irregular holes throughout the loaf that give it its remarkable texture.  But I would not attempt this until you're very comfortable with the sourdough process from the e-books.

There you have it.  This is not bread making for the hurried or the impatient.  You will go insane.  This is for those who want to make bread making a hobby and, in the process, transform their ideas of what bread can be.  I promise you, if you eat a well made loaf of any of these breads, you will NEVER buy bread at the store again.

A few articles of mine

Thought I'd post links to a couple articles I did recently.

The first is a letter I sent to the Canadian Diabetes Association calling them out on their endorsement of Pepsi products.  Yoni Freedhoff, over at Weighty Matters, was kind enough to post it on his blog, which is MUCH more popular than mine!

The link is here.

Also, I co-authored my first Tools for Practice for the Alberta College of Family Physicians along with Dr. Mike Kolber.  That is here.

Vaccines

My wife asked me to send some professional information to a friend of hers.  This friend has a new baby and wants to get him vaccinated but is conflicted because of all the information she receives from the Internet, popular media, and most importantly, family, telling her that she shouldn't because vaccines are dangerous.  Thankfully my wife shot back to her a quick e-mail that laid out the whole MMR-autism fiasco and told her not to worry about that because it has been so thoroughly discredited it is barely worth even discussing.  But she felt she needed more info, because this lady's mother was particularly concerned as she had been told that vaccines contain mercury and formaldehyde.  So I did what I always do.  I totally went overboard.  My response is below.

"Besides breastfeeding, there is no other childhood intervention that has as much medical evidence supporting its safety and efficacy in preventing debilitating diseases than routine immunizations.  Great article below outlining a well done study on the bottom line on vaccines.  Bottom line is, vaccines are one of the greatest public health discoveries of modern humanity and we choose not to use them at our own peril.


http://besthealth.bmj.com/x/news/648516/news-item.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+besthealth%2Fnews+%28Best+Health%3A+Latest+news%29

As for components of vaccines, they are in the vaccines that are used in the studies and still they show VERY low rates of adverse reactions.  Pentacel (DTAp-IPV-Hib), one of the first vaccines given, does contain formaldehye, but in trace amounts. 

Excipients:
Aluminum Phosphate (adjuvant)
2-phenoxyethanol
Polysorbate 80
Tris (hydroxymethyl) aminomethane
Sucrose
BSA, formaldehyde, glutaraldehyde, neomycin and polymyxin B are present in trace amounts.

Should you be worried about that?  No.  The ingredients are in such small amounts they are of no concern.  Besides, the attached document shows that formaldehyde occurs in high levels naturally in some foods. 

Then there is Prevnar, pneumococcal vaccine for babies.  Contains the following, besides the vaccine components of course.

sodium chloride, polysorbate 80, succinic acid and aluminum as aluminum phosphate adjuvant.

Meningitec: Meningitis vaccine
Non-Medicinal Ingredients
Sodium chloride
Aluminum phosphate
Water for Injection

Priorix-Tetra (measles, mumps, rubella, varicella)
Amino acids for injection
Lactose
Mannitol
Neomycin Sulphate
Sorbitol
Water for injection

Fluviral (influenza vaccine)
sodium chloride
potassium chloride
disodium hydrogen phosphate heptahydrate
potassium dihydrogen phosphate
water for injection

That covers the main routine immunizations for kids. 

And in case those ingredients still scare the hell out of you, consider the ingredient list from:

McDonald's French Fries
Potatoes, canola oil, hydrogenated soybean oil, safflower oil, natural flavour (vegetable source), dextrose, sodium acid pyrophosphate (maintain colour), citric acid (preservative), dimethylpolysiloxane (antifoaming agent) and cooked in vegetable oil (Canola oil, corn oil, soybean oil, hydrogenated soybean oil with THBQ, citric acid and dimethylpolysiloxane).

Big Mac
Beef Patty: 100% pure beef.
Big Mac® Bun: Enriched wheat flour, water, high fructose corn syrup and/or glucose-fructose and/or sugar, yeast, vegetable oil (soybean and/or canola), salt, sesame seeds, calcium sulphate, calcium propionate, monoglycerides, enzymes, azodicarbonamide, AND MAY CONTAIN ANY OR ALL OF THE FOLLOWING IN VARYING PROPORTIONS: diacetyl tartaric acid esters of mono and diglycerides, BHT, sodium stearoyl-2-lactylate, wheat starch, calcium peroxide, wheat gluten, sorbitol, dextrin, malted barley flour, ascorbic acid, citric acid, calcium stearate, calcium iodate, silicon dioxide. CONTAINS: WHEAT, BARLEY, SESAME SEEDS
Big Mac® Sauce: Soybean oil, relish [pickles, sugar, glucose-fructose, vinegar, glucose, salt, xanthan gum, potassium sorbate, spice extractives), prepared mustard [water, vinegar, mustard seed, salt, sugar, colour (caramel, turmeric), spices], water, frozen egg yolk, vinegar, onion powder, salt, mustard flour, xanthan gum, potassium sorbate, spices, garlic powder, hydrolyzed plant protein (corn, soy, wheat gluten), colour (paprika, caramel), calcium disodium EDTA. CONTAINS: MUSTARD, EGG, WHEAT, SOY

And of course through wizardry allowed by Health Canada, food companies do not have to list the components of flavors, only to say that it may contain artificial flavor.  Well, here is what is in strawberry flavor:

amyl acetate, amyl butyrate, amyl valerate, anethol, anisyl formate, benzyl acetate, benzyl isobutyrate, butyric acid, cinnamyl isobutyrate, cinnamyl valerate, cognac essential oil, diacetyl, dipropyl ketone, ethyl acetate, ethyl amylketone, ethyl butyrate, ethyl cinnamate, ethyl heptanoate, ethyl heptylate, ethyl lactate, ethyl methylphenylglycidate, ethyl nitrate, ethyl propionate, ethyl valerate, heliotropin, hydroxyphrenyl-2-butanone, alpha-ionone, isobutyl anthranilate, isobutyl butyrate, lemon essential oil, maltol, 4-methylacetophenone, methyl anthranilate, methyl benzoate, methyl cinnamate, methyl heptine carbonate, methyl naphthyl ketone, methyl salicylate, mint essential oil, neroli essential oil, nerolin, neryl isobutyrate, orris butter, phenethyl alcohol, rose, rum ether, gamma-undecalactone, vanillin, and solvent.

Oy vey. 

My running journey

In 2007 we were still living in northern Ontario, many miles from our families in Alberta.  We ventured home for a short visit in late August or early September.  I honestly can't remember the exact date.  What I do remember though is speaking with my mom about her recent accomplishment.  At the age of 50, she had completed her first half-marathon in what was then known as the ING Edmonton Marathon.  She completed it in 2:30:25, which is an impressive time for a first-time half-marathoner, no less at 50 years of age.  I didn't realize it at the time, but I hurt her that day.

You see, I was so excited to see her and had so much I wanted to share with her about what was going on in my life, that I made light of her achievement by abruptly acknowledging her finishing medal and moving on in the conversation.  It was not until this weekend when I completed my own first half-marathon that I realized just how much that race meant to her and just how much my lack of interest in her story really stung.

Of course, even though it seemed I made light of her accomplishment, it blew my mind.  I had been into running sporadically for many years, due in no small part to her commitment to the sport.  I'd done some fun runs, most memorably the Beat Beethoven 8K in Edmonton (Ludwig kicked my ass in case you're wondering).  But it wasn't until last year, when I was talking to her on the phone about the run she'd put in that morning that I started taking it more seriously.  If she can run four half-marathons (her best time was in 2009 in Edmonton at 2:22:55, an age-adjusted time of 1:59:37 which is smoking fast for a recreational runner) it must be within the realm of possibility to finish one.

So I set out in my mind to complete the Edmonton half in August 2012.  My first step was, as always when I start something new, getting out a book from the library.  Called The 16-Week Marathon Method by Tom Holland, it is a great starter book and lays out detailed training plans for beginners to advanced runners for anything from the 10k to a full marathon.  And I figured since I was a beginner, I better finish off two 16-week training cycles before the race. So began my journey in December 2011 (an incredibly moronic time of year to START a running regimen in Canada).

In my first two weeks, I could already tell I was going to love this.  I was doing great and didn't miss a single one of the eight prescribed runs from the training program.  Then came my first two lessons: when you start running, be cautious not to do too much too fast AND respect the elements.

It was a mild winter so night runs were oddly enjoyable, the crisp winter air making for a refreshing run.  So it was little surprise when I found myself pounding out a 3-miler in freshly fallen snow just one week out from Christmas.  Unfortunately, although it was a beautiful night, when fresh snow falls on a sidewalk, it has a nasty habit of hiding the edge of said sidewalk.  Only 3/4 of a mile into my run, I brought my left foot in for a landing right smack halfway on the edge of the sidewalk.  The force of the landing was enough to wrench my ankle at an ungodly angle and bring me crashing down in agony.  And then the swearing began.

I knew I was done for awhile.  Laying in pain, writhing in the snow, dragging myself to my mother-in-laws front door to have her drive me home, it was all I could do not to cry.  Even though I was only 2 weeks in, I was already visualizing the finish line in August.  I was proud I'd gone from nothing to regular physical activity in a short time and had stuck with it more than one night.  And now it was over because I'd been stupid enough to run in freshly fallen snow.

I remember when I got home, I was sure it wasn't that bad.  And then I took off my sock.  Oh sweet merciful crap.  It was MASSIVE.  When I saw it, I started crying, punched the wall, and rattled off a string of F-bombs.  Then I swallowed my pride and went to emerg.  It was a bad sprain and would take months before I could be back running on it.  I got fitted for the robo-boot, signed up for physio, and went on my way to wallow in my misery for 2 months.

But I couldn't give up.  My mom had suffered setbacks in her training before and kept plugging along every time.  Of all the injuries and emotional ups and downs she'd had all those years, she still completed those 4 races, and she still ran incredible distances every single week.  I took all my motivation from her and reset my training cycle to 16-weeks out from the race.  It wouldn't be easy.  In the meantime I had to study for and write my Certified Diabetes Educator exam, adjudicate the national pharmacy board exam, act as president of our local Chamber of Commerce, and work full time.  Oh, and still be a father to my 3 kids and a husband to my lovely wife.  Nothing to it.

At the halfway point of my training I was having a brilliant 6-mile run.  Near the end I was looking to beat my personal best time and I sprinted for the last 200 meters.  Two days later I tried to run 3-miles and could barely limp my way through the first 400 meters.  I had done something to my knee, and I'd done it good.

The next week all I could manage was running on my elliptical.  I had to do this for almost 3 weeks before I could run again, at which point I was able to manage a 10-mile run with very little pain.  I thought things were looking up.  In the meantime I had it looked at by a nurse practitioner and went to physio twice.  I thought this would be it but then I tried to run a few days later and the pain was excruciating.  Would I be put out by injury AGAIN?  Would I have to give up my dream of completing this race?

I spent a week on the elliptical but still, the pain would not subside.  Finally, only 3 weeks out from the race, I did something crazy.  I did absolutely NOTHING for a whole week.  Well, not nothing.  I read. A lot.  About running.  Born to Run by Christopher McDougall and, on the tails of that read, countless resources about barefoot running including some YouTube videos.  Could it be that I'd been running incorrectly this whole time?  Now, while I'm not dumb enough to make the transition from shod running to barefoot 3 weeks out from a 13 mile race, I did walk around in bare feet that whole week of rest and did some of the posture and strengthening exercises recommended by some of the resources.

I don't know if it was the week of rest or the exercises I did, but when I started on my final two weeks of training, my knee pain was GONE.  Completely.  Not just less or tolerable, but gone.  The next week I completed 4 runs totalling 15 miles with absolutely no problems.  Not only that, but my stride and posture felt better and I was faster than I'd been before.  I was one run from pulling out of the race, but when I completed that run exactly two weeks out from race day and it and felt like a million bucks, I decided to risk it and stay in.

And I couldn't be happier.  When I got to Edmonton on Sunday morning, I couldn't believe the amount of people running in that race.  Between the half and the full marathons, over 1500 people ran.  And nothing can prepare you for the intensity of corralling yourself into the starting area with all these people and having them all move as a unified mass when the starting gun goes off.

I knew from the get go that it was going to be a great race.  I was running comfortably, breathing easy, and my muscles did not even begin to tire until mile 10.  Not only that but I was running 30 sec/mile under my training pace.  So when I came in view of the finish line, I was PUMPED.  Maybe a little too pumped.  I started my kick a little early.  1 km is a painfully long distance when you start a full out sprint!

When I was 100 meters out from the finish, I was hurting, my breathing was rapid, and I was getting this strange tingly feeling in my head.  But then I looked up and saw that the clock time said I was at 2:09.  I don't know how, but I burst as fast as I could and got across under 2:10, my goal time from the outset.  It was then and there that I realized just how much my interest in her accomplishment meant to my mom 5 years ago.

Over the course of my training I suffered two injuries, one severe, one not so much, but still capable of preventing me from completing the race.  I ran a total of roughly 230 miles (368 km), averaging about 15 miles per week.  I had so much emotion and time invested in this run, to complete it was a feeling I can't explain unless you've done it yourself.  I wanted to run to the top of the grandstand and show my medal to everyone willing to look.  But I didn't because my wonderful family was there, waiting to congratulate me, hug me in all my sweaty glory, and tell me how proud they were.  My kids, my wife, my grandmother, my mother-in-law, my father-in-law.  But most meaningfully, my inspiration, my reason for doing it, my hero: my mom.

She was there for me.  She got up at 5am that day to drive me there and spent the whole morning waiting for me to finish.  She did this despite the fact that no one but her mom was ever at the finish line for her all those times she completed the half.  (Well, maybe not "no one", but certainly not me.)  Despite the fact that I never really told her how proud I was of her accomplishments and how much of an inspiration she was for me.  And she did this despite suffering from what the doctors think is severe sciatica which has all but halted her running for the last couple months.  The pain she felt when I didn't fully acknowledge her achievement in 2007, the pain she felt when she saw all those runners take off at the start of a race in which she desperately wished she could run: none of it could keep her away from the finish line to show me how proud she was, to show me that she understands why I do it.

And finally, crossing that finish line, I understood just how much that first race meant to her.  And I couldn't be happier that I now share that understanding with her and my oldest sister.  An experience and bond that cannot be explained but is none the weaker for it.

Now if you find yourself wondering why someone could be so sentimental about something so simple as running, next time you are in your car on a longer drive, set your trip odometer to 0 and just take the time to truly perceive the distance that a half-marathon represents.  21.1 km. And then imagine yourself running that.  Or better yet, do it.  Because you'll never truly appreciate how amazing it feels to complete a half-marathon until you've done it yourself.  And I have my mother to thank for giving me that gift.

Miracle weight loss products

After reading an excellent post by Scott Gavura at Science-Based Medicine I posted a link to it on my Facebook wall, along with a fairly unequivocal statement regarding "miracle" solutions for weight loss.  It went something like this.

"Yet another useless "miracle" diet. There is no easy quick fix to losing and KEEPING OFF weight. None. Period. Anyone that tells you otherwise is either lying, delusional, or the CEO of a company that sells weight loss products."


After thinking about it for a bit, I felt it necessary to provide at least a bit of empirical support for my statement.  I can tell you from my experience that every single weight loss product sold where I work is not worth your time or money.  And I have yet to see a single evidence-based, realistic article in popular grocery store magazines regarding how to sustainably lose weight.  Of course, it wouldn't sell many magazines if you tossed on the headline "Lose 1-2 pounds per week by counting all the calories you eat, eating way less than you do right now and once you've lost the weight, working out an average of one hour a day."  If you can sell that, you should be in marketing.

But my experience is no indicator of truth.  So I decided to generate a research hypothesis.  It goes something like this.  If the massively popular sports nutrition and weight loss products and programs sold to millions of individuals struggling with weight every year are actually effective, we should see their use go in lockstep with rates of obesity.  But we all know that rates of obesity have been steadily climbing for the last 10 years.  And, of course, so have sales of sports nutrition and weight management products and services.  In fact, the similarity between the two growth curves is so similar, it is almost frightening.

Now it stands to reason 100% that this would be so.  As more and more people struggle with weight and seek solutions to their struggles, the market for these products grows.  As such, the marketing of them grows and, in turn, their sales.  It makes sense.  But if they were actually effective, it would be a self-limiting relationship as they would work themselves right out of a job.  But they're not effective.  They're useless and probably contribute at least partially to societal obesity itself.

The graph below is based on OECD obesity data for the US and market data for the sports nutrition and weight management industry.  Obviously, there are a million holes in this approach, but it is certainly a question worth pursuing in more scientific circles.  (In case you are a stats nerd like me, the correlation in the below graph is 0.99)