By Zilana Lee
During Covid-19, flour millers and grocery retailers were unprepared for the dramatic increase in demand for flour by consumers. There have been shortages of supply around the country due, for the most part, to the fact that the food system is not equipped to handle so much at-home baking. Most flour sales have traditionally been to commercial bakers or restaurants. The question is, why have Americans become such enthusiastic bakers?
Many different explanations have been suggested and terms such as “anxiety baking,” “stress baking,” and even “procrastibaking” are becoming the norm. Some psychiatry professionals express the view that baking is “mindful,” paying attention to yourself in the moment and can have an emotional impact similar to meditation or breathing exercises. Others suggest it gives people a sense of control and stabilization, that there’s a certain reliability to it. Some people are using cooking as a way to communicate and stay connected during this period, and others are finding great satisfaction and pleasure in cooking for neighbors and those that can’t manage to do this for themselves.
It turns out that this is a phenomenon not just happening in the United States. It’s occurring around the world. In countries like China and South Korea “quarantine cooking” is a popular way to describe the numerous online cooking lessons that people are actively following, sharing the results of their endeavors and communicating about success and ideas with respect to the recipes. In Europe, consumers are focused on “self-protection,” seeking everything from immunity-boosting products to comfort foods, but in general, looking for ways to protect their bodies and minds during this time. Interestingly, however, sales of flour and yeast are up, as in the U.S., with people experimenting with bread baking for the first time.
As with everything, multiple reasons have been posited for the surge in bread baking. In the U.S., an interesting phenomena has occurred around Sourdough Starters. There are Instagram Sourdough workshops, and Sourdough Starter discussions are being had by young and old alike. Again, a variety of explanations have been given for this. Because of demand, yeast was in short supply early on, and unlike other types of bread, sourdough doesn’t require dry yeast. Sourdough starter simply requires flour and water, and can be used to make pizza dough, pretzels, and pancakes. Sourdough also is considered to be healthier than other types of bread because the sourdough starter unlocks the nutrients in wheat. It breaks down the phytic acid naturally found in wheat, allowing us to absorb more of wheat’s vitamins and minerals.
“It has this sort of San Francisco-West Coast feel where sourdough is so popular out there and it’s made popular because of the bakeries that specialize in sourdough,” said Alexander Lee, a Stamford resident. “I think the most important thing about it is that the internet in quarantine has allowed me to watch people doing this and to read about people doing this. Information was so accessible that I could do something I didn’t know how to before and I had the time to do it. Sourdough takes a couple weeks to get really right and dialed in, and then you have to start baking.”
The King Arthur Flour Company, American supplier of flour, has a trending Sourdough page on their website. The company has tutorials for making the perfect Sourdough Starter with exact ratios, a glossary of various baking terms, recommendations for what tools to use, and FAQs.
Lee shared, “I just redid my [Sourdough] Starter a couple of days ago to practice with all of the improvements I’ve learned… this was a fairly easy accessible entry point to something that had a really cool reward to something that everyone loves which is bread and everyone loves bread.”
If you want to try a five-star recipe using sourdough starter, here’s one you might enjoy.
Sourdough Pancake or Waffle Batter (courtesy of The New York Times Cooking)
This recipe uses sourdough starter as the base of a pancake or waffle batter that ferments overnight to create a flavorful breakfast.
Serves: 4
Time: 15 mins, plus overnight rest
For the overnight sponge, or base:
1 cup/240 grams sourdough starter “unfed”
1 cup/224 grams buttermilk
1 cup/120 grams all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon/13 grams light brown sugar
For the batter:
1 large egg
¼ cup melted unsalted butter
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
½ teaspoon/3 grams kosher salt
1 teaspoon/6 grams baking soda
Step 1: Put the sourdough starter in a large bowl and add the buttermilk, flour and sugar, then stir to combine. Cover the bowl and allow it to rest overnight at room temperature.
Step 2: When you are ready to cook, whisk the egg, melted butter or oil and the vanilla extract together in a small bowl, then add the rested sponge. Add the salt and the baking soda to the batter and mix to combine.
Step 3: Pour some of the batter onto a preheated greased waffle iron and cook until the waffle is brown and crisp, then repeat. Or use a small ladle to create pancakes on a preheated oiled pan or griddle, flipping them when they are well browned on the bottom. Serve immediately.
If you are interested in trying a new dessert dish while taking advantage of the fruit that’s in season, try this recipe.
Authentic British Apple Crumble Recipe (courtesy of Tea & Sympathy, NYC)
This is probably the most commonly eaten pudding in England because it’s inexpensive, easy, and quick to put together. You can add a few blackberries, and instead of apples you can use pitted, apricots, plums or peaches.
Serves 4-6
For the filling:
1 ½ lbs granny smith apples
2 tablespoons sugar
¼ teaspoon cinnamon
1/3 cup water
For the crumble topping:
½ cup plus 1 tablespoon sugar
¾ cup all-purpose flour
¼ cup plus 1 tablespoon butter
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F
For filling, combine apples, sugar and spice in an 8×8 inch square or round buttered baking dish. Add the water
For the topping, mix the sugar and flour and rub in the butter until it resembles bread crumbs.
Cover the apples evenly with the crumble mixture. Bake, uncovered, for 1-1/2 hours until the topping is golden brown.
It’s delicious when served warm with ice cream, although the British tend to eat crumble with warm custard or heavy cream.
