A baker's delight: A lesson at King Arthur Flour

NORWICH, VT. – For a bread baker, Irish or not, there may be no better place to be with St. Patrick's Day approaching than the King Arthur Flour Baking Education Center, in the heart of the Green Mountains, and a class on Irish bread.

I'd always been curious about how a famous flour company — the Temple of Gluten — came to be located in northern New England, far from any wheat fields.

Despite its fame — and because billboards are banned along Vermont highways — the King Arthur headquarters is a not-easily-spotted cluster of contemporary, low-rise buildings, a few miles north of White River Junction, Vt. The floury campus includes a large gift shop, a superb cafeteria-style restaurant, a spectator-friendly commercial kitchen and the main attraction, the Baking Education Center.

Evening sun streamed through windows into the classroom — part kitchen, part lecture hall — as 12 of us sidled into our places. The class included two women from Texas, two from Connecticut — one whose mother had grown up in County Tyrone, in Northern Ireland — and one other man, with his daughter, who'd just returned from living in Ireland. We were to make a brown bread, a soda bread and a clever little treat called Oatmeal Brûlée, all in three hours.

I probably doubled my baking knowledge in the short time with instructor Karen Ogrinc, a former speech pathologist turned professional baker. I learned how to measure flour accurately ("Fluff! Sprinkle! Sweep!"), how to keep track of what dry ingredients I'd included (spoon them down the side of the bowl on top of the flour before mixing, so you can see them), and how to mix soda bread dough so it's not too dry and crumbly (scrape/pull it up the side of the bowl, letting the excess flour fall to the bottom).

I also learned that I should probably toss out that baking powder I bought when I moved into my house 17 years ago. (Six months is about the limit.)

The walk-in ovens, which Ogrinc called the "Hansel and Gretel ovens," were fully heated as class began. That was because the first bread we made, a brown bread made almost entirely with whole wheat flour, was actually a batter bread that required no kneading. It rose and was ready to bake in about an hour.

But ours, sweetened with molasses, emerged with a smooth, firm crust and a silky texture. Cooled, this bread was more an Irish alto than tenor, and fabulous with fruit preserves and cheeses. At home, it elevated my peanut butter and made melt-in-the-mouth toast.

Next we tackled bannock, which I took for soda bread — bright with buttermilk and sweet with currants. The next day, I found it spectacular with mascarpone.

The showstopper, though, was the Oatmeal Brûlée. Working in pairs in class, we steamed steel-cut oats, spooned them into ramekins, added raisins, dried cherries, candied ginger and nuts, topped that with more oatmeal, and finally with coarse demerara sugar.

Ogrinc then produced a large blowtorch, which we each used to blast our items until the sugar topping bubbled and browned. Some students achieved a nice, golden crust, which eluded me. I also found that by the next morning the moisture in the oatmeal had mostly liquefied the sugar topping. But this little gift-like menu item — peasant food dressed with panache — begs to be perfected. It would be great as a dessert, or as part of a breakfast before a bike ride.

These recipes were developed for the King Arthur Baking Education Center classes and may differ from recipes the company provides online. They are reprinted here with permission of the King Arthur Baking Education Center.

Makes 1 loaf (12 slices).

Note: From King Arthur Flour Baking Education Center.

• 3 1/2 c. (14 oz.) whole wheat flour

• 1/4 c. (1 oz.) unbleached all-purpose flour

• 2 tsp. salt

• 2 tbsp. molasses or black treacle

• 1 1/2 c. (12 oz.) warm water

Directions

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. In bowl of stand mixer, stir together the flours, salt and yeast, using the paddle attachment. Stir in the molasses and water. Blend to make a thick, sticky dough. Turn the mixer up to medium and beat for about 2 minutes. (The mixing can also be done by hand, with a very heavy spoon.)

Turn batter into a well-greased 8½- by 4½-inch loaf pan. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise for 30 to 45 minutes, or until the dough nearly reaches the top of the loaf pan.

Turn out onto a rack and let cool completely before slicing.

Nutrition information per slice:

Calories133Fat1 gSodium395 mg

Carbohydrates29 gSaturated fat0 gCalcium20 mg

Protein5 gCholesterol0 mgDietary fiber4 g

Makes 1 loaf (10 slices).

Note: From King Arthur Flour Baking Education Center.

• 1/2 c. dried currants

• 2 c. (8 oz.) unbleached all-purpose flour

• 2 tbsp. sugar

• 1/2 tsp. baking soda

• 1/2 tsp. salt

• 2 tbsp. unsalted butter, chilled and cut into dice-size pieces

• About 1 c. (8 oz.) buttermilk

Directions

Soak currants in water for 30 minutes; drain them.

Combine the flour, sugar, soda, baking powder and salt in a large bowl.

Cut the butter into the flour mixture until it is the size of small peas. Stir in the currants.

Add the buttermilk slowly until dough is soft and cohesive; you may not need it all.

Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead gently with floured hands until smooth.

Nutrition information per slice:

Calories143Fat3 gSodium250 mg

Carbohydrates26 gSaturated fat2 gCalcium52 mg

Protein3 gCholesterol7 mgDietary fiber1 g

Diabetic exchanges per serving: ½ fruit, 1 bread/starch, ½ fat.

Note: From King Arthur Flour Baking Education Center.

• 1/2 c. (3 oz.) Irish oatmeal (steel-cut oats)

• 1 1/2 c. (12 oz.) plus 2 tbsp. water

• 1/8 tsp. salt

• 2 tbsp. dried apricots, chopped

• 2 tbsp. dried figs, raisins, prunes or dates, chopped

• 1 tbsp. pecans, toasted and chopped

• Demerara sugar

• Maple syrup, if desired

Directions

The day of serving: Drain the soaked oats and place in a saucepan with 1½ cups plus 2 tablespoons water. Simmer over medium heat until tender, but not mushy, about 15 minutes. Stir in the salt.

Divide half the oatmeal between 2 shallow ramekins and layer with the fruit and nuts. Cover with the remaining oatmeal.

Sprinkle the demerara sugar over each and cook the topping with a blowtorch to caramelize.

Serve immediately with maple syrup if desired.

Nutrition information per serving:

Carbohydrates29 gSaturated fat0 gCalcium2 mg

Protein6 gCholesterol0 mgDietary fiber4 g

Diabetic exchanges per serving: 1 fruit, 1 bread/starch, ½ fat.