snacks
It turns out that degree in 17th century Dutch art comes in handy once in a while. But more importantly, the www.laurieellen.com holiday shop is open! Get your treats now!
Food styling: Laurie Ellen Pellicano
Photo: Jason Schreiber
One of the great ironies of pandemic baking is that specialty flours seem to be easier to find than ever, which is great for me because there’s almost nothing I don’t want to mix with buckwheat and spelt. Here their nutty flavors provide the perfect bass note to balance out the sweetness of the pears and chocolate. This is the epitome of a snaking cake: sturdy enough to eat out of hand and needing no accompaniment.
| 86 grams | unsalted butter, plus additional for greasing pan |
| 100 grams | all-purpose flour |
| 50 grams | buckwheat flour |
| 50 grams | whole spelt flour |
| ½ teaspoon | coarse salt |
| ½ teaspoon | baking powder |
| ¼ teaspoon | baking soda |
| 150 grams | granulated sugar |
| 2 | large eggs |
| 50 grams | pure maple syrup |
| 75 grams | whole milk plain yogurt |
| 2 teaspoons | pure vanilla extract |
| 2 | firm ripe pears, peeled, cored, and chopped into ½-inch pieces |
| 150 grams | chopped chocolate (bittersweet, milk, or a mix) |
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit with a rack in the center of the oven. Brush a 2-quart baking dish with butter.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the all-purpose flour, buckwheat flour, spelt flour, salt, baking powder, and baking soda, and set aside.
In a small saucepan, melt the butter over medium-high heat. Continue cooking, stirring frequently, until the butter is brown and fragrant, about 5 minutes. Transfer to a heatproof bowl, making sure to scrape all the brown bits from the pan. Add the sugar to the browned butter and whisk to combine, then set aside for a few minutes until the mixture is warm but not hot. Vigorously whisk in the eggs one at a time, then continue whisking until the mixture is the texture of a loose aioli. Whisk in the maple syrup, yogurt, and vanilla.
Whisk in the dry ingredients until just combined, then fold in the pears and chocolate. Scrape the batter into the pan and smooth the top.
Bake the cake until golden brown, the center springs back to the touch, and a cake tester comes out clean, about 30 minutes.
Transfer the baking dish to a wire rack to cool. Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to two days.
When it comes to making videos, stop-motion animation has long been my favorite of project to work on. I grew up in a Monty Python family, and I started making my own short films inspired by Terry Gilliam's work as soon as I had access to a video camera. With so much focus on stop motion animation in the online video world these days, it's been greatly satisfying to be able to make this hobby of mine a part of my career as a food stylist. Here's one of my favorite projects so far, a lush, detailed advertorial video for FeedFeed + Figgy Pops.
