A few weeks ago I did a blogger beat interview with Emily Leaman at the Washingtonian. Being asked to do the interview was really exciting (except for having to get my photo taken). One of the interview questions was to describe a major cooking disaster. Only one of them? There are so many, but one that stands out--the one that really shakes my confidence in the kitchen--is my crap attempt at baking bread. In retrospect, I can see that I had put too much effort into thinking about how good my bread would taste, and not enough effort into paying attention to the feel of the dough, how much flour I was feeding it, and how long it was sitting on my counter, growing like a fat, bubbly belly. It tasted like paper and felt like a rock. A big, heavy rock. I was heart broken. Granted, I only tried once, but, boy, did that disappointment stick around making me feel bad. I know, I know, baking bread takes practice. Well...I think it takes a baking scale too. I need to be able to measure the flour exactly. None of this fluff and scoop. So, before I start attempting to make bread again, I decided to buy a baking scale.
For help selecting the perfect scale, I turned to my favorite bow-tie wearing friend, who doesn't give a damn if you don't like his editorials, because he knows you will continue to look to him for advice on the best kitchen gadgets. Yes, Christopher Kimball, of Cook's Illustrated, recommended this scale. So far, so good: I like the design, the blue light, and the fact that it's slim. Let's see if it helps me master the art (and science) of baking bread.
