Cream is made by skimming the layer of butterfat from the top of milk before the milk is homogenized. Varieties of cream are defined by how much milk fat they contain. Creams with less fat are fine for coffee, but they can’t be heated or whipped. Cultured creams (sour cream, crème fraîche) break down when heated, and are best drizzled or dolloped after you've finished cooking a dish.
The spectrum of cream from lowest to highest butterfat content:
Half & Half: A mix of half whole milk and half cream. No whipping. No heating.
Light Cream: AKA Table Cream - Usually contains 20% milk fat. No whipping. No heating.
Crème Fraîche, Mexican Crema and Sour Cream: The cultured creams. No whipping. No heating. Cultured creams have sour undertones that differ from the silky sweetness of creams that are not cultured.
Light Whipping Cream: Has more milk fat (30-36%) than light cream. Whips into soft peaks. Heats nicely, too.
Heavy Cream (aka, Heavy Whipping Cream): 36-40% milk fat. Can be whipped into stiff peaks. Heats to a silky, rich thickness.
Recipe: Pappardelle With Creminis, Cream And Sage (Cookthink)
Recipe: Cream Of Broccoli Soup (Cookthink)
Reference: What do I do with leftover heavy cream? (Cookthink)
Caster (or castor) sugar is superfine refined sugar. That makes it finer than granulated sugar but not as fine as confectiones sugar.
Caster sugar dissolves easily and so is used to give baked goods (especially meringues) a lighter texture.
If you don't have any or can't find caster sugar, you can pulse regular granulated sugar in a food processor to help break down the grains.
Recipe: Rhubarb Syllabub (Cook & Eat)
Recipe: Meringue Cookies (Cookthink)
Related Article: Meet the sugars
Once a prize kept under lock and key in wealthy households, sugar is now ubiquitous and comes in many forms. Most commercial sugar is made from cane or beet root. Here's a look at the most common types of sugar used in the kitchen.
Granulated white sugar: White sugar is highly refined and made from sugarcane or beets. This all-purpose refined white sugar has small but fairly coarse crystals and is used to sprinkle on food, sweeten beverages, or add to dishes during cooking. Golden granulated sugar is a brown sugar made from sugar cane molasses that is similar but has a light brown color.
Castor (caster) or superfine sugar: This refined white sugar has fine crystals that dissolve more quickly than regular granulated sugar, making it a good choice for baking meringues. Golden castor sugar is made from unrefined cane sugar.
Brown sugar: Brown sugar is nothing more than white sugar that has been mixed with molasses to color it and give it a moist texture. Light brown sugar has less molasses than dark brown sugar. Brown sugar should not be confused with raw sugar, which has a similar color and taste but is actually the residue from processed sugarcane.
Turbinado sugar: A sugar cane extract that is made by steaming unrefined raw sugar. It has large crystals and a slight molasses flavor. It's a shade paler than brown sugar and can be substituted for brown sugar in recipes. We like to use turbinado sugar for sprinkling on top of muffins, cookies and scones. It holds its texture well and, when cooked, has a nice sweet crunch.
Demerara Sugar: True Demerara sugar is raw or partly refined sugar with large crystals, but some impostors are nothing more than white sugar stained with molasses.
Muscovado Sugar: This raw cane sugar comes in light and dark varieties and is used to make cakes and desserts.
Powdered, icing or confectioner's sugar: This sugar is made by reducing granulated sugar to a powder and mixing it with starch to prevent it from lumping up. It's used to decorate cakes and can also be used in making sweet dishes and baked goods.
what you should know
Unsalted butter is always equally unsalted, but salted butter is never quite salted the same.
The NaCl uncertainty is the main reason we prefer to use unsalted butter when we cook. Often that salt can subdue the sweet flavor of butter. (Unsalted butter is often labeled as "sweet butter.")
salt conversion In most recipes, the little extra salt will go unnoticed. Still, as a general rule if a recipe calls for unsalted butter but all you've got is salted butter, cut 1/4 teaspoon of salt per stick of butter (1/2 cup) you use.
stick it up Salt acts as a preservative for butter. Tightly wrapped in foil and stored in the fridge, salted butter can last for five months, while unsalted butter lasts about three before going stale. (Spot stale butter by slicing into the stick; the outside will be darker than the inside.) Then again, many people don't store butter in the fridge to begin with.
cooking with butter Sometimes, when you want a nuttier flavor, you'll want to let the butter's foam subside. But butter has a low smoke point, so be careful using it as your cooking fat. It'll burn easily. Clarified butter, or ghee, has a higher smoke point (and also makes a tasty dipping sauce for crab, lobster and anything else).
roux-dimentary Butter forms the foundation for countless classic sauces and thickeners, including béchamel, beurre manié and roux.
what you need
Have you ever wanted to make fresh butter at home? This traditional butter churn is based on the famous Dazey churn from the early 20th century.
You can also make a small batch of butter by putting cream in a jar and shaking it for a long, long time until you've shaken it solid.
The water-cooled crock owners we know swear by the constant supply of creamy, spreadable butter they keep on their tables.
Other butter lovers who shun the refrigerator prefer the classic rectangular butter dish.
what you do
Sage and butter are absolutely delicious together. How delicious? Try this rich and pillowy tortellini with sage brown butter and parmesan to find out.
Steamy Kitchen likes to top her slow butter- braised asparagus with parmesan and sea salt. With that savory finale, you definitely don't need salted butter.
Drizzling roasted sweet potatoes with cilantro-lime butter gives them a burst of tart richness.
Salted butter might interfere with the complex sugar-spice interaction in these orange-scented popovers with cinnamon-orange honey.
These better-for-you whole-grain flapjacks from hogwash are made with quinoa, millet and flaxseed. After using butter to grease the pan, you can afford to use a little extra on the cakes themselves.
Coconut & Lime's worked out one of the fastest and tastiest cinnamon bun recipes out there.
Brown sugar is nothing more than white sugar (which is highly refined and made from cane or beets) that has been mixed with molasses to color it and give it a more moist texture. Light brown sugar has less molasses than dark brown sugar.
Brown sugar should not be confused with raw sugar, that has a similar color and taste but is actually the residue from processed sugarcane.
Turbinado sugar (sometimes called turbinated sugar) is a sugar cane extract that is made by steaming unrefined raw sugar.
It has large crystals, a slight molasses flavor and is a shade paler than brown sugar, and can be substituted for brown sugar in recipes. Like brown sugar, Turbinado sugar holds more moisture than regular sugar, and can harden when exposed to air. Keep it in an airtight container.
Demerara sugar is a dry, coarse raw sugar originally produced in the Demerara region of Guyana (now most production is done in Mauritius, but the name has stuck).
True Demerara sugar is less refined than regular sugar, lending it a light molasses flavor and a brown color. It melts in coffee or tea, but its grains stay crunchy when mixed into a batter, making it best used as a topping for muffins, coffee cakes or crème brûlée. Resist the temptation to substitute it for regular sugar in baked goods.
Beware of so-called London Demerara sugar, which is refined sugar with molasses added to masquerade as the real thing.
what you should know
What makes brown sugar brown? Molasses. That's what.
While raw sugar (like demarara or turbinado) comes by its golden color naturally, brown sugar is refined white sugar tarted up with a bit of molasses. (Dark brown sugar has more molasses than light).
pour some sugar The water in molasses adds moisture to brown sugar that makes it ideal for baked goods, giving them a crumbly texture and a deeper flavor than ordinary white sugar does.
keep it tight Be sure to store your brown sugar in a tightly sealed container to keep it soft and pliant.
dirty sugar Domino sugar launched a smear campaign against brown sugar at the end of the 1800s, replete with nasty photographs of benign microbes living in brown sugar.
sticky fingers Sugar formed one leg of history's most notorious triangle trade route, one of many taboo subjects that might have inspired Sir Lips when he sat down and wrote, "Gold coast slave ship bound for cotton fields..."
what you need
Try this classic for some good, old-school ideas about how to use brown sugar.
Use these stainless steel measuring cups to dole out the sweet stuff.
Along with a song, brown sugar has inspired a movie and an album.
Winter's coming and with it hard times: stock up on this steel-cut oatmeal. Top it with brown sugar and raisins to make a wholesome and warming breakfast.
what you do
For a sweet but stimulating breakfast, try these carrot and ginger muffins.
Scandinavian gravlax gets an American twist with a brown sugar cure.
Dark brown sugar and red wine vinegar give this brisket its rich, balanced flavor.
Spicy squash would make a fine addition to the Thanksgiving (or any) table.
We always look forward to making these crispy spice cookies around the holidays.
Simultaneously rustic and elegant, black plum tarte tatin makes the most of brown sugar's caramel quality.
Featured: A deliciously autumnal recipe for Apple Almond Upside-Down Cake from Wine Imbiber won this week's Root Source Challenge. Congratulations, Rich and Leah!
Find more brown sugar recipes at Cookthink.com. And if you haven't yet signed up for a free account at Cookthink, do it now!
what you should know
Made from the pressed fruit of autumnal apples like Baldwin and McIntosh, cider is just juice that hasn't been filtered.
While apple juice tastes pure and sweet, apple cider is murkier and more mysterious, with a tart, tangy thirst-quenching quality.
drink up Supermarket cider is flash-pasteurized or treated to prolong its shelf life, but traditional sweet apple cider is one of fall's ephemeral gifts; keep it too long and its natural yeasts will turn the sugar to alcohol -- resulting in the slightly carbonated drink known as hard cider.
mull it over Mulled cider = cider + spices + heat (and if you're lucky, a splash of rum or brandy). The chemistry of this warming beverage, one writer mused, is reminiscent of the Obama-Biden ticket.
an apple a day In colonial times, hard cider was the beverage of choice since water often carried bacteria and diseases. It was almost definitely served at the original Thanksgiving, and John Adams drank a pitcher every morning before breakfast.
cider house gang Other famous cider lovers include Robert Frost, Annie Proulx -- and Gwyneth Paltrow?
what you need
Before The Shipping News, Annie Proulx wrote a book about cider.
If you're considering going into the apple business, you'll want to invest in an apple crusher and cider press.
Mulling spices would make a lovely gift for your favorite cider lover.
Looking for some truth about Johnny Appleseed? Michael Pollan's book The Botany of Desire has a whole section on the history the apple.
what you do
Dense and spicy, apple cider doughnuts are best dunked in coffee while still hot.
Apple cider adds tang to this creamy, fall risotto.
Roasted pork and fall fruit basted with apple cider will warm you through and through.
Making ribs is a cooking rite of passage. Try these easy ribs with a lip-smacking cider-bourbon mop sauce.
We can't get enough of this apple cider caramel cake.
An intoxicating lamb stew made with cider lets those tasty fall root vegetables shine.
Featured: This week's Root Source Challenge winner sent us a wistful recipe for pleasingly tart cider jelly. Congratulations to Culinaria Eugenius!
Find more apple cider recipes at Cookthink.com. And if you haven't yet signed up for a free account at Cookthink, do it now!
Which apples are best for cooking and baking?
Which apples are best for cooking and baking?
There are no firm rules about which of the world's thousands of apple varieties are most appropriate for cooked sweet and savory dishes.
But for baking, Honeycrisp, Cortland, Golden Delicious, Gala, Newtown Pippin and Granny Smith work well because they hold their shape in pies and tarts without turning to applesauce. Some people favor naturally sweeter apples like Golden Delicious and Gala when baking desserts; Newton Pippin and Granny Smith add a tart note to savory dishes like stuffings.
To make apple sauce, Gravenstein apples have an ideal sweet-tart balance; Jonathan apples have a tender texture and moderately tart flavor.
Both baking soda and baking powder are leaveners, which means they make cakes and muffins rise. So what's the difference?
Baking soda is pure sodium bicarbonate. Not only will baking soda fluff up your muffins, it can also put out a grease fire, clean your teeth and deodorize your carpet. When you cook with baking soda, you need to balance it out with an acid like lemon juice or buttermilk. Otherwise, your muffins may have a bitter, soapy flavor.
Baking powder, which usually comes in a can, is a combination of baking soda and a few other ingredients, most notably cream of tartar, a dry acid. Out of baking powder? Make your own by mixing one part baking soda with two parts cream of tartar.
