Useful Ratios

In spite of last week's kinda dud class, Chef Sub was a funny guy, with Carla Hall-like sensibilities—"That's just love in a bowl," he said of my 32 ounces of whipped-to-shiny-stiff-peaks egg whites—and here's a useful, simple, tasty formula I picked up from him:

For graham cracker crust: mix 1 pound crushed graham crackers, 8 ounces sugar, 8 ounces melted butter. Press in pan to form a 1/4 inch-thick crust, and bake for 10 minutes at 350 degrees. Make sure to cool it then, in preparation for pouring in cheesecake filling (not spooning in, like mine needed to be, due to over-whipping of full batter to compensate for initial under-creaming of cream cheese). This makes more than 1, and I'm supposed to be able to add up the ingredient weights and then figure how many crusts that makes. Extra credit reward of one pie crust (plus cheesecake filling) made especially by me for those who figure that out. (Where's my math student, seamripper2, when I need her?)

And here's one for custards (from the week before): 6 whole eggs, 6 egg yolks, 1 quart cream. Apparently, that's all you need to know to make any kind of sweet or savory custard, though I forget why and how. Must take better notes, which I did at the beginning of the course. Luckily, I've got my pita bread-making process well recorded.

Love in a bowl: one part J., one part whoever-you-are, results unknown, though I have high hopes.

Shout out to J.J. and her friend from the range (though I'm talking to myself here): just follow the recipe, wait with the patience of a baker, and it will come. Or better yet, make up your own recipe, write down all the ingredients (not kidding), and see what you culinary alchemy you can conjure up!