LaBelle's General Store: knives

Showing posts with label knives. Show all posts

Jan 27, 2015

Tips to Make Chocolate Cake Dog-Gone Delicious

I love to slather Ganache on top of Bundt cake, especially, Chocolate Bundt Cake. And I also love creamy filling. That's what lead to this creation, our Ganache Topped Devil Dog Cake. The addition of ganache makes it dog-gone delicious!

Ganache chocolate is the perfect accompaniment to Bundt Cake, especially Devil Dog Bundt Cake

Watch as we turn an every day Chocolate Bundt Cake into a Devil Dog Bundt Cake and kick it up a notch with the addition of the most delicious Ganache Chocolate:

Get the recipe for LaBelle's Chocolate Ganache we used on our Devil Dog cake HERE.

Cake Baking Essentials

It's always important to have the right tools for the job, and for making a Bundt Cake, it couldn't get more essential than using the right pan. Nordic Ware's Platinum Bundt Pan is top rated and as our video shows, it makes the perfect, most amazing Bundt Cake.

And where would I be without this Wire Cooling Rack? So versatile, we use it for everything from baking chicken to cooling off cakes and cookies. Since we usually have a lot going on in our kitchen, we have about 4 of these excellent racks.

Two items this baker can't do without: My Wire Cooling Rack and NordicWare Bundt Pan

This cake looks great, doesn't it? But it could be better. Frosting it would take away from the beautiful edge created by the NordicWare Bundt Pan. The only worthwhile alternative it to slice it in half and spread across some incredible cream filling. Buttercream is always a nice choice.

I love to slice my Bundt Cakes in half and then add a layer of buttercream filling | LaBelle's General Store

Another great tool to have in your arsenal is a long serrated knife and it was absolutely necessary in order to cut this Bundt in half in order to 'devil dog' it. This 12" Slicer from Dexter is made in Massachusetts and most often used to slice bread and roasts, but it's also perfect for slicing cake.

American Made Dexter Slicing Knife | Perfect for slicing bread and roasts as well as cake! | LaBelle's General Store

And never skimp on chocolate chips! Love those little devils.

It's important to use your favorite chocolate for your Ganache. And spread it on thick!

Ooh la la! Make some Ganache! | LaBelle's Ganache Recipe

Who wants boring cake? Step it up with Devil Dog Cake topped with Ganache

Stay tuned for our Devil Dog Cake recipe!

Jan 27, 2014

The Most Clever Cutting Board by Chef'n

You might be wondering what's the best cutting board for your kitchen. If you've been shopping, you know that cutting boards are a dime a dozen, but if you want one that stands out among the rest, the Chef'n Prep Station Cutting Board has some pretty unique features. Not only do we love using the Chef'n Prep Station as our main cutting board, but we also get a lot of use out of its clever built in collapsible colander and food transfer tray.

What most impresses us is the bamboo cutting board which is a solid surface to chop on, yet it's kind to our knives. Bamboo is also naturally anti-microbial which is a plus. The size of the cutting board is just right for normal, everyday meal prep work and comes in at 11" x 15".

We love to use the collapsible colander to rinse off veggies and fruit, and while that's draining over the sink edge, we can be working on the surface of the cutting board. The food tray is also a major bonus. Who isn't looking for an easy way to transfer your 'choppings' without making lots of 'droppings'? It's so awesome to be able to push your cuttings right into the food tray and the easily transfer to your pan or bowl, without losing a single dice!

Everything just slides back together for convenient storage. When space is at a premium, it's pretty handy to have three tools packed tidily away until the next food preparation time rolls around. We just slide ours next to the coffee maker until we're ready to use it again.

Jan 7, 2014

Culinary School Supplies Shopping List

I recently met an enthusiastic young man who's headed off on a culinary adventure. He'll be studying classic French cooking techniques and international cuisine. Where's he going? He's enrolled in the spring semester at BU's Culinary Arts Certificate Program and he came into the store with his Culinary School Supply Shopping List. If you didn't know, Boston University has an innovative, intensive culinary course of study that was co-founded by Julia Child and Jacques Pepin. Along side Jacques Pepin, some notable instructors include Mary Ann Esposito, Jody Adams, and Ana Sortun. It looks like a fabulous, state of the art program and if you're interested in cooking and not looking to spend several years in college and many thousands of dollars, this certificate program is just a semester long.

You may be wondering what was on the young man's school supply list. Here are the Culinary School Essentials required by BU's Culinary Arts Program:

Culinary School Supplies

Not only is this a great list for someone just starting out in the culinary field, but it's also a solid list of must-have kitchen tools for any home cook or someone outfitting their kitchen for the first time.