Read Online The Bake-Off by Beth Kendrick - Free Book Online Page B

with me. I know I’m right about this. No one knows how to pronounce szarlotka , and ‘Polish Apple Pie’ is a snore. We need to set ourselves apart from all the Caramel Walnut this and Coconut Meringue that.”
    â€œYou have a suggestion?”
    Amy leaned forward, her eyes dancing. “Party Girl Pie.”
    Linnie struggled to keep a straight face.
    â€œWhat?” Amy demanded.
    â€œParty Girl Pie sounds like something a sorority house would force pledges to eat during hell week.”
    â€œAre you going to come up with any ideas of your own, or are you just going to criticize?”
    â€œA catchy recipe name isn’t going to make any difference when we face the judging panel,” Linnie insisted. “What’s going to win this for us is chemistry, pure and simple.” She produced her notes from her back pocket and started pacing the perimeter of the kitchen. “I’ve spent the last two weeks reviewing the recipe, and I’ve come up with a few minor refinements that are going to give us a major edge. Like here, for instance: two and a half cups of flour, two-thirds of a cup of sugar—we should be measuring out the dry ingredients by weight, not by volume. Measuring cups are notoriously unreliable.”
    â€œBut we’re allowed to bring our own measuring cups, so let’s just bring Grammy’s. She’s made this hundreds of times, and it’s always delicious,” Amy said. “I say, if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. All we need is hard work and a little luck.”
    â€œYou’re missing my point. If we perfect the methodology, we won’t have to work that hard. And PS, I don’t believe in luck.”
    â€œDid you seriously just say we won’t have to work hard to win this?” Amy snorted.
    â€œGrunt work is for suckers.” Linnie ducked back into the foyer, dug through her carry-on bag, and returned to the kitchen with a digital food scale, an oven thermometer, and a food science textbook. “Okay, let’s go over the major factors that affect crust texture: sugar, which hinders gluten formation; acid, which breaks down existing gluten strands; fat proteins, which can promote gluten formation if not properly coated—”
    â€œHang on.” Amy called for a time-out. “Gluten’s like wheat, right?”
    â€œIt’s a tough, stringy strand of protein that originates in cereal grains, including wheat. Piecrusts need some gluten to hold the dough together, but too much gluten makes the finished product tough and chewy. So you have to be very aware of the protein content of the flour you’re using. Also, it’s important to give the dough time to chill after you mix it, because that allows the gluten to relax.”
    Amy’s expression was a mix of horror and amusement. “Is there going to be a test on this later?”
    â€œYeah, and we get a hundred thousand dollars if we pass.” Linnie flipped open her textbook. “Now, the eggs help bind everything together and contribute to the dough’s structural elasticity while discouraging water absorption.” She noticed that Amy’s eyes had started to take on a glazed, detached expression. “Hey! Stay with me here. We’re just getting started.”
    Amy rubbed her forehead. “Are you going to act like this for the entire trip?”
    â€œLike what?”
    â€œLike a neurotic, type-A control freak.”
    â€œOh.” Linnie considered this for a moment. “Yes.”
    â€œWell, I don’t want to spend all afternoon solving equations and watching PowerPoint presentations on the molecular properties of gluten. I just want to bake some damn pie.”
    â€œBut if you understand the scientific principles at work in the process—”
    â€œI don’t understand and I don’t want to. We’re not going to be able to control every aspect of the baking