Heather Baird - Sea Salt Sweet: The Art of Using Salts for the Ultimate Dessert Experience

2015 by Heather Baird

Photography 2015 by Heather Baird

Published by Running Press,

A Member of the Perseus Books Group

All rights reserved under the Pan-American and International Copyright Conventions

Printed in China

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Library of Congress Control Number: 2015942586

E-book ISBN 978-0-7624-5811-0

9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

Digit on the right indicates the number of this printing

Cover and interior design by Susan Van Horn

Edited by Jennifer Kasius

Typography: Archer, Beton, Isabella Script, Museo, Neutra Text and Nymphette

Running Press Book Publishers

2300 Chestnut Street

Philadelphia, PA 19103-4371

Visit us on the web!

www.offthemenublog.com

www.sprinklebakes.com

I dedicate this book to my grandmother Rosa Finley.

Your spirit is with me always.

contents

THANKS TO MY SUPPORTIVE AGENT Lindsay Edgecombe. Im so glad to know you. To Kristen Wiewora, thank you for being the champion of this book. Thank you to Jennifer Kasius for your marvelous editing. To Frances Soo Ping Chow and Susan Van Horn, thank you for your masterful design work. Personal thanks to the spirit of Rosa Finley, who is likely the chief biscuit maker of Heaven, and to the spirit of Clark Crutchfield for peanuts and Coca-Cola.

To my husband, Mark, who is thoughtful with his criticism, and makes the best rocket fuel coffee this side of the Mason-Dixon, thank you with the utmost sincerity. My mother, Katie Watts, and her right-hand man, Larry Watts, yes absolutely without question, they are the most dependable people I know. Words could never express enough gratitude to the two of you.

Thanks to Megan Charette for sharing her many talents, including recipe testing and metric conversions. Cheers to Ann Nelson with Merlot and doughnuts. Thank you, Christen Blackman Ferrer, for always giving me the center piece of cake. Heartfelt thanks to Heather Radecky for her unwavering support and especially her fine recipe testing and opinions. Sincere thanks to Heather Alexander for words over brunch and encouragement and advice. Thanks to the wonderful artist and baker Michael Willen for allowing me to peer through his eyes at my own recipes.

From the bottom of my heart I thank the people who have generously allowed me to explore new ideas in baking with new audiences: Meghan McAndrews at Betty Crocker, editors Aleksa Brown and Alison Feldman of The Etsy Blog, Kenzie Kramer and Sarah Martens at Better Homes and Gardens.

Thanks to the food bloggers who inspire me with their incredible talents, especially Darla Wireman, Sue Sparks, Tina Chambers, Megan DeKok, Kristan Roland, Shelly Jaronsky, the two Pauls behind Sweet Paul Magazine: Paul Lowe and Paul Vitale, Rosie Alyea, and Shauna Sever.

Never last, my deepest gratitude to all the readers and supporters of Sprinkle Bakes.

I KNOW JUST WHERE IT ALL STARTED, the love I have for salty and sweet together. It began with a special snack that my dad and I shared when I was a kid. Id often ride to the gas station with him in his old beat-up work truck. While he filled the tank, Id go inside the mini mart with a few dollars hed given me to get our favorite snack. This was a couple of colas and two sleeves of salted peanuts. Back then twist-off bottle caps were a rarity, so the cashier would pop the tops with the bottle opener mounted behind the counter.

Once back in the truck, our ritual began. A couple of swigs were taken to make room for the peanuts, and then the entire two-ounce bag was funneled into the mouth of the bottle. And finally, the all-important last stepan extra tap-tap-tap on the end of the upright-turned bag to make sure all the salt made it into the soda. There was something about the saltiness of the peanuts that made the cola taste even sweeter. There wed sit in comfortable silence, sipping cola and crunching peanuts, our view through the dirty windshield somehow improved.

Im pretty sure the peanut and cola combo is only known south of the Mason-Dixon Line, but its documented in an old country song sang by Barbara Mandrell that describes her not wanting to seem like too much of a hayseed and slipping peanuts into her Coke when no one was looking. As a kid I never knew that I should be ashamed of the love I had for my favorite salty-sweet snack; I just knew that it tasted good. It seems that we were on to something back then. Salty sweets are embraced in many cultures and now theyre on menus in trendy restaurants, too.

To me, salty and sweet together is the ultimate flavor combination. If youve ever dipped pretzels in melted chocolate or sprinkled salt over a juicy melon slice, then I suspect you feel the same way. The magic is simple. Salt stimulates the appetite, while sweetness satiates it. When the two come together in just the right amounts and with the right other ingredients, they stimulate a multitude of taste buds all at onceand thats seriously exciting news for your palate! When salt is used judiciously on dessert, it is alchemized into something deliciously complex and rewarding. Candy caramels with fleur de sel are infinitely more satisfying than something thats just sweet. Dont get me wrongI love sweet (sweet is my life!) but my favorite desserts always have a counter or foil against one-dimensional sweet.

Today, as an avid baker with a vocal community of bakers on my blog Sprinkle Bakes, I can say that salty sweets garner some of the most comments and enthusiasm among the desserts I post. My favorite pastime is thinking up new ways to incorporate sea salt into dessert, and theres a wealth of inspiration and flavors to draw from. Chocolate and caramel are perhaps the most obvious and well-loved flavors to marry with salt (and for good reason). Munchable salty kettle-cooked chips and pretzels can be added to cookie dough and candies to marvelous effect. Salt tempers bitterness in tart berries and makes the sweetness in citrus fruits shine. And perhaps less obvious are such ingredients as cheese, olives, and red wine, which all contain delicious savory notes known as umami and are wonderful components to use in the salty-sweet kitchen (be sure to read more about umami on ). The possibilities are endless, really.