Tag: citrus

Remembering That Scent Evokes Memory…

On November 26, 2021

The taste of poetry borne of its own fragrance,

a line of citrus unfurls sweetly over the tongue through the senses

connecting the intoxicating language of place and time

Scent, not taste, evokes memory. What memory do you have that’s attached to the scent of a particular food? The earthy, spiciness of baked pies at your grandparents’ house? The intoxicating scent of freshly baked bread in your own kitchen? The shared experience of rich, sugary cookies you bake with friends at an exchange?

The pleasure of French press coffee has taken on new meaning for me as I have placed it in my diet exclusively on the weekend. On Sat morning, the anticipation of dark roast sets the stage for the scent that’s activated while the beans are grinding and the coffee is steeping, then adds to the pleasure of sipping it. Scent goes directly to the brain’s smell center, known as the olfactory bulb, triggering detailed memories of time and place.

Remembering that scent evokes memory, the way to seed a permanent association to you with friends and business associates is through a gift that etches you indelibly in your recipients’ minds.

Our guests tell us that one of the most notable pleasures of Essential Douglas Fir Shortbread™ is how the scents of fir and lemon linger in the nose and on the palate. Another striking feature is the shortbread’s tender, luscious texture.

Wouldn’t you love these qualities be those that attach you to your relationships with the people you care most about?

The Dec order window for Essential Douglas Fir Shortbread™ and both varieties of Essential Panettone™ opens this weekend and runs through Sat, 4-Dec. Second-day shipping for both products will be no later than the 13^th – 15^th of Dec – well in advance of Christmas. If you live in Oregon and prefer to forego the delivery charge, please note that you may pick your order up. Simply email me directly with your order details, and I’ll bill you from Square’s secure website.

Know that we do have a sense of humor at Essential Confection. If you’d like a break from the planning and stressing and cooking, have a look at our blooper reel here. The third time was not quite the charm. I consider the error a sign of the time. The finished video with our new branding is here.

May the simple pleasures of appreciation and gratitude be yours this season – however you celebrate.

www.EssentialConfection.com

#EssentialConfection #EssentialDouglasFirShortbread #EssentialPanettone

The Single Best Resource for Flavor Pairings

By lindanaylor

On October 10, 2020

In Panettone

Creating layers of flavor in any confection product, dessert or savory dish results from the practice of paying attention to affinity flavors. Affinity flavors are flavor relationships that are the epitome of flavor pairing.

The single best resource for understanding flavor pairing is The Flavor Bible. The book is used extensively by professional chefs, pastry chefs and avid home cooks to build a cook’s confidence in flavor relationships – not only on recipes. The authors, Karen Page and Andrew Dornenburg, also published What to Drink with What You Eat and The Vegetarian Flavor Bible.

Interestingly, the category of citrus has the unusual effect of being, not only an affinity for myriad other ingredients – many types of cheese, berries, fish and shellfish, greens and salad – it actually enhances flavors in its own category.

Lemons have the versatility to be a dominant flavor or they can contribute subtle background notes. Eureka lemons, very high acid and piquant, have, perhaps the greatest versatility. The Meyer lemon, actually a lemon hybrid, has far less acid, a very thin skin, luscious lemony-tangerine flavor and lovely perfume. Because its flavor is so delicate, the Meyer lemon is not well suited to supporting background flavor. Meyer lemons would never be recommended for canning as they contribute insufficient acid.

Both orange and lemon zest support the flavor of the finest quality European candied orange peel in Essential Panettone. Citrus is the perfume that wafts magically through the air when Essential Panettone is unwrapped and sliced.

The Essential Panettone order window – 3 weeks only – opens on 23-Oct.

Please join us.

www.EssentialConfection.com

#essentialconfection

The Story-Telling of My Youth

By lindanaylor

On October 6, 2020

In Panettone

Over millennia story telling has become a hard-wired feature of our consciousness. As a child, the master story tellers of Disney educated me on ideas and concepts beyond my young worldview. Each visual story elevated my understanding of what life was like and how I could imagine my future.

Features of the panettone origin story in Milan, Italy appeal to the scientific aspect of my brain as it relates to product development. Maximizing textural development by pushing sourdough starter to its limits lures me suggestively into the personal challenge of accomplishing it.

Essential Panettone has no commercial yeast. Its ethereal texture arises exclusively from the simplest combination of flour, water, the wild yeasts present in the atmosphere and the good bacteria that is inherent to us all.

The simplicity of those early stories still has great appeal for me, though the vehicle for my communicating them has taken a new turn toward the visual medium of video.

This is one small piece of the story of the finest quality panettone: Essential Panettone Artisan Milanese, and this season’s debut, Essential Panettone Northwest – each in a half-kilo size.

Italian Christmas cake on wooden table. Homemade Panettone

The Essential Panettone order window – 3 weeks only – opens on 23-Oct.

Please join us.

www.EssentialConfection.com

#essentialconfection