B4
Loveland Herald
Life
March 17, 2010
Virginia Bakery offers coffeecake secrets It all started with an heirloom cookbook compiled by Children’s Hospital Cooperative way back in 1973. It was given to me by friend Joanie Woodward, now of blessed memory. She gave it to me last year, and there was a recipe in there for Virginia Bakery’s German coffeecake. I made it and included it in a column. I did have to work with the recipe as it needed tweaking and really wasn’t easy for the home cook to duplicate. I talked with the folks at Virginia Bakery, asking for help. Well lo and behold, the authentic recipe from yes, Virginia Bakery, is in this column today. Tom Thie, of Virginia Bakery, reworked it for the home cook. It’s just one of 50 fabulous Virginia Bakery recipes included in an original cookbook by Tom. Described as a “flavored cookbook,” meaning it will be a combination of bakery history, Thie family stories, and customer memories in addition to the recipes and photos of approximately 50 of Virginia Bakery’s favorite items. And the recipe for schnecken will be included! Now the cookbook will be available during the winter holiday season later this
Rita Heikenfeld Rita’s kitchen
year. I’ll let you know exactly w h e n , since I know I’m among the many fans who will want this Cincinnati treasure.
Virginia Bakery cinnamon coffeecake Yellow Dough Sponge
2 cups warm water 3 packs of instant dry yeast (such as Red Star) 3 cups all purpose flour Start yeast in warm water (105 to 110 degrees) for five minutes. Add flour, mix well. Cover bowl with a cloth and let rise until it doubles or the sponge starts to fall. Depending on the temperature, this could take one to two hours.
Add:
11⁄4 cup sugar 4 teaspoon salt 1 cup shortening (such as Crisco) 4 oz. salted butter (1 stick) softened to room temperature 1 ⁄2 cup egg yolks
1 cup cool milk* 1 cup cool water 9 (approximately) cups flour – preferably 3 cups winter flour** (pastry flour) and 6 cups all purpose flour (*The Virginia Bakery always used whole milk and Tom Thie prefers it. “We’re not making diet bakery goods. When you consider the amount of fat and eggs in the dough, changing the milk is not going to save many fat calories. On the other hand, if skim is all you have, use it. You can always compensate by adding a tad more butter.”) (**The winter flour helps to soften the dough and gives the yellow dough a better texture. Not essential, but nice to have. All purpose flour will produce perfectly fine results.) Mix all ingredients to form a soft dough. It should be quite sticky – soft, pliable and moist – but not batter-like. If the dough forms a tight ball, you’ve added too much flour. Add a little water. Starting the dough early in the day or a day ahead is best. Fresh yellow dough is difficult to work with. Tom recommends refrigerating the dough allowing it to stiffen. It takes a few hours for the dough to rise after being in the refrigerator overnight. The sponge method is not a quick way to make bakery goods, but the dough is easy to work with. For coffeecakes, such as the crumb cinnamon, divide dough into nine pieces. Each piece will weigh approximately 12 ounces.
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If you’re going to use the divided dough soon, you can just put it on a floured tray and cover with a towel. If the dough will be frozen for future use, put it in plastic bags. The dough should be used within 48 hours or frozen up to a month. The yeast activity will decline rapidly after a month and your dough will be flat. When making an item from frozen dough, simply thaw it in the refrigerator or in the microwave on “Defrost.”
Crumb cinnamon coffeecake topping
This cake requires a 12 oz. piece of yellow dough to be spread evenly over the bottom of a well greased 8by-8-inch pan. Crisco or a spray like Pam works well. With lightly floured hands, pat to flatten with no lip. Wash the dough with melted butter and cover generously with cinnamon crumbs. The recipe below yields enough to cover two cakes with a layer of streusel as they were made in the bakery.
Cinnamon Crumbs:
2 tablespoon butter 3 tablespoon shortening 1 ⁄3 cup sugar 1 ⁄3 cup light brown sugar loosely packed 1 teaspoon honey optional, but desired 1 teaspoon cinnamon 1 ⁄8 teaspoon salt Caramel color optional 2 ⁄3 cup flour Cream everything except flour. The caramel color was added to darken the crumbs. Not necessary. If
PROVIDED
Virginia Bakery’s famous cinnamon crumb coffeecake. you do use it, don’t use too much, it can be bitter. Caramel color is nothing but burnt sugar. Be careful if you make it at home – it smokes something awful. Add the flour and rub between the tips of your fingers, kind of like mixing pie dough. Do not combine flour in a mixer, it is too easy to over mix. Mix until you have nice moist cinnamon crumbs. If they are too wet, add more flour. If too dry, add a little melted butter. (In the bakery, they would make the cinnamon crumb base – everything but the flour – the night before, and then rub in the flour fresh every morning. Cinnamon crumbs will dry out quickly unless covered or refrigerated.) After putting crumbs on the dough in the baking pan, let the cake rise in a warm place until dough is almost doubled. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes – until cake springs back when tested. Cakes are easier to remove from the pan when slightly warm. Often a customer would ask to have the cake covered with sifted powdered sugar Rita Nader Heikenfeld is Macy’s certified culinary professional. E-mail columns@community press.com with “Rita’s kitchen” in the subject line. Call 513248-7130, ext. 356.
RGS to host benefit dinner The Gilbert R. Symons Chapter of the Ruffed Grouse Society will hold its 28th annual Sponsors Appreciation Banquet Saturday, March 20, at The Oasis Golf Club and Conference Center, 902 LovelandMiamiville Road, Loveland. It will begin with a reception hour at 5 p.m. Dinner will be served at 7 p.m. As is the custom at this event, the evening will feature a live and silent auction, games, drawings and door prizes; highlighted with the finest selection of quality firearms, collectables and artwork by John A. Ruthven. According to Jeff Rhinock, a sponsorship package is $275, and includes up to two dinner tickets, a one-year sponsor membership, the 2010 sponsor print, entry into the “sponsor only” gun raffle, and special recognition in the RGS Annual Report. A similar package is available for non-attendees for $250, and includes everything but dinner tickets. As with all RGS fundraisers, proceeds from this event will be used to restore and protect grouse and woodcock habitat. For more information and/or tickets contact Rhinock at 324-1334.