About the author: Liz Roth-Johnson is a Ph.D. candidate in Molecular Biology at UCLA. If she’s not in the lab, you can usually find her experimenting in the kitchen.
https://sites.lifesci.ucla.edu/ibp-scienceandfoodnew/wp-content/uploads/sites/123/2013/11/baking5.png624960Grant Alkinhttps://sites.lifesci.ucla.edu/ibp-scienceandfoodnew/wp-content/uploads/sites/123/2016/09/newlogoSm-2-300x31.pngGrant Alkin2013-11-19 10:00:112013-11-19 10:00:115 Things About Baking
The Science of Pie
Featuring Christina Tosi & Zoe Nathan May 19, 2013
At the world’s first scientific bakeoff, the students of the Science & Food undergraduate course presented results from their final projects, including a live taste test of apple pies. The final projects were judged by Chefs Christina Tosi and Zoe Nathan, food critics Jonathan Gold and Evan Kleiman, and UCLA Professors Andrea Kasko, and Sally Krasne.
Chefs Christina Tosi and Zoe Nathan also shared their perspectives on inventing desserts, with an emphasis on pie. Watch the entire lecture or check out some of the shorter highlights below.
Christina Tosi on…
…creating cereal milk
“Cereal milk, fortunately for us but unfortunately for the scientific process, was very simple to make . . . But a lot of the other things that we make at Milk Bar go through a much more vigorous question asking and testing process before we actually decide whether or not its successful.”
…crack pie and re-inventing pie crust
“Crack pie is our approach to pie. It very much embodies our approach to pie. We don’t use a traditional American pie crust . . . Pie crust is an opportunity to surprise and wow and provide texture and flavor that is beyond, perhaps, you standard traditional American pie crust.”
…creativity, curiosity, and the scientific process
Whether or not we’re aware of it, the scientific process is often an integral part of cooking and baking. When Christina Tosi describes her creative process at Milk Bar, she might as well be describing the process of scientific research and discovery:
“The second that I got out of school and I was able to have my own voice, I stepped back and I looked at everything that I was taught and listened to and followed without questioning, and I questioned it. And not in a disrespectful way, just in a ‘Well, what if? Why and what if?’ And I think that that curiosity and that forcing yourself to question every single thing in the creative process is incredibly helpful … you really just need that wandering spirit and the courage to ask ‘Why?’ And then of course the momentum and the patience to test through and be willing to fail but also be excited when you succeed.”
Zoe Nathan on…
…being a traditional baker and working with simple ingredients
“A really good baker isn’t bored of flour, and isn’t bored of sugar, and isn’t bored of salt, and isn’t bored of butter. They just know that through process they can make an entirely different thing every single day using five ingredients.”
…how to create the most amazing pie
“My second biggest pet peeve as a baker is how people bake. They forget that this is also an ingredient. Color is flavor: without it, you don’t have flavor. It just doesn’t work. Color and baking time and how your pie looks needs to be treated as another ingredient. It’s just as important as salt, sugar, flour, or anything. If you forget your color, you didn’t make the thing. . . It’s like you don’t have chocolate for your chocolate chip cookies.”
…baking and being present
“I would wish for everybody to throw away their timers and to start to engage all of their senses. Smell! Is it done? Look at it! Is it ready? . . . The whole thing about baking is that it makes you be present.”
https://sites.lifesci.ucla.edu/ibp-scienceandfoodnew/wp-content/uploads/sites/123/2013/09/tosi_lecture.png720843Grant Alkinhttps://sites.lifesci.ucla.edu/ibp-scienceandfoodnew/wp-content/uploads/sites/123/2016/09/newlogoSm-2-300x31.pngGrant Alkin2013-11-05 10:30:522013-11-05 10:30:52The Science of Pie
On Sunday we held our third and final 2013 Science and Food public lecture: The Science of Pie. Renowned pastry chef Christina Tosi joined us all the way from New York to explain her process for creating new desserts, and Los Angeles native and super-star baker Zoe Nathan shared her tips for baking the perfect apple pie. Guests indulged in delicious goodies from Zoe Nathan’s Huckleberry Café, Compost Cookies from Momofuku Milk Bar, and espresso brewed by four talented baristas.
Zoe Nathan and Christina Tosi answer questions from the audience after their lectures.
And, of course, there was pie.
For weeks, students from the UCLA Science and Food course have been studying the apple pie and using scientific inquiry and experimentation to try to create the “ultimate” apple pie experience. Students examined everything from how different apple varieties behave in pie filling to how the size and shape of the pie affects baking. Several students also played with unconventional ingredients, including avocado oil, yogurt, chia seeds, and whiskey.
Students prepare their apple pies the morning of the event.
Students share their research projects and apple pies with the public.
The students presented their research projects and pies at Sunday’s event. While the public enjoyed sampling the scientific treats, the pies were scrutinized by an esteemed panel of judges made up of chefs (Christina Tosi and Zoe Nathan), food critics (Evan Kleiman and Jonathan Gold), and scientists (UCLA Professors Andrea Kasko and Sally Krasne). After tasting the pies a talking with the students, the public voted for their favorite pie and the judges settled on three additional stand-outs. The lucky winners all took home wonderful prizes from our friends at Breville.
Best Overall Pie Alia Welsh (Team Sablé) Apple pie with shortbread crust and streusel topping. This solo effort explored the vast parameter space of pie, studying the effect of fat content and temperature on the texture of the shortbread crust, as well as the effect of pH on the browning of the streusel topping. The final winning pie had shortbread made with room temperature standard American butter.
Best Tasting Pie Stephan Phan, Kevin Yang, Amirari Diego (Team Apples to Apples) Deconstructed apple pie with pie crust crumbs and spherified apples. Using the technique of spherification, this team applied their knowledge of diffusion and gelation to prepare “reconstituted” apples. They found that optimizing both the calcium chloride concentration and gelation time was key to making a delicious modernist apple pie.
Judge’s Favorite Pie Qiaoyi Wu, Qinqin Chen, Michelle Cheng (Team Aπ3) Pie crust made with different liquids, including vodka, beer, and sparkling water. Seeking to perfect pie crust texture, team Aπ3 experimented with different liquids that may impede the formation of gluten protein networks. Gluten gives structure and stability to pie dough, but can also make pie dough dense and tough when over-developed. The team examined the porousness, density, and browning of pie crusts prepared with three different liquids compared to water and concluded that vodka creates the flakiest pie crust.
People’s Choice Award Elan Kramer, Caleb Turner (Team “Insert Team Name Here”) Frozen apple pie with peanut butter mousse. This student duo thought outside the box with this creative apple and peanut butter pie. To create the ultimate peanut butter experience, the team experimented with the effect of egg white content on the texture and density of the peanut butter mousse.
The Science of Pie was the perfect end to a fantastic lecture series. We are so grateful to our amazing lecturers and all the people and sponsors who made the lectures possible. And although the 2014 lectures might seem impossibly far away, don’t worry—the Science & Food blog is not going anywhere! Keep an eye on out for more exciting food science posts, profiles, recipes, and maybe even a few videos through the rest of the year.
About the author: Liz Roth-Johnson is a Ph.D. candidate in Molecular Biology at UCLA. If she’s not in the lab, you can usually find her experimenting in the kitchen.
Zoe Nathan is the co-owner of several Los Angeles restaurants, including Huckleberry Bakery and Café and Milo and Olive. An avid baker, Zoe honed her craft at Tartine in San Francisco where she learned the value of using color as a flavor. At her own restaurants, she has received widespread acclaim for her pastries.
See Zoe Nathan speak at our next 2013 Science & Food public lecture!
The Science of Pie Featuring Chefs Christina Tosi and Zoe Nathan Sunday, May 19 @ 2:00pm
Covel Commons Grand Horizon Room (map) BUY TICKETS
Image credit: Emily Hart Roth
What hooked you on cooking?
I wanted to do something with my hands and was searching for a way to express myself in a way that I could connect with people around me instantly. I loved being able to make something and have someone eat it right away and hopefully enjoy it and understand where I’m coming from. Plus it just makes me really happy!
The coolest example of science in your food?
For me it’s the process of baking. Working with so few ingredients, and then deciding on different processes that will create totally different things to eat. That’s why I never worry about someone stealing a recipe from me, because at the end of the day, it’s not knowing what goes into baking something that makes it special, it’s how you bake it.
The food you find most fascinating?
Bread. For exactly the same reason as above. It’s all about process. That’s why I laugh when people say, “You can only make great Sourdough in San Francisco, or Bagels in New York,” but then I see people try with bad ingredients and a sloppy process. If you care enough you can make great bread anywhere.
One kitchen tool you could not live without?
Mixing bowls!
What scientific concept–food related or otherwise–do you find most fascinating?
The concept I find the most important in baking is the process of caramelization. You can use all the right ingredients and even the right process, but if you don’t get the right caramelization and color on a bake good it simply doesn’t look or taste good.
Five things most likely to be found in your fridge?
Eggs, kale, milk (I have a 2 year old), Dijon mustard, cream cheese.
Your best example of a food that is better because of science?
I’m not a big fan of modern science in cooking, but I’m super happy to have freezers so that I can freeze my scones and biscuits so that I can put the maximum amount of butter inside without having it leak out. I’m happy for convection ovens so my baked goods get that extra little jump. I’m happy for steam on my bread oven so my bread gets that nice shine. I’m also happy for bright lights so my bakers can come in at 3 a.m. and still feel safe!
Your all-time favorite ingredient? Favorite cookbook?
Salt is my all-time favorite ingredient. I have so many cookbooks that I love I can’t choose one.
How do you think science will impact your world of food in the next 5 years?
Honestly, I think it’s mostly negative. I think a lot of people eat processed foods because they’re easier to get because science has made them taste good and last a lot longer than it actually should. Because of all the big advancements in technology people are also used to getting what they want quickly, but good cooking is a patient thing, so I think fewer and fewer people know how to cook. I also think young cooks who are obsessed with immersion circulators and cvap machines often don’t know how to cook a piece of meat on a grill or in a pan which is a shame because that’s how it tastes best.
Your standard breakfast?
Leftovers from whatever my son hasn’t eaten and he eats pretty well. When I actually take the time to make it for myself it’s oatmeal cooked in homemade almond milk.
The 2013 Science & Food lineup is here! Stay up-to-date with all the latest news by following us on Twitter or joining our mailing list.
While waiting for the lectures, you can satisfy your science and food cravings by watching last year’s lectures and browsing our blog archives. Over the next couple of months, we will feature exciting new content here on the blog, including chef profiles, recipes, and contests. Don’t miss out! Follow us on Twitter, Facebook, and Tumblr to get all the latest Science & Food news.
We can’t wait to see you at the 2013 Science & Food lectures!
Primitive X Modern: Cultural Interpretations of Flavors Featuring Chef Alex Atala Wednesday, April 17 @ 7:00pm
Moore Hall 100 (map)
Chef Atala will discuss his approach to food and how his cooking has been impacted by science. Atala is renowned for pioneering regional cuisine using indigenous Brazilian ingredients and works closely with anthropologists and scientists to discover and classify new foods from the Amazonian region.
Edible Education Featuring Chef Alice Waters, Dr. Wendy Slusser, and Chef David Binkle Thursday, April 25 @ 7:00pm
Royce Hall Auditorium (map)
Chef Alice Waters will be joined by Professor Wendy Slusser and Chef David Binkle to provide and informative discussion on initiating change in how we eat through school lunches, edible gardens, and healthy campuses.
The Science of Pie Featuring Chef Christina Tosi and Chef Zoe Nathan Sunday, May 19 @ 2:00pm
Covel Commons Grand Horizon Room (map)
Chefs Christina Tosi and Zoe Nathan will share their perspectives on inventing desserts, with a particular emphasis on pie. Here, the students of the Science & Food undergraduate course will present results from their final projects, including live taste tests of apple pies. Final projects will be judged by a panel of esteemed local chefs, scientists, and food critics including Christina Tosi, Zoe Nathan, Jonathan Gold, and UCLA Professors Andrea Kasko and Sally Krasne.
https://sites.lifesci.ucla.edu/ibp-scienceandfoodnew/wp-content/uploads/sites/123/2013/03/2013lineupbig-e1363722613706.png374805Grant Alkinhttps://sites.lifesci.ucla.edu/ibp-scienceandfoodnew/wp-content/uploads/sites/123/2016/09/newlogoSm-2-300x31.pngGrant Alkin2013-03-19 10:30:552013-03-19 10:30:55Science & Food 2013 Lecture Series
About the author: Liz Roth-Johnson is a Ph.D. candidate in Molecular Biology at UCLA. If she’s not in the lab, you can usually find her experimenting in the kitchen.
