4B - Thursday, March 14, 2013 The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com 4B - Thursday, March 14, 2013 The Michigan Daily - michigandailycom R FOOD COLUMN Famous deli just isn't worth the dough I -a a a MARLENE LACASSE/Daily MARLENE LACASSE/Daily The structure of the classes allows newbies to work alongside seasoned cooks. Most people in the classes are over 30, but students occassionally sign up. A baking beginner's quest Zingerman's hosts years ago, the Bakehouse trans- formed the space next door to a classes to teach "school" - now complete with two classrooms specifically des- cooking cr aft ignated for BAKE! classes, year By CARLINA DUAN round, five days a week. Daily Community Culture Editor "In our country, learning how to bake was a lost art. We thought Sugar cookies. Walnut brown- one thing we could do for the con- ies. Slices of chocolate cake munity is actually show people smattered in rich, bossy frost- how (to bake)," Emberling said, ing. When it comes to sugar, my "So when you leave (class) you belly is no stranger. Every night will have confidence and inspira- at dessert, I evolve into all-cap- tion to try it again at home." ital-lettered euphoria, fiercely On the morning of my class, I elbowing my way to the table and lacked confidence. Dry-mouthed, piling plates to skyscraper height. I drove through aslayer of snow to Friends can attest: I tweet about reach the Bakehouse, wringing my sugar; I dream about sugar. The hands with pre-bake anxiety. Iwas most recently tagged photo of me probably going to make the world's on Facebook? A slice of velvety floppiest cream puff. In fact, it'd tiramisu. It shouldn't come as a probably look so monstrous that surprise, then, that my ultimate folks would dub it the "Ugly Puff." dream is to open up a bakery Already envisioning failure, I named Mount Olympus. Each parked the car with dumb spirits. baked good will be coined after Set in a complex of brick, facto- a Greek God/Goddess. Zeus will ry-style buildings on Plaza Drive, be a triple-decker brownie cake, the Bakehouse stands out. Next drizzled in marshmallows. door, signs in funky fonts and Only problem with this grand fresh colors beckon you to taste plan: IShave no idea how to bake. coffee. If you're taking a class, In fact, I'm famous for kitchen drinks within the Bakehouse failures. Once, I made macaroni buildingarecomplimentaryAfter and cheese with Greek yogurt walking next door to the class- (first mistake: using Greek yogurt) room building, I found myself in a and rested the heaping bowl onto room with spacious tables, stoves, the dinner table with proud hands. folded white aprons, baking racks, My family took small bites with an iPod trumpeting jazz and ... plastiospoons, swallowing politely elderly couples. Around the table until my Dad finally spliced the sat a retired pair, Matt and Linda, silence: "What is this shit?" who revealed their tradition of Baking classes, then, were just "pie-crust throwing," a ritual what I needed. And not just any sparked in their youthful, just- baking class, but a Zingerman's married days. Meanwhile, Cheryl, BAKE! "Who You Callin'A Cream a woman clad in swirly, candy- Puff?"class.As a college kid strug- shaped earrings, introduced her- gling to fling together brownie self as a BAKE! connoisseur who mix from the box every weekend, had taken dozens of classes. Cher- I needed to dip my hands into yl was accompanied by her per- some flour - start familiarizing sonal trainer, Cathy. Both giggled myself with real, out-of-the-box, as Cathy mock-whispered, "So, home-cooked food. we can work off the calories after And Zingerman's, as I'm sure today!" any foodie will attest to, can be Total class size? Seven stu- dubbed as real food. The Bake- dents, including me. house, born in 1992, was the According to Emberling, most second Zingerman's business to students in BAKE! classes are age open. Bakehouse Managing Part- 30 and above, and each course is ner Amy Emberling, who was one capped at 12 students. Class fees of the original staffers at the time, range from $40Oto $250, with $100 described the original mission of as the average. As a hungry-yet- the Bakehouse: to supply bread. poor student, I'm not surprised "We intended to be only a that there aren't more college kids wholesale bakery and only to here. You'd have to be very pressed make fantastic bread for (the for baking skill to pay $100 for an Deli's) sandwiches," she said. apron-clad morning. At the Bakehouse, public class- Despite the older demographic es were established even before of my classmates, the energy in BAKE! classes came along. "We the air was still crisp and young. would have people in one Sun- Perhaps this has to do with the day a month, for two hours in the structure of the course. Our afternoon, and we'd teach them a instructor, Nikki Lohmann, stood bit about bread making," Ember- at the front of the room, dem- lingexplained. "There was always onstrating how to separate egg a waitinglist." yolks, mash dough and cook pas- As the monthly waiting lists try cream in a saucepan. continued to grow, the demand "Being a pastry chef is all about for classes became apparent. Six multitasking," she confided as she navigated a stirring spoon with wild, prancing hands. Lohmann demonstrated stirring technique for the cream pastry, our first task. Then, we students dove in. Across the room, spatulas clunked. Eggshells crackled. In front of us lay shiny pots, stir- ring spoons, pats of butter in wax paper and Tupperware cups of sugar, salt, flour, eggs and vanilla bean. Everything smelled like butter. Running frantically from the stove back to my chair with a saucepan, my muscles trembled. Cooking equaled exercise. I was sweating for these cream puffs. Furtively, ISglanced at my peers, strainingto peer inside their pans. Was I falling behind? Was I doing okay? Could everybody see the sweat stains draped beneath my armpits? Cheryl smiled at me and glanced nonchalantly into my pot. "Lookin' great!" she enthused as she whisked her bowl with wiry, done-this-before flair. According to Emberling, stu- dents aren't arranged in class by baking talent. In fact, newcom- ers and oldtimers alike are placed together. This is due to the BAKE! mission, which focuses on culti- vating teachable material, rather than skills. "What we're trying to do in each class is teach technique, and it is the case that everyone who comes may be at a differ- ent level, but the basic info you need to share can be the same," Emberling said. "There's often not advanced knowledge. There's advanced practice. But the knowl- edge is the same." Despite four hours of instruc- tion, I never felt weary with any task. In fact, my intimidation wore off as Lohmann routinely cycled our tables to check on our progress. In between the chat- ter of my peers, the hiss of cream sauce on the stove and croon of jazz on the stereo, I fell into rou- tine. Lohmann demonstrated, then students tried. The pastry dough was kneaded, baked and puffed. The cream was piped - squeezed through plastic, trian- gular bags in order to create afros of lush, swirly cream. Eclairs were garnished with powdered sugar. The whipped cream was whipped. "Although we want (these classes) to be full of content, we want them to also be relaxed, enjoyable and fun, so it's a safe learning environment, and not like the things you see on TV - not like the scary chef," Ember- ling noted. Surprisingly, as the class wore on, I wasn't sensing an ounce of Scary Chef from Lohmann, nor from the other students. True, I splashed some of the cream sauce out onto the stove, almost hitting the baker next to me (she flinched). And, yes, my cream puffs were the smallest of the batch because my arms started wheezing midway through the piping process (to be fair, Ihad the smallest biceps). But ultimately, I felt pretty badass. When our cream puffs were placed into a take-home box, we all chuckled. My apron heaved with egg yolk and vanilla bean smudge. My face was pummeled in a permanent hot-stove flush. But I conquered those puffs. Like crisp, brown jewels, they winked inside my box. I chomped into one, and my teeth sung. Hal- lelujah, sugar. For the epilogue of our class, Lohmann demonstrated how to make cream puff swans - adorn- ing their wings with plushy puffs of cream. What's more, she tout- ed the versatility of the pastry dough, proving its multifunction by teaching - and serving us! - homemade tomato-and-cream gnocchi, citrus-glazed donuts, cinnamon churros and my favor- ite: cheese puffs that boogied in my mouth with dollops of Mon- terey Jack, cheddar, pepper and buttery groove. At the Bakehouse, quality ingre- dients are used not only in the in- house goods, but also in classes. In fact, the origins of the ingredients used in my class - chocolate, vanil- la bean, eggs - were all explained with loving passion by Lohmann, who then gave us tips on where to find the finest and most affordable ingredients in Ann Arbor. BAKE! class Principal Shelby Kibler added that the recipes shared in class are also the Bake- house's very own. "When we opened the school, it was deliber- ately to show people how to make what we make here, so the focus was taking our recipes at the bak- ery," he said. Walking to my snow-encrusted car, my belly bulged. In my trunk: an entire Tupperware can of pas- try cream, another filled with warm chocolate ganache and, finally, my babies - my cream puffs, cradled in their cardboard cribs. Driving home, I called my mom on the phone. "Guess what?" I hollered, mid-sugar rush. "No more Pillsbury dough boy for me." I've been avoiding reviewing it for a long time - because everyone loves this place and I, well, don't. My friends brag endlessly about the thick- stacked sandwiches, freshly baked breads, outrageous selection of cheeses_ and desserts galore. NATHAN "It's an WOOD Ann Arbor - - classic," I hear from every University acquaintance. "You're not just paying for the sandwich but for the whole experience." You guessed it: We're talking Zingerman's Deli. Now, before you call blas- phemy, let me explain myself. I will concede that Zingerman's is adored by Ann Arborites and University alumni the world round, and that this popularity, coupled with the restaurant's history, rightfully dignifies it as an Ann Arbor classic. The sandwiches are thoughtfully crafted, the side dishes sophis- ticated, the decor cultured and weird (typical Ann Arbor) and the business model clever and, respectable. But as a deli, I just can't overlook the fact that their sandwiches simply don't taste that good. I mean, I've had much bet- ter pastrami. Here it's dry - an unforgivable fault, severely lacking in salt (Hello, this is supposed to be brined?), truly underseasoned and, on the whole, bland. The expanse sep- arating the superior pastrami at Katz's in New York City from the inferior at Zingerman's Deli here in Ann Arbor is inarticu- lately vast. And, as the cherry on top, Katz's Manhattan deli is still cheaper. I've never found the breads particularly exquisite, either. Zingerman's "best-selling" Jew- ish rye is too dense for my taste, lacking a satisfying texture, deep color and any unique char- acter ... save the crusty, grilled edges, which require at least a minute of forceful chomping on before disintegrating into a con- sistency capable of being swal- lowed without puncturing your esophagus. My jaw has gotten a more facile workout from a softball-sized jawbreaker (you know, the kind you break your teeth on). Any bread here given a gener- ic, unrevealing name is simply that: generic. I'm talking to you, "farm bread" (overcooked white bread), "soft buns" (glorified hot dog buns), "Country Wheat bread" (let's just call it wheat bread) and "Bakehouse white bread" (the extra adjective does little to distinguish this loaf from Wonder). The pickles accompanying the sandwiches are an atrocity, too. Why anyone would ever serve an "old pickle" - yes, that's what they call it - is beyond me. They taste just as their name implies. But aside from the sandwich- es and pickles, I must admit that nearly everything else is really quite delicious. The spinach feta salad is simple, light, tangy and - with a hint of mint - subtly refreshing. The garlic potato salad is a modern, tastytake on the traditional German variety, and the macaroni and cheese is OUT. OF. THIS. WORLD. I'm not exaggerating when I say that this is literally the best mac and cheese I've ever had and probably will ever have. With a creamy housemade bechamel sauce, artisanal Tuscan maca- roni and plenty of Cabot Ver- mont cheddar and cracked black peppercorn, a side of this hearty mac is a must. The sauce is silky, but not artificially so. The mac- aroni are cooked perfectly, pro- viding a decent cohesiveness; the cheese is strikingly perva- sive. The crunchy charred bits of cheese and pasta on top add depth of texture and flavor, and the product's mouthcoating is slippery smooth. I'm impressed to the highest degree. Take note, however, that only one pan of macaroni and cheese is made each day. The pan rolls out at 11 a.m., and once it's gone, it's gone. So get there early. Skip the sandwiches, stick to the sides. The next-door dessert shop boasts a variety of delectable confectionaries, beautifully dec- orated cakes and pastries, sweet espresso drinks and Sicilian- style gelato made with Michigan milk at Zingerman's Creamery down the road. While I don't find the gelato exceptional, it does cap off a Zingerman's meal sweetly and can be just the ticket on a hot summer's day. In all fairness, Zingerman's is an experience. Everyone in Ann Arbor should dine there a time or two and be willing to graciously escort interested out- of-state guests there when they come to visit. It's an experience to stand wrapped around a his- toric brick building in anticipa- tion, sampling sides, meats and cheeses outside the door. It's an experience to order from the expansive sandwich menu and peruse the rare cheeses, expen- sive oils and aged vinegars. It's an experience to dine in the crowded upstairs of the renovat- ed house or out on the patio, and it's an experience to sip a creamy, red birch beer with friends and family over a relaxed meal. Just remember that it's actually not about the $16 sandwiches - as much as everyone wants you to think that it is - as they're sim- ply not extraordinary. Wood is definitely not eating at Zingerman's. To fight him, e-mail nisaacw@umich.edu. 0 6 a " 4 0 MARLENE LACASSE/Daily BAKE! offers over 60 courses throughout the year.