What's In Your Carry-On?

Recently there was a matter involving my hand luggage at LaGuardia security.

"Is this your bag? Please step over here." I had already prepared myself mentally that no one - certainly not a TSA agent (who it turns out loves to bake) - could resist looking through my hunter/gatherer bag. Here then is the first installment of "What's In Your Carry-On?" or what I carry with great care.

First up? Fox Run's 6 bowl covers set. Why? Assorted sizes fit everything from 3-9 inches. They're washable, portable, colorful and remind me of shower caps for picnic foods - a vague nod to Kramer making salad in his shower.

Seen it in Dallas? No

Found It: Brown and Roberts Hardware, 182 Main St, Brattleboro, Vermont
(802) 257-4566
acehardware.com

I Heard: This folksy hardware store is so good, it beat Home Depot, which pulled out of Brattleboro.

Almost made it out of Vermont Kitchen Supply before spotting this gem at the register. The store says it's the No. 1 product they sell. Called the Lily Pad Silicone Lid, you have to see it in action. The lid seals tight on all smooth rims - from stainless bowls to ceramics and plastics. You can lift the lid by its pink stem and it will not release the bowl, but it peels off easily after use. Think of it as a splatter guard in the microwave, for food storage in the fridge or freezer, and as a way to keep food warm on the table. An alternate to plastic wrap. Like the shower caps for bowls, it works for a picnic, too. The maker is Charles Viancin Group. A little extra: A simple design on the back of the package shows how the lily pad shape inspired the lid. Good touch.

Seen it in Dallas? Nope

Found It: Vermont Kitchen Supply
4712 Main St. Manchester Center, Vermont
(802) 362-0111
http://vermontkitchensupply.com

I heard: Tongue-clucking from friends, who couldn't believe I didn't show them the lid until we got to their house in Newfane. They wanted the lid, too.

I wasn't in the market for a new scale but my Escali is nearing its end and I WILL be in the market soon. I found this high-precision mini Escali version at King Arthur Flour. It only measures up to 18 ounces so I waffled on it. It did make my shopping basket for a once-around the store, then I set it back down in the section where they highlight the products they love to use in the classes taught there. I paid for my other must-haves, had a coffee outside, then sidled back in and grabbed it. You know that feeling of regret even before you've left the premises - that you'll fly home several states away and never see this product again? I couldn't risk it. I imagined myself using two scales at a time - the bigger one for the flours and the smaller one for the spices. The mini stole my heart. After all, this mini can also weigh postage!

Seen it in Dallas? Never

Found It: King Arthur Flour
135 US Route 5 South
Norwich, Vermont
(802) 649-3361
http://www.kingarthurflour.com

I've seen a chocolate thermometer in use but never knew where it came from. Why did I want it? Because it's out there! It helps you temper chocolate (the process of warming, cooling and rewarming couverture chocolate). Although a digital thermometer can do that, I like the idea of being able to see at a glance what range the chocolate's in - whether it's getting hotter or cooler. The thermometer is made of durable laboratory glass and has a non-mercuric column, whew! It comes with a yellow carrying case to keep it safe. Not a big investment, it was on sale, too.

Seen it in Dallas? Not anywhere

Found It: King Arthur Flour

Also at King Arthur and blissfully marked down was the 9-piece Fondant Punch Set from Fox Run. I had looked all over Vermont for anything that could make small, attractive holes and designs in pie dough, having succumbed to the lure of the book "Pie Pops" and its excellent cover photography (but this is for another story). Honestly, it irks my craw when something looks adorable and doable and you buy the book and then wham! It tells you they've used "a variety of novelty cookie cutters to achieve fun and interesting shapes," and if you'll just go on some British website for ideas and so on and so on. I fell for it and found nothing in the realm of outstanding online, but just to show there's no hard feelings, the author of Pie Pops is Carol Hilker and her food blog is YeastConfection.com, if you'd like to read on. The fondant punch set solves my problem. See this is what I love about King
Arthur.

In a ditch or in a pinch, they can pull you through.

Seen it in Dallas? I wish

Found it: King Arthur Flour

Flower to Flour: A Beautiful Friendship

What the mind imagines, the hands can make.

These beautiful adornments are an inspirational palette no pastry chef can resist. In fact, Warren Brand of the family owned and operated M. &S. Schmalberg company, tucked 7 floors above West 36th Street in the Fashion District, tells me I am not the first chef to peruse the showroom and warehouse of gorgeous custom flowers for ideas. It seems a master builder of wedding cakes has been here before me, touching and feeling the possibilities. His mind did surely reel. It's that good - like landing in the rainbow of Oz.

Schmalberg is the largest direct manufacturer of custom silk fabric flower pins in the U.S. and has adorned the apparel, millinery, accessory and bridal industries since 1919. How many bakeries can match those years?

I found Schmalberg thanks to a tip from master milliner Ellen Colon-Lugo, the "Hattie Golightly" of Manhattan who is a one-woman Broadway show in her own right. She shares the view that there's a wonderful connection between hats, flowers and pastry - all seek to catch the eye and broaden the smile. If "the eyes eat first" in pastry, as they say, the same applies for hats and how the world receives them. The fashion press has vetted Ellen's mastery of the exquisite more times than the Queen has matched her handbag and shoes. Ellen knows. Only a fool would squander one of her tips. 

And so I went, heart pounding, and found myself in a room like this.

And this.

And this.

Staff member Pam met me at the door and welcomed me into this carousel of color, as Disney used to says about the world. She introduced me to Warren, who showed me how the fabrics are stretched, cut and assembled, right there by talented hands. At one time 100 companies were doing this work, he says, but no more. There were shelves upon shelves that held heavy molds of flower shapes, which could have been from the turn of the century for all I know. If they could only talk - if they could be used for chocolate and fondant work - if only there was time to sit still and learn from Warren and his crew.

It seemed an impossible task to make a choice, but people were waiting for me in Herald Square and the skies were threatening to open up, and so my mind reeled. I couldn't leave without taking some of the beauty with me. Thank goodness Pam could steer me through displays and boxes that towered to the ceiling, or I'd still be there.

Here's the real beauty. You can buy the flowers, too. There's no secret password, as this is not Hernando's Hideaway and you don't have to be a suit from Neiman's to step inside.

Seek out Schmalberg on your own in New York, that wonderful town, for a taste of the divine.

I give it 4 creme brulees and 4 top hats, my highest rating.

(And by the way, did I mention they'll give you the name of the feather maker for Broadway?)

M. & S. Schmalberg
242 W 36th St. 7th Fl.
New York, NY 10018
212-244-2090