Our Founder Is Calling It: This Ancient Craft is Having a Moment

Welcome to the latest edition of Food52 Founder Amanda Hesser’s weekly newsletter, Hey there, it’s Amanda, packed with food, travel, and shopping tips, Food52 doings, and other matters that catch her eye. Get inspired—sign up here for her emails.

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It’s always good to have a talented baker in the house. Nea is ours, and she’s a dynamo. Among her recent triumphs have been this Giant Apple Cinnamon Roll Cake and these Crispy Cornflake Treats. I managed to get her to step away from her mixer to answer a few questions for us:

What was the first thing you baked and how old were you?

It's hard for me to put my finger on the very first thing I baked as I have so many different memories of being in the kitchen as a young kid. Still, there's a photo in my parent's kitchen of my dad and me baking Swedish gingerbread cookies (pepparkakor) when I was about four. Even though I don't remember the exact moment, I'll count that as my first thing. :)

Tell us your two favorite baking recipes that aren’t yours?

I love this Salted Maple Pie; it's easy to make and differs from the classics we're all used to making around the holidays. This Cardamom Cake is another one of my favorites. The crunchy, caramelized layer of almonds on top along with the cardamom-infused cake batter is to die for.

What’s the baking tool you can’t live without?

If I had to choose a baking tool I couldn't live without, I would probably say my spatula. It seems like an obvious tool to always have around, but it has so many different uses while baking. I like to keep my kitchen stocked with several spatulas at a time and in a few different sizes. (Editor’s Note: She likes these and these.)

What did you learn in the past year that’s made you a better baker?

One thing that has helped me become a better baker over the last year is learning how to have more patience in the kitchen. I like to move on to the next recipe as quickly as I can but slowing down, taking more time to troubleshoot, and having patience with the research and the development process is always worth it.

Lucas Sin gave us a comprehensive tour of the sauce and condiment aisles of Hong Kong Supermarket in NYC’s Chinatown. If you’ve ever puzzled over which sesame oil to buy, or wondered what distinguishes light from dark soy sauce, his terrific primer will answer all.

Over the past couple of weeks, I shared a few of the excellent products that Jojo and I saw in Morocco, Paris, and Antwerp. What I didn’t share were all of the products that you can find everywhere. Browsing a home store in Paris, I was deflated to discover the same pillar candles and ceramics that you can get in many small American boutiques. At Maison & Objet, the trade show, there was stall after stall of flameless taper candles, spongeware plates, matte black dinnerware, and monochromatic linen bedding.

As commerce has become more global, the world of home goods and furniture is flattening. If you laid out the catalogs of the major US home retailers and covered their brand names, it would be difficult to tell the differences between their designs. The lines between Magnolia and West Elm and Maiden Home and RH begin to blur. As a British fashion editor once said to me, “American homes are boring.” I know what she meant—there’s a conformist style and not a lot of personal voice or eccentricity.

We fight against that here. And all the sameness we saw on our trip makes us even more determined to make sure that we continue to find you products for your home that are not only useful but also original, well-designed—in a word, special.

Here are a couple of new products that we’ve sourced:

A dripless oil can.

The best faux florals we’ve ever seen.

A cozy lamp for your countertop.

Handmade ceramics, only available here.

Peter Schlumbohm, the chemist who brought us Chemex with its wood neckerchief, also made this water kettle for the brand in 1949. I found the kettle at Found Object in Chelsea, and didn’t buy it, so it could be yours!

I also spotted this Dansk ceramic bundt pan – we didn’t know Dansk made ceramic pans! And it’s got a tiny hole for hanging it on your wall.

Speaking of Dansk – here’s a sneak peek at some peppermill reissues coming to a Food52 near you, real soon!

A sentence I never thought I’d write: basket weaving is having a moment. You can now buy basket weaving kits. Vogue called the Underwater Weaving Club the coolest new club in NYC. And Deborah Needleman, the former editor of T Magazine and Domino, is giving basket weaving courses in Garrison, NY.

I talked with Scott Norton, the founder of Sir Kensington’s, for his podcast At Large. We covered all the essentials – starting Food52, lessons learned, nut milks … and Chocolate Dump-It Cake OFC!

I also chatted with Ruby Tandoh, a writer for The New Yorker, who interviewed me for her reported essay about AllRecipes the internet’s largest, quirkiest, and longest lasting recipe site.

I went to see Jaws at Lincoln Center, where the movie played on a huge screen as the NY Philharmonic played its inimitable, terrifying score. I was hoping the experience would be a form of exposure therapy – I haven’t swum alone since I saw the movie at age 8. Nope! Great movie though, and worth it for all the period details, like giant floral wallpapers, bow-tie swimsuits, and Narragansett beer.

Yours, in irrational fears,

Amanda