Q&A with BAKED authors Matt Lewis and Renato Poliafito
Describe your new book.
Baked: New Frontiers in Baking is like a greatest hits records. It includes recipes for our most popular items at the bakery like our Sweet and Salty cake and infamous deep dark brownies - along with some deep cuts and popular B-Sides like Chipotle Cheddar Biscuits and Rootbeer Bundt cake. It is our ideal cookbook of everything that is chocolaty, fluffy, sweet, a tiny bit savory, creamy, light, refreshing and delicious.
We are damn proud of this book and we worked extra hard to make it accessible and straightforward. Each recipe was tested and retested and we promise the home baker won’t be disappointed.
By the by, if you are looking for a quick fix, we suggest the Peanut Butter Pie with Easy Fudge Sauce. It is our most current addiction.
If someone were to write your biography, what would be the title and subtitle?
Nato: I come up with titles for my memoir pretty much daily, today’s title would be - I'd Rather Stay In: The Renato Poliafito Story
What historical food figure would you like to date, and why?
Matt: I imagine I would have a rough and tumble relationship with Ruth Wakefield (credited with inventing the Tollhouse Cookie). There is absolutely nothing sexier than a chocolate chip cookie and I assume Ruth probably had a fun and kinky personality to have invented such a thing. I like fun and kinky. Eventually, however, Ruth and I would have to break up if for no other reason than I am more into dudes than dames, but I am sure it would be a lot of fun while it lasted.
What's the strangest or most interesting job you've ever had?
Matt: I was in between internships in college and a friend convinced me that there was easy money in debt collection. I basically sat on a phone in one of those windowless office parks and called people who wrote bad checks to Wal Mart and asked them to pay up. I only lasted a few weeks, but it was a real rollercoaster. Some people threatened my life, some people offered to pay in trade (TV, cookies, couches), and at least three people offered to take me to church.
How did the last good book you read end up in your hands and why did you read it?
Matt: I started to have really awkward guilty pangs because I was only reading non-fiction books. I am not sure why, but for about three years, I couldn’t make myself purchase any type of fiction. One day, I just decided to end my fiction drought by buying the largest most ridiculous looking book I could find and it was Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell….I mean this book is too big to even hold comfortably. I am not even partial to fantasy and magical fiction and I was just blown away by how much I liked this book. Susanna Clark (the author) is incredibly talented.
Have you ever made a food pilgrimage?
Matt: Every pilgrimage is a food pilgrimage. I sometimes think I only travel to eat in different locations. I usually break off from the group (if there is a group) and skip the museums and tours and opt for whole days and weeks investigating chocolate stores, cafes, pastry places and restaurants. Who needs the Mona Lisa when you have Pierre Herme.
Describe the best breakfast of your life.
Matt: Hands down Chocolate Cake and cappuccino. I am not a Doctor, but I am fairly certain that a small slice of chocolate cake will cut down on sweet cravings for the rest of the day, and let’s face it: pancakes, muffins, scones, bacon and certain cereals are all about the same on the nutritional scale.
Nato: For me, the most memorable breakfast I had was in Sicily as a kid. During the summer months, when it’s hotter than the surface of the sun there, locals indulge in a summery breakfast of frozen almond granita and a warm sweet brioche. Its light, delicious, and the hot bun dipped into the cold granita is pure heaven.
What is your favorite indulgence, either wicked or benign?
Matt: The New York Times during breakfast. I am addicted to it (and I mean the dirty print version, the kind that leaves your hands ink-stained), anything chocolate and peanut butter for lunch, and a bottle of red wine (my last true vice) with dinner (yes, a bottle).
Name the best television series of all time, and explain why it's the best.
Matt: The Comeback. Lisa Kudrow is a damn genius, the script was infallible, and I am 100% certain that it will be remembered as one of the best series of all time. HBO should be ashamed for canceling that series and replacing it with a bunch of crap.
On a clear and cold day, do you typically get outside into the sunshine or stay inside where it's warm?
Nato: I get outside! I love the colder months. I'm not a warm weather guy. I feel like im dying when its too hot. I will never understand people who enjoy hot and humid. My theory is this: if you're cold, put on a sweater, go inside, have something hot to drink ... if its hot as blazes, and there is no AC to be found, you're pretty screwed.
Talk about your vision of the ideal life.
Nato: A little coffeeshop in a nice little coastal town with eccentric and colorful locals. I've got the place so under control that it practically runs itself. I spend my free time visiting friends in NYC and Paris (I have small, modest but well-appointed apartments in both cities), cooking and throwing pottery.
Do you read blogs? What are some of your favorites?
Matt: Confessed blog addict. I read too many and it is a huge waste of time. I read 101cookbooks.com (makes me wish I were a better photographer), eater.com (snarky, but fun), dlisted.com (to check and see if Amy Winehouse is still alive), and many, many others.
Nato: Oh yes. where else would I get all my news and info from? My daily ritual includes a visit to the following: Gothamist, Brownstoner, Curbed, Eater, DListed and Design Sponge.
Dogs, cats, budgies, or turtles?
Nato: Dogs. Specifically, my dog, Tina Louise.
In the For-All-Eternity category, what will be your final thought?
Nato: It will probably be, "Really?"
Recommend five or more books on a single subject of personal interest or expertise (such as baking). You're welcome to describe each book, or to provide a brief introductory paragraph about the list -- but just titles and a header/theme will do, if you prefer.
Matt: Five Books To Read While On Percocet (or other painkillers):
- Behind the Candleabra: My Life With Liberace by Scott Thorson
I treasure this book so much, I covered it in plastic and keep it in a top-secret location.
- Cooking for Cher by Andrew Ennis, Cher, and Joan Nielson
Worth the photographs alone.
- Trying to Get to Heaven: Opinions of a Tennessee Talker by Dixie Carter
This book makes you wish that Dixie was your next door neighbor.
- The Tipping Point by Malcolm Gladwell
I tried reading this book five times while completely sober and found it utterly boring. Not until I was hopped up on Tylenol PM did it make any sense.
- I’m With the Band: Confessions of a Groupie by Pamela Des Barres
Skip past the rock stars and go right to the part about Don Johnson.
Nato:Food Appreciation 101: Recent books that I recommend to any burgeoning foodies out there:
- Fast Food Nation by Eric Schollser-An in depth look on Industrial Food practices.
A cheese burger and fries will never look the same again.
- The Omnivore's Dilemma by Michael Pollan
One man ponders the relatively new question we ask ourselves: "what will I have for dinner?" Its an odyssey-like trek, investigating all the options we have today for getting food on our table.
- The Man Who Ate Everything by Jeffrey Steingarten
Funny and candid, Jeffery Steingarten takes you on a trip through the world of food with easy to digest essays.
- United States of Arugula by David Kamp
Although a little dry at times, this book is packed with information about the history of the 'food scene' in the U.S. Learn about the first french restaurants in NYC, the birth of the gourmet market, as well as the organic food movement in the west.
- My Life in France by Julia Child and Alex Prud’Homme-
Probably one of my favorite books. The book follows Julia Child from her days as a novice cook in Paris France to the beginning of her career here in the US as the PBS phenomenon, The French Chef.
BAKED: New Frontiers in Baking is on sale now! Click here to find out more >