A Sweet Treat: Seth Greenberg Shares Baking Secrets

Fine baking involves more than simply following a recipe. In a presentation entitled "Just Desserts: Satisfying Your Sweet Tooth," renowned master baker Seth Greenberg demonstrated this point, offering some of the tricks, as well as the treats, of his trade to an eager crowd at the Scarsdale Public Library on Saturday, April 30. The program was the second in a series organized as part of the library's evolving Scarsdale Cookbook Club.

While baking seedless raspberry thumbprint cookies and apricot hamentaschen before an audience of approximately 115 community members, Greenberg revealed various ways in which a combination of top-quality ingredients, the proper tools for each task, and the correct techniques enable one to create an outstanding finished product.

Among other advice, Greenberg recommends investing in organic sugar and one of the better quality vanilla extracts on the market. Although he is not particularly concerned with the brand of butter used (his only requirement is that it contain a standard fat content, approximately 11 grams per tablespoon), Greenberg does care about the technique employed to cream butter. He suggests that serious cooks invest in an upright, rather than a hand-held mixer, as butter takes up to fifteen minutes to cream properly. Moreover, rather than wait until it has reached room temperature, Greenberg notes that it is best to begin the creaming process while the butter is still somewhat cool.

For Greenberg, baking is a family tradition. He is the son of New York City's legendary baker, William Greenberg, Jr. Indeed, Greenberg worked alongside his father for more than 25 years, and their bakery had a devoted following of food critics and customers alike. The New York Times reviewed their apple pie as the best in New York. The Daily News concluded that their cheesecake was the finest in the city. The Greenbergs acquired a reputation for many other products as well, including their schnecken, wedding cakes, brownies, black and white cookies, chocolate chip cookies, and more.

Just as Greenberg learned to bake from his father, Greenberg's older daughter, Stephanie, learned to bake from her father. Stephanie assisted Greenberg with his presentation at the Scarsdale Library, interjecting helpful information (such as the fact that one should use large eggs when baking) and playfully bantering with her father during his talk. Stephanie, moreover, provided the inspiration for Seth Greenberg's Authentic New York Brownie Crunch (www.browniecrunch.com), a product that Greenberg sells on Amazon and in Zabar's, among other venues. Observing his daughter's preference for eating only the crispy outer crust of brownies, a penchant that he too remembered sharing as a child, Greenberg decided to develop this product, which consists of a crunchy brownie edge with none of the middle. Brownie Crunch comes in five flavors.

Although Greenberg enjoys creating new confections -- he created and presented President Clinton with his birthday cake on the then president's 50th birthday--, he also has a passion for teaching others to bake. Greenberg taught Martha Stewart and her viewers to bake his specialty schnecken during a live segment.

At the Scarsdale Public Library presentation, Greenberg showcased both his talent for creating desserts and his gift for teaching students to make them. He assembled an enticing display table, laden with products that comprise a small fraction of the repertoire of treats that he teaches others to make, including chocolate frosted seven-layer cake, lemon bars, vanilla thins, cheese straws, crème brûlée, and pinwheel biscuit-topped cobbler. He invited participants to sample his creations after the presentation, and he also gave each of those who attended an individually packaged goodie bag, containing a brownie, a chocolate chip cookie and, Greenberg's own favorite cookie, a raspberry thumbprint, which students now know how to re-create.

Greenberg offers a variety of baking classes in his West Harrison kitchen. Most of his classes are offered as part of a series, meeting once per week for three weeks. He also teaches a one-session class on wheat-free baking. Greenberg's classes are designed to address the needs of both novices and seasoned bakers. For more information about upcoming classes and private lessons, contact Seth Greenberg at bakingwithseth@gmail.com.

Classic Thumbprint Cookie Recipe

The classic cookie. Seems so simple it could only be a child's favorite yet it remains every adult's first choice.

Ingredients: By weight-

1⁄2 LB. Butter, unsalted

4 oz. Sugar, Granulated

2 Egg Yolks

3/8 Tsp. Salt

1⁄2 Tsp. Vanilla, Pure Extract
11.5oz.* Flour, All Purpose, sifted

By volume:

2 sticks Butter, unsalted

1/2 cup + 11⁄2 TBS Sugar

2 Egg Yolks

3/8 Tsp. Salt

1⁄2 Tsp. Vanilla, Pure Extract
2 1/4 Cups* Flour, sifted plus Flour for 'bench work'

approx. 12 oz. Jam, Seedless Raspberry
approx. 5/8 of a 20 oz jar

Yield approx: 65 cookies

*Amount of flour will vary depending on heat and humidity. The warmer it is, and the more humid it is, the more flour you will need.

Process:
PREHEAT oven to 350 degrees (convection or traditional). Cover two 18" X 13" baking sheets with baker's parchment.

BEAT together on speed 4 (4 of 10) the butter and sugar until well creamed. Be patient and allow the butter and sugar to truly cream.
ADD vanilla and salt. Continue to beat together.

SCRAPE mixture off sides of bowl and beater and continue mixing.
ADD egg yolks individually to mixture while beating. Allow each to incorporate thoroughly. SCRAPE again. Mix some more until beautifully smooth. STOP.

ADD Flour.

RUN mixer on low speed until batter becomes dough. Dough should pull away from the bottom of the mixing bowl but will not form a traditional ball due to use of the beater instead of a dough hook.

PLACE dough on lightly floured surface.

KNEAD by hand to assure for uniformity.

ROLL out dough to a thickness of 5/8 inch. It is helpful to use dowels or the equivalent as guides for your rolling pin to assure uniform thickness.

CUT cookies of approx. 11⁄2 in. diameter and place on parchment covered baking sheet.

DIVIDE cookies evenly between the two sheets. Collect scraps, knead together, re-roll and continue cutting cookies until all the dough is used.

DEPRESS the center of each cookie using the rounded end of a wooden spoon
handle or equivalent. Dip the end of the handle in flour periodically to prevent it from sticking.
Make your depressions deep and straight, shallow holes do not
hold enough jam. Using a small pastry bag fitted with a No. 4 decorating tip,
FILL generously each depression with raspberry jam.

BAKE cookies for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown on the bottom and the jam bubbles. A convection oven will take less time (16-18 min) and will allow you to bake both sheets at the same time.

REMOVE from oven, let cool on a rack. Enjoy warm.

(Text by Ann Starer, Photos by Beth Greenspan)