Flour is the basic structural ingredient. It's the starch in the flour that will, when mixed with liquid and heated in the oven, gelatinize and set when cooled. Flour also contains the proteins you need to make gluten, which is great for baking bread but not so desirable for making pie crusts. All you have to do is use a flour with a lower protein content, which generally means all purpose flour (cake flour might be too weak).

Fats are considered tenderizing agents for baked goods like cakes and pie crusts, rather than shortening agents like they would be for bread. In pie crusts, fats like oil, vegetable shortening, butter, and lard prevent gluten from getting formed in the first place by coating the flour granules, thus ensuring tenderness. Flakiness is achieved by the way you mix the dough: larger chunks of fat from less mixing make for more flakiness while more mixing and smaller fat chunks make a less flaky crust. They also add a lot of flavor, especially in the case of butter and animal fats. Lard and butter are also generally considered to have a better feel in the mouth, and lard is reputed to create a flakier crust than other fats.

Water and milk are the most common liquids, while buttermilk, eggs, and cream can also be used. Liquids function as a binding agent: they allow all of the ingredients to be evenly dissolved and incorporated. They also hydrate the the starch and protein in the flour and activate whatever leavening is being used. If you're using a liquid besides water, you're also adding fats, sugar, and acidity which is a good thing. The fats add tenderness, the adds to crust color, and the acidity makes the dough more stable and easier to roll out as well as taste better. Make sure to always use a cold liquid to keep the fat nice and cold, so it'll retain its shape/temperature and produce a flaky product.

Eggs are used for hydrating the dough, creating structure, giving color to the dough, and flavor. The whites are 90% water and the rest protein, so that aids in hydration and structure. The yolks are 50% water with the rest being mostly fat, contributing to hydration and tenderness as well as flavor and crust color.

Sugar adds sweetness and contributes the most to crust color. Ths crust turns golden brown because the sugar in the dough caramelizes as it's baked. Also, the texture of the dough can be changed by using sugar ground to different levels of fineness. For instance, powdered sugar makes a dough that is smoother, even if it doesn't taste as good as granulated.

I saw Candy Blog's review of The Original Lava Bar, "the world's first liquid chocolate bar," and it just seemed too odd not to pass along. Basically, this is a pouch of corn syrup, chocolate liquor, butter and sugar, among other things. Cybele likens it to "very, very good brownie batter." That was enough to make me want to steer clear of it, but she goes on to give it a decent review, saying that while slurping it out of the pouch was a little odd, the stuff did well on things like pretzels and almonds. Still, she says, it doesn't satisfy like real chocolate. I also find it a little odd that the Lava Bar site bills it as a "no-mess" chocolate bar. It looks a little messy. I guess this is the opposite of those chocolate bars that won't melt.

Don't worry - I wasn't cooking up any blue food when I took this picture. I simply colored some water with blue dye so that you could get a clear idea of how the OXO Angled Measuring Cups work . The plastic cups have and angled side that allows volumes to be read from above - so there is no need to lower yourself down to counter-level just to see if you've poured enough milk for your cake. They also have a convenient pouring spout, a comfortable, insulated handle and come in a wide range of sizes.

In addition to some of the larger sizes, I also have a 1/4 cup angled measure, which is perfect for up to 4 tablespoons of liquid. It is perfect for measuring those small amounts when a recipe calls for them, and not many of the more traditional measuring cups seem able to handle such a small volume, making it invaluable in my kitchen.

Yesterday, NPR's All Things Considered featured a story about how current restrictions on flying with liquids is affecting Napa Valley tourists and wineries. Obviously, it's common to bring some wine back from the wineries you visit, but not being able to carry those bottles on-board a plane is posing a problem that has many wineries worried. The situation is especially troubling to small wineries that rely on sales directly to visitors, as opposed to distributors. Checking glass of any kind in one's luggage is a scary prospect, of course. So, some wineries are offering styrofoam wine carriers that they hope will protect checked wine. Others are offering free shipping on large enough purchases. The styrofoam box pictured here comes from Uline Shipping Supplies.