Hi Folks,
Well it’s been a long time but I made some pastry boards (That’s what I call them anyway.) for rolling out dough. Yes I have gotten into making homemade, from scratch, pies!
Soooooooooooo, I made the boards, breadboarding the ends. They are made from gluing alternating maple & cherry strips together with a resulting thickness of 5/8″ and are 18″W x24L”. I’m puzzled as to a finish to use and am thinking beeswax for the top coat. I’d like to use Watco Danish Oil – Natural first, then top with wax, or should I simply wax them and be done? No finish at all? Should I post this over on Fine Cooking instead?
Scratching my head,
Replies
Hi Bob, I just finish my wood cutting boards with mineral oil, wipe on let soak wipe off, as you would with an oil finish on a piece of furniture. Then spruce up as needed!!, when do you start taking orders??. garyowen
Taking orders????
Hi gary,
If yur talking about pies, um, I might need a bit more practice. LoL
I started making pies this winter 'cause I couldn't find a good apple pie. Soooooo I have managed to get a flaky crust using the 100 year old recipe for pie crust, if I do say so meself. The next one will be made with maple syrup instead of sugar for the filling; we're really pushing it here. So far I've made 2 apple pies, a cherry and raspberry; drooling till rhubarb season which is not far away.
As for the pastry boards, they're easy, well kind of anyway. The breadboard ends can be a challenge but hey, that's what this is all about, eh? Sounds like no finish at al is the best way to go so I will go with that. I use mineral oil on cutingboards, end grain up.
Regards,
Hi Bob, most certainly the pies!, unless you also make a flakey board!. Yes rhubarb season is coming, along with some nicer weather, enjoy your baking and have fun. I guess from the feed back, the board should stay, nekid!. garyowen
I vote for nothing
As is no finish.
The best finish in this case is no finish at all. That is, unless you like Watco-flavored pastry...
Seriously though, my wife regularly uses my grandmother's pastry board, which is unfinished (maple?) and approaching the century mark.
And another--NO FINISH
Ok, no Watco it is; actually nothing seems best. Dang, this is getting easier all the time!
I made one years ago when I started baking bread. I put one light coat of mineral oil on it when I made it and nothing else since. Each time, when I am done using it, I scrape it down with the grain using a kitchen scraper and pushing it at a low angle. It takes all the xtra dough off and probably a bit of wood too. The board gets better with age and is a joy to use. I don't use breadboard edges, I put a backsplash board on the back facing up, and a shorter lip on the bottom facing down. It looks like a big bench hook. The back keeps flour from going all over the place and the front hooks over the kitchen counter. Kneading bread dough pushes the board forward a lot and the hook is esential, I also put two little rubbrt feet on each end of the hook where it contacts the counter and four feet on the bottom of the board in the corners to the keep the board from sliding around. I use poplar and run the grain sideways, not back to front. The backsplash allows me to hang the board off the end of my counter in the little space between the counter and the fridge for storage. I have nothing against breadboard edges, I use them on table tops, but with the grain running sideways and the two lips my board has never warped or split. Have fun with the pies and give bread a try too.
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