A type of sea snail with a large, smooth brown or cream shell with zig zag stripes, containing an animal which has no operculum on its foot. Those found in markets are likely to be false bailer shells. It is found all round the coasts of Australia but it is illegal to trap it in some areas. Fishing of these shells is now mainly confined to the the south east, and bailers are sold in Sydeny Fish Market. Called the bailer shell because it holds water and could effectively be used to bail out water from a boat.
If you are invited to a bake in North America, you are likely to be eating outdoors, either baked or barbecued foods. The classic example is the clam bake. It is also a method of cooking using dry heat.
Baking is cooking in dry heat, such as in an oven, rather than by boiling or steaming. Pieces of meat dealt with in this way are referred to as roasted. In North America this also refers to a sort of party, particularly a clam bake.
Cloudberry. A relation of the raspberry but with an amber colour and which grows wild in northern regions of Europe and North America. Cloudberries are seldom cultivated. They have a smoky flavour and are excellent for making jams (US: jellies) and preserves.
Baking blind is baking an empty pastry case. The contents are later added and the whole thing cooked again. With some soft or liquid fillings the pastry would become soggy if this process was not carried out. The empty case is usually lined with baking parchment or filled with dried beans of some kind to prevent the centre of the base from rising too much and the sides from caving in.
A bake cup is a paper lining put into the individual compartments of a baking tin to assist in removal of the cakes once cooked. They can made with be either concertinaed paper or foil.
A toasted or warm, roasted bouquet emanating from wines, created by fermenting very ripe grapes grown in hot sun.
The baked Alaska is made with a flan base covered with ice cream around which meringue is heaped. It is cooked very rapidly, to cook the meringue without melting the ice cream. Created at Delmonicos to commemorate the purchase of Alaska by the United States. Based on the French dish omelette norvégienne. I worked with a woman in 1971 whose husband's boss came to dinner and she made baked Alaska to round off the meal. She brought it triumphantly from the kitchen and set it down in front of him. She then reached for a knife and plunged it into the interior. The ice cream erupted through the incision, all over the boss. So beware when you come to serve it!
