Eat Your Words: Biography and Egg Wash
Devouring books and crafting meals is great – but sounding smart while you do it is even better. That’s why we’re teaching you to eat your words. In this weekly guide, we introduce one literary device (PAPER) and one culinary term (PLATES) everyone should know.
Biography (noun): the true story of one person's life, written by another.
Example: Angie Jaime's book recommendation this week, Team of Rivals, is a biography of President Abraham Lincoln unlike any she encountered in her many years of Illinois education. What set this work apart for her was the extent to which it was complete – covering all aspects of Lincoln's life, from birth to death and everything in between. Technically, however, biographies do not need to trace the subject's whole life. In some cases, they focus specifically on some aspect of a prominent person's achievements or undertakings.
Egg Wash (noun): a combination of beaten egg and some liquid (usually milk or water) which is brushed onto a pastry's surface using a pastry brush. At times, beaten egg without liquid mixed in will do.
Example: Apple pie cups – the phrase alone evokes images of warm, crusty mini-pies bursting at the seams with a gooey apple filling. To achieve this image, though, the pastry must be brushed with egg before baking. When placed in the oven, the egg helps brown the pastry. This is not its only use, though. Egg washes can also be used to bind things together; for example, they can be used to seal raviolis or won ton wrappers.
See past installments by visiting our Eat Your Words archive!