Pastry Marble Slabs

Traditionally, bakers prefer marble slabs as a work surface because the material keeps the dough cool. Slabs are often recommended when it comes to making other sweets, too, from candies to ice cream. It's the root of marble countertops in the home kitchen and small slabs that are readily available from many retailers. Let's take a look at a few ways to get a little "baker's marble" into the home kitchen:

A free-standing work surface provides a marble workplace without taking over the entire kitchen. It can also add a lot of style, like this antique one. Here is a lower-priced, mass-produced option that would work better for smaller kitchens.

Marble countertops throughout the kitchen are bright and luminous, which can prove a great visual accent for small kitchens. Many people shy away from permanent installation of white marble throughout the kitchen because of staining. But marble is actually somewhat forgiving if you don't mind the patina any natural material takes on with age (I actually prefer signs of age!). Go with a honed finish if you're worried about acid etching - acids will actually eat the polish right off of marble and leave you with unpolished spots all over the surface over time. The particular countertop pictured is from Sara Kate's visit to Melissa Clark's Revamped Kitchen.

Small slabs are handy for those who bake on occasion and want to store the slab away in the meantime. Here's a $40 slab at Sur la Table, or check out this even more affordable option.

(Images: linked to original sources in the text)

Comments (12)

I have a marble slab- basically a big marble cutting board- that my mother found at (I think) The Great Indoors one time in Jersey...she said it was like $25. I was pretty shocked it was so cheap and also, thrilled.

While i think the look of a huge marble slab countertop is absolutely stunning, the biggest "pro" in my mind is that it would be good for cooking chocolate, ice cream, etc. But the only thing is... how does one keep a countertop cool? Especially in the height of summer?

In that regard, I'm almost more inclined to get a big marble piece to use like a cutting board. 1) You could put it in your freezer to get it REALLY cold for chocolate/ice cream/etc. and 2) cheaper and 3) easily replaceable if you did damage it. Also, that would allow you to get a countertop that is much stronger and/or resistant to stains.

I have a large (2'x1') slab of green marble that I unearthed at my grandfather's house one day. He had no idea why he had it and was happy to give it up. It sits on my counter covering a rather ugly 1970s glass inset and is great for pastry,scones and rolling out other baked goods.

Wouldn't Stainless Steel also keep dough/ice cream/chocolate cool too?

If so, it's a much cheaper option if you like the look of stainless steel.

@The Kitchenette, I have a marble table and it's pretty much always cool, even when it's 90 degrees plus in my apartment. It has a relatively high specific heat capacity, meaning it takes a lot of heat to bring it's temperature up by 1 degree.

@renerodgers, stainless steel has a lower specific heat capacity than marble and a piece that was cheaper than marble would also be thinner which would make it a lot less able to maintain a cool temp.

@The Kitchenette/ renerodgers- marble stays cooler than other surfaces even in intense heat. This I learned when trying to roll out puff pastry, first on stainless steel, then moving to the marble, in an un-air-conditioned kitchen on a 100 degree day.

Besides, for chocolate you really don't want the thing to be frozen, and I can't really think of a reason you'd need to do anything with ice cream directly on a counter top.

I have a lovely 12 in round marble slab that is from India, where its used to roll out naan, chappatis, etc. It works very well for working dough and chocolate as well. I've never tried freezing or refrigerating since its always so cool to the touch but will have to try it.

The thing about marble is that it is heavy. The sort of thing you put in place and then don't ever move again, at least not regularly. It is a lovely surface to work on, though.

(Side note: my Dad actually made a work surface for his shop out of an old marble bathroom stall divider. Maybe not what you'd want for a kitchen surface, but it works well in that setting.)

I scored a marble tabletop for $20 from a thrift store--a very organized thrift store that had a whole stash of marble tabletops, divorced from their original tables. It happens to fit perfectly on top of a 2 x 3 Metro shelf. Voila--icy cool kitchen island! I made croissants on it, and it totally delivered.

When I was a little girl the drugstores in my small hometown all had soda fountains, all made of marble. When the first closed down, my dad made a deal to buy the marble counter and had it cut into five pieces, one for each of his kids for this express use! He was great at scavenging.

I saw recently that the last of the old drugstores in this town is currently for sale, complete with the old fountain (and I guess counter). Makes me sad....if it weren't in the middle of nowhere I'd go back and open a soda fountain of my own!

I picked up for $99 a marble-topped mini bar from a hotel surplus store in Atlanta. I painted the body and added legs to to make a proper height island for my kitchen. It has a couple of drink rings, but I cleaned it well with marble cleaner and feel fine making bread and pastry on it.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/ldeblieux/4380851212/in/photostream/

I was once at an auction and saw a HUGE marble pastry board for only $20 opening bid...and tried to lift it, realized there was no way in hell I could lug it back on the plane, and I tenderly kissed it good-bye.

DAMN.