This is a technique I've been playing with that's given me excellent results while minimizing effort, which is what I'm all about, anyway.
I use something like this, they're cheap and the work great:
While I've settled into my winter hibernation here in the Midwest, I've been hankerin' to bake bread. With all my culinary books still M.I.A, I decided to surf the net to find something similar to an artisanal bread I used to make a lot, though I don't think I've ever posted it. Feeling pretty sloth-like, I settled on a no-knead technique that was published in the NY Times a while back.
Because I haven't been able to find a direct link to the article and recipe (thanks Times, no linky for you!), I would point you towards Breadtopia.com for any of their recipes. If you've never checked their site out, you really should- they're very generous with their information, with tons of videos to help you to succeed the first time.
Oh, the name of the post came from Julie, who upon biting into it for the first time, remarked that it tasted like "restaurant bread", which I guess means I haven't totally forgotten everything I learned from my pro days, at least! We ate slices of it dipped in olive oil and aged parmesan, along with penne with salmon, broccoli, garlic, and sun-dried tomatoes.
I had to shoot it outside, and the sound of it crackling as it cooled in the 2º outside air was absolutely amazing. I have another loaf raising for the next 16 hours now, I just hope I can fit into my jeans after we eat it.
While going through the pantry the other day I saw our bread maker gathering dust in the corner. I've had it for years, but hadn't seen it since I moved to Phoenix over 5 years ago. A bread maker is that sort of gadget that rarely pays for itself for most people, I think, so when I first bought it I put a Post-it note on top so I could keep track of how many loaves I had made.
The Post-it is long gone, but I actually think I recouped my investment. It does a decent job, really, though I wish I had gotten the bigger model. Since I've had it out I've gotten away from the recipes that came with the machine, and I've been fooling around with my own.
Here's the recipe for the loaf in the picture:
1 1/2 C white bread flour
5/8 C wheat flour
3 T Tibvrtini Olio Extra Virgene di Olive
2t kosher salt
1 1/2t dry yeast.
That's it. Simple, but it makes a really good loaf, and I think the oil keeps it from getting stale too quickly. I keep it in the fridge in a one gallon Ziplock bag.
I'm a sucker for freshly baked bread. Where's the jam?
I mentioned BreadCetera.com last week, and the reason I stumbled on it in the first place was because I was looking for a focaccia recipe that was scaled down from the restaurant sized recipes I had, and I'm glad I did.
Search Steve's site for rosemary focaccia, and follow it exactly. If you don't have a gram scale, and you take baking seriously, you really should invest in one. I recommend using a really good olive oil, like our Tibvrtini Olio Extra Virgene di Oliva because the flavor of the oil really makes the bread, but use what you've got otherwise.
It's a superb technique, and the poolish gives it tons of character. I've made it with a traditional wild yeast sourdough starter before, and I think I prefer this.
Going on some friend's recommendation, I toasted some the next morning and just had a bit of jam on it. No need for butter because the oil made it so rich. Magical.
I threw together a pizza using some of Sprouts dough- (it comes in a 10" ball that's perfect for a 12" pizza- last night, and in the morning when I was prepping it I rough chopped up a bunch of garlic and let it mascerate all day in some of our Tibvrtini Olio Extra Virgene di Oliva. When I got home I started with the oil and garlic on the shell, then added the usual stuff and baked it off.
We were both knocked out by the flavor, so into the regular bag of tricks it goes. You have to be a bit more careful when adding the sauce, etc., but the dough picked up the garlic, big time.
It was out of the oven just in time for House, which is one of our favorites. The jury is still out on Fringe...
This was the same recipe as my last effort, only with walnuts instead of pecans. It's a terrific technique that involves no mixers, so give it a try sometime!
It's a great way to use up leftover bananas, and I going to experiment with making French toast with it.
Okay, I used Sprouts frozen dough, but the rest is from scratch. A few tricks- when working with thawed dough, or any dough that's starting to shrink back on you as you pan it out is to let it rest, then have at it again, I've found. 10 ounces of dough will get you a 12" diameter pizza if you're patient with it. When using sliced fresh garlic, I like to add it on top of the sauce, as opposed to on top of the cheese. It keeps it from burning, and it infuses the sauce as it cooks.
It was good eating as we watched my Steelers trounce the Browns. Good times, man, good times.
It's starting to cool off here in the desert, and I found myself craving a Thanksgiving dinner. By cooling, I mean temps under 100º, but it makes a huge difference here in Phoenix.
Well, it's not Thanksgiving yet, and I didn't have a turkey on hand, but this stuffed chicken dinner satisfied my "turkey jones" nonetheless.
(Photo: TPC)
I haven't had much of a chance to do much cooking, let alone take pictures of it, because I'm heading out of town tomorrow for 10 days. I had to cook something before I left, though, and you can't go wrong with pizza, right?
Here's the latest in a series of pizzas I've been making, and this one is a twist on a classic. It might be hard to tell from the pictures, but the entire pizza is covered with sandwich sized slices of pepperoni.
(Photo: Chris)
Chris, who won one of the first Food Fights, sends in this pic of some stuffed cornbread he made for Easter. It's his version of an Emeril recipe, so I won't post it here, but here's where you can find it.
I stumbled on this on foodnetwork.com while looking for a cornbread recipe to try out. I saw this one and said to myself "cheese..... bacon.... jalapenos.... this is a no brainer." When I made it for myself the first time, I err... kicked it up notch myself and used thick cut bacon, double the amount of cayenne, and added a little more jalapeno and didn't cut the seeds out. It had great flavor, nice heat, and so comforting with the melted cheese and bacon. It goes great with a tall cold beer in a frozen mug. If I remember right, the first time I made it, we had some poppers, wings, and brats with it too.
Thanks, Chris, this looks like something you could really customize if you wanted to. I love corn bread, and I like to make it in a cast iron skillet if I'm making it in family-sized batches.
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