Brioche and Breakfast for Dinner

Gail has been on me for a few weeks to make Brioche because 1) she wanted to make french toast so we can enjoy breakfast for dinner and 2) it is absolutely delicious! 

As I've explained multiple times I am learning to bake, especially bread, but I am not an expert. Lucky for me those with far more knowledge and skill have made their fool proof recipes available on the Internet. In the case of Brioche, I turn back to Michael Ruhlman's recipe which is easy enough that as he claims an eleven year-old and a stand mixer can make it. 

I may not be eleven, but I do have a stand mixer and a love of great (and easy to make) bread! Once again (this was my 2nd time with this recipe) the results were fantastic. The loaf is eggy, buttery, and almost cake like with a nice flaky crust:

With such an easy recipe that can produce something as delicious and great as the above photo I don't think I need to search for another one. Ruhlman's recipe will definitely be my standby when a basic loaf of brioche is needed. 

As I stated at the top of the post the whole point of making the brioche was so we could have french toast for dinner! Last night Gail sliced up half of the loaf and made a great homemade french toast that she dusted with a pinch of curry sugar. Topped with Cook's Farm maple syrup, a pile of crispy John Crow Farm bacon, and a fruit salad.  On a day that seemed like winter had finally arrived here in Boston a warm filling breakfast for dinner was exactly what we needed! 

Chewy Tangy Bread

I am not an expert bread maker, I barely qualify as a novice most of the time, but I keep trying with some great success as well as some pretty bad failures as well, but sometimes I bake bread that is absolutely what I envisioned. The 2 loaves I made on Saturday were a perfect example of the final product coming out just as I had hoped. The addition of fed sourdough starter gives this bread a slightly tangy taste. The bread had a thin and crispy crust and the loaves were soft, fluffy, and chewy -a perfect vehicle for a bit of warmed butter and a great addition to the dinner table.

 

 Chewy Tangy Bread
(makes 2 loaves)

1 1/2 cups fed sourdough starter
1 1/2 cups lukewarm water
2 teaspoons instant yeast
1 tablespoon sugar
2 1/2 teaspoons salt
5 cups flour (I used 4 cups King Arthur All-Purpose Flour & 1 cup bolted Warthog from Four Star Farms)

Combine all of the ingredients and knead to form a smooth dough. Place dough in a well oiled bowl, cover with plastic wrap and allow to rise until doubled, approximately 90 minutes. After dough has risen, divide the dough in half. Shape each half into an oval shaped loaf and place on parchment-lined or corn meal dusted baking sheet. Cover and let loaves rise until puffy, about 1 hour. As the dough is rising preheat the oven to 425 F.
Make deep slashes in each loaf with a serrated bread knife and mist with lukewarm water. Place a shallow pan with lukewarm water in the bottom rack of the oven. Back the bread for 25 to 30 minutes on the upper rack until bread is golden brown. Remove from oven and let cool on a rack.

(submitted to YeastSpotting)

Buckwheat x Sourdough

This bread was a challenge for me in multiple ways. I had never used buckwheat before in bread making, nor had I deviated so much from a 'base' recipe when baking, which is why I was pleased with how tasty this was. The final product was a hearty bread with a moist and chewy crumb, a crispy crusty, and a tang that reminded me more of a Russian style light rye bread then a sourdough. Whatever it was it tasted great!!

I have been hoping to find a steady source of local grains for a while and was really excited to have an opportunity to pick up a variety of locally grown grains and flours this past weekend from the folks at  Four Star Farms in Northfield, MA. The L'Etoile family clearly cares about their grains which even more evident after visiting the Sustainable Farming part of their website. I made this loaf with a mix of their bolted Warthog (15.4% protein), their Zorro (16.9% protein), and their Buckwheat flour. For more info on these and their other flours visit the Four Star Farms flour page.

The first step was to feed my sourdough starter with 3/4 cup of bolted Warthog and 3/4 a cup of water and let it do it's magic overnight. After a night out on the counter the fed starter had a nice tangy aroma and looked to be fairly active.

Fred's experimental Buckwheat x Sourdoughmakes 2 loaves

Starter:

1 cup King Arthur Flour sourdough starter

3/4 cup bolted Warthog flour

Bread:

1 1/2 cups water, room temperature

1/2 cup buckwheat flour

1 1/2 cups 'whole wheat flour' (sifted Zorro), plus extra for baking

2 cups 'bread flour' (bolted Warthog)

12-16 oz fed sourdough starter

2 teaspoons kosher salt

1 teaspoon sugar

large handful of cornmeal for the baking sheet.

Using a stand mixer with the dough hook mix together the water and all 3 flours on low speed for a bout a minuted or until the the mix is stiff and a little shaggy. Cover the mixing bowl with plastic wrap and let sit for 10-15 minutes.

With the mixer on medium speed add the fed sourdough starter (I tried using a cup an a half but it was so sticky I am sure I ended up using a full 2 cups), salt, and sugar and mix for 3-4 minutes or until starter is well incorporated. At this point the dough should be somewhere between sticky and smooth, slightly sticky but still smooth and stretchy. If it is too lose at a little more flour, if it is too stiff add a little more water.

Transfer dough to a lightly oiled bowl, turning the dough in the bowl to coat with oil. Cover the bowl with a lightly oiled piece of plastic wrap and let it sit for 2-3 hours (I let it sit for the full 3 hours).

After the dough has sat, flour your hands and work area and turn the dough out of the bowl. Divide the dough in half and shape each half into a ball by continuously tucking the edges of the dough underneath until the dough has shaped itself into a ball with a taut surface.

Sprinkle your baking sheet generously with cornmeal and place the loaves on the baking sheet, spacing them at least 3 inches apart. Cover them loosely with plastic wrap and let them sit at room temperature for another 2 - 3 hours (mine sat 2.5 hours) or until they have loosened up and relaxed a bit.

Preheat the oven to 500 F and position one rack in the center. Sprinkle the tops of the loaves with the extra flour. Slash the surface of the loaves with a knife and place the baking sheet in the oven on the center rack with a pan filled with 2 cups of water on the rack below. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, until the loaves are a golden brown or darker on top and sound hollow when you tap the bottom.

Transfer the loaves to a wire rack and let them cool for at least an hour before slicing.

(submitted to yeastspotting)

Two loaves: Crusty 'Country' Bread

It's been a while since I baked bread (almost 4 whole weeks!) and I had been having the urge to bake some, primarily due to the fact that Gail and I received a KitchenAid mixer for Hanukkah!! Both of us have been more then eager to test out the 5 quart tilt-head mixer. Gail had her opportunity on Friday when she whipped up a batch of meringues, Monday was my turn!! 

I wanted to try a new recipe, but did not want to over commit myself as the bread was being made in the downtime while baby sitting a beef stew. Because I was already doing prep work for the stew on Sunday, I had the opportunity to make a biga. Besides my use of sourdough starter I had never tried any other pre-ferment methods for bread baking. The biga or mother was a pretty simple mix:

3/4 cup water

1 cup + 1/4 cup unbleached all-purpose flour

1/4 teaspoon active dry yeast

Combine the water, 1 cup of flour, and yeast until well mixed. Let sit in a bowl covered with plastic wrap for 6 - 8 hours. Stir in the additional 1/4 cup flour until dough stiffens up, recover, and place in the refrigerator overnight. That's it. Just like Ron Popeil says: set it, and forget it! Not much effort to make the mother, just some time. 

The actual bread recipe is in Joanne Chang's Flour: Spectacular Recipes from Boston's Flour Bakery + Cafe which I have baked from before with great success. She says about the Country Bread recipe "It's not ethereal and light like a classic French baguette, nor is it hearty and sour like an artisanal sourdough loaf. Rather, it falls deliciously in between..." After making and trying this bread I have to agree wholeheartedly! The loaf we eagerly cut into had a crispy crust and a nice density without being too thick or hearty. 

I altered the recipe a little by rubbing minced garlic and sage into the dough, however I didn't use nearly enough as the flavor was completely missing from the final product, but the bread was great and one is wrapped up and can sit in the freezer for a few weeks!

Mini Irish Soda Bread Scones

I've always been a fan of both Irish soda bread and pretty much anything in the scone family. Gail makes the most incredible mexican chocolate scones, and I had past success with the cranberry-orange variety last year.

A few weeks ago I picked up a container of dried currants with the intent on snacking on some and using a portion of them in some sort of soda bread or scone concoction. After dinner on Saturday night I whipped up this classic Irish Soda Bread recipe and made scones out of them. Though they looked troublesome as they went into the oven the final product was over 2 dozen mini scones that tasted great and were not too dry, but just dry enough that they go great with tea or coffee in the morning or as a late afternoon treat.

Another plus is that the recipe was pretty simple and start to finish took less then an hour.  The recipe comes from Stephanie's on Newbury which is known for the bread and offers up the recipe on a little card with the bread.

Irish Soda Bread/Mini Soda Bread Scones

via Stephanie's On Newbury

makes 1 loaf of bread or approximately 2 dozen mini scones

4 cups flour

1/4 lb butter

1/2 tbs baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup sugar

1 egg

1/2 cup buttermilk

1 cup currants

Preheat oven to 375 F. 

Place flour baking powder, baking soda, salt, and sugar into a blow. Incorporate butter into flour until mixture represents cornmeal. In a separate bowl add eggs to the buttermilk. Whisk thoroughly then add to the flour mixture. Mix until all liquid is absorbed but do not over mix. The dough should not be smooth. Shape dough into 1 egg loaf or for mini scones scoop 1 tbs of batter onto baking sheet. Score an X mark on the top of each loaf.  Bake soda bread for 1 hour. Baking mini scones for about 20 minutes.

Two Loaves - Fannie Farmer French Bread

These two photos are from two different loaves of french bread. I made the dough together and refrigerated one and baked it the next day. The first was made fresh and the second was from the dough that came out of the refrigerator.
These were not baguettes. The only way I can really describe them is as the type of french bread that is perfect for soup or a french bread pizza, but ultimately they were not baguettes. Everyone who tired them though agreed that both loaves were delicious. Being my own harshest critic I felt the second loaf was inferior to the first because as I rolled the dough I did not pinch it enough and the dough had a ring in the center as the layers rose. The first loaf had a great crumb and perfect crust. It was used for an awesome french onion soup. Gail and I visited our friend Sharon, of Thyme to Cook Personal Chef Service for dinner, and she showed Gail how to make the French Onion Soup from Julia and Jacques: Cooking at Home. This type of bread was perfect to slice up for use in the soup.
The recipe for this 'French' bread comes from an old printing of The All New Fannie Farmer Boston Cooking School Cookbook dated 1975. It makes a loaf with a nice golden crust that is not too dense. A good loaf to practice with and adapt.

French Bread
makes 2 or 3 loaves
These long thin loaves with chewy crisp crusts are perfect for French or Italian style meals. If you like shape part of the dough into small rolls. This dough is also good for English muffins or pizza.

Put in a large mixing bowl:

• 1 cup lukewarm water
• 1 package yeast

Let stand 5 minutes. Add:

• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 2 tablespoons shortening (I used butter)

Stir well. Add:

• 2 cups all-purpose or bread flour

Beat thoroughly with a rotary beater or an electric mixer. Add:

• 1 cup flour (or enough to make a stiff dough)

Sprinkle a board with flour. Put the dough on it and let rest 10 minutes. Knead well, let rise, punch down and let rise again.

Turn the dough out on a floured surface and divide into two or three parts. Let rest 10 minutes. Flatten each part with a rolling pin to about 1/4 inch thickness. Roll up each sheet of dough tightly to make a long slender loaf. Press firmly along the rolled edges to seal. Sprinkle cookie sheets with:

• Corn meal

Put the loaves on the sheets leaving enough space between them so that they will be crusty on all sides. Cut diagonal gashes in the loaves about 1/2 inch deep. Beat together:

• 1 egg white
• 1 tablespoon water
• 1 teaspoon salt

Brush over the top of the loaves. Let rise until double in bulk (about 1 hour).

Put a large pan of boiling water in the bottom of the oven with the pans of bread on a rack above. Bake at 425 F for 10 minutes. Brush again with egg mixture Reduce the heat to 375 F and bake until the bread sounds hollow when you tap it (about 25 minutes). Cool on a wire rack.

The recipe above is at is presented in the cookbook. Obviously give some time for the oven to warm up and to boil the water before you bake the bread. As I said at the top of the post, I make one loaf fresh and refrigerated the other one. Though the recipe claims this can make 2 or 3 loaves I think 2 is more accurate, as 3 loaves would be fairly small. As a note, I had better results with the loaf that was made fresh then with the dough from the fridge, but both had a pretty nice crumb and a great crust.

(submitted to yeastspotting)

No-knead Crusty Dutch Oven Bread

(submitted to yeastspotting)

Back in October when I cooked up the brisket I made my first loaf in a dutch oven. I wanted to revisit the process but produce something with a little more crust and heft then the loaf I had made a few months ago.  The final result, which is pictured was exactly what I had imagined when I set out to make this loaf. A nice crunchy crust, a heartier taste with an undertone of rosemary. With bread this good that is so deceptively simple, I am sure this style will become a mainstay in my bread making rotation!




No-knead Dutch Oven Bread
1/4 tsp active dry yeast
1 1/2 cups warm water
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, plus some for dusting
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1 tbs rosemary
1 1/2 tsp salt
cornmeal for dusting.
In a large bowl dissolve yeast in water. Add the flour(s), rosemary and salt, stirring well until blending. The dough should be pretty shaggy and sticky at this point. Cover the bowl in plastic wrap and let it rest for 8 hours at room temperature.
Once the dough is ready lightly flour a work surface and place the dough on it. Sprinkle with flour,  punch down and fold on itself a few times. Cover and let rest 15 more minutes. Once rested shape the dough into a ball, place in bowl and dust with cornmeal, turning dough ball as you go. Cover and let rest another hour.
With the dough resting and about 25 minutes left preheat the oven to 475 degrees, with a 6-8 qt dutch oven inside as the oven heats. When the dough is ready carefully remove the dutch oven and lift the lid off. Slide the dough into the dutch oven, shaking it firmly once or twice to help distribute the dough.
Cover the dough and bake for 30 minutes, remove the lid and bake an additional 15-20 minutes until the loaf is a nice golden brown. Remove the bread from the Dutch oven and let it cool on a wire rack for an hour.
There you have it, a long on wait time, but low-impact loaf that is very delicious!

What have you been baking lately??

Garlic Rosemary Focaccia

Squares of rosemary infused heaven!

If it isn't already apparent, I really love bread. The impetus to hone my baking skills sprang from a desire to teach myself to make delicious bread, everything would be a bonus! Last year I had some great success with the very easy Blitz-Bread/No-Fuss Focaccia recipe. A very simple, beginners recipe to make a fluffy seasoned bread that somewhat resembled focaccia. With some recent baking success to encourage me I decided it was time to tackle the real thing. Using our often drooled over and much loved Flour: Spectacular Recipes from Boston's Flour Bakery + Cafe cookbook I set out to make my own pan of the amazing, flavorful and pillowy bread that I love so much from the countless sandwich's I've devoured at Chang's Flour Bakery. My first attempt was not the delicious golden brown perfectly seasoned squares of fluffy goodness you see above, no the first result was a bit more... well done. The initial attempt at making the bread ended with my having over-baked the bread due to the oven running hotter then I anticipated. 

Don't you just want to reach into the screen and eat some?

Despite the first attempt yielding a big square of overcooked, slightly darkened bread  that wasn't exactly soft, Gail and I managed to devour the focaccia cracker in a few short days. The recipe had all the potential in the world, I just had to try again, and keep the fickle oven in the front of my mind. 

My second attempt yielded a perfect pan of fluffy, garlic infused rosemary focaccia that would be awesome for soaking up an infused oil, great for sandwiches  and the potential base for a really fantastic pizza dough! I followed the recipe in the book as directed with only two minor adjustments: mincing two garlic cloves to sprinkle on top of the bread and sticking to the lower end of the cooking time to ensure that the bread was not overdone. Gail and I agreed the second attempt was a rousing success, and this is definitely the focaccia recipe I will be using from here on in, if I have the 3.5 - 5 hours required to produce such a delightful outcome. 

So far I've really enjoyed this cookbook! Gail has had great success with the homemade oreo's, and I loved the rosemary shortbread. I'm looking forward to exploring more of the recipes within, until I feel confident enough in my baking skills to tackle Flour's legendary sticky buns!

(submitted to Yeastspotting, which will be hosted next week by Hefe und mehr)

Resurrecting Sourdough Starter

My sourdough starer has been sitting the back of the fridge, totally neglected since spring. While I garden I don't bake much because I am too busy outside!... It had been a while since I thought about the starter in it's beautiful ceramic container. It's gotten much cooler and I'm back to baking. It was time to raise the starter from the dead!

From this...

No problems! I poured of a little of the liquid, stirred up the starter in a bowl, added some lukewarm water and flour and let the starter sit for 10 hours. By then it was quite bubbly and active and had a nice tangy smell. Not wanting to waste the 'discard' before I re fed the starter I pulled up this basic and easy recipe from King Arthur Flour. The bread had a light tang and wasn't too dense, as I stuck on the lighter side of the required flour.

... to this!

The purpose of resurrecting the starter was to make a true sourdough or something equally delicious, which is what is on deck for the weekend.  

Are you doing more baking now that it's fall??

Italian Feather Bread

submitted to Yeastspotting
Back in May when Gail and I made cheese we had some leftover whey that we decided to save for me to try and make some bread with. We ended up freezing it in a mason jar so I could make the bread when I was ready rather then right away. As fall has hit us hard, practically running into winter with an early snow flurry, and a few inches in the forecast for  tonight I find myself willing to make more. Earlier in the week I thawed the whey in preparation for making bread.

A loaf cut in half.

We ended up with 2 loaves of delicious crust bread that was just the right balance of density and fluff. Nothing beats warm bread on a cold day, which held true as Gail and I split half a loaf on the spot to enjoy with our lunch!
Italian Feather Bread (with whey)
makes 2 loaves
2 packages active dry yeast (or equivalent)
1 Tbls granulated sugar
1 cup warm water
1/3 cup butter, cut into small pieces
3/4 cup hot whey (or milk)
2 tsp. salt
5 1/2 to 6 cups all-purpose flour
1 egg white, lightly beaten
Cornmeal
 Stir the yeast, sugar, and warm water together in a large bowl. Let sit until yeast dissolves and begins to proof. While waiting for mixture to proof melt the butter in the hot whey and let cool to lukewarm. Add salt, and combine with yeast mixture.
Stir vigorously with a wooden spoon, adding the flour 1 cup at a time, until the dough almost comes away from the sides of the bowl.
Turn out the dough onto a lightly floured board. Use a scraper or spatula to scrape under the flour and dough, fold the dough over, and press with your free hand.
continue until the dough has absorbed enough flour to be easy to handle. Knead 2-4 minutes, keeping your hands well floured.  When the dough is soft and smooth, let it rest for 5 minutes, then divide in two.
Roll each half into a rectangle about 12'' x 8". Start from the wide end, roll this up quite tightly, pinchign the seams as you roll.
Butter one or two baking sheets well and sprinkle with cornmeal. Place the loaves on the sheets, and let them rise in a warm, draft-free place until doubled in bulk, about 50-60 minutes. Brush with beaten egg white and bake in a preheated 425 F oven 30-40 minutes, or until the loaves are a deep golden color and make a hollow sound when you tap with your knuckles.
Cool on a rack and slice when quite fresh.
My lunch was a plate of Jarlsberg, Smith's Farmstead medium cheddar, feather bread, & a trio of pates - accompanied with a homemade pickle and a horseradish mustard mixture. The trio of pates were leftovers from Friday night. Gail and I had an early dinner after work at Petit Robert Central before seeing Blitzen Trapper in concert (which was awesome!) Our service and stellar were both spectacular. We each enjoyed a crock of delicious french onion soup, while she had salad and I had a pate trio as my main. The pates were a chicken liver, a pork liver, and a mix of pork and chicken liver. They are all made in-house and have distinct and rich flavors. Despite my claim that I did not want the leftovers, our busboy packed them up for me anyway. Boy am I glad he did, the leftovers made a great lunch!

Cheese, Bread, Trio of Pate's & accompaniments 

Zucchini Breads

(Zucchini Bread & Homemade Jam)

With gardens and farms alike exploding with massive zucchini it is a good time to buy in bulk and make some treats to enjoy now as well as save for later! Though we weren't able to successfully grow zucchini this year (or last!) I was able to pick up a few huge zucchini for a great price at a local farmers market. My thoughts had turned to fall and winter. In college a good friend would always show up with his mom's homemade zucchini bread after visiting home, it was so delicious I've been hooked on zucchini bread ever since.

(Slices of plain & chocolate Zucchini Bread)

One thing that is great about most zucchini bread recipes is that they yield enough batter for 2 loaves, or a loaf and muffins! Over the course of the past week Gail and I have made a few batches of delicious Zucchini bread's! We even made an extra large batch that was ruined thanks to an uncooperative oven, nonetheless the final product is great! We ended up with fresh loaves of Chocolate and Original Zucchini bread, as well as a frozen loaf of each, and a batch of chocolate zucchini muffins!

(2 loaves! One for now, one to freeze for later)

Zucchini Bread

yields 2 loaves or 2 dozen muffins

3 eggs

1 cup vegetable oil

1 2/4 cups sugar

2 cups grated zucchini

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

3 cups all-purpose flour

3 teaspoons cinnamon

1/8 teaspoon nutmeg

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

Preheat oven to 350°F

Grease and flour two 8x4 inch loaf pans or Line 24 muffin cups with paper liners.

In a large bowl, beat eggs with a whisk. Mix in oil and sugar followed by the vanilla and zucchini.

In a separate bowl combine flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Mix into the egg mixture.

Divide the batter into prepared pans. Bake loaves for55-60 minutes, checking after 45 until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Muffins will bake in 20-25 minutes.

Chocolate Zucchini Bread

yields 2 loaves or 2 dozen muffin

2 cups of flour

2 teaspoons cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 teaspoon baking soda

6 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder

1/2 cup vegetable oil

1 cup sugar

1/4 cup brown sugar

3 eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla

1/2 cup sour cream

3 cups grated zucchini

3/4 cups mini chocolate chips.

Topping:

2 Tablespoons brown sugar

2 Tablespoons white sugar

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

Grease and flour two 8x4 inch loaf pans or Line 24 muffin cups with paper liners. Mix topping ingredients in a small bowl and put aside.

Place flour, cinnamon, baking soda, salt, and cocoa powder in a small bowl and whisk to combine, set aside.

With a hand mixer beat oil, white sugar, brown sugar, and eggs until combined and fluffy, about 1-2 minutes. Add vanilla and sour cream and mix until combined. Gently stir in the great zucchini.

Take a spoonful of the flour mix and stir in with the chocolate chips. Add remaining flour mixture to the batter and stir until combined. Add chocolate chips and stir until combined.

Divide the batter into prepared pans. Bake loaves for 50-60 minutes, checking after 45 until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Muffins bake up in about 12 minutes.

There you have it, 2 ass-kicking good Zucchini Bread recipes. The plain is great with a dollop of homemade jam like in the first picture, and the chocolate is decadent and rich all on its own!

What do you do with all of your zucchini??

Brioche

In my continued pursuit of better baking skills I have been trying new recipes and techniques to improve my arsenal. On Thursday and Friday I tried my hand at Brioche! Using acclaimed food writer Michael Ruhlman's recipe as my guide I was astounded with how great the results were on my first attempt:

The crust was dark and flaky and the crumb was soft and rich. It may not be the prettiest Brioche attempt but Gail and I were both extremely satisfied with the outcome.

Head over to Ruhlman.com where you will find the extremely satisfying recipe.

In the spirit of the Dark Days Challenge I kept the ingredients as local as possible using eggs, butter, and milk from local producers as well as bread flour from the fine folks at Four Star Farms who are committed to sustainable farming.

I'm not sure what is next in this ongoing baking experiment, maybe something on the sweet and decadent side.

King Arthur vs. Martha

As I mentioned yesterday Gail and I exchanged our Hanukkah presents a few days before thanksgiving & I received the great sourdough starter & enamel container set from King Arthur flour. With a few extra days off last week I was able to put the King Arthur starter(left in the above photo) to the test. I decided to see how it compares to my own homemade starter, Martha(right in the above photo).

I used the same recipe to feed both starters and make the bread. I kept both starters labeled:

After combining the fed starter and initial ingredients I let each bowl sit on the counter for 4 hours, followed by 12 hours in the fridge. King Arthur came out of the fridge stretch and firm while Martha was bubbly and almost soupy. Both had a strong tangy aroma, so I was pleased to be on the right path.

I added the remaining ingredients into the dough and let them sit covered in a bowl for 5 more hours , shaped the dough into loaves and placed them on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. I let the loaves rise an additional 3 hours before placing them into the oven:

Here is what they looked like just before they went into the oven:

It's hard to tell from the angle I took the above photo, but the loaf made with the King Arthur starter had risen dramatically compared to Martha. The King Arthur loaf was puffy while Martha remained flat, having spread more then risen.

The final results speak for themselves:

The King Arthur loaf had a nice crispy crust and had a delicious tangy taste with it's first use! I was pleased with Martha's tanginess but the loaf was extremely doughy and dense. A few slices from the King Arthur loaf, however most slices were fluffy enough.

I think it's clear the King Arthur based loaf was far superior. I have not perfected my sourdough yet, but with this starter my results will dramatically improve!

The recipe I used is based on King Arthur's recipe for Extra-Tangy Sourdough Bread with portions reduced to make 1 loaf per recipe instead of 2. My version is below, but I suggest following the link to King Arthur's recipe, it is full of pictures and much more detailed.

Extra-Tangy Sourdough Bread

1 cup fed sourdough starter

3/4 cup lukewarm water

2 cups Unbleached All-Purpose Flour (obviously I use King Arthur)

1/2 cup Whole Wheat Flour

1/2-3/4 tablespoon sugar

1- 1 1/4 teaspoon salt

Preparation:

-Combine the starter, water, 1 cup all purpose flour and 1/2 cup whole wheat flour. Beat very well until ingredients are thoroughly mixed.

-Cover, and let stand at room temperature for 4 hours. After 4 hours place covered bowl in refrigerator for 12 hours (overnight).

-Add the remaining all-purpose flour, sugar, and salt. Knead to form a smooth dough (it took me about 4 minutes)

- Let the do rise in a covered bowl until it has smoothed out and risen. This can take as long as 5 hours (which is how long I let it rise)

-Shape the dough into an oval loaf, and place it on a lightly greased or parchment line baking sheet. Cover the loaf and let it rise (again) until puffy (2-4 hours). As rising time nears an end preheat the over to 425F.

-Gently spray or mist the loaves with lukewarm water.

- Make two deep horizontal slashes in the loaf.

-Bake the bread for 25 to 30 minutes. The loaf should be a deep golden brown color when it is finished. Remove it form the oven and cool on a rack.

I highly suggest looking at the original recipe and note the changes I may have made. I substituted the whole wheat flour because many baking forums and posts regarding sourdough suggested this for a crispier crust.

I was very pleased with my first results of the starter Gail gave me and look forward to more baking adventures with it.

Bread & Cake

I love to cook, but I am not much of a baker. My goal for the winter is to expand my baking skills.

With that in mind I've been reading and learning about bread making, specifically sourdough bread. Until recently I had never made a yeast based bread in the oven. Or baked a cake.

Both of these facts changed this past weekend, with surprisingly positive results!

Friday Night, after bringing my sourdough starter to life(more on this in a later post) during the week I was ready to take the plunge. For my first attempt I tried a not sour Rustic Sourdough Bread from the good folks at King Arthur Flour. You can see the original recipe 2 loaves, so I cut everything in half and made a slight alteration. I'm incredibly pleased with the results:

The bread was chewy and flavorful with a medium brown crust. The original recipe called just for all-purpose flour, but I wanted something a little heartier so I made a slight alteration. My version of the recipe is below:

Rustic (not so sour) Sourdough Bread:

based on/inspired by King Arthur Flour's recipe.

Ingredients:

3/4 cup 'fed' sourdough starter

3/4 to 1 cup lukewarm water

1 teaspoon instant yeast

1/2 tablespoon sugar

1 to 1 1/4 teaspoon salt

2 cups unbleached all purpose flour

1/2 cup whole wheat flour

Preparation:

1) Combine all of the ingredients, kneading to form a ball of smooth dough.

2) Cover and allow the dough to rise in a bowl until doubled in size, approximately 90 minutes.

3) Gently shape the dough into an oval loaf, and place it on a lightly greased or parchment-lined baking sheet. Cover and let rise until very puffy, about 1 hour. Towards the end of the rising time, preheat the oven to 425°F.

4) Spray the loaf with lukewarm water

5) Make two or three fairly deep horizontal slashes in each

6) Bake the bread for 25 to 30 minutes, until it's a very deep golden brown. Remove it from the oven, and cool on a rack.

As you can see I was going for a heartier loaf then the original recipe called for. Adding the 1/2 cup of whole wheat flour did the trick. Later in the week I'll be attempting a true sourdough (using only my starter, and not any additional yeast).

The baking firsts continued on Saturday. Last week I mentioned the two great cookbooks Gail and I had recently acquired. In that post I mentioned I had been salivating over some of the recipes in the 'Fresh Flavors of Israel Cookbook' one of them being the Apple with Honey Upside Down Cake. In my quest to tweak my baking skills I dove in and tried baking the cake, which yielded fairly positive and quite delicious results.

I say the results of the cake were only fairly positive because of a slight miscalculation. The original recipe called for a 10-inch spring-form pan, we only had a 9-inch pan available. I did not adjust the baking temperature/time to account for a thicker cake, so the center was gooey, but the cake itself was moist, sweet and delectable. A real fall inspired treat!

Upside-down Apple and Honey Cake

from 'Fresh Flavors from Israel' cookbook

Ingredients (for a 10 in/26 cm spring-form pan):

Apple Topping:

2 tablespoons oil

1/3 cup brown sugar

3 tart baking apples, peeled, cored, and sliced into 1/4 in slices.

Cake:

3 eggs

3/4 cup cup brown sugar

3/4 cup oil

3/4 cup honey

3/4 cup apple juice, warm. (I used warm apple cider)

2 1/3 cup flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon ground cloves.

Preparation:

1) Preheat oven to 350 F

2) Prepare the topping: Cover the bottom and walls of the pan with the oil. Sprinkle on a uniform coating of the brown sugar. Arrange apples in one dense layer.

3) Prepare the cake: Beat the eggs with the brown sugar for 5 minutes until light and fluffy. Add oil and honey and beat until smooth. Add the warm apple juice and mix well.

4) In a separate bowl whisk the flour with the baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and cloves. Add to the eggs and honey batter and mix until just combined. Once mixed pour batter over pan.

5) Bake for 50-55 minutes until a toothpick comes out dry with a few crumbs sticking. Cook in the pan for 15 minutes. Invert the pan over a large flat serving plate, release the spring and gently lift off the ring. Serve at room temperature.

The cake is perfect for fall. I'll definitely make it again, and when I do I will remember to adjust for a smaller pan!

What are you baking this fall??

Bread from a Pint-Glass!

I was recently tipped off to a great recipe from Saveur.com for Pint-Glass Bread, a bread that can be made using an imperial pint glass as the only measuring device (if desired). After securing an imperial pint glass, I was able to try the recipe for myself. Here are the results of my first attempt:

The final product was a hearty soda bread that is a great vehicle for jam and a perfect accompaniment to a strong cup of coffee. The bread was easy to make, even with measuring devices. I'll definitely add it to my repertoire!

I used an imperial pint glass as instructed, everything was measured out as directed by the recipe, but I double-checked the measurements using kitchen tools just to be sure.

Pint-Glass Bread

courtesy of a recipe from Saveur.com

1 pint glass (2 1/2 cups) all-purpose flour

1 pint glass (2 1/2 cups) whole wheat flour

Enough baking soda to coat the bottom of a pint glass (3/4 tsp)

Enough salt to coat the bottom of a pint glass (3/4 tsp)

Enough butter to coat the bottom of a pint glass (1 tbsp.)

3/4 pint glass (1 & 3/4 cups) buttermilk

1. Preheat the oven to 375°. Sprinkle 1 tsp. of the all-purpose flour over the center of a baking sheet and set aside. Put 2 tsp. of the all-purpose flour into a small bowl and set aside. Meanwhile, put remaining all-purpose flour, whole wheat flour, baking soda, and salt into a large bowl and mix well with your hands to combine. Add butter, breaking it up into small pieces with your fingers, and mix it into flour mixture until combined. Make a well in the center of the flour–butter mixture and add buttermilk. Slowly incorporate buttermilk into flour mixture with your hands until a rough ball forms, then turn out onto a lightly floured surface and form into a neat ball (without kneading).

2. Transfer dough to center of baking sheet and press gently to form a 7 1/2"-wide round. Using a sharp knife, slash a cross 1/2" deep across the entire top of the loaf and dust top of loaf with the reserved flour. Bake until bread is light golden and a tap on the bottom of the loaf sounds hollow, about 70 minutes. Wrap bread in a clean kitchen towel, prop against a windowsill, and allow to cool for about 2 hours. Slice and serve at room temperature or toasted, with a slathering of Irish butter, if you like.

If you attempt to make this bread please note that an imperial pint is equal to 19.21 ounces as opposed to a standard American pint which is 16 ounces.

Got any other easy & delicious 'traditional' breads I should try? Let me know in the comments!

2 pots of Chili & Rosemary Bread

Weekend cooking included:

2 pots of chili:

Vegetarian Chili (top) Stew Meat & Leftover Steak Chili (bottom)

2 Chili's. 2 methods. The vegetarian chili was cooked slow & low on the stove while the carnivore's chili was cooked slow and low on the crock pot.

Chili Basics:

2 Cans each: Black Beans, Kidney Beans, Pinto Beans

multiple cans of tomato: peeled, diced, whole (any variety)

3-4 fresh tomatoes diced

1 can chipotle in adobo

yellow onions

2 green bell peppers

various other peppers (your choice depending on how hot you like it)

3-6 cloves of garlic finely minced

black pepper

chili powder

dried peppers

chili oil

multiple pieces very dark chocolate

cocoa-chili powder blend.

1/4-1/2 cup dark delicious beer.

For Vegetarian Chili: 1 cup frozen corn

For Meat Chili: Meats you like. I prefer a ground beef, stew meat, sausage mixture (For the chili pictured I used stew meat and leftover steak)

Mix well. Cook on low for a LONG time, stirring often.

I have not posted portions/measurements because a good chili takes much mastery, and the portions of the various ingredients are really up to the cook. I won't divulge my exact chili recipe because it is constantly changing and my lil secret :-).

The lady and I now have multiple jars of both vegetarian and meatastic chili frozen for the near future!

Rosemary Bread:

The lady and I recently acquired a slightly used Bread Maker from the ladies parents. I've been working on mastering the machine and making my own bread. The Rosemary Bread is easily my most successful attempt to date:

1 cup milk

3 tablespoons olive oil

1 1/2 teaspoons white sugar

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

1/4 teaspoon Italian seasoning

1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

1 tablespoon dried rosemary

2 1/2 cups bread flour

1 1/2 teaspoons active dry yeast.

Place ingredients in bread maker as recommended by manufacturer. Set to White Bread.

The bread came out fluffy, delicious and flavorful. I used a homemade herb infused olive oil.

I would be remiss if I did not point out my hilarious kitchen (mis)adventure:

Before I set out to make the rosemary bread I was attempting to make a beer bread when I inadvertently substituted confectioners sugar for flour. Luckily I noticed this before the machine was turned on. It ended with a positive though: Rosemary Bread!

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Cranberry Beans & Cranberry Bread.

I would be remiss if I did not mention the wonderful gift of seed I received from Daphne's Dandelions last friday:

A packet of Ottawa Cranberry Pole Beans for the forthcoming garden!! They look delicious & can't wait for them to be in the ground! Once grown & harvested I will surely be passing on a few packets of dried beans of my own to spread into the gardening world.

As noted in my previous post I was quite disappointed due to the lack of black cranberries in my produce delivery. I had grand plans for cranberry walnut bread, chutney and a tart wonderful snack. Not to be deterred I was off to the neighborhood natural food store for a large container of dried local cranberries. They are a good substitution for what I was expecting.

In celebration of cranberries I made a delicious & incredibly simple cranberry walnut bread:

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 cup sugar

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 cup butter

1 egg

3/4 cup orange juice

1 tablespoon grated orange peel

1 1/2 cups fresh or frozen cranberries

1/2 cup chopped walnuts

1. In a bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking powder, salt and baking soda. Cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Beat egg, orange juice and peel; stir into dry ingredients just until blended. Add the cranberries and walnuts.
2. Spoon batter into a greased and floured 8-in. x 4-in. x 2-in. loaf pan. Bake at 350 degrees F for 65-70 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Cool in pan 10 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.

The recipe is easy and worked well enough, though I would reduce the heat 10-15 degrees and bake a tad longer next time. After years of cooking adventure I am slowly dipping my toe into the world of baking (primarily with bread making), and thus far I've enjoyed it.