5 minutes a day- my baguette

Artisan Bread in 5 minutes a day

At this link you can find the recipe and technique I am following for Artisan Bread in 5 Minutes a Day. http://www.motherearthnews.com/Real-Food/Artisan-Bread-In-Five-Minutes-A-Day.aspx

I made the base recipe Tuesday night and put it in the fridge at the recommended time. I now have 2 weeks to bake the dough which should make 4 loaves. Last night was my 1st attempt. I made the round shape and let rise for 40 minutes but I floured and dusted it then covered it to rise. Recipe said uncovered and I think by covering it with a towel I stunted it's growth. I also slashed it too deep and maybe didn't bake it long enough, it was too dense and kind of doughy.

Tonight I tried again, I was going to try to make my ball a bit flatter this time but as I was shaping a baguette started to take shape so I went with it. Didn't flour or cover it this time, more shallow slashes and I'm hoping it baked through all the way due to its thinness. It looks pretty, can't wait until it cools so I can cut it open and see the crumb!

A beautiful loaf

Even though it's hot outside these gorgeous loaves are worth heating up my kitchen for! Today's loaf is my standard ingredients for my no knead bread with a bit more yeast but I started it this morning and used my dough hook to knead it. It rose for 2 1/2 hrs before I put it back on the dough hook and let it rise for 3 more hours before baking in a 400 degree oven in my covered pot. Yum can't wait to cut into it!

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Parchment paper makes bread baking easier!

My newest discovery in bread making is parchment paper. I have continued to make my no knead bread. It is so easy and comes out pretty well every time. The problem I have with it though is that the bottom is really tough. I also find the transfer from rising bowl to hot pan to be difficult. Putting parchment paper on the bottom of my rising bowl and then transferring it with the dough to the hot pan has produced a much nicer bottom crust.



It also makes the transfer to the hot pan a lot easier which allows me to not disturb all the wonderful bubbles that have formed in the dough during rising. Give it a try!

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Perfect and Easy- No Knead Bread

When I first started this blog my friend Sarah sent me a link to a recipe for a "No Knead Bread". I looked it over but it seemed almost too simple. I wasn't ready for that yet. I was having too much fun kneading my bread and letting it rise and kneading again! Months later I revisited the recipe and decided to try it out. The results are amazing and I haven't looked back! This is my bread of choice now!

Ingredients:

3 cups bread flour (I like Harvest King bread flour)
1/4 teaspoon instant yeast
1 teaspoon fine table salt (or 3/4 tablespoon of kosher salt)
1 1/2 cups warm water

Covered pot (five-quart or larger cast iron, Pyrex, ceramic, enamel...something that can go into a 450F oven.) I have invested in an enamel over cast iron, dutch oven, mine is the Costco version of a Le Creuset

Directions:

1. Mix dough: The night before, combine all ingredients in a big bowl with a wooden spoon until the dough just comes together. It will be a shaggy, doughy mess. Cover with plastic wrap and let sit 12-20 hours on countertop.

2. Shape & preheat: The dough will now be wet, sticky and bubbly.


With a wet spatula, dump the dough on a floured surface. Fold ends of dough over a few times with the spatula and nudge it into a ball shape. You can use your hands if you like, just keep your hands wet so that the dough does not stick. Generously dust a cotton towel (not terrycloth) with flour. Set dough seam side down on top of towel. Fold towel over the dough. Let it nap for 2 hours.


When you've got about a half hour left, slip your covered pot into the oven and preheat to 450F.

3. Bake: Your dough should have doubled in size. Remove pot from oven. Holding towel, turn over and dump wobbly dough into pot, using your hands to get the dough off the towel. Doesn't matter which way it lands. Shake to even dough out. Cover. Bake 30 minutes. Uncover, bake another 15-20 minutes or until the crust is beautifully golden and middle of loaf is 210F.


Remove and let cool on wired rack.


If not eating right away, you can re-crisp crust in 350F oven for 10 minutes. Best way to eat it? Smear a warm slice with some good butter.

Come on, it's gorgeous right?!!


I have also experimented with skipping the step where you let the bread nap for 2 hours in a floured towel before baking. That produces a ciabatta type bread. Sometimes I'll sprinkle a little kosher salt on the top when I dump it into the hot pan, it gives the bread a great extra something when you eat it smeared with butter!

You can and should make your own hot dog and hamburger rolls!

It's been a crazy holiday season with lots of shopping, wrapping decorating and of course bread baking. I didn't have time however to post all of my experiences here. Before the Christmas extravaganza began I found a recipe on allrecipes.com for hamburger and hot dog rolls. I just had to try it. I must say it was an amazing success. The rolls turned out so good. In fact they were so great that I actually made them as dinner rolls one night too. They are buttery and warm and light and fluffy. Truly wonderful. If you have a great burger recipe make these rolls and you're burger will be extraordinary!

 

Ingredients

1 cup milk

1/2 cup water

1/4 cup butter

4 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 (.25 ounce) package instant yeast

2 tablespoons white sugar

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

1 egg

Directions

1.In a small saucepan, heat milk, water and butter until very warm.

2.In a large bowl, mix together 1 3/4 cup flour, yeast, sugar and salt. Mix milk mixture into flour mixture, and then mix in egg. Stir in the remaining flour, 1/2 cup at a time, beating well after each addition. When the dough has pulled together, turn it out onto a lightly floured surface, and knead until smooth and elastic, about 8 minutes. ( I just let the dough hook do the work in my Kitchen aid mixer)

3.Divide dough into 12 equal pieces. Shape into smooth balls, and place on a greased baking sheet. Flatten slightly. Cover, and let rise for 30 to 35 minutes.

4.Bake at 400 degrees F (200 degrees C) for 10 to 12 minutes, or until golden brown.

5.For Hot Dog Buns: Shape each piece into a 6x4 inch rectangle. Starting with the longer side, roll up tightly, and pinch edges and ends to seal. Let rise about 20 to 25 minutes. Bake as above. These buns are pretty big. I usually make 16 instead of 12.

Flour Tortillas

I've been trying to do most, if not all of my cooking at home lately and on a budget. I typically feed 3 adults and 2 kids dinner for $5-$8. $10 dinners has nothing on me! I try to make sure my dinners are at least semi healthy also. I mean a person could feed a family of five Ramen noodles for dinner for under $1 but that wouldn't be very healthy! I also use my crock-pot a LOT since it means dinner is pretty much ready and waiting when I get home from work. Last night I made a Mexican chicken and beans in the crock-pot, it's sort of like an enchilada filling yum!

Crockpot Chicken with Black Beans and Cream Cheese:

Ingredients
2-3 boneless chicken breasts (mine are still frozen)
1 (15 1/2 ounce) can black beans
1 15 oz can diced tomatoes (or 1 large fresh tomato diced)
1/2 cup water
1 packet taco seasoning
1 (15 ounce) can corn
1/2 package cream cheese (most cream cheese comes in 8 oz bricks, you want to use 4 oz)

Directions
-Put frozen, yes, frozen, boneless chicken breasts into crock pot.
-Add 1 packet of taco seasoning, 1 can of black beans drained, 1 can of corn drained, 1 can diced tomatoes (or your fresh diced tomato) and 1/2 cup water
-Cook in crock pot on high for 4-5 hours or on low for 8-9 hours
-Break up the chicken, it basically falls apart into shredded chicken if you just poke at it with a spoon a bit
-Add 1/2 package cream cheese (just throw it on top!) and let sit for about 1/2 hour
- Stir it up and serve over rice or with tortilla chips or better yet with home made flour tortillas!


And so we get to the "bread baking" part of this post. I wanted to serve my Chicken and Black beans with flour tortillas, I was going to the grocery store so I could have picked up a package but I thought, hey I bet they aren't that hard to make; so I looked up some recipes and you know, they aren't hard to make at all!

I got this recipe from allrecipes.com submitted by LaDonna

Flour Tortillas

4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 tablespoons lard
1 1/2 cups water

Directions

-Whisk the flour, salt, and baking powder together in a mixing bowl. Mix in the lard with your fingers until the flour resembles cornmeal. Add the water and mix until the dough comes together; place on a lightly floured surface and knead a few minutes until smooth and elastic. Divide the dough into 24 equal pieces and roll each piece into a ball.

-Preheat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Use a well-floured rolling pin to roll a dough ball into a thin, round tortilla. Place into the hot skillet, and cook until bubbly and golden; flip and continue cooking until golden on the other side. Place the cooked tortilla in a tortilla warmer; continue rolling and cooking the remaining dough.

It took a little time but it was pretty easy. I think cooking them until they are "golden" is not a great idea because they get kind of crispy which wasn't what I was looking for. My second time around I cooked them covered and on a lower heat and I was happier with the result. I did use lard because I happened to pass right by it in the grocery store but from the reviews I read you can totally sub in shortening. Then you won't have a package of lard hanging around your house. I need to hide it somewhere I hate opening up my cabinet and seeing it there, it just feels wrong! Anyhow the tortillas are great and I will totally be making these again.