LA COURONNE LYONNAISE, TWO WAYS

Posted in Breads by sallybr

This bread originates in Lyon, and is shaped as a crown, therefore the name “couronne”. However, there are several ways to gild this lily. I am sharing two methods, the first one worked exactly the way I hoped, the second I consider a work in progress. So, yes, I will be back, hopefully with improvements on the second version…

METHOD ONE
A SIMPLE COURONNE

LA COURONNE LYONNAISE
(adapted from Henri-Luc’s blog)

530g bread flour
10g salt
160g sourdough starter at 100% hydratioin
300g water
rye flour for dusting

Mix sourdough starter in water and whisk to distribute well. Add bread flour and salt, incorporate either by hand or with a KitchenAid type mixer fitted with a hook dough for a few minutes. Proof at room temperature for 4 to 5 hours with folds at every 45 minutes.

Prepare your round banetton to proof a crown, by placing a small glass or plastic container in the center. Cover with a cloth and flour it lightly with rye flour.

Pre-shape the dough as a round ball. Allow it to relax for 15 minutes. Make a hole in the center (traditionally bakers use their elbow, do what you feel is right…). Enlarge the whole until you get to the size of your round banetton. Now grab some rye flour with your fingers and pinch a series of alternating straight lines on the surface. Pinch the dough well to make a super sharp line of dough raising up. Then flour the surface lightly again and invert the dough on the banetton. Side with the ridges should go down. Proof at room temperature for 2 hours. Place a parchment paper on top, invert the bread over it and slide into the hot oven right away.

Bake at 450F over a stone with steam for 20 minutes, then remove the steam (I used a large roasting pan inverted over the stone as a lid). Bake for 20 to 25 minutes longer. If the bread darkens too much cover it with foil. Internal temperature should be around 210F.

Cool completely before slicing.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: This was such a fun bread baking adventure! I loved making the ridges and the way they gave the bread that incredibly nice rustic look once it baked. Make sure to use rye flour to dust the surface, it is going to make a big difference if you skip it. White flour won’t have the same effect.

METHOD TWO
COURONNE WITH FLAPS

The flaps were a big flop. What can I say? The real beautiful version would have them all lifted up from the surface of the bread, mine stayed more or less glued to the surface. This was my second attempt, the first one was worse, so you won’t be seeing that (wink, wink). The shaping is quite a bit more elaborate. You form pieces of dough that are about 200g in weight, then roll a flap coming out of it, and roll the ball into it. Place to proof with the flap down, open side to the edge of the banetton. Before closing the flap over the ball of dough, a little olive oil is used to brush the edge, so the dough won’t stick and will instead lift during baking. Pictures below give you a general idea of the shaping method.

I had several issues, including the fact that 200g per ball of dough was probably too much. I will revise the whole thing and try again, because I really REALLY want to make it work right. I love the stencil decoration made right before baking (I will share info on the stencil and banetton in my upcoming In My Kitchen post, on October 1st).

I hope you enjoyed this post, and maybe you can give this method a try. If you get your flaps not to flop, let me know your secret!

ONE YEAR AGO: Have a Heart

TWO YEARS AGO: Chocolate-Hazelnut Tartlets

THREE YEARS AGO: Turkey Taco Salad

FOUR YEARS AGO: Cheese and Pesto Emmer Roll-ups and Elaine’s Cookbook Review

FIVE YEARS AGO: Mango-Hazelnut Entremet Cake

SIX YEARS AGO: Lebanese Lentil Salad and a Cookbook Review

SEVEN YEARS AGO: Cottage Loaf

EIGHT YEARS AGO: Sourdough Loaf with Cranberries and Walnuts

NINE YEARS AGO: Sichuan Pork Stir-Fry in Garlic Sauce

TEN YEARS AGO: Our Green Trip to Colorado

ELEVEN YEARS AGO: Ditalini Pasta Salad

TWELVE YEARS AGO: Celebrate Wednesday with a Thai Seafood Curry

THIRTEEN YEARS AGO: Post-workout Breakfast

FOURTEEN YEARS AGO: Semolina Barbecue Buns

FIFTEEN YEARS AGO: Lavash Crackers

14Sep2024

GOCHUJANG GRILLED CHICKEN THIGHS

Posted in Poultry by sallybr

One of my favorite condiments, gochujang, that gorgeous bright red Korean paste that adds a ton of flavor when it joins any party… Brown food is not exactly photogenic, so don’t let the looks deceive you, these were delicious, and quite easy to prepare.

GOCHUJANG GRILLED CHICKEN THIGHS
(from The Bewitching Kitchen)

6 to 8 chicken thighs, boneless, skinless
For marinade:
1/4 cup gochujang
1/4 cup soy sauce
1 tablespoon brown sugar
Juice of 1/2 lime
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground black pepper

Combine all the ingredients for the marinade in a small bowl.

In a large bowl or Ziploc bag, add the chicken thighs and the marinade. Toss well to combine until all the pieces are well coated. Marinade in the fridge for a couple of hours if you have the time, if not, 30 minutes will do.

Grill the chicken thighs 5 to 7 minutes per side, until fully cooked. Remove the pieces to a serving platter, cover with aluminum foil and allow to rest for 10 minutes before slicing.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: In that particular evening, I grilled half of the pieces of chicken using this marinade and half using a simpler concoction (olive oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper), which is Phil’s favorite. We were both very happy with our meals, for my taste the gochujang marinade is near perfect, spicy but not too much, super flavorful.

I hope you consider keeping a jar of gochujang in your fridge, you won’t regret it!

ONE YEAR AGO: Feta Eggs with Zucchini

TWO YEARS AGO: Poilane-Style Bread, a simplified version

THREE YEAR AGO: Broccoli Salad with Pomegranate Seeds and Tahini Dressing

FOUR YEARS AGO: Turkey-Spinach Meatballs with Cardamon-Tomato Sauce

FIVE YEARS AGO: British Baps, a Technical Challenge

SIX YEARS AGO: Japanese-Style Cupcakes with Cherry Blossom Icing

SEVEN YEARS AGO: Quick Weeknight Soups

EIGHT YEARS AGO: Sourdough Loaf with Cranberries and Walnuts

NINE YEARS AGO: Sichuan Pork Stir-Fry in Garlic Sauce

TEN YEARS AGO: Our Green Trip to Colorado

ELEVEN YEARS AGO: Ditalini Pasta Salad

TWELVE YEARS AGO: Celebrate Wednesday with a Thai Seafood Curry

THIRTEEN YEARS AGO: Post-workout Breakfast

FOURTEEN YEARS AGO: Semolina Barbecue Buns

FIFTEEN YEARS AGO: Lavash Crackers

8Sep2024

CARAMEL SANDWICH COOKIES

Posted in Cookies by sallybr

Today I share three versions of Caramel Sandwich Cookies. The first recipe (top left) is my default (Chocolate Chipotle Cookies that you can find here). The second version (bottom right) was made using Sweetapolita Bakebook recipe for Dark Chocolate Cutout Cookies which I won’t share due to copyright issues. At any rate, as written the recipe is a bit too strong for my taste, I would advise using less dark cocoa powder particularly if you are baking for kids. The lighter cookie (bottom left) is Cinnamon Orange, and the recipe is below.

CINNAMON-ORANGE SUGAR COOKIE
(from The Bewitching Kitchen)

1 cup butter (226 g), at room temperature
1 cup sugar (200g)
zest of half a large orange
1/4 cup agave nectar
2 eggs
1 tsp orange bakery emulsion or orange extract of your choice
575 g all-purpose flour (about 4 cups)
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp baking powder

Heat the oven to 350 F and line baking sheets with parchment. Mix the flour, cinnamon, baking powder and salt, and set aside. Mix the sugar with the zest rubbing it well to release the oils. Cream the butter with the flavored sugar, just until smooth and combined. Add the agave nectar and continue mixing for a minute or so.

In a small bowl whisk the eggs and orange emulsion. Add to the butter-sugar mixture and mix at low speed until combined. Add the flour mixture on low-speed, until it forms a dough.

Remove the dough from the bowl, cut in two pieces and wrap them in plastic. Refrigerate for one hour, then roll, cut shapes and bake in 350 F oven until golden at the edges, depending on the size of the cookies, 10 to 15 minutes. For these cookies, I used a patterned rolling pin.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Rolling pin available at etsy (click here)

For both chocolate cookies, I used a stamp to create the design on the top portion of the cookie. One of them is available here, the other I could not find any longer, had it for many years.

I have tried two different recipes for caramel filling, but the second one was far better in terms of texture and flavor. You can find it here. I made half the recipe published in the site.

The caramel filling complements quite well both the chocolate and the orange cookies, very versatile, and it has the perfect texture to bite into. I think that embossed rolling pins and springerle-type stamps are a very nice way to embellish sandwich cookies.

ONE YEAR AGO: Miso-Caramel Cracker Cookies

TWO YEARS AGO: Mooncakes for Mid-Autumn Festival

THREE YEARS AGO: Almond-Raspberry Triangles and a Special Cookbook Review

FOUR YEARS AGO: Sweet and Spicy Roasted Cauliflower

FIVE YEARS AGO: Roasted Cauliflower Salad over Hummus

SIX YEARS AGO: Queen of Sheba

SEVEN YEAR AGO: Brunch Burger

EIGHT YEARS AGO: Mango Salsa with Verjus

NINE YEARS AGO: Raspberry Bittersweet Chocolate Chunk Brownies

TEN YEARS AGO: Scary Good Pork Burgers

ELEVEN YEARS AGO: Review of exercise program Focus25

TWELVE YEARS AGO: Celebrate Wednesday with a Thai Seafood Curry

THIRTEEN YEARS AGO: Post-workout Breakfast

FOURTEEN YEARS AGO: Semolina Barbecue Buns

FIFTEEN YEARS AGO: Lavash Crackers

3Sep2024

IL PANE DE VINCENZA

Posted in Breads by sallybr

Funny how things work… I’ve been baking sourdough for 17 years, and all of a sudden I stumble on something new to me, something that mesmerizes me and makes me want to drop everything and give it a try. I stumbled by complete accident on the blog of Vincenza, which is written in Italian, but thanks to my Portuguese speaking, I can navigate without too many issues. Vincenza is a fantastic baker, from cakes to bread and macarons. Photography is also one of her hobbies, and her site definitely reveals that right away. This is my first attempt at making one of her recipes (Semolina Bread with Turmeric Lattice). I consider it a work in progress, as some improvement is needed with my handling of the lattice, but isn’t that what life is all about? Setting goals and having fun trying to reach them?

SEMOLINA SOURDOUGH WITH TURMERIC LATTICE
(from La Torte de Cenzy’s blog)

for the main dough:
320 g of double milled semolina flour
80 g bread flour
80 g sourdough starter at 100% hydration
280 g water
8 g salt
for the lattice:
300 g bread flour
150 g water
30 g sourdough starter
5 g salt
Turmeric to taste (I used 1/2 tsp)

In the bowl of a KitchenAid type mixer add the waters flours, and sourdough starter, mix with the dough hook until the flour is incorporated in the water. Let the dough rest for 1 hour, covered.

Sprinkle the salt over the surface and knead until very smooth, about 5 minutes. Transfer the dough to a slightly oiled bowl and make a set of folds. Allow the dough to bulk ferment for a total of 4 hours, folding the dough every 30 minutes for the first two hours. If the dough is too loose, give it another one or set of folds during that period.

Shape the dough as a batard and place it in a banneton with the seam up. Leave it at room temperature for 1 hour. At this point, make the turmeric dough by mixing all ingredients by hand in a bowl. Knead it very well to make it elastic and pliable, then cover the dough and keep it at room temperature overnight.

The following morning, roll out the turmeric dough and with a wheel make many strips that will have to be coupled two by two and with them form a basket weaving placed on a sheet of parchment paper. Cut flowers with a cookie cutter, making sure to flour the cutter well.

Turn on the oven to 450F.

Remove the main dough from the fridge, turn it over a sheet of parchment paper, so that the smooth side is up. ake the string from the fridge and turn it over on a sheet of parchment paper, spray it with a little water and cover the bread, turning the prepared lattice over on it and making it adhere well. Glue the flowers with a bit of water on one edge of the bread. Cut a deep incision along the entire side of the bread, off-center and immediately place it in a Dutch oven, cover, bake for 30 minutes, remove the cover and bake for additional 15 to 20 minutes. Cool completely before slicing.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: I was a little scared of making the lattice, but it was not bad at all. I used my roller cutter fully closed, so that the strips would be as narrow as it allows, but you can always use a ruler and cut it with a pizza cutter gadget. Make sure to flour the surface so that the rolling action will separate the strands efficiently. Make the lattice using sets of two strips, and the hard part is done. Well, maybe not quite. The toughest thing to me was adding it to the bread without abusing them (dough and lattice) too much. I did not do a good job on my first attempt, and the bread collapsed quite a bit due to my handling.

You can see it is lopsided and a bit deflated. Still, I am thrilled that somehow the lattice looked ok and the bread turned out delicious!

A few days later I used a similar method with a red dough (I used food gel color, because I was hoping for a real bright red, but feel free to go for natural agents like beet or sweet potato powder). I decided to proof the lattice with the main dough, and the result is totally different, it gets baked flat instead of raised.

I prefer the first look, but I will need to tweak the way I handle the lattice to avoid disturbing the dough too much. Still, the technique has so much potential, I am thinking braids could be fun to try too… So many breads, so little time!

Vincenza, thank you so much for your advice and help as I tried to mimic your gorgeous bake!

ONE YEAR AGO: Gruyere Cheese Biscuits

TWO YEARS AGO: Incredibly Simple Korean Chicken Thighs

THREE YEARS AGO: Zucchini with Quick-Pickled Vegetables and Peanut Sauce

FOUR YEARS AGO: Nha Benta (Brazilian candy)

FIVE YEARS AGO: The Best, The Very Best Hummus

SIX YEARS AGO: Chicken Katsu

SEVEN YEARS AGO: Whole-Lemon Marinade: Long Overdue

EIGHT YEARS AGO: Tomato and Cucumber Salad with Almond Vinaigrette

NINE YEARS AGO: Eggplant Tomato Stacks

TEN YEARS AGO: The Couscous that Wasn’t

ELEVEN YEARS AGO: Apple-Cinnamon Bread

TWELVE YEARS AGO: Blueberry Galette

THIRTEEN YEARS AGO: In My Kitchen, August 2011

FOURTEEN YEARS AGO: Journey to a New Home

FIFTEEN YEARS AGO: Friday Night Dinner

30Aug2024

CHERRY MACARONS

Posted in macarons by sallybr

And we are absolutely thrilled to have Prince ruling The Kingdom! Now, back to Cherry Macarons!

Shells were made using my default recipe, which you can find here. I added a mixture of red, orange and brown dyes, eyeballing everything, trying to get the color I had in mind. Never very easy to do with macarons, as the dye goes in the meringue component but then the almond mixture lightens it up a bit. Still, I am happy with the outcome…

CHERRY MACARONS
(from the Bewitching Kitchen)

For the cherry compote:
(you won’t use the full amount)
1 pound sweet cherries, pitted and coarsely chopped
50g sugar (1/4 cup)
½ teaspoon almond extract
zest of 1/2 orange
pinch of salt
1 tablespoon cornstarch dissolved in 1 Tablespoon of water

Cook cherries, sugar, almond extract, orange zest, and salt in medium saucepan over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until cherries release their juices, and mixture is visibly thicker, about 8 minutes.

Add the slurry of cornstarch and add to the cherries. Cook for a minute or two, transfer to a bowl and allow it to cool completely.

White Chocolate Cherry Ganache:
200g white chocolate (chopped fine)
70g Cherry Compote (made as above)
70ml heavy whipping cream
Red Food coloring (optional, but nice)

Melt the white chocolate very gently in the microwave at 50% power, whisking every 20 seconds or so. Bring whipping cream and cherry compote to a boil and mix well with the melted chocolate. Add a touch of red food dye if you like. Use an immersion blender to emulsify it all together, place it in the refrigerator covered with a plastic wrap until fully set (I made it 6 hours before using).

Use the cherry ganache to fill macaron shells made with your favorite recipe, or using the one I linked in the first paragraph of this post. Allow the filled macarons to sit in the fridge overnight before consuming them.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

To decorate the shells, I made a simple drawing of two cherries and a couple of leaves. I used food safe pens to color them. The easiest, fastest way is to use one color at a time, and just do them all as in a little factory line.