CHEDDAR & JALAPEÑO SOURDOUGH + COOKBOOK REVIEW

Posted in Breads, Cookbook Reviews by sallybr

I am beyond excited about this blog post because not only it features one of the very best sourdough breads I’ve ever baked, but it allows me to review Elaine Boddy’s FOURTH cookbook (click here to order The Sourdough Bible), published just a couple of weeks ago. Without further ado, take a look at this beauty!

CHEDDAR AND JALAPEÑO SOURDOUGH BREAD
(printed with permission from Elaine Boddy’s The Sourdough Bible)

50 g (¼ cup) starter
350 g (1½ cups) water
500 g (4 cups) strong white bread flour, plus more for dusting
7 g (1 tsp) salt, or to taste (I used 10g)
Filling 200 g (1 cup) grated cheese
100 g (¾ cup) sliced jarred jalapeños, well drained (I used 80g)

In a large bowl, roughly mix together all the dough ingredients. Cover and leave the bowl on the counter.
After 2 hours, perform a set of pulls and folds on the dough. Cover and leave once again.

After 1 hour, perform two more sets of pulls and folds. Cover the bowl again and leave it on the counter after each set. Leave to proof until the dough has doubled in size. Once doubled, place the bowl of dough, covered, in the fridge for at least 1 hour.

Sprinkle flour over your kitchen counter. Ease the risen dough from the bowl onto the counter. Use your fingertips to push out the dough, until it becomes an 18 x 12–inch (46 x 30–cm) rectangle and an even thickness all over. The dough will want to pull back as you stretch it; continue to pull it gently, being careful not to make holes in the dough. Sprinkle the cheese and jalapeños filling evenly over the stretched dough. Roll up the dough from one of the shorter edges toward the other to make an even roll of dough. Lift the dough and place it, smooth side down, in the banneton. Cover, and refrigerate for at least 3 hours to proof again. Transfer the cold dough to your lined pan, and score it.

If you’ve chosen to preheat your oven, heat to 425°F (220°C) convection or 450°F (230°C) conventional. Bake at the above temperatures for 50 to 55 minutes from preheated. Or, if baking from a cold start, bake for 55 to 60 minutes. Remove from the oven and pan, and allow to cool fully before slicing.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: If you’ve never mixed a sharp cheese with pickled jalapeños and invited them both for a little sourdough party, you are missing quite important things in life. It is a brand new year, do what is RIGHT! The bread is simply outstanding, I normally exercise restraint when consuming bread, but I will admit I had zero power against this baby.

The level of spice was just right for us, I used slightly less than Elaine did, about 20% less. Use the sharpest, best Cheddar you can find. The color of the crust is enough to make a grown up cry in anticipation of great things to come.

The bread uses the method of lamination to incorporate the goodies, although as Elaine says, you could conceivably just add everything as you mix the dough. She is always making sure you can go the simple route if so desired. That brings me to her masterpiece, The Sourdough Bible.

THE SOURDOUGH BIBLE

I adore the cover! So modern, and unusual, incredibly stylish… But what really matters is what’s inside, so let’s take a tour together.

The book is divided in three parts. Part I will explain simply everything about making a starter, keeping it alive and using it to make dough. If you know someone who flirts with the idea of embracing sourdough baking but feels insecure, this book is the best gift ever. Anyone will be able to produce a healthy sourdough starter using her detailed explanation. Even if you are an experienced sourdough baker, you will find great tips and suggestions in this section of the book, like how to use different flours, swap the water for other liquids, laminate, add seeded crusts. Wonderful source of information.

Part 2 is where all the recipes will be. It starts with her MASTER RECIPE, which is the essence of all her breads. The master recipe is like a canvas that she uses to create more complex variations, not only in flavor, but shape. This section of the book has a huge number of photos of the process involved in each bread, beautiful shots, on a blue background that makes the white dough shine. A pleasure for the eyes, and dense with info and details.

Here are some of the recipes included that made my mouth water: Whole Grain Spelt and Poppy Seed Loaf, Beer and Mixed Grains Loaf, Rye and Caraway Loaf, Cheese and Jalapeño Loaf (featured today), Chocolate and Chili Loaf (OMG, must absolutely make this one), Cranberry and Hazelnut Loaf, just to name a few.

Her series of mini-loaves is wonderful, starting with her Master Baby Loaf, and moving on to Whole Grain Spelt and Seeds, Cumin and Carrot Loaf, and other tasty options to make a small loaf, great if you don’t have a huge family, or if you just want to experiment with new flavors.

Moving on, she introduces breads that are baked in a loaf pan, starting once again from her Master Sandwich Loaf Recipe, and adding complexity as new ingredients are added. Enriched Brioche-Style Loaf, Potato Water Spelt Loaf, Cheese and Chipotle Ketchup Babka (Sally faints!) are some examples included. Have I mentioned the photos are gorgeous?

So that brings me to
THE TEASER RECIPE

This tiny little bread is made in a mini-pan with the shape of a cube. I am soooo totally in love with it, the flavor was outstanding, and what a fun bread to make…

This one is her Whole Grain Spelt Cube Loaf. Several other recipes using this pan with or without a lid are waiting for you, so place an order for her book, if you haven’t yet already. For instance, you can use the cube pan to make a Chocolate-Filled Vanilla Swirl Loaf, or a Banana Walnut Swirl Loaf. All adorable… What are you waiting for?

Focaccia: Amazing collection of goodies. From the master recipe she creates Red Onion and Chive Focaccia, and playing with small versions she shares Blue Cheese and Fig Baby Focaccia, so cool for a dinner party. In another departure of shaping, you will find Wedge Rolls, a super clever way to deal with a batch of sourdough. My favorite of this section is the Seeded Wedge Rolls, for sure. I need to bake a batch.

Yet another creative way to play with the concept of bread, Elaine makes a series of “Snug Rolls” , in which goodies are incorporated by lamination and the rolls treated as you would a cinnamon roll type bake. Garlic Butter, Cinnamon Rolls, Cheese and Caramelized Onion Jam are some examples of “snug rolls” in this part of The Sourdough Bible.

Maybe you rather have your rolls kiss gently instead of hug together? Go for her series of “Round Rolls” that features Herby Za’atar is there… Whole Grain and Chocolate Hot Cross Buns, both called my attention right away.

Flatbread and Pizza comes next, from the Master Recipe to variations such as Herb and Parmesan Flatbreads, Spinach and Goat Cheese Pizza, Pomegranate Molasses Roasted Vegetables Flatbread.

If you think Bundt pans cannot bake sourdough bread, think again. Elaine puts them to great use, making showstopper loaves with all sorts of flavor and flour combinations. Chocolate Orange Loaf, Cheese and Pickle (I am sure we would LOVE this one!) and, ready for this? A COOKIE LOAF! Just amazing…

This part of the book closes with recipes using discard sourdough, and my favorite is the Uzbek flatbread, as I have those gadgets and love putting them to use. Crepes, Chocolate Chip Rye Pancakes, Everything but the Bagel Crackers are other examples.

We arrived at the final, Part 3 of the book. This section covers Tips and Tricks for Mastering Sourdough. No matter your level in brea baking, it is a great source of information, but beginners in particular will benefit from it. Essentially every single question a person might have about sourdough baking is covered in this chapter. A must-read.

I have every one of Elaine’s books, but I will have to say she outdid herself with The Sourdough Bible… it is a must-have for anyone interested in sourdough baking, and the best source for beginners because it offers a simplified, straightforward approach to sourdough, without unnecessary complications and endless, rigid rules. Go have fun in the kitchen, bake great sourdough bread, let Elaine be your guide!

ONE YEAR AGO: La Buche de Noel

TWO YEARS AGO: Incredibly Simple Apple Carpaccio

THREE YEARS AGO: Chocolate-Cherry Miroir Cake, A Vegan Showstopper

FOUR YEARS AGO: Bee Happy Honey Macarons

FIVE YEARS AGO: Episode 7 of Great American Baking Show, Canapes, Opera Cake and Running out of Gas

SIX YEARS AGO: Raspberry Ganache Macarons

SEVEN YEARS AGO: Pain au Chocolat

EIGHT YEARS AGO: Two Unusual Takes on Roasted Veggies

NINE YEARS AGO: Kadoo Boranee: Butternut Squash Perfection

TEN YEARS AGO: Creamy Broccoli Soup with Toasted Almonds

ELEVEN YEARS AGO: Fennel and Cheddar Cheese Crackers

TWELVE YEARS AGO: A Festive Pomegranate Dessert

THIRTEEN YEARS AGO: My First Award!

FOURTEEN YEARS AGO: A Message from WordPress

FIFTEEN YEARS AGO: Turkish Chicken Kebabs

21Dec2024

AIR-FRIED SOURDOUGH BREAD

Posted in Air-Frying, Breads by sallybr

When your oven dies and you won’t have another one delivered for a couple of weeks, but your freezer is running out of sourdough slices, what can you do? Desperate times call for desperate moves. You turn to the air-fryer. I am actually quite pleased with the way the bread turned out, although the crust is not nearly as crisp as a “normal” sourdough bread. But if you like to experiment in the kitchen, give it a try…

AIR-FRIED SOURDOUGH
(from the Bewitching Kitchen)

250g bread flour
50 g sourdough starter at 100% hydration
180g water
5 g salt

Remove from the machine, and transfer to a container lightly coated with oil, cover lightly with plastic wrap and allow it to ferment for 4 hours, folding every 45 minutes or so. Because the dough is already a bit developed from the initial time in the mixer, you should get very good structure after 3 and a half hours, or even sooner than that.
After four hours bulk fermentation, shape the dough as a ball, and place, seam side up, in a lightly floured banetton. Leave at room temperature one hour, and then place in the fridge overnight, from 8 to 12 hours.

Next morning, turn your air-fryer to 400F and leave it on for 5 minutes at that temperature. Invert the bread on a piece of parchment paper, and cut it so that very little paper is outside the perimeter of the dough. Score if you want. Place the bread in the air-fryer with ice cubes around it.

Air-fry for 25 minutes, remove the paper and check the internal temperature. If it is over 205F, and the crust has good color, invert the bread and inspect the bottom. If a bit soggy and pale, place the bread in the fryer with the bottom up, and continue roasting it for another 5 minutes or so. Remove from the fryer and let it cool completely before slicing.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: The air-fryer will never be my choice to make sourdough bread, but I was pleasantly surprised by how well things turned out. Let’s suppose you are on a road trip and still want to bake some bread while away from home, maybe you can take your fryer with you… Just a thought! I do like to experiment, so this was actually pretty cool. I painted the surface with Sugarprism green after baking.

ONE YEAR AGO: Ube Macarons

TWO YEARS AGO: Christmas Sourdough

THREE YEARS AGO: Star-Shaped Sun-dried Tomato Bread

FOUR YEARS AGO: Cranberry White Chocolate Tart

FIVE YEARS AGO: I dream of Madeleines and a Tower of Cheesecakes

SIX YEARS AGO: Dominique Ansel’s Chocolate Mousse Cake

SEVEN YEARS AGO: Slow-Roasted Eye of the Round Beef

EIGHT YEARS AGO: Steam-Roasted Indian-Spiced Cauliflower

NINE YEARS AGO: Creamy Zucchini-Mushroom Soup

TEN YEARS AGO: Ken Forkish’s Pain au Bacon

ELEVEN YEARS AGO: Carrot and Cumin Hamburger Buns

TWELVE YEARS AGO: Potato Galettes a l’Alsacienne & Book Review

THIRTEEN YEARS AGO: Caramelized Carrot Soup

FOURTEEN YEARS AGO: Miso-Grilled Shrimp

FIFTEEN YEARS AGO: Pain Poilane

29Nov2024

FALL LEAVES PANCH PURAN SOURDOUGH

Posted in Breads by sallybr

PANCH PURAN SOURDOUGH
(from the Bewitching Kitchen)

500g bread flour
350g water
75g starter at 100%
9g salt
1 tsp pinch puran spice mix

Make the levain mixture about 6 hours before you plan to mix the dough. It should be very bubbly and active.

When you are ready to make the final dough, place the water in the bowl of a KitchenAid type mixer and dissolve the starter in it, mixing with a spatula briefly, then add the flour, salt and spice mixture. Turn the mixer on with the hook attachment and knead the dough for 4 minutes at low-speed all the time. You will notice the dough will gain quite a bit of structure even with just 4 minutes in the mixer. Remove from the machine, and transfer to a container lightly coated with oil, cover lightly with plastic wrap and allow it to ferment for 4 hours, folding every 45 minutes or so. Because the dough is already a bit developed from the initial time in the mixer, you should get very good structure after 3 and a half hours, or even sooner than that.

After four hours bulk fermentation, shape the dough as a ball, and place, seam side up, in a lightly floured banetton. Leave at room temperature one hour, and then place in the fridge overnight, from 8 to 12 hours.

Next morning, heat the oven to 450F.Place a parchment paper on top of the dough, a flat baking sheet, and invert the dough, flipping it out of the banneton. Flour the surface of the dough, score with a razor blade, and bake at 450F for 45 minutes, preferably covered for the first 30 minutes to retain steam. Cool completely over a rack before slicing.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: I love the yin-yang feel of this design which is quite popular for batard-shaped loaves, you can see examples everywhere in social media. Coupling razor blade with small scissors is all you need to get this simple look going.

Before I leave, let me share a few more designs of the recent past…

For the above look, a very simple grid is the initial scoring, then just a few extra touches in the center of each square.

Another batard shape that is super simple and effective, relying on a central deep cut and a few decorating light touches with the blade…

A little stencil adventure…

And a festive scoring coupled with a slightly heavier coating with tapioca flour…

That’s all for now, folks, stay tuned for more soon!

ONE YEAR AGO: Farro with Chickpeas and Spinach

TWO YEARS AGO: Bison a la Mode de Bourgogne

THREE YEARS AGO: Masala Mashed Potatoes

FOUR YEARS AGO: Lessons from Tanya: Sugar Cookie Silhouettes

FIVE YEARS AGO: Cherry-Chipotle Chicken Thighs

SIX YEARS AGO: White Chocolate Mini-Mousse with Sugared Cranberries

SEVEN YEARS AGO: You Say Ebelskiver, I say Falafel

EIGHT YEARS AGO: Happy Thanksgiving!

NINE YEARS AGO: Two Takes on Raspberries

TEN YEARS AGO: Spice Cake with Blackberry Puree & The Global Pastry Review

ELEVEN YEARS AGO: Own Your Kitchen with Cappuccino Panna Cotta

TWELVE YEARS AGO: Chicken Parmigiana, the Thriller

THIRTEEN YEARS AGO: Wild Mushroom Risotto

FOURTEEN YEARS AGO: Tartine Bread: Basic Country Loaf

FIFTEEN YEARS AGO: Pugliese Bread

12Nov2024

BARBARI BREAD AND HUMMUS

Posted in Appetizers, Breads, Breakfast & Brunch by sallybr

A match made in heaven!

Barbari Bread originates in Iran, formerly known as Persia, a name that evokes beautiful things in my mind. Barbari is a flatbread with ridges and a dark golden color provided by a glaze that often contains baking soda. I share a recipe that makes one small flatbread, fitting in a quarter sheet pan.

BARBARI BREAD
(adapted from cookingorgeous)

160 ml water (lukewarm)
250 g all-purpose flour
4 g instant yeast
5 g salt
3 g sugar
10 ml olive oil

For the Topping (you won’t need the full amount)
1 teaspoon olive oil
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
½ cup water
½ teaspoon baking soda
2 tablespoon Sesame seeds

In the bowl of a KitchenAid type mixer combine the flour, salt, sugar, olive oil, and yeast. Add warm water gradually, stirring to form a sticky dough. Knead at low-speed for about 5 minutes. Place the dough in a lightly greased bowl, cover it with a damp cloth, and let it rise in a warm spot for 2 hours.

Make the glaze: in a small saucepan, combine flour, water, olive oil, and baking soda.
Cook over low heat, stirring continuously until it thickens into a smooth paste. Set aside to cool.

Shape the Dough: Flatten the dough into an oval or rectangular shape on a parchment-lined baking sheet. If the dough resists too much, form into a ball and allow it to rest for 15 minutes. The dough should end as 12 inches long and 5 inches wide. Using your fingers, gently press lines into the dough from top to bottom to create the signature ridges of Barbari bread. Brush the glaze mixture over the surface, covering the dough evenly. This will help to keep the bread moist and create that golden crust during baking. Sprinkle on sesame seeds.

Second Rise and Baking the Bread: Cover the shaped and topped dough with a damp cloth and allow it to rise for one hour.

Heat the oven to 390F. Bake the bread for about 20 minutes or until it turns golden brown with a crisp crust.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

For the hummus, I used a fantastic recipe from Milk Street, which is available online (click here). I advise you to halve the recipe because it would feed an army. I am not too fond of freezing hummus, so half the recipe was perfect for us. Can you tell how luscious and creamy it is?

Comments: Barbari bread is definitely one to consider adding to your rotation, because it is super easy to make and absolutely delicious. As to the hummus, Milk Street recipe is pretty involved, but worth it. Thick, intensely flavored, a real hit of sesame with each bite.

I hope you try both this recipes, they were perfect together. Hummus is often a breakfast item in Israel, consumed warm with Kawarma (spiced ground meat) spooned all over it. We took the less authentic route by enjoying it as a dip. If you have The Milk Street Cookbook that goes along with the TV show, both recipes are there.

ONE YEAR AGO: Baking Through the Blogosphere

TWO YEARS AGO: Crispy Air-Fried Zucchini

THREE YEARS AGO: Pasta with Cremini Mushroom Ragu

FOUR YEARS AGO: A Magical Marinade

FIVE YEARS AGO: Roast Veggies with Black Barley

SIX YEARS AGO: Pumpkin Sourdough

SEVEN YEARS AGO: First Monday Favorite

EIGHT YEARS AGO: Secret Recipe Club: Paalak Paneer, a Farewell Post

NINE YEARS AGO: In My Kitchen, November 2015

TEN YEARS AGO: Helen Fletcher’s Oatmeal Cookies

ELEVEN YEARS AGO: Thai-Style Pesto with Brown Rice Pasta

TWELVE YEARS AGO: Shrimp with Spicy Orange Sauce

THIRTEEN YEARS AGO: A Simple Appetizer (Baked Ricotta)

FOURTEEN YEARS AGO: Sour Cream Sandwich Bread

FIFTEEN YEARS AGO: Pasta with Zucchini Strands and Shrimp

16Oct2024

SEMOLINA SOURDOUGH

Posted in Breads by sallybr

OCTOBER 16th
WORLD BREAD DAY!

The key to this bread is to use fine semolina, I highly recommend this brand if you find it where you live, or if you don’t mind supporting the so-called Evil Empire aka amazon.com… The dough is soft, a pleasure to work with, the crumb develops a light yellow tone, and has great texture and taste. I am sold.

SEMOLINA SOURDOUGH
(from the Bewitching Kitchen)

300g white bread flour
225g fine semolina flour
355g water
50g sourdough starter at 100% hydration
9g salt

Mix all ingredients in the bowl or a KitchenAid type mixer fitted with the dough hook. Knead on low speed for about 4 minutes, adjust dough with flour is needed (I like to have it still glueing to the bottom of the bowl as it spins).

Transfer to an oiled bowl and ferment for 5.5 hours total. Perform a set of folds at 45 minutes intervals five times, which should take you about 3 hours and 45 minutes. Let the dough alone for the remainder of bulk fermentation. Shape as a batard, keep at room temperature for 1 hour and retard in the fridge.

Score and bake at 450F in a Dutch oven with the lid on for 30 minutes, remove the lid and bake for additional 15 to 20 minutes. Cool completely before slicing.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: I used tapioca flour for the scoring because I like how it stays super white during baking, but you can use regular bread flour or rice flour if you don’t have tapioca. The central scoring was made with a razor blade in a series of V cuts and then I pulled the bottom part of the V shape and twisted backwards. The rest of the design was just razor blade and holes made with a chopstick.