BREAD: Project Sourdough Day 4~Garlic Oregano Breadsticks

The house smells like an Italian bakery today.

But I'm beginning to feel a little like Seymour Krelborn in "Little Shop of Horrors."

Every day I give the sourdough starter a little water to drink and a little flour to eat ...

... and it grows.  

Because I decided four days ago not to throw away the surplus every time I feed the starter, our kitchen is now being overrun by baked goods.

First eight large sandwich rolls.  Then two loaves of cinnamon bread.  Now a dozen 14-inch garlic oregano breadsticks.

Or is that Bread Schticks!

Tomorrow I'm forming the extra into a ball and putting it in a bowl in the refrigerator for 24 hours to rise very, very slowly.  I need a break!

I'm beginning to remember why I got stir crazy the last time I worked to wake the sleeping the sourdough starter.

Here's what I added to the basic sponge today:

3 cups all purpose flour

1 tsp instant yeast

1 tsp salt

1 Tbs olive oil

1 Tbs dried oregano

1 tsp garlic powder

2 large cloves fresh garlic, peeled and pressed

The  starter seems to be taking over the leavening process.  Tomorrow's loaves will be made without any added powdered yeast.

I have no energy for a detailed explanation of the process this time.

Just: mix it, knead it, put it in a greased bowl, let it rise, punch it down, let it rest, cut it into 12ths, roll these into logs then twist and stretch, place them on two baking sheets  sprinkled with cornmeal, let them rise, bake at 400F for about 15 minutes switching top and bottom sheets midway through, cool on a rack.  Eat!

This turned out really well.  As have the other improvised bread recipes.

Tomorrow I'll post about the book, "Ratio," that's provided the knowledge and therefore the courage to become an experimental baker.

BREAD: Project Sourdough Day 3~Cinnamon Loaves

I inhale deeply.  The house smells of cinnamon and bread.

Sourdough Cinnamon Loaves were today's use for the surplus flour/water/yeast mixture produced as I continue to reactivate my long-dormant Idaho sourdough starter.

This time I used the ingredients from a recipe for basic sweetbread dough, though in slightly different proportions.  I cut all of the additions by about half from the original recipe.  I don't like a cinnamon bread that's too sweet or too buttery because I can't eat as much of it at one sitting.

All this week I've got a schedule that looks like Swiss cheese.  I can't work on anything that requires focus for many hours at a stretch.  I can't get covered with dirt in my garden or clay in the pottery studio because I'd soon have to get cleaned up for some obligation where I have to be presentable.

Baking bread as a creative activity works well around such a schedule.  Hands on time comes in small increments of 15-20 minutes and rising time can be controlled somewhat by placing the dough in a comparatively warmer or cooler environment.

I know a busy mom from an Italian family who mixes up a ball of dough first thing in the morning each day, places it in the refrigerator to rise very slowly all day, takes it out when she gets home and makes it into pizzas, or plain Italian loaves, or bread sticks, or herbed rolls.  Quicker than a trip to the grocery store.

So here was the process for today.

After reserving a cup of starter for the next cycle, I added the following to the remainder with a whisk:

1 cup Milk

2 1/4 tsp Rapid Rise yeast

4 Tbs Melted Butter

1/2 c sugar

1 Egg

To this batter, I gradually mixed in approximately 5 1/2 cups of All Purpose Flour.  I didn't realize that I'd have to add so much more flour than I had yesterday (only 3 1/2 cups) to compensate for the extra liquid from eggs and milk.

The first two cups of flour were mixed in by hand with a whisk, one cup at a time until no lumps remained, working air into the batter.  The next cup and a half was mixed in first with a wooden spoon, then kneading by hand in the bowl.  Transfered to a floured wooden board for kneading about 10 minutes, where addition flour was worked in.  The dough was very soft and sticky.

The ball of dough was placed in a large greased bowl, turning to coat, then allowed to rise until doubled.

I had a lot going on today, so I purposely left the dough to rise in a cool place to slow it down.  It went into the bowl at about 8:00  this morning and wasn't ready to punch down and form into loaves until about 2:00 this afternoon.  Even then it hadn't quite doubled.  In a warm (80-105F) place this would have taken probably 2 hours or less, instead of 6, though the low percentage of yeast to flour probably slowed things farther.

[If I'd really wanted to delay the rise, I could have put the bowl in the refrigerator, as I did when I had to go out on Sunday with the sandwich rolls formed and sitting on a baking sheet.  They went into the fridge covered with a damp dishcloth until I got home, then they were taken out to finish rising.]

At that point, I divided the dough into four equal portions, pressed each out by hand into 8x12 inch rectangles.  Laid two of these next to each other on the kneading board and sprinkled them generously with cinnamon-sugar mixture, then placed the other two on top of the first two, sprinkled again.   The two separate stacks were rolled up into 8 inch oval loaves and placed in 5x9 inch greased loaf pans.  Tops were sliced with a knife about 1/2 inch deep and more cinnamon-sugar sprinkled on top.  

I warmed the oven slightly then turned it off and placed the pans inside for a quicker rise before baking.  After doubling (about 2 hours later while I taught lessons), I baked the cinnamon bread for about 25 minutes at 400F, covering the tops loosely with foil part way through to prevent over browning.

Turned out onto a wire rack to cool.  Probably should have greased the pans more thoroughly.  The sugar in the loaves caused the to stick in places.

-----------------------------------------------

INSIGHTS about the sourdough starter:

• Tap water contains chlorine.
  
• Chlorine kills micro-organisms (including bacteria, fungi, single celled organisms, etc).
  
• Yeast is a kind of micro-organism (a fungi).
  
• Sourdough starter is a symbiotic relationship between yeast and bacteria
  
• Using tap water in my sourdough starter may kill off some of the yeast and bacteria, making it harder to activate.

SOLUTION: use filtered water or water that's been left out uncovered for several hours to allow the chlorine to evaporate.

BREAD: Project Sourdough Day 2~Sandwich Rolls

I began the process of reactivating my long-slumbering sourdough starter yesterday.

The instructions I have say to whisk 2 cups of water and 3 cups of flour into 1 cup of starter in a large bowl, then cover.  This is then left for at least 12 hours at room temperature or slightly warmer.

When the starter is fully active it will double in size, becoming bubbly, aromatic, and viscous.

If activity is minimal, one cup of the mixture is saved to undergo the same steps until in begins to double.  Sometimes this can take several days.  The instructions say to discard the extra flour/water mixture each time.

Discard?!  Perfectly good flour and water lightly tasting of sourdough?  That's just silly.

I decided to do some freestyle baking.  I called on my two years of bread baking experience to combine techniques, quantities, and various recipes so we could make good use of this surplus.

After reserving 1 cup of the restarting starter, to the remainder I added the following:

2 1/2 tsp Instant (aka Rapid Rise) Yeast Powder*

1 tsp Salt

2 Tbs Olive Oil

1 Tbs Sugar

Approx. 3 1/2 cups All Purpose Unbleached Flour

The additional yeast was necessary because the sourdough yeast was still in the process of re-colonizing the starter and wouldn't be able to provide enough leavening to make the dough rise.

*"Instant" Yeast is OK to add directly to liquid mixtures vs. "Active Dry" which has a coating that needs to be dissolved before combining and is slower acting.

The soft dough was kneaded for 8-10 minutes on a floured board, working in the last half cup of flour.  This was formed then into a ball, placed and turned over in a greased bowl to coat, covered with a damp towel and kept in a warm place to rise until doubled (about 2 hours).

After the dough had doubled, it was punched down the dough, turned onto the floured board and cut it into 8 equal pieces.  These were formed into balls and placed on a greased baking sheet.

I brushed the top of each roll with an egg wash (1 egg whisked with 1 Tbs of water) and sprinkled variously with: sesame seeds, poppy seeds, dried onion flakes and crumbled rosemary.  These were then allowed to rise again until doubled.

Baked until lightly browned at 375F for about 18 minutes, then cooled them on a wire rack.

All this was improvisation.  And they turned out just the way I'd hoped.  We shared a roll with rosemary and onion flakes right out of the oven.  The rest will be for sandwiches this week.

We'll be enjoying a lot of fresh baked bread this week as I continue to feed and reactivate the starter, and find new ways to use up the surplus.

RECIPE: Apple Crisp

If you're worried about the health effects of butter and sugar, then this isn't the recipe for you.  Personally, I consider them to be essential parts of a well balanced diet.

The apples that provided the impetus to creating this recipe were the last of our locally grown apples from the farmers market, kept in storage in their basement since last fall.  Not great for fresh eating, but perfect for baking.

Another Kay's Kreative Kitchen original.*

FOR THE FILLING:

• 6 c apples**, cored and sliced with skin on (variety of your choosing)
• 1/2 c sugar (I used 1 cup per another recipe and it seemed a bit too sweet)
• 2 Tbs flour
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp nutmeg
• 2 Tbs fresh lemon juice

Wisk together sugar, flour, cinnamon, and nutmeg in a large bowl.  Toss with apples to coat and pour into a 2-quart glass baking dish. [I used my "new" 10-inch round pyrex pie plate ] Sprinkle lemon juice over apple mixture.

Optional: sprinkle mini-chocolate chips over the apples in the dish.

FOR THE TOPPING:

• 1 cup all purpose flour (I use unbleached)
• 3/4 c quick or old-fashioned rolled oats
• 1/2 c packed light brown sugar
• 1/2 c (1 stick) cold butter, cut into 1/4 inch pieces
• 3/4 tsp ground cinnamon

In the same large bowl used above, combine flour, oats, brown sugar, butter and cinnamon.  Mix with hands until coarse crumbs form.  Spread over apple filling in baking dish.

If you anticipate that the crisp may bubble over while baking, place the baking dish in the middle of a large cookie sheet before placing in the oven.  Bake about 40 minutes at 400F, rack in middle position, until filling bubbly and topping is golden brown.  Allow to cool slightly before eating.

*Ingredients and methods were re-combined from recipes found in: "The Lily Wallace New American Cook Book", 1943; "Better Homes and Gardens: New Cook Book", 1962; "Good Housekeeping: 100 Best Dessert Recipes", 2004.  The addition of chocolate chips and lemon juice were entirely my own idea.

(c)2009 Kay Pere ~ Effusive Muse Publishing

RECIPE: No-Knead Honey Oatmeal Batter Bread

Just out of the oven.  Another original recipe from Kay's Kreative Kitchen. 

This bread requires no kneading and can be made without getting out the mixer.  Makes a sweet, moist, chewy flavorful loaf.  For a crunchier crust, mist the oven with water just before putting bread in to bake.

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 tsp Salt
• 2 pkgs Active Dry Yeast (equals 4 1/2 tsp)
• 5 cups All-Purpose Flour, divided (I use unbleached all-purpose flour)
• 1 cup Apple Juice*
• 1 1/2 cups Water*
• 1 cup Quick Cooking Oats, Uncooked
• 1/2 cup Honey**
• 1 Tbs Butter (plus additional to grease pans)
• 2 Tbs Sesame Seeds (optional)

1. In a large bowl, whisk together salt, yeast and 2 cups flour.
2. In 2-quart saucepan with spoon mix water, apple juice, oats, butter and honey over low heat.  Heat until very warm (120-130F)
3. Gradually add liquid mixture into dry ingredients and whisk together until blended.  Whisk an additional 2 minutes, occasionally scraping bowl.  (This can be done by hand or using an electric mixer)  Beat in an additional 1/2 cup of flour to make a thick batter; continue beating 2 minutes.  Stir in about 2 1/2 cups additional flour, enough to make a stiff, sticky dough that leaves the side of the bowl.
4. Cover bowl with a damp towel and let rise in a warm place (85-95F) about 1 hour, until doubled.
5. Stir down dough; divide in two and turn out into 2 greased 5x9 inch rectangular bread pans.  Sprinkle with sesame seeds (optional).  Let rise in a warm place about 45 minutes, until doubled.
6. Preheat oven to 350F.  Bake 40 minutes or until loaves sound hollow when tapped.  Remove from pans immediately to cool on a wire rack.

* May use 2 1/2 cups of water in place of water and apple juice for a bread that's slightly less sweet.

** May use either honey, maple syrup or molasses to sweeten.

(c)2009 Kay Pere ~ Effusive Muse Publishing

RECIPE: Boston Baked Beans-LESS SODIUM

This is a new original recipe from Kay's Kreative Kitchen.*  (Also made the pottery bowl and the bread in the photo by hand, but not today.)

I cooked this for lunch today, putting the pot of beans in the oven (Step #4 below) first thing this morning (Steps #1-3 prepared last night).  

The house smelled wonderful while I boxed up belated Christmas presents to send to family living on the other side of the US.  I removed the cover from the pot in the oven (Step #5) before heading out to the post office.  The baked beans were ready to eat when I got back.

Served along with some homemade sourdough bread, baked yesterday, this made a hardy lunch.  Comfort food for a gray winter day.

INGREDIENTS
1-2 lb Small Red Beans, Dry (or Navy Beans)
1/2 lb Low Sodium Bacon (1/4 inch dice with kitchen shears)
1/2 cup Dark Molasses
1/2 cup Maple Syrup
1 cup Hot Water
1 Tbs Cider Vinegar
1/8 cup Dried Chopped Onion
1 tsp Dry Mustard
1/4 cup Dark Brown Sugar
1/2 tsp Salt
1/4 tsp Black Pepper
1/8 tsp Ground Cloves

INSTRUCTIONS

1) Quick soak beans. (Cover with water equal to 3 times volume of beans. Boil 3 minutes, remove from heat and allow to soak 1 hour.) Drain and rinse. (Quick soaking, draining and rinsing reduces the amount of indigestible starch in the beans, thereby reducing those well known after effects that give beans such a bad reputation.) Replace water and cook until tender, 1-1 ½ hrs. Can be done a day ahead.

2) In a bowl, stir together: molasses, maple syrup, water, vinegar, onion, mustard, brown sugar, salt and spices. Can refrigerate overnight to blend flavors and hydrate dried onions.

3) Layer beans and bacon in 4-quart or larger, oven safe cooking pot, in 3 layers ending with bacon on top. Pour liquid mixture over layers. Add enough hot water to just reach top of beans.

4) Cover and bake 4 hours in 300F oven, or 6-8 hours at 250F, until beans are tender. Add water as needed to keep moist. Stir only once or twice.

5) Uncover last 30 minutes of cooking to brown. If excess liquid remains, cook uncovered until boiled away.

*Though the primary ingredients and methods in this recipe were combined from several sources, my own original twists include: small red beans substituted for navy beans, low sodium bacon in place of salt pork, half the amount of salt called for in other recipes, dried onions instead of fresh chopped, replacing half the volume of molasses in other recipes with maple syrup, and a hint of ground cloves.

COST:  Less than $0.50 USD per serving.  Haven't figured it out exactly.

CREATIVE OATMEAL: other things to think about #2

[free or nearly-free happy things]

Perhaps not the most exciting subject, but a favorite breakfast for cold weather.  And it provides many options.

Here's my recipe.  It makes about 6 servings.  I eat one immediately and refrigerate the remainder to reheat on subsequent days.

Basic:

• 2 cups Old Fashioned Rolled Oats (slow cooking)
• 4-5 cups Water
• 1/4 tsp Salt (adds approx. 100 mg sodium per serving)

Bring to a boil.  Cook about 5 minutes over medium heat or until thickened.  Stir occasionally.

Additions:

• Dried Fruit, chopped (If you want them plumped, add at the beginning of cooking with oats.)
• Frozen Fruit, thawed while cooking
• Nuts, chopped (If you want them crunchy, add at the end of cooking.)
• Flavorings:  cinnamon, vanilla, nutmeg, cloves ... use your imagination
• Sweeteners:  brown sugar, maple syrup, honey, molasses, jam, fruit juice

Once it's served up on a bowl, I also pour on a little soymilk to make complete proteins.  (legumes + whole grains)

Cost:

• 15 cup container uncooked Store Brand Rolled Oats = $1.75 US (on sale)
  
• 3 Servings per cup (with additions)
  
• $1.75 US for 45 servings per container
  
• $0.04 US per serving + cost of optional additions and soymilk!
  

Time:

• 10-15 minutes once a week to cook 6 days worth of servings.  
• 2 minutes once a week to packaging in a resealable container for the frig
• 2 minutes each day doing other things while the microwave reheats (stir in a little water to thin)
  
• 1 minute once a week to scrub out the pan (if I don't remember to let it soak it takes longer)
• less than 1 minute once a week to wash the resealable container

Favorite Creative Addition Combos:

• chopped dried apples, brown sugar or maple syrup, cinnamon, vanilla, chopped walnuts
• chopped dates, chopped pecans, cinnamon, vanilla
• chopped dried apricots, honey, slivered almonds, almond extract (tiny amount)
• frozen blueberries, maple syrup
• frozen raspberries, honey
• strawberry jam, almonds
• blond raisins, pecans, cinnamon, vanilla, maple syrup

Yum!  Now you can tell someone they are as interesting as oatmeal and mean it as a compliment.

And Mom was right.  It does "stick to your ribs."

RECIPE: Toasted Almond Butter-NO SALT

"Training is everything.  

The peach was once a bitter almond; 

cauliflower is nothing but cabbage with a college education." 

~Mark Twain, Pudd'nhead Wilson (1894)

I made nut butter from scratch for the first time today.  Very easy and yummy!

INGREDIENTS:

1 lb Whole Almonds

2 Tbs Almond Oil (or other oil) as needed

1)   Toast almonds in 350F oven for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally to toast evenly.  Allow to cool.

2)  Add almonds to food processor, stopping and scraping sides frequently, until paste forms.  If the nut butter is too firm, add oil one tablespoon at a time while continuing to process.  Length of processing time depends on the processor power/speed and oil content of the nuts.

Other nuts or mixtures of nuts can be substituted using the same method.

COMMENTS:

• I've stored mine in a repurposed 16 oz glass peanut butter jar.  
• One pound of nuts filled the jar exactly.  
• Processing was done in an 11-cup Cuisinart I got at a yard sale for $15.  
• The nuts were purchased on sale from the grocery store, at a savings of several dollars over the cost of a store-bought jar of almond butter, and without the salt.  

All very simple and the house now smells like roasted almonds.