Soft pretzels

Ok...so these are sort of like the pretzels I learned to make in 7th grade cooking class. But so what? They were freaking amazing...the outside is salty and just a tiny bit crispy while the inside is soft and doughy. I crave these constantly. Serving suggestion: straight out of the oven with some yummy mustard!

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Sourdough Ciabatta - AKA Dave

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A few weeks ago, I took on the challenge of making a loaf of sourdough ciabatta bread. This was actually a quite a big challenge - It took 9 days for me to make this bread. Yup, you read that right. 9 days for one loaf of bread (ok, technically it was 2 loaves).

Why so long to make bread? Well, a few things need to happen to make any kind of sourdough - the first being the development of a "sour starter". The purpose of a sour starter is to develop a lightly acidic flavor common to sourdough. This is done by allowing "wild" yeast present in the air and flour to feed and cause fermentation in the starter. The starter needs to be fed every day, and this was actually quite creepy. I would read things like "The first thing to remember is that the starter is a living thing. It needs to be fed and cared for regularly." So here I have in my kitchen a large bowl of something growing and fermenting and demanding to be fed daily. Because it stopped being a thing and started to be a someone, EJ and I decided to name him Dave.

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Focaccia

My brother-in-law got me this awesome artisan bread book for Christmas, and I've been experimenting making bread the "old fashioned" way. (Wait until you see my post later this week about what I'm growing in my kitchen...I call it Dave.)

Anyway, I made this focaccia a few days ago and I LOVE it. Its a 2-day recipe, so make sure you plan ahead if you are making it for a special occasion. It keeps really well - I sliced it and have been keeping it in the fridge and grabbing a piece every time I go in the kitchen. Don't be intimidated by the semi-complicated bread recipes. They're not so bad.

You can do anything in the world for toppings, I used a combo of sea salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder and rosemary with a pinch of cheddar cheese. Be creative - just don't overdo it. Its a focaccia, not a pizza.

Ingredients:
For the biga:
1/2 c water, 55 degrees F
1 1/3 c bread flour
a pinch of instant dry yeast

Final dough:
2 c water, 86 degrees F
biga from the previous day
3 tbsp olive oil
5 c (plus 2 1/2 tbsp) bread flour
2/3 tsp instant dry yeast
1 tbsp salt

1. Make the biga the day before you want to serve the bread. A biga is a type of preferment (literally, PRE-ferment. What you're doing is fermenting some of the bread ingredients prior to making the bread). Put the water in a bowl and combine the flour with the yeast. Mix in with the water until it is totally homogeneous. Mix it well - this step is important. The biga should be stiff and slightly dry. Place it in a lightly oiled bowl (big enough for it to double in size) and refrigerate for 2 hours. Remove, and let it sit at room temperature for 10-12 hours (though, honestly, mine was a lot closer to 20 hours and it was fine).

2. The next day, make your final dough. Put the water, biga and oil into a large bowl and break the biga into lots of tiny pieces; this will take at least 5 minutes. Combine the flour and yeast together and add them to the biga mixture while stirring. Add the salt, and work the mixture with your hands for at least 5 minutes. Make sure the biga is completely broken down and a new, homogeneous dough is forming. The dough will be VERY tacky and wet, and lack structure. Cover the dough and let it rest in a warm place for 45-60 minutes.

3. Place the dough on a lightly floured countertop and fold it into thirds (this really doesn't have to be perfect - all this does is expel air out of the dough...but be gentle). Cover with plastic wrap and let it sit 10 minutes.

4. Uncover the dough and divide it into 3 equal size pieces. On a cookie sheet lined either with parchment paper or a lot of flour and cornmeal, place each loaf and lightly round each one. Next, stipple the dough with your fingertips (fingertips should be dipped in olive oil). Basically poke it a whole lot. This helps keep the bread from puffing while baking, but it also gives each focaccia a unique texture and allows it to hold toppings. While you're doing this, work on stretching the dough into roughly a 10x6 inch rectangle. Lightly cover the dough and let it sit for 30-40 minutes. When toughed, the dough should spring back halfway.

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5. Preheat the oven to 375. Prepare the toppings for the focaccia.

6. 10 minutes before baking the bread, place an oven-proof dish with 3 cups of water in the oven (to produce steam while the bread is baking).

7. Uncover the dough and lightly stipple it again. Add the toppings. If you have a baking stone, slip the bread onto that. If not, just leave it on the baking sheet (I've said it before and I'll say it again - if you don't have a pizza stone, get one!).

8. Immediately reduce the oven temperature to 350.  Bake for 18-20 minutes, then remove the water and bake for another 5. You want it browned and crisp, but not overdone. I actually took mine out a little early because I wanted the bread soft. This came out amazing. I served mine cut like breadsticks and with marinara sauce (served? who am I kidding? I ate it all myself!!)

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Pantry Challenge Day 2 - Potato Rosemary Pizza

Ok...potatoes on pizza...I know its a little weird but just bear with me for a moment. The first time I had a potato pizza was in Cambridge (MA) at Cambridge 1 and I was blown away. I decided to give my own version a try, and it came out great!

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Ingredients:
1 recipe Basic, all purpose dough
1/2 potato
1 cup milk
3 tbsp flour
3 tbsp fat-free cream cheese
1 tsp rosemary
several shakes of onion and garlic powder
salt and pepper, to taste
1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese

1. Prepare the dough as directed. Shape into a pizza pie. Preheat the oven to 500.

2. Make the rosemary cream sauce. Put the milk in a saucepan and heat. Just before it boils, add the flour and whisk. Allow to boil for about 10 seconds and whisk constantly for a minute or two. The mixture should have thickened; if it didn't, try adding more flour and let it boil again.

3. Remove from heat and stir in the cream cheese, onion, garlic, salt and pepper. Taste for flavor.

4. Place the potatoes in a single layer on the pizza. Spread the cream sauce as evenly as possible over the potatoes and sprinkle with rosemary. Add the cheese on top of that.

5. Bake for 8-10 minutes, or until the crust begins to brown.

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Seitan pockets

These were really easy and fun to make. They also made fabulous leftovers. You can really fill them with anything you want - be creative!

Ingredients:

1 recipe Basic, all-purpose dough
1 package seitan
2-3 tbs soy sauce
a few shakes liquid smoke
2-3 tbs vegetarian-friendly steak sauce (I like the Annie's Worchestershire)
About 1 cup shredded cheese (for these, I prefer a sharp cheddar)

Preheat oven to 450

1. Prepare the dough. On the final rising step, you can prepare the seitan.
2. Cut the seitan into strips and saute in a small amount of oil for about 7 minutes, until slightly browned. (Yes, I know its already brown).
3. Add the sauces and saute a bit more. Taste for flavor.
4. Cut the dough into about 6 pieces of equal size. Flatten each piece so that it is about the thickness of a pizza crust. Shape into a circle if you can. Place about 1/6 of the seitan mixture into the lower-center of the dough and top with cheese. Fold the dough over the filling. Press the sides and corners - you can roll them a bit to make them look pretty. Brush the top of each pocket with milk or egg yolk.
5. Bake about about 450 for 8-10 minutes, until the dough is browned.

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Your Basic All-purpose dough

Ingredients:

1 package active dry yeast
1/2 cup warm (not hot) water
1 tbsp sugar
2 tsp salt
1 tbsp olive oil, plus a little extra
3 cups flour, plus extra for the counter top

1. Proof your yeast. Dissolve the sugar into the warm water and add the yeast. Stir the yeast until it is just wet, don't over stir. Let it hang out for 5-10 minutes; it should start getting frothy and foamy. If it doesn't, get a new package of yeast because the first one is dead. (To be completely honest, I usually skip this step).

2. Prepare a large bowl for the dough to rise in. Pour about a tbsp olive oil in it and set aside.

3. Assemble the dry ingredients in a large bowl. I only add about 1/2 the flour, because I have made the mistake before of adding way too much flour and that makes your dough very tough. So I add half the flour and add more as i need/knead it.

4. By now the yeast should have proven itself to you. Add the yeast mixture and the oil to the flour and salt and stir. Add flour until you can't stir any more (you won't get very far).

5. Sprinkle some flour onto a very clean and dry counter top. Dump your dough on top of it and any flour that might have gotten stuck in your bowl. Knead it around, it likes to be beaten up. Add more flour if the dough gets sticky. You should be kneading for 5-10 minutes, until the dough is nice and stretchy.

6. Form the dough into a large ball and place in prepared bowl. Swirl it around in the oil a bit so it doesn't stick. Cover with a damp, clean kitchen towel and place in a warm dry place to rise. Go away for about an hour.

7. When you come back, the dough should have doubled in size. Make a fist with your hand and punch that dough right in the face. Go ahead, just do it. You will feel the dough deflate a little; that's ok. Turn the dough out onto the floured counter top again and knead for a couple of minutes.

8. If you are not going to use all the dough, take a knife and cut the dough in half, wrapping one half in saran wrap and freezing. If you are going to use it all, skip that step. Take the dough that will be used and put it back in the rising bowl, cover, and go away for at least 15 minutes, but an hour is better.

9. Now you can prepare whatever you want. After I have made my pizzas, bread dough, hot pockets, whatever, I tend to let the dough rise one more time, just to get that fluffy texture. This isn't totally necessary though.

Tomato Basil Pizza

I LOVE to make dough. Pizza dough, bread dough, whatever...there is something so satisfying when I see the yeast bubble in the sugar, and when the dough rises and I get to punch it down, and as a runner, I take any excuse to have extra carbs. (Sometimes I think that the reason I run is so I can eat more carbs!)

I will say this about making a dough: If you don't have a pizza stone, GET ONE. I got one as a wedding gift and I absolutely love it. It makes the crust so perfect for pizza and bread...crispy on the outside and nice and soft on the inside.

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Ingredients:
For the dough:
1 package active dry yeast
1/2 cup warm (not hot) water
1 tbsp sugar
2 tsp salt
1 tbsp olive oil, plus a little extra
3 cups flour, plus extra for the counter top

For the toppings:
1 cup fresh basil (chopped pretty small)
1 package firm or extra firm tofu, drained very well
1 tbsp lemon juice
salt, pepper
2 cloves garlic, minced very small
1 tomato, sliced

1. Proof your yeast. Dissolve the sugar into the warm water and add the yeast. Stir the yeast until it is just wet, don't over stir. Let it hang out for 5-10 minutes; it should start getting frothy and foamy. If it doesn't, get a new package of yeast because the first one is dead.

2. Prepare a large bowl for the dough to rise in. Pour in about a tbsp of olive oil and set aside.

3. Assemble the dry ingredients in a large bowl. I only add about 1/2 the flour, because I have made the mistake before of adding way too much flour and that makes your dough very tough. So I add half the flour and add more as i need/knead it.

4. By now the yeast should have proven itself to you. Add the yeast mixture and the oil to the flour and salt and stir. Add flour until you can't stir any more (you won't get very far).

5. Sprinkle some flour onto a very clean and dry counter top. Dump your dough on top of it and any flour that might have gotten stuck in your bowl. Knead it around, it likes to be beaten up. Be rough. Add more flour if the dough gets sticky. You should be kneading for 5-10 minutes, until the dough is nice and stretchy.

6. Form the dough into a large ball and place in prepared bowl. Swirl it around in the oil a bit so it doesn't stick. Cover with a damp, clean kitchen towel and place in a warm dry place to rise. Go away for about an hour.

7. When you come back, the dough should have doubled in size. Make a fist with your hand and punch that dough right in the face. Go ahead, just do it. You will feel the dough deflate a little; that's ok. Turn the dough out onto the floured counter top again and knead for a couple of minutes.

8. If you are not going to use all the dough, take a knife and cut the dough in half, wrapping one half in saran wrap and freezing. If you are going to use it all, skip that step. Take the dough that will be used and put it back in the rising bowl, cover, and go away for at least 15 minutes, but an hour is better. (you can prepare the topping now...scroll down).

9. Finally - time to make pizza! If you already halved the dough, don't half it again. If you haven't, cut the dough in half. This recipe can make 2 14" pizzas.

10. Preheat your oven to 500. Your pizza stone should preheat with the oven.

11. Take a large cookie sheet, the kind with no sides, and cover it with a generous amount of cornmeal (or flour). You will put your pizza on this and slide it onto the stone. Or bake it on this if you have no stone (but you should get one).

12. This is the hardest part for me...making a round pizza. People tell me I'll get it eventually, and they have gotten better. My method is to form the dough into a ball then flatten it. Pick it up by the middle and let gravity do the work...move it around in your hands so that it falls in a circular way, then work your way all around the dough. Once you have a pretty good circle, put it on your cookie sheet and use your fingetips to press the dough and perfect the circle.

13. Apply toppings, slide the pizza from the cookie sheet onto the stone (it might need some prodding) and bake for 7-10 minutes. If you have a stone it will take a little less time. As soon as I see the crust start to brown, I take it out by sliding it back onto the cookie sheet.

15. To make it really awesome, brush the crust with olive oil. Enjoy!!

Making the basil-ricotta topping:

This was adapted from Isa Chandra Moskowitz's Vegan with a Vengeance.

1. Place all ingredients in a large bowl, crush with your fingers until it is the consitency of ricotta cheese.

2. Spread tofu mixture all over pizza. Top with sliced tomatoes. Bake as directed.

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Maffeo-Style Stromboli

These aren't really a stromboli and they aren't really a calzone, but they ARE delicious. When I make these, ej and I have to show some major self control not to eat them all at once. The one featured here was made with spinach, pesto, feta and cheddar cheese, but there are endless combinations of ingredients. Try the veggie pepperoni from Smart Deli with some cheddar cheese and marinara sauce - mm!

Stromzone? Calzoni?

1 pkg active dry yeast (not rapid rise)
1 cup warm, but not hot, water
1 tbsp sugar
3 cups (more or less) flour
1 tbsp salt
olive oil
about 3 cups fresh spinach
about 1/4 cup pesto
about 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
about 1/2 cup feta cheese

1. proof your yeast. dissolve your sugar in the warm water. add the yeast and give it a light stir. set aside 5-10 minutes.

2. meanwhile, prepare a bread pan for the dough to rise in. drizzle about 2 tsp olive oil in the pan and use a napkin to grease the inside it.

3. after a few minutes, check the yeast to see if it has proven itself. you'll know it has if it starts to get frothy. if it hasn't, give it more time, but if after 5 minutes there is no foam, start over with new yeast.

4. in a large bowl, combine your salt and 1 1/2 cup flour. Add the yeast mixture and oil. Combine and keep adding flour until it is really hard to stir with a wooden spoon. at this point, dump the whole thing out on a very clean and floured counter top.

5. Work on kneading in more of the flour with your hands. you should have to keep adding more. don't let the dough get too stiff though - knead for about 5 minutes once its no longer sticking to your fingers.

6. Roll the dough out roughly into the shape of a triangle. It should be about 1/2 an inch thick and even. Spread with pesto, cheese, and spinach (or whatever else you feel like!).

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7. Roll it up carefully so you don't rip it, and so you keep all the insides, well, inside.

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8. place the dough in the prepared bread pan. try to arrange it to its as even as possible.

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(ok, so this one's not that neat)

9. Cover with a damp towel and let rise at least an hour, until it has noticeably increased in size.

10. preheat oven to 350. bake for about 25 minutes, until the top is golden brown. check the inside to make sure it has completely cooked as well. slice up and enjoy!

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Cran-orange muffins

Makes about 8 jumbo muffins

Ingredients:

2/3 cup dried cranberries
1/2 cup hot water
1 cup whole wheat flour
1 cup unbleached white flour
1 tablespoon ground flax seeds
3/4 cup sugar
2 egg whites
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup orange juice
1/2 cup soy milk
2 tsp apple cider vinegar
1/3 cup unsweetened apple sauce
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon grated orange zest

1. Preheat oven to 400. Spray a muffin tin with oil.

2. In a bowl, combine cranberries with hot water. Let them hang out for about 15 minutes.

3. Add the vinegar to the milk and set aside for about 10-15 minutes so it gets nice and curdled.

4. In the meantime, you can mix all the dry ingredients in a large bowl, and all the wet ingredients, sans curdled milk, in another bowl (egg whites are a wet ingredient). Strain the liquid out of the cranberries and add that to the wet ingredients.

5. If the milk is looking pretty curdled, you can add that to the wet ingredients.

6. Make a well in the middle of the dry ingredients and add the wet ones - stire well. Fold in the cranberries.

7. Fill each muffin cup about 3/4 of the way full, and sprinkle a little sugar on top of each muffin (but only if you want to).

8. Bake for about 12-15 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. My favorite way to enjoy these is with a little dollop of margarine - yum!

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(by the way, you can totally tell that I took these pictures and not ej.)