Showing posts with label bread. Show all posts
Showing posts with label bread. Show all posts
13 October, 2011
Challah!
20:50 | 
Posted by
W
Making bread is not a task to be entered into lightly. Until now I have shied away from making leavened bread, anything that needs to rise gives me pause. In my household we never used yeast, we used baking powder to make biscuits and cakes rise, but dinner rolls? They were always frozen.
Since I moved to Italy I have been forced to try new methods of baking; baking powder is no longer available and an oven is a rare commodity, this is limited baking taken to the extreme. What is available is yeast and loads of it, they even use it in cakes! So after much consideration, and an available oven, I tried my hand at bread baking, this is the day I made Challah!
Challah!
¾ cup Water, Warm
1 tbsp. Sugar
1/3 cup honey
sprig of diced rosemary
1 package Active Dry Yeast
¼ cup Olive Oil
3 Eggs, Divided
¾ tbsp. Salt
3 cups All Purpose Flour
In a bowl, combine the warm water and 1 tablespoon of sugar. Sprinkle the yeast over the water and let stand for 5 minutes.
Do not stir the yeast for 5 minutes, just let it multiply.Whisk in the oil, and then 2 of the eggs. Add 1/3 cup of honey, rosemary, salt, and whisk to combine. While stirring gradually add the flour and whisk.
Once the dough starts to come together, start kneading the dough, add as much flour as needed to keep the dough from sticking, it should become smooth in your hands.
Form the dough into a ball and place it a large greased bowl. Cover the bowl with a wet towel and let it sit in a warm place to rise for 2 hours.
I used the inside of the oven set on warm.
Now when it comes to braiding the Challah, that's where it gets a bit complicated. Now you can braid challah in several ways; you can opt for a simple 3 strand braid or you can do a more complicated 6 strand braid.
I have included a diagram from Krissy's Blog that explains the 6 strand braid extremely well. If you want to do the 3 strand, it's just like braiding hair, you girls know what I'm talking about.
6-Strand:
The prettiest probably is the 6 strand, but make sure you pull all of the strands down as the braid will form on top of the strands going down. It's only decorative so have fun!
Divide the dough into 6 balls, and then roll each ball into a long 12-inch strand. You are now ready to braid the dough.
Continue the pattern until braided and then pinch the bottoms together.
Let the loaf sit out in a warm place for 1 hour, once again, the oven will work fine.
Preheat the oven to 375 F or 190 C.
Once the loaf it done rising again, brush the rest of the egg wash over the loaf and bake.
Be watchful that the bread does not burn, this process is very quick, around 20 minutes.
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01 May, 2010
Bread
My relationship with bread has been a complex one. As a child I thought of bread as sort of the middle man to good things; burgers and cheese needed something to separate them! In my adolescence, when I became a vegetarian it was more of a staple; I was what one might call a potato and cheese vegetarian. Then I discovered baguettes, coupled with roasted garlic, olive oil, fruit and cheese. Oh goodness, the flood gates opened, not all bread was processed and in the shape of a square, there was this lovely flakey business also used as bread that tasted of awesome. So there my love affair with bread started, right at that moment, write it down everyone because this is important.
Then, like in any relationship, bread and I hit a rough spot; ranging from dietary avoidance to indifference. Living in Spain we ate bread at every meal, and to be honest, I couldn't wait to get away from the dense bolillo bread present at every Spanish lunch and dinner. But as of now I'm in a good place; I don't believe that bread should be wasted as a middle man and no good bread comes in the shape of a rectangle. So if you're going to use it to make a sandwich, make a good one."The Good One"
- 1 french baguette
- marinated sliced mushrooms
- brie
- raspberry jam
- 2 egg whites
- basil
Slice baguette at an angle to get long slices, make it as thin as possible. Sauté or grill mushrooms until warm. On one bread side spread brie, on the other the jam. In between the two add the mushrooms and smoosh. Dip both sides of the assembled sandwiches into beaten egg whites. Griddle on both sides until tops brown.
Or you could always highlight a lovely baguette by making bruschetta.
"WYSK's Bruschetta"
- organic cherry tomatoes
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 2 cloves of garlic diced
- fresh basil
- oregano
- salt
- black pepper
- juice of 1/2 lemon
- baguette
Slice baguette to desired thickness. And toast in broiler or in frying pan until browned to your liking. Sauté oil, oregano, and diced garlic. Cut cherry tomatoes into halves or quarters, and add to the pan with lemon juice, salt, and pepper to taste. Only cook for 3-5 minutes, keeping the structure of the tomatoes. At the last second add shredded fresh basil, and spoon on top on toasts. Top with cheese if you like.
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