Looking for a wheaty sandwich bread? This white bread with wheat germ added is a great addition to the sandwich repertoire.
Ingredients:
3/4 cups warm water (105-115 F)
1 tbsp active dry yeast
pinch of sugar
1 1/2 cups milk (105-115 F)
3 tbsp melted butter (or oil)
3 tbsp honey
1 tbsp salt
1 cup wheat germ (Bob's Red Mill)
5-5 1/4 cups unbleached all purpose flour or bread flour
Instructions:
1. In a small bowl, pour 1/4 cup of the warm water and add the yeast, along with a pinch of sugar. Stir gently to mix and allow to sit for 10 minutes at room temperature or until frothy and at least doubled in volume.
2. In a large bowl using a whisk, or a Kitchen Aide mixer using the paddle attachment, combine the remainder of the water, the milk, melted butter, salt and the wheat germ. Beat hard until smooth, about 3 minutes by hand or 1 minute in the mixer. Add the flour, 1/2 cup at a time until a soft dough forms, which just clears the sides of the bowl. If making by hand, switch to a wooden spoon when necessary. The dough should be tacky and a little stiff.
3. If kneading by hand, turn out onto a lightly floured countertop and knead until smooth and springy (1-3 minutes for machine-mixed dough, or 4-7 minutes for hand-mixed dough).
If kneading by machine, switch from the paddle to the dough hook and knead for 5-6 minutes, or until the dough is smooth and springy and springs back when pressed with a fingertip.
4. Place the dough in a deep, greased container and turn once to coat the top with oil. Cover completely with plastic wrap and allow to rise at room temperature until doubled in bulk, about 1-1 1/2 hours.
To check the dough, press a fingertip into it. If the indentation remains, the dough is ready. Your dough may take longer; each batch of dough is different.
If you wish, you may wrap in a double layer of plastic wrap at this point and refrigerate the dough for up to 18 hours.
5. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured countertop to deflate.
Grease two 9 x 5-inch pans. Divide the dough into two equal pieces. Pat each piece into a long rectangle and fold the dough into thirds, overlapping the ends in the middle. Then, beginning at the short end of the dough, jelly roll it into a cylinder about 9 inches long (or the length of your pan). Pinch the seams together (end of roll and long seam), using water to adhere the dough together if necessary.
Grease the top with spray oil and cover loosely with plastic wrap. Let rise at room temperature until the dough is fully doubled in size and about two inches over the side of the pan (at least 45 minutes).
6. 20 minutes before baking, preheat the oven to 375 F.
When your dough is ready to bake, remove the plastic wrap and, using a serrated knife or razor blade, and make a long, 1/4-inch deep slice lengthwise down the loaf so it can expand during baking.
Immediately put into the oven and bake for 40-45 minutes, or until the loaves are golden brown and the sides slightly contract from the edges of the pan.
To check, lift the bread from the pan and tap the bottom of the loaf--it should sound hollow and the entire loaf should be golden brown. If the bottom of the loaf is too pale, you can remove it from the pan and place directly on the oven rack to brown in 5-minute increments.
When baked, transfer the loaves to a cooling rack and allow to cool for at least 15 minutes before serving. Loaves are best slightly warm or at room temperature.
Results:
My only dissatisfaction with this recipe was the fact that I did not allow my dough to rise enough before putting it in the oven. Had I done so, the loaf would have been less dense and even better. As is, it turned out with a complex flavor and perfect for everyday sandwich bread.
In trying to clean out my fridge before vacation, I realized I'd purchased some Crème Fraîche on sale a short time ago and not used it. I had a rosewater scone recipe lying around, and thought this might be the perfect addition to what otherwise might be a bland recipe. The result was richness and delicacy rolled into one.
Ingredients:
1.5 cups whole wheat pastry flour (Bob's Red Mill)
2 tsp rosewater extract
2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup Crème Fraîche
about 100 mls water
heavy cream for brushing
coarse sugar for sprinkling
Optional:
100 mls heavy whipping cream/double cream
1 tbsp rosewater
2 roses
Instructions:
1. Preheat the oven to 450ºF. Line a baking tray with parchment paper. Whisk the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt together into a medium-sized mixing bowl. Add the Crème Fraîche and work into the ingredients until the clumps look even. Add enough water to form a soft dough.
2. Place on a lightly floured countertop and knead a couple of times. Dust with flour and roll out to 1 cm thick. Cut out 5 cm hearts (or rounds) with a cookie cutter and place on the baking tray. Knead the offcuts back together gently and repeat until you've used all the dough. (Makes about 12 scones.)
3. Brush each scone lightly with heavy cream and sprinkle with coarse sugar. Bake for 6-8 minutes until the scones have risen and browned around the edges.
4. Allow to cool to room temperature. Whip the cream and rosewater together until it forms soft peaks. Top the scones with the rose whipped cream. Arrange the rose petals on the cream. Serve immediately.
Results:
These are both delicate and rich. The whipped cream adds a bit of class, as well as another touch of rosewater flavor.
I enjoy a good slice of Focaccia bread, so when I stumbled over this recipe in Scones by Genevieve Knights, I thought it was worth a try. I did have to substitute canola oil for soya oil and minced garlic for garlic cloves, as I misread the recipe.
Ingredients:
1 head of garlic or 2 tbsp minced garlic
1 tbsp canola oil
400 g all purpose flour
4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
60 mls extra virgin olive oil
20 pitted and sliced calamata olives
1 tbsp fresh rosemary, coarsely chopped
200-250 mls buttermilk
extra virgin olive oil for brushing
Instructions:
1. For toasting the garlic: Preheat the oven to 400F. Peel the garlic cloves and toss with the canola oil. Wrap the oiled garlic in foil so that the cloves are single file. Place in the oven and bake for 20 minutes.
2. For damper: Line a baking tray with parchment paper and set aside. Sift the flour, baking powder and salt into a medium-sized mixing bowl. Mix in the olive oil with a fork. Mash the garlic slightly and add with the sliced olives and rosemary, mixing a few times with the fork. Add the buttermilk and stir to combine. If the mix is too dry, then add a little bit more buttermilk.
3. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured countertop. Knead together until the dough is formed and smooth. Shape into a large, flat round about 20 cm across. Score 8 wedges about a half inch deep across the surface. Brush with extra olive oil and bake for 15-20 minutes until golden brown and the loaf sounds hollow when tapped.
Results:
I was actually a touch disappointed with these. They were incredibly salty, almost to the point of being inedible. Perhaps it was the olives I chose (Private Selection/Kroger brand unpitted calamata olives), or simply that additional salt was not needed. The recipe is worth trying again, but I would omit the added salt.
I was skeptical about these scones. Pumpkin and Parmesan? Really? Isn't pumpkin supposed to taste like pumpkin pie, with nutmeg and cinnamon? Well, this recipe just proves that pumpkin doesn't always have to be sweet. And that pairing it with Parmesan can actually be a winning combination.
Ingredients:
100 g pumpkin purée
200 g all purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
80 g grated Parmesan cheese
100 g raw pumpkin seeds
100 mls heavy whipping cream
Instructions:
1. Preheat the oven to 450ºF. Sift the flour, baking powder and salt into a medium-sized bowl.
2. Add the pumpkin, Parmesan cheese, and pumpkin seeds to the bowl and mix with a fork until mostly incorporated. Add the heavy whipping cream and mix with a spatula or fork until it has almost come together into a dough.
3. Turn out onto a lightly floured countertop and knead a couple times to bring together. Using a rolling pin, roll out until 1/2-inch high. Use a round cookie cutter and cut out as many rounds as you can, rerolling the pieces as necessary.
4. Place in oven and bake until golden on top, about 6-8 minutes.
Results:
The pumpkin seeds in this recipe make these scones crunchy, while the pungent Parmesan makes them savory. If you're looking for something to accompany a meat dish, these are a possibility.
