BBAC 19: Marbled Rye Bread

roast beef and coleslaw

The Bread Baker's Apprentice Challenge 19: Marbled Rye Bread. This is one of my favorite breads in the book; not only does it remind me of one of my favorite Seinfeld episodes, The Rye, it is also very tasty and chewy. The toasted slices make the best pastrami or roast beef sandwich specially with a layer of coleslaw or sauerkraut.

Mixing and kneading is not too difficult but the dough has the tendency to dry while proofing and shaping so I make the dough a teensy bit more wet. I have a small bottle of liquid caramel but I prefer using powdered caramel because it makes the dough darker. And the most fun part I have in baking this bread is the shaping. I love the swirl shape but the marbled loaf is more fun because the slices come out with different patterns and therefore never boring.

Rating:
flavor 5
texture 5
visual appeal 5
ease of preparation 5
performance 5
worth 5
Total: 30
Average: 5

Lasang Pinoy, Sundays: KBL

KBL

KBL or Kadyos, Baboy, At Langka translates to Pigeon Peas, Pork Hocks, And Green Jackfruit Stew, a delicious dish from the Southern Philippines.

a food photography meme, Filipino style, is hosted by SpiCes.

Bagoong Fried Rice

bagoong fried rice and bacon

One of the food fads in the Philippines that I keep reading about is Bagoong (fermented shrimp paste) Fried Rice. I didn't know that this dish is adapted by Filipinos from a Thai recipe for fried rice, Kao Kluk Gapi, substituting bagoong for the Thai shrimp paste called kapi or gapi. I can't recall if I have ever made this dish which is usually served with Moo Wan (sweet pork). Moo Wan is one of our favorite Thai meat dishes but I paired the Filipino bagoong version of the rice dish with deep fried thick pieces of [home cured with maple sugar] bacon.

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Stuffed Whole Boneless Chicken

A few weeks ago a friend and her husband were in town to visit family and friends. They gifted me with a package each of Smoked German Sausages With Jalapeno Peppers and Whole Boneless Chicken With Crawfish Dressing. Both are utterly delicious.

It was only a matter of time before getting this grand idea of recreating the rice-stuffed boneless chicken dish. I've deboned a whole chicken just once last Christmas, not an easy thing to do, took me almost an hour. I don't know why I decided to cook it, I'm either nuts or obsessed, or both. First, I didn't have crawfish which is okay because my husband does not like crawfish that much, or any seafood. I was thinking of bagoong (fermented shrimp paste) rice but darn, it's also fish. (BTW, he actually loves bagoong in Kare-kare).

Inspired by Chicken Jambalaya, I cooked up the rice stuffing with whatever I have: some chopped home cured bacon, abundant cherry tomatoes from the backyard, green and red shishito peppers, and red hot chili peppers. Deboning the chicken this time was easier and quicker too, I finished in 15 minutes using a good deboning knife and kitchen shears.

overstuffed the chicken and the thread came off the skin during baking

Stuffed Whole Boneless Chicken
1 whole boneless (or with bones) chicken
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cayenne
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 ounces diced thick-sliced bacon (or smoked ham)
6 garlic cloves, finely minced
1 medium sweet onion, finely chopped
1 cup chopped red and green shishito or bell peppers
2 fresh red hot peppers, finely chopped
1 teaspoon ground cayenne, or to taste
2 cups chopped tomatoes
1 teaspoon fresh thyme
1 tablespoon chopped Italian parsley
1 cup uncooked rice
3 cups chicken broth
salt and ground black pepper to taste

• Season the chicken inside and out with salt, pepper, and cayenne. Set aside.
• In a medium saucepan, cook the bacon until it renders its fat and turns golden brown. Add the next 5 ingredients and saute for 5 minutes. Stir in the tomatoes, thyme, parsley, and rice. Stir fry for 2 minutes then add the chicken broth, 2 teaspoons salt and ¼ teaspoon ground black papper. Let come to a boil, turn heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer for 20 minutes.

• Fill the chicken with the cooked rice and bake for 1 hour in a preheated 400°F oven for boneless, or 350°F for 1½ hours if with bones.