Food Friday: Pizza

barbecue sauce, roasted garlic, flaked Thai chicken, chives, cilantro, and mozzarella

Pizza is one food that nobody doesn't like. It's probably the perfect food with the right toppings, of course. Having made pizzas from half a dozen dough recipes, including Neo-Neapolitan from Peter Reinhart's new book ARTISAN BREADS EVERY DAY, I am sticking with the one I think is the best for my preference in pizza dough, Peter Reinhart's Pizza Napoletana from the The Bread Baker's Apprentice. For this pizza dough recipe, there's a choice of high gluten flour, unbleached bread flour, and all-purpose. The high gluten and bread flours need a quarter cup of olive oil to tenderize the dough. I have always used unbleached all-purpose flour for this recipe and have gotten excellent results each and every time.

This is an unusual dough because it uses ice cold water and made to rest in the refrigerator overnight (or for up to 4 days). The dough is a bit slack but easy enough to handle. The finished pizza has all the qualities I love: thin crisp but tender chewy sweetish creamy crust with puffy crispy chewy edges. This pizza dough does not need a lot of toppings and I usually add homemade tomato paste, 2 kinds of cheeses, and small pieces of vegetables such as roasted peppers or baby artichokes. Peter divides the dough into small 6 ounce balls for easier handling. I make mine 8 ounces each and stretch them into 12-inch rounds.

For pizza and other rustic breads I use 6-inch unglazed quarry tiles that I purchased from Home Depot for 33 cents each. The tiles get really hot and seem to do a great job of searing the bottom better than a pizza stone. They are also conveniently mobile and can easily be moved from oven to the outdoor grill.

Peter's notes:

The dough does not need "lip", but one inevitably occurs because the edge is usually thicker than the center and it doesn't have any sauce to hold it down. Do not try to build up the edges by crimping because you want it to bubble up on its own and create a light, airy crumb.

Neapolitan-style Pizza
adapted from The Bread Baker's Apprentice by Peter Reinhart
4½ cups [20.25 ounces] unbleached all purpose flour, chilled
1¾ teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon instant yeast
1¾ cups [14 ounces] ice cold water (40°F)
2 tablespoons olive oil
6 zipper freezer bags

• Sift together the flour, salt, and instant yeast in a 4-quart bowl of a standing mixer with the paddle attachment. Stir in the water until all the flour is absorbed, and mix for about 5 minutes. Switch to the dough hook and mix on medium speed for up to 7 minutes. The dough should clear the sides of the bowl but stick to the bottom of the bowl. If the dough is too wet and doesn't come off the sides, sprinkle in some more flour just until it clears the sides. If it clears the bottom, dribble in a teaspoon or two of cold water. The finished dough will be springy, elastic, and sticky, not just tacky, and registers 50° to 55°F.
• Sprinkle flour on a work surface. Using a metal scraper, cut the dough into 6 equal pieces. Sprinkle the dough with a little flour and form into balls. Place the oil in a bowl and roll each ball in the oil and place in separate bags. Place the bags in the refrigerator for up to 4 days, or place some in the freezer for up to 3 months (transfer the frozen doughs in the refrigerator one day before you plan to bake them).
• On the day you plan to make the pizza, remove the desired amount of dough balls from the refrigerator.
• Dust the work surface and your hands with flour. Gently press the dough into flat disks about ½ inch thick and 5 inches in diameter. Sprinkle the dough with flour and cover loosely with plastic wrap. Let rest for 2 hours.
• At least 45 minutes before baking, place a baking stone or unglazed quarry tiles on the lowest rack of the oven and preheat the oven to the highest heat setting.
• Place a large sheet of parchment on your peel or generously dust with semolina flour. Make the pizza one at a time. Dip your hands including the back and knuckles in flour and gently lift one piece of dough with the help of a pastry scraper. Very gently lay the dough across your fists and carefully stretch it by bouncing the dough in a circular motion, giving it a stretch with each bounce. If it begins to stick, lay it down on the floured surface and reflour your hands, then continue shaping. If you are brave enough, toss the dough up in the air.
• When the dough is stretched out to your satisfaction, lay it on the paper-lined or semolina dusted peel. Lightly top it with your toppings and slide the pizza, including parchment, on the stone and close the door. The pizza should take about 5 to 8 minutes to bake. Remove from oven and transfer to a cutting board. Wait 3 minutes before slicing and serving to allow the cheese to set slightly.

These are from last year's BBA Challenge:

tomato sauce, capers, mozzarella, feta, and kesong puti (Filipino fresh white cheese)

dessert pizza topped with fresh blueberries and coarse raw sugar

Kaya

The first time I made kaya, the rich delicious Malaysian coconut egg jam, it was a semi FAIL but I loved it regardless. It is almost impossible for me to get the same color and texture by cooking it the traditional way unless I was willing to stir the whole day and night. So I altered the method to make it easier for me and for anyone who would like to try making the jam at home. I caramelized the sugar before adding the coconut milk and the tempered egg yolks. It still took about half an hour of stirring on low-medium heat to thicken the jam but it was worth it. I'm very happy the jam has a smooth texture, nice caramel color, and is of course very yummy specially on whole wheat toast.

Oggi's Coconut Egg Jam

2 fresh pandan leaves

¼ cup water

¾ cup sugar

1 can coconut milk

6 egg yolks

• Cut the pandan leaves into 1-inch pieces and blend with the water on high in a blender. Strain using a coffee filter. Set aside.
• In a large non-stick wok or saucepan caramelize the sugar over medium heat until golden to darkish brown. Carefully add the coconut milk and pandan water [it will bubble] and stir with a wooden spoon until the caramelized sugar has melted completely. Lower the heat to medium-low.
• In a stand mixer bowl with the paddle attachment, beat the egg yolks until very thick. With the machine running, slowly pour 1 cup of the hot coconut milk mixture and beat on medium-high for 2 minutes.

• Stir in the tempered egg yolks to the coconut mixture. Cook, stirring constantly with a rubber spatula, until jam has thickened, about 30 minutes. Test the desired thickness by taking a half teaspoon and leaving in the refrigerator for 10 minutes.
• Spoon jam into small jars, let cool, and store in the refrigerator.

Let's Make Macarons

rosewater puffs filled with lychee buttercream, coffee puffs filled with chestnuts buttercream, and matcha puffs filled with sweet azuki beans

As promised (comments section) here is the macaron tutorial of sorts from the book i ♥ macarons by Hisako Ogita. Making macarons is a seriously involved process but if you are willing to take the time, it's very rewarding to eat tiny puffy buttons.

Basic Vanilla Macaron Batter
adapted from i ♥ macarons
2/3 cup almond flour
1½ cups powdered sugar
3 large egg whites, room temperature
5 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

• Cut a sheet of parchment paper to fit your baking sheet. Draw 1-inch circles ½ inch apart [use a water bottle cap as a guide]. Cut 2 more sheets of parchment paper but leave unmarked.
  
• In a food processor, grind almond flour and powdered sugar together to a fine powder. Sift the mixture throuh a medium-mesh sieve twice. Set aside.

• In a standing mixer bowl, beat egg whites on high speed until frothy. Add the sugar 1 tablespoon at a time. Add vanilla and stir lightly. Beat meringue until stiff, firm, and glossy.
• Add half of the sifted flour. Stir with a spatula while scooping it up from the bottom of the bowl. Add the rest of the flour and mix it lightly in a circular motion.
  
• Macaronnage: Press and spread out the batter against the bowl's sides. Scoop the batter and turn it upside down (folding method). Repeat 15 times.
  
• Macaronner: When the batter becomes nicely firm and drips slowly as you scoop it with a spatula, the mixture is done.

• Fill a disposable pastry bag with the batter and snip a .4-inch opening. Clip the top of the bag to prevent the batter from coming out.
  
• Place the parchment with circles on the baking sheet. Place an unmarked parchment on top of the parchment. Pipe the batter using the circles as your guide. When full, carefully remove the parchment underneath. Rap the baking sheet firmly against the counter. This helps the macarons hold their rounded shape and helps the pied (little feet) to form. Repeat with the next baking sheet, parchment, and piping. You can fold and reuse the marked sheet which will save you time drawing circles. Leave the batter to dry on the kitchen counter for 15 to 30 minutes.
  
• Preheat the oven to 375°F. Touch the batter lightly and if they do not stick to your fingers, they are ready. Bake 1 baking sheet at a time for 15 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool on a wire rack. When completely cool, remove from the baking sheets. Fill with vanilla buttercream.

Vanilla Buttercream
7 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
3 tablespoons water
3 tablespoons sugar
1 egg
vanilla extract

• In a small bowl, stir the butter with a spatula until creamy like mayonnaise.
  
• In a small pan, boil the water and sugar to soft ball stage.
  
• In the bowl of a standing mixer beat the egg lightly. Increase the speed to high and slowly pour the hot syrup. Reduce the speed to medium then to low and continue beating until the bowl has cooled down to the touch. Beat in the creamed butter in three additions. Add a drop or two of vanilla extract. Continue to beat until the mixture is thick and heavy. Pipe onto the macaron halves using a disposable pastry bag.

coffee puffs filled with chestnuts buttercream



matcha puffs filled with sweet azuki beans

Milo Shake

Milo toast has been my regular breakfast food since I wrote about it and I have yet to get tired of it. I soon will, don't worry, because I found another way to enjoy Milo and condensed milk: good old malted milk shake. It is the best drink to cool off this summer and I love to eat the crunchy Milo on top in between brain freeze sips of the shake.

The recipe is just a guide. You can add more or use less but why would you do that? Milo powder to suit your taste or use reduced fat milk, it's up to you. But most important, add a layer of Milo on top. It's delicious and satisfying. I promise you'll be purring like a cat. =^..^=

Milo Shake
6 tablespoons Milo malted powder
3 tablespoons cold sweetened condensed milk
2½ cups cold whole milk
3 tablespoons cold heavy cream
1½ cups ice cubes
Milo malted powder for topping

• In a blender, blend on high all the ingredients, except the Milo for topping, until thick and frothy. Pour into 2 tall glasses. Top each glass with 2 tablespoons of Milo. Sit back and enjoy your shake.

Daring Cooks: Pâté and Bread

Our hostesses this month, Evelyne of Cheap Ethnic Eatz, and Valerie of The Chocolate Bunny, chose delicious pate with freshly baked bread as their June Daring Cook’s challenge! They’ve provided us with 4 different pate recipes to choose from and are allowing us to go wild with our homemade bread choice.

I chose the Chicken Liver Terrine and used all the ingredients in the recipe. It is super delicious and the perfect topping for Peter Reinhart's Pain à l'Ancienne mini baguettes. It's a surprise that I really love it because I hardly cook any kind of liver except for one Filipino dish. I couldn't stop eating it as soon as it has cooled overnight in the refrigerator.

Chicken Liver Terrine
1 tablespoon duck fat, or butter
2 onions, coarsely chopped
11 ounces chicken livers, trimmed
3 tablespoons brandy
3½ ounces smoked bacon, diced
11 ounces boneless pork belly, coarsely ground
7 ounces boneless pork shoulder, coarsely ground
2 shallots, chopped
1 teaspoon quatre-épices (1 teaspoon ground white pepper and ¼ teaspoon each cloves, nutmeg and ginger)
2 eggs
7 ounces heavy cream
2 fresh thyme sprigs, chopped
sea salt and pepper
bacon rashers, optional

• Preheat oven to 400ºF.
  
• Melt the fat or butter in a skillet over low heat. Add the onions and cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes, until softened. Add the chicken livers and cook, stirring frequently, for about 5 minutes, until browned but still slightly pink on the inside.
  
• Put the minced pork belly and shoulder in a food processor, then add the onion-liver mixture and the chopped shallots and pulse until you obtain a homogeneous mixture – make sure not to reduce it to a slurry. Transfer to a bowl, and fold in the chopped bacon, quatre-épices, brandy, cream, eggs, and thyme. Season with salt and pepper, and mix well. Wrap half a tablespoon of the mixture in a plastic film and poach in water for a few minutes. Let cool, taste, and adjust seasoning.
  
• Line a 10 x 5-inch loaf pan with thin bacon rashers. Spoon the mixture into the pan, covering top with the bacon overhang. Cover tightly with aluminum foil.
  
• Prepare a water bath: place the loaf pan in a larger, deep dish. Bring some water to a simmer and carefully pour it in the larger dish. The water should reach approximately halfway up the loaf pan. Put the water bath and the loaf pan in the oven, and bake for 2 hours. Uncover and bake for another 30 minutes. The terrine should be cooked through, and you should be able to slice into it with a knife and leave a mark, but it shouldn’t be too dry.
  
• Refrigerate, as this pâté needs to be served cold. Unmold onto a serving platter, cut into slices, and serve with bread.

The second one I made is seafood. This is not one of the recipes given because I didn't have salmon. I had a half pound of scallops and found a seafood terrine recipe from Michael Ruhlman's CHARCUTERIE. The terrine has scallops, blue crab meat, saffron-infused cream, and chopped chives. The pinch of saffron lends its unique flavor and pale yellow color to this delicious terrine. I made sauce gribiche as Ruhlman suggests in the book and baked Spiraled Wheat Loaf from King Arthur Flour website. Great stuff.

Maryland Crab, Scallop, and Saffron Terrine
adapted from CHARCUTERIE by Michael Ruhlman
8 leeks, green tops only
¾ cup heavy cream
a large pinch of saffron
1 pound sea scallo[s
2 large egg whites
¾ tablespoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon ground white pepper
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
1 pound Maryland lump crab meat
¾ cup chopped chives

• Freeze all the the blades and bowls before starting.
• Wash the leek greens thoroughly. Cook them for 8 minutes in a large pot of heavily salted water. Drain and chill in ice water, then drain and pat dry. Lay out on plastic wrap.
• In a small saucepan, bring the cream to a boil over high heat; remove from heat. Add saffron and let sit for 15 minutes to infuse the cream, then chill, uncovered, in the refrigerator.
• Preheat the oven to 300°F.
• Combine scallops with the egg whites in a food processor and puree until smooth. While the machine is running, add the saffron cream in a slow, steady stream. Season with the salt, pepper, and lemon juice. Transfer into a bowl and fold in the crab meat and chives. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate.
  
• Moisten a 1½ quart loaf pan with water and line with plastic wrap, leaving enough overhang on the long sides. Line the mold crosswise with the leeks leaving enough overhang to cover top. Pack the scallop mixture into the pan. Fold the leek greens over the top, followed by the plastic wrap. Cover with aluminum foil. Place the terrine in a high-sided roasting pan and add enough hot water to the pan to come halfway up the side of the loaf pan. Bake until an instant-read thermometer reads 140°F. Remove from the oven, remove the terrine from the water bath and let cool. Refrigerate overnight.

Sauce Gribiche
recipe by David Lebovitz
1 large egg
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon red wine vinegar
1 cornichon
8 to 10 small capers; drained, rinsed, and squeezed dry
¼ cup (gently-packed) mixed chopped herbs; flat-leaf parsley, chervil, and/or tarragon
salt and freshly-ground black pepper

• Cook the egg in boiling water for 10 minutes. Remove from heat, drain away the water, and cool the egg by adding ice and cold water to the pot. Once cool, peel the egg then extract the yolk.
  
• In a medium-sized bowl, mash the yolk until smooth with the mustard. Dribble in the olive oil, beating with a fork or wooden spoon while doing so, then adding the vinegar.
  
• Chop the egg white and cornichon separately into fine cubes, the size of the capers, and add them to the sauce. Then add the capers themselves. Stir in the herbs and add salt and pepper. Taste, and season with additional salt, pepper, and vinegar, if necessary. Serve at room temperature.

And I couldn't resist having sweet fruity terrines. I made a mini Caramel Pear Terrine with Kumquat Star Anise Rum, the recipe adapted from here and Sidra Berries Terrine. Both are delicious.

Sidra Berries Terrine
1 cup apple juice
2 packets unflavored gelatin
1 tablespoon sugar, more or less to taste
2½ cups sidra (Spanish sparkling apple cider)
fresh berries

• In a small bowl, soften the gelatin in ¼ cup juice.
  
• Heat the remaining juice to boiling. Remove from heat and stir in the gelatin mixture and sugar. Transfer into a bowl and add the sidra. Stir gently and mix well.
  
• Arrange a layer of berries on the bottom of an 8 x 4-inch loaf pan. Cover the fruits with the gelatin liquid, let set in the freezer for 5 minutes. Continue layering fruits and liquid, letting set in the freezer until the loaf pan is filled to the top. Cover with plastic film and let set completely in the refrigerator for 2 hours. Unmold onto a serving plate and cut into thick slices. Enjoy.
  

Thank you Evelyne and Valerie for choosing pâté and freshly baked bread. I enjoyed doing the challenge.:-)

Mellow Bakers Beer Bread with Roasted Barley

I meant to go mellow this month intending to bake just one bread but I got suckered into baking Beer Bread with Roasted Barley. It's an interesting recipe because it requires roasting malted barley. Malted barley means soaking and sprouting the husked [or unhusked] barley, drying the sprouted grains then grinding to a fine powder. The result is a sweet tasting barley.

I found a small packet of malt flour among the array of flours I have in my pantry (21 different flours so far), but reading the MellowBakers forum I got curioser and curioser and bought a 2-pound bag of peeled barley, cost is $1.99. I sprouted, roasted, and ground a quarter of a cup and used 2 tablespoons for half recipe. BTW, I ate a few roasted grains and indeed they were sweetish.

For the beer, I used Guinness Extra Stout which is dark, malty, and has a caramel flavor. I don't drink beer and I can't stand its smell. I felt a bit ill inhaling it while handling the dough. The dough was easy to knead but after the fold it became a little bit more slack. I was puzzled and wondered if that was even possible, maybe I was just intoxicated with the beer fumes.

I was not expecting to like the bread but surprisingly I did not just like it, I loved it! It is delicious, sweet-tasting, full flavored, and has a caramelly aroma that is almost chocolatey. There's a slight bitterness [IMHO] from the beer which I don't mind, sometimes I like bitter. The flavor of this bread is the perfect vessel for the chicken liver pate I made. I'm glad I decided not to skip baking this bread. It has the potential to become a favorite.

The recipe is here or better yet, get the book, BREAD.

Chicken Faux Gras

Michel Richard's Chicken Faux Gras: absolutely the creamiest thing on earth

Liver has never been a favorite in my house. When I was a teenager my mom used to force pork liver steaks and onions on me and my sisters once every two weeks and the ritual probably made me averse to any kind of liver. As an adult I seldom ate it, maybe once in a blue moon I add liverwurst sparingly when a recipe calls for liver. My taste buds have changed recently because the past year I have started to appreciate it more and more but in small doses adding it to meat paté and a few Filipino pork dishes.

Since I started baking a lot of bread I have been looking for more ways to eat them other than sandwiches. Reading Michel Richard's Chicken Faux Gras from his cookbook HAPPY IN THE KITCHEN, the pate sounds like a very good spread for the breads. The recipe is so rich and Michel describes it in the cookbook as "absolutely the creamiest thing on earth" and he is of course "absolutely" accurate. It is rich and creamy and melts in your mouth delicious. It's perfect not just as appetizer but also for lunch, dinner, and this morning for breakfast too.

Chicken Faux Gras
adapted from HAPPY IN THE KITCHEN by Michel Richard
mousse
1 cup softened unsalted butter
1 cup finely chopped onion
1 garlic clove, minced
½ cup heavy cream
1 pound chicken livers, trimmed
1 teaspoon fine sea salt
½ teaspoon ground black or white pepper

parsley gelée
1 seedless cucumber
1 teaspoon unflavored gelatin
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon sugar
2 drops Tabasco sauce
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

• Prepare the Mousse: Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 300ºF.
• Cook onion in 2 tablespoons butter in a small saucepan over moderately low heat, covered, for 5 minutes. Stir in garlic and cream and simmer, covered, until onion is tender, about 6 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in remaining butter, then return to heat and stir until butter is melted and mixture is combined.
• Purée livers with onion mixture, sea salt, and pepper in a blender, scraping down sides as necessary, until smooth. Force mixture through a fine-mesh sieve into a large measuring cup.
• Bring a teakettle full of water to a boil.
• Evenly space ramekins in a 13- by 9-inch roasting pan. Divide liver mixture among ramekins, then cover each ramekin with foil and place roasting pan in oven. Pour enough boiling water into pan to fill pan halfway. Bake until mousse is just set, about 30 minutes.
• Remove foil and transfer ramekins to a rack to cool to room temperature, about 1 hour, then chill mousse, covered, at least 3 hours.
• Prepare gelée once mousse is cold: Chop half of cucumber and reserve remainder for another use. Purée chopped cucumber in a food processor until liquefied. Pour through a fine-mesh sieve into a liquid measuring cup (you should have 1/2 cup cucumber water; if not, chop and purée more cucumber).
• Sprinkle gelatin over ¼ cup cucumber water in a small saucepan and let stand 1 minute to soften. Heat gelatin mixture over low heat until gelatin is melted. Remove from heat and stir in the remaining cucumber water, lemon juice, sugar, Tabasco, and parsley.
• Cool gelée 5 minutes, then spoon about 2 tablespoons over each mousse. Chill until gelée is set, about 1 hour.
• Bring mousse to room temperature, about 30 minutes, before serving.

Food Friday: Tofu-rrific

A friend gave me this recipe which she says she got from her sister's friend's friend. Most probably the recipe is already on somebody's website. This vegan dish is similar to sisig without the pork. It has the perfect balance of saltiness and acidity, is rich and creamy [from the mayonnaise] and mildly spicy [from the green finger chilis]. It is very very very good, it's tofu-rrific. I never thought I'd say this about tofu but yes, this tofu dish is awesome!

Tofu with Mayonnaise
2 firm tofu bricks, diced
water
2 tablespoons light olive oil
2 cups chopped sweet onions
5 pieces green finger chili, sliced
½ cup mayonnaise, more or less to taste
3 tablespoons lemon or calamansi juice
½ cup soy sauce

• Heat 3 cups water in a medium sauce pan and add tofu. Leave for 3 minutes then drain well.
  
• Heat the oil in a wok or large non-stick skillet. Carefully add the drained tofu, stir fry for 2 minutes. Add onions and stir cook for 3 minutes. Add finger chili, mayonnaise, and lemon juice. Cook for another 3 minutes or until onions are soft. Turn heat off and stir in the soy sauce. Serve immediately.

Pork Hocks in Coca-Cola Sauce

This dish by the late Thai prime minister and chef Samak Sundaravej, has been bookmarked since 2008 but I never tried making it until now. The reason is I didn't know what pong palo was. At the time I couldn't find the word either on the web or in all of my Thai cookbooks and I have forgotten about the dish. I just discovered here that pong palo is Chinese 5-spice powder which I always have in my pantry. This delicious salty sweet pork dish is a relative of our Filipino-Chinese Pata Tim and humba (hong-bah).

Pork Hocks in Coca-Cola Sauce
adapted from Samak Sundaravej's recipe
3 pounds pork hocks
24 ounces Coca-Cola
1 tablespoon sea salt
1 tablespoon fish sauce
5 cloves garlic, chopped
three cinnamon sticks
coriander root
ground pepper
3 tablespoons pong palo (five-spice) powder
fresh shiitake or wild mushrooms, stems removed and sliced in half
see-uan (a sweet, dark sauce)
chili and vinegar dipping sauce

• Place the pork hocks in a large pot. Pour over the Coca-Cola and bring to the boil. Add the coriander root, garlic, pepper, salt, fish sauce, pong palo and cinnamon sticks. Add enough water to cover. Add the mushrooms. Bring to a boil and simmer for at least three hours. Make sweet sauce with see-uan (I combined dark soy sauce and dark brown sugar). Serve with chilli and vinegar dipping sauce.

Food Friday: Salmon Head

Just a few years ago salmon rarely appeared on our dinner table but nowadays I have been buying salmon steaks frequently. They are often simply seasoned with sea salt, pan fried in a little olive oil, and served with lemon juice and more sea salt. Recently I bought some huge salmon heads from the Asian grocery store. They cost just a fraction of the steaks, of course, they're mostly skin and bones but they also have lots of meat and the yummy fat that I really love. I wish the store sells salmon belly, I'd buy those too for their fat.

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Mellow Bakers Vermont Sourdough

It's June and we at MellowBakers have a new set of breads to bake: Beer Bread, Vermont Sourdough (three recipes to choose from), and Pizza. Initially this was the only recipe that I wanted to bake this month but decided I will also bake the Beer Bread in the coming weeks. The pizza, nah.

I made the third version of Vermont sourdough with increased whole grain. I had a problem with my starter Brad. He seems to be sluggish these days since I ditched Angelina 6 months ago for a rye starter, Ryan. Brad started deteriorating although I was still able to make an excellent miche out of him. This time my levain build failed. I refreshed him for 2 days, 4 feedings every 12 hours and he seems to become alive although not as pretty, bubbly, and stretchy as he used to be. I think I have to make a new starter.

Now the bread. This is the first time I baked this recipe. As usual I halved it. I used Ryan for the levain build, whole organic rye flour, and French gray sea salt which might have contributed to its yumminess. Wow! I'm impressed. It is chewy, tasty, sweetish, mildly acidic which is how I like it, and has nice big holes. I love it. I have found my favorite sourdough bread and sourdough is not even a favorite. Well, now it is.

The dough is somewhat slack so I decided to bake it in my cast iron pot which is very small and can only accommodate 1½ pounds of dough. There is an excess of about 7 ounces of dough which I baked directly on a 6-inch quarry tile. The one in the pot baked plump and tall. While it's cooling I sliced the small loaf which is not as tall but has a beautiful crumb with large holes. I polished it off while uploading the photos and writing this post. Have I already mentioned that this bread is delicious and that I love it?

the small loaf: chewy*nomnomnom*, sweetish*nomnomnom*, and flavorful*nomnomnom*

For those who want to try baking this wonderful bread here is Wild Yeast's recipe based on Jeffrey Hamelman's.

Join us!

Crimini Sliders

Yes, it's that time of the month again, i.e. my regular craving for vegetarian fare. I wanted something barbecue-y and brown crimini mushrooms, also called baby portobella, are the perfect substitute for beef because they have a smokey meaty flavor. I cooked them in a skillet with a tablespoon of water, added KFC bottled barbecue sauce, then I filled the cavities of the mushrooms with grated Gouda, topped with sauteed onions and served in 2½-inch mini burger buns. These are very good barbecue mushroom sliders. For regular size buns, you can use the very large portobellas. And for added smokey flavor, cook then on the grill.

Crimini Sliders
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 medium Vidalia or yellow onions, sliced thin
¼ teaspoon sea salt
1 teaspoon fresh thyme, coarsely chopped
1 teaspoon fresh flat leaf parsley, coarsely chopped
12 brown crimini mushrooms, cleaned and stems removed
1 tablespoon water
½ cup barbecue sauce
grated Gouda
12 mini hamburger buns, grilled or toasted

• In a skillet, heat the olive oil and saute onions and salt until onions are translucent. Add the herbs and stir fry for 2 minutes. Set aside and keep warm.
• In the same skillet, simmer, covered, the mushrooms with 1 tablespoon water until tender, about 10 minutes. Add the barbecue sauce and stir until the mushrooms are fully coated with the sauce. Turn the mushrooms and fill the cavities with enough Gouda, flip the mushrooms and cook until the cheese has melted. Put one mushroom on the bottom half of each mini bun, and top with onions and cover with the top half of the bun. Enjoy!

The white bread recipe is here. To make mini burger buns, scale 1 - 1½ ounces of dough. Brush the risen buns with egg wash and top with sesame or poppy seeds just before baking.

Mango Terrine

I usually buy a box of mangoes when they are in season and therefore cheap at $10.00 for 16 large ones. The only disadvantage is they ripen all at the same time. What to do aside from eating them with [ginger or chocolate] suman? Slice them thin, place them in a loaf pan, add lemon grass and mint tea agar (gelatin), let it set in the refrigerator, and voila! Mango terrine that's so refreshingly different and easy to prepare. The ginger-like lemon grass with a hint of cool mint is so delicious with mangoes. Yum!

Mango Terrine
4 mangoes, thinly sliced and chilled
1 sprig mint, reserve a few leaves for garnish
3 stalks lemon grass. trimmed and cut into 1 inch pieces
4 cups water
¾ cup sugar, or to taste
3 teaspoons agar powder

• Line a medium loaf pan with plastic wrap leaving a 3 inch overhang on both long sides. Or lightly grease the bottom of the pan. Place a few mint leaves on the bottom if desired.
• Bring water and lemon grass to a boil and simmer, covered, for 10 minutes. Add sugar and simmer until sugar is dissolved. Strain and transfer into a bowl. Sprinkle the agar and stir until completely dissolved. Snip the edges of the mint leaves, add to the gelatin mixture and leave for 10 minutes. Remove mint and discard.
• Note: Omit the agar and leave the mint in the liquid, transfer into a tall bottle and chill in the refrigerator. It's a very refreshing and healthy iced tea drink, or if you love mixed drinks, add to vodka.
• Arrange mango slices, slightly overlapping on the bottom of the loaf pan, pour the gelatin mixture to cover mangoes. Arrange another layer of mangoes and gelatin to fill almost to the top of the pan.
• Cover with the plastic wrap overhang. Put in the refrigerator (or freezer if you are impatient like me) until completely cold and has set. Cut into slices.

I had 2 thin slices with chocolate suman. Delicious! Old [eating] habits are hard to break.;D

Barquillos

There are several things [including cooking] that regular folks should leave to the professionals. Making barquillos (wafer rolls) is one of them. I don't know what I was thinking when I decided to make them. Oh, probably because I'm obsessed and nutty. Also because I have a small bottle of hazelnut extract and I wanted to try it in barquillos. I have to admit the hazelnut flavor is very yummy but making them although not too complicated takes forever. The wafers don't wait and have to be shaped as soon as they come out of the oven.

I divided one recipe into 4 and added ube, buco pandan, and mango flavorings and the hazelnut extract with a sprinkling of cocoa powder. I baked two at a time in my toaster oven that's why it took so long to finish. Spreading them really thin was also tedious although by the fourth wafer I got more adept and was able to finish each round of dough thinner and quicker too.

Well, at least now I know it's not worth making them and I'll just buy from the store. Not only are the barquillos made by Filipino bakers very thin, they are uniform in size and I can honestly say yummier than mine. And most important, they're not terribly expensive so why bother. Unless I want the barquillos flavored with say lychee or orange blossoms. Nooooo.;p

Barquillos
½ cup butter, room temperature
½ cup sugar
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract or other flavoring
2 egg whites
2/3 cup all-purpose flour

• Preheat oven to 375°F.
• Draw 4-inch circles 2 inches apart on parchment paper, flip the paper and place on a cookie sheet.
• In a standing mixer bowl with the paddle attachment, cream butter with sugar and vanilla until light and fluffy. Gradually beat in egg whites until smooth. Stir in the flour.
• Drop 1½ teaspoons of the dough onto the baking sheet then spread thinly with a small offset spatula.
• Bake one sheet pan at a time until wafers are brown along edges. Remove wafers from the baking sheet, one at a time, using a spatula or kitchen turner. Roll each wafer around the handle of a wooden spoon until edges overlap. Cool seam side down on a wire rack until crisp all over.

one recipe makes about 2 dozens 4-inch barquillos

Baked Corned Beef Spaghetti à la Noynoy

For dinner tonight I had a weird pasta dish, baked spaghetti with corned beef, the recipe I got from the online edition of the Philippine newspaper Inquirer. I was checking the latest results of the presidential elections and naturally my eyes gravitated towards the Food section and found an article on the candidates's favorite recipes . Two of [the presumed president-elect] Noynoy Aquino's favorites are Libby's corned beef and his mom's Swedish meatballs. Reggie Aspiras, one of the newspaper's food columnists, wrote the article and created a recipe based on those favorites. The dish is baked spaghetti with Purefoods corned beef and for crunch and the must-have yellow color she added canned corn. I thought at first the flavor combination is odd but it actually works, it's quite delicious. Thank you Reggie for the recipe. The only thing I will alter should I make it again is to layer the spaghetti and sauce so there's sauce in the middle.

The future president might want to try this pasta dish, he'll probably like it.

Baked Corned Beef Spaghetti à la Noynoy
adapted from a recipe by Reggie Aspiras

1 pound thin spaghetti, cooked al dente and drained (reserve some of the water)
1/3 cup olive oil
3 tablespoons butter
1½ cups sliced onions
4 tablespoons chopped garlic
3 cups fresh tomatoes, peeled, seeded, and diced
3 cups shredded corned beef or 2 cans Purefoods corned beef
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
1 can whole corn, drained
sea salt and ground black pepper to taste
cream cheese bechamel
1 cup each shredded mozzarella and Parmesan

• Combine oil and butter. Saute onions until caramelized. Add garlic. Add tomatoes and Italian seasoning. Add corned beef, cook for five minutes. Add corn and pasta, toss to combine. If you find the mixture too dry, add a little bit of pasta water. Season to taste.

• Transfer pasta to a baking dish. Top with cream cheese bechamel. Finish with grated mozzarella and grated parmesan. Bake in a pre-heated 350°F oven for 30 minutes or until cheese has melted and the top slightly golden.
  

Cream Cheese Bechamel
1/3 cup butter
1/3 cup flour
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
3 cups fresh milk
1 cup heavy cream
1 cup cream cheese
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
sea salt and ground white pepper to taste

• In a saucepan, melt butter, whisk in flour. Slowly add milk, stirring frequently. Add cream and cream cheese and cook, stirring frequently until smooth and has thickened slightly. Remove from heat and add parsley, nutmeg, salt and pepper.

The Filipino grocery store in my area does not sell Purefoods corned beef which is not a problem because I prefer to cook it myself anyway. There are seasoned corned beef in grocery stores, all you do is add water, boil, and shred. If you can't find seasoned corned beef, here again is the recipe.

Corned beef:
2 pounds beef brisket
2 tablespoons sea salt
1 tablespoon pickling spice
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1 onion, quartered
¾ teaspoon pink salt, optional (if you prefer the cooked meat with red hue)
water

• Put brisket in a pot large enough to accommodate the brisket. Add the rest of the ingredients and enough water to cover meat. Bring to a boil, cover, turn heat down to medium, and boil for 2 hours. Remove cooked meat and transfer into a plate. Leave until cool enough to handle. Slice the brisket across the grain into 1½-inch strips. Shred the meat using 2 forks or with (gloved) hands.

Mellow Bakers: Miche, Pointe-à-Callière

Woohoo, I finished baking all 3 May 2010 MellowBakers breads with Miche, Pointe-à-Callière. I made a very small baby-size, 1 pound 10 ounces boule knowing I'm the only one who's going to eat it. Sour breads are not very popular around here. Besides, I didn't want to get disappointed if the bread turned out inedible.

It was a pleasant surprise when I cut open the bread to find it has a moist chewy open crumb as Jeffrey Hamelman promised. And it is also not too sour, at least to me it isn't, and has a smokey flavor that I really like. I hope the flavor gets even better just like Peter Reinhart's Miche recipe. I give Hamelman's recipe one point higher than PR's because of the beautiful open crumb.

Miche is a sourdough starter-raised bread that takes 2 days to make. A sourdough build is prepared 12 hours before and mixing, fermenting, shaping, second rising, and baking takes approximately 6 hours. This bread needs a baker's full attention as it has to be folded 3 times during fermentation.

I was not expecting too much from this bread as it was slooow in growth and super wet. I kept peeking while it was rising and didn't notice it getting any bigger and after 2 hours I poked it and it was ready. I was still suspicious and thought it wouldn't hold its shape when I inverted the basket on the peel [with a piece of parchment paper], but it did. And it had an oven rise of 1 inch and less than an inch all around. I'm very happy with the recipe, it's worth making again. Thank you Messrs. Hamelman and MacGuire.

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Mellow Bakers: Corn Bread

I love Jeffrey Hamelman's yeast Corn Bread, the second of 3 recipes I have baked for the MellowBakers May 2010 breads. The bread is slightly sweet and has a crunchy crust which is so good for elaborate sandwiches, or simply buttered, or spread with jam. I made a loaf with half a recipe using limed cornmeal and another half recipe with regular yellow cornmeal and the dough is formed into rolls. They are both yummy and I can't tell the difference in flavor.

This recipe is a 2-day bread requiring a 16-hour poolish. The next day the cornmeal is softened in water for 15 minutes before mixing with bread flour, water, olive oil, yeast, and salt. After fermenting, the dough is formed into whatever shape is desired, let rise, then baked in a steamy 460°F oven. In other words, it's a very simple recipe to do.

very nice with lemon curd


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