September 8, 2009

BBAC 18: Light Wheat Bread

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Light Wheat Bread
Light Wheat Bread

There's nothing much to write about Light Wheat Bread, The Bread Baker's Apprentice Challenge 18th recipe. All I can say is it's another winner from Peter Reinhart. The bread is light as white bread, very soft, yummy [with added honey], and the recipe is one of the simplest and easiest to follow; mix, knead, let rise, shape/rise, bake. I love the slices toasted or right out of the bag.

Light Wheat Bread
with butter, honey, and fresh figs

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

Note: The bread is very light in color because I used whole wheat atta flour which is lighter both in color and texture than KA and Gold Medal whole wheat flours. I am loving all the breads made with this flour and have been ignoring the KA whole wheat in my pantry. I buy atta from the Korean grocery store and it now stocks different brands that come from USA, Canada, India, and Lebanon; prices range between $10 and $12 for a 20-pound bag. Recently, I have noticed that atta flour is becoming more available in my area. I have spotted 20-pound bags at Wegmans grocery stores and Costco (the cheapest so far at $9).

September 7, 2009

Cincinnati Chili

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a layer each of spaghetti, chili, kidney beans, chopped red onion, grated extra-sharp cheddar cheese, and sprinkled with a few oyster crackers

I make Authentic Texas Border chili often and eat it without beans. We also like it on spaghetti topped with grated cheddar cheese. A few weeks ago I watched an episode of America's Test Kitchen preparing 5-Way Cincinnati Chili which has one layer each of spaghetti, chili, kidney beans, chopped onions, and finely grated cheese in that order. We didn't know we've been eating 3-Way Cincinnati Chili with a Texan accent, i.e. hot spicy chili. I adapted and combined 2 recipes, one from my cookbook CHILI MADNESS and the Test Kitchen's using both fresh and powdered cayenne. I think the Test Kitchen's is too bland and uses bottled chili powder but I like the idea of boiling the beef and the addition of cocoa powder.

I am surprised that I love Cincinnati Chili which is rather saucy or soupy, and the aroma of the sweet and hot spices is wonderful. I was expecting the combination of flavors to taste funny or weird but they are all subtle and amazingly blend well together. I even added a sixth topping, a few pieces of oyster crackers which give it a good crunch and found myself eating them with some of the sauce remaining on the plate. And this is the first time that I didn't dislike beans in my chili. In fact I like it and IMHO the dish wouldn't taste the same without them.

Try one or both recipes and find out for yourself just how good and different this chili is. I read that the better way to eat Cincinnati chili is to cut the spaghetti instead of twirling with fork because twirling makes such a mess on the table, not to mention your clothes. So I started cutting and eating all 5 layers by the forkful and I agree, cutting makes a lot of sense. Anyway, 5-way Cincinnati chili is delicious any way you eat it.

Murray's Girlfriend's Cincinnati Chili
from CHILI MADNESS by Jane Butel

2 teaspoons butter
2 pounds ground beef
6 bay leaves
1 large onion, finely chopped
6 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 teaspoons allspice
6 whole cloves, crushed
4 tablespoons vinegar
1 teaspoon dried whole red pepper, crushed
1½ teaspoons salt
2 tablespoons pure ground red hot chile
1 teaspoon ground cumin
½ teaspoon oregano, preferably Mexican
1 6-ounce can tomato paste
6 cups water
cooked kidney beans

8 ounces vermicelli, cooked according to package directions
½ cup grated cheddar cheese
1 small onion, finely chopped
  • Heat the butter in a large heavy skillet/pot over medium-high heat. Add the meat to the skillet. Break up any lumps with a fork and cook, stirring occasionally, until the meat is evenly browned.
  • Stir in all the ingredients up through the water. Taste and adjust seasonings. Bring the mixture to a boil, then lower heat and simmer, uncovered, for 2 to 4 hours. Add the kidney beans to the mixture half an hour before serving.
  • Place a small amount of vermicelli in individual bowls. Spoon a generous amount of chili. Top with grated cheese and chopped onion.

Cincinnati Chili
8 cups water
2 pounds minced beef
3 bay leaves
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon ground cloves
2 teaspoons allspice
½ teaspoon ground black pepper
2 teaspoons oregano
2 teaspoons ground cayenne
2 fresh cayenne, finely minced (or more)
2 teaspoons cocoa powder
2 medium onions, finely chopped
4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 tablespoon sea salt
2 tablespoons cider vinegar
1 teaspoon dark brown sugar
1 6-ounce can tomato paste
  • Put water into a large pot, bring to a boil. Crumble ground beef into the boiling water, break up any lumps with a potato masher. Boil for 30 minutes. Add all the remaining ingredients and return to boiling. Stir, reduce heat, and let simmer, uncovered, for 3 hours. Remove bay leaves. Transfer into a serving dish.
  • To serve: In individual bowls, place a layer each in this order: spaghetti, chili, kidney beans, onions, and cheese (you can be as cheesy as you want). Adding oyster crackers is optional. Enjoy!

September 5, 2009

Cornish Hens Inasal

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grilled cornish game hens

a weekly gallery of food photography, Filipino style, is hosted by SpiCes.


A simple recipe for chicken inasal is here.

September 3, 2009

Lavash Crackers

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Lavash Crackers

I've always wanted to make thin crispy crackers but the work involved discourages me from doing so. Besides, why bake when I can buy them cheap from the stores. However, The Bread Baker's Apprentice Challenge 17, Lavash Crackers, compelled me to bake them. I used to buy soft lavash before but I have never heard of lavash crackers. Well, now I have and can say that they are very yummy, super crunchy, and totally addicting. I love these crackers!

It was difficult at first to roll but after a few tries and letting the dough rest for 5 minutes between rolling as Peter suggests [and with a little bit of patience] I was able to roll the dough as thin as I wanted. I divided the dough into 3 portions because I wanted to use different toppings and found a smaller dough is easier to handle. I rolled the first one on the kitchen counter but when I transferred it to the parchment, the edges folded back into itself. I had to re-roll on the parchment paper which was very frustrating because the paper bunches up and won't stay put. I managed to keep the very thin dough and trimmed the folded edges which I twisted and made into bread sticks. Also very good. After that minor mishap I eliminated the step of transferring to the parchment and rolled the next pieces of dough directly on the pan. I think rolling the dough on an inverted pan or a cookie sheet without sides would be even more convenient and practical.

I did a combination of rolling, waving, and stretching to make the dough very thin

let the dough relax for easier handling

I rolled the first sheet really thin then sprinkled the top with sesame seeds. I passed a pastry roller on top of the dough a few times to embed the seeds so they don't fall off. Because I have a sweet tooth, I cut a small portion of the very thin dough and sprinkled coarse raw sugar on top, very very good with ice cream. The other 2 pieces of dough were rolled just thin enough but not as thin as the first one and I sprinkled one with flaked sea salt and ground sumac, and the other one with flaked sea salt and chipotle powder. I didn't want to add strong flavors like cumin nor strong colors that stain like paprika so I stayed away from those. I'm satisfied with these two flavors which are mild but very tasty. Both came out very crispy all throughout without any soft spots.

I will definitely make these crackers again and for a yummy healthy crunchy snack I will substitute chickpea flour for some of the flour. And with this experience I have gained enough confidence and will try rolling out thin dough such as strudel or filo. This is why I love this challenge, I learn and eat something new every week.

Lavash Crackers With Sesame Seeds

Lavash Cracker With Sesame Seeds
topped with sesame seeds

Lavash Crackers With Coarse Raw Sugar
topped with coarse raw sugar

Lavash Cracker With Sumac And Sea Salt Flakes
with flaked sea salt and ground sumac

Lavash Crackers
perfect with chili

Rating:
flavor 5
texture 5
visual appeal 5
ease of preparation 4
performance 5
worth 5
Total: 29
Average: 4.8

 
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