Foccacia Bread

Playing around with dough is one of my favorite things to do. I am endlessly facinated at the microbial process that happens when little yeasty bugs are introduced to flours and sugars, and burp out flavorful gasses that give rise (literally!) to all kinds of breads. It can be a time-consuming venture, however, and I haven’t made a lot of bread this year. But with some time on my hands and a brick of fresh yeast that has to be used up I thought I’d get back into a little home bread baking. I mixed and kneaded a pound of flour, some milk, yeast, sugar and salt into a maleable dough, plopped it into a greased bowl and let it rise over the warm oven for an hour until it more than doubled in size and took on a spongy consistancy. I gently pushed on the dough and was rewarded with the poof of escaping gas and the beer-haus smell of active yeast. I folded the dough over a couple of times to redistribute the yeast bugs and develop a little more gluten, coverd the bowl and popped it into the fridge to retard. The cold slows down the yeast’s growth and allows richer flavors to develop. I kept it in there, occasionally giving it a little kneading and turning, for two days. Then I pulled it out, cut the dough in half and returned one half to the fridge (it is destined to become pizza dough later this week), and formed out a loaf into a small square pan with the other half. I let it proof on top of the oven for an hour and a half, until it had warmed, the yeasties awoken and gone about their digestive business, and the loaf had doubled in volume. I brushed the top with olive oil and sprinkled it with crushed garlic, fresh chopped rosemary, and pink Hawaiian sea salt flakes. I put it in the oven at 350 degrees for 25 minutes until the top had developed a nice, toasted marshmellow golden color. I pulled out the pan and let the loaf sit in it for about 5 minutes, then turned it effortlessly out onto a cooling rack. The whole kitchen was filled with the delicious aroma of baked bread. I let the loaf sit for another 30 minutes to set up while I made the rest of dinner(more spaghetti with homemade whole wheat noodles, which came out much better this time, softer with a smoother texture and better flavor).

The loaf sliced without crumbling and the inside was as soft as a pillow while the herby, garlicy, salted crust provided a great contrast.

Home-Made Spaghetti/Tortillas

I’ve had a hard time finding a whole wheat pasta I am really happy with. I have frequently made my own pasta with duram or semolina flour, but S is insisting more and more on whole wheat grains in our breads and pastas. I had some whole wheat flour in the cupboard and a little free time, so I spooned out two cups of flour into a large bowl, to which I added some salt, a little oil, a single egg yolk, and some warm water. I stirred the mixture together until I had a crumbly ball of dough, then worked it on the kitchen counter until it was well mixed. I wrapped it up and put it in the fridge overnight. The next day I took it out, rolled it out again, fed it through the pasta attachment for the KitchenAide until I had long flat sheets, then ran it through the spaghetti cutter attachment. The dough was a bit stickier and tore more easily than I was used to, but it cut serviceable noodles. I dropped them in the boiling water and they only took about three minutes to cook through. Drained, I then ladled a mushroom marinara on top and wah lah! dinner was ready. The noodles had none of the gumminess or “cardboard” flavor I have found in store-bought noodles. They were rougher in texture because of the whole grains, but richer in flavor because of the egg. I’m not sure how well the pasta would have held up with just water. I think I will cut a linguini noodle next time, since the spaghetti was a bit crinkled. This may have been because I did not set the pasta roller thin enough. But it was easy to do, and cheap, given that two pounds of organic whole wheat flour is about $4, while a box of organic whole wheat pasta is around $2.65. I’m going to get some rice flour and experiment with making rice noodles next.

I learned from one of my co-workers how to make corn tortillas and ever since I have been hooked on the home-made thing. My recipe is two cups of masa (harina de maiz), a teaspoon of oil, a table spoon of salt, and 1 & 3/4 cups water (more or less, depending upon the texture). My friend has scolded me for adding oil, telling me it is “no necesario”, but I still do it, it seems to keep my tortillas from sticking to the plastic wrap, the cast iron griddle, and it seems to make them more tender and maleable when rolling enchiladas. Sometimes I even add a little lime juice to the mix. From the mix I roll out several balls of dough and put them into my trusty tortilla press that I bought at the farmer’s market for $6. I want to go back one day and get one of the more authentic ones, hand made of wood and twice as thick, for $20. I press out the tortillas and transfer them to a plate covered by a towel, then slap them on the griddle one by one, about 2 minutes each side, until they just begin to brown in spots. Then onto another plate and covered by a towel. If I am going to use them right away I just leave them on the plate, otherwise I let them cool and then put them in a ziplock bag and keep them in the fridge. The texture and taste between store bought and home-made is incredible. I don’t object to store-bought tortillas since the ingredients generally just list corn flour, salt, water and lime(the mineral, not the fruit), but the flavor is just too good to not go to the extra effort, which isn’t much. I made the tortillas while everything else for the enchiladas was cooking. Then I took my chili-poached chicken and shredded it, mixed it with black beans, roasted corn, sour cream, shredded cheese, scallions and cilantro, and spooned the mix onto the corn tortillas, rolling them up and setting them in the enchilada sauce. The sauce I do insist on making myself, since all the store-bought ones seem to list a pharmacist’s pantry of chemical additives as ingredients. So I make a simple sauce from onions, garlic, rehydrated smoked chilis, and fire-roasted tomatoes seasoned with salt, coriander, cumin, cayenne and jalapenos. Sometimes I make this by the gallon, pouring it into canning jars and sealing them for safe keeping. Tonight I just made enough for the enchiladas we were having. I gave them a liberal topping of cheddar cheese, which I like better than a traditional queso fresco. 15 minutes in the oven and we are ready for Christmas Eve dinner.