Category: bread

Italian Bread

The finished product.

2 cups lukewarm water (~100°F)
1 package active dry yeast ((2.25 teaspoons))
5 cups flour
2 tablespoon light brown sugar
2 tablespoons olive oil
2½ teaspoons salt

FOR THE TOPPING (OPTIONAL)
1 egg white (lightly beaten)
2 tablespoons sesame seeds

DIRECTIONS:
Stir the yeast into ½ cup of the warm water. Let proof as you measure out the dry ingredients. I didn’t bother with proofing the yeast as the King Arthur site says you don’t need that.

Combine 5 cups flour, sugar and salt in the bowl of an electric mixer. Add the yeast mixture, remaining water, and olive oil. Using a dough hook attachment, mix on the lowest speed of electric mixer until a dough starts to form, adding more flour as needed, up to an additional ¾ cup.
Knead on low speed for 7 minutes. Transfer dough to a lightly floured surface and knead by hand for 1 to 2 minutes, or until a smooth, firm, elastic dough is formed.

Transfer the dough to a lightly oiled bowl and spray the dough with a thin coating of cooking spray. Wrap the bowl with plastic wrap and set aside to proof in a warm, draft-free place for 1½ hours or until doubled in size.

Remove the plastic wrap, punch down and flatten the rounded dough with the heel of your hand. Roll the dough up tightly, sealing the seam well after each roll. The dough should be elongated and oval-shaped, with tapered and rounded (not pointed) ends.

Place a baking stone on the center oven rack and preheat the oven to 425°F. Place a metal baking pan on the lowest rack.

Place the dough on an inverted baking sheet. Allow the dough to proof, loosely covered with a floured dish towel, for 30 minutes, or until doubled in size.

If using the topping, brush the dough with the egg white and sprinkle the sesame seeds over the top. Using a razor blade or sharp knife, slash the dough lengthwise about 1/4-inch deep, keeping the blade at a 45-degree angle.

Just prior to placing the bread in the oven, pour 1 cup of water into the metal pan you placed on the bottom rack of the oven. Then, transfer the loaf from the peel to the stone in the oven.

Bake the dough until golden brown and a hollow thud is heard when tapping the bottom of the bread (it should register at least 195 degrees F on an instant-read thermometer), about 30 to 40 minutes. Allow the bread to cool before slicing.

Sourdough Bread starter

 I’m trying to make my own sourdough starter, I’ll try and document it here as I go along.
Day two with the starter on top of the fridge in a Rubbermaid bowl with the cover on loosely.

Day Three
Day Four

Rising
A little further along

The Finished Product

I used this recipe

Day One

1/2 cup of all-purpose flour (4 ounces)
1/2 cup of filtered or spring water (4 ounces)
a large container (at least 2-3 quarts) with a lid (glass or plastic, avoid metal).
I used a rye flour that mom had picked up over in Jordanville, NY, from a small Amish operation that grinds their own flour and I also added a little yeast as this recipe seems way simpler than most of the ones I’ve seen.
Combine the flour and water in the container until all the flour has been absorbed and there are no more dry particles. It will look like a sticky, thick dough. Scrape down the sides and cover. Put the container somewhere with a consistent room temperature (like the top of the refrigerator) and let sit for 24 hours.

Day Two
1/2 cup of all-purpose flour (4 ounces)
1/2 cup of filtered or spring water (4 ounces)
Mix it in, I had bubbles going and a slight odor of fermentation by now.
Day three and four repeat adding in the flour and water.

Day Five
The starter should be ready for use in a recipe now.

King Arthur Flour recipe for starter.
Sourdough starter with pineapple juice.

Vine Peach Melon Recipes

From Jul 4, 2012 Garden

VINE PEACH
CAKE INGREDIENTS
4 eggs
150g sugar
6 vine peaches
225g flour
5g baking powder
150g cooled melted butter
1dl full fatmilk
 Make the cake. Mix the flour and the baking powder. Add the milk, eggs, the sugar and the melted butter. Mix well. Skin the vine peaches, remove the stones and dice. Throw into the mixture and mix in well. Grease and flour a loaf tin. Tip the mixture into the tin and bake it at 180°C for 60 minutes. 

To get conversions see Diana’s Desserts.

****************** 
 PEACH CREAM PIE 
 6 ripe peaches peeled and sliced into small wedges 
1/2 cup sugar 1/4 teaspoon of salt 
1 – 9 inch deep dish unbake pie crust shell 
3 tablespoons of all purpose flour 
3/4 cup of whip cream In a bowl combine sugar, 
salt, flour and stir in the cream until smooth. 
Place and layer your sliced peaches in the unbaked pie crust. Pour over the mixture. Bake at 400 degrees for 45 minutes or until filling has set. Serve warm or cold and refrigerate leftovers.


This is also supposed to be good in salsa or relish and as a substitute for any fruit in a bread. Judging by the number of flowers i have I could have a few chances to try different things.

No knead bread

I should have let it rise a bit more, I mixed the dough at 4PM Saturday and then at 6:30 AM Sunday pulled it out and rolled it in flour. I think it really needed that eighteen hours of rise time to make it right. I used two cups of whole wheat flower and one cup of white four, other than that I followed the recipe.