I’m probably the only food blogger left who hasn’t tried these wonderful buttery Soft Garlic Knots from King Arthur’s website. I made these amazing Golden Pull-Apart Butter Buns a couple of years ago, and remember thinking that I was looking for some sort of garlicky addition to it. I must say that if I were given the choices, I would always go for the garlic bread/toast/knots in the bread basket. These rolls were perfect for me: very tender yeasty crumbs with nice crust, slathered in garlicky goodness!
I skipped a couple of the ingredients listed in the original recipe, and adapted as written below – and they were perfect. My kitchen is slightly in the cold side (the granite counter top doesn’t help!), so it took me longer than an hour to get this to rise. Just like most yeasty type of breads, you just want to make sure you allow enough time for it to rise. Other than that, if you are one of the very few folks who hasn’t tried this amazing recipe, I would say make these now.
Ingredients
Dough
3 cups (12- 3/4 ounces) Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
1/4 cup (1 ounce) powdered milk
3 tablespoons (1 1/4 ounces) potato flour
1 tablespoon sugar
2 teaspoons instant yeast
1 1/4 teaspoons salt
2 tsp garlic powder
2 tsp dried oregano
2 tablespoons (7/8 ounce) olive oil
1 cup (8 ounces) lukewarm water (Add an additional 2 tablespoons water in the winter, or if you live in a very dry climate)
Glaze
2 to 6 cloves peeled, crushed garlic
4 tablespoons melted butter
1/2 teaspoon Pizza Seasoning or Italian seasoning, optional
Directions
Whisk the dough dry ingredients together to prevent the potato flour from clumping when liquid is added. Stir in the olive oil and water, then mix and knead (by hand, mixer, or bread machine) to form a smooth, elastic dough, adding additional water or flour as needed. Place the dough in a lightly greased bowl, cover it, and allow it to rise for about 1 hour, until it’s doubled in bulk.
Divide the dough into 16 pieces, and roll each into a rope about 11 inches long; tie each rope into a knot, tucking the loose ends into the center. Place the knots on a lightly greased or parchment-lined baking sheet, cover, and let rise for 45 minutes to about an hour, until very puffy looking.
For the glaze, whisk together the melted butter and garlic. Set it aside.
Bake the knots in a preheated 350°F oven for 15 to 18 minutes. They should be set, but only very lightly browned. Remove the knots from the oven, and brush or drizzle them with the garlic butter. Sprinkle with freshly grated Parmesan cheese, and pizza seasoning or Italian seasoning, if desired. Eat the knots warm.
Yield: 16 garlic knots
Adapted from King Arthur Flour
As I am typing this, I’m still battling what feels like a never-ending cough. What the heck is going on with the air? It seems like everyone at work has also been taking turn of getting some sort of flu and cold. So maybe this week was my turn. I gave in and took some antibiotics that I used to swear off, just so that I can get some energy back. Enough about my depressing illness. I wanted to post this Stromboli recipe because if you love pizza, you would love this! I have never made this at home; and I’m surprised that it took me this long to try it. I was looking for something fun to put together, so I could also include my daughter, who’s still in the ahem… “wonderful” throwing stage at 18 months. This recipe, just like pizza, is soooo…. versatile, and you can basically use whatever filling (i.e.: cold cuts, cheeses and veggies) that you have available. What a great way to sneak some veggies into our meals. Plus, it pairs great with salad and or soups.
This dough for this recipe takes a little time to put together, so if you’re short on time, you can easily use store-bought pizza dough, which will cut the prep time significantly! If you have not tried making your own Stromboli at home, I highly recommend it!
Ingredients
For the Dough
2 cups (11 ounces) bread flour
1 tsp rapid rise or instant yeast
3/4 tsp salt
2 tbsp olive oil, plus extra for the bowl
1 cup warm water
For the Stromboli
Olive oil
4 ounces thinly sliced deli salami
4 ounces thinly sliced deli capocollo
4 ounces thinly sliced provolone cheese
½ cup jarred roasted red bell peppers, rinsed, patted dry and sliced thin
1 ounce Parmesan cheese, grated (½ cup)
1 large egg beaten with 2 tablespoons water
1 teaspoon sesame seeds
Kosher salt (optional)
Directions
For the Dough
Pulse the flour, yeast and salt in a food processor (use dough blade if possible), to combine. While the food processor continues running, add the oil and water through the feed tube and process until the dough is formed into a ball form, about 30 to 40 seconds. Let the dough rest in the bowl for 2 minutes then process for 30 seconds longer.
Turn the dough into lightly floured surface and knead by hand to form a smooth, round ball, about 5 minutes, adding additional flour as needed to prevent the dough from sticking. Transfer to a lightly oiled bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and let rise in a warm place until doubled in size, 1 to 1-1/2 hours.
Adjust an oven rack to the lower-middle position and heat the oven to 400 degrees. Gently deflate the dough with your fist and turn it out onto a unfloured work surface. Gently reshape the dough into a ball and cover with a plastic wrap lightly sprayed with vegetable oil spray. Let the dough rest 15 minutes, but no more than 30 minutes.
For the Stromboli
Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured piece of parchment paper. Press and roll the dough into a 12 by 10-inch rectangle with the long side facing you. Layer the meat and provolone over the dough, leaving a 1-inch border at all of the edges. Top with the peppers and Parmesan.
Brush the edges of the dough with some of the egg wash. Starting from a long side, roll the dough tightly into a long cylinder, using the parchment paper to lift and roll the dough. Pinch the seam and ends to seal and roll the stromboli back into the center of the parchment paper, seam side down. Transfer the stromboli on the parchment paper to a baking sheet.
Brush the dough all over with the remaining egg wash and sprinkle with the sesame seeds. Cover loosely with lightly greased aluminum foil and bake for 20 minutes. Remove the foil and continue to bake until the crust is golden, about 25 minutes, rotating the baking sheet halfway through baking. (Keep an eye on the baking time to make sure it doesn’t over cook!)
Transfer the stromboli to a wire rack and let cool for 5 minutes. Transfer to a cutting board, slice into 2-inch-wide pieces and serve warm.
Yield: 4-6
Adapted from The Best of American Test Kitchen 2008
I was fortunate to have had 2 weeks off from work this Christmas. I took full advantage of it by completely slacking off and threw our routine out of the window (to the horror of my daughter). Red and I sneaked in a trip out to East Coast visiting my sister, and we just hung out for about a week. I had big glasses of frozen margaritas for lunch a couple of those days, stayed in my pajamas the whole day for one full day (I would have stayed two days, but everyone was starting to complain), played too much video games (which I hadn’t played in YEARS!!), and ate very yummy food (and I didn’t cook a lot of it). My daughter saw her first live Sesame Street Christmas show, and her eyes lit up like I had never seen before. It was awesome.
Naturally, when I came back home, it was a bit overwhelming to get back to the daily grinds with stacks of laundry, mails to sort, gifts to unpack and put away -especially when I had zero motivation to do anything. I pulled this Slow Roasted Tomato Soup out of the freezer for a quick meal (because it’s too cold and windy to leave the house!), this Golden Brioche Loaves for breakfast, and Chocolate Chip Cookies for dessert. Then my daughter took a nap yesterday and I thought of the soft pretzels that I had during my trip from the famous chain pretzel store. I decided that this could be a perfect opportunity to make these pretzels. Chewy on the outside, soft and tender in the inside – these pretzels are great snacks, party-food, dessert (dust with cinnamon sugar) or even a quick or small meal (roll the dough around a hot-dog, and you’ll get a pretzel dog). I was surprised at how easy this recipe came together. There is a special feeling when enjoying these freshly baked pretzels out of the oven. I’m glad that I started the year on such a high note … carbs and all 
A final note on this, the pretzels are really best eaten fresh out of the oven. However, if they can be warmed up quickly in the microwave or toaster oven for about 10 seconds and you’ll get the same magic back!
Ingredients
2 cups warm water, 100 degrees to 110 degrees
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon active dry yeast
5 to 6 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
1 tablespoon salt
2 teaspoons canola oil
2 tablespoons baking soda
1 large egg
Coarse or pretzel salt
Vegetable-oil cooking spray
Directions
Pour warm water into bowl of electric mixer fitted with a dough hook. In a small bowl, combine water and sugar, and stir to dissolve sugar. Sprinkle with yeast, and let sit 10 minutes; yeast should be foamy.
Add 1 cup flour to yeast, and mix on low until combined. Add salt and 4 cups flour, and mix until combined, about 30 seconds. Beat on medium-low until dough pulls away from sides of bowl, about 1 1/2 minutes. Add 1/2 cup flour, and knead on low 1 minute more. If dough is still wet and sticky, add 1/2 cup more flour (this will depend on weather conditions); knead until combined, about 30 seconds. Transfer to a lightly floured board, and knead about 10 times, or until smooth.
Pour oil into a large bowl; swirl to coat sides. Transfer dough to bowl, turning dough to completely cover all sides. Cover with a kitchen towel, and leave in a warm spot for 1 hour, or until dough has doubled in size.
Heat oven to 450 degrees. Lightly spray two baking sheets with cooking spray. Set aside. Punch down dough to remove bubbles. Transfer to a lightly floured board. Knead once or twice, divide into 16 pieces (about 2 1/2 ounces each), and wrap in plastic.
Roll one piece of dough at a time into an 18-inch-long strip. Twist into pretzel shape; transfer to prepared baking sheet. Cover with a kitchen towel. Continue to form pretzels; 8 will fit on each sheet. Let pretzels rest until they rise slightly, about 15 minutes.
Meanwhile, fill large, shallow pot with 2 inches of water. Bring to a boil. Add baking soda. Reduce to a simmer; transfer 3 to 4 pretzels to water. Poach 1 minute. Use slotted spoon to transfer pretzels to baking sheet. Continue until all pretzels are poached.
Beat egg with 1 tablespoon water. Brush pretzels with egg glaze. Sprinkle with salt. Bake until golden brown, 12 to 15 minutes. Let cool on wire rack, or eat warm. Pretzels are best when eaten the same day, but will keep at room temperature, uncovered, for 2 days. Do not store in covered container or they will become soggy.
Yield: 16 pretzels
Adapted from The Martha Stewart Living Christmas Cookbook
When I first moved to Iowa five years ago, I wasn’t really prepared for the long winter season that seemed to start early in the fall, and last all the way until March, or even April. The wind was cruel and the icy roads were enough to make me want to curl up under the covers and hibernate until spring. One of the ways that I have found to embrace our long winter months in Iowa was bread baking. I started with this easy Brioche Loaves from Ina Garten, that had very forgiving dough. It was successful and definitely a must if you are new to bread baking. I was hooked. The wonderful aroma of breads baking in the oven filled up my kitchen every time I got the chance to bake throughout the winter season.
This year, I wanted to use Dorie’s recipe for the same bread, and wanted to see if they are different. Dorie’s recipe was definitely more buttery, and had more delicate crust. Ina’s recipe was also a lot more “cakey” (if there is such word!). I can’t say which one is better than the other, they are just slightly different, and it is really up to your personal preference. This recipe required a lot more time to make, with the kneading, but it was worth the wait! I enjoyed them fresh out of the oven, sliced with homemade jam, toasted and lathered with peanut butter, and even turned them into French Toast. If you have tried both recipes, let me know which one you prefer! Or, if you have a different recipe all together. Brioche is such a special treat, I’d have a hard time believing there is a recipe that is superior than others
Ingredients
For the brioche
2 packets active dry yeast
1/3 cup just-warm-to-the-touch water
1/3 cup just-warm-to-the-touch whole milk
3 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons salt
3 large eggs, at room temperature
¾ cup sugar
3 sticks (12 ounces) unsalted butter, at room temperature but still slightly firm
For the glaze
1 large egg
1 Tbl water
Directions
To make the brioche
Put the yeast, water and milk in the bowl of a stand mixer and, using a wooden spoon, stir until the yeast is dissolved. Add the flour and salt, and fit the mixer with the dough hook, if you have one. Toss a kitchen towel over the mixer, covering the bowl as completely as you can—this will help keep you, the counter and your kitchen floor from being showered in flour. Turn the mixer on and off in a few short pulses, just to dampen the flour (yes, you can peek to see how you’re doing), then remove the towel, increase the mixer speed to medium-low and mix for a minute or two, just until the flour is moistened. At this point you’ll have a fairly dry, shaggy mass.
Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl with a rubber spatula, set the mixer to low and add the eggs, followed by the sugar. Increase the mixer speed to medium and beat for about 3 minutes, until the dough forms a ball. Reduce the speed to low and add the butter in 2-tablespoon-size chunks, beating until each piece is almost incorporated before adding the next. You’ll have a dough that is very soft, almost like a batter. Increase the speed to medium-high and continue to beat until the dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl, about 10 minutes.
Transfer the dough to a clean bowl (or wash out the mixer bowl and use it), cover with plastic wrap and leave at room temperature until nearly doubled in size, 40 to 60 minutes, depending upon the warmth of your room.
Deflate the dough by lifting it up around the edges and letting it fall with a slap into the bowl. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and put it in the refrigerator. Slap the dough down in the bowl every 30 minutes until it stops rising, about 2 hours, then leave the covered dough in the refrigerator to chill overnight.
The next day, butter and flour two 81/2-x-41/2-inch loaf pans.
Pull the dough from the fridge and divide it into 2 equal pieces. Cut each piece of dough into 4 equal pieces and roll each piece into a log about 3l/z inches long. Arrange 4 logs crosswise in the bottom of each pan. Put the pans on a baking sheet lined with parchment or a silicone mat, cover the pans lightly with wax paper and leave the loaves at room temperature until the dough almost fills the pans, 1 to 2 hours. (Again, rising time will depend on how warm the room is.)
Getting ready to bake: center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
To make the glaze: beat the egg with the water. Using a pastry brush, gently brush the tops of the loaves with the glaze.
Bake the loaves until they are well risen and deeply golden, 30 to 35 minutes. Transfer the pans to racks to cool for 15 minutes, then run a knife around the sides of the pans and turn the loaves out onto the racks. Invert again and cool for at least 1 hour.
Yield: 2 loaves
Serving Suggestion
As soon as the loaves cool, they are ready to be sliced thickly and served, toasted or not, with butter and jam.
Storage Recommendation
Well-wrapped (cooled) loaves will keep overnight at room temperature. If you’d like, you can rewarm the loaves by wrapping them in aluminum foil and heating them for about 15 minutes in a 350-degree-F oven. The loaves can also be wrapped airtight and frozen for up to 2 months; defrost in the wrapping.
Adapted from Dorie Greenspan‘s Baking From My Home to Yours
I first learned about olive oil cake last summer. Never had it before, but it seemed to be all over the blogs and also the cooking magazines that I subscribed to. I never got around to making it last year, but the idea of making it still stuck in the back of my mind. Most people, including myself, whenever trying to lighten up any type of quick breads would consider using oil instead of butter, so why not olive oil? I thought it was a clever idea! Fast forward to this fall, when I saw this recipe in my cooking magazine – a pumpkin bread using olive oil. Done! This bread is extremely moist from the pumpkin puree, olive oil, and honey. Each slice gives off the fall flavors that I love so much, like cinnamon and nutmeg. Because this bread was super moist, it also stayed good for a week. I ran out of whole wheat flour, so I used all white whole-wheat flour and it tasted great. I think you can’t go wrong either way.
I’m so glad that I tried this recipe. I may try similar substitution in other quick bread recipes in the future. For our What’s Baking group in October, the theme is fall flavor, so I thought that this would be an appropriate post for that. If you are looking for some more fall-themed goodies to drool over, check out the rest of the post in Ange’s The Tiny Tyrant’s Kitchen.
Adapted from Fine Cooking, September 2011
Ingredients
Cooking spray
3-1/4 oz. (3/4 cup) whole wheat flour
3 oz. (2/3 cup) unbleached all-purpose flour
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg
1/4 tsp. table salt
2 large eggs
1 cup canned pumpkin purée
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
1/3 cup olive oil
1/3 cup honey
2 Tbs. unsalted pumpkin seeds (also called pepitas; optional)
Directions
Position a rack in the center of the oven and heat the oven to 350°F. Spray a 9×5-inch loaf pan with cooking spray.
In a medium bowl, whisk both flours, cinnamon, baking soda, baking powder, nutmeg, and salt. In a large bowl, whisk the eggs, pumpkin, sugar, oil, and honey until well combined. Add the dry ingredients to the wet and stir with a large spoon just until evenly incorporated.
Spoon the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top. Tap the pan on the counter a few times to settle the batter. Sprinkle the top with the pumpkin seeds (if using), pressing them down lightly. Bake until the top is browned and a wooden skewer inserted in the center comes out clean, 40 to 45 minutes. (If the bread begins to brown too much before it’s fully baked, lay a piece of aluminum foil on top.) Cool in the pan for 15 minutes and then transfer the bread to a rack to cool completely before slicing.
Yield: 1 loaf
After I made my first homemade Sweet Cream Biscuits last year; I couldn’t get over how delicious they were. But in all reality; it is hard to find time to make them whenever I feel the craving for them. When I saw this biscuit recipe that specifically requires the dough to be frozen 6-8 hours prior to baking; I was excited to try them. I’m all about preparation ahead of time so that I can prepare them the night before; and have them ready to be baked in the morning as I get ready. This one is actually better yet; they can be prepared days in advance and you will only bake what you need. Fresh homemade biscuits are then only minutes away in the oven. These are great for mornings when you have company and want something special but quick to serve as breakfast. The only thing that I would do differently would be to use a LARGER biscuit cutter. The recipe calls for a 2-inch cutter; and I feel like I ended up with “mini” biscuits. I normally love miniature size of cakes, cookies, or what not; but somehow; I wanted a larger biscuit . I was really glad to have found this recipe; now I feel like I can spoil my overnight guests with these delicious homemade biscuits. Happy Baking!
Adapted from The Best of American Test Kitchen 2008
Ingredients
27 ounces (about 6 cups) unbleached all-purpose flour, plus extra for dusting
4 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoon baking powder
1-1/2 teaspoon salt
4-1/2 cups cold heavy cream
Directions
Lightly butter a rimmed baking sheet, or line with parchment paper.
In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Stir in the cream with a nonstick spatula until a dough forms, about 30 seconds.
Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface and gather into a ball. Knead the dough briefly until smooth, about 60 seconds, dusting with extra flour as needed to prevent sticking.
Pat or roll the dough into a flat circle, about 3/4 inch thick. Cut out the biscuits using a 2 inch round cutter. Transfer the biscuits to the prepared baking sheet, leaving about 1/2 inch space in between.
Gather up the scraps of dough, shaking off any excess flour, and re-knead briefly to combine. Pat or roll the dough again into a 3/4 inch thick round, and cut as many biscuits as possible. Repeat the gathering, rolling, and cutting for a third time. Any remaining scraps of dough should be either discarded or gently patted into rustic hand-formed biscuits.
Wrap the baking sheet tightly with lightly oiled plastic wrap. Freeze the biscuits until frozen solid, 6 to 8 hours. Transfer the frozen biscuits to a plastic zip-top freezer bag, and freeze for up to 1 month. Do not thaw before baking.
To bake the biscuits, preheat the oven to 450º F, and place a rack in the upper-middle position. Lay the frozen biscuits on a lightly buttered or parchment-lined baking sheet, spacing about 2 inches apart. Bake at 450º F until puffed and golden brown, 15 to 20 minutes. Serve immediately.
Note: If baking a large amount of biscuits, bake only as many as will fit on one baking sheet at a time; do not bake more than one pan at the same time.
Yield: ~ 5 dozens
As many of my readers probably know by now, I really love quick breads and eat them almost everyday (on the days that I don’t eat them, I get really grouchy). A few of my friends have asked me whether I have tried to make my banana bread lighter. And the answer is yes, of course I have! I honestly don’t recall where the source of this recipe was, I have had this for over 15-years, but it is a lighter version of this Easy Banana Bread recipe that I posted earlier this year.
Of all of the other quick breads that I have made, this is the only version that I must say transformed beautifully into a “lighter” bread without losing its beautiful flavor and texture. I substitute half of the butter with unsweetened apple sauce, use white wheat flour, omit the walnuts, and add a little bit more of mashed bananas into the mixture. Finally, I add a couple of tablespoons of dark chocolate chip morsels because dark chocolate has been said to be healthy! But feel free to omit those. The key here is to make sure that the bananas are very ripe; to ensure that they are tender and have excreted all of that sweet goodness. With this lighter version, I think I can have an extra slice! By the way, I’m absolutely in love with this cinnamon pecan streussel, so I added some for topping–and they were divine. Happy baking!
Source: Blissfully Delicious original
Ingredients
1-3/4 cups white wheat flour
1-1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/3 cup butter/margarine, softened
1/3 cup of unsweetened apple sauce
2/3 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1/2 tsp salt
2 large eggs
1-1/2 cup mashed ripened bananas (make sure that the banana skin is almost black)
2 tablespoons of dark chocolate chip
Directions
Blend in everything, bake at 350 degree for an hour in a 10×4 pan or, in 2 loaves of 8×3.
Yield: 8 servings per loaf.
Classic white bread is probably one of the most underrated bread kinds today. Either because there are so many other variations out there; or people trying to eat better diet which sometimes includes less stuff that are “white”. I’m personally indifferent with white bread; and yes–I used to eat those soft loaves sold at grocery stores; and sometimes after a few bites, they would stuck on the roof of my mouth . I have never had or made homemade white bread before. My dad, on the other hand, loves white breads. He actually doesn’t want breads other than white. My mom had been asking me to recommend a fool-proof recipe for a white bread; so I decided to experiment.
I have this recipe bookmarked from an old Martha Stewart magazine for Cinnamon Raisin Bread, which I still have yet to make. But it says that the dough recipe starts from the same base; so I figured that I’d give this a try. The recipe is pretty straight-forward and simple; although since bread baking is a science on its own, you have to measure them precisely and adjust as necessary with the humidity of your kitchen surrounding. My dough didn’t turn out as smooth or beautiful as the tutorial was on Martha Stewart online. But regardless, it rose beautifully in about two hours and made my house smell amazing (which makes me want to bake even more breads!). The loaves rose more in the oven, which was cool to watch. The bread has handsome thick crusty crust and beautiful texture instead. It’s not at all like the flimsy loaves that I was used to. This dough can actually be used for three other variations of bread; so I think I am going to give the other three a try sometimes before the weather gets too warm and then I’d feel too lazy to turn on the oven. Happy baking!
Adapted from Martha Stewart Living, February 2010
Ingredients
1 tablespoon plus 1 1/2 teaspoons active dry yeast (two 1/4-ounce envelopes)
2 1/4 cups warm water (110 degrees)
3 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons honey
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted, plus more for bowl, pans, and brushing
7 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for surface and dusting
4 teaspoons coarse salt
Directions
Sprinkle yeast over 1/2 cup water. Add 2 teaspoons honey. Whisk until yeast dissolves. Let stand until foamy, about 5 minutes.
Transfer to the bowl of a mixer fitted with the paddle or dough-hook attachment. Add butter and remaining 1 3/4 cups water and 3 tablespoons honey. Whisk flour with salt; add 3 cups to yeast. Mix on low speed until smooth.
Add remaining 4 cups flour, 1 cup at a time, mixing until dough comes away from sides of bowl and forms a ragged, slightly sticky ball. Butter a large bowl.
Knead dough on a floured surface until smooth and elastic but still slightly tacky, approximately 5 minutes.
Shape the dough into a ball.
Transfer to prepared buttered bowl; cover with plastic wrap.
Let dough stand in a warm place until it doubles in volume (it should not spring back when pressed), about 1 hour.
Butter two 4 1/2-by-8 1/2-inch loaf pans. Punch down dough.
Divide the dough into two equal halves.
Shape 1 dough half into an 8 1/2-inch-long rectangle (about 1/2 inch thick). Fold long sides of dough in to middle, overlapping slightly. Press seam to seal. Transfer dough, seam side down, to pan. Repeat with remaining dough.
Brush each loaf with butter, or dust with flour for a rustic look (which was my pick).
Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Drape loaves with plastic. Let stand until dough rises about 1 inch above tops of pans, 45 minutes to 1 hour. Reduce oven temperature to 400 degrees. Bake, rotating pans after 20 minutes, until tops are golden brown, about 45 minutes. Transfer to wire racks. Let cool slightly; turn out loaves. Let cool completely before slicing.
Yield: 2 loaves
I have been wanting to try making my own Challah for a while now (like, a couple of years). My excuse: I just have an overwhelmingly long list of things that I would like to try someday, although my Bucket List here may not reflect it. One of my motivations for making Challah is they are wonderful bread for French Toast. I finally decided to take the plunge and give this bread a try. One of my friends, Sena, a great baker — often makes this bread; and I asked her if she had any tips for making my first Challah. She graciously offered up her recipe; and I was doing the happy dance at work (thankfully, my co-workers are very tolerant). I knew that her recipe would work, because she makes this bread often.
I had initially planned to take the steps by steps picture of the braid, but (sigh…), just like I always do… I ended up starting this bread at 8 o’clock at night; and probably didn’t finish until after midnight because my kitchen was a little bit drafty, and the dough took longer to rise. The cold winter outdoor really provided a cozy backdrop of my warm baking adventure in the kitchen, but not too great with my energy level. Therefore I only ended up with a final picture. I hope you enjoy this recipe – and would give it a try. I enjoyed this bread toasted with jam and Red enjoyed his with peanut butter. Charlotte enjoyed a couple of ends pieces as well. Everyone in the family was happy and satisfied with this bread. Finally, I also made a fantastic new stuffed French Toast recipe with the leftover that I would post in the near future. Many thanks for Sena for sharing the recipe; and letting me share this with the rest of the world through the blog. Happy eating & baking!
Adapted from Bobbi Kazenelson via Sena Cooper
Ingredients
¾ cup warm water
2 large eggs
1/3 cup white sugar
1/3 cup canola oil
1 ½ teaspoons salt
3-2/3 cups flour
2 tsp yeast
Directions
Put all of the ingredients together in a stand mixer bowl, fitted with a dough hook. Mix on low for approximately 8-10 minutes until the dough is smooth and stiff with a slight sheen. Turn the dough out on a lightly floured work surface and knead gently for 2-3 times.
Fold the bottom third up and top third down, fold left and right sides in, and turn the seams’ sides down into a lightly oiled mixing bowl. Cover with lightly oil plastic wrap for approximately one hour or until it is doubled in size.
Punch dough down; divide dough into three equal pieces and roll them into cylinder approximately 18-inches long. Braid the three cylinders together.
Move braided Challah carefully onto a lined baking sheet. Let rise for 30 to 45 minutes in a warm area. Make a glaze of egg yolk and 1 teaspoon water. Brush over bread and sprinkle with kosher salt or sesame seeds.
Bake at 375 for 27 minutes.
Yield: 1 large loaf.
I was introduced and fell in love with crusty baguettes a long time ago through a friend of mine who loved them with good sharp cheese and red wine. When I discovered that our local grocery stores actually sell par-baked baguettes at their bakery; these breads became a staple at our house. All we needed was to warm it up in the oven prior to serving and we will be delighted with crusty bread with soft interior at meal times. Since we love it so much, I knew that it was only a matter of time before I had to try my hand in making my own homemade baguettes.
The recipe that I used here was taken from one of the best books out there for bread making, Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day. If you have not had the opportunity to read it, I’d recommend it very highly. It is a great bible so to speak for aspiring bakers, because it really simplifies the mistery of bread baking. The dough used here is boule, and it is so versatile since it can actually be used for baguette, ciabatta, and foccacia to name a few.
You can also par-bake this bread: bake them to about 90% of its regular baking time (in this case, about 25 mins), then cool it off on the rack, and freeze them as soon as they’re cooled. When you’re ready to enjoy them, just defrost them to room temperature and warm them up at 350 degree for about 8-10 min. Happy eating!
Adapted from Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day
Boule Dough (Artisan Free-Form Loaf)
This recipe makes (4) 1-lb loaf
Ingredients
3 cups lukewarm water, about 100 deg
1-1/2 tbsp granualated yeast (1-1/2 packets)
1-1/2 tbsp kosher salt or other coarse salt
6-1/2 cups of unbleached, all purpose flour
Directions
Add yeast and salt to the warm water in at least a 5-qt capacity bowl. You don’t need to get them all dissolved by mixing.
Add all of the flour at once and mix using a heavy-duty stand mixer with dough hook until the mixture is uniform. It should not take more than a few minutes at the most, until everything is uniformly mixed. The dough should be wet and loose.
Cover with a plastic wrap or clean cloth, and let it sit at room temperature for approximately 2 hours. Leave this dough overnight in the refrigerator. (Up till this step, this dough can be refrigerated up to 14 days in lidded, not airtight, container. If you plan on using it at a later time, the dough should be stored in the freezer). The storage time also has been said to improve the flavor.
Baguette direction
1 lb dough of boule
1 tbsp of whole wheat flour
Place a baking stone in the middle rack of your oven. Heat the oven to 450 degree.
Using regular flour, shape the dough into 2-inch diameter cylinder by elongating it with back and forth rolling motion.
You can make this into two small loaves, or one large one. Make sure that if you choose a large one, it will fit on your baking stone. I actually made 3 medium sized loaves from 2-lb of dough.
Place the loaves on a pizza peel covered with the whole wheat flour. Allow to rest at room temperature for 20 minutes.
After the dough rests, glaze the top of loaves with water using a pastry brush. Make slits on top of the loaves using serrated bread knife. Then transfer the loaves directly onto the hot baking stone.
Pour 1 cup of hot tap water into the broiler tray or a regular pie pan, and quickly close the oven over. Bake about 25 mins or until browned.
Cool on a rack before cutting or eating.
