Random Recipe Wednesday: Lemon-Fennel Cottage Bread

While the Internet is a great recipe resource I've more recently found myself lost in the pages of a good cookbook or magazine.  Not everything can be found online.  Lately I've been testing an awful lot of recipes straight out of cookbooks.  I'm not quite sure how the copyright aspect works so I haven't been posting them here.  Sometimes I think I can only tell you about recipes I've changed and developed, but that's silly, like a musician only playing songs he wrote himself.

I'm currently loving The Laurel's Kitchen Bread Book.  As in I'm actually reading it page by page, not just flipping through to glance at recipes.  There's just so much practical information on bread baking.  I get this dorky, excited sparkle in my eye as I digest the wealth of knowledge in every chapter, as if someone were sharing a vast secret with me.  A thorough understanding of the hows and whys is the key that unlocks, well everything.  Okay, maybe not everything, but it gives you the power to create and fix and improve to your heart's content.  Plus, everything about making bread just feels so...right.

Since I can't post the copyrighted recipe here, I'll just tell you about this loaf. (For the recipe and fail-proof instructions check out The Laurel's Kitchen Bread Book from your library, renew several times, then finally give in and buy yourself a copy.)  I've been planning all along to post a recipe for a yeast bread made with cottage cheese.  When I got to the chapter on dairy products and read the recipe for a lemon-flavored loaf utilizing cottage cheese, I just couldn't resist any longer.  Later I saw a lemon-fennel loaf and knew I had to try the flavor combination.  The cottage cheese, which completely disappears, gives extra rising power while boosting the protein and calcium in each slice.

Fermented Friday: Leftover Oatmeal Turned Bread- Cranberry-Sage or Multigrain

Fermented Friday: recipes featuring yeast, wine, beer or some form of fermentation.

Guess what happens when make a batch of rather bland slow cooker steel-cut oats one day, and then make Chocolate-Pumpkin Quinoa the next day?  That's right, leftover oatmeal.  I'm not one to let leftovers stand in the fridge, they always turn into something else.  It would be pretty fun to make cookies or granola bars with cooked oats, but we need a little yeast action for Fermented Friday.  If we can make bread with rice why not bread with leftover oatmeal?

Fermented Friday: Stuffed Full

Ugh...food hangover, or is it food coma?  More stuffing went into me than the bird.  And then more.  And now all those leftovers....let's just call it a wrap for the week, shall we?

Actually, I guess I can tell you a few things I learned related to fermentation and yeast bread.

Dinner Rolls
No matter how long you bake them or how much butter you brush on top, your dinner rolls will not brown nicely if your dough didn't have enough sugar or protein.

Pasty pale white rolls don't look so great. But if you keep baking and baking, they dry out in the center.  Dry rolls give you permission to slather them with even more butter, especially on Thanksgiving.

Turning on the broiler for just a few minutes to brown those stubborn tops sort of works, but with so many other things going on you will likely scorch the tops of at least one batch.


Stuffing
 It is super cool and impressive when your brother tells you he want to learn to make French bread.  Wait......what?  You want to make French bread over break?  Okay!!!  I put him to work and we made all the bread for the stuffing.  He did an excellent job.

 How awesome is it that we made bread together!?!?!  I was more than excited.  What's even better is he graciously listened to my over explanations of all that was going on with the dough.

I'm thankful beyond words for all his help and thoughtfulness.

My mom also deserves many thanks for all her help, patience and letting me just do my thing in her kitchen without rolling her eyes.  Another one of those thankful beyond words deals.


Food for Thought: "The ache for home lives in all of us, the safe place where we can go as we are and not be questioned." -Maya Angelo 

Fermented Friday: Pumpkin Wild Rice Bread with Rosemary and Dried Cherries

Fermented Friday: recipes featuring yeast, wine, beer or some form of fermentation.

This pumpkin yeast bread is the perfect middle ground. Soft and tender yet sturdy and hearty, it has just the right amount of chew.  Wild rice sneaks in to add body and texture.  But don't be wary, the rice bakes in enough that you can't really tell it's rice while you're eating it.  Pumpkin helps make the loaf tender without using loads of butter (like the potato in these rolls).

A sweet loaf with a hint of savory makes this bread versatile.  Sweet cherries blend with subtle notes of rosemary while a delicate pumpkin flavor lingers in the background.  It's perfect on its own or great for toast or sandwiches.  I am so tempted to make this again next week as dinner rolls or use it in stuffing.  Then again, this bread sort of has the makings of stuffing baked right in.  I don't know, I really need to nail down what I'm making for Thanksgiving.  I'll try to stick to tradition, but knowing me...well, you just never know what you'll get at my house.

Fermented Friday: Citrus Pomegranate Spirals with Candied Ginger

Fermented Friday: recipes featuring yeast, wine, beer or some form of fermentation.

Pomegranates were only 69 cents again, time to play.  I also had a lime in my fridge that needed to be put to good use.  Hmmm, something pomegranate-lime....pomegranate, lime and....how about pomegranate, lime and ginger....or maybe orange-pomegranate.  Meh, let's just go with all four flavors, but what to put them in?  Salad, salsa, muffins, cookies, bread?  Ahh yes, bread.  Baking bread just needs to happen.  I need to knead...something....something bright and sunny, something the opposite of my mood...and the weather.  Dreary, overcast days call for baking.  I need to unwind, loosen up a little, peel off the outer layer and get to the soft center.  Let's go with rolls.

Orange juice and lime are kneaded into soft, sweet dough.  Golden orange marmalade adds an extra layer of sweetness before a sprinkle of candied ginger and juicy, red pomegranate seeds are wrapped and tucked inside.

Fermented Friday: Pumpkin Beer Apple Butter

Fermented Friday: recipes featuring yeast, wine, beer or some form of fermentation.

Apple butter and pumpkin butter in each silky smooth spoonful. 

Fermented Friday: Pomegranate Quinoa Salad

Fermented Friday: recipes featuring yeast, wine, beer or some form of fermentation.

I really shouldn't buy uncommon ingredients unless I have a specific recipe in mind.  But a good deal will get me every time.  Enter pomegranates.  I bought two of them and both have been sitting in the fruit basket for over a week.  Last fall I made this Butternut Squash Salsa with pomegranates and it was a hit.  I'll probably end up making it next week, but I wanted to use pomegranate a little differently here.  Well, that and I sorta said I would try not to overwhelm you with squash and pumpkin recipes.

Fermented Friday: Soup Flop and Vinegar Pie Crust

Fermented Friday: recipes featuring yeast, wine, beer or some form of fermentation.

So...I had a few...adventures...in the kitchen yesterday.  Apparently cooking split peas in wine is not the greatest way to use either your wine or your split peas.  On the first attempt I replaced about 1/3 of the liquid with white wine and set the pot to simmer over the stove.  After the appropriate boiling time the peas were still quite hard.  I continued boiling away but the peas just wouldn't soften.  Had I needed firm split peas for a salad, I'm quite sure they would have turned to mush in half the time.  It was just one of those days.  The wine added a nice depth of flavor, but my split pea "soup" was nowhere near soup consistency.  Continued boiling and plenty of extra liquid were of little help.

With a little problem solving I decided to go for a second attempt. Perhaps the bag of split peas I used was old (though I'm pretty sure they weren't).  I almost always use a slow cooker when making split pea soup so I decided to do just that on this second batch.  In theory cooking in a slow cooker should also help prevent the peas from drying out as the lid traps any evaporating moisture.  Lifting the lid of your slow cooker while cooking  can add hours to the cooking time.  Knowing this, I resisted the urge to check on or stir the soup, I didn't even peek.  When it was finally time to lift the lid I was in for a surprise.  The soup had boiled dry.  Once again I was left with hard dry split peas, only this time they were also nicely burnt to the side of the slow cooker.  Apparently it is possible to boil soup dry.  Yes, soup....boiled dry....in a slow cooker.  Yikes.  

With no time or desire for a third batch I attempted a desperate rescue.  More liquid and cooking resulted in slightly softer split peas still a far cry from their usual texture.  I finally gave up and figured I throw them in the blender anyway.  If soup can boil dry maybe blenders can cook miracles.  (A freezer can burn, but can it bake?) I had to add quite a bit more liquid to puree those ugly little peas.  Since a few of them were rather close to burnt, the final color was even more unappetizing.  And the texture?  Well, let's just say I don't have a miracle cooking blender.  Nope, it tasted just like what it was, dry overcooked split peas.  Wouldn't you know that's exactly what I woke up craving this morning?  Except not.  If you woke up this morning craving dry overcooked split peas then please come over for lunch, it's on me.  Thank goodness the blender didn't explode or it really would be on me.

Apparently my brain turned to mush instead of the peas. I did the next logical thing and tried a new pie recipe.  Pie crust tends to frustrate me and I'm still looking for a fail-proof recipe.  I'm fairly certain it's my technique that needs more help than the recipe.  When cutting in the butter I never quite know when to stop and usually end up going too far.  Using just the right amount of ice water so that the dough sticks together with without being crumbly or wet is also key.  I over worked the pie crust I made earlier this week, resulting in too much gluten formation and thus a tough dough.

Practice makes perfect, the perfect excuse to try a new recipe.. This time around everything was going fairly well.  The recipe included vinegar, which helps prevent too much gluten formation. The dough was very pliable and I had no issues with it cracking and tearing or sticking to the counter or rolling pin.  The bottom crust rolled out beautifully and eased into the pan with little effort.  Then in went the filling; pears, apples and candied ginger. The top crust looked even better.  I laid it over the filling and began to crimp and flute the edges. After firmly sealing and shaping I turned around and realized I forgot to dot the top with butter before placing the top crust over the filling.  Now this isn't a huge deal, in fact I forget to do this more often than not.  But this time I had specifically thought to myself, I will not forget that butter! I had it all ready and waiting, determined not to leave it out.  For a brief second I considered an attempt to remove the carefully sealed top crust and add that solitary tablespoon of hard, pale-yellow cream sitting on my counter.  I knew that was asking for disaster and wasn't willing to risk it.  Apparently I hadn't sealed the crust as well as I thought.  After an hour in the oven the hot bubbling fruit had boiled right out of the pie.  Luckily I had the pie on a baking sheet and only have a sticky pan to clean not an entire oven.

If you feel the need to use something fermented this Friday, go with vinegar in your pie crust, not wine in your split pea soup.

Food for thought: "Learn form the mistakes of others. You can't live long enough to make them all yourself." -Eleanor Roosevelt

Fermented Friday: Beer Apple Crisp

Fermented Friday: recipes featuring yeast, wine, beer or some form of fermentation.

Apple crisp is a longstanding tradition at our house.  I remember helping my mom turn the crank on the peeler, watching the bright red peels squiggle off onto a heap on the table. The sweet, pale yellow slices were then haphazardly piled into a nearby glass baking dish.  After a quick dusting of cinnamon, we attempted to pack a generous mound of oat topping over a dish already overflowing with crisp apple slices.  It wasn't long before warm, cozy aromas of apple and cinnamon wafted out of the oven and filled the house.  With all those enticing aromas one could hardly wait for the first bite.  I remember sneaking little clumps and clusters of the golden brown topping while waiting for the bubbling juices to cool.  Oh wait, I still do that.

Fermented Friday: Sun-Dried Tomato and Basil Appetizers (part 2)

Fermented Friday: recipes featuring yeast, wine, beer or some form of fermentation.

What started out as a recipe for Tuesday's Twist has taken all week, thanks for your patience. After a third try I finally got the pictures to work.  Something is still a little goofy with the formatting, but at least I can see pictures instead of blank, invalid images.  I wasn't intending to use this recipe for a Fermented Friday, but such is life.  Technically speaking it does contain yeast and balsamic vinegar, both of which involve fermentation, so let's just go with that.

The Sun-Dried Tomato and Basil Filling I posted on Tuesday was inspired by two recipes for stuffed tomatoes.  I wasn't in the mood to stuff and bake tomatoes, so I decided to play with won ton wrappers.  These thin sheets of dough are extremely versatile and perfect for bite-size appetizers.  The squares can be stuffed with a wide variety of fillings and then baked, fried, boiled or steamed.  I liked the idea of baking, but also tried making tortellini by boiling the filled pockets.  Since I'm playing with my food again, it's probably easier to just show you what I did (which is why I wanted to wait until my camera was working).

Fermented Friday: Beer Pitas (with a beer bottle rolling pin)

Fermented Friday: recipes featuring yeast, wine, beer or some form of fermentation.

Today's innovative use of beer bottle turned rolling pin was inspired by my brother.  Over the summer he lived on his own and began to dabble in the kitchen.  I was super impressed with his initiative to make bread and cookies each weekend to have on hand for his lunch. I often received texts with baking questions such as, "what happens if I leave out the vanilla?" or "what was that trick you use so the honey doesn't stick to the spoon?"

One weekend he called me up just as I was about to start washing my car.  (How ironic is it that I was washing the car while he was in the kitchen?!?) After he helped me figure out which of the 12 bottles of car soap in our garage was okay for me to use, I walked him through a few options for a cookie recipe gone askew. The next question was something along the lines of "can I use margarine in place of shortening?"  Well, that depends on what your using it for.  Margarine is 80% fat and 20% water while shortening is 100% fat.  Long story short,  (wait, this isn't very short is it?) he was out of tortillas and decided to make his own! Seeing as I've never made my own tortillas, I wasn't quite sure how the substitution would work out and suggested he try it out but perhaps use a little less water.  It wasn't until later that I realized he didn't have a rolling pin.  Necessity is the mother of invention, especially when thinking like a typical college-age guy.  Who needs rolling pins when you have beer bottles?

Fermented Friday: Asian Slaw

Fermented Friday: recipes featuring yeast, wine, beer or some form of fermentation

This recipe is a bit of a stretch for Fermented Friday, but technically it qualifies since soy sauce and rice vinegar are fermented products.  Soy sauce is made by fermenting soybeans with roasted wheat or barley.  Vinegar is produced when bacteria convert a fermented product into acetic acid.  The word itself comes from the French term for "sour wine" vin aigre.  Rice vinegar is made from, you guessed it, fermented rice.  See, we're still using fermentation.

Actually, I've just been craving this crunchy slaw for the past few weeks and needed an excuse to make it.  Okay, that and I put in enough hours at work this week that I didn't quite find time to finish the beer-cheese recipe I'm working on.

Fermented Friday: Smores Batter Bread

Fermented Friday: recipes featuring yeast, wine, beer or some form of fermentation

This week's yeast experiment comes in the form of a no-knead batter bread.  When I think of  yeast bread, I picture the lengthy process of kneading, rising, punching, shaping and rising again before finally baking.  I associate a batter bread with quick breads that rely on leavening agents such as baking soda or baking powder and require no kneading, rising or shaping.  This whole wheat loaf uses yeast for leavening, but requires no kneading or shaping.  Instead, you simply mix the ingredients together and pour the batter into a loaf pan.

I wasn't expecting too much from this loaf, I was more so just curious about the results.  Between my curiosity and leftover smores ingredients, this recipe seemed appropriate.  Sadly, I only made smores once this summer.  Though the chocolate bar is long gone, I still have plenty of marshmallows waiting to be put to use.

Fermented Friday: Grilled Mango-Basil Pizza

Fermented Friday: recipes featuring yeast, wine, beer or some form of fermentation

Before the summer's over, you have to try grilling pizza.  I'm not sure how this summer escaped without a pizza on my grill.  Many of you have heard of my grilled pizza incident from several years back and are likely smiling (or groaning) at the thought, but that's another story.  Ask me about it sometime when you're in need of a good laugh.

I've been wanting to make a mango-basil pizza forever and finally got around to it.  It was too hot for the oven, so onto the grill it went.  The combination was superb, but I understand if you're a little hesitant.  Regardless of the toppings you choose, you don't want to miss out on the experience of a grilled pizza.  If you don't have time to make your own dough feel free to pick some up at the store.  The dough recipe I used here needs a little tweaking, so I'll just show you the basics and get you started.

Fermented Friday: Rosemary Rum Raisin Biscotti

Fermented Friday: recipes featuring yeast, wine, beer or some form of fermentation

By the time you read this, I will likely be on the road for an extended four day weekend trip. I'll be back sometime Monday so there may or may not be a Monday post.  Fortunately for you, I squeezed in some time to bake cookies before I left.
  

Rather than our ususal beer, yeast or wine recipe, this week's featured fermented ingredient is spiced rum.  Rum is produced by fermenting and distilling sugar byproducts such as molasses.  While rum is often aged for a year or more, you don't have to wait that long to crunch away at these enticing biscotti.

Fermented Friday: Spicy Beer Cocktail

Fermented Friday: recipes featuring yeast, wine, beer or some form of fermentation

Sooooo, I tried a beer recipe that falls more under Weird Recipe Wednesday.  I like the components separately and was intrigued by a recipe that mixed them into beer.  I figured this was the perfect opportunity to test it out.........annnnnnd it wasn't even drinkable.  Fail.  I even had my brother try some in case it was just me.  Still a no-go.  I snapped a picture, but I'm not going to post the recipe.  It's definitely not worth repeating, and I didn't want to waste another beer trying to tweak it.  I will not be stirring lime, sriracha and Worcestershire into my beer anytime soon.

I have a bad habit of trying to save recipe failures.  Hmmm, what can I do with this?  I thought about a spicy beer bread, but I really didn't want a loaf of bread that tasted like this mixed beverage.  Sometimes further fiddling yields amazing results, but there are also times I end up wasting even more ingredients in the process.  Every once in a while I'm wise enough to leave well enough alone and realize it will only get worse.

Just as I was about to dump this concoction down the drain, I decided to turn it into a beer syrup.  I added 1/4 cup sugar and boiled it down until thick and syrupy.  It tasted okay but what do you do with a spicy beer syrup?  Candy coated nuts?  There may be some potential there, but not with these flavors.  At this point I decided to call it quits. Some things just aren't worth saving.

Even when a situation doesn't turn out as you'd hoped, you can learn from it.  What I took away from this failure was a tip about making beer syrup.  The exact time it takes to reduce beer to a syrup depends on the amount of added sugar and the temperature.  However, there is a good visual indicator that your beer syrup had reached the right consistency.  After slowly simmering the solution will suddenly begin to boil vigorously due to the high sugar concentration.  At least it was entertaining and educational, even if it wasn't too tasty.

Food for Thought: "To live a creative life, we must lose our fear of being wrong." -Joseph Chilton Pearce 

Fermented Friday: Oatmeal Stout Raisin Cookies

Fermented Friday: recipes featuring yeast, wine, beer or some form of fermentation

The characteristic smoothness of an oatmeal stout comes from the addition of oats to the mash. If you're interested, this article gives a brief overview on the science of brewing oatmeal stout.  While brewers need to understand the gelatinization, viscosity and gum content of oats, you just need a reason to make cookies with beer.

Oatmeal stout seems like a good enough excuse to stir up a batch of oatmeal raisin cookies.   But how will we infuse beer into our cookies?

Not to worry, I've come up with a recipe, you just need enough patience and self-control for a decent portion of dough to make it to the oven. I've got less than zero advice in that area.  Unless you need an example of what not to do?  Ummm, let's just get to the recipe.

Fermented Friday: Honey Beer Bread with Blue Cheese and Thyme

Fermented Friday: recipes featuring yeast, wine, beer or some form of fermentation

 A drizzle of golden honey over a crumble of creamy blue cheese will do wonders for skeptical taste buds.  The sharp, earthy flavors of blue cheese are toned down with sweet honey for the perfect sweet-savory balance.  While this pairing is often perched atop crackers, I decided to present it to you in an even milder form by incorporating it in beer bread.

Fermented Friday: Peanut Sauce Pizza with Beer Chicken, Veggies and Basil

Fermented Friday: recipes featuring yeast, wine, beer or some form of fermentation

I actually had something completely different in the works for today, but I found out the hard way that the spare jar of baking powder was expired.  Of course I used up the last of several other key ingredients at the same time.  After trips to several grocery stores and a few empty shelves, I still didn't have all the ingredients for a second attempt.  With a sore throat and zero energy I decided to save that recipe for another day and go with pizza instead.

Fermented Friday: Beer Hummus with Beer Rye Crackers

Fermented Friday: recipes featuring yeast, wine, beer or some form of fermentation


The hoppy bitterness of an IPA is less than ideal for cooking or baking.  Yet somehow, an IPA found its way off the shelf and into my six pack mix.  An IPA is also not the first thing I would pick to drink.  If we cross off cooking, baking and drinking this IPA, then what's left?  Marinating fruit doesn't require cooking or baking, but I've done that (twice) in the past few weeks.  Hmmmm, it has been a while since I've made any dips or spreads....let's make hummus. Beer hummus.

 And while we're at it, let's just make beer crackers too.