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APPLE CINNAMON DESSERT LOAF

10/12/2014

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     This was my first attempt at a yeasted pastry loaf that is not brioche. I searched among a number of recipes for ideas and found this solution--a yeasted bread that tastes great and looks impressive, but is not at all difficult to accomplish. The key is to keep the apples in the center 1/3 of the dough once it is rolled out, and to make sure the apple stuffing does not have too much liquid (you can save excess liquid for the glaze). The apples should not be sliced/prepared until the dough is ready to be rolled, otherwise they will oxidize (brown). This loaf cooks nicely and each slice displays a golden core of apples. This yields one rather large loaf.
Yield: 1 large Apple loaf (serves 8-10)

Ingredients:
For the dough:
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 Tbsp warm water
2 1/4 instant yeast
1/4 Tsp sugar (for yeast activation)
1/2 cup whole milk
6 Tbsp sugar
5 Tbsp unsalted butter, cut in chunks
1 Tsp salt
2 egg yolks

For apple stuffing:
3-4 medium sized golden delicious apples (or Granny smith--the idea is low water content)--skin peeled, cored, cut into 0.5cm slices
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 Tsp of lemon juice (to prevent apples from browning)
1/3 cup cookie crumbs (lady fingers, vanilla, or butter cookies)
1 1/2 Tsp cinnamon (or cinnamon sugar)
1 whole egg, beaten (for eggwash)

For glaze:
If you have juice left over from simmering the apples, you can add Confectioner's sugar to this until it thickens, and use this as a glaze!
Alternatively, whisk the following ingredients together in a bowl:
1 cup powdered sugar
1 Tbsp + 2 Tsp whole milk
1/4 Tsp vanilla extract
1/4 Tsp kosher salt

Directions:
For the dough:
1) Place 2 tbsp of warm water and the 1/4 Tsp sugar in a small bowl. Stir in the yeast and let stand in a warm place until the mixture foams, about 10-15 minutes.

2) Stir the milk, sugar, butter chunks, and salt in a medium pot over medium heat until the sugar dissolves and the butter melts (mixture should be warm, not hot).

3) Transfer this warm butter mixture into a medium/large bowl. Then whisk in the yeast mixture, and egg yolks. Add the flour, stirring with a wooden spoon until the dough comes together. You can knead the dough with a hook (mixer) for 6 minutes, OR if you don’t have a mixer you can knead by hand for about 8-10 minutes.

4) Transfer dough to a clean (large) bowl lightly sprayed with oil. Cover with oiled plastic wrap and let rise until almost doubled, about 1.5-2hrs (for this step, I often preheat my oven to 200F just for a moment, then I turn if off for a few minutes and place my dough bowl in there with the oven light on. It works very well.

5) Let the dough rise until almost doubled in volume, about 1 ½-2 hrs. Gently punch the dough down in the bowl and let the dough rest in the bowl on the counter for about 45-60min while you work on the filling.

For the filling:

6) Peel and slice the apples and toss in the lemon juice (to prevent browning). Melt the butter in a medium pot over the medium heat. Add the brown sugar and cinnamon. Cook until a grainy sauce forms, about 1 minute. Mix in the apple slices. Cook until the apples are tender and the sauce is reduced to glaze, about 7-10 minutes, stirring often to avoid scorching. Cool the filling for least 30 minutes and. Set the apple stuffing aside and return to the dough!

7) Place a large sheet of aluminum foil on a work surface. Spray with nonstick spray and lightly dust with flour. Turn the dough out onto the foil and roll out to 14×12-inch (30x35-cm) rectangle. Sprinkle the cookie crumbs lengthwise (in the longer, 14inch or 35cm direction) in the middle 1/3 of the rectangle leaving ½ inch (about 1.5cm) border at the top and bottom of the rectangle.

8) Arrange the apples with any juices over the crumbs. Starting ½ inch (1.5cm) from the each long side of the apple filling, cut the dough at a slight diagonal to the top edge of the rectangle at 1-inch (2.5cm) interval, making about 12-13 strips on each side. See pictures above for reference. Fold the dough strips alternately, left then right, and on a slight angle over the filling. This forms the lattice. Seal the open ends of the dough. You should not be able to see an escape route for apples!

9) Slide the loaf (keep it on the foil) onto a large baking sheet. Roll the sides of the foil up a bit to contain juices if your lattice leaks--if you braided it without gaps, you should be fine!). Cover the loaf loosely with oil-sprayed plastic and let the dough rise in the warm place until light and puffy, about 30-60min.

10) Preheat the oven to 375F. Gently brush the loaf with the egg wash. This will especially help to seal the braid. Bake until golden brown, about 25-30 minutes. Let cool on foil over wire rack for 30 minutes. When cool, use a spatula to gently separate the loaf from the aluminum and transfer to a large serving dish.

11) At this point you can add the glaze and sift Confectioner's sugar over the top as desired:

For the glaze:
If you have juice left over from simmering the apples, you can add Confectioner's sugar and stir until it thickens. You can use this as a glaze or a sauce to drizzle over your slices. Alternatively, whisk the above-listed ingredients together in a bowl.

Serve the cake slightly warm or at room temperature.

NOTE: Due to lack of preservatives in the dough, the loaf tastes the best within the first few hours or days of baking. I would recommend freezing the loaf you plan to eat it more than 2-3 days after baking, as it will rapidly become stale.
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STUFFED FLAT BREADS

10/5/2014

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     This flat bread was nice and soft, great for dipping in anything, and had great flavor inside and out. It's not difficult to make and the results are great! You can do this stove-top or on a grill (but keep your eye on them at all times). And you can choose whatever stuffing you want to put in the middle--herbs, meats, etc. However don't over-stuff them, because optimally you don't want the inside contents leaking out onto your grill/grittle.
Yield: 4 medium/large stuffed flat breads

Ingredients:
For dough:
5-6 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup olive oil
1 Tsp honey
2 Tsp instant yeast
2 1/2 Tsp salt
3/4 cup yogurt, plain
Additional olive oil for brushing

For mushroom stuffing:
8oz package of mushrooms (of your choice)
1 Tbsp butter
1 Tbsp fresh scallions, sliced

Directions:
1) In a medium bowl, mix 2 cups of water, honey and yeast. Let sit for about 10 minutes. Then add salt, yogurt, and 1 Tbsp oil, and stir together.

2) Add flour to wet mixture starting with 2 cups, and gradually adding more until the dough becomes stiff.

3) Transfer dough to lightly floured surface and knead until smooth and silky, about 5 minutes. Dough should still be a little sticky.

4) Place dough in a lightly greased medium-large bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Let rest in a warm area about 2 hours, or until doubled.

5) Now prepare the mushroom filling (you can do what you want! But this is what I did for my recipe): rinse mushrooms under water and wipe dry. Cut off the hard tip of the stem and slice them lengthwise. Then melt about 1 Tbsp butter in a skillet until the foam dissipates. Then drop the mushrooms into the skillet and add chives and salt and pepper to taste. The mushrooms will absorb the liquid first, then they will release it. Sautee for 1-2 minutes after this. Then set aside to cool.

6) Divide dough into 4 equal portions and chill for about 20 minutes in the refrigerator. Next, on a lightly floured surface, roll out each portion into a rough circle/oval, about 8 inches in diameter (you may need additional flour to make sure your rolling pin and dough don't stick to each other--but only add as much as you need! Not more!).

7) Brush top of each flattened round with olive oil, and add the stuffing of your choice (again, here I did sauteed mushrooms and herbs) to the center of each round. Then, fold the edges of the dough onto each other in the center to cover your stuffing--press and seal (with your hands or the rolling pin) so that your stuffing is no longer visible and tucked into your dough. Now you should have a stuffed round that you have made flat.

8) Heat up a medium/large skillet over medium heat on your stove top (you can also do these on the grill). Brush both sides of the stuffed dough rounds with olive oil. Then place one round at a time on your skillet. Once the bread begins to puff/bubble/brown, it's time to flip it over (about 2min) to the other side. After you have grilled the flat bread on both sides, transfer to cooling rack and sprinkle with salt.

NOTE: Due to lack of preservatives in the dough, the breads taste the best within the first few hours of baking. I would recommend freezing them if you plan to eat them more than one day after baking, as they will rapidly become stale.

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AIRY OLIVE ROLLS WITH HERBS

9/1/2014

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     This dough was really airy and flaky, with a beautiful crumb. It's actually the bread that is featured in the large photo on the home page. I chose to put olives and fresh backyard herbs in this dough. I think it is capable of holding a lot of different ingredients, but this night in particular I wanted to do olives and herbs. You almost can't go wrong with that...
Yield: 12 olive rolls

Ingredients:

1 cup lukewarm water
1/4 cup milk
3 cups flour
2 tablespoons olive oil
2-3 tablespoons herbs (the amount and type are your choice!)
1 teaspoon salt
1.5 teaspoons instant yeast

Directions:
1) Combine all of the ingredients, mix, and knead (my preference is always by hand because that's how I was taught), mixer, or bread machine set on the dough cycle — until smooth, adding additional water or flour as needed. Add the salt last, as the dough begins to form ropes/clumps.

2) Cover the dough, and let it rise for 1 hour.

3) Divide the dough into 4 pieces, shape into logs, and place in lightly greased mini loaf pans. For one large loaf, shape the entire piece of dough into a log and place in a lightly greased 9" x 5" loaf pan.

4) Cover and let rise until the dough has crowned about ½" over the rims of the mini loaf pans, or 1" over the rim of the larger pan, 30 minutes to 1 hour, depending on the warmth of the kitchen. Towards the end of the rising time, preheat the oven to 350°F.

5) Bake the bread for 30 to 35 minutes for the mini loaves, 35 to 40 minutes for the larger loaf. An instant-read thermometer, inserted into the center of a loaf, should register at least 190°F. Tent the bread lightly with foil if it appears to be browning too quickly.

6) Remove the bread from the oven, turn it out of the pan, and cool on a rack.

NOTE: Due to lack of preservatives in the dough, the rolls will taste the best within the first few hours of baking. I would recommend freezing them if you plan to eat them more than one day after baking, as they will rapidly become stale.
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NUTELLA BRIOCHE FLOWER

9/1/2014

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     This is, admittedly, my favorite bread to make on the whole website. It is not technically difficult, but it does take time and patience. I discovered the shape and saw it repeatedly on the accounts of Italian Instagrammers. So I researched on Google and YouTube and found a video (in Italian) that I could follow. I chose to use my own brioche dough recipe that I have found to be reliable and tasty. Ultimately, I combined my preferred dough with the video demo and have successfully made multiple crowd-pleasing brioche flowers. For shaping, it is important to use dough that is chilled. As you are adding Nutella to the layers of dough, they may soften. After you complete the layering process, I recommend chilling the dough for 10-15 minutes in the refrigerator. This will make it infinitely easier to make the appropriate cuts, while keeping the bread looking clean and esthetic (no oozing!). Good luck! Buona fortuna!
Yield: 1 large Nutella brioche flower

Ingredients:
For dough:
3 - 3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
3 Tbsp sugar
1 1/4 Tsp salt
1 tbsp instant yeast
3 large eggs*
1/4 cup milk
10 Tbsp butter, softened
*You can save the white of a 4th egg to brush on the buns if you plan to top them with sugar
1 piece of parchment paper + 1 cookie sheet or pizza dish

For layers:
1 medium-large jar of Nutella


Directions:
1) In a mixer or bread machine (programmed for dough), mix together 3 cups of flour and the rest of the ingredients to form a smooth dough. It will be sticky at first and may require the extra 1/2 cup flour to make the dough come together if the conditions in your kitchen differ (temperature, humidity, etc). Remove from mixer and knead with your hands until silky smooth.

2) Form the dough into a ball. Place it in a greased bowl and let rise for ~1-1.5 hrs--it will become quite puffy. Refrigerate the dough for at least 1 hour (until chilled), or as long as overnight. This will slow the fermentation process and will make the dough easier to braid/shape.

3) To achieve this particular flower shape, I took the dough out of the refrigerator and divided it into 4 even pieces.

     The video below is in Italian (all you have to do is watch the technique), and you can skip through some of the first parts where she describes how to make the brioche--I have provided a recipe above. You can shape the dough just as she does shown in the video below. NOTE: I DO recommend refrigerating the dough once more for 15-20 minutes BEFORE making the 16 cuts. If the dough (full of butter) begins to get warm and melt as you work, it will be more difficult to cut...and messy.

4) Let your finished, braided product rest on top of the parchment paper in the pizza dish/cookie sheet for about 30 minutes (it will puff a little more).

5) Preheat the oven to 375F. Right before the bread is cooked, you can brush it the egg white of a 4th egg.

6) Place cookie sheet or pizza pan in oven and bake for about 30-35min. NOTE: watch the bread. Every oven cooks differently. The buttery dough should a golden brown on all of the petals and center when done.

7) Remove from oven and let cool for about 15min. Carefully transfer to rack for cooling. You can sprinkle confectioner's sugar on top for an added effect, but it will still look beautiful without it.

NOTE:
Due to lack of preservatives in the dough, the bread tastes the best within the first few hours of baking. I would recommend freezing it if you plan to eat it more than one day after baking, as it will rapidly become stale.
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STUFFED SEMOLINA BREAD

9/1/2014

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     This particular yellow-crumbed loaf of bread was a semolina bread recipe that I decided to enhance with some other items I found in the kitchen. I put backyard herbs, cheddar, asiago cheese, and chorizo inside. You can use whatever you want, but nothing too wet! With the cheese and the semolina, the loaf is characteristically golden.
Yield: 1 medium-large loaf

Ingredients:
1 cup semolina (not semolina flour)
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 Tsp instant yeast

1 to 1 1/4 cups lukewarm water
2 Tbsp olive oil
1 1/4 Tsp salt

1 cup diced hard cheese (pecorino, locatelli, piave, parmesan, stravecchio, etc)
1/2 cup diced sharper cheese (Provolone, cheddar, asiago, etc)
Chorizo/meat cubes, to taste

Directions:
1) Combine all ingredients--EXCEPT the three cheeses and salt--into a bowl, and mix on medium speed of an electric mixer to make smooth dough. Add the salt as soon as the dough begins to clump and form ropes. Switch to the dough hook and knead for about 5 minutes, or knead vigorously by hand on a floured surface.

2) Transfer dough to a floured surface and add the cheese cubes (and meat, if applicable) to the dough by kneading, until everything is incorporated.

3) Put the soft, cheese-filled dough in a lightly greased bowl, cover, and let rise for about 2 hours (it will become quite puffy).

4) Transfer the dough to a counter top that has been sprinkled with semolina (if you wish to bake them on a stone/brick in your oven). OR transfer the dough to a baking sheet that has been moderately sprinkled with semolina. The semolina will keep your dough from sticking to the pizza peel or baking sheet when baked, so don't be too skimpy.

5) Gently deflate the dough. You can divide the dough as you wish. For two loaves, divide the dough in half, and place both halves on the semolina-lined baking sheet or counter top.

6) Tent the dough with lightly greased plastic wrap and let rise for about an hour--it will puff some more. Preheat the oven to 425°F.

7) Take the plastic off the bread. Spray the dough with water, and use a sharp knife to make three diagonal slashes (1-2cm deep) in each loaf. Use a pizza peel to load your counter-top loaves into the oven. If you used the baking sheet, put those right into the oven.

8) Bake the bread for 30 minutes (keep your eye on the bread, every oven is different) until golden brown. When you tap on the bottom of the loaves, they should sound hollow.

9) Remove the bread from the oven, and carefully (don't get burnt!) transfer to a rack to cool.

NOTE: Due to lack of preservatives in the dough, the breads taste the best within the first few hours of baking. I would recommend freezing them if you plan to eat them more than one day after baking, as they will rapidly become stale.
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STUFFED S-BREADS

9/1/2014

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     This bread dough is nice and hearty. It's very full, more dense than some others I have made. You can make whatever shapes you want, but I chose the S-shape for appearance.
Yield: 8 S-shaped breads

Ingredients:
6 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup warm water
1 cup milk
1/3 cup olive oil
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons salt
1/4 cup sugar
4 teaspoons instant yeast
1 (8 1/2-ounce) jar oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes
1 cup grated Italian cheese (pecorino, locatelli, parmesan, asiago, piave, stravecchio, etc.)
1 cup chopped fresh herbs (of your choice)

Directions:
1) Combine the water, sugar, yeast, milk, olive oil, eggs, and flour, and mix, by hand or bread machine until the dough will become soft dough. Add the salt last, as the dough begins to clump and form ropes. Ultimately you should be able to form a smooth ball.

2) Place the dough in a greased bowl. Cover and let rise in a warm place until double, about 45-60 minutes.

3) Meanwhile, drain the sun-dried tomatoes of oil by placing them on top of paper towels. Finely chop the tomatoes.

4) Line two baking sheets with parchment. Gently deflate the dough and divide it into 8 pieces. Pat each piece into a rough rectangle. Sprinkle some cheese, herbs, and chopped sun dried tomatoes evenly on top of each rectangle, but not quite to the edges.

5) Starting with one long edge, roll the dough into a log. Pinch the edges to seal.

6) Place the log seam-side down on a baking sheet. Using a sharp knife, start 1/2" from one end and cut the log lengthwise down the center about 1" deep (to reveal the layers inside), to within 1/2" of the other end.

7) Keeping the cut side up, form an "S" shape. Tuck both ends of the "S" under the center of the "S" to form a "figure 8"; pinch the ends of the "S" together underneath, and seal them together. Cover buns and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 60 minutes.

8) While the loaves are rising, preheat the oven to 350°F.

9) Bake the first loaf for 35 to 40 minutes. Again, every oven is different, so check your breads after 10 minutes to see how they are baking. Loaves should become golden-brown on top and should sound hollow on the underside when tapped.

10) Remove buns from their pans; cool on racks before serving.

NOTE: Due to lack of preservatives in the dough, the breads taste the best within the first few hours of baking. I would recommend freezing them if you plan to eat them more than one day after baking, as they will rapidly become stale.
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    Female.
    Amateur.
    Italian-American.
    New Jersey.
    USA.

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