Category Archives: Bread

Challah and me – I have baked a three strand braided Challah before and thought this would be a fairly easy challenge. I went through photographs and videos by Ruth and was intrigued by the six and the four braided round ones. My dough rised perfectly and I was super thrilled going to the next step. I used a chocolate cinnamon raisin filling inside each strand and rolled it up just right. I didnt realize that I was pulling the dough while braiding. The raisin poped out, the strand became thinner and thinner…oh boy this was a total mess,after all not as simple as I had expected. At the end of it, I was so frustrated that I bundled up all the dough together and placed it in a bowl for a short while. And there you go…. the dough rised again. By then it was too late so I put it in the refrigerator and decided to do something with it the next day with a fresh mind. Well that didn’t help either. Even the next day my luck didn’t favor me much. The dough was dry and looked really weird. Guess I messed it up once again. Hence begins my second tryst with Challah.

So this time I was pretty careful. I didn’t use any filling, just stuck with the plain one. I used a small portion of the dough to make a four strand braided round bread. The bread came out BIG, but looked beautiful. The other portion was used to make a six strand braid. I referred to Maggie Glezer’s video. It looked wonderful, but again the only problem was that it was too HUGE!.

I should have used a little less dough,silly me – lesson learnt. But I must say, they looked great and tasted even better.

May’s Daring Bakers’ Challenge was pretty twisted – Ruth from The Crafts of Mommyhood challenged us to make challah! Using recipes from all over, and tips from “A Taste of Challah,” by Tamar Ansh, she encouraged us to bake beautifully braided breads.

Challah is a bread of celebration in Jewish tradition. At a time when white flour was considered a luxury, its use was reserved for either the wealthy or for festive events. In Judaism, the Sabbath is a weekly holiday, and therefore is a festive occasion. It was around the 15th century when Jews in parts of Austria and Germany adopted an oval braided loaf from their neighbors to make the Sabbath special. These fancy shaped loaves made with white flour were seen as a fitting way to honor the Shabbat (Sabbath), symbolized in Jewish culture as a queen, therefore deserving of the finest one can achieve. In honoring the Sabbath as a day of rest, two loaves are traditionally put on the table. This is generally seen as a representation of the double portion of manna provided to the Children of Israel on Fridays during their wandering in the desert after fleeing from Egypt. This double portion allowed them to maintain the commandment to not do “work” on the Sabbath.

Another symbolic comparison to the manna eaten by the Israelites is the fact that challah is traditionally covered with a cloth prior to being blessed and eaten. According to tradition, manna was encased in dew to preserve its freshness. Covering the challah with a decorative cloth serves as another reminder of the special quality of the day of rest. There are other explanations given regarding why the challah is covered. Ruth says the one she always liked was that they cover the loaves so they will not be “embarrassed” by having to wait while the wine is blessed first. (A traditional Sabbath dinner begins with a blessing over the wine first, followed by the blessing of the bread, after which the meal is enjoyed.)

HONEY WHITE CHALLAH

An yeast-risen special braided Jewish bread, eaten on Sabbath and Holidays.

Ingredients

1 ½ cups warm water, separated
1 tablespoon sugar
2 tablespoon dry active yeast
½ cup honey
1 tablespoon light colored vegetable / olive oil
4 large eggs
1 ½ teaspoon salt
5 cups all-purpose (plain) flour, plus more as needed (up to 8 or 9 cups total)
1 egg beaten with 1 teaspoon water

Directions:

In mixer bowl/large mixing bowl combine ½ cup warm water, 1 Tbsp. sugar and 2 Tbsp. yeast. Allow to proof approximately 5 minutes until foamy.To the yeast mixture add the remaining water, honey, oil, eggs, salt and 5 cups of flour. Knead (by hand or with your mixer’s dough hook) until smooth, adding flour as needed. Knead for approximately 10 minutes. Transfer dough to a clean, oiled bowl, turn to coat or add a bit more oil on top. Cover bowl with a kitchen/tea towel. Leave to rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1 ½ hours.Punch down the dough, divide it into two sections. Use one half to make each loaf (shaped or braided as desired). Place loaves on parchment lined or greased baking sheets, cover with a towel, allow to rise 30 minutes. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Brush tops loaves with egg wash. (Sprinkle with seeds or toppings here if wanted – I used a poppyseed topping for the six strand braided one and sesame seeds for the four strand braided one.) Bake loaves 30-40 minutes until done. Cool on wire racks.

As mentioned my six strand braided bread was way too huge and bulky, it tasted excellent though. I toasted a few slices with cinnamon and sugar and made Bread Pudding out of it. Recipe to follow shortly:)

Thank you Ruth for the wonderful Challenge. All of us loved the Bread at home. I will try again to get the perfect six strand braided bread!

I am an avid follower of Ben’s blog – Whats Cooking Mexico?. One thing that clearly stands out in his blog is his ability to relate to the end reader and provide a wealth of valuable information. His blog gives you a whole new perspective on not just the food but the culture and tradition. Through his blog I have come to believe that there is much more to a food blog than just food. He is one of my favorite bloggers. When Ben asked me to write a guest post for him, I happily accepted.

I have been thinking for a while on what to exactly write for his blog. I was in a dilemma on whether to do something mexican or something different. Ben being the master of mexican cuisine, I decided to stick with something more comfortable – baking Bread.

Focaccia is a very a common italian bread. The savory versions are more popular and is usually topped with rosemary,oregano,sage,garlic,olives,onions etc. It looks similar to a pizza in terms of texture and looks. The basic ingredients are flour,olive oil,yeast,salt and water. Various versions of this bread can be found across the world. The bread is fairly plain from inside and a spicy topping helps to balance the taste well.

One day I was in the process of making Sweet Grape Focaccia. I had this craving for something spicy. Hence the sweet became the savory Focaccia. I had some left over sauteed vegetable made with Onions, Peppers and Tomatoes from the previous night….thus happened the Spicy Focaccia with Onion & Bell Pepper topping This by far has been our favorite topping at home:-)

Bite any one??

Do hop on to Ben’s blog for the recipe:)

Pita is a kind of a bread which is very popular in the Middle Eastern and Mediterranean countries. It is a round pocket bread which when baked puffs up and flattens as it cools. A very popular greek food is Falafel Sandwich were the falafels are stuffed inside the pita bread.This is one of my fav food at Gyros a greek restaurant in MN. The sandwich is served with cucumber,tomatoes,onions and tzatziki sauce.It tastes YUM!.

Hummus is like a dip made with garbanzo beans and Baba Ganoush is made using eggplant(aubergine).The first time I ate them was probably four years back at a Lebanese restaurant. They were served with warm Pita bread and Tabouli salad.The salad was something I just couldn’t eat,I think one has to have an acquired taste for “cous cous”.Anyways it was just not the delicious fare that we enjoyed, the traditional belly dancing accompanied with the foot tapping music made the recipe for a perfect evening. I was amazed with the finesse with which the dancers performed….it was sheer elegance coupled with superior dexterity.

The addition of Tahini is what makes these dips taste great. I believe you can make them without it as well, I sure haven’t tried it yet.I usually dont buy the paste, have always made it from scratch.

PITA BREAD WITH ROASTED GARLIC HUMMUS & BABA GANOUSH

Pita Bread
( makes about 8 pita breads)

1.5 cups flour
5 tablespoons warm water
1/2 teaspoon yeast proofed in a tablespoon of warm water with 1/2 tablespoon of flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoon olive oil

Mix the flour,water and the yeast in a bowl. Add salt,mix and then add the olive oil. I used my stand mixer fitted with a dough hook to knead.Turn to high speed if needed to get the dough to slap against the sides of the bowl. Brush a glass bowl with oil and place the dough in it. Cover with a plastic wrap and let rise for about 3 hours in room temperature or until tripled in volume. Press down the dough,cut into equal pieces and shape them into small balls. Roll out the balls into 4 or 6 inch disks,flouring as needed to prevent sticking.Because the dough is elastic you may have to let the disks rest once or twice while you are rolling them out to get them to hold their shapes. Place a pizza stone on the floor of the oven and preheat the oven to 500F. You may also use a baking sheet. Arrange the discs on the sheet pans and slide it into the oven, bake for about 7 minutes until they are lightly browned. Turn them over and bake for another minute or two.

Tahini

¼ cup sesame seeds(white)
2 tablespoon sesame oil

Dry roast the sesame seeds until golden brown.(be careful as they turn dark very soon).Cool and grind it along with sesame oil. Store it in an air tight container.

Roasted Garlic

Preheat oven at 400F. Take a garlic bulb and cut the top of the clove.Place it on a small silver foil and drizzle about a teaspoon of olive oil. Wrap it with the foil and bake for about 40 minutes. Remove the skin.You will end up with a very soft golden colored garlic not to forget the amazing aroma too:).

Hummus

1 cup Garbanzo beans ( you may use the canned ones too,reserve the liquid)
Roasted garlic ( as needed)
4 tablespoon olive oil + ½ teaspoon for garnishing
¼ teaspoon lemon juice
2 teaspoon tahini paste
salt as needed
¼ teaspoon chili flakes and parsley ( optional)

Soak the Garbanzo beans overnight and cook it the next day until soft. (If you are using a canned ones this step is not required.). Reserve the liquid in which it is cooked. Allow it to cool. Grind it along with the rest of the ingredients except the last one. (If it is too thick use the reserved liquid, just a little which is purely optional). Garnish with olive oil,chili flakes and finely chopped parsley.

{If you like your Hummus to be super garlicky, use all of the roasted garlic else use about 3-4 pods}

Baba Ganoush

1 eggplant ( I used a baby eggplant)
2 tablespoon Olive oil + little extra for brushing
1 garlic pod ( you may use roasted garlic too)
1 teaspoon tahini paste
salt as needed
¼ teaspoon chili flakes

Preheat the oven at 400F. Brush little oil ( probably need about ¼ teaspoon)all over the eggplant and using a knife make small slits on all sides.You may even use a fork and prick. Bake for 40 minutes until they are completely soft. Peel the skin and scrape out the pulp. Grind it along with rest of the ingredients except the last one. Garnish with chili flakes and little olive oil.

If you prefer a smoky flavor, use the broil option in the oven to char the skin of the eggplant, then peel and use. I chose not to as I dont like it. Since I used a baby eggplant, I ended up with less than ½ cup of Baba Ganoush. You will have to adjust the quantity of ingredients as per your taste if you are using a large eggplant.

Serve the Hummus and Baba Ganoush with Pita bread.
Enjoy!
Note : The recipe for Pita Bread was adapted from the book Baking by James Peterson. I made some changes to suit my requirement.

Dutch Crunch doesn’t refer to the type of bread, but rather the topping that is spread over the bread before baking. In Dutch it’s called Tijgerbrood or “tiger bread” after the tiger-like shell on the bread when it comes out of the oven. The final product has a delightful sweet crunch to it that makes it perfect for a sandwich roll. It’s a common option at sandwich shops all over the Bay Area and is often one of the first breads to run out.

Sara and Erica of Baking JDs were our March 2012 Daring Baker hostesses! Sara & Erica challenged us to make Dutch Crunch bread, a delicious sandwich bread with a unique, crunchy topping. Sara and Erica also challenged us to create a one of a kind sandwich with our bread!

The recipe for the Dutch Crunch topping came from Rose Levy Beranbaum’s The Bread Bible. The recipes for the breads we’ve suggested came from The Bread Bible and an adaptation of a recipe found on bakingbites.com (http://bakingbites.com/2006/09/cooking-school-dutch-crunch-bread/).

For the challenge we were asked to make the Dutch Crunch topping and use it on our choice of bread or roll and use the finished bread to construct a sandwich of our choice. We were allowed to use any bread or roll recipe. So I decided to make “Savory Rolls with Garlic and Sun-dried Tomatoes”. If you like anything garlicky like me, you would love this one.

SAVORY ROLLS WITH GARLIC AND SUNDRIED TOMATOES – DUTCH CRUNCH TOPPING

Ingredients:

2 cups bread flour
a teaspoon salt
1 1/2 teaspoon yeast
1 teaspoon chopped garlic( you may reduce this to half if you do not like the flavor)
a tablespoon sun-dried tomatoes chopped
3/4 cup of water
2 1/2 teaspoon olive oil
2 tablespoon butter

In a Food processor, pulse together flour,salt and yeast. Add the chopped garlic,sundried tomatoes,olive oil and butter. Pulse again till you see the flour crumbled. Add warm water and beat until all come together. Knead and shape it into a ball and place it in an oiled bowl. Cover it with plastic wrap and allow it to rise in a warm place until double in size, which will take about two hours.

Punch the dough and shape into balls/bun shape. You will end up with six of them. Place it on a baking sheet lined with parchment,allow it proof for about 20 minutes. In the meanwhile make the topping.

Dutch Crunch Topping

Ingredients

1/2 tablespoons active dry yeast
1/4 cup warm water (105-115º F) (41-46°C)
1/2 tablespoons sugar
1/2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup + 2 tablespoon rice flour

Directions:

1.Combine all ingredients in a large bowl and beat with a whisk; beat hard to combine. The consistency should be like stiff royal icing – spreadable, but not too runny. If you pull some up with your whisk, as shown below, it should drip off slowly. Add more water or rice flour as necessary. Let stand 15 minutes.
2.Coat the top of each roll with a thick layer of topping.You should err on the side of applying too much topping – a thin layer will not crack properly.
3.Let stand, uncovered, for about 15 minutes.
4.When baking, place pans on a rack in the center of the oven and bake.The Dutch Cruch topping should crack and turn a nice golden-brown color.

I was thrilled with the result. Though my rolls weren’t that dark in color,the crunchiness is all that mattered. I read in the DB forum that adding a lil more sugar would result in a darker texture. Since I was making a savory roll, I decided not to do so. I loved the crunchiness of the roll.The bread was tender and had an amazing garlic flavor to it. Actually while baking there was a nice aroma of garlic in the entire house…aah that was lovely!

I came up with a very simple sandwich with whatever available at home. I used some cream cheese spread and mayo on the roll. Also added roasted potatoes(cooked ,sliced and roasted with some olive oil,paprika and salt), onions,tomato and very little grated carrots. This was my dinner last night and I just loved it. I plan to make some Soft rolls with this kind of topping again.

Thanks so much Sara and Erica for the lovely challenge.