RECIPE ROUNDUP
There’s No Knead To Fear
By Kevin Hargis
Some cooks find the idea of creating a loaf of bread, especially a yeast bread, from scratch intimidating. But with a little know-how, any baker can rise to the occasion.
“Yeast baking causes a lot of anxiety,” said Robyn Sargent, part of a contingent from the Vermont-based King Arthur Flour company who recently demonstrated baking methods at classes in San Antonio and Austin.
Good bread starts with the correct amount of flour. One mistake many bakers make, she said, is in the way they measure flour.
Don’t just scoop it straight from the bag with your measuring cup, Sargent said. Flour settles in storage or transit, so before you measure out a cup, stir it in the container to “fluff” it up. Use a scoop to sprinkle it into the cup and a straight edge, such as the back of a knife or a pastry scraper, to level off the top.
A cup scooped directly from a bag or canister could contain as much as 25 percent too much. In a recipe that calls for four cups of flour, that would mean putting an extra cup in the recipe.
Add flour a cup at a time and check the consistency as you stir. If the dough starts “following” your spoon or mixer dough hook around the bowl, it probably has enough flour. Weather conditions on the day you are baking, especially humidity, will affect the amount of flour dough will absorb.
In addition to flour, salt is an essential ingredient, Sargent said. Besides imparting flavor, salt acts on the gluten in the bread, giving it a tighter structure, which will help it rise. In addition, salt tempers the fermentation of the yeast.
Once your dough is mixed, it’s time for kneading. There’s no need to pound a dough into submission, and in fact, kneading it too vigorously or aggressively can spoil the loaf. To see whether you’ve kneaded enough, push into the dough with your finger. It should resist the pressure, and the indention you make should spring back quickly.
Next comes the rise. Put kneaded dough in a bowl and cover it. If you use a towel, make sure it has a smooth surface (dough is hard to remove from terry cloth) and a tight weave. Plastic wrap placed directly on the dough’s surface is another option, although you should oil the top of the dough to make sure the plastic doesn’t stick.
Here’s a recipe from King Arthur Flour’s well-tested collection that may help skittish bakers overcome their anxiety. The 100 percent employee-owned company, which is the oldest flour mill in the United States, features many more recipes on its website, www.kingarthurflour.com.
HONEY OATMEAL BREAD
1 1/2 cups quick rolled oats
2 packets (4 1/2 teaspoons) “highly active,” or 1 tablespoon active dry, or 2 3/4 teaspoons instant yeast
2 tablespoons honey
1 tablespoon brown sugar
6 tablespoons butter, softened
1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/2 cup instant mashed potato flakes
2 1/4 cups flour
Combine oats with 3/4 cup lukewarm water and let rest for 20 minutes. If you’re using active or “highly active” dry yeast, dissolve it in 2 tablespoons of warm water with a pinch of sugar in a separate container. It should start to bubble as the oats mixture rests.
Add remaining ingredients (including the yeast/water/sugar mixture, if you’re using active dry yeast) and mix and knead until the dough feels springy. Dough will be stiff. Place dough in a lightly greased bowl and allow to rise, covered, until doubled, about 2 hours. Gently deflate dough and shape it into an 8-inch log. Place it in a lightly greased 8 1/2x4 1/2-inch loaf pan. Cover pan loosely with lightly greased plastic wrap. Allow the dough to rise at room temperature until it crowns about 1 1/2 inches over pan’s rim, about 1 hour, 45 minutes. Toward end of rising time, preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
If desired, brush top of loaf with milk and sprinkle with 2 additional tablespoons oats. Bake for 20 minutes, then tent aluminum foil loosely over top and bake for another 25 to 30 minutes. When the bread is done, it’ll be golden brown, and an instant-read thermometer inserted into the center will register 190 degrees. Remove bread from the oven, wait 5 minutes, then turn out of pan onto cooling rack. Cool completely before slicing. Wrap well and store at room temperature.
Servings: 16. Serving size: 1 slice. Per serving: 155 calories, 3.4 g protein, 4.6 g fat, 24.7 g carbohydrates, 1.6 g fiber, 221 mg sodium, 11 mg cholesterol
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HOME COOKING
Recipe Contest Winner: Belinda Anderson, Pedernales Electric Cooperative
Prize-Winning Recipe: Belinda’s One and Only Beer Bread
Bread comes in many forms and flavors. At its most basic, it is a mixture of flour, liquid and a leavening agent that is transformed into crusty, fluffy goodness in the oven. But these aren’t your basic bread recipes—especially this beer bread, which yields a golden loaf of bread or batch of mini muffins suitable for breakfast or dessert.
BELINDA’S ONE AND ONLY BEER BREAD
3 cups flour
3 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup white chocolate chips
3/4 cup chopped cranberries
3/4 cup chopped pecans
12 ounces beer (a wheat beer like hefeweizen works best)
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Stir together flour, baking powder, salt and sugar. Stir in chocolate chips, cranberries and pecans. Pour beer slowly over mixture. Mix thoroughly. Spoon into lightly greased 8 1/2x4 1/2-inch loaf pan or 48 mini-muffin cups. Bake loaf for 50 to 55 minutes or until golden brown. Bake mini muffins for 18 minutes. Remove from pan and cool on wire rack.
Servings: 12. Serving size: 1 slice or 4 mini muffins. Per serving: 357 calories, 5.4 g protein, 13.6 g fat, 52.2 g carbohydrates, 2.7 g fiber, 181 mg sodium, 2 mg cholesterol
Cook’s Tip: You might want to limit any bowl licking to adults because of the alcohol content in the batter. But when the bread is baked, the alcohol is almost entirely cooked off.
FLAXSEED WHEAT BREAD
5 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup whole-wheat flour
2 packets (4 1/2 teaspoons) active dry yeast
4 tablespoons white sugar
2 1/2 teaspoons salt
4 tablespoons ground flaxseed meal
4 tablespoons unprocessed wheat bran
1 stick butter, melted
1 cup plus 3 tablespoons warm milk
2 tablespoons canola oil
Combine flours, yeast, sugar, salt, flaxseed meal and wheat bran in a large bowl and make a well in the center. Combine butter, milk and 1 cup warm water and pour into well. Mix with spatula until dough comes together. Oil work surface with 2 tablespoons of canola oil, turn dough out and knead for 10 minutes. Use pastry scraper at first until dough holds together. Add more oil as needed to keep dough from sticking. Place kneaded dough in oiled bowl, cover with oiled plastic wrap and let rise for 1 hour. After dough has risen, turn out onto work surface and cut in half. To form loaves, roll dough with rolling pin to form long strips. Roll the “strip” up from the end and pinch the seam closed with your fingers. Place loaves seam-side down in oiled loaf pans, cover with oiled plastic wrap and let rise for 1 hour. Carefully remove plastic wrap and bake in preheated oven at 350 degrees for 35 minutes. Bread is done when browned and sounds hollow when thumped. After cooling for 5 minutes, rub loaves with 2 tablespoons of room-temperature butter and salt the tops, if desired. Let cool completely before storing.
Servings: 20. Serving size: 1 slice. Per serving: 216 calories, 5.2 g protein, 7.0 g fat, 32.5 g carbohydrates, 2.4 g fiber, 298 mg sodium, 13 mg cholesterol
Tracy Baker
San Bernard Electric Cooperative
BLACK PEPPER BREAD
1 packet (2 1/4 teaspoons) active dry yeast
1/2 cup butter
1 cup milk
1/3 cup sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon coarsely ground black pepper
1 teaspoon nutmeg
1 egg
4 1/2 cups flour
1 tablespoon softened butter
In large bowl, stir yeast with 1/2 cup warm water and let stand 5 minutes. In saucepan, combine butter, milk, sugar and salt. Heat to 100 degrees and add to bowl with yeast mixture. Add pepper, nutmeg, egg and 2 cups of flour. Mix until all flour is absorbed. Add remainder of flour and turn onto flour-dusted work surface. Knead until smooth and elastic. Place dough in greased bowl, turning to grease top, and cover with plastic wrap. Let rise in warm place until double, about 1 1/2 hours.
Use softened butter to coat bottom and sides of small (3-quart) straight-sided Dutch oven. Punch dough down and knead on floured board to remove air. Shape into smooth ball and place in prepared pan and cover with plastic wrap. Allow to rise in warm place until doubled, about 1 hour. With a few minutes left in rise time, preheat oven to 350 degrees. Bake bread 30 to 35 minutes or until it sounds hollow when tapped. Cool in pan for about 10 minutes, then remove to cooling rack. To serve, cut bread in quarters and cut each quarter into thin slices. Serve with Orange Butter.
Servings: 12. Serving size: 2 slices. Per serving: 272 calories, 6.6 g protein, 9.6 g fat, 37.7 g carbohydrates, 1.6 g fiber, 212 mg sodium, 43 mg cholesterol
Orange Butter
1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
1/2 cup orange marmalade
Cream butter and add marmalade. Blend well.
Barbara McMullin
Wise Electric Cooperative
DILLY CASSEROLE BREAD
1 packet (2 1/4 teaspoons) active dry yeast or 1 cake yeast
1/4 cup warm water
1 cup creamed cottage cheese, heated to lukewarm
2 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon instant minced onion
1 tablespoon butter
2 teaspoons dill seed
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 unbeaten egg
2 1/4 to 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
Soften yeast in water. Combine in mixing bowl: cottage cheese, sugar, onion, butter, dill seed, salt, soda, egg and softened yeast. Add flour gradually to form stiff dough, beating well after each addition. Cover and let rise in warm place until light and doubled in size, about 1 hour. Stir down dough. Turn into a well-greased, 8-inch round 1 1/2- or 2-quart casserole dish.
Let rise in warm place until light, about 30 to 40 minutes. Bake at 350 degrees for 40 to 50 minutes or until golden brown. Brush top with soft butter.
Remove from casserole dish (when slightly cooled) and place topside up on a plate.
Makes 1 round loaf.
Servings: 12. Serving size: 1 slice. Per serving: 131 calories, 5.6 g protein, 2.3 g fat, 21.4 g carbohydrates, 0.9 g fiber, 302 mg sodium, 22 mg cholesterol
Victoria Sok
Pedernales Electric Cooperative
APPLE-CHEDDAR BREAD
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
3/4 cup milk
1/3 cup butter or margarine, melted
2 eggs, beaten
2 cups shredded sharp Cheddar cheese
1 1/2 cups peeled, chopped cooking apples
3/4 cup chopped pecans or walnuts
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine flour, baking powder, salt, sugar and cinnamon in a medium bowl and stir well. In separate bowl, combine milk, butter and eggs; stir well. Add to dry ingredients, stirring until blended. Stir in cheese, apples and nuts. Pour batter into a greased and floured 9x5x3-inch loaf pan and bake for 1 hour or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Let cool in pan 5 minutes, then remove from pan and let cool completely on a wire rack.
Servings: 12. Serving size: 1 slice. Per serving: 339 calories, 9.6 g protein, 16.7 g fat, 36.4 g carbohydrates, 1.6 g fiber, 313 mg sodium, 70 mg cholesterol
Patsy Copeland Henderson
Central Texas Electric Cooperative
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RECIPE CONTEST
JUNE’S recipe contest topic is KEEPING YOUR COOL. One of the best ways to use less energy in the kitchen in summer is to avoid the stove, thus reducing stress on the air conditioner. Do you have a recipe for a no-cook main dish that will fill your belly while keeping the kitchen cool? The deadline is February 10.
Send recipes to Home Cooking, 1122 Colorado, 24th Floor, Austin, TX 78701. You may also fax them to (512) 486-6254, e-mail them to recipes@texas-ec.org, or submit online at www.texascooppower.com. Please include your name, address and phone number, as well as the name of your electric co-op. The top winner will receive a copy of 60 Years of Home Cooking and a Texas-shaped trivet. Runners-up will also receive a prize.
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