Let’s take a short break from the vacation for some bread. These are breads that I baked the final 4 months of last year. I know, I should have really written this entry a long time ago. But here goes.
This first bread is called Onion Caraway Bread. My second try at this bread.
[[image:bread194.jpg:Onion Caraway dough:center:0]]
Let it rise:
[[image:bread195.jpg:Onion Caraway, risen:center:0]]
Then bake:
[[image:bread196.jpg:Onion Caraway Bread, baked:center:0]]
It was a nice, oniony bread, with not too strong a caraway taste (I’m not too fond of caraway seeds, to be honest). Next we turn to the brioche again. I first tried brioche earlier in the year, and using the same basic brioche dough, I made a couple other variations on the bread. The first is called Raisin Brioche:
After the dough has been kneaded, but before being rested in the fridge overnight, divide into 2 parts. Add raisins to half of the dough, mix it in and then store in the fridge overnight. Also put the other half (plain) in the fridge overnight. Take the dough with the raisins out when the dough has been chilled. Divide into 3 sections and quickly roll into long thin ropes (again, work quickly so the butter rich dough doesn’t get sticky and hard to work with when it is warmed up).
[[image:bread197.jpg:Raisin brioche ropes:center:0]]
[[image:bread198.jpg:A Lilian inspired shot:center:0]]
Braid the dough and glaze with an egg wash:
[[image:bread199.jpg:Braided Raisin Brioche:center:0]]
[[image:bread200.jpg:Glazed:center:0]]
Then bake:
[[image:bread201.jpg:Baked Raisin Brioche:center:0]]
[[image:bread202.jpg:Another Lilian inspired shot:center:0]]
And slice:
[[image:bread203.jpg:Sliced Raisin Brioche:center:0]]
[[image:bread204.jpg:Close up of slices:center:0]]
[[image:bread205.jpg:See the raisins?:center:0]]
How about some Petit Pain au Chocolat (little chocolate bread)? With the other half of the brioche dough that was left plain, divide into 2 equal parts. Keep one in the fridge while working with the other so it doesn’t warm up. Roll into a loooooong strip:
[[image:bread206.jpg:Rolled out brioche dough:center:0]]
Put a strip of semi-sweet chocolate bits:
[[image:bread207.jpg:Chocolate filling:center:0]]
Roll the bread and filling and pinch the seams to seal tightly. Then cut into 6 equal parts to make the small rolls:
[[image:bread208.jpg:Long chocolate filled rope:center:0]]
[[image:bread209.jpg:See the chocolate in the center?:center:0]]
[[image:bread210.jpg:Seal the edges of the rolls:center:0]]
Place the rolls on a cookie sheet and allow to rise.
[[image:bread211.jpg:Rolls rising:center:0]]
Then bake:
[[image:bread212.jpg:Baked rolls:center:0]]
Here’s some close up:
[[image:bread213.jpg:Oozing chocolate:center:0]]
[[image:bread214.jpg:Cut a roll in half:center:0]]
OK, so it’s supposed to be equal parts but my eyeballing was not the greatest, so I had rolls of differing sizes. But I tell you, I looooved this bread!!! Bye bye diet, hello petit pain au chocolat! 😀
Next is Cheddar Cheese Bread, a bread that has cupfuls of sharp grated cheddar cheese in it! It ended up being waaay too cheesy for me, but Vin liked it:
[[image:bread215.jpg:Cheddar cheese loaf, shaped:center:0]]
[[image:bread216.jpg:Risen:center:0]]
[[image:bread217.jpg:Baked:center:0]]
Now for the slices:
[[image:bread218.jpg:Sliced:center:0]]
[[image:bread219.jpg:Cheesy goodness:center:0]]
Next is a bread that I baked while Mak and Abah were here. It is a festive bread called Kolach. Abah took most of these pictures. The dough was soft and buttery. First braid the dough into a big plait, then coil it (like Princess Leia’s hair) into a little bowl like so:
[[image:bread220.jpg:Coil of Kolach:center:0]]
Brush with an egg wash, then put in the mata (eyes). In this case, I used pecans:
[[image:bread221.jpg:Pecan eyes:center:0]]
Then bake:
[[image:bread222.jpg:Baked Kolach:center:0]]
And now for some slices:
[[image:bread223.jpg:Sliced Kolach:center:0]]
[[image:bread224.jpg:Close up:center:0]]
[[image:bread225.jpg:The inside was nice and fluffy:center:0]]
Mak and Abah got to taste the above bread. I hope they enjoyed it! Next I made a whole wheat bread that is called Pain de Campagne Honfleur. It’s a french whole wheat bread that calls for the dough to ferment and bubble overnight. Make a little starter ball of dough that has yeast in it.
[[image:bread226.jpg:Starter:center:0]]
Let it ferment overnight:
[[image:bread227.jpg:Yeast makes it bubble:center:0]]
[[image:bread228.jpg:It filled up the bowl:center:0]]
Then knead, add more flour, and place on a baking sheet:
[[image:bread229.jpg:Big ball of dough:center:0]]
[[image:bread230.jpg:See how big?:center:0]]
Let it rise uncovered so that it forms a crust:
[[image:bread231.jpg:It grew even bigger:center:0]]
Then bake and slice:
[[image:bread232.jpg:Baked Pain de Campagne Honfleur:center:0]]
[[image:bread233.jpg:On the cutting board:center:0]]
[[image:bread234.jpg:Sliced:center:0]]
After making this complicated and days long bread, I decided to make something simple. It’s called Savory Drop Biscuits, a variation of the southern biscuit. It’s flavored with beef bacon, onions and fresh thyme and uses buttermilk as the liquid. I believe Mak and Abah also got to try a variation of this while they visited last year.
[[image:bread235.jpg:Savory Drop Biscuits:center:0]]
[[image:bread236.jpg:Close up:center:0]]
We’re still not done yet. How about some pancakes? These were baked from scratch – mix was not used.
[[image:bread237.jpg:Beat up egg whites:center:0]]
[[image:bread238.jpg:Yolk and the dry ingredients made into a batter:center:0]]
[[image:bread239.jpg:Fold egg whites into the batter:center:0]]
[[image:bread240.jpg:Fry it up:center:0]]
[[image:bread241.jpg:Stack of pancakes drizzled with maple syrup:center:0]]
This next bread is called Lemon Nut Bread. I first made it when Mak and Abah visited, and wouldn’t you know it, the freaking thing actually exploded in the oven. Look!
[[image:bread242.jpg:The amazing exploding bread:center:0]]
It made a huge mess in the oven but it did cook up, what was left of it. 🙁 Of course it would explode while my parents were here. Just to show them that it was in control, and not me! They still ate the bread and said it tasted good even though it looked like a disaster. But I decided this bread would not get the best of me. So I made it again.
[[image:bread243.jpg:Here’s the batter:center:0]]
[[image:bread244.jpg:Place in a loafpan:center:0]]
Here it is out of the oven:
[[image:bread245.jpg:Freshly baked, non-exploding Lemon Nut bread:center:0]]
Put a lemon glaze on it:
[[image:bread246.jpg:Shining with glaze:center:0]]
And finally, pizza! Here’s the freshly made pizza dough (made from scratch, of course!), ready to be worked:
[[image:bread247.jpg:Pizza dough:center:0]]
First, I tried my hand at Pizza Bianca, which is supposed to be a roman pizza that is brushed with oil and sprinkled with herbs. Mine was sprinkled with fresh thyme and garlic.
[[image:bread249.jpg:Pizza Bianca:center:0]]
[[image:bread250.jpg:Pizza Bianca:center:0]]
[[image:bread251.jpg:Still More Pizza Bianca:center:0]]
Just for variety, we added some other toppings including anchovies. I even started putting a bit of coarsely grated parmigiano reggiano on the bread when it first comes out of the oven:
[[image:bread248.jpg:See the anchovies on the left?:center:0]]
Then of course the real thing. Here is Vin’s Pizza Margherita (Mozzarella, Basil, Tomato) before it is baked:
[[image:bread252.jpg:Pizza Margherita:center:0]]
Fresh out of the oven:
[[image:bread255.jpg:Baked Pizza Margherita:center:0]]
Mine was a mish mash. Half with tomato sauce base, half pesto sauce base. Mushrooms, cheese:
[[image:bread253.jpg:Unbaked mish-mash pizza:center:0]]
Here’s what it looked like baked:
[[image:bread254.jpg:Baked mish-mash pizza:center:0]]
That’s it! Well, there is one more bread, but I’ll put it in a separate entry of its own since this one has grown sooooo long! Sorry for the long entry! As you can see, I’m still obsessed with baking different kinds of breads. 🙂
I’ll have more breads from this year and the final one from last year another time. See y’all later!
