DB : Julia’s French Bread And Why I Ain’t French

The best way to start this post off is by saying Julia Child is a genius. Not that it needs to be said, y’all knew that already. There ain’t nobody who can teach you how to put on your fancy France Pants and shake it in the kitchen like her! Therein lies the problem with me though, I ain’t French enough. Not even a little really, heavy butter and cream makes me run the other way and I ain’t fond of… to be honest… more crust than crumb. Y’all can tell this is going in a good direction already.

Making the bread was a good experience as far as the company goes! Anytime I get to do something with CB and Nikkiis the absolute best, and we found ourselves happily clucking away in a little hen’s nest Breadchick had pulled together to all do our thing at the same time. The Belles Of The Bread Ball were very helpfully, and there was much chatting, bad joke telling, and general nonsense as we tried to type with floury, oiled up hands.

The bread… y’all, I don’t like fussy recipes. French bread for me is usually a three hour affair and a simple shaping. This bread was very long, and my poor yeast seemed to be tired of the whole thing by the time I was because the third rising resembled my family after Thanksgiving. Kinda bloated and just laying there. The batard was making a half butted attempt to rise, but the first slash with a knife that I know to be razor sharp made it give up again and the poor thing deflated. It was, in my opinion, a rather wussy dough. Mind you, I’m used to doughs that are developed to be just fine with several toddlers hanging off your pants leg. Doughs that might punch you back when you punch them down and call you names.

The shaping directions and me didn’t get along at all, and that’s my fault. Y’all who can translate written words into spatially valid directions have my admiration, I gotta see and feel it to make it work. Long directions like that ain’t for us tactile learners. Somehow, it got rolled into a relatively oblong shape, and this is what happened to it afterwards. Hah!

These were epi rolls. Hush. Stop laughing, I can hear y’all from over here. They were really pretty before they kinda rose! Baking made them… y’all can tell from the pics.

This one was braided and covered with garlic and herbs. It wasn’t bad, as this failed attempt went. Ain’t got any pictures of the little round rolls, we ate those too quickly. The oven got pissy on me and they bottoms for some of the bread burned, which didn’t improve anything. In short, this recipe was too much crust and not enough bread for us. The French apparently like their bread this way. (crusty, not burnt) A round loaf was made too, and it came out the very best. It was overly salty to me, and got dry too quickly but it was edible. Then it gave us heartburn, as a little insult to injury. This house ain’t French. If y’all are, get the recipe here. Go look at the pics from people who had a success.

Memes And Snuggles

D is against my back snoring away, Pi is stretched out against my tummy with her paws reaching up around my neck. Both of them are snoozing, and cuddled up against the unusually low temperatures in Florida tonight. The evening is lazy, I’m reading y’all’s blogs and the comments y’all leave and am once again giggling like a schoolgirl at how happy I am to be making all these new friends. Y’all don’t know how much this means to me, the baking groups and the sharing and the recipe swapping and feeling for the first time in a long time like I belong somewhere. As cheesey as it sounds, food blogging with the wonderful people I’m meeting is turning me into a significantly better person, and helping to heal wounds I was worried never would.

For some reason, a few of you freaks have tagged me for memes. This means y’all want to know something about me, and while I have no idea why you would y’all can’t blame me for whatever I say! So there. Can’t keep track of what memes (yes, I suck) but I can do some that should cover the bases and promise to try to keep up better.
 

What were you doing 10 years ago?
Making an incredibly stupid decision to start a relationship which I would’ve been better off avoiding. As the song goes though, “God bless the broken road…” It did give me a really good story about an ice cream cake that saved my life and the worst attempt to get a girl back ever (which I’ll tell if y’all even hint wanting to hear).

What were you doing 1 year ago?
Was working at a Salvation Army office doing Correctional Services (in Florida, the Salvation Army handles some of the people on probation as probabtion officers), and trying to get comfortable in a relationship with D.

5 snacks you enjoy
1. Hummus
2. Tapioca Pudding
3. Oatmeal Cookies
4. Baked Lays Potato Chips
5. Triscuits

5 Things you would do if you were a millionaire
1. Buy a farm
2. Send D on a shopping spree through his favourite gun stores and ham radio stores.
3. Send a bunch of cows to Heifer International.
4. Put in a ballet barre.
5. Buy a fiddle.

5 bad habits
1. Procrastinating.
2. Chickening out of projects.
3. Talking too much.
4. Worrying.
5. Not cleaning up my messes right away.

5 things you like doing
1. Baking!
2. Singing.
3. Annoying friends in chat.
4. Gardening.
5. Watching really bad reality tv shows about dating.

5 things I would never wear again
1. Stirrup pants.
2. Jelly shoes.
3. Skorts.
4. Platform boots.
5. Shoulderpads.

5 favourite toys
1. Laptop.
2. Camera.
3. Sewing machine.
4. Paint brushes.
5. … Darn it, my mom reads this blog. Hi mom!

TWD : Pecan Sour Cream Biscuits

D loved these, and I ain’t arguing with him about it. Y’all, these are so tasty it ain’t even right! They were simple and friendly, the dough was so nice to work with and they were done before you could clean up after them. A few things I changed, walnuts instead of pecans and low fat buttermilk instead of whole milk. Wanna try these with whole wheat flour!

Now y’all, cutting in butter ain’t never been one of my favourite things to do. That’s why when I heard about this technique, I was really happy to try it! It’s worked out good, and this recipe was no exception. Using a cheese grater, very cold butter can be grated into your flour mixture instead of cutting your butter. Toss it with a fork a little, and you’re good to go! It’s a lot quicker, and you don’t have to worry about warming the butter up as you cut and rub it. Y’all won’t be disappointed with this trick. Y’all can tell I didn’t have a biscuit cutter, a star cookie cutter made these really cute!

A little apple butter is the perfect accompaniment to these tender guys. A cheerful fried egg and a biscuit was a great breakfast, and one that D says is a keeper. He’s the one who vetoes or approves the food around here. He’s a really good one to feed, he ain’t picky and he’s always encouraging me to try new things. Don’t ya love him (and these biscuits)?

Pecan Sour Cream Biscuits
 (Makes about 12 biscuits)

2 cups all-purpose flour (or 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour and 1/3 cup cake flour)
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 cup (packed) light brown sugar
5 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into 10 pieces
1/2 cup cold sour cream
1/4 cold whole milk
1/3 cup finely chopped pecans, preferably toasted

Getting Ready: Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Get out a sharp 2-inch-diameter biscuit cutter and line a baking sheet with parchment or a silicone mat.

Whisk the flour(s), baking powder, salt, and baking soda together in a bow. Stir in the brown sugar, making certain there are no lumps. Drop in the butter and, using your fingers, toss to coat the pieces of butter with flour. Quickly, working with your fingertips (my favorite method) or a pastry blender, cut and rub the butter into the dry ingredients until the mixture is pebbly. You’ll have pea-size pieces, pieces the size of oatmeal flakes and pieces the size of everything in between– and that’s just right.

Stir the sour cream and milk together and pour over the dry ingredients. Grab a fork and gently toss and turn the ingredients together until you’ve got a nice soft dough. Now reach into the bowl with your hands and give the dough a quick gentle kneading– 3 or 4 turns should be just enough to bring everything together. Toss in the pecans and knead 2 to 3 times to incorporate them.

Lightly dust a work surface with flour and turn out the dough. Dust the top of the dough very lightly with flour, pat the dough out with your hands or toll it with a pin until it is about 1/2 inch high. Don’t worry if the dough isn’t completely even– a quick, light touch is more important than accuracy.

Use the biscuit cutter to cut out as many biscuits as you can. Try to cut the biscuits close to one another so you get the most you can out of the first round. By hand or with a small spatula, transfer the biscuits to the baking sheet. Gather together the scraps, working with them as little as possible, pat out to a 1/2-inch thickness and cut as many additional biscuits as you can; transfer these to the sheet. (The biscuits ca be made to this point and frozen on the baking sheet, then wrapped airtight and kept for up to 2 months. Bake without defrosting– just add a couple more minutes to the oven time.)

Bake the biscuits for 14-18 minutes, or until they are tall, puffed and golden brown. Transfer them to a serving basket.

When Your Man Asks You…

… for a tin can and a box of matches, and you look out the window to see him standing there with a gas can all you can say is “Would it mean I was liable if I bring them to you?”

Pork Chops And Apples

This is my favourite recipe for pork chops and apples. Like it so much I served it to my mom and g-ma, and that’s saying something because those women know good food! Y’all know me, I can’t leave well enough alone so I included the original recipe from Taste Of Home. Gonna tell y’all what I did differently, this recipe is really flexible.

It’s D and me, I used 3 pork chops which makes one for each of us and 1 for him at work tomorrow. Always use all the apple cider, used yellow mustard which is what I had and a regular onion. One apple was enough for the smaller supper, and I always use cranberries instead of currants. they’re done at the 18 minutes, but I simmer them for 30 minutes because it makes them nicer.

Apple Raisin Pork Chops

8 pork chops
1 tbls. vegetable oil
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
2 c. apple cider or juice
3 tbls. spicy brown mustard
3 medium apples, sliced
1/2 c. sliced green onions
1/4 c. raisins
1/4 c. dried currants
2 tbls. cornstarch
1/4 c. cold water

In a large skillet, brown pork chops in oil in batches on both sides. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Return all chops to skillet.

Combine cider and mustard; pour over meat. bring to a boil; reduce heat. Cover and simmer for 13 - 18 minutes or until juices run clear. Remove chops to a serving platter; keep warm.

Add the apples, onions, raisins and currants to the skillet. Cover and cook over medium heat for 5 - 6 minutes or until apples are tender. Combine cornstarch and water until smooth; stir into apple mixture. bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened. Serve with pork chops.

Whole Wheat Crackers

Is it a big box of fish? Cat food? A chicken for Pi?

Awwww, poor Pi. It’s a bunch of whole wheat flours and grains I got from Hodgson Mill. Been waiting for these to make some recipes from my new cook book Peter Reinhart’s Whole Grain Breads. D gave it to me for Valentine’s Day, and I’ve been fidgeting to make something.

The recipes are very long and can be a bit complicated at first. A lot of it reads like a chemistry text book, which I love but it ain’t for the totally new to baking people. He teaches some new techniques, and I love learning them. The first thing I tried I wanted to be on the simpler side, and I was feeling inspired by  Bread Baking Day #7 - Flatbreads which led me to try to make crackers! Thin Wheat Crackers.

As always, this tiny little bit of counter is where I do all of my cooking. There’s something I really like about how everything fits in front of the book.

At first I was worried that I wasn’t gonna be able to tell which one I’d added rye flour too. This was a very silly worry. Y’all can tell right?

          

Ain’t they cute, all nestled under their blankie?

Taken out in my tiny garden, the arugula and lettuce seedlings are in the back waving at the camera.

Thin Wheat Crackers

1 c. Whole Wheat Flour (you can mix in other grains, try to keep the ratio about 65% to 70% whole wheat flour and 30% to 35% other flours)
1/2 tsp. salt
6 tbls. Milk, Buttermilk, Yogurt, Soy Milk, or Rice Milk
1 1/2 tbls. Honey or Agave Nectar or 2 tbls. Sugar or Brown Sugar
4 tbls. Vegetable Oil or Light Olive Oil
Extra Whole Wheat Flour for adjustments
1 tbls. Kosher Salt or Sea Salt dissolved in 1/2 c. water for salt water wash

Combine the 1 c. flour and the salt, milk, honey, and oil in a bowl and mix until the ingredients come together to form a ball of dough. Ass extra flour or milk as needed to make a firm but tacky dough.

Transfer the dough to a lightly floured surface and knead for 3 minutes, adjusting the flour or liquid as needed; the dough should feel like modeling clay and have a satiny surface. It should not be soft and sticky or crumbly.

If baking the crackers immediately, preheat the oven to 350 F. Cover the dough with a cloth towel or plastic wrap and let rest for 20 minutes, then move on to the next step. If holding the dough overnight form it into a ball, place in a lightly oiled bowl, cover loosely with plastic wrap, and leave at room temperature overnight.

When you are ready to bake the crackers, prepare a sheet pan by lining it with parchment paper or a silicone mat. Mist the work surface lightly with pan spray or wipe it with just a touch of oil on a paper towel. This makes it easier to lift the dough later. Transfer the dough to the work surface and, working from the center of the dough out to the four corners, roll it out into a rectangle, dusting the top of the dough with flour only if needed to prevent sticking. Roll the dough out as thinly as it will allow, about 1/4 inch. If the dough begins to spring back, let it rest for a few minutes, then continue rolling until the rectangle is about 1/8 inch thick. Brush the top of the dough with the salt water wash.

Use a pizza roller or a pastry scraper to cut the dough into whatever sizes and shapes you desire (small rectangles are suggested). Use the pastry scraper or a metal spatula to transfer the individual crackers to the prepared sheet pan. They should not touch, but they can be close together. Bake for 10 minutes, then rotate the pan 180 degrees and continue baking about 10 minutes longer, until the crackers begin to turn a rich brown on both the top and the underside.

Let the crackers cool on the pan before serving. They will crisp up as they cool.

Peep These Crackers And Pancakes!

 First thing when I woke up, D is there to greet me with a box of Peeps. How much sweeter could this man get before he was declared illegally charming?

I was a day where I wanted to be brave, so I decided to try making crackers! It didn’t seem to hard, and y’all listen when I say it ain’t even a little difficult The only thing that took less work were the buckwheat pancakes I made for dinner.

The recipe is on it’s way. Wanted to get this up today, to show off the pretty picture.

Y’all Come Cook Dinner For Me

Feed it to me too, ok? And a foot rub? Is that really so much to ask, to find a couple volunteer servants?

Don’t wanna do anything useful today! *whine*

One Of Those Days

Everybody has them. Those days where everything you tried to do refused to work right, none of your plans worked out even close to what you had intended. Your sinuses are acting up, you’re cramping and even your hair hurts. You’d go out to eat if you could stand the idea of dealing with other people in public, but all you want to do is curl up on the couch and not do a lick of anything useful. Donna Reed would disapprove (the dishes alone would make her cry!)

This supper is for days like that.

The Most Basic Chile Ever

1 package of ground turkey meat, about 2.5 lbs.
1 onion
1 large can tomato sauce
1 large can diced tomatoes
1 can tomato paste
2 cans dark kidney beans
2 cans light kidney beans
2 cloves garlic, chopped
Cumin
Chile Powder
Sea Salt
Pepper

Brown the ground turkey. To be honest, was feeling so lazy I didn’t even thaw the meat first. If you put it in the pot frozen and stir occasionally, you can cook it on low to medium and it will thaw and cook up fine. Turn it a few times to get it thawed all over. Throw in the onion all chopped, and when it starts to brown the bottom of the pan put the tomato sauce and tomatoes in there. Put the beans in, and the garlic and spices and stir. Leave it simmering on medium for as long as you like before eating. Usually it’s a few hours, giving you time to do whatever.

The biscuits were nothing but ol’ Bisquick biscuits. Kneaded them a little and cut them in squares, then put them in a greased muffin tin because the baking sheet was in the sink and I wasn’t feeling up to doing dishes.

TWD : Almost-Fudge Gâteau

Oh y’all. What can a girl say when a recipe like this gets chosen but that? The more people talked about it, the more I was almost jumping out of my chair to make it! Around here, we wait until Saturdays for the baking (that way I can unload leftovers on people at the Saturday family dinner), but this one almost made me break my rule! A few people said the cake was too dark, and that this household drool even more.

Saturday took it’s sweet time getting here, but that morning I was ready to get to work.

Aint got a double boiler, but a metal bowl on top of a sauce pan worked fine. This part was so easy, I mixed it with running outside a few times to watch D try to wrestle an old push lawn mower into submission. It was good timing! Got to try to push it around, but any real work was gotten out of by pointing out my chocolate was gonna burn.

Ain’t this neat? Who knew folding egg whites into chocolate would look like pics from the Hubble telescope? This is even better than the Milky Way!

  

This cake was so fun to make. Ain’t a bit harder than an average ol’ cake you throw in quick for unexpected company, and it came together so nicely you could. Ain’t a person that would be disappointed to be served this either (unless they’re one of those odd people who don’t like chocolate, but we don’t talk about them in polite company), and it’s sure to get you lots of compliments.

Tried to make my first ganache for this one, and it couldn’t have been simpler. A little hot cream over some chopped up chocolate did the trick, we didn’t have any corn syrup for the glaze Dorie had and I ain’t partial to corn syrup.

The neighbours are convinced I’m odd, as well as the pierced and eyeliner caked teenage boy who wandered by as I was crouched down in the front lawn taking pics. Ain’t it pretty? The reflections of light made me feel like I had done something right.

Here’s a few pics of the crumb. It was dense, but I didn’t think it was as dense as some of the other people were saying. D declared it similar to a really good brownie, and I agreed. That’s high praise around here.

Almost-Fudge Gâteau

5 large eggs
9 ounces bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
1 cup of sugar
5 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into chunks
2 tablespoons coffee or water
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
Pinch of salt

For the Glaze (optional)
4 ounces bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
½ cup heavy cream
2 teaspoons light corn syrup

Getting Ready:

Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.  Butter a 9-inch springform pan, line the bottom with parchment paper, butter the paper, dust the inside of the pan with flour and tap out the excess.  Place the pan on a baking sheet lined with parchment or a silicone mat.

Separate the eggs, putting the whites in a mixer bowl or other large bowl and the yolks in a small bowl.

Set a heatproof bowl over a saucepan of simmering water and add the chocolate, sugar butter and coffee.  Stir occasionally until the chocolate and butter are melted; the sugar may still be grainy, and that’s fine.  Transfer the bowl to the counter and let the mixture sit for 3 minutes.

Using a rubber spatula, stir in the yolks one by one, then fold in the flour.

Working with the whisk attachment of the mixer or a hand mixer, beat the egg whites with the pinch of salt until they hold firm, but glossy peaks.  Using the spatula, stir about one quarter of the beaten whites into the batter, then gently fold in the rest.  Scrape the butter into the pan and jiggle the pan from side to side a couple of times to even the batter.

Bake for 35 to 45 minutes, or until the cake has risen evenly (it might rise around the edges and you’ll think it’s done, but give it a few minutes more, and the center will puff too) and the top has firmed (it will probably be cracked) and doesn’t shimmy when tapped; a thin knife inserted into the center should come out just slightly streaked with chocolate.  Transfer the pan to a cooling rack and let the cake rest for 5 to 10 minutes.

Run a blunt knife gently around the edges of the cake and remove the sides of the pan.  Carefully turn the cake over onto a rack and remove the pan bottom and the parchment paper.  Invert the cake onto another rack and cool to room temperature right side up.  As the cake cools, it may sink.

To Make the Optional Glaze:

First, turn the cooled cake over onto another rack so you’ll be glazing the flat bottom, and place the rack over a baking sheet lined with parchment or wax paper to catch any drips.

Put the chocolate in a small heatproof bowl.

Melt the chocolate over a pan of simmering water or in a microwave oven – the chocolate should be just melted and only warm, not hot.  Meanwhile, bring the cream to a boil in a small sauce pan.  Pour the hot cream over the chocolate and stir very gently with a rubber spatula until the mixture is smooth and shiny.  Stir in the corn syrup.

Pour the glaze over the cake and smooth the top with a long metal icing spatula.  Don’t worry if the glaze drips unevenly down the sides of the cake – it will just add to its charms.  Allow the glaze to set at room temperature or, if you’re impatient, slip the cake into the refrigerator for about 20 minutes.  If the glaze dulls in the fridge, just give it a little gentle heat from a hairdryer.