bread and baking Archive

Chapati.

This past weekend, I had the pleasure of cooking a bunch of African-inspired goodies for my youngest sister’s wedding reception.

To be clear, this was not a typical wedding reception. For starters, the wedding actually took place in Uganda earlier this year. Secondly, my sister got married to a wonderful man named Steven, who hails from Sudan. Steven wasn’t able to get a visa to the US until very recently and so the American wedding reception had to wait until he could attend. So, they got married in Africa in March, waited on visa paperwork to come through, arrived in the States in late August, and had a low key Africa-style wedding reception at my parent’s house in October.

Since I wasn’t able to go to my own sister’s wedding, I figured the least I could do would be to provide some delicious food for her US reception! She decided that she wanted her reception to be African themed, with African music, food, decor, etc. I loved the idea…until I really thought about it. Because, really, what in the world IS African food? This is a hard question to answer.

First off, let me start being by saying: Africa is a large and diverse continent. Most Americans tend to lump all the African nations together into one big entity. But, this should not be the case. There are so many nations and people groups within the continent of Africa, each with their own language, culture, customs, and cuisine. So when I say “African food” I understand this is a really broad and vague term. Rather than try to cook food that was only from Sudan (Steven’s home country), I decided to make food from a few African countries. And, I tried to make food that I knew Steven would enjoy. Specifically: goat kebabs and chapatis.

I knew that Steven had been missing his favorite comfort foods from home, and so I was inspired to attempt these two dishes as I knew they were at least similar to the food he is used to (and I happened to know that Steven LOVES goat meat.) Alongside the two very traditional dishes, I decided to make a few less traditional dishes as I knew they were more in line with my sister’s palate. It ended up being a bit of a funny mix, and yet it all strangely worked together.

The final menu for the wedding reception was:
Chapatis
Goat Kebabs
Chicken Kebabs with Peanut Sauce
Harissa Deviled Eggs
Rustic Crostinis with Pear Onion Relish and Brie

The first 3 are much more in line with African cuisine, and the last two were more my style (or what I knew my sister would like). We had lots of other friends and family who contributed food for the reception, I was just asked to provide the bulk of it. I’ll share a couple recipes over the next couple of days. (Note: I didn’t get a picture of the goat kebabs as they got eaten too quickly. I don’t plan on posting the recipe here, as I assume most of my readers won’t be fixing goat any time soon. However, I will say that they were remarkably DELICIOUS and feel free to contact me if you’d like the recipe.)

For starters, I’ll share the recipe I used to make chapati. Chapati is a simple unleavened flatbread (think: naan bread meets tortilla) that is common in many parts of Africa and India. I’ve been to Uganda, and will admit that I lived on chapatis while I was there. Nearly every roadside vendor offers fresh, hot-off-the-grill chapatis and they are truly magical. You cannot go wrong with fresh, hot bread.

I did a little research online, and most recipes for chapatis call for the same basic ingredients: flour, oil, salt, and water. After perusing a few recipes, I was thrilled to stumble upon this video from Uganda that demonstrated how to make authentic chapatis (plus, the soundrack for the video is killer). They aren’t difficult to make, but the video was helpful to see the consistency of the dough. In any case, here is my recipe for chapati!

CHAPATI.
Recipe Makes 5 good-sized chapati

2 cups white flour (some recipes call for 1 cup white, 1 cup whole wheat, I just didn’t have any whole wheat on hand)
1 tsp. kosher salt
2 Tablespoons Vegetable Oil (plus a little more for frying)
3/4 cup hot water as needed

In a large bowl, stir together flour and salt. Add in the oil and enough water to make sure the dough is elastic but not sticky. I found that I used most of the 3/4 cup of water (with just a little left over in the measuring cup. Knead the dough on a lightly floured surface until smooth.

Divide the dough into 5 parts (I used a knife and cut the dough into 5 equal parts). Roll each piece into a ball.

Heat a lightly greased skillet or over medium heat until hot. On a lightly floured surface, use a rolling pin to roll out each ball of dough until very thin (like a tortilla). When the pan is hot (test it with a drop of water – if the water sizzles and dances on the pan, then it is hot enough!), put a chapati on it. Cook roughly for 30 seconds on each side – or until each side has nice brown spots. Continue with the remaining dough. Eat and enjoy! (Best served warm!).

bittersweet.

A while ago, I was in the produce section of the grocery store, pondering possible vegetable choices for dinner. Out of the blue, an East Indian woman approached me and she started talking to me as if we knew each other. She talked at length about her thoughts on food and cooking. She told me that energy flows through everything – through me, through the vegetables I was holding in my hands, through all parts of life – and that I needed to think about these things when I prepare food. She told me that I needed to cook with love, and that when people eat the food I make – they will literally be able to taste love.

Granted, a lot of what this woman said made no sense to me at all. In my typical American fashion, I was in a hurry and was in no mood for a 20 minute conversation in the middle of the produce section. But on days like today, when I approach cooking (and life) with a heavy heart, that I wonder about what she said. When I am sad, can you taste it in my food? When I feel love in great abundance, can you feel it in every bite? I don’t know. Somehow I doubt it, but I also want it to be true. It seems that food has become my art form, my one great artistic expression of myself. I am not a writer, I am not a painter, I am not a musician. But I still feel the need to express my creative viewpoint. And for now, that creativity is manifesting itself through cooking. I am not sure what that means, exactly. But I do know that I want to cook with love. And I want that love to be felt – however that may be.

That being said, it was with a heavy heart that I made a small batch of (vegan) lemon and ginger scones. While they sound like a bright and chipper recipe (and they are!), I was in no such place. I made the scones for my little sister’s bridal shower. And, of course, a bridal shower is usually a very happy thing. But, alas, my sister is currently in Uganda (and is getting married to her sudanese fiancee in Uganda), and therefore was not able to attend her own shower. I can’t go to the wedding and I don’t know when my sister will be home. I miss her terribly, and I think about her often. And while the shower was to celebrate her marriage to Stephen (which is a beautiful and wonderful thing), I still felt sad. I felt guilty for not being able to afford a plane ticket to Africa. I felt lousy that I have planned so many friends weddings in my lifetime, and yet here I am across the planet for my sister, unable to help at all. Throwing a shower and making some scones seems like such a small gesture when your baby sister is getting married.

Alas, I put on a brave face and I made some scones and I helped throw a shower. And you know what? It was delightful. It was such a lovely mix of family and friends, all there to support Candyce in her African wedding. We told stories, we laughed, we cried – and, of course we ate scones. Sometimes life is bittersweet like that. I suppose maybe its appropriate that lemon and ginger scones were my pastry of choice. A little bit bitter, but mostly sweet. (And…most of the attendees didn’t even know the scones were vegan. I’m tricky like that).

I won’t pretend that these scones are some great metaphor for my sister’s African wedding. But I do know that I made them with love – even if that love was tainted with a little bit of sadness. And, if I do say so myself…the scones were quite tasty. With recipes like these, Orthodox Lent hasn’t been that bad. Honestly, I’m really enjoying the vegan diet. That being said, here is the recipe. And, here is to Candyce and Stephen and their upcoming nuptials! I love you both.

(Vegan) Lemon Ginger Scones
(Adapted from this recipe from Vegan Yum Yum)
(Note: This recipe can be made the “normal” way by substituting butter for margarine and milk for soy milk. Also, I served the scones with lemon curd which is definitely not vegan, but super delicious on the scones! You can purchase lemon curd at Trader Joes or you can make it from scratch. Here is my recipe. )

2 Cups All- Purpose Flour
2 1/2 tsp Baking Powder
1/2 tsp Salt
Zest of 1 Lemon
1/3 Cup Earth Balance Margarine
3 Tbs Maple Syrup (or regular sugar)
1/2 Cup Soymilk
2 Tbs Lemon Juice

Preheat oven to 400º F.
Whisk all the dry ingredients together in a mixing bowl (flour through zest). Mix the wet ingredients together (syrup, soymilk and lemon juice) in a separate small bowl. Using a pastry cutter or a fork (I always just use my fingers), blend the Earth Balance into the dry ingredients until there are no chunks of margarine left and the mixture looks like damp sand.

Pour the wet ingredients into the dry mixture and mix with your hands to form a soft dough. Only mix until just combined, adding more flour if the mixture is too wet. Turn out the dough onto a floured surface and roll out to a slab 3/4″ thick. Using a biscuit cutter or a glass with about a 2″ diameter, cut out your scones. Press the scraps of dough together, roll out again, and continue cutting scones until you’ve used up your dough.

Transfer scones to a cookie sheet covered in parchment paper, or a non-stick mat. Brush the tops with a mixture of earth balance margarine and lemon juice. Sprinkle the tops of the scones with lemon zest and granulated sugar (I used raw sugar as I like the texture and look).

sweet potato biscuits.

In honor of Valentines day and all things “sweet” I feel it would be appropriate to share my recipe for Sweet Potato biscuits. This is one of my new favorite recipes – its easy, quick, delicious, and a nice twist on classic biscuits. Have I mentioned that biscuits are one of my favorite foods of all time? My grandpa used to make the best buttermilk biscuits growing up, and ever since then I’ve been hooked. There is nothing to dislike about buttery, flakey, carby biscuit goodness (I think I just made up a word and I like it: Carby). So if you take normal biscuits and add in the texture, color, and sweetness of sweet potatoes…I’m sold.

I wish I could tell you that I was whipping up some fabulous dinner for Nich in honor of valentines day, but alas we are going to pay someone to do that for us. I love cooking, but sometimes its nice to celebrate without having to clean up afterwards. :) We are staying at the Ace Hotel in downtown Portland tonight, and will be dining at Clyde Commons. I am so excited.

Anyway, if you are so prompted, you could make some sweet potato biscuits for your sweetheart. Or you could be like Liz Lemon and celebrate Anna Howard Shaw Day and make a batch and eat them all by yourself. Happy Valentimes, everyone. Lets eat some biscuits.

Sweet Potato Biscuits
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons brown sugar
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
6 tablespoons chilled unsalted butter, cut into pieces (plus a little more for brushing on top of the biscuits)
3/4 cup Sweet-Potato Puree, chilled (To make the puree: Boil the sweet potatoes in water until tender. Blend, food process or mash until they are a puree. Season with nutmeg, brown sugar, and cinnamon.)
1/3 cup buttermilk

Make the dough: In a large bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and baking soda. With a pastry blender, two knives, or your fingers – cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse meal, with some pea-sized lumps of butter remaining. In a small bowl, whisk together sweet potato purée and buttermilk; stir quickly into flour mixture until combined (do not overmix).

Shape the biscuits: Turn out dough onto a lightly floured surface, and knead very gently until dough comes together but is still slightly lumpy. (If dough is too sticky, work in up to 1/4 cup additional flour.) Shape into a disk, and pat to an even 1-inch thickness. With a floured 2-inch biscuit cutter (or a juice glass! This is what I use), cut out biscuits as close together as possible. Gather together scraps, and repeat to cut out more biscuits (do not reuse scraps more than twice).

Bake the biscuits: Preheat oven to 425 degrees. with rack on lower shelf. Butter an 8-inch cake pan. Arrange biscuits snugly in pan (to help them stay upright). Brush with melted butter. Bake until golden, 20 to 24 minutes.

who knew baking bread was easy?

Last week, I learned to make bread!

I have never had much interest in being a baker, per se. I like cooking, not baking. Baking is such a science, with exact measurements and temperatures (and it seems so much easier to screw up). Cookies and zucchini bread seem do-able – but making REAL bread from scratch just seemed so daunting.

But, my friend Myste recently told me that she had found an amazing recipe for artisan bread – no kneading required! She also assured me that the recipe was easy and delicious (I was dubious, of course. Like I said…bread seemed impossible). Myste kindly invited myself – and our friend Cate – over last week to teach us how to make bread. The recipe is from a cookbook entitled “How to make bread in five minutes a day or less.” I will mention that the title is slightly misleading. Bread takes MUCH more time than five minutes. However, all that time is made up of rising/resting time or baking time. The actual work that you put into the bread is probably around five minutes. I wish that a loaf of bread could be whipped up in 5 minutes – but then again, where’s the fun in that? Maybe the reason this bread tastes SO stinking good is that a good bit of time and prep go into it? (Nich did actually say that this is the best bread he’s ever eaten. Its that good.)

Since the recipe is quite exact, there is no need to give you my version of it, so I will simply post a link to it and then post a few of my own observations.

Link (From Global Gourmet): The Master Recipe: Artisan Free-Form Loaf

*Note, this is a ‘free form artisan loaf’. You can shape it however you want – I have been making into rounds (much like a sour dough round which are used for bread bowls) or an elongated loaf (like a french batard or french bread). I

*The recipe says to cook the loaf on a pizza stone. I don’t have a pizza stone, so I’ve been baking it in a glass or ceramic baking dish, which works great. I was told that the bread shouldn’t bake on a metal sheet, but I am not actually sure if that is true. However, I am going to invest in a pizza stone, because sliding the uncooked dough onto a pizza stone would be much easier than a baking dish with sides.

*You don’t HAVE to cook the bread with ‘steam’, but it makes for a crunchier crust. And, cooking with steam simply means putting a small (oven-proof) dish of water in the oven – that’s all you have to do!

*Do not be afraid or thrown off by the term “gluten cloak”. If you scroll down the linked recipe page, they describe exactly what a gluten cloak is.

*The version Cate, Myste and I made was a ‘peasant loaf’. We simply substituted 1/2 cup of whole wheat flour and 1/2 cup of Rye flour for one of the cups of white flour. That is the great thing about this bread – it is a base recipe, but there are many variations. I am going to attempt Rye bread sometime this week!

I must say, I’m having a blast making bread. Since you can make one big batch and save the dough in the fridge (for 11 days), you can have fresh-baked bread multiple times in a week! For this very reason, this recipe is also super dangerous. Why does bread have to be so delicious and yet full of so many calories??? But, hey, I’m a firm believer that everything is great in moderation. Plus, this bread doesn’t have any strange preservatives or fillers (like most bread you find in the grocery store). Its all natural, hand-made, carb-o-licious goodness. And I’m all for it.