Proscuitto, Fig and Goat Cheese Crostini

I love appetizers and this is one that is not only simple to make but quite delicious. The inspiration was the wonderful proscuitto in the frig and my homemade fig preserves. Give it a try, I promise you won't be disappointed!

 

 

Proscuitto, Fig and Goat Cheese Crostini

1 baguette
Goat cheese, softened
Fig preserves
Proscuitto

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Slice the baguette into 1/2 inch slices.  Place on a cookie sheet and drizzle with olive oil.  Bake until lightly toasted, 10 to 15 minutes.  Spread slices with goat cheese.  Top with fig preserves and proscuitto. 

Ciabatta Bread

Ciabatta is an Italian bread and according to many Internet sites, it can be made at home, but only experienced bakers should attempt it with the aid of a good bread book. Tonight I proved that statement partially wrong. I am not an experienced baker, but I made 2 loaves of this crusty bread with the aid of my new favorite cookbook, Kneadlessly Simple by Nancy Baggett.

I had my doubts, could I really make ciabatta with less effort than it takes to get in the car and drive to Panera for a loaf? Well, once again, Nancy has made me a believer. This was so simple. Last night I mixed the dough, refrigerated it for 3 hours and let it sit on the counter overnight. This morning, I stirred the dough and let it rest. Shaping the dough was easy and the second rise took about 2 hours. The loaves are baked at a high temperature over a pan of water. Forty minutes later, the loaves were golden brown. After 10 minutes of cooling, Kenny and I had dinner, ciabatta with some of the olive oil we purchased in Cortona and parmesan. What a meal!

Ciabatta

adapted from Kneadlessly Simple

3 cups (15 ounces) King Arthur all-purpose flour

1 1/2 teaspoons table salt

3/4 teaspoons Fleishmann's RapidRise yeast

1 1/2 cups ice water

1 tablespoon olive oil and more for coating the dough

In a large bowl stir together the dry ingredients. Add the water and stir to combine. Add the olive oil and stir. Coat the top lightly with olive oil. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 3 to 10 hours. Remove from the frig and let rise at room temperature for 12 to 15 hours.

Spray 2 9x12-inch sheets of parchment paper with canola oil and dust with 1/4 cup flour. Line a flat baking sheet (or the back of a rimmed sheet) with parchment paper and dust with flour.

Using a oiled spatula, loosen the dough gently from the bowl. With a oiled knife, cut the dough in half, being careful not to deflate the dough. Place each portion on the sheets of parchment paper and dust with flour. With well-oiled fingertips, gently shape the dough into a 9x6-inch rectangle. Push in the sides of the middle for a "slipper" shape. With a floured, wide spatula, move the loaves to the parchment covered baking sheets, inverting them. Reshape and press deep indentations into the dough with flour-dusted fingertips. Leave the excess flour on the loaves for a rustic look. Let rise 2 hours or until doubled.

Place a shallow pan in the bottom of the oven and preheat to 500 degrees F. Pour one cup of ice water in the pan and bake the loaves on the lowest rack for 30 - 35 minutes. The loaves should be golden brown and the internal temperature is 208 to 210 degrees. Let cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes.

Now for some tips.

• For ease and accuracy, weigh the flour. This is much easier and cuts down on the cleanup of scattered flour and measuring cups.
• For the ice water, add ice cubes to the water and stir for 30 seconds.
• After 20 minutes of baking, insert a digital thermometer into the center of a loaf. I have one that has a probe for the food and the monitor sits outside the oven.
• Buy a copy of Kneadlessly Simple! It is the textbook for delicious bread with little effort and great results.
  
  
  
  

Kneadlessly Simple

In January, I was consumed with making a perfect loaf of no-knead bread. My first attempt was less that successful, but after a search of the Internet and experimenting with different flours and yeast, I was finally able to produce a great loaf.

And then last week, I purchased Kneadlessly Simple by Nancy Baggett. As I read through her recipes I noticed a number of differences in her use of ingredients and methods. I will admit that I was very skeptical about the results, after all, I had become the expert on no-knead bread just 2 months ago! Nancy's method includes using cold water and chilling the dough before the first rise and I had no faith that the bread would rise. Boy was I wrong. Just take a look at those bubbles of carbon dioxide from the yeast. Since I was in a hurry to finish the bread, I used Nancy's tip for the second rising and placed the dough in the microwave with a cup of boiling water for an hour. I heated the 4 1/2 quart LeCreuset Dutch oven, plopped the dough in the pot and baked it. The smell during the baking was incredible. And the bread was wonderful, crusty on the outside and tender on the inside. Nancy knows what she is doing when it comes to no-knead bread. The book includes a variety of recipes and is a must for every wanna-be baker.

Crusty White Peasant-Style Pot Bread

adapted from Kneadless Simple

4 cups (20 ounces) King Arthur all-purpose flour

1 teaspoons sugar

2 teaspoons table salt

3/4 teaspoon Fleischmann's RapidRise yeast

2 cups ice water

Canola oil spray

In a large bowl, stir together dry ingredients. Add the water and stir vigorously until thoroughly blended. Spray the top of the dough with canola oil, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 3 hours. Remove from the frig and let rise for 18 to 24 hours, stirring once about halfway through rising.

Using an oiled spatula, gently lift and fold the dough to the center until deflated. Spray the surface with canola oil and cover with plastic wrap. Let rise in a warm place for 1 1/2 to 2 hours or place in a microwave with a cup of boiling water until the dough is doubled.

Preheat a 4 1/2 quart Dutch oven in a 450 degree F. oven. Remove the Dutch oven from the oven, being careful - the pot is very hot. Loosen the dough from the bowl with a spatula and gently invert into the pot. Brush the top with water and cover with the lid. Shake gently to center the dough.

Reduce the temperature to 425 degrees F. and bake on the lower rack for 55 minutes. Remove the lid and bake for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the top is golden brown and the center registers 209 to 212 degrees F. on an instant-read thermometer. Cool in the pot on a wire rack for 10 minutes and remove the loaf to the rack and cool.

If you have any leftovers, cut into cubes for croutons or to use in panzanella.

No Knead Bread

No Knead Bread, so simple a 4-year old can make it! Well, maybe so, if they have the correct ingredients. One of the recipes featured in the Cooking with Cast Iron class at Williams-Sonoma was Rosemary and Lemon No Knead Bread. My task was to make the bread ahead of time and serve during the class. After many failed attempts, I discovered the solution was simply in the selection of ingredients.

It all begins with the flour. All-purpose flour works, if you select a hard wheat all-purpose flour such as King Arthur or Pillsbury. I used Martha White, an excellent soft wheat flour commonly used for cakes, pastries and quick breads. Soft wheat flours don't contain enough gluten, an essential protein needed for the bread to rise. Bread flour has a high gluten content and will give you the best results.

Next is the yeast. The recipe called for 1/4 teaspoon of active dry yeast. I bought Fleischmann's Active Dry Yeast and it took an entire packet - 2 1/4 teaspoons - to create a decent loaf of bread. What you should buy is Fleischmann's Rapid Rise yeast. Just 1/4 teaspoon of the yeast will give you a light, delicious bread.

Now comes the equipment. You will need a cast iron Dutch oven. I used a 2 3/4 quart Le Creuset Round Dutch Oven. You must heat the pot in a 450 degree F. oven for at least 30 minutes before baking the bread. The Dutch oven acts as a mini oven and creates the perfect environment for baking this light, crusty bread. Give this recipe a try and it will become a favorite!

No Knead Bread

3 cups bread flour

1/4 teaspoon Fleischmann's Rapid Rise yeast

1 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

1 1/2 cups warm water

Cornmeal

Mix together the dry ingredients in a large bowl. Add the water and stir until the mixture forms a sticky ball. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and place in a warm spot. Allow to rise for 12 - 18 hours.

Remove the ball from bowl to a floured surface. Fold the dough over 2 times (shape should be a rectangle) and allow to rest for 15 minutes. With floured hands, fold the long ends into the center. Then take the other ends and fold to the middle and place, seam side down on a tea towel dusted with cornmeal. Place in a bowl and allow to rise for 2 hours in a warm place.

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F. Place a cast iron Dutch oven into the hot oven at least 30 minutes before baking the bread, Remove the Dutch oven from the oven, being very careful not to burn yourself. Move the bread from the bowl and place seam side up in the Dutch oven. Don't worry about extra flour or cornmeal on the bread, it will give the finished loaf rustic look.

Bake at 450 degrees F. for 30 minutes. Remove lid from the Dutch oven and cook for 15 - 25 minutes and the crust is browned. Cool on a wire rack.

The stiff dough before rising.

The dough after first rising.

Formed into ball for second rising.

Second rising.Success!

Sweet Potato Bread

I found a great sale on sweet potatoes so I decided to buy some and try out a couple of recipes for Sweet Potato Bread. I tried two recipes and my stitching friends selected this one as the best. Thanks to Closet Cooking Kevin for the inspiration!

Sweet Potato Bread
1 3/4 cups self rising flour

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 cup butter

3/4 cup brown sugar

1/4 cup honey

2 eggs

1/4 cup buttermilk
1 cups sweet potato, cooked and mashed
1/2 cup pecans, chopped

Mix the dry ingredients in a bowl. Cream the butter and brown sugar. Add the honey, eggs, buttermilk and sweet potato into the butter and sugar. Stir the sweet potato mixture into the flour mixture. Stir in the pecans. Pour the batter into a 9x5 inch greased loaf pan. Bake in a preheated 350F oven until a tooth pick pushed into the center comes out clean, about 1 hour. Pour the praline sauce on and and let cool.

Praline ToppingIngredients:
1 tablespoon butter
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup pecans, roasted and chopped

1 cups powdered sugar
2 tablespoons water

Cook the butter and brown sugar in a small skillet until caramelized, about 5 minutes. Stir in the pecans. Pour the mixture onto a piece of parchment paper and let cool. When the praline mixture is cook, break with a rolling pin. Mix the powdered sugar into the water. Mix the praline and sugar water together.

Spicy Southern Cornbread

In the South, we love our cornbread! Traditionally, it is a very simple recipe, consisting of cornmeal mix, eggs, buttermilk and oil. For this recipe, I decided to break tradition and add some spice to the cornbread. Cornbread must be baked in cast iron bakeway! I am lucky to have cornstick pans from my grandmother and Kenny's grandmother, a wedge pan that belonged to Granny and skillets that belonged to Mama. This recipe makes a lot of cornbread. You can use a couple of large skillets or do as I did and pull out all your vintage bakeway - 2 cornstick pans, 1 9-inch wedge pan and 3 6-inch skillets. This recipe makes a lot!

Spicy Southern Cornbread

3 cups cornmeal mix

2 cups buttermilk

3 eggs, beaten

1 - 14 oz. can cream-style corn

1 cup minced onion

1 1/2 cups grated Cheddar cheese

1 can green chilis

1/4 cup chopped jalopeno peppers

1/2 cup mayonaise

Oil

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Coat cast iron bakeware with oil. Put the pans in the oven while it is preheating. In a mixing bowl, mix together all the ingredients. Spoon mixture into the pans and bake for 35 - 45 minutes, depending on the size of the pans.