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Kneadlessly Loafin' "Ah-round"

1/23/2014

Madge Malone's loaf of wholesome goodness… cooling down for some slicin'

Think you're too much of a loaf to make a good loaf of wholesome bread? Well, you CAN BE! Why buy bread that has all sorts of preservatives and fillers when you can make your own right at home - and easily? We're fortunate to have a wonderful bread company near us that offers us wholesome bread (2Fish Baking Co). But, not everyone has this luxury. When our bread shop is not open I know I can make a great loaf for my family without worry or hassle. This recipe makes it easy by using quick rise yeast and allowing the dough to sit over night or during the day (while at work, for example). There is only one quick moment (15 minutes prior to baking) where you are required to knead the dough. BUT THE KEY to a great, crunchy-on-the-outside, loaf is baking it in a dutch oven. I have a cast iron set by LODGE (Love their stuff) that creates a great hot space to bake my bread and create that down-home crunch and tenderness.

Here is a loaf I made just the other day: A whole wheat loaf for a dinner at friends. Read Below for a "Here's How"

What you need:

A good Dutch Oven pot & lid - I use my cast iron Lodge set - or you can use pyrex that has a lid, etc. See photo of sample at right

Time to allow dough to rise on its own - up to 12-15 hours (I make my dough after dinner and set it aside covered in plastic or with a moist cloth overnight and into the morning - I prefer the moist cloth)
Note:
The dough should be in a fairly warm place - 65-70 F.

Ingredients for a Whole Wheat Loaf

2 Cups Each Unbleached White Flour & Whole Wheat Flour
1 Tsp Kosher or Sea Salt
1 Packet Instant Rise Yeast
2 cups warm water (70 degrees F)

Options (1 tsp toasted fennel or caraway seeds & 1/2 tsp toasted cumin seeds - add these with your dry ingredients and mix)

Directions

Mix dry ingredients together in a large bowl
Add warm water (be sure to test temperature so you don't kill the yeast)
Mix with fork or your hands until dough takes on a shaggy-ball like appearance
In a new/clean large metal bowl place a bit of oil on the bottom
Put shaggy dough into newly oiled bowl and rub a bit of oil on top of the dough ball
Cover with plastic wrap or a warm moist cloth
Allow dough to rise for 12 hours or so

When Dough is Ready:

Preheat oven to 450 F
Place your dutch oven into stove (with lid on it) and allow it to heat in oven for 30 minutes
Meanwhile, remove dough from bowl and knead it mildly for a few minutes, shaking a bit of flour on counter top surface as often of needed to keep dough from sticking
Shape dough into ball, sprinkle corn meal on counter top (or kneading surface) and place your shaped dough on top of this
sprinkle top of dough with cornmeal & a thin shaking of flour and cover lightly with a cloth (not terry cloth)
Let dough rest for 15 minutes as your dutch oven preheats

When ready, remove dutch oven from stove - open the lid and place your dough ball BOTTOM SIDE UP into the dutch oven and cover with lid - BE CAREFUL - THIS IS VERY HOT!!!!
Bake dough covered for 30 minutes - rack position is in middle of oven
After 30 minutes is up then remove lid and allow to bake an additional 20 to 30 minutes until nicely browned
When done, remove from oven (carefully - its hot!!!) and then take loaf out of pan and place on rack to cool.
Allow bread to cool completely before slicing!

Lodge cast iron cookware/dutch oven

I mix my dough by hand but borrowed this image for visual purposes… my shaggy dough looks like this…

shaped loaf

My yummy bread that I can share with friends… we had a wonderful fish stew with fresh caught Ling Cod at our friends' house. This loaf was the perfect gift for our hosts:)

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Shabu Shabu Time: Have a Dinner Party with friends!

1/16/2014

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There's a great community monthly sale that occurs here every first Saturday of the month called Pay N Take! I am all about recycling everything. What one person wishes to be rid of, another needs. I love shopping here - I find great gifts for people, great tools and things I need in the house - and I ALWAYS find great cookware items. Although we didn't see much of interest at first, I decided to take my usual "second peruse" and came upon a brand new (or barely used), high quality Japanese Hot Pot Steamboat for $5! Perfect for Shabu Shabu - or, as I like to call it, JAPANESE FONDUE!

WHAT IS SHABU SHABU - Shabu-shabu (しゃぶしゃぶ , also spelled shyabu-shyabu?) is a Japanese dish featuring thinly sliced beef boiled in water. The term is an onomatopœia, derived from the sound emitted when the ingredients are stirred in the cooking pot. The dish is related to sukiyaki in style: Both consist of thinly sliced meat and vegetables and served with dipping sauces. However, Shabu-shabu is considered to be more savory and less sweet than sukiyaki.

WHY I LIKE SHABU SHABU
I love Shabu Shabu because it's easy, interactive and a great way to have dinner with friends or family! I don't really have to cook - all I have to do is prep vegetables and whatever else I want to put into the broth. And I the love dips that are the typical fare with Shabu Shabu! They are the key to having a great experience with Shabu Shabu. When you remove the food from the hot pot you dip them these fabulously flavorful dips and then plunk them into your mouth! They are not complicated dips but simple and tasty!

Ingedients

For easy instructions please see this link for details and instructions… a great reference for Shabu Shabu. Below I have provided a listing of basic ingredients and directions only.

The key is to use a variety of vegetables that you have in the fridge. You place your broth into the hot pot and allow it to boil. The broth can be a simple miso-based broth with grated garlic and ginger with some sea greens or just plain water - it doesn't have to be hard or complicated!
Once the broth boils, then add your ingredients bit by bit. Be flexible with yourself… use what you have on hand. I also used tofu as my vegan option. Dip your proteins into the hot pot last - and only for a few seconds (Tofu being the exception. I place it in the pot with the veggies and allow it to cook for a few minutes). Remove your veggies & proteins and dip them into your dips for some great eating.

FOR SHABU SHABU INGREDIENTS:

3 inch dried 'kombu' seaweed (see link for directions for broth - this is removed before the broth is served and used for cooking ingredients)
1/2 head of napa cabbage, washed and cut
1/2 bunch ‘shungiku’ (Tong Hao, Garland Chrysanthemum), washed and cut
1 pkg enoki mushrooms, stalks removed and pulled apart
8 shiitake mushrooms, stem removed
2 inch carrot, peeled and cut into thin round slices
1 pkg shimeji mushrooms, stalks removed and pulled apart
1 block medium/firm tofu, cut into 1.5 inch square
1 Tokyo Negi, washed and cut diagonally into 2-inch pieces (can be substitute with leeks)
1 ½ - 2 lb sirloin beef (or pork loin), sliced very thinly, or buy pre-sliced ‘shabu shabu’ meat
1 pkg udon (I like Sanuki brand Udon)
Sesame Sauce* (homemade recipe)
Ponzu Sauce* (homemade recipe)
Grated Daikon
Shichimi Togarashi (Japanese seven flavor Chili pepper)

I have provided a great link for the dip recipes above - I used this wonderful website as a great reference when preparing for my own version of Shabu Shabu.

Below is a pic of my actual hot pot that I purchased at the community sale. AWESOME!

Ingredients can be what you want them to be!

Dip them into your boiling hot pot = FUN!
Remember: put vegetables in batches - mushrooms first and allow them to cook the longest. Once the veggies are ready, then dip your Shabu Shabu beef into the boiling water and swish it around for a few seconds and remove (depends on how well you want your proteins cooked)

Dip them into your SNAZZY SAUCES!
Remember: the dips make the dish!

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Food 4OREthought:)

Kneadlessly Loafin' "Ah-round"

Shabu Shabu Time: Have a Dinner Party with friends!

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