Don't panic! I anticipated some sour dough death, if your starter did not make it through spring break - that's ok. Document! What did you learn from this process? What went right? What went wrong? You still have time, you can remake it. I have decided to turn this into a bonus project at home. Find a recipe you'd like to make using starter or discard and document it. Make a post that is labelled 'enhanced learning or bonus lab' and you will get the extra credit. What we are starting with this week is Jim Lahey's No-Knead bread. You will be making this in partners and when we do the final rise (the following day) cut it in half and shape into a loaf. If you are making this at home, use a dutch oven or covered oven safe pot, but in class put it on a cookie sheet. When it comes to sprinkling the (non fuzzy) dish towel, we are using bran. Wednesday is typically straight online learning, however this week it is also making additional dough. We are going into Easter weekend making Cazzupe or Easter bread. Moving on to yeasted breads, we are going to keep with the Italian pastries. This time from the toe of the boot, Calabria- we're making cuzzupe. I understand if you've never heard of this seasonal delicacy, if not for my best friend (45 years) Rosella and her momma Italia I would be missing this joy. Cuzzupe is a combination of bread and cake, topped with a glaze and sprinkles. Just before baking, a raw dyed egg is placed in the middle and it cooks as it bakes. In Italy, Italian Easter Bread is known as Pane di Pasqua, But, depending on what region of Italy you’re in, Easter Bread may have another name! In the Calabria region in the Southwest, it’s known as Sguta, cuzzupa, or cu l’ovo, where in other regions it’s called Scarcella or Gurrugulo. Each version is a little bit different. (Information from https://www.letseatcake.com/italian-easter-bread/)
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While you are at home, you will be creating your own 'pet' -a sourdough starter. You do not need a lot of equipment or ingredients; a clean jar, a scale, flour and water. Watching this video (we did it in class) creating your starter, take 5 minutes a day and feed your starter. Once you get to day 6 and you have a healthy starter, use your discard to make something else. I use the King Arthur website for recipes, they have oodles -such as pancakes, waffles, or popovers. Alternately you can throw out the 'discard' but why waste? I have included this schedule for you to follow, print it out and keep next to the jar, it's a good reminder of what and when. tThe third technique we are learning is the muffin method, the key take away from this is NOT TO OVERMIX! You should have bits of flour and dry bits, muffins should be tender, the gluten not overmixed. I find the easiest way to mix muffins is to use a fork and nothing else; spoons, whisks or wooden spoons, it's just too tempting to keep stirring. The other thing to keep in mind- the fat is liquid with muffins; cookies, softened butter and scones the fat is hard (solid/frozen). Today we made mixed berry muffins, we cut the recipe in 1/2 as it made 8 large muffins and we needed 6 smaller ones. The recipe also starts with the oven at 500F and is reduced to 400 once you put the tray in. Do Not Forget!
Later this week we will be making Morning Glory Muffins (healthy carrot cakes) and you will be choosing a muffin recipe to make on Thursday. I know many of you are trying to figure out what to put on your websites, you need to include the recipe, the technique and what you learned from the lab (good or bad). If you wish to do one big long post regarding muffins, you may. The Kitchen breaks down the differences between muffins and cupcakes, please read through the article and put the information into your own words. You are not limited to this site, however I do know you will google the question and you will be taken to TheKtchn site. Taking everything we have learned about pastry and dough, today we are using pre-made phyllo (or filo) dough and making apple strudel. I do not have a recipe for this, I usually use my basic apple pie recipe and modify it. I did a demo in class and had you, yes YOU, write out the recipe. I gave the ingredients and amounts and demonstrated the method (instructions), now you take that and type up your own recipe. I will most certainly be looking for your recipe and images (or videos) on your blog.
Ingredients; 1 apple, peeled, cored and sliced or diced, 15 ml of almond slices, 1 tablespoon raisins, 15ml flour, 1 tablespoons sugar, 2.5ml cinnamon, knob of butter melted, 2-3 sheets of phyllo. Temperature 400F So I was going to have us make strudel until I watched the news this morning, it's Banana Cream pie day! FYI it is difficult to find ripe bananas when you want them, thank goodness for frozen! Something you might want to know...when you have ripe bananas, peel them and then put them in a ziplock and into the freezer, if you have a lot, freeze them on a tray first and then store them. So the recipe I have is graham cracker crust, lined with silky dark chocolate then topped with sweet ripe bananas and a velvety vanilla pudding. Once the pies have cooled overnight, we will top them with lightly sweet thick whipped cream. The Cornish Pasty has a long history, so I have provided a link for you to read more about it. I am going to retell the tale of my great grandmother Minnie and my second cousin Ellen and the time they ran away from home. One summer when I was visiting Ellen in Los Angeles she told me about the time she was 16 and Minnie was definitely a senior. They were both a little frustrated with her uptight (but loving) parents. The two of them hatched a plan to run away to San Francisco in a Morris Minor with red leather seats and no AC- Road Trip. Ellen is a very logical woman, and I think she was at 16 as well. Minnie and Ellen made lists of things they would need, food being a main item. This happened in the late 50's and I'm pretty sure drive thru wasn't too common. Something that would be filling, delicious and travel well, after all they were driving from New Westminster to San Francisco. They decided on Cornish Pasties. Prior to their adventure the two of them spent the afternoon making various pasties and wrapping them in tea towels for the trip. Now the interesting part of this story -they arrived in San Francisco and the freeway system was quite confusing....they missed the off ramp for the city, what to do? Heck, this was an adventure, no time, no one expecting them anywhere (because they ran away) so my Great Grandmother Minnie and my cousin Ellen skipped San Francisco extended their trip. Next stop Reno Nevada! I have no idea if either of them were chastised for their shenanigans but it does make for a fun story while making a semi-traditional dish. (They were gone for about a week, and said parents were furious). Click here for our veggie recipe. |
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