Wild Yeast

Notes from my kitchen, in which I bake bread and raise a few other matters

You are here: Wild Yeast / Category: recipes

Soft Semolina Sourdough

soft-semilna-sourdough-wild-yeast

When my daughter and I visited son/brother in Oregon this summer, we had lunch in a cafe whose salads were accompanied by a soft, moist, seed-encrusted bread that inspired M to ask “Why can’t you make bread like this?”

“I can.”

“Well, make some, then. Your bread is always too crusty.”

When I offered this to M yesterday, I imagined she might throw her arms around me and pronounce me the best baker-mom a girl could hope for.

Not even close. She gave the crumb an offhand squeeze and pronounced brightly, without taking a bite, “Yeah, that’s it. I’m not hungry. Good job, though!” I’m not entirely sure, but I think she might have given me a little pat on the head at this point.

M, you are so lucky that I love you unconditionally.

[Read more…]

Rosemary – Cornmeal Grissini

My daughter M (the one who hid a dog in her room for several days before springing the news? yes, that one) has moved on to her own apartment but is often over here, killing time between work and class, radiating sweet smiles and depositing piles of unfolded laundry wherever she goes. She is content to graze on whatever she finds, and rarely comments on it — a change, on the whole, for the better. I no longer hear “Why can’t you buy macaroni and cheese in a box like a normal person?” or “Why do you have to put fruit in everything?” whenever she goes near the kitchen.

Occasionally, M does weigh in.  “These are good.”

[Read more…]

Cherry Pine Nut Scones

In their excitement over the delicate marzipan flavor of cherry pits, people often overlook the dark crimson fruit that surrounds them. But did you know that the flesh of the properly-ripened cherry — firm, sweet, and succulent — is actually quite good in its own right? In some cultures, the cherry fruit itself is even more prized than the stone cached within.

These scones, although they do contain fruit and a small amount of sugar, are not what I would call sweet. If you’re feeling adventurous, make your cornmeal the coarsely-ground variety and give your teeth the workout they thought they’d never get from a scone.

The scones maintain a good shape if they are formed in a cake ring, frozen before cutting into wedges, and frozen again before baking. I like this adjustable-size ring because it’s very versatile, but you can use a plastic-wrap-lined cake pan if you don’t have one. Layering the fruit with the dough, rather than mixing it in, helps the fruit stay intact. And a cherry pitter makes short work of separating the stones (seriously, don’t throw them away!).

Continue to the recipe…

Tuscan Bread and Tomato Salad (Panzanella)

The dark saltless Tuscan bread wasn’t my favorite, but as a simple salad with sweet cherry and grape tomatoes, onions, and basil leaves in a garlic vinaigrette dressing, there’s just nothing to complain about at all.

If you require a recipe, here’s one. Otherwise, just toss whatever ingredients are the object of your summertime desire (in addition to tomatoes and basil, think olives, cucumbers, peppers, eggs, bacon…) together with one-inch cubes of rather dry bread, and dress for dinner. Done. Delicious.

Orange-Pecan Sticky Buns with Dates and Cranberries

I looked at the ingredient list for this month’s Paper Chef, and this is what it said:

dried dates • cranberries • flour • candied orange peel

This is what I read:

dried dates • cranberries • candied orange peel

And I thought, Hm, only three ingredients. Aren’t there supposed to be four? Apparently I have come to take flour completely for granted. Like air.

Paper Chef is a creative challenge where the month’s host draws three ingredients at random from a collectively-compiled list and adds a fourth of his or her choosing. I haven’t participated often, since the list is apt to include ingredients like salmon or liver, which don’t particularly lend themselves to bread. But this month, I couldn’t resist the combination of fruits that turned up in the lottery.

[Read more…]

Pane Toscano Scuro

A (or perhaps the?) defining characteristic of Tuscan bread is its lack of salt. I have made saltless Tuscan bread before, and I was pleasantly surprised by its sweet flavor.

This “dark Tuscan bread”, a 70%-whole-wheat version adapted from Carol Field’s The Italian Baker, did not warm my heart quite as well, but I did like the soft crumb and crisp crust. I might experiment with different wheat flours to see how the flavor varies with each. And in fairness, I have to say I have so far only eaten it pretty much straight up, and Tuscan bread is meant to go with the hearty flavors of Tuscan food. Panzanella (tomato and bread salad) is traditional with this bread… stay tuned.

[Read more…]

Send this to a friend