Sunday, September 18, 2011
Buttermilk Bread (or Pizza) Dough
Buttermilk is one of my favorite baking ingredients. So I figured, why not try using it in a bread/pizza dough? This is still a yeast-leavened dough, so some minor procedure adjustments had to be made.
The Ingredients
* 3 cups all-purpose flour (I prefer unbleached), plus more for dusting/kneading
* 1 cup buttermilk. Use store-bought buttermilk, or make your own; recipe follows.
* 2 Tablespoons water
* 2 Tablespoons melted butter, margarine, or extra-virgin olive oil (DEFINITELY use the olive oil if this is meant to be pizza dough)
* 1/3 packet of active dry yeast
* 1 Tablespoon sugar
* 1 teaspoon salt
(Make your own buttermilk: add 2 tablespoons lemon juice or white vinegar to a measuring cup. Add whole milk to bring the total volume up to 1 cup. Stir with a fork to combine, and allow mixture to sit, covered, at room temperature for at least 30 minutes. Mixture will curdle and thicken. This is normal!)
In a large bowl, combine the flour and salt. Use a wire whisk to combine.
In a small bowl or cup, combine the yeast, water, sugar, and about 1 teaspoon of flour. Use a fork to blend well.
Next, add the melted butter or oil to the flour (I'm using melted butter). Do not stir it in.
Next, add the buttermilk; using a rubber spatula, stir to combine.
When most of the moisture has been absorbed, add the yeast mixture.
Use your rubber spatula to combine everything as thoroughly as possible.
Dust your kneading surface with flour, and dump the dough onto the surface. You'll have what we baker-types call a "shaggy mass".
Knead the dough--adding flour as necessary to prevent sticking--until it comes together and is smooth, elastic, and shiny; at least 10 minutes' worth of vigorous kneading. Roll the dough into a tight, smooth ball, about the size of a softball.
Spray the inside of your mixing bowl (the same one you used to make the dough) with non-stick spray, or coat it with vegetable oil. Place the ball of dough in the bowl, and roll it/flip it around, so it's coated with oil. (Note: do not spray the dough directly with cooking spray. The alcohol in the propellant can kill the yeast)
Cover the bowl with a towel, and leave it somewhere to rise, undisturbed (at room temperature) for at least 2 hours, up to 4 hours.
When the dough has doubled in volume, dump it out of the bowl onto your work surface. There will probably not be any need for more dusting flour, but have some nearby, just in case.
Knead the dough, turning frequently, to break down air bubbles, and work the moisture back into the dough. Knead vigorously for about 5 minutes. Roll the dough into a tight ball...you should end up with a very smooth ball.
Put the dough back into the mixing bowl (no need for oil this time), and tuck plastic wrap all over and around the dough. Put the bowl in the refrigerator for 1 to 2 hours; the dough will rise a little bit more, but the cold will keep the yeast from getting too aggressive.
Remove the dough from the fridge, and dump it onto your work surface. Roll the dough into a roughly cylindrical shape.
Cut the dough into 2 (approximately) equal portions. Each portion will make one 10-to-12 inch pizza. Or, you can cut it even further, and bake it into bread or rolls:
Wrap the dough you're not immediately using very tightly in plastic. You can store it in the fridge for 4 or 5 days; if you need to store it longer, it will freeze nicely for a couple of months.
Buttermilk is one of my favorite baking ingredients. So I figured, why not try using it in a bread/pizza dough? This is still a yeast-leavened dough, so some minor procedure adjustments had to be made.
The Ingredients
* 3 cups all-purpose flour (I prefer unbleached), plus more for dusting/kneading
* 1 cup buttermilk. Use store-bought buttermilk, or make your own; recipe follows.
* 2 Tablespoons water
* 2 Tablespoons melted butter, margarine, or extra-virgin olive oil (DEFINITELY use the olive oil if this is meant to be pizza dough)
* 1/3 packet of active dry yeast
* 1 Tablespoon sugar
* 1 teaspoon salt
(Make your own buttermilk: add 2 tablespoons lemon juice or white vinegar to a measuring cup. Add whole milk to bring the total volume up to 1 cup. Stir with a fork to combine, and allow mixture to sit, covered, at room temperature for at least 30 minutes. Mixture will curdle and thicken. This is normal!)
In a large bowl, combine the flour and salt. Use a wire whisk to combine.
In a small bowl or cup, combine the yeast, water, sugar, and about 1 teaspoon of flour. Use a fork to blend well.
Next, add the melted butter or oil to the flour (I'm using melted butter). Do not stir it in.
Next, add the buttermilk; using a rubber spatula, stir to combine.
When most of the moisture has been absorbed, add the yeast mixture.
Use your rubber spatula to combine everything as thoroughly as possible.
Dust your kneading surface with flour, and dump the dough onto the surface. You'll have what we baker-types call a "shaggy mass".
Knead the dough--adding flour as necessary to prevent sticking--until it comes together and is smooth, elastic, and shiny; at least 10 minutes' worth of vigorous kneading. Roll the dough into a tight, smooth ball, about the size of a softball.
Spray the inside of your mixing bowl (the same one you used to make the dough) with non-stick spray, or coat it with vegetable oil. Place the ball of dough in the bowl, and roll it/flip it around, so it's coated with oil. (Note: do not spray the dough directly with cooking spray. The alcohol in the propellant can kill the yeast)
Cover the bowl with a towel, and leave it somewhere to rise, undisturbed (at room temperature) for at least 2 hours, up to 4 hours.
When the dough has doubled in volume, dump it out of the bowl onto your work surface. There will probably not be any need for more dusting flour, but have some nearby, just in case.
Knead the dough, turning frequently, to break down air bubbles, and work the moisture back into the dough. Knead vigorously for about 5 minutes. Roll the dough into a tight ball...you should end up with a very smooth ball.
Put the dough back into the mixing bowl (no need for oil this time), and tuck plastic wrap all over and around the dough. Put the bowl in the refrigerator for 1 to 2 hours; the dough will rise a little bit more, but the cold will keep the yeast from getting too aggressive.
Remove the dough from the fridge, and dump it onto your work surface. Roll the dough into a roughly cylindrical shape.
Cut the dough into 2 (approximately) equal portions. Each portion will make one 10-to-12 inch pizza. Or, you can cut it even further, and bake it into bread or rolls:
Wrap the dough you're not immediately using very tightly in plastic. You can store it in the fridge for 4 or 5 days; if you need to store it longer, it will freeze nicely for a couple of months.
Sunday, September 11, 2011
Sam's Birthday Cake!
Sam's birthday is September 12th, and I decided to try something new...my first-ever ice cream cake. What can I say...she's worth it!
I started working on it on Thursday, the 8th; I knew there were steps involved.
First, I had to bake some cake. I made a pretty basic white chiffon cake--flour, sugar, egg whites, milk, and vegetable oil. I kicked them up a bit with some lemon zest and freshly-ground ginger. Two layers, about 7 inches in diameter.
The following day, I lined one of those same cake pans with plastic, and filled it with strawberry ice cream (Sam's favorite). I put it back into the freezer, to allow it to get thoroughly hardened.
Next, the frosting. I wanted to keep it basic, so I made a cream cheese frosting, with confectioners sugar, Greek yogurt, and a little more lemon zest. I also added a teaspoon or so of strawberry jam, to give it a faint pink color.
I trimmed the cake layers, making sure they were perfectly flat (they weren't, but so what?). I layered the ice cream between the cake layers, and applied a crumb coat of my frosting. The cake then went back into the freezer for a couple of hours, to allow the crumb coat to solidify.
The crumb-coated cake:
I decorated the cake with "Gummi" strawberries, and strawberry-flavored Jelly Belly jelly beans. The little rabbit on top is actually a garden decoration--he's made of ceramic!
The finished product:
Happy birthday, Sam. I love you!
Sam's birthday is September 12th, and I decided to try something new...my first-ever ice cream cake. What can I say...she's worth it!
I started working on it on Thursday, the 8th; I knew there were steps involved.
First, I had to bake some cake. I made a pretty basic white chiffon cake--flour, sugar, egg whites, milk, and vegetable oil. I kicked them up a bit with some lemon zest and freshly-ground ginger. Two layers, about 7 inches in diameter.
The following day, I lined one of those same cake pans with plastic, and filled it with strawberry ice cream (Sam's favorite). I put it back into the freezer, to allow it to get thoroughly hardened.
Next, the frosting. I wanted to keep it basic, so I made a cream cheese frosting, with confectioners sugar, Greek yogurt, and a little more lemon zest. I also added a teaspoon or so of strawberry jam, to give it a faint pink color.
I trimmed the cake layers, making sure they were perfectly flat (they weren't, but so what?). I layered the ice cream between the cake layers, and applied a crumb coat of my frosting. The cake then went back into the freezer for a couple of hours, to allow the crumb coat to solidify.
The crumb-coated cake:
I decorated the cake with "Gummi" strawberries, and strawberry-flavored Jelly Belly jelly beans. The little rabbit on top is actually a garden decoration--he's made of ceramic!
The finished product:
Happy birthday, Sam. I love you!
