Homemade Naan

I know I already have a naan recipe in my archives, and just because I'm trying out a new one doesn't mean that the old one isn't absolutely delicious.  The first recipe I tried was on the sweet side, almost like a fried dough in a way.  Joel wanted me to make one that was less sweet, so when I found this one on Pioneer Woman's Tasty Kitchen, I thought it would be worth a try.

2 cups Flour
3/4 teaspoon Baking Powder
1/2 teaspoon Baking Soda
1/2 teaspoon Sugar
1/4 teaspoon Salt
1/2 cup Warm Milk
1/2 cup Yogurt
1/2 tablespoon Oil, as needed
Melted Butter, if desired

In a large bowl, mix all of the dry ingredients together.  Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients . In another bowl, mix the milk and yogurt.  Pour half of the wet mixture into the well and slowly combine it together.  Slowly continue to add the liquid, mixing well to form a soft dough.  Cover the bowl with a damp cloth and let it sit in a warm place for at least 2 hours.  When the dough has rested, turn it out onto a well floured surface.  Knead the dough for 2-3 minutes.  Divide the dough into about 8 small balls.  Flatten the balls to make an elongated piece of bread.  You can sprinkle one side of the dough disk with any flavorings at this point if you would like a flavored naan.  Brush one side with water.  heat a heavy bottomed pan over medium heat.  Once it is nicely hot, place the naan wet side down and cover it with a lid.  Let it cook for about 30 seconds, or until you see bubbles.  Using tongs,remove the naan from the pan and cook the other side over direct flame on the burner.  When you see charred brown spots, the naan is done cooking.  Brush the grilled naan with melted butter, if desired.

White Bread

As I mentioned in one of my previous posts, since we bought My Bread by Jim Lahey, we don't ever see ourselves buying another loaf of bread again!  This past Sunday, my mom asked if we would come over for dinner.  She roasted a chicken with all the trimmings.  Joel decided to make a loaf of bread to bring along, because really, what meal isn't always instantly 100 times better with bread?!  I'm still completely amazed at how incredibly easy this no-knead method is.  If you haven't tried it yet, I'm begging you to drop everything and do it now.  I promise, you will not be disappointed!

3 cups Bread Flour
1 1/4 teaspoons Salt
1/4 teaspoon Yeast
1 1/3 cups Cool Water (55-65 degrees F)
Cornmeal for dusting

In a medium bowl, stir together the flour, salt, and yeast.  Add the water and, using a wooden spoon or your hand, mix until you have a wet, sticky dough, about 30 seconds.  Make sure it is really sticky to the touch; if it is not, mix in another tablespoon or two of water.  Cover the bowl with a plate, tea towel, or plastic wrap and let sit at room temperature, out of direct sunlight, until the surface is dotted with bubbles and the dough is more than doubled in size.  This will take a minimum of 12 hours and up to 18 hours.  This slow rise--fermentation--is the key to flavor.  When the first fermentation is complete, generously dust a work surface with flour.  Use a bowl scraper or rubber spatula to scrape the dough onto the board in one piece.  When you begin to pull the dough away from the bowl, it will cling in long, thin strands, and it will be quite loose and sticky--do not add more flour.  Use lightly floured hands or a bowl scraper or spatula to lift the edges of the dough in toward the center.  Nudge and tuck in the edges of the dough to make it round.  Place a cotton or linen tea towel (not terrycloth) or a large cloth napkin on your work surface and generously dust the cloth with cornmeal (or wheat bran or flour).  Use your hands or a bowl scraper or wooden spatula to gently lift the dough onto the towel, so it is seam side down.  If the dough is tacky, dust the top lightly with wheat bran, cornmeal, or flour.  Fold the ends of the towel loosely over the dough to cover it and place it in a warm, draft-free spot to rise for 1 to 2 hours.  The dough is ready when it is almost doubled.  If you gently poke it with your finger, making an indentation about 1/3 inch deep, it should hold the impression.  If it doesn't, let it rise for another 15 minutes.  Half an hour before the end of the second rise, preheat the oven to 475 degrees with the rack in the lower third position, and place a covered 4 1/2 to 5 1/2 quart heavy pot in the center of the rack.  Using pot holders, carefully remove the preheated pot from the oven and uncover it.  Unfold the tea towel, lightly dust the dough with flour or bran, lift up the dough, either on the towel or in you hand, and quickly but gently invert it into the pot, seam side up.  Cover the pot and bake for 30 minutes.  Remove the lid and continue baking until the bread is a deep chestnut color but not burnt, 15-30 minutes.  Use a heatproof spatula or pot holders to carefully lift the bread out of the pot and place it on a rack to cool throughly.  Don't slice or tear into it until it has cooled, which usually takes about 1 hour.

Pane Integrale (Whole Wheat Bread)

In wanting to try to make as much of our own bread as possible, Joel ordered My Bread by Jim Lahey.  Two weeks ago, we made a loaf of bread to eat with brunch and it was quite possibly the best bread I had ever tasted.  Well, things got a little crazy between then and now, and with neither of us being home last week, our plans to make more bread were put on hold.  That was, until this last night.  Wednesday, Joel started to put together the dough for this whole wheat bread so that it would be ready in time for our dinner last night.  Good thing, too, because Thursday ended up being quite the busy day.  I had a community forum about the budget in my school district, and Joel's car ended up dying in the middle of a busy street in town.  Craziness ensued...Good thing we had this awesome loaf of bread dough waiting for us when we got home.  All we needed was a little bit of time to bake it off, which gave us the perfect opportunity to unwind with a glass of wine.  After these past 2 loaves of bread, I am quite positive that I will never buy a loaf from the store again!

2 1/4 cups Bread Flour
3/4 cup Whole Wheat Flour
1 1/4 teaspoons Salt
1/2 teaspoon Yeast
1 1/3 cups Cool Water (55-65 degrees)
Wheat Bran, Cornmeal, or Flour for dusting

In a medium bowl, stir together flours, salt, and yeast.  Add the water and, using a wooden spoon or your hand, mix until you have a wet, sticky dough, about 30 seconds.  Cover the bowl and let sit at room temperature until the surface is dotted with bubbles and the dough is more than doubled in size, 12-18 hours.  When the first rise is complete, generously dust a work surface with flour.  Use a bowl scraper or rubber spatula to scrape the dough out of the bowl in one piece.  Using lightly floured hands or a bowl scraper or spatula, lift the edges of the dough in toward the center.  Nudge and tuck in the edges of the dough to make it round.  Place a tea towel on your work surface and generously dust it with wheat bran, cornmeal, or flour.  Gently place the dough on the towel, seam side down.  If the dough is tacky, dust the top lightly with the wheat bran, cornmeal, or flour.  Fold the ends of the tea towel loosely over the dough to cover it and place it in a warm, draft-free spot to rise for 1-2 hours.  The dough is ready when it is almost doubled.  If you gently poke it with your finger, it should hold the impression.  If it springs back, let it rise for another 15 minutes.  Half an hour before the end of the second rise, preheat the oven to 475 degrees, with the rack positioned in the lower third, and place a covered 4 1/2 to 5 1/2 quart heavy pot in the center of the rack.  Using pot holders, carefully remove the preheated pot from the oven and uncover it.  Unfold the tea towel and quickly, but gently, invert the dough into the pot, seam side up.  Use caution, the pot will be very hot!  Cover the pot and bake for 30 minutes.  Remove the lid and continue baking until the bread is a deep chestnut color but not burnt, 15-30 more minutes.  Use a heatproof spatula or pot holders to carefully lift the bread out of the pot and place it on a rack to cool thoroughly.

Hawaiian BBQ Pork Pizza on Homemade Crust

As soon as I saw this recipe from Pink Parsley pop up, I knew I wanted to make it.  We love to make our own pizza, and quite honestly, it's been far too long since the last time we did.  The combination of ingredients on this pizza is something I wouldn't have thought of on my own, but so glad that I tried.  Next time we have leftover pulled pork, I know what I'll be doing with it!

Pizza Dough (*recipe follows)
1/2 cup BBQ Sauce
1 cup Pulled Pork, finely shredded or chopped
1/2 Red Onion, halved and thinly sliced
1/2 cup Pineapple Chunks
1/2 cup Mozzarella Cheese, shredded
1 cup Smoked Gouda, shredded
2 tablespoons Scallions, chopped

Place a pizza stone in the oven and preheat to 500 degrees for at least 30 minutes.  On a large square of parchment paper, stretch and roll the pizza dough into a 12-14 inch circle.  Brush the outer edge with olive oil.  Spread the BBQ sauce over the dough, then layer the pork, onion, and pineapple.  Sprinkle the cheese evenly over the top.  Transfer the pizza to the heated pizza stone and bake for 10-12 minutes, or until the crust is golden-brown and the cheese is melted.  Sprinkle the scallions over the top.  Allow the pizza to cool for 5-10 minutes, then slice and serve.

Pizza Dough (from Mark Bittman, found in The Essential New York Times Cookbook)


3 cups All Purpose Flour or Bread Flour, plus more as needed
2 teaspoons Active Dry Yeast
2 teaspoons Coarse Sea Salt or Kosher Salt, plus more for sprinkling
1 cup Water
2 tablespoons Olive Oil

To make the dough by hand, combine half of the flour with the yeast and salt in a bowl and stir to blend. Add the water and olive oil; stir with a wooden spoon until smooth.  Add the remaining flour a bit at a time.  When the mixture becomes too stiff to stir with a spoon, begin kneading it in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook attachment, adding as little of the flour as possible-just enough to keep the dough from being a sticky mess.  Knead for 5-10 minutes.  Turn the dough out onto a floured work surface and knead for a few seconds to form a smooth, round ball.  Transfer to a bowl and cover with plastic wrap.  Let rise until doubled in size, 1-2 hours.  (You can cut the rising time if you are in a hurry, or-preferably-you can let the dough rise more slowly in the fridge for 6-8 hours.  The dough can then be used immediately or wrapped tightly in plastic wrap and frozen for up to 1 month.  Defrost in a covered bowl in the fridge or at room temperature.)  Form the dough into a ball and divide into 2 pieces, roll each piece into a ball.  Place on a lightly floured surface, sprinkle with a little flour, and cover with plastic wrap or a towel.  Let rest until slightly puffed, about 20 minutes.  Oil one or more baking sheets, as needed, then press each dough ball into a flat round directly on the sheet.  Pat out the dough as thin as you like, using oiled hands if necessary.  Proceed with pizza recipe.

Burger Buns

Joel just mentioned the other day that he wanted to start baking our own bread.  Since I was off from work on Monday and had some extra time, I thought it would be nice by starting with our own burger buns, which I found here at Pennies on a Platter, which was found on Annie's Eats, Smitten Kitchen, and The New York Times.  However, I ended up going to help my parents take down the Christmas decorations all day, so Joel was the one who actually made these.  These buns turned out great.  They were a little dense, but beat store bought rolls!  I wouldn't mind making a bunch of these up and having them on hand in the freezer for the summertime!

3 tablespoons Warm Milk
1 cup Warm Water
2 teaspoons Instant Yeast
2 1/2 tablespoons Sugar
1 1/2 teaspoon Salt
1 Egg
3 cups Bread Flour
1/3 cup All-Purpose Flour
2 1/2 tablespoons Unsalted Butter, softened

Topping:
1 Egg beaten with 1 tablespoon Water, for egg wash
Sesame Seeds

Using the paddle attachment of a stand mixer, combine the milk, water, yeast, sugar, salt, and egg.  Mix in the bread flour and all-purpose flour.  Once incorporated, mix in the butter.  Switch to the dough hook attachment and knead on low speed until the dough is somewhat tacky, about 6-8 minutes.  Transfer dough to a bowl lightly brushed with olive oil.  Cover tightly with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place until doubled in size, between 1-2 hours.  Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.  Divide the dough into 8 equal parts.  Gently roll each part into a ball and place on the baking sheet, 2-3 inches apart.  Cover loosely with lightly oiled plastic wrap and let rise again for 1-2 more hours.  The dough is ready when nearly doubled.  Fill a large, metal pan with a shallow layer of water and set on the lowest rack of the oven.  Move the other rack to the center position.  Brush the tops of the buns lightly with the egg wash and sprinkle with sesame seeds.  Bake at 400 degrees for about 15 minutes, until golden brown, rotating halfway through.  Let cool completely on a wire rack.