Kaiser Rolls

When I was a kid, kaiser rolls were the most tempting bread at the grocery store. The combination of their distinct aroma, fluffy texture, and seeded toppings made them irresistible. I am overjoyed to finally be making them at home, and I'm sure my younger self would be satisfied with the results.
(Another one from Peter Reinhart)

This takes 2 days to make.

Day 1: make the pre-ferment (pate fermentée)

Ingredients:
1 c unbleached all-purpose flour
1 c unbleached bread flour
1/2 t salt
1/4 t instant yeast
3/8 c + 1 T water, room temp

Sift together the dry ingredients into a large bowl. Add 3/8 c water, and stir until everything is combined into a workable dough. Add the remaining water if needed. (err on the wet side.)

Dump the dough onto a floured surface and knead 4-6 minutes until the dough is soft and tacky but not sticky. Oil and place in a bowl. Cover in plastic wrap and let sit at room temp ~1 hr, until 1.5 times original size.

Remove from the bowl and knead to degas. Replace in the bowl and refrigerate overnight.

Day 2: make the bread

Remove the pate fermentée from the fridge 1 hour before beginning. Cut it into 10 pieces, cover it with a towel or plastic wrap and let it sit.

Ingredients:
1 1/2 c pate fermentée (see above)
2 1/4 c bread flour
3/4 t + pinch of salt
1 t diastatic barley malt powder or 1 1/2 t barley malt syrup
1 t instant yeast
1 large egg, slightly beaten
1 1/2 T vegetable oil or shortening, melted
10 T to 3/4 c water, lukewarm
*optional: Poppy and sesame seed toppings
Semolina flour or cornmeal for dusting

After 2 hours rising

In a large bowl, combine the pate fermentée, egg, 10 T water, and oil/shortening. Sift in the dry ingredients, then mix everything together until it combines into a ball. If needed, add all of the water.

Transfer the dough to a floured counter and knead for 10 minutes until the dough is soft and tacky but not sticky. Place in an oiled bowl and let rise, covered with plastic wrap for 2 hrs.

Remove the dough from the bowl and divide it into 9 pieces for small rolls, 6 pieces for large rolls. Form each piece into a small roll, mist with oil, and let rest 10 minutes. While the dough is resting, line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper, mist with oil, and dust with semolina flour/cornmeal.

To shape the rolls, take each piece and roll it out to a strip 6''-8'' long. Tied the strand into a knot, keeping your finger in the middle of the knot. Take the ends and keep twisting around the strand, so one goes up through the center hole, and one goes down through the center hole. After trying a few, I figured out this works best when you pull on the dough to maintain surface tension while you are tying and twisting. (don't worry it won't break.)

Roll out each piece into a strand

Knot each strand into a roll

Ready to rise after shaping

Place the shaped pieces upside down on the parchment paper, and let rise 45 minutes. Flip over and let rise another 30-45 minutes more, until doubled in size.

While the rolls are on their second rise, preheat the oven to 450 F, with the oven rack in the middle. Have a misting spray bottle on hand. If you want to add seeds to the rolls, mist them and sprinkle with poppy or sesame before baking.

Place the pan in the oven, mist the walls, and bake for 10 minutes. Rotate the pan 180 degrees, and lower the oven to 400 F. Continue baking until the rolls are medium golden brown, approximately 15-30 minutes for large rolls, less for small. Transfer the rolls to a cooling rack and wait 30 minutes before serving.

 

Focaccia

Focaccia is one of those breads that brings back memories of Italy for me. Especially when it's made properly. Thick, fluffily, perfectly oily, perhaps a little crumbly too. Italian Focaccia. It's not the same here in the US.

As a result, I don't usually buy it at stores here--it's always a disappointment--and I was excited to see a recipe for it in Peter Reinhart's "Bread Baker's Apprentice". In the book he has 3 versions of focaccia--regular, made with poolish, and pizza-style. He also has a recipe for Herb Oil to top the dough. I decided to make poolish focaccia, since breads made with pre-ferments are more flavorful. This does require you to make the poolish a day ahead of time.

Day 1: make the poolish

Ingredients:
2 1/4 c bread flour
1 1/3 c water, room temp
1/4 t instant yeast

Combine all ingredients in a bowl until the flour is hydrated. It should be like thick pancake batter. Let sit at room temperature 3-4 hours, until it is bubbly. Refrigerate overnight.

Day 2: make the focaccia

Remove the poolish from the fridge 1 hr before making the dough

Ingredients:
3 c poolish (~the recipe above)
2 2/3 c unbleached bread flour
2 t salt
1 1/2 t instant yeast
6 T olive oil
3/4 c water, lukewarm
1/4 c-1/2 c herb oil (recipe below)

Sift the dry ingredients into a bowl. Add the poolish, olive oil, water, and mix until the ingredients form a sticky ball. If mixing by hand, mix for 3-5 minutes, dipping the spoon or your hand into cold water to work the ingredients into a smooth mass. If using a mixer, use a dough hook and mix 5-7 minutes until a smooth, sticky dough has formed. Add more flour if needed.

Transfer the dough to a floured work surface and pat it down into a 6'' rectangle. Let it relax for 5 minutes. Stretch the dough out to 3 times it's width and fold it over itself like try-folding a letter. Mist the dough with oil and cover with plastic wrap. Let rest for 30 minutes.

Stretch and fold the dough one more time, mist and cover, then let sit for 1 hour. It will swell but might not double in size.

While the dough is resting, make the herb oil.

Ingredients:
2 c olive oil--not extra virgin, anything will work
1 c chopped fresh herbs--basil, parsley, thyme, oregano, tarragon, rosemary, cilantro, savory, sage--or 1/3 c dried herbs.
1 T kosher salt
1 t coarse ground black pepper
1 T granulated garlic or 5-6 cloves fresh, chopped/pressed
*optional: 1 t ground cayenne pepper
*optional: 1 t paprika
*optional: 1 T fennel seeds
*optional: 1 t onion powder, or 1 T dried minced onions

Warm the olive oil to about 100 degrees F. (only warmed! do not heat!) Add there herbs and seasonings of your choice and let steep. When I made this I put in cayenne, paprika, and ground black pepper, and it was pretty spicy.

When the focaccia is almost done resting, line a 17'' x 12'' sheet pan with baking parchment and drizzle 1/4 c olive oil over the parchment, spreading the oil over the entire pan. Transfer the dough to the pan and spoon half the measured herb oil (~1/4 c) on top of the dough. Using your fingers, dimple the dough while spreading it out along the pan. Keep the thickness consistent and don't worry about filling the whole pan. Add more oil if needed, so the top stays coated. Cover with plastic wrap and proof ~2 hrs, until the dough fills the pan.

15 minutes before baking, drizzle on more herb oil, and dimple in the dough so the oil forms pools, and the dough spreads out to fill the entire pan (if it hasn't already). It should be about 1/2'' thick. Let it sit 15-30 minutes before baking, until it has risen to 1''.

Preheat the oven to 500 F, oven rack on the middle shelf. Place the focaccia in the oven, lower the temperature to 450 F, and bake for 15-20 minutes, rotating halfway through. The bread is done when the focaccia is golden brown. Immediately transfer the focaccia to a cooling rack after removing it from the oven. Let cool 20 minutes before serving.

Pignoli Cookies

I first had these cookies, not in Italy, but at an upscale restaurant/cafe I worked at years ago. Everything at the restaurant was made in-house, including artisan breads, desserts, house-cured meats, and all their ingredients were locally sourced. Pignoli were one of the pastry chef's everyday items, and memorable by their distinctive crust, golden toasted pine nuts, and almost creamy-sweet inside. One cookie is enough to satisfy a craving, and this recipe I found replicated the memory exactly.

Peeling the blanched almonds

Ingredients:

12 oz Almond paste: (you can buy this or make the one listed below)

- 3/4 c almonds, blanched & peeled

- 3/4 c powdered sugar

- 1 egg white

- 3/4 t almond extract

- 1/8 t salt

1/2 c sugar

1 c powdered sugar

4 egg whites

1 1/2 c pine nuts

This recipe works best when made in the food processor.

First make the almond paste. Blanch the almonds by placing them in a bowl of boiling water for 1 minute. Rinse twice then remove the skins. Chop up in the food processor until very fine. Add the remaining ingredients and blend until a smooth paste has formed.

Next, add the 1/2 c sugar and 1 c powdered sugar to the food processor. Begin mixing and add 1 egg white, then another. Do not make the batter too wet! I accidentally added too many egg whites and the batter was too wet, so I had to adjust by adding more almonds, more sugar, and some flour. The batter should be workable, so you can roll it into balls, and tacky but not too sticky.

Preheat the oven to 325 F.

Spread the pine nuts out on a dish, and have the remaining egg whites on the side in a small bowl. Roll the dough into 1'' balls, coat in egg white, then roll in the nuts. Place on parchment paper on a baking sheet, and flatten slightly.

Rolling and coating the cookies

Bake 15-20 minutes, until the nuts are toasted, and the cookies are beginning to brown. I rotated my trays halfway through. Transfer to a wire rack for cooling 1 minute after removing from the oven, and let cool before serving.

Cinnamon Buns & Sticky Buns (Teaser)

Because I can't share all of Peter Reinharts recipes (you'll have to go out and buy the book for them), here are photos of the cinnamon buns and sticky buns I made a few weeks ago. I will say, they were superb--some of the best I've had--and well worth the time it took to make them.

I couldn't decide between making sticky buns or cinnamon buns, so I ended up making both. This worked out perfectly because the process for sticky buns was a little more time-consuming and they baked for twice as long at a lower temperature. I put the cinnamon buns in the oven first while the sticky buns continued to rise and I prepped the pan. When the cinnamon buns were done baking, the sticky buns were done rising, so I lowered the oven and placed them in.

Both buns are made with the same dough and swirled roll. The differences come in the finishing touches. Cinnamon buns are glazed with a sweet white fondant, while sticky buns are baked upside down on top of a layer of raisins, nuts, and what will become the caramel glaze. I added orange extract to both glazes to complement the flavor of the buns.

Sticky buns, just out of the oven

Cinnamon buns, glazed and cooling

Cinnamon Raisin Walnut Bread

As a cinnamon-lover I just had to include this recipe. Whenever I crave cinnamon, I usually make a nice orange-flavored cinnamon bread. This version, full of sweet raisins and crunchy nuts brought together with my favorite spice, proved to be tough competition for my standard go-to. Recipe from Peter Reinhart's "The Bread Baker's Apprentice".

The bread takes about 4 1/2 hours to make and yields 2 loaves.

Ingredients:
3 1/2 c bread flour
4 t sugar
1 1/4 t salt
2 t yeast
1 1/4 t cinnamon
1 egg, slightly beaten
2 T shortening, room temperature or melted
1/2 c buttermilk or whole milk, room temperature
3/4 c water, room temperature
1 1/2 c raisins, rinsed and dried
1 c coarsely chopped walnuts

Cinnamon sugar mix: 1/2 c sugar + 2 T cinnamon

In a large bowl, sift together the dry ingredients (flour, sugar, salt, yeast, cinnamon). In another bowl combine the egg, shortening, milk, and water. Add the second mixture to the dry ingredients and combine until a ball of tacky dough has formed. Add more flour or water if necessary to make the dough workable but not too sticky.

Dump the dough onto a floured work surface and knead for 8 minutes, adding flour as needed. Knead in the raisins and walnuts for an additional 2 minutes until they are evenly distributed throughout the dough. I like to do this in the original mixing bowl to avoid spilling ingredients everywhere when I'm trying to mix them in.

Oil the dough and let it rest in a bowl covered in plastic wrap ~2 hours, until doubled in size.

After the dough has doubled, divide it into 2 equal pieces and roll each one out so it is a rectangle approximately 5'' wide and 1/3'' thick. Sprinkle with cinnamon sugar mix and roll up, pinching closed at the end to make a nice firm loaf. Place in oiled loaf pans and cover loosely with plastic wrap. Let sit 60-90 minutes, until the loaves are just peaking above the tops of the pans.

When the loaves are done rising, bake at 350 F for 40-50 minutes, rotating halfway through to ensure an even bake. They are done when they are golden brown and hollow when tapped on the bottom.

Optional: When you remove them from the oven, immediately brush the tops with melted butter (or take solid butter and rub it on, it will melt from the hot bread). Have the cinnamon sugar mix sprinkled on your work surface. Flip the loaves into the cinnamon sugar and roll over to coat.

Cool the loaves minimum 1 hr, recommended 2 hrs, before serving.

Ciabatta

Note: This takes 2 days to make.

Ciabatta is one bread I have wanted to make for a while now, but have always shied away because it requires baking in a steam-injecting oven to achieve it's characteristic crust and texture. Thanks to the direction provided by "The Bread Baker's Apprentice", I was able to replicate this result at home.

Day 1: Make the Poolish sponge

Ingredients:

2 1/2 c bread flour

1 1/2 c water, room temp

1/4 t yeast

Sift the yeast and flour together into a bowl. Add the water and mix until consistent. The dough will be soft and sticky. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let it sit out for 3-4 hours, until the dough forms bubbles. (It helps if you are using a glass bowl; you can see the bubbles through the sides of the bowl. Refrigerate overnight.

Day 2: Make the bread

Remove the poolish from the refrigerator 1 hr before you are ready to begin mixing.

Ingredients:

3 1/4 c poolish (~ the recipe above; measure to double check and adjust other ingredients if needed)

3 c bread flour

1 3/4 t salt

1 1/2 t yeast

6 T - 3/4 c water, lukewarm (can substitute olive oil or warm milk if you want a softer loaf)

Semolina flour or cornmeal for dusting

You can mix the dough by hand or with a mixer or food processor. I used a food processor so I will explain this method first. Sift the dry ingredients into the mixing bowl, then add the poolish. Measure 6 T water into the bowl and turn it on. Slowly add more water through the top until it gathers into a ball. The dough should be wet but not too sticky. Let it run for about a minute to knead itself. Turn it out onto a floured surface.

If working by hand, sift all dry ingredients into a bowl and add the poolish. Using your hand or a mixing spoon, repeatedly dip into the water and mix the dough around the bowl quickly until everything is evenly combined. Change direction occasionally. Continue for 5-7 minutes. When the dough is gathered into a ball, turn it out onto a floured surface.

Press the dough down into a rectangle and let it rest for 2 minutes. Stretch it out to twice it's width, then fold the long ends over each other (like tri-folding a paper into an envelope). It should be back to it's original shape. Spray the dough with oil, dust it with flour, and cover it with plastic wrap. Let it sit 30 minutes.

After a half an hour, repeat the directions in the previous paragraph. Let the dough rest 1 1/2-2 hours.

Next you will be setting the dough up in a couche. Essentially, a cloth you lay down and around the bread to support it while it rises. The book recommends using an old tablecloth; I used an old pillowcase. Make sure the cloth is covered with plenty of flour. Sprinkle the dough with flour. Divide it into 2 or 3 pieces. Roll each piece in the flour so it is coated evenly on every side. Lay each loaf on the cloth, and once more stretch out and fold so they are 6'' long. Make sure there is a wall of cloth between the pieces of dough. Spray the dough with oil, dust with flour, and cover with a towel. Proof 45-60 minutes, until swollen.

Preheat the oven to 500 F. If you have a baking stone, make sure it is in the oven on a mid-lower rack. Also place a cast iron pan or heavy-bottomed baking tray on the top rack. This will be your steam pan. Have a spray bottle of water on the mist setting ready as well. You will use this to mist the sides of the oven walls after the bread is in the oven.

Sprinkle the back of a baking sheet with semolina flour or cornmeal. Bring 1 c water to boil. When the oven is preheated and the loaves have risen, transfer the loaves to the sheet pan. Stretch them out to 9''-12'' long, pressing down the center with your fingertips if needed. Open the oven and slide the loaves onto the baking stone, or place the pan directly in the oven. Pour the 1 c of boiling water into the steam pan and close the door. 

After 30 seconds, open the door and mist the side walls of the oven and close the door.

Repeat the previous step 2 more times. After the final misting, lower the oven temperature to 450 F and set the timer for 10 minutes. Remove the steam pan from the oven. After 10 minutes if the loaves are not done, rotate 180 degrees (if needed) and bake 5-10 mins longer. Mine did not need to be rotated and only baked for a few minutes longer.

Transfer the bread to a cooling rack and cool 45 minutes before serving. The smell, taste, and texture were all spot-on!

Brioche

I am now living with my brother's family in Seattle and they own several fantastic cook books, including "The Bread Baker's Apprentice"by Peter Reinhart. I picked the book up yesterday and could not put it down until I had finished the introduction and reached the first few recipes. I then made up my mind to start working through the recipes in alphabetical order, skipping those I have already made, and going back to the ones I did not have ingredients for.

Brioche is the 4th recipe in this book, and there are 3 versions of it. Rich man's brioche, middle man's brioche, and poor man's brioche. Rich man's brioche contains the greatest proportion of butter to flour (88%), middle man's has less (50%), and poor man's has the least (20-25%). Brioche is traditionally a rich dough, but I didn't want to kill my family by making it so incredibly rich, so I decided to make middle man's brioche.

Note: This recipe took me 2 days to make; it requires 30-45 min fermentation period, 4 hours (min) refrigeration of the dough, ~2 hr rise, and 15-45 mins baking. If you want to complete it in a day, start in the morning.

Ingredients for the sponge:
1/2 c unbleached bread flour
2 t instant yeast
1/2 c whole milk, lukewarm (90-100 degrees F)

Ingredients for the dough:
5 large eggs, slightly beaten
3 cups unbleached bread flour
2 T sugar
1 1/4 t salt
1 c unsalted butter, at room temp

1 egg, whisked until frothy, for egg wash

In a large mixing bowl stir together the ingredients for the sponge until everything is hydrated. Cover with plastic wrap and let sit 30-45 mins, until it is airy and well risen. I forgot to let the butter sit at room temperature, so my sponge sat for 2 hours and it was fine.

While you are waiting for the sponge, prepare the other ingredients. Whisk the eggs together in a bowl. In another bowl, sift together the flour, salt, and sugar. When the sponge is ready, using either an electric mixer or by hand, mix the eggs into the sponge. Add the dry ingredients to the mix, incorporating them slowly until everything is evenly mixed and a sticky dough has formed. Let this sit 5 minutes for the gluten to develop.

Next, begin incorporating the butter, 1/4 at a time. Make sure the butter is mixed in well before adding more. After everything is combined (this will take a while if you are doing it by hand), transfer the dough to a sheet pan lined with parchment paper. Make sure you spray the parchment paper with oil before you place the dough down. I forgot to do this and it stuck to the paper. Press the dough into a rectangle about 6'' x 8''. Spray the top of the dough with oil and cover it in plastic wrap. Refrigerate 4 hours minimum, or overnight.

When you are ready to shape the dough, first decide what shape you are going to make. You can make petites brioches à tête (pictured below), larger versions if you have the correct molds, or loaves. The petite version can be made in a specific mold or just a regular muffin tin, which I used.

This recipe makes 12-16 petites brioches à tête, 2-4 larger brioches à tête, or 2 1 lb loaves. I made 9 petites brioches à tête and 1 loaf.

Spray the pans with oil and remove the dough from the fridge to immediately divide up the dough to begin shaping. If the dough warms up at all place it back in the fridge and wait for it to cool down again. To make the brioche à tête, dust your hands and work surface with flour. There are two methods to shape them. I recommend you try both (as I did) and decide which you like best. 
Method 1: Take the dough and roll it into a strand that tapers at one end. Poke a hole in the thick end and loop the smaller end through. Round the small end off so it looks like a ball.
Method 2: Roll the dough into a ball and press down with you hand while rolling so a small portion breaks off. Roll this into a small ball. Place the large ball into the pan, indent the top, and place the smaller ball on top.

For the loaf lay your dough down on a floured surface and press it into a rectangle, about 7 inches long. Beginning with one of the larger sides, pull the dough over to create suface tension. Do the same with the other edge and tuck the edges together so they stay. Flip the dough over and you will have an even loaf. Place it in the greased pan. Spray with oil and cover with plastic wrap. 

Let the petites brioches à tête rise 1.5-2 hours, until they nearly fill the pans. The loaves and larger brioches à tête will take longer.

After rising, brush with egg and let the dough sit another 15-30 minutes. Preheat the oven during this time. 400 F for the petites brioches à tête and 350 F for the larger brioches à tête and loaves.

Timing actually works out perfectly for making both loaves and petites brioches à tête. The petites brioches à tête were ready first, so I baked them while the loaf was still rising. Then I lowered the oven temperature and baked the loaf.

Bake the petites brioches à tête 25-20 minutes, until they are golden brown. Bake the loaves and larger brioches à tête 35-50 minutes. (my loaf took about 45 minutes) Remember the oven temperature is 50 degrees lover for the larger ones.

Immediately remove from the pan when they come out of the oven and let them cool 20 minutes (small) or 1 hr (loaf/large) before serving. Enjoy with jam or your choice of topping. Definitely worth the work and/or wait!

Petites brioches à tête out of the oven. The loaf is still baking.