Almond White Bean Lean Loaf Made With A Biga (B&P38)

Quest, circa 1303, "a search for something" (esp. of judicial inquiries or hounds seeking game), from O.Fr. queste (Fr. quête), prop. "the act of seeking," from M.L. questa "search, inquiry," alteration of L. quæsitus, pp. of quærere "seek, gain, ask" (see query). Romance sense of "adventure undertaken by a knight" is attested from c.1384. The verb is first recorded c.1350.

Modern Language Association (MLA): "quest." Online Etymology Dictionary. Douglas Harper, Historian. 16 Feb. 2010. <Dictionary.com http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/quest>.

Each morning, most of us rise, get dressed, guzzle down a cup of coffee or tea and begin our search. We seek income, food, housing, safety, love and more. Each of our quests might not be along the lines a romantic grand tradition, however each one is necessary.

Every day, my husband goes out and seeks to do his best for employer and his clients. Each day, I seek to do my best for my family, whether it is through loving my family, caring for our home, cooking nutritious gluten free food, meeting our Sheltie's canine needs and working on my own endeavors.

Currently at Gluten A Go Go, I seek to bake artisan gluten free bread, and blog my adventure. Each conversion of a bread recipe from the CIA's Baking and Pastry tome, is a new challenge. A new opportunity to find the best artisan gluten free bread, a loaf that is airy, nutritious and doesn't fall apart when you eat it.

My quest can be broken down into smaller pursuits. Each one providing me an opportunity for the thrill of victory, such as getting the yeast to rise or the bread not to crumble. Yet, each of pursuits has the opportunity to fail and each one has at various times. Sometimes these failures have been pretty spectacular and others not so much. Each time I fail, I try again. Although quite honestly I think these basic lean bread recipes have it in for me. I have to remake these recipes more than any of the others in my baking project. This version turned out beautifully and has a fabulous slightly fermented taste. It's reminiscent of ciabatta, a recipe that is coming soon.

I'm slowly working my way through Baking and Pastry. My life doesn't quite accomodate the speed that  Julie Powell was able to generate while cooking through, Mastering the Art of French Cooking. It took Julia Child, Louisette Bertholle and Simone Beck, years to create Mastering the Art of French Cooking. They didn't give up. They kept seeking the best recipes. They kept cooking until they got it right.

I keep at my quest.  Some days, I find the romance (see my next bread, Cracked Rice and Roasted Potato Baguette). Other days...well...dadgum...if it could go wrong...it did.

At that point, I take a break and think on things. I work on my other pursuits, such as photography. I'm working on adding to my camera equipment, learning how to use it better and acting like bird paparazzi. I'm after a really nice image of a male cardinal and red hawk that are gracing the land around us.

Do you have a quest?

Protein Content

Biga:
Original: 11.05 g
Gluten Free: 12.23 g

Dough:
Original: 16.7 g
Gluten Free: 16.65 g

Biga

16 g brown rice flour (1.44 g)
16 g sweet rice flour (0.96 g)
16 g arrowroot starch (0.03 g)
19 g almond meal (4.32 g)
18 g white bean flour (4.08 g)
12 g instant dry yeast
50 ml water
15 ml agave syrup

Final Dough

22 g brown rice flour (1.98 g)
22 g sweet rice flour (1.32 g )
24 g arrowroot starch (0.07 g)
30 g almond meal (6 g)
28 g white bean flour (6.02 g)
6 g chia seed meal (1.26 g)
6 g sea salt
4 g agar agar powder
15 g instant dry yeast
126 g biga (from above)
20 ml agave syrup
128 ml water (120 - 130 degrees F/48 - 54 degrees C)

Biga Directions

In a medium sized bowl, combine the flours, water, agave syrup and yeast. Mix together, making sure the mixture is smooth. Cover the mixture or transfer to a container and allow to ferment at 75 degrees F/24 degrees C for 18 to 24 hours.  When the biga is ready to use, it will have risen and receded, yet also look bubbly.

Final Dough Directions

1. In a large bowl, combine all the dry ingredients with the exception of the salt.  Hold the salt out, so it can be added later in the mixing.  Add the biga, water and agave syrup and blend together, just before the dough comes together, sprinkle in the salt and then continue blending until a soft ball forms. If the dough is still too soft, add arrowroot starch by the tablespoon (1 Tb/15 ml) until the dough firms up.
2. Place the dough in the center of a sheet of parchment paper that has been sprinkled with arrowroot starch. Gently roll the dough into a cylinder about 10 in/25 cm long and taper the ends. Take a sharp knife and slice a cut across the center of the cylinder at a slight angle. Place matching cuts on either side of the center cut, so there are three cuts altogether. Slide the parchment paper onto a cookie sheet and place in a warm location to rise for 2 hours.
3. Place an oven proof bowl filled with water on the bottom shelf of the oven. Then place a baking stone on the top shelf. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F/232 degrees C. Place the loaf in the oven and spray water over the oven box and the top of the loaf. Bake the loaf for 30 minutes. Prop the oven door open and continue to cook the bread for another 10 minutes. Remove the loaf and allow it to cool before serving.
What's Going On?

I was a very lucky woman and received a copy of the Culinary Institute of America's Baking & Pastry book along with their DVD's from my family for my birthday. After watching all the DVDs, I decided to work my way through the CIA's Baking and Pastry book - of course making it gluten free. There were so many skills that I wanted to develop and work on. I hope you will be interested in sharing my journey with me.


Want more?

You can follow me on Twitter and on Flickr.


Other Baking & Pastry Project Posts

Baking & Pastry Week 18 - Poolishes
Baking & Pastry #34 - Almond Buckwheat BatardBaking & Pastry #33 - Stollen
Baking & Pastry Week 17 - A Sponge and a Poolish
Baking & Pastry #32 - Gugelhopf
Baking & Pastry #31 - Panettone

Almond White Bean Lean Loaf Made With A Poolish (B&P37)

I'm back on the baking trail now that my flours have all arrived. Last week, I was on the hunt for flours when my order went the opposite direction from me. It put a real crimp in my making the January Daring Bakers Challenge. So, I decided to maximize my chances of getting an order by picking 3 different vendors to order from. I was able to get enough flour in to finish the DB Challenge fortunately. However it wasn't enough to go back to baking bread. All the flours finally came in and I've got bread on the menu for today.

It's a truly lovely loaf of Almond White Bean Bread - a lean dough that is egg and dairy free. It has a wonderful flavor that is great as toast with scrambled eggs, a dollop of strawberry jelly or simply for eating plain.

This picture is from the first set I made in early morning light. I was waiting for later in the day, for a second set, when the light would be brighter and warmer through the patio doors. The dining area contains my photo studio in our temporary home, so I got things ready and then went off to take a shower. When I was finished getting ready, I discovered my son in his search for something to eat with his scrambled eggs had absconded with the loaf. A good portion was already gone and my daughter was digging into it to add to her breakfast plate. By the time the afternoon light came around, there wasn't enough of the loaf left to take another picture.

What's coming up next in my bread baking adventure? Bigas...another method of pre-ferment, which was used by Italian bakers. The biga will add a more complex flavor and larger air pockets. Well...I'm hopeful about the larger air holes, because you've got to keep on your positive thinking cap when you bake gluten free bread.  First up will be the basic lean bread, Almond White Bean.Then I'm making a Cracked Rice and Potato Loaf that has the addition of whole grains of rice in it.

If you haven't tried many of the alternative flours, but you'd like to give some of them a try. Check out my latest article for the Daring Kitchen called "Playing With Alternative Flours."  It might help you over the hurdle and into trying out an alternative flour that will add a different flavor, texture or nutrition to your food.


Recipe

Protein Content
Original: 33.8 g
Gluten Free: 33.44 g


Poolish

22 g brown rice flour (1.98 g)
22 g sweet rice flour (1.32 g)
22 g arrowroot starch (.06 g)
34 g almond meal (6.8 g)
28 g white bean flour (6.45 g)
12 g instant dry yeast
131 ml water
15 ml agave syrup

Final Dough

10 g brown rice flour (.09 g)
22 g sweet rice flour (1.32 g)
22 g arrowroot starch (.06 g)
35 g almond meal (7 g)
16 g buckwheat flour (2.32 g)
25 g white bean flour (5.37 g)
________________________replaces durum flour
22 g  brown rice flour (1.98 g)
22 g sweet rice flour (1.32 g)
22 g arrowroot starch (.06 g)
30 g almond meal (6 g)
28 g white bean flour (6.02 g)
6 g chia seed meal (1.26 g)
________________________replaces bread flour
15 g instant dry yeast
10 g sea salt
4 g agar agar powder
135 ml water (120 - 130 degrees F)
10 ml agave syrup

Directions for Poolish

Pour all the dry ingredients in a medium sized bowl and blend together. Then add the water and agave syrup and stir until incorporated. Set the bowl in a warm location to rise for 30 minutes.
 
Directions for Final Dough

1. In a large bowl, combine all the dry ingredients and stir together. Add the poolish, water and agave syrup and blend together until a soft ball forms.  If the dough is still too soft, add arrowroot starch by the tablespoon (1 Tb/15 ml) until the dough firms up.

2. Place the dough in the center of a sheet of parchment paper that has been sprinkled with arrowroot starch.  Gently roll the dough into a cylinder about 10 in/25 cm long and taper the ends. Take a sharp knife and slice a an arcing cut in the center of the cylinder at an angle.  Slide the parchment paper onto a cookie sheet and place in a warm location to rise for 2 hours.

3. Place an oven proof bowl filled with water on the bottom shelf of the oven.  Then place a baking stone on the top shelf. Preheat the oven to 475 degrees F/246 degrees C. Place the loaf in the oven and spray water over the oven box and the top of the loaf.  Bake the loaf for 20 minutes. Prop the oven door open and continue to cook the bread for another 10 minutes.  Remove the loaf and allow it to cool before serving.

What's Going On?

I was a very lucky woman and received a copy of the Culinary Institute of America's Baking & Pastry book along with their DVD's from my family for my birthday. After watching all the DVDs, I decided to work my way through the CIA's Baking and Pastry book - of course making it gluten free. There were so many skills that I wanted to develop and work on. I hope you will be interested in sharing my journey with me.


Want more?

You can follow me on Twitter and on Flickr.


Other Baking & Pastry Project Posts

Baking & Pastry #36 - Roasted Potato & Basil Loaf
Baking & Pastry #35 - Almond White Bean Epi Wreath
Baking & Pastry Week 18 - Poolishes
Baking & Pastry #34 - Almond Buckwheat Batard
Baking & Pastry #33 - Stollen
Baking & Pastry Week 17 - A Sponge and a Poolish

Almond & White Bean Epi Wreath (B&P35)

Winter has barely started and we've got quite a bit of snow on the ground. Every afternoon, I'm outside with the kids and the dog. One day it's a snowball fight, the next day they are battling their way up the hill only to slide back down.

Our dog is always in the middle of the action chasing any flying snow. She plays a mean game of snowball, but she plays as shortstop. Her mission is to jump up and stop the balls before they can hit anyone. 

It's been so cold, we bought her some Muttluks for her feet. She hasn't gotten used to them yet. Poor thing just minces around until she can manage to shake one of them off her feet.

For us, cold days require a bowl of soup served with a crusty roll. After spending a few hours in the cold, there is nothing better to warm your body back up. Well, hugging the radiator works really well too.

This is a wonderful loaf of bread, that smells heavenly while it's baking. It has a crackly crust that snaps nicely when you break apart the leaves. If you don't have any soup, warm your bread and serve it with a variety of cheeses. Delicious.


Recipe
Yield: 1 1-lb epi wreath

Protein Content:
Original Amount: 28.34 g
Gluten Free Amount: 29.708 g

Poolish

16 g brown rice flour (1.44 g)
16 g sweet rice flour (0.96 g)
16 g arrowroot starch (0.03 g)
19 g almond meal (4.32 g)
18 g white bean flour (4.085 g)
12 g instant yeast
90 ml water (115 to 120 deg F/46 to 49 deg C)
15 ml agave syrup

Dough

25 g brown rice flour (2.25 g)
25 g sweet rice flour (1.5 g)
24 g arrowroot starch (0.3 g)
30 g almond meal (7.2 g)
28 g white bean flour (6.02 g)
6 g sea salt
6 g chia seed meal
4 g agar agar powder
130 g poolish
30 ml agave syrup
60 ml water (115 to 120 deg F/46 to 49 deg C)

Directions for Poolish


Pour all the dry ingredients in a medium sized bowl and blend together. Then add the water and agave syrup and stir until incorporated. Set the bowl in a warm location to rise for 30 minutes.

Directions for Final Dough

1. In a large bowl, combine all the dry ingredients and stir together. Add the poolish, water and agave syrup and blend together until a soft ball forms.
2. Place the dough in the center of a sheet of parchment paper that has been sprinkled with arrowroot starch. Gently roll the dough into a cylinder about 15 in/38 cm long. Gently ease the ends of the dough together into a circle. Press the ends of the dough together. Take scissors or a sharp knife and holding them at a 45 degree angle, make diagonal cuts down the center of the ring.  Place each cut piece to the side as you cut it. Then place a parallel slice on either side of the center cut. Slide the parchment paper onto a cookie sheet and place in a warm location to rise for 1 1/2 hours.

3. Place an oven proof bowl filled with water on the bottom shelf of the oven. Then place a baking stone on the top shelf. Preheat the oven to 475 degrees F/246 degrees C. Slide the loaf on the parchment paper onto the baking stone. Thenspray water over the oven box and the top of the loaf. Bake for 10 - 15 minutes. Prop the oven door open and continue to cook the bread for another 5 minutes. Remove the loaf and allow it to cool before serving.

What's Going On?

I was a very lucky woman and received a copy of the Culinary Institute of America's Baking & Pastry book along with their DVD's from my family for my birthday. After watching all the DVDs, I decided to work my way through the CIA's Baking and Pastry book - of course making it gluten free. There were so many skills that I wanted to develop and work on. I hope you will be interested in sharing my journey with me.


Want more?

You can follow me on Twitter and on Flickr.


Other Baking & Pastry Project Posts

Baking & Pastry Week 18 - Poolishes
Baking & Pastry #34 - Almond Buckwheat Batard
Baking & Pastry #33 - Stollen
Baking & Pastry Week 17 - A Sponge and a Poolish
Baking & Pastry #32 - Gugelhopf
Baking & Pastry #31 - Panettone

Almond Buckwheat Batard with Poolish (B&P#34)

Fresh bread can be sheer torture. It's the aroma while baking, the crackle of the crust or the delicious flavor when you bite into your slice. I like the loaves that get a bit toasty in the oven. Those loaves are a joy to tear into once they've cooled.

This is one of those loaves. It never made it to toast for breakfast or sandwiches for lunch. We divided it amongst the four of us and slowly devoured it.

This is a wonderful flour combination. When baked the flavor is very reminescent of a stone ground wheat loaf or at least how I remembered it tasting. My husband, who can glutenize, thought the flavor was evocative of a wheat loaf that was baked in a brick oven. Oh, my heart was skipping with that comment...that's high praise. I hugged the sweetness of his compliment to me. He knew that my first attempt with buckwheat and tepary beans tasted like old musty beans.

Enjoy!

Recipe

Protein Content:
Original Content: 50.7 g
GF Content: 49.18 g

Poolish

45 g Almond Meal (9 g)
50 g Buckwheat flour (7.25 g)
35 g Arrowroot Starch (0.105 g)___________replacement for whole wheat flour
15 g Instant Dry Yeast
15 ml Agave Syrup
180 ml Water (120 - 130 deg F/49 - 54 deg C)

Final Dough

20 g Brown Rice Flour (1.8 g)
25 g Sweet Rice Flour (1.5 g)
25 g Arrowroot Starch (0.3 g)
54 g White Bean Flour (11.61 g)
6 g Chia Seed Meal (1.26 g)______________replacement for bread flour
45 g Almond Meal (9 g)
50 g Buckwheat Flour (7.25 g)
35 g Arrowroot Starch (0.105 g)___________replacement for whole wheat flour
4 g Agar Agar Powder
15 g Instant Dry Yeast
10 g Sea Salt
254 g Poolish (above)
90 ml Water (120 - 130 deg F/49 - 54 deg C)
15 ml Agave Syrup


Directions for Poolish

Pour all the dry ingredients in a medium sized bowl and blend together. Then add the water and agave syrup and stir until incorporated. Set the bowl in a warm location to rise for 40 minutes.
 
Directions for Final Dough

1. In a large bowl, combine all the dry ingredients and stir together. Add the poolish, water and agave syrup and blend together until a soft ball forms.  If the dough is still too soft, add arrowroot starch by the tablespoon (1 Tb/15 ml) until the dough firms up.

2. Place the dough in the center of a sheet of parchment paper that has been sprinkled with arrowroot starch.  Gently roll the dough into a cylinder about 10 in/25 cm long and taper the ends. Take a sharp knife and slice a cut in the center of the cylinder at an angle.  Then place a parallel slice on either side of the center cut. Slide the parchment paper onto a cookie sheet and place in a warm location to rise for 1 1/2 hours.

3. Place an oven proof bowl filled with water on the bottom shelf of the oven.  Then place a baking stone on the top shelf. Preheat the oven to 470 degrees F/243 degrees C. Place the loaf in the oven and spray water over the oven box and the top of the loaf.  Bake the loaf for 25 minutes. Prop the oven door open and continue to cook the bread for another 10 minutes.  Remove the loaf and allow it to cool before serving.

Gugelhopf Crown (B&P#32)

A gugelhopf crown is a rich and moist holiday bread. Filled with raisins and almonds, it has a wonderful flavor and scent.

Serve with your favorite coffee while you sit and enjoy the beauty of a fall morning.

Recipe

Protein Content:
Original Content: 16.38 g
GF Content: 16.07 g

Sponge

20 g brown rice flour (1.8 g)
25 g sweet rice flour (1.5 g)
20 g arrowroot startch (0.06 g)
25 g almond meal (5 g)
30 g white bean flour (6.45 g)
6 g chia seed meal (1.26 g)
20 g instant dry yeast
176 ml milk
7 ml vanilla extract
15 ml agave syrup

Final Dough

20 g brown rice flour (1.8 g)
25 g sweet rice flour (1.5 g)
25 g arrowroot starch (0.075 g)
35 g almond meal (7 g)
31 g white bean flour (6.665 g)
4 g agar agar powder
78 g cane sugar
5 g sea salt
78 g raisins
14 g almonds, chopped
78 g butter, soft
139 g eggs (approx. 3 eggs)
252 g sponge (above)

Sponge Directions:

Place all the ingredients in a medium sized bowl and mix well. Cover the bowl and place in a warm location.  Allow the sponge to rise and ferment for 20 minutes (75 degrees F/27 degrees C).

Final Dough Directions:

1. In a large bowl, place the flours, sugar, salt, agar agar, raisins and almonds, then mix together. Then add the sponge, eggs and softened butter. Stir until blended and the dough forms a soft ball.  You may need to add a tablespoon/15 ml of arrowroot starch to help it form a soft ball.

2. Grease and flour a 5 cup gugelhopf pan. Place slivered almonds in the bottom of the pan so that they form a ring or crown.  Pour in the batter and place on a parchment paper lined cookie sheet. Place in a warm location to rise for 2 hours.

3. Place a bowl of water in an oven proof bowl and set it on the bottom shelf of the oven.  Prehat the oven to 375 degrees F/191 degrees C. Place the gugelhopf on the cookie sheet into the oven and bake for 30 to 40 minutes.  Cool slightly before inverting and removing the bread from the pan.  Allow to cool on a rack before serving.

Chocolate Macarons with Godiva Buttercream Filling

The October Daring Baker Challenge

The 2009 October Daring Baker's challenge was brought to us by Ami S. She chose macarons from Claudia Fleming's The Last Course: The Desserts of Gramercy Tavern as the challenge recipe. You can visit Ami at her blog, Baking Without Fear.

More than a few have suggested that French-style macaroons (called macarons in France) might supplant the cupcake. This may or may not come to pass, but the basic premise of the French macaroon is pretty damned tasty.  In the United States, the term “macaroon” generally refers to a cookie made primarily of coconut. But European macaroons are based on either ground almonds or almond paste, combined with sugar and egg whites. The texture can run from chewy, crunchy or a combination of the two.

Frequently, two macaroons are sandwiched together with ganache, buttercream or jam, which can cause the cookies to become more chewy. The flavor possibilities and combinations are nigh endless, allowing infinitely customizable permutations.

Ami tried quite a few different recipes and discovered that her favorite macaroon recipe comes from Claudia Fleming’s The Last Course: The Desserts of Gramercy Tavern. They have given her the most consistent results and so, for everyone’s delectation, here is an adaptation of Ms. Fleming’s recipe.

Recipe
Yield: 6 to 10 dozen, depending on size

Notes:

1. It takes a little more time to get everything ready to bake, but it doesn't take very long to bake the macarons.

2. Egg whites must be at room temperature.

3. Silicone baking sheets (i.e. Silpat) work better than parchment paper for piping out the macarons.  However, if you chose to use parchment paper be very careful when you peel the paper off the back of the macarons.

4. You can make a stencil to pipe your macarons, so that they will all be the same size.

5. For 1 inch macarons, pipe out a 1/2 inch sized dollop of batter.  As they dry on the counter, the macaron batter will spread out to the 1 inch size.

6. Pipe out the macarons, before preheating the oven to 200 degrees Fahrenheit. It will allow the macarons to air dry for about 15 minutes before you start baking them.

7. Allow the macarons to completely cool, before trying to remove them from the pan.


Not taking into account the amount of time it takes for you to bring your egg whites to room temperature, the whole baking process, including making the batter, piping and baking will probably take you about an hour to an hour and a half. How long it takes to make your filling is dependent on what you choose to make.

Actual baking time: 12 minutes total, plus a few minutes to get your oven from 200°F to 375°F.

Equipment required:

Electric mixer, preferably a stand mixer with a whisk attachment
Rubber spatula
Baking sheets
Parchment paper or nonstick liners
Pastry bag (can be disposable)
Plain half-inch pastry bag tip
Sifter or sieve
If you don’t have a pastry bag and/or tips, you can use a Ziploc bag with the corner snipped off
Oven
Cooling rack
Thin-bladed spatula for removing the macaroons from the baking sheets
Food processor or nut grinder, if grinding your own nut


Ingredients

2 1/4 cups confectioners’ (icing) sugar (225 g, 8 oz.)
2 cups almond flour (190 g, 6.7 oz.)
2 Tb granulated sugar (25 g , 0.88 oz.)
5 egg whites, room temperature
1/4 tsp chocolate extract

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 200°F (93°C). Combine the confectioners’ sugar and almond flour in a medium bowl. If grinding your own nuts, combine nuts and a cup of confectioners’ sugar in the bowl of a food processor and grind until nuts are very fine and powdery.

2. Beat the egg whites in the clean dry bowl of a stand mixer until they hold soft peaks. Slowly add the granulated sugar and beat until the mixture holds stiff peaks.

3. Sift a third of the almond flour mixture into the meringue and fold gently to combine. If you are planning on adding zest or other flavorings to the batter, now is the time. Sift in the remaining almond flour in two batches. Be gentle! Don’t overfold, but fully incorporate your ingredients.

4. Spoon the mixture into a pastry bag fitted with a plain half-inch tip (Ateco #806). You can also use a Ziploc bag with a corner cut off. It’s easiest to fill your bag if you stand it up in a tall glass and fold the top down before spooning in the batter.

5. Pipe one-inch-sized (2.5 cm) mounds of batter onto baking sheets lined with nonstick liners (or parchment paper).

6. Bake the macaroon for 5 minutes. Remove the pan from the oven and raise the temperature to 375°F (190°C). Once the oven is up to temperature, put the pans back in the oven and bake for an additional 7 to 8 minutes, or lightly colored.

7. Cool on a rack before filling.

Godiva Buttercream

1 stick butter, softened
1 cup confectioner's sugar, sifted
1 Tb milk or cream
1 oz dark chocolate, melted
1 1/2 tsp Godiva Chocolate Liquor


1. Place the butter into the bowl of an electric mixer and beat until creamy.  Add the milk, chocolate and liquor and blend.  Then slowly add the confectioner's sugar and beat until thoroughly incorporated.

2. Fill a pastry bag (using a plain tip) with the buttercream and pipe on the flat side of a macaron.

White Bean Lean Bread With Pate Fermentee (B&P29)

This is a soft and moist loaf. The interior has a lovely texture and tastes great.  It hits divine status when toasted and topped with a dollop of apricot preserves.

Traditionally, this type of boule is pressed down the center with a rolling pin and then flipped over. It's allowed to rise and then flipped over to bake. I (following the directions) flipped my beautifully rounded boule and immediately realized I shouldn't have done it. Why you ask? Well, that prebaking flip literally beat the air bubbles out of the bread. Next the baking the bread cracked all along the press line and the edges. (See the picture above.) Reminded me of one of those mega disaster movies that were running this week on the Syfy Channel.

Essentially, when you bake gluten free bread you really have to nurture your yeast. You've got to make sure that you feed it with some sugar, agave syrup, rice syrup. This will enable those lovely air pockets to form. Next don't do anything that will pop those pockets like they were the flimsiest of bubbles. The directions for making this loaf, without the prebaking flip, are below.

Before you bake this loaf, make sure you stop by your local grocery store for a nice jar of apricot preserves. You might have to do some more strenuous exercising for the next few days to recover from the indulgence...It's that good.


Recipe

Protein Content:
Original Amount: 36.92 g
GF Amount: 36 g

Dough

45 g brown rice flour (4.5 g)
50 g sweet rice flour (3.0 g)
50 g arrowroot starch (0.15 g)
70 g almond meal (14 g)
7 g chia seed meal (1.47 g)
62 g white bean flour (13.33 g)
20 g instant dry yeast
7 g sea salt
4 g agar agar powder
85 g pate fermentee
283 ml water

Pate Fermentee

60 g brown rice flour (5.4 g)
30 g sweet rice flour (1.8 g)
30 g arrowroot starch (0.9 g)
52 g millet flour (5.98 g)
102 g white bean flour (21.93 g)
6 g chia seed meal
11 g instant dry yeast
6 g sea salt
32 ml agave syrup
223 ml water

Pate Fermentee

1. Place the dry ingredients in a large bowl and blend thoroughly. Pour the liquid ingredients in a medium bowl and stir together. Add the liquid ingredients to the dry ingredients and blend. 

2. Measure out 85 g of pate fermentee and set aside for use in the main recipe.  The excess pate fermentee should be put in a lidded container and stored in the refrigerator until you want to use the rest. 

Note: If you would like to make the next recipe in the Baking & Pastry Project Multigrain Bread with Pate Fermentee you will need to save 66 g of the dough.  The rest can be baked into rolls or a small loaf of bread.  Rise and bake according to the instructions in this recipe.

Dough

1. Place the dry ingredients in a large bowl and blend thoroughly. Pour the liquid ingredients in a medium bowl and stir together. Add the liquid ingredients to the dry ingredients and blend.

2.  On a sheet of parchment paper with arrowroot starch sprinkled on it, place the dough in the center.  Form into a round boule. Using your rolling pin press a line across the loaf that is 2" deep.  Slide the parchment paper onto a sheet pan and then place in a warm location to rise for 2 hours.

3.  Place an oven proof bowl with water in it on the bottom shelf of your oven. Place a baking stone on the upper shelf that is in the center of the upper third of your oven. Then preheat the oven to 460 degrees F/238 degrees C.  Slide the parchment paper with the bread onto the baking stone.  Squirt water on the bottom, sides and top of the oven with a spray bottle. Cook for 15 minutes and then place a wooden spoon in the door. Leaving the door ajar cook for another 10 minutes.  Cool on a rack before serving

Almond & Millet Yeast Raised Doughnuts (B&P27)

I'm drooling.

I want doughnuts.

They were sooooo good...

Delicious cake style doughnuts with a sheer fondant glaze with a variety of toppings are on the menu for today.

As a family, we did what we call a "Mo-down" like the "Throwdown's with Bobby Flay." This is where I, as Mom, bake off against a favorite food item.  My doughnut "Mo-Down" was between me and Thomas' Donuts on Front Beach Road in Panama City Beach, Florida.  Our kids chose my contenders from favorite or one-time favorite food items.

The kids and I haven't had many doughntus since we've had to go gluten free. I've only made gluten free idoughnuts once and those were the ones I made last year for Tartelette's Blog Event. So, it's been awhile and they were more than ready for me to crank up the grease and get cooking. This recipe makes doughnuts which are like old fashioned or cake styles, rather than the beautifully puffy ones called "glazed" by places such as Dunkin' Donuts or Krispy Kreme.

We headed out to Thomas' and picked up a variety of doughnuts. When we got home, we broke out the wheat and gluten free doughnuts and set up the plates for the judges.  My husband was the tie breaker vote, while the kids and my parents were the judges. Our voting system is simple, something along the lines of what was used in the Coliseum...thumbs up or thumbs down. As a contender, you get a swirl of hope and doom as you watch them eat. It's nothing like facing a lion or gladiator, but you do sit on pins and needles while you wait for their verdict. The result? The kids - two thumbs down, because they weren't like the puffy doughnuts. My parents - two thumbs up, because they loved the flavor and they like cake style doughnuts. The tie breaker - a thumbs up, because he like the flavor and the crunchiness of the gluten free doughnuts.

So, I held my own against a beautiful and classic wheat cake doughnut. Pheew!

Now I just need to figure out how to make a puffy glazed doughnut.


Recipe

Total Protein Content:
Original Content: 34.70 g
GF Content: 34.79 g

Equipment Needed: Doughnut Cutter, Deep-Fat/Candy Thermometer, Stock Pot or Deep-Fat Fryer, Cookie Sheets, Cake Rack, Bowls.

Doughnut Dough

30 g brown rice flour (2.7 g)
25 g sweet rice flour (1.5 g)
25 g arrowroot flour (.075 g)
48 g almond meal (9.6 g)
36 g millet flour (5.52 g)
18 g white bean flour (3.87 g)
6 g chia seed meal (1.26 g)
_______________________replaces the bread flour

30 g brown rice flour (2.7 g)
20 g sweet rice flour (1.2 g)
24 g arrowroot starch (0.07 g)
20 g almond meal (4 g)
20 g millet flour (2.3 g)
_______________________replaces the pastry flour

22 g instant dry yeast
8 g agar agar powder
50 g sugar
19 g non-fat dry milk
6 g baking powder
5 g sea salt
pinch nutmeg, ground
4 ml agave syrup
160 ml water
49 g egg
58 g emulsified shortening
Oil for frying
Toppings for Doughnuts: sprinkles, confectioner's sugar, vanilla sugar, fondant glaze

Fondant Glaze

1 g gelatin
15 ml water
28 g corn syrup
2 g glycerin
225 g confectioner's sugar

1.  In a large bowl, place all the dry ingredients and blend well. In a medium sized bowl, pour all the liquid ingredients and stir together. Pour the liquid ingredients into the dry ingredients and stir until a soft ball forms.

2. On a sheet of parchment paper with arrowroot starch sprinkled on it.  Place the dough in the center of the parchment paper and pat it out until it is 1/2 inch/1 cm thick. Dust the surface of the dough with arrowroot starch and dip the cutter into the arrowroot starch. Then cut out the doughnuts, using a spatula to pick them up. Place on a cookie sheet covered with a piece of parchment paper sprinkled with arrowroot. Continue until all the dough has been formed into doughnuts.  Place in a warm location to rise for about 1 1/2 hours.

4. Fondant: Place the water in a pot and warm. Pour the gelatin in the water and melt. Remove from the heat and then add the corn syrup and glycerin. Place the confectioner's sugar into a bowl and slowly pour the gelatin mixture into the sugar. Stir until the sugar is thoroughly blended with the gelatin mixture. It should the consistency of a glaze. Set aside for glazing the doughnuts after cooking.

5. Heat the oil to 350 degrees F/177 degrees C. Line a cookie pan with paper towels. Place a few doughnuts at a time into the oil and cook for 2 minutes. Turn the doughnuts over and cook for another minute or until it has a golden color.  Lift the doughnuts out of the oil with a spider or slotted spatula, allow the oil to drain off before placing on the paper towels. While cooking the doughnuts, keep an eye on the temperature of the oil. 

6. Roll the warm doughnuts in the confectioner's or vanilla sugar or dip in warm fondant glaze. If you want sprinkle the fondant glazed doughnuts with sprinkles. Place the fondant dipped doughnuts on a paper towel lined cookie sheet with a cake rack, so the excess glaze can drip off. Garnish the just glazed doughnuts with sprinkles, coconut or decorating sugar.

Other Baking & Pastry Project Posts

Index of the Baking & Pastry Project

Baking & Pastry Project #26 - Pita

Baking & Pastry Project #25 - Naan

Baking & Pastry Project Week 13 - Flatbreads

Baking & Pastry Project #24 - Lavosh

Baking & Pastry Project #23 - Pizza
Baking & Pastry Project Week 12 - Pizza & Crackers
Baking & Pastry Project #22 - Soft Pretzels
Baking & Pastry Project #21 - Crescia al Formaggio
Baking & Pastry Project Week 11 - Parmesan & Pretzels

 

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Craquelin (B&P20)

Baking & Pastry Project #20 - Cracquelin

What do you do with a growing 13 year old? Well...actually not that much.

Our son would get up in the morning, eat off and on for about an hour. Then he'd sit down to read a book and fall asleep. Or he'd be playing Sins of a Solar Empire on his laptop and fall asleep with his head on his elbow. He was sleeping at night...well, except for those periods when he'd get up and wipe out the left over pizza or roast chicken.

He just about slept through August.

On Friday, he woke up full of energy. He barreled into the kitchen and announced that he felt different, not like himself at all. I went over to give him a hug and discovered I had to look up to see his eyes. This calls for a new height check. He's two inches taller than he was when we measured him in July.

He's now 5'7" and taller than me.

One night while my husband and I were trading bad narcolepsy jokes, I made this loaf of craquelin. It turned out beautifully, although it had a large air pocket in the middle. As the bread cooled the X collapsed into the center of the air pocket.

This loaf wasn't our favorite. None of us enjoyed the craquelin bread, although we all liked the crusty brioche on the outside. We weren't crazy about the not quite dissolved sugar cubes in the bread. Each of us took our slices apart and devouring the brioche crust. The remainder of the brioche crust was consumed in the wee hours of the morning by our rapidly growing son.

Recipe

Craquelin

284 g Brioche Dough
70 g Sugar Cubes
5 g Lemon Zest, grated

Brioche

516 g Brioche Dough


Craquelin Dough

In a large bowl, mix the brioche dough along with the sugar cubes and lemon zest. Work the dough just until the sugar cubes are incorporated. Shape the dough into a ball.


Brioche Dough

Mix the brioche dough according to the recipe found here.


Putting It Together

1. Coat the inside of a panettone wrapper with vegetable shortening. Then coat the shortening with rice flour, tap it around the bottom and sides. Tap the excess out of the wrapper.

2. Sprinkle sweet rice flour over a sheet of parchment paper. Roll the brioche dough into a 6 "/15 cm circle. Then wrap it around the craquelin dough ball. Gather the edges together at the bottom to form a boule. Place the loaf seam side down into the prepared panettone wrapper.

3. Allow the dough to rise in a warm location for 2 to 3 hours. After it has finished rising score the top of the loaf with a knife into an X.

4. Place a bowl of water in an oven proof pan or bowl into the oven. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit/191 degrees Celsius. Place the bread into the oven and bake until the crust is golden brown, about 40 to 50 minutes. Cool completely on a rack before serving.

Brioche (B&P19)

Baking & Pastry Project #19 - Brioche

When my family all gets together...my Dad and I tend to become the fodder of the family snicker...especially at breakfast.

We have a tendency to go on a jam, preserves, jelly or curd adventure. We grab a bunch of spoons and start tasting our way through what ever new or interesting jams we've come across. I have a weakness for lime curd while my Dad has a thing for pineapple preserves. We draw a dividing line in the jar of fig preserves...his side and my side.

I think it's the number of spoons on the counter that starts the snickering. Maybe it's the lack of bread at our little jam fest.

We're not sugar junkies. It's the smooth sugary fruity perfection of the jam. A flavor that is subdued when you add it to bread.

To stiffle some of the snickerers, we picked up some English muffins and I made a brioche. It was a fabulously buttery and rich egg bread. So much so, we all fell into a bit of gluttony when it was cool enough to eat.

Out came the butter and the jam collection to adorn chunks of bread cut by our kids. The smell of the bread was driving them crazy, so they fixed up the bread for us all to try. By the time we were done, there was just a collection of crumbs on the platter.


Recipe

Bread

35 g brown rice flour (3.15 g)
35 g sweet rice flour (2.1 g)
35 g arrowroot starch (.105 g)
60 g almond meal (12 g)
60 g millet flour (6.9g)
52 g white bean flour (11.18 g)
6 g chia seed meal (1.26 g)
3 g agar agar powder
22 g instant dry yeast
38 g sugar
5 g sea salt
170 g butter, softened & pliable
113 g eggs
70 ml whole milk, room temperature

Egg Wash

57 g egg
60 ml milk
smidgeon sea salt

Dough

1. Combine the flours, agar agar, chia seed and yeast. Then add the eggs, milk, sugar, salt and mix. Gradually add the butter to the dough. Place the dough into a greased bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Put the bowl into the refrigerator and chill overnight.

2. Remove the dough from the refrigerator and place onto a floured piece of parchment paper. Pull off a portion of dough, about the size of 2 golf balls. Gently shape into a ball and then press one side into a point so it makes a soft cone. Shape the large piece of dough into a ball and place into a greased and floured brioche pan (4 or 5 inch pan). In the center of the large ball, press your finger into it and gently work your finger around so it makes a cone shaped hole. Insert the end of the cone of the small ball into the hole. Set aside in a warm location and allow to rise for 2 hours.

3. Preheat the oven to 385 degrees Fahrenheit/196 degrees Celsius. Make the egg wash and gently brush over the top of the brioche. Place the brioche pan on a cookie sheet and put into the oven. Bake for 30 to 40 minutes. Cool completely on a rack before serving.

Mixed Berry & Cream Cheese Coffee Cake (B&P18)

Baking & Pastry Project #18 - Mixed Berry & Cream Cheese Coffee Cake


The beach is the place for me. White sand, emerald water and crisp tan sea oats waving in the wind.

Five generations of my father's family can claim the Gulf Coast of Florida home. In the grand scheme of things, they are relative newbies. While my mother's family has been here for millennia. Throughout my travels, I have always called the Gulf Coast home.

Back when I was single, one item on my list of things I'd like in a guy, was a love of white sandy beaches. As I got older, I discovered that everyone doesn't love the beach and there are people who prefer different types of beaches. The khaki sand or rocky beaches of the Atlantic weren't my perfect beach, but they were to someone else. Other people preferred the snowy mountains of Colorado or the grassy rolling plains of Nebraska.

In my late twenties, I was working in Wichita. To my surprise, I found a guy who loved white beaches. He was from Houston and as I got to know him better I found out his background was similar to mine. His mother's family could trace their heritage back to colonial times, while his father's family had been living in Alabama for millennia. He became my best friend and later my love.

Every year, we make our pilgrimage to the Gulf Coast. Rest, relaxation, family, fellowship, lack of sleep and lots of strong coffee permeate our visits. Trips to the beach, favorite restaurants or activities and sundown over the Gulf are things we love to do.

This year my niece stayed on with us after her family headed home to Atlanta. We had lots of fun going places, finding out how much seaweed you could actually get into a swim suit, riding the surf, making tie-dye shirts, taking turns battling each other with the World of Mythology on the Nintendo, caring for my Mom and eating all types of food. The highlight of the week for them was the day at Gulf World Marine Park for Dolphin Day camp.

It was a hands on camp designed to teach the kids all about marine mammals and how the park cares for the animals. Plus an in depth tour of the park facilities...all those cool places only employees get to go. After signing all the check in forms, fourteen totally pumped preteens were ready to follow their teacher Carol all over the park for the next 6 hours.

After signing the kids into their care, my husband and I headed out to Thomas' Donuts on Front Beach Road in Panama City Beach. They make the best doughnuts on the beach and I enjoyed eating them back when I could eat wheat. Our mission was to restock the breakfast doughnut supply for all the wheat eaters. The gluten free folks were going to enjoy the mixed berry and cream cheese coffee cake that I had made the night before. After selecting an assorted couple of dozen donuts, we headed back to the house for some strong Italian roast coffee and a warm slice of gf pastry.

We sat out on the deck and enjoyed the brilliant white sun and true blue sky while slowly working our way through our pastries. The coffee cake had a fabulous taste. The bread had an airy texture that stayed together and the flavor of the filling complemented the taste of it.

Would I do anything different with this coffee cake? Yes...I'd make more. When all the adults in my extended family realized how good it tasted, the coffee cake was gobbled up. When my husband discovered that the container holding the coffee cake was empty, he put his arm around my shoulders, gave me a big kiss and said, "That was absolutely horrible 'hun, how about you make some more?"


Recipe

Makes: 1 coffee cake
Protein Content:
Original Amount: 38.74 g
GF Amount: 38.45 g

Bread

35 g brown rice flour (3.15 g)
35 g sweet rice flour (2.1 g)
35 g arrowroot starch (.105 g)
60 g almond meal (12 g)
60 g millet flour (6.9 g)
6 g chia seed meal (1.26 g)
52 g white bean flour (11.18 g)
28 g instant dry yeast
43 g sugar
9 g sea salt
3 g agar agar powder
120 ml whole milk
64 g eggs
43 g butter, soft

Cream Cheese Filling

114 g cream cheese, softened
28 g confectioner's sugar
8 ml vanilla extract
1 g lemon zest

Mixed Berry Filling

284 g mixed berries, fresh or frozen
62 g sugar
10 g cornstarch
60 ml water

Egg Wash

57 g egg
60 ml milk
smidgeon sea salt

Apricot Glaze

64 g apricot jam
45 ml water
64 g corn syrup
11 ml liquor (i.e. rum, vodka)

Fondant Drizzle

1 g gelatin
15 ml water
28 g corn syrup
2 ml glycerin
227 g confectioner's sugar



Cream Cheese Filling

Cream the cream cheese, confectioners' sugar, vanilla extract, and lemon zest in a electric mixer. Blend on medium speed, making sure to scrape down the sides of the bowl, until the the mixture is smooth and light in color (approximately 5 minutes). Place into a piping bag with a plain tip for spreading it on the bread dough.

Mixed Berry Filling

Work the cornstarch into a small amount of the water until it makes a slurry. Place the mixed berries (and liquid), sugar, water and cornstarch slurry into a sauce pan. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer and cook for 2 minutes, stirring occasionally. Allow to cool completely before using.

Egg Wash

Combine the eggs, milk and salt into a small bowl and then whisk together.

Apricot Glaze

Combine the apricot jam, water, corn syrup and liquor (I used vodka) in a sauce pan. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly to make sure the sugar is dissolved. Use a pastry brush to spread the warm glaze on top of the baked coffee cake.

Fondant Glaze

1. Warm the water in a sauce pan and pour in the gelatin. Let the gelatin sit in the warm water for a few minutes, then stir to make sure it has melted into the water. Take the pan off the heat and then add the corn syrup.

2. In a medium sized bowl, pour in the confectioners' sugar. Then add the gelatin mixture, stirring until it is blended. If necessary, add a little extra water to make sure the fondant is the texture of a glaze.

3. Pour the fondant into a piping bag with a small plain tip. It will be drizzled on top of the baked and apricot glazed coffee cake.


Dough

Combine the flours, sugar, salt and yeast in a large bowl. In another bowl, mix the water, egg yolks and oil together. Slowly add the liquid ingredients to the dry ingredients. The dough should be slightly firm, smooth and slightly sticky.

Shaping Coffee Bread

1. Lay out a sheet of parchment paper and sprinkle it with sweet rice flour. Place the dough in the center of the parchment paper and sprinkle with sweet rice flour. Pat the dough out into an oblong, 10 x 12 in/25 x 30 cm, and 1/4 inch/6 mm thick. Turn the paper so that the short side of the dough is facing you.

2. Spoon the mixed berry filling down the center of the dough. Then pipe a line of cream cheese down either down of the berry filling.

3. Using a sharp knife, make parallel diagonal (45 degree angle) cuts down both sides of the dough. The cuts should be spaced about 1 in/2cm apart. Fold the top left strip diagonally over the top of the filling, then fold the top right strip over and press it gently into the left strip. Continue in this manner, alternating sides so that the top has a braided effect.

4. Slide the parchment paper with the coffee cake on it onto a sheet pan. Brush the dough with egg wash and then set aside in a warm location to rise for 1 1/2 to 2 hours.

5. Preheat a convection oven to 350 degrees F/177 degrees C. Brush another coating of egg wash on the dough and then sprinkle the top with sugar. Bake the coffee cake for 30 minutes or until golden brown and shiny.

6. Brush the top of the coffee cake with the warm apricot glaze. Allow it to cool for a few minutes and then drizzle the fondant over the top. Allow to cool on a rack before serving.


Notes:

1. White Bean Flour – You can purchase white bean flour from Barry Farm or you can grind your own using a coffee grinder. Make sure to sift your bean flour before using to make sure any bits that weren’t ground are removed.

2. Chia Seed Meal – You can purchase chia seeds from Barry Farm and use a coffee grinder to turn them into meal.


Other Baking & Pastry Project Posts

Baking & Pastry Project #17 - Braided Challah
Baking & Pastry Project Week 9 - Twisted & Braided
Baking & Pastry Project #16 - Raisin Cinnamon Swirl Bread
Baking & Pastry Project #15 - Rustic Raisin Bread
Baking & Pastry Project Week 8 - Raisins & More Raisins
Baking & Pastry Project #14 - Cheddar & Onion Mock Rye Batard
Baking & Pastry Project #13 - Prosciutto & Provolone Bread
Baking & Pastry Project Week 7 - Ham & Cheese


Want More?

You can find me on Twitter at glutenagogo.

Braided Challah (B&P17)

Baking & Pastry Project #17 - Three Strand Braided Challah

It has been a busy summer. We headed to Florida, so I could help my Dad out with my Mom. She had a stroke in October and some of her abilities are still in recovery mode. The doctor believes that she will eventually make a full recovery, but it has been a long road for her.

She wants to return to doing all the things she used to do, like cooking a meal or driving the car. However, the doctor won't allow her to do these things yet. To help out her gross motor skills and balance, my dad bought her a beautiful blue Schwinn Meridian tricycle. (I love this bike!) After my husband put it together for her, we took her outside for her first ride.

Then we all had to take a turn riding her tricycle. It's very easy to ride and steer. It has a great collapsible basket on the back for carrying your shopping. It made me wish our neighborhood was bicycle friendly. I'm a visitor over at Cycle Chic from Copenhagen. How I wish we had bicycle lanes and I could somewhat safely ride to get groceries. Where we live, I'd like to have a Jersey barrier between me and a car or truck before I'd even think about riding a bicycle on the road.

This loaf I set up to rise while my husband was putting the bicycle together. After I baked it and it was cooling, my husband, brother and I took our turn riding the bicycles. We headed out around the neighborhood taking turns riding the tricycle. Afterwards we headed back for a tall glass of iced tea and a warm slice of challah.

This was a wonderful loaf of bread. It sliced up neat and clean, which was great for making sandwiches. The loaf didn't last past breakfast the next day as it was a big hit with everyone.

Recipe

Yield: 1 loaf

Protein Content:
Original Recipe: 38.74 g
Gluten Free Recipe: 38.45 g

Bread

40 g brown rice flour (3.6 g)
40 g sweet rice flour (2.4 g)
40 g arrowroot starch (0.12 g)
60 g almond meal (12 g)
50 g millet flour (5.75 g)
8 g chia seed meal (1.68 g)
60 g white bean flour (12.9 g)
3 g agar agar powder
22 g instant dry yeast
30 g sugar
5 g sea salt
165 ml water
66 g egg yolks (approx. 4 yolks)
28 g vegetable oil

Egg Wash

57 g egg
60 ml milk
smidgeon sea salt


Dough

Combine the flours, sugar, salt and yeast in a large bowl. In another bowl, mix the water, egg yolks and oil together. Slowly add the liquid ingredients to the dry ingredients. The dough should be slightly firm, smooth and slightly sticky.


Shaping

1. Lay out a sheet of parchment paper and sprinkle with sweet rice flour. Divide the dough into 3 equal pieces. Roll the dough into oblong pieces about 12 inches/30 cm long. Make sure each piece is the same length and the center of each should be thicker than the ends.

2. Dust each length of dough and the parchment paper with sweet rice flour. Lay the strands of dough parallel to each other lengthwise on one side of the parchment paper. Begin braiding the challah from the center. When you reach the end pinch the tips together. Taking the edges of the parchment paper in your hands, ease the braid over until the top is now the bottom. Begin braining from the center again and when you reach the end pinch the tips together. Tuck both ends of the braid under the loaf. Sprinkle the parchment paper with sweet rice flour and gently ease the braid into the center of the paper. Slip the parchment paper on a cookie sheet and place in a warm location to rise for 1 1/2 to 2 hours.

3. Preheat a convection oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit/177 degrees Celsius. Make the egg wash and brush over the wash over the braid. Place the braid into the oven and cook for 20 to 25 minutes until a dark golden brown and shiny. Cool on a rack before serving.

Notes:

1. White Bean Flour – You can purchase white bean flour from Barry Farm or you can grind your own using a coffee grinder. Make sure to sift your bean flour before using to make sure any bits that weren’t ground are removed.

2. Chia Seed Meal – You can purchase chia seeds from Barry Farm and use a coffee grinder to turn them into meal.


Other Baking & Pastry Project Posts

Baking & Pastry Project #17 - Braided Challah
Baking & Pastry Project Week 9 - Twisted & Braided
Baking & Pastry Project #16 - Raisin Cinnamon Swirl Bread
Baking & Pastry Project #15 - Rustic Raisin Bread
Baking & Pastry Project Week 8 - Raisins & More Raisins
Baking & Pastry Project #14 - Cheddar & Onion Mock Rye Batard
Baking & Pastry Project #13 - Prosciutto & Provolone Bread
Baking & Pastry Project Week 7 - Ham & Cheese


Want More?

You can find me on Twitter at glutenagogo.

Milan Cookies

A July Daring Baker's Challenge

The July Daring Bakers' challenge was hosted by Nicole at Sweet Tooth. She chose Chocolate Covered Marshmallow Cookies and Milan Cookies from Pastry chef Gale Gand of the Food Network.

Nicole is a huge fan of Gale Gand. She's tried a lot of her recipes and they are always a huge success. For July's challenge, she wanted to try something different and chose Gand's version of the Pepperidge Farm cookies...the Milano.

I've had family in and out of the house most of the summer. My folks, my brother's family and now his niece is staying for the week. Her first time away from home. So far, she seems to be doing just fine. However, there are these long periods of silence followed by all these quiet giggles and a squeal or two.

These cookies turned out to be a success at my house as well, although I have to say they are somewhat addictive. More than one of us had trouble stopping with one, even two cookies. The only person who was slightly disappointed was my son, who really wanted these to be Mint Milano cookies.

Milan Cookie

Recipe courtesy of Gale Gand (Food Network)

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 1 hour

Serves: 1 1/2 dozen cookies

Cookie

6 Tb (85 g) unsalted butter, softened

1 1/4 cup (156 g) powdered sugar

3 egg whites

1 Tb vanilla extract

1/4 cup brown rice flour

1/4 cup sweet rice flour

2 Tb arrowroot starch

2 Tb almond meal

1 tsp chia seed meal

pinch agar agar powder

Cookie Filling

1/4 cup heavy cream

4 oz semisweet chocolate, chopped

1 tsp vanilla extract

1. In a mixer with a paddle attachment, cream the butter and the sugar.

2. Gradually add the egg whites and then mix in the vanilla extract.

3. Add the various flours, meals and agar agar, then mix until combined.

4. With a small (1/4 inch) plain tip, pipe 1 inch sections of batter onto a parchment lined sheet pan spacing them 2 inches apart as they spread.

5. Bake in a preheated 350 degree F oven for 10 - 12 minutes or until a light golden brown around the edges. Let cool on the pan.

6. While waiting for the cookies to cool, in a small sauce pan scald the cream over medium heat.

7. Pour hot cream over the chocolate in a bowl, whisk to melt the chocolate and then add the vanilla extract.

8. Set aside to cool.

9. Spread a thin amount of the filling onto the flat side of a cookie while the filling is still soft. Press the flat side of a second cookie on top.

10. Repeat with the remainder of the cookies.

Fruit & Amaretto Bakewell Tart

The June Daring Bakers' challenge was hosted by Jasmine of Confessions of a Cardamom Addict and Annemarie of Ambrosia and Nectar. They chose a Traditional (UK) Bakewell Tart... er... pudding that was inspired by a rich baking history dating back to the 1800's in England.
Bakewell tarts…er…puddings combine a number of dessert elements but still let you show off your area’s seasonal fruits.

The history of the bakewell tart is provided by the awesome Jasmine. Her write up was simply too wonderful not to share it with you.

This was a fabulous dessert that I served for Father's Day. We relaxed on the patio after playing golf and enjoyed a cool glass of iced tea along with these wonderful tarts.

Bakewell Tart History and Lore

Flan-like desserts that combine either sweet egg custard over candied fruit or feature spiced ground almonds in a pastry shell have Mediaeval roots. The term “Bakewell pudding” was first penned in 1826 by Meg Dods; 20 years later Eliza Acton published a recipe that featured a baked rich egg custard overtop 2cm of jam and noted, “This pudding is famous not only in Derbyshire, but in several of our northern counties where it is usually served on all holiday occasions.”

By the latter half of the 1800s, the egg custard evolved into a frangipane-like filling; since then the quantity of jam decreased while the almond filling increased.

This tart, like many of the world's great foods has its own mythic beginnings…or several mythic beginnings. Legend has it in 1820 (or was it in the 1860s?) Mrs. Greaves, landlady of The White Horse Inn in Bakewell, Derbyshire (England), asked her cook to produce a pudding for her guests. Either her instructions could have been clearer or he should have paid better attention to what she said because what he made was not what she asked for. The cook spread the jam on top of the frangipane mixture rather than the other way around. Or maybe instead of a sweet rich shortcrust pastry case to hold the jam for a strawberry tart, he made a regular pastry and mixed the eggs and sugar separately and poured that over the jam—it depends upon which legend you follow.

Regardless of what the venerable Mrs. Greaves’ cook did or didn’t do, lore has it that her guests loved it and an ensuing pastry-clad industry was born. The town of Bakewell has since played host to many a sweet tooth in hopes of tasting the tart in its natural setting.

Bakewell tarts are a classic English dessert, abounding in supermarket baking sections and in ready-made, mass-produced forms, some sporting a thick sugary icing and glazed cherry on top for decorative effect.

Enjoy it with a cup of tea or coffee or just eat it sneaky slice by sneaky slice until, to your chagrin, you realise the whole tart has somehow disappeared despite you never having pulled out a plate, fork or napkin with which to eat it.

Is it a tart or is it a pudding?

Someone once said something like “The Bakewell pudding is a dessert. The Bakewell tart is that girl over there.”

It’s a debate that rages on and we aren’t taking sides on this one. But we will say that many people call this pudding a tart.

While we’re at it...The etymology of pudding is a rather interesting and slightly convoluted one.* The naming confusion may come from the British manner of referring to the dessert course as ‘pudding’ (as well as referring to fat babies by the same name, though we don’t think that is what was the inspiration in this case). And so any dessert is a pudding until another name comes along and adds clarity to what it really is.

Bakewell Tart…er…pudding

Makes 2 small tarts

Prep time: less than 10 minutes (plus time for the individual elements)

Resting time: 15 minutes

Baking time: 30 minutes

Equipment needed: 23cm (9”) tart pan or pie tin (preferably with ridged edges), rolling pin

Assembling the tart

Place the chilled dough disc on a lightly floured surface. If it's overly cold, you will need to let it become acclimatised for about 15 minutes before you roll it out. Flour the rolling pin and roll the pastry to 5mm (1/4”) thickness, by rolling in one direction only (start from the centre and roll away from you), and turning the disc a quarter turn after each roll. When the pastry is to the desired size and thickness, transfer it to the tart pan, press in and trim the excess dough. Patch any holes, fissures or tears with trimmed bits. Chill in the freezer for 15 minutes.

Preheat oven to 200C/400F.

Remove shell from freezer, spread as even a layer as you can of jam onto the pastry base. Top with frangipane, spreading to cover the entire surface of the tart. Smooth the top and pop into the oven for 30 minutes. Five minutes before the tart is done, the top will be poofy and brownish. Remove from oven and strew flaked almonds on top and return to the heat for the last five minutes of baking.

The finished tart will have a golden crust and the frangipane will be tanned, poofy and a bit spongy-looking. Remove from the oven and cool on the counter. Serve warm, with crème fraîche, whipped cream or custard sauce if you wish.

When you slice into the tart, the almond paste will be firm, but slightly squidgy and the crust should be crisp but not tough.

Sweet shortcrust pastry

Prep time: 15-20 minutes

Resting time: 30 minutes (minimum)

Equipment needed: bowls, box grater, cling film

56 g (2 oz) brown rice, sweet rice & arrowroot flour, almond meal (14 g each)

8 g (1/4 oz) sugar

1 g (1/8 tsp) salt

27 g (1 oz) unsalted butter, cold (frozen is better)

1 (1) egg yolks

1.25 ml (1/4 tsp) Amaretto

3 - 8 ml (1/4 - 1/2 Tb) cold water

Sift together flour, sugar and salt. Grate butter into the flour mixture, using the large hole-side of a box grater. Using your finger tips only, and working very quickly, rub the fat into the flour until the mixture resembles bread crumbs. Set aside.

Lightly beat the egg yolks with the almond extract (if using) and quickly mix into the flour mixture. Keep mixing while dribbling in the water, only adding enough to form a cohesive and slightly sticky dough.

Form the dough into a disc, wrap in cling and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.

Frangipane

Prep time: 10-15 minutes

Equipment needed: bowls, hand mixer, rubber spatula

31 g (1.12 oz) unsalted butter, softened

31 g (1.12 oz) icing sugar

1 (1) eggs

4 ml (3/4 tsp) Amaretto

31 g (1.125 oz) ground almonds

8 g (1/4 oz) brown rice flour (2 g), sweet rice flour (4 g), arrowroot starch (2 g)

Cream butter and sugar together for about a minute or until the mixture is primrose in colour and very fluffy. Scrape down the side of the bowl and add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. The batter may appear to curdle. In the words of Douglas Adams: Don’t panic. Really. It’ll be fine. After all three are in, pour in the almond extract and mix for about another 30 seconds and scrape down the sides again. With the beaters on, spoon in the ground nuts and the flour. Mix well. The mixture will be soft, keep its slightly curdled look (mostly from the almonds) and retain its pallid yellow colour.

Prosciutto & Provolone Bread (B&P-13)

Baking & Pastry Project #13 - Prosciutto & Provolone Bread

Happy Memorial Day! This is a four day weekend of us and we're planning loads of home and yard improvement.

We're working on finishing off the carpentry work on our kitchen remodel. Yesterday, my husband and daughter finished off the countertop trim. He was teaching her how to measure and set up the angles for cutting the wood. She got to counter sink the nails and schmear wood putty into the holes.

I was painting the strips for the batten of our board and batten paneling for the walls of the kitchen. There are so many strips that have to be primed and painted before they can be hung on the ceiling and walls. By the end of yesterday, I was covered in little droplets of paint. Our Sheltie had her own streaks of paint since she needed to share some love while I was trying to swing a paint brush.

Our son had his own project, to clean out his small bookcase so we can put a new one in his room. It's time to part with his young reader books to make room for the Redwall and Hardy Boys series he's collecting.

To round out the day, we started tackling our yard. We did a lot of trimming and shifted a few plants around. Due to the long cold winter, we had quite a few things die and others that suffered quite a bit of ice damage. I'm really sad about the loss of our Henry Lauder Walking Stick tree (also called a Corkscrew Hazel). It was a beautiful and unique tree that was remarkably lovely in the fall.

We took a break for lunch, crashing tiredly in the rocking chairs around the patio table. While our Sheltie aimed for the deepest part of the shade cast by the umbrella over the patio. We dined on prosciutto and provolone bread served with rainbow chard salad and a mixed fruit salad. Then we sat and indulged in multiple glasses of iced tea and frosty fruit jucies.

Recipe

Yield: 1 small loaf

Protein content: 23.57 g

1 Tb + 2 1/4 tsp/25 g brown rice flour (2.25 g)

1 Tb + 2 1/4 tsp/25 g sweet rice flour (1.5 g)

4 1/4 tsp/20 g arrowroot starch (.06 g)

2 Tb + 2 1/2 tsp/40 g almond meal (8 g)

1 Tb + 2 1/2 tsp/26 g millet flour (2.99 g)

1 1/4 tsp/6 g chia seed meal (1.26 g)

2 1/2 Tb/35 g white bean flour (7.5 g)

2 1/4 tsp + pinch/11 g instant dry yeast

1/2 tsp/2 g agar agar powder

3/4 tsp + dash/4 g sea salt

7 Tb + 1 tsp/109 ml water

1 Tb + 3/4 tsp/18 g olive oil

1 Tb + dash/15 g butter, soft

4 Tb/56 g prosciutto, diced

4 Tb/56 g provolone, diced

1. Lay out a sheet of parchment paper. In a large bowl, combine the dry ingredients and blend well. Pour in the olive oil, butter and water, then stir together. Sprinkle the parchment paper with sweet rice flour and place the bread dough in the center of the paper. Shape into a round ball and score an "X" in the center of the top of the dough. Cover and allow to rise for 2 hours.

2. Preheat the oven to 435 degrees F/225 degrees C. If you have a baking stone, place it in the oven at the same time on a shelf in the top third of the oven. Gather an oven proof bowl that can hold water and a squirt bottle filled with water for steaming your bread. Place the water bowl on a shelf in the bottom third of the oven.

3. Slide the parchment paper with the loaf onto the baking stone. Squirt the sides of the oven with water and the top of the bread. Then bake for 25 minutes. Prop open the door of the oven and allow the bread to cook for 5 minutes. Remove the bread from the oven, then let the bread cool about 1 ½ hours before cutting.

Notes:

1. Bean Flour – You can purchase Black bean flour from Barry Farm or you can grind your own using a coffee grinder.

2. Chia Seed Meal – You can purchase chia seeds from Barry Farm and use a coffee grinder to turn them into meal.

3. Agar Agar Powder - Is available from Barry Farm as well.

Other Baking & Pastry Project Posts

Baking & Pastry Project Week 7 - Ham & Cheese
Baking & Pastry Project #12 - Belgian Apple Cider Bread
Baking & Pastry Project #11 - Beer & Cheese Bread
Baking & Pastry Project Week 6 - Beer, Cheese & Cider
Baking & Pastry Project #10 - Sunflower Honey Bran Bread
Baking & Pastry Project #9 - Black Bean Millet Pullman Loaf (mock rye)
Baking & Pastry Project Week 5 - Mock Rye & Sunflower Seeds


Want More?

You can follow me on Twitter, where I'm glutenagogo.

Tepary Almond Sweet Potato Soft Rolls (B&P-5)

Baking & Pastry Project #5 - Tepary Almond Sweet Potato Soft Rolls - Parker House & Knots

I started the week with the recipe for Soft Rolls (page 132) for the Baking & Pastry Project using the Culinary Institute of America's Baking & Pastry book. This dough can be used to make shapes such as Parker House and Knots (page 218 & 219).


These soft and tender rolls are made with bread flour. For a long time I experimented with various gluten free flours trying to pump up the protein content without using a bean flour. However, I'd have needed to use a larger amount of nut or seed meal, then the rolls would no longer have a soft and tender texture. I opted for using some tepary bean flour, which is very high in protein so I could use less of it in the mixture. Then I used almond meal for it's mild flavor and to pump up the protein content. I switched to sweet potato flour since it contains more protein than arrowroot starch. The resulting dough had a nice taste although it was a bit robust. To mellow the flavor I added agave syrup to the recipe.


The protein amounts of each flour follow in parenthesis. The total amount of protein for the original soft roll dough has 36.4 grams (per 100 g flour) as compared to 36.88 grams of gluten free flour (per 100 g flour).

My husband and I thought the rolls had a fabulous texture and flavor. After he got home late from work the other night, we enjoyed them with slices of Comte cheese and a glass of red wine...delicious. My son opted to eat his plain, but my daughter wasn't thrilled with the rolls. She just couldn't get past the aroma the rolls had when they came out of the oven - as they smelled a bit beany. We told her that once they cooled slightly they didn't smell or taste of beans, however she remained unconvinced. There was no way she was going to try these out.

Recipe
Yield: 6 rolls
Imperial measurements follow the protein amounts


75 g brown rice flour (6.75 g protein) [.47 cup/2.65 oz]
50 g sweet rice flour (3 g protein) [.32 cup/1.76 oz]
50 g sweet potato flour (1.05 g protein) [.32 cup/1.76 oz]
53 g almond meal (10.6 g protein) [.231 cup/1.87 oz]
50 g tepary bean flour (15 g protein) [.32 cup/1.76]
5 g chia seed meal (.48 g protein) [1 tsp/.176 oz]
2 g agar agar powder [.421 tsp/.07 oz]
28 g sugar [2 Tb/.983 oz]
5 g sea salt [1.26 tsp/.21 oz]
8 g instant dry yeast [1.686 tsp/.28 oz]
150 ml whole milk, room temperature [.63 cup/5.07 fl oz]
28 g butter, softened [2 tb/.983 oz]
28 - 35 g eggs, 55 degrees F/13 degrees C (1 medium egg)
20 ml agave syrup [1.353 Tb/.676 fl oz]


1. In a large bowl combine all the dry ingredients and stir making sure the ingredients are thoroughly blended. Pour in the agave syrup, butter, milk and egg mixing until combined.

2. On a sheet of parchment paper sprinkle some sweet rice flour and turn out the bread dough. Roll into a log shape and divide into 6 equal pieces. Then roll them gently between your palms to around them and place on the parchment paper. Set out another sheet of parchment paper and sprinkle with sweet rice flour for the rolls that are shaped.

3. For Parker House Rolls - Press each piece of dough into an oval about 4 in/10 cm long and 3/8"/1 cm thick. Then fold the dough in half with the top edge stopping about 1/4 in/7 mm from the edge. Lay on the second sheet of parchment paper.

4. For Single Knot Rolls - Roll each piece of dough until it is a long cylinder about 6 in/15 cm in length. Gently ease the dough into a single knot and fold the ends to the back so they touch. Then press the ends together. Lay on the second piece of parchment paper.

5. When all the rolls are shaped, cover the rolls and allow to rise until doubled, approximately 1 hour.

6. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F/191 degrees C convection oven. If you have a baking stone, place it in the oven at the same time on a shelf in the top third of the oven. Brush the Parker House rolls with clarified butter and the knots with egg wash. Place the parchment paper with the rolls on it onto the baking stone. Bake for 18 to 20 minutes.

7. Remove the stone or brick from the oven and slide the parchment paper with the rolls onto the baking stone. Remove the bread from the oven, then let the bread cool before serving.


Notes

All ingredients can be purchased from Barry Farm.


Other Baking & Pastry Project Posts


Baking & Pastry Project Week 3
Baking & Pastry Project #4 - Rosemary Bread
Baking & Pastry Project #3 - Whole Grain Bread
Baking & Pastry Project Week 2
Baking & Pastry Project #2 - Bagels
Baking & Pastry Project #1 - Lean White Bread
Baking & Pastry Project - Week 1