Cheddar & Onion Mock Rye Batard (B&P14)

Baking & Pastry Project #14 - Cheddar & Onion Mock Rye Batard



This bread turned out to be the sleeper of the project so far. It had a fabulous flavor that was bursting with the creaminess from the cheese and the earthy hint of onion as the bread glided over my tongue.

I was surpised as I was pretty skeptical about a bread recipe that had raw onion in it. Was the onion going to cook all the way through or was it going to end up as power house chunks of raw onion surrounded by bread. I have to admit to pondering the recipe for a while and contemplated carmelizing the onions first. In the end, although I had my doubts, I finally went with the book and added those raw onion squares to the dough.

I got everything ready, so I could bake bread in the morning and realized my tea had gone cold. I placed the cup in the microwave, made my selection, pressed start and enjoyed a nice flame show. Two small flames popped up on one side of the interior. I rapidly hit "End" and watched my impromptu fire fizzle out.

What is it about microwaves? I don't use our microwave for very much, mostly for reheating beverages. However, the last 3 microwaves we've owed have lasted for 2 years and all go up in flames. Is there something about me that kills microwaves or is it a sign of the times with planned appliance obsolesence? Maybe it's a sign that I could start a new career as a fire-starter in an alternative universe, armed with my handy microwave? Oh, wait...they might not have electricity...okay scrap that plan.

By the way, do any of you use your microwave for a lot of cooking or do you use it mostly for reheating things? Most of the time, when I reheat foods, I use our toaster oven. Which is what I did with this bread, when my husband and I had a simple dinner of bread, salad and a nice cold gluten free beer. Delicious!



Recipe
Yield: 1 batard

Protein Content follows the flour in parenthesis
Original Protein Content: 13.21 g
GF Protein Content: 12.89 g


1 tsp/5 g brown rice flour (.45 g)
4 1/4 tsp/20 g sweet rice flour (1.2 g)
4 1/4 tsp/20 g arrowroot starch (.06 g)
4 Tb/58 g sorghum flour (6.67 g)
1 1/4 tsp/ 6 g chia seed meal (1.26 g)
____
1 tsp/5 g black bean flour (1.2 g)
4 3/8 tsp/21 g sorghum flour (1.47 g)
5/8 tsp/ 3 g cocoa powder (.57 g)
1 tsp/5 g arrowroot starch (.01 g)
3/8 tsp/2 g agar agar powder
2 3/8 tsp/11 g instant dry yeast
7/8 tsp/4 g sea salt
5/8 tsp/3 g cane sugar
1/2 cup/137 ml water
5/8 tsp/3 g molasses
5/8 tsp/3 g vegetable oil
2 Tb/28 g cheddar cheese, diced
2 Tb/28 g yellow onion, diced

1. Combine the dry ingredients into a large bowl and blend well. Add the water, molasses and oil and mix. Then add the cheese and onion and blend.

2. On a sheet of parchment paper sprinkled with sweet rice flour, place the dough into the center and shape into a batard. Slice the batard across the width of the middle and then on either side. Set in a draft free location and allow to rise for 2 hours.

3. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F/218 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.

4. 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/Salba Meal – You can purchase dark chia seeds from Barry Farm and light chia seeds (Salba) from Amazon. Then you can 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 #13 - Prosciutto & Provolone Bread
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


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Swedish Meatballs

Several weeks ago, my husband brought home a beautiful book, "Things Swedish," by Mari Hemming (Albert Bonniers Forlag, 2001). Wrapped in ribbon and tied with a beautiful bow, my children and I were unable to resist it. We opened the book and began to look at all the fabulous photographs by Dan Tobin Smith. Each page is an insight into the culture and people of Sweden, through it's images and stories. Interspersed throughout the book are the foods of Sweden, such as cinnamon buns, oatmeal biscuits, Kronans kaka (The Crown's Reward), semla and Swedish meatballs.

When we asked my husband where he had gotten the book, he said it had been given to him by Ingegerd, a new member his firm's global team. She had come to New York to meet the team and learn about their practice. She gave each person she met with a copy of "Things Swedish."

After going through it the second time, pages with scrumptious recipes were book marked. Then we passed the book around so that each of us could vote on which recipe they wanted to try making first. There wasn't any contest, as the Swedish meatballs won with four votes...well five if we counted our Sheltie.

As I began browning the meatballs, one by one they all wandered back into the kitchen. Everyone was checking out what was in the skillet, except for our Sheltie. She was occupied with keeping one of my feet pinned to the floor under her body...just letting me know she's there and ready to devote herself to taste testing. I finished the meatballs off in the oven and then served them up for a late dinner.

The meatballs were rich and flavorful. The allspice was a perfect enhancement to the flavor of the bison. We enjoyed the meatballs so much, I'm sure they will become a regular on our family menu. Warm and hearty this meal was perfect for a chilly winter evening.

Thank you Ingegerd for a lovely book and a wonderful meal.

Recipe

1 lb (454 grams) ground bison (buffalo)
1/2 onion, finely chopped
1/2 cup + 2 Tb (150 ml) rice milk
1 egg
10 Tbs gluten free cracker or bread crumbs
1 - 2 tsp sea salt
1 - 2 pinches allspice
Oil or butter for frying

1. In a large bowl, dump in the rice milk, cracker crumbs and spices and allow to soak for a few minutes.

2. In the skillet, plop in the onions and brown on low heat.

3. Add the ground bison and egg to the large bowl. Mix until throughly blended.

4. Using a tablespoon scoop out some of the meat mixture. With wet hands, roll the meat into a ball. Place into the skillet to fry.

5. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. As the finish browning, place them in a oven proof dish to finish cooking. Or lower the heat and finish cooking them in the skillet.

Sweet Potatoes With Onions & Rosemary

The humble sweet potato is a staple food at my house. They have many wonderful culinary uses, such as in bread, custard, pie, and as a vegetable. One of our favorite varieties, the Red Garnet, has a mellow sweetness when you eat it. Best of all, sweet potatoes are gluten-free.

I know, I know, it's a vegetable...but I still get a kick out of saying it. On certain days, I find that it's important to remember all the things I can eat, rather than focusing on the things I can't. It helps to remember these things when you begin to feel that shopping for food has become a gluten war zone. I start imagining that space ships are zooming through the air shooting gluten globules at my van trying to stop me keep me from goal of finding gluten-free food.

The holidays are particularly bad for creating this effect on me. For both my husband and myself our family tradition was for holiday meals to be a special family celebration. With the Easter holiday coming up, I've been thinking about menus that we can have and these thoughts were on my mind while we were in Virginia last week. Since we moved to New York a few years ago, living here has created an expectation that there will be a certain amount of gluten-free food available for the Jewish holiday, Passover. I thought of this while I was shopping with the kids in McLean and I saw a bakery with a sign out front stating that they had all the Passover bakery items that you need. Wow, could it mean that they would have gluten-free Passover foods? My kids and I decided to take the chance and scope out their food. When we didn't find anything, so I asked the young lady behind the counter if they had anything that was wheat or gluten-free. She looked at me rather confused and asked me, "What's that?" I guess they don't do anything gluten-free for Passover.

Which brings me back to my dusty pile of Red Garnet sweet potatoes and I remember they are gluten-free. They are versatile, nourishing and healthy. The tuber will yield a scrumptious sweetness that feeds my southern soul and make me forget the world of gluten.

Recipe

1 lb Red Garnet Sweet Potatoes, quartered
6 Tb Olive Oil
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 tsp sea salt
1 tsp coarsely ground black pepper
½ yellow onion, sliced thinly
1 tablespoon dried rosemary

Preheat oven to 425 deg. F. Pour olive oil into an oven proof baking dish (6 x 10). Then add the sweet potatoes, onions and sprinkle the spices over the top. Using your hands evenly coat the vegetables in the spices and olive oil. Place into the oven to roast for 1 hour. Stir every 15 minutes to ensure even browning. Serves 6.

My children would have preferred to have me leave the rosemary off the sweet potatoes, but my husband and I loved this recipe. It's a keeper.