Five Grain Bread with Pate Fermentee

In these days of Covid I have been watching a show called Isolation Baking.  It is on You Tube and has Gesine Prado and Jeffrey from King Arthur Flour doing the baking.  This bread was made one of the first weeks and it is so good.  You do have to start a soaker and pate fermentee the night before.  And you need a Dutch oven or similar to bake it in.  I cut the recipe in half as I only have one Dutch oven, and my oven would not be big enough for two. This is the one loaf recipe. I also find it a lot easier to weigh ingredients in grams to get closer to the correct amount.

Five Grain Bread

Ingredients:

Soaker

• 1/4 cup flax seeds
• 3 T. sunflower seeds
• 1/4 cup old-fashioned rolled oats
• 1/2 cup cool water
• 1/4 tsp. salt

Pate fermentee

• 7/8 cup (106 grams) unbleached all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup plus 1 T. (71 grams) water
• 1/4 tsp salt
• pinch of yeast

Dough

• all of the soaker
• all of the pate fermentee
• 2 cups plus 1 T. (248 grams) unbleached all purpose flour
• 1/3 cup (35 grams) rye or pumpernickel flour
• 3/4 cups (162 grams) lukewarm water
• 1 1/2 tsp (12 grams) honey
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1 tsp. instant yeast

Instructions:

1. To make the soaker:  Mix all of the ingredients until thoroughly combined.  Cover the bowl and let rest at room temperature for about 14 hours.
2. To make the pate fermentee:  Mix all the ingredients until thoroughly combined. Cover the bowl and let rest at room temperature for about 14 hours.
3. To make the dough:  Combine all the ingredients in a mixing  bowl, or the bowl of a stand mixer. Mix and knead to make a supple, elastic dough.  If you're using a stand mixer, use dough hook and mix on low speed for 3 minutes to incorporate the ingredients, then on medium speed for about 5 minutes, or until the dough looks fairly well developed.
4. Cover the bowl (can just leave dough in mixing bowl) with plastic wrap and allow to rise for 1 hour.  After 1 hour uncover the bowl and, using a bowl scraper or spatula, run the scraper or spatula down the inside far wall of the bowl. Bring the dough up from the bottom of the bowl, and fold it over on top of itself. Turn the bowl 90 degrees and repeat; repeat twice more (for a total of 4 times), turning the bowl 90 degrees each time. This process, which helps develop the dough, is called a fold.  Re-cover the bowl, and let the dough rise for another 60 minutes, adding another fold midway through if the dough doesn't seem elastic and strong enough.
5. Gently deflate the dough.  Shape into a rough ball, cover, and let rest for about 20 minutes: this rest will make the loaves easier to shape.
6. After the rest shape the dough into a round or log.  Place it on a piece of parchment or lightly grease baking sheet.  For added support turn the loaves (seam side up) into a floured brotform or into a bowl lined with floured smooth cotton dish towels.
7. Cover the loaf and let it rise for 50-60 minutes at room temperature.
8. Towards the end of the rising time, preheat your oven to 450 degrees.  At the same time place the Dutch oven with an oven-safe lid in the oven to preheat.  Make sure the baker you close is safe to be preheated empty, without anything inside.
9. When the oven is fully preheated, carefully transfer the loaf to your baker.  Transfer the parchment paper along with the loaf into the hot baker.  Slash them several times across the top to allow for expansion.
10. Cover the baker and place it in the hot oven.  Bake the bread for 30 minutes.  Remove the cover and bake 10-15 minutes more, or until the bread is golden brown.  The internal temperature should register 210-212 degrees F on a digital thermometer.
11. Remove the bread from the oven and turn it onto a rack to cool completely.
12. Store the bread at room temperature, loosely wrapped, for up to 5 days. Freeze for longer storage.

Mounds Bar Pie

A friend of mine from Bismarck sent me this recipe to try for Pie of the Week.  It was for a Mounds Bar Pie.  I was looking through an old handwritten recipe book of my mom's and found a very similar recipe called Coconut Macaroon Pie.  I used a combination of the two for my pie.  

Mounds Bar Pie

Ingredients:

• 1 1/4 cups sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 cup soft butter
• 1/4 cup flour
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1 cup flaked coconut
• 1/2 cup mini chocolate chips
• 1 tsp vanilla

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
2. Beat sugar, eggs and salt until mixture is lemon-colored.
3. Add butter and flour, blend well. Mix in milk and vanilla. 
4. Fold in coconut and mini chocolate chips.
5. Pour into pie shell.  Can top with more coconut if desired.
6. Bake for about 60 minutes.
7. Cool for 12 hours before cutting.

Raspberry Ripple Ice Cream Pie

As I continue on my pie of the week and it is June, I decided on a frozen pie.  It is a Raspberry Ripple Ice Cream pie with Toasted Almond Crumble.  Very refreshing for summer!

Raspberry Ripple Ice Cream Pie

Ingredients:

For the crust and crumble

• 1 cup almond flour
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup packed dark brown sugar
• 1 tsp. sea salt
• 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp. nutmeg
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter (8 Tbsp.), diced and room temperature 

For the Raspberry Ripple

• 1 bag frozen or fresh raspberries (10 oz.)
• 1/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1 piece lemon peel (2-inch)
• 1 Tbsp. fresh lemon juice

For the Ice Cream

• 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
• 1 pkg. cream cheese (8 oz.), room temperature
• 1 can sweetened condensed milk (14 oz.)
• 1/2 cup fresh lemon juice (or less, I used 1/4 cup)
• 2 tsp. lemon zest
• 1/4 tsp. sea salt

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Line a baking sheet with parchment.  Coat the bottom of a 9 inch springform pan with nonstick spray.  I also lined the pan with parchment paper.
2. Toast almond flour in a saucepan over medium heat, stirring often, until golden brown, 3-5 minutes.  Transfer almond flour to a bowl; add all-purpose flour, brown sugar, sea salt, cinnamons and nutmeg; let cool about 10 minutes.  Mix in butter until everything is just combined.  
3. Press half the dough into bottom of prepared springform pan to create a thin layer of crust, 1/8 to 1/4 inch thick.  Crumble the rest of the dough onto the other half of the baking sheet, making sure to have some large clumps.  Bake crust and crumbles until deep toffee brown, 15-18 minutes.  Remove baking sheet from oven and let crust and crumble cool to room temperature. 
4. For the raspberry ripple, heat raspberries, sugar and lemon peel in a saucepan over low heat.  Smash the berries a bit with the back of a wooden spoon to release their juices.  Simmer, stirring often, until ripple thickens, 8-10 minutes.  Stir in lemon juice and strain raspberry ripple through a fine-mesh strainer set over a bowl, pressing to get the juice and thickened puree;  let cool to room temperature.
5. For the ice cream, whip cream in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment on high speed until soft peaks form;  transfer to a separate bowl.  Using the same mixer bowl and attachment, add cream cheese and whip until smooth, 3 minutes.  Add condensed milk, lemon juice, zest and sea salt.  Mix on low speed until corporate, then increase speed to medium and beat until whipped and smooth, 1 minute.  Fold whipped cream into cream cheese mixture.
6. Pour half the ice cream mixture onto the crust.  Drizzle one-half of the raspberry ripple.  Then top with remaining ice cream and remaining raspberry ripple.  Drag a toothpick through the sauce, creating swirls in the cream.  
7. Freeze pie for 20 minutes before scattering the crumbles over the top.  Keep frozen.

Moist Chocolate Cake

I printed off this recipe and have no idea where it came from.  But I labeled it moist chocolate cake.  

Chocolate Cake

Ingredients:

• 1 3/4 cups all purpose flour
• 2 cups white sugar
• 3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 1/2 tsp. baking soda
• 3/4 tsp. salt
• 2 large eggs
• 1 cup buttermilk (or substitute by putting 1 tbsp. white vinegar in a cup then filling the rest up with milk; let stand 5 minutes until thickened)
• 1/2 cup butter melted
• 1 T. vanilla extract
• 1 cup hot coffee

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Grease and flour two 9-inch baking pans (or line with parchment paper) and set aside.
2. In the large bowl of standing mixer, stir together flour, sugar, cocoa, baking soda, and salt.  Add eggs, buttermilk, melted butter and vanilla extract and beat until smooth (about 3 minutes). Remove bowl from mixer and stir in hot coffee with a rubber spatula.  Batter will be very runny.
3. Pour batter evenly between the two pans and bake on middle rack of oven for about 35 minutes, until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean with just a few moist crumbs attached. 
4. Allow to cool 15 minutes in pans, then run a butter knife around the edges of each cake.  Place a wire cooling rack over top of each pan.  Flip the cakes over onto the racks. 
5. Cool completely before handling or frosting.

Meatloaf

Meatloaf is a favorite of Les and Jordan.  And they like to eat it cold as leftovers.  This recipe comes from Mary/Everyday Cheapskate.

Meatloaf

Ingredients:

• 2 eggs
• 2/3 cup milk, whole or 2%
• 2 tsp. salt
• 1/4 tsp ground black pepper
• 3 slices dry bread, crumbled finely (3/4 cup)
• 1 1/2 lbs. ground beef
• 1 onion, finely chopped
• 1/2 cup shredded carrot, extra fine
• 1/2 cup shredded Cheddar cheese

Glaze:

• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 1/4 cup ketchup
• 1 T. prepared yellow mustard

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degree
2. Whisk eggs, milk, salt and pepper in a large bowl.  Add bread crumbs and stir until dissolved.  
3. Mix ground beef, chopped onion, cheddar cheese and carrot into the bread mixture. Transfer to a 9x5 inch loaf pan.  Press firmly into pan.
4. In a small bowl, combine brown sugar, ketchup and mustard.  Spread over meat mixture.
5. Bake until no longer pink in the center, for an hour.  Check at one hour with an instant-read thermometer inserted into the center.  It should read 160 degrees.  Do not overbake.
6. Serves 6.