1.24.2010

Banana Cream Pie



So, today marks an important day for exactly two reasons.

1. the first pie of Pie in the Sky!

2. It's my dad's 59th birthday.

...oh yeah. and I've never had banana cream pie in my entire life, which also makes today fairly important because that is what I get to look forward to tonight. Apparently (I never knew this), banana cream pie is my dad's favorite dessert of all time, so I decided to indulge him and make it.


So, for the recipe, I turned to the my default, dear old Martha. It was very complicated. In fact, I never even knew that pie could be so complicated. Make the crust. Chill the crust. Roll the crust. Chill the crust again, and so on and so forth for about three more hours. Now, I'm sure Martha will prove herself and this pie will be absolutely amazing. It better be after how long I spent on it. Have a lovely rest of your Sunday.

1.20.2010

Olive Bread


  
      My sister has this odd thing for olives and bread. Not olive bread but an actual olive on top of bread eaten simultaneously. It wasn't until we went to New York recently that she realized that there was such a thing as olives in bread. We must have had it like 10 times in the bread baskets at various restaurants and to my sister, who is easily pleased, it was a revelation. I like it well enough but if given the choice, I'd rather stick to my good ole baguette. Plain and simple. and delicious.


      Oddly, I was feeling charitable on Sunday, so I decided to indulge Becky and make her homemade olive bread. I am by no means an expert at making bread, so this was a new adventure. I was originally planning to make it from a recipe from Panera Bread's website, but then right as I was making the starter, I realized that I probably didn't have enough honey. So, I looked in the cupboard and saw, a tiny little bottle of honey. It was, just my luck, crystalized, so I put it in the microwave for a few seconds. I opened the microwave door only to find that it had spread all over. Great. Wonderful. Awesome.


      So, Plan B. I found another recipe that used basically the same things minus the honey and the shortening, which I found out later we didn't have anyway. It was supposed to make two loaves which turned out too small, so I made one night loaf. It was oddly hard to knead so I didn't do it for as long as recommended but it turned out alright. Becky enjoyed it anyway.


Starter: 
  • 1 cup warm water (95-105° F)
  • 1 tablespoon  yeast
  • 1 cup flour
Let set at room temperature for 30 minutes.
Bread:
  • 1/2 cup warm water
  • 2 tablespoons olive brine, warmed
  • 4 teaspoons yeast
  • 4 – 5 cups flour
  • 2 teaspoons of salt
  •  Starter
  •  3/4 cups  kalamata olives, pitted
To create the starter,combine the water and yeast in a medium mixing bowl. Stir to dissolve the yeast. Add the flour to the bowl and stir.  Cover with a cloth and ferment the starter at room temperature for 30 minutes.
For the dough, combine the water and yeast. Stir to dissolve the yeast fully. Add the  flour, salt,  brine, starter, and olives. Mix on low speed (if using a mixer) until the dough is fully developed.  Knead for 15 minutes if kneading by hand. Remove the dough from the mixing bowl.

You can let the dough rise for an hour or so to develop the flavor or go on to the next step.
Divide the dough into 2 pieces  Roll each piece of dough into a boule, or a baguette. Place the dough on the counter and cover with a warm, damp cloth. Let rise for 30 minutes. Preheat the oven to 425° F.
Form the dough into loaves and place them on the counter. Cover the loaves with a warm, damp cloth and proof at room temperature for 30 minutes.
Score the loaves with a sharp knife, spray with water, and bake for 30 minutes, until the crusts are a deep golden brown. Just as you put the loaves in the oven pour about 1.4 cup of water on the floor of the oven to create steam.  Keep door closed.
Remove the bread from the oven and cool for at least 30 minutes, or as long as you can wait.
2 Loaves
(c)2008  Marye Audet for Baking Delights 

1.09.2010

Happy New Year!

I was never one to make resolutions. I never actually get around to fulfilling them and always around the time of year when I am supposed to be making new ones, I remember the old ones. Well, c'est la vie. This year, I have yet again come up with some resolutions to attempt at:
          1) Stand up straight. (I have major problems with this-everyone always thinks that my identical twin              sister is taller than me, when, in fact, I just don't stand up straight)
          2) Take control of my life. 2010 seems like the right year to become more independent and stop relying on my mother's wallet. In fact, I have already found something to strive for. There is this program at Barnard College in NYC over the summer for juniors and seniors that I really really really really want to go to. So, that automatically means that I have to start planning fundraising. This just screams BAKE SALE!
Now, I just have to find the time. With musical here and the application due in May, I hardly have time to do my homework, not to mention baking. We'll see how that goes. In the meantime, enjoy you're winter!