Finally, a successful loaf of bread! I have tried to make pita pockets before (probably not the best idea for a first attempt) and they failed miserably.
Here's is the recipe I used to make a delicious loaf of focaccia bread. I imagine this would taste great with a little basil and Parmesan cheese on top during the last few minutes of baking. Please let me know if you end up trying that! All credit to
ColemansInLove
Important:
When they say 'warm' water. thats actually important. Not hot. Like what you would bathe a baby in, or so I've read. Also, I used whole wheat. I've read this can take longer than an hour to rise.
Ingredients:
1/2 cups of all-purpose flour
1/2 cup of warm water
{Author says 105-115 degrees}
1 teaspoon of active dry yeast
& then
3 1/2-4 cups of all-purpose flour
1 cup of warm water
2 tsp of kosher salt
1 tbsp of olive oil
more coarse salt for sprinkling (such as sea salt)
I
The
process starts the night before when you mix together 1/2 cup of flour,
1/2 cup of warm water & yeast. Mix until smooth & cover
overnight. its going to make a sponge. For those of us who work all day {whoopee} you can start this process before you leave for your day.
II
If you have a kitchen aid, mix your sponge in that so that you can then easily add your 1 more
cup of warm water & salt. Mix. Then gradually add flour. You want
just enough so that your dough begins to pull away from the sides of
your mixing bowl. Knead 8-10 minutes.
{I do not have a kitchen aid. I ended up using about 4 cups total. Just so that the dough was not so sticky I could not knead it. Be sure to knead for 8-10 minutes. The original author points out this helps the gluten develop, and the air pockets creates fluffier, tastier bread.}
III
Place your dough onto a lightly oiled bowl. {For me, the oil wouldn't drip out much if I turned it upside down.} Turn over once so your whole ball of dough is covered.
Let rise 'about an hour' or until doubled. For me, it actually took an hour.
IV
Now this part is odd.
Take a baking sheet. flour it & turn your dough directly onto it.
Take a large bowl & turn it upside down so it covers the dough & let rest for 30 minutes. {Try to choose a bowl whose circumference (at the top) is about 11 inches. You'll see why in part six.}
V
If you have a baking stone, use it at this point & preheat in your oven.
I do not, so after about 15 minutes I preheat our oven to 475.
VI
Remove
bowl after 30 minutes and very gently roll your dough out until it has a
diameter of about 11". Don't overwork it, here. You don't want all of
that rising you did to deflate!
Poke the bread to make about 1/2 inch dents every 2 or so inches. {See below.}
Then brush lightly with olive oil, top with sea salt & bake for 15-20 minutes. {For me, the brushing entailed getting my hand wet with olive oil. I'll get more of the advanced baking tools later...}
You'll know when your bread is done when you tap on it & it makes a nice hollow sound!
I'm starting to feel like quite the little southern cook. A dear friend stopped by to help me make soup, and she drank half my sweet tea. What a compliment! It's easy, and super quick. So here's that recipe as well. It makes a gallon.
Ingredients:
6 bags of Lipton tea
2 cups of sugar (I have used 1/2 cup sugar equivalent of stevia as a substitute, tasted the same.)
I
Place 3 cups of water into a sauce pan. Bring to boil.
II
Remove pot from the stove, and insert the 6 bags of tea. While you're waiting 5 minutes for the tea to steep, go ahead and pour the sugar into the pitcher.
III
After 5 minutes, remove the tea bags and pour to tea into the pitcher. Stir, stir, stir! Once fully stirred {is that a word?} start pouring in some water to fill the pitcher. I usually start to add a ton of ice at this point, so I can go ahead and enjoy it. Fill with water to the top, and enjoy!
Sorry for the horrible picture quality. If I post for a while, then I'll consider buying a nice camera. Any suggestions?
