Recipes

Crusty Artisan Loaf
This bread is a universal favorite, and goes with any meal, from strawberry toast to garlic bread.

Basic Tools: tabletop mixer, dough knife, baking sheet

Ingredients:
5 cups of plain bread flour (such as Sir Galahad)
1 tablespoon and 1 teaspoon of yeast
1 tablespoon and 1 teaspoon of salt
1 and 1/2 cups of water

Directions:

1. Place water, then dry ingredients in a bowl.

2. mix at second speed for 18 minutes, or knead as much as you can.

3. Remove from bowl, and bulk rise for 1 hour.The dough should double in size.

4. form into one loaf, or
divide into 2 pieces for batards and dip bowls
divide into 3-4 pieces for soup bowls (aprox. 10 ounces each)
divide into 12-14 pieces for rolls (aprox. 3 ounces each)

5. preheat oven to 435 degrees.

6. Cover and let rise for one hour.

7. Bake for 25 (rolls) to 45 (loaves) minutes.

The Panini sandwiches that you can make with this bread are an endless selection, though sometimes the simplest is prefereable:
drizzle bread slices and zucchini slices with olive oil and herbs of choice, possibly some lemon juice too, and grill. Zucchini is wonderful al dente!

Winter Salad
The best thing about this refreshing salad is that it's easy to put together after a long day of getting through the snow. The pumpkin seeds are fullfilling, don't skip them!

Assemble in the bowl you'll be serving in:
- your choice of favorite fresh greens
- red grapes, a big handful per person (slice if you're feeling energetic)
- plenty of toasted pumpkin seeds-- sprinkle generously, as you would parmesan cheese
- dress with olive oil, basalmic vinegar, salt, and more than usual amount of black pepper-- trust me, no other spices neccesary if you let the black pepper do its job (especially if you have a coarse ground or butcher's blend.)
- toss well!

Breakfast Pizza
any season, for any meal of the day
1. dice vegetables: red potatos skins on, any kind of onion, green and red bell peppers, plus a salami, proscuitto or ham.
2. sautee the veggies and meat in a frying pan (that everything will bake in) in butter for five minute-- until the potatos start to get soft.
3. preheat oven to 375
4. in a separate bowl, combine 8 eggs, 4 dollops of sour cream or half a cup of milk, and stir briskly.
5. add salt and pepper to egg mixture, and maybe chili powder, or nutmeg, or curry powder-- whatever you like.
6. pour egg mixture over sauteed ingredients, top with any cheese, and bake at 375 degrees for 35 minutes.
serve with the Winter Salad, or serve with toast and apple jelly, or serve with hot peppermint tea, it's all good!

Apple Dumplings
these little packages of hot apples are a life saver in the cold winter months. Make a big batch and wrap the leftover individually so you can enjoy on a whim. Best served hot in a bowl with milk poured over.

ingedients:
apples enough to fill a big mixing bowl when chopped
cinnamon, brown sugar
lemon juice
walnuts
ice cold water, two heaping handfuls of flour, and one handful of shortening, tablespoon of sugar, pinch of salt
           
1. The first step in apple dumpling production is to peel and cube the apples no smaller than those cheese squares served on foil trays as banquets. Peaches or pears will also do.

2. Then douse the chopped apples with cinnamon and brown sugar. I use dark brown sugar for its exemplary molasses content.

3. Lemon juice can be added for tartness.

4. Walnuts can be added now too.

5. Stir well, and let sit while crust is made. It is in this interim that the apple dumpling flavor develops.

6. You have one shot to make the dumpling crust. It is very important, and it is very simple. Pretend you have no more flour, and can’t start over again.

7. In a mixing bowl, place the flour. Sprinkle with more sugar and much less salt.

8. Into this, put the shortening: butter, margarine, or margarine. Cut in whatever goosh you like, with a pastry blender or fork, until you have a loose, dry mixture than you can sift through your fingers.

9. The dough should be doughy enough to just form a volcano. Fill it with the ice cold water.

10. Gather it all up into a ball, absorbing water completely, and roll out to the thickness of a nickel and a half. Pretty thin.

11. Do this only once, with a minimum of strokes.

12. Of course, take the precaution of getting flour all over the kitchen so the dough can’t stick anywhere.

13. Finally, tear a roundish piece of dough big enough to hold and cover one serving of the chopped apples.
Place a handful of apples in the center, leaving enough dough all around to fold up like a diaper.

14. A few pinches at the top will keep the dough closed. Once snug, stick them in the oven for 30 or 40 minutes, at 350 degrees.
enjoy!

WHITE BEAN SOUP
(ZUPPA di fagioli cannelloni)

1 ¼ Pound cannellini beans
(these may be fresh beans that have been soaked for 8 hours, but canned beans work just as well)
3 garlic cloves, chopped
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 bunch flat parsley , chopped
Sea salt and pepper
Chicken stock (optional)
Olive oil for serving

In a large pot, simmer the garlic in olive oil until tender. Add the parsley and cook for one minute, just until tender and very green, then add the beans. Cook for 20 minutes on a low flame. Put ¾ of the mixture into a food processor and puree. At this point, you may add chicken stock to the soup until you are satisfied with the consistency , but the soup should be thick. Serve with crusty bread, a nice white wine, and prepare to enjoy the compliments that you will receive.