PATE FERMENTEE

by

This pre-fermented dough is perfect for making many French Breads like the baguette.

INGREDIENTS

1 1/8 cups unbleached all-purpose flour

1 1/8 cups unbleached bread flour

3/4 tsp salt

1/2 tsp instant yeast

3/4 cup to 3/4 cup plus 2 tbsp water, at room temperature

DIRECTIONS

1. Stir together the flours, salt and yeast in a bowl. Add 3/4 cup of the water, stirring until everything comes together and makes a coarse ball. Adjust the flour or water, according to need, so that the dough is neither too sticky nor too stiff. (It is better to err on the sticky side, as you can adjust easier during kneading. It is harder to add water once the dough firms up.)

2. Sprinkle some flour on the counter and transfer the dough to the counter. Knead for 4 to 6 minutes, or until the dough is soft and pliable, tacky but not sticky. The internal temperature should be 77° to 81° F.

3. Lightly oil a bowl and transfer the dough to the bowl, rolling it around to coat it with oil. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and ferment at room temperature for 1 hour, or until it swells to about 1 1/2 times its original size.

4. Remove the dough from the bowl, knead it lightly to degas, and return it to the bowl, covering the bowl with plastic wrap. Place the bowl in the refrigerator overnight. You can keep this in the refrigerator for up to 3 days, or freeze it in an airtight plastic bag for up to 3 months.

COUNTRY SEED BREAD

by

Homemade whole wheat bread loaded with the goodness of flax seeds, sunflower seeds, and sesame seeds.

Country seed whole wheat bread

Update: The pictures on this post were updated on May 14, 2017. The original post went live in August 2010 and was the first bread post of the blog. This country seed whole wheat bread recipe is one of my favorites and have made it several times in the last seven years. I have updated the recipe a bit and also added a printable version. Like with all my other updated posts I have left one image from the original post to show where my photography started at.

ORIGINAL POST

FACT- brownies, deep fried kachoris, cakes, muffins- all are fattening! No matter how much you want to escape from this fact, it somehow finds its way to get to you. For me, it found its way through the weighing machine. Now, all this while I have been in the US, I was without a weighing scale and the two times I got my weight checked- orientation at the gym and a doctor’s appointment- I was told the weight in pounds. And, well, I’m used to hearing it in kgs. So, conveniently, I used to convert pounds to a figure in kgs I thought was good enough- not too little but not too much either- a number close to what I used to be in India. For me, that was acceptable- of course, there is always scope to lose more- but it wasn’t a number to raise alarms.

The other day, we went to Ikea during our stay in Phoenix. And there sitting in the Home Decorations section was a weighing scale. We had been planning of getting one, though I have never been the weighing scale type. I generally go by my stomach- if its not tight- I have to work out harder. But, for a while now I had not weighed myself (atleast not where I got a figure in the metric system I was comfortable with), so when I saw a weighing machine that showed the weight in kgs, I thought it was time to get one. We got it home and I decided to check my weight. And, well, as my first line read–brownies, cakes, muffins, and the likes are FATTENING!! VERY FATTENING!!!! So, I decided enough of these (let’s see how long it lasts though- baking and I have a very strong bond- some numbers aren’t enough to break them!)!

So, I have decided to go for a run everyday from now, barring the two days I have Zumba. I will also try making healthier food and have resolved that whatever rich dessert I make- it is going to be distributed. The latter, I have, more or less, been doing.

Read More →

CHEESECAKE BROWNIE

by

 

 

Today is my mother-in-laws birthday:)!! And, though she is in India, miles away, we thought of celebrating it here. Another reason for celebration was my learner’s permit. After weeks of postponing the test- I finally gave it yesterday and correctly answered all my question (I was pretty impressed with myself!)

Now, since a celebration was called for- there had to be good food, wine and cake! My original desire was to make a tiramisu cake, but I did not have any kahlua or brandy. So, instead, I thought I would try a recipe from Rose Bakery’s – Breakfast, Lunch, Tea and narrowed on the cheesecake brownie. Cheesecake is my favorite dessert and brownie is another favorite and the idea of the two joining hands—–delicious!

Read More →