New York Sourdough Deli Rye

I’ve already made a swirled rye, but this rye was definitely different than the other.  The recipe for this New York Sourdough Deli Rye came from the Bread Baker’s Apprentice.  I did throw in a tablespoon of  rye chops just for a little rye flavor boost.  The sourdough gave it a nice tang; the grilled onions, rye chops, and caraway seeds enhanced the flavor above that of a regular rye bread. The two things that really surprised me was how soft this bread was, and how aromatic it was.  The loaf is very tender and flavorful.  When it was toasted or grilled, the rye flavor seemed to come out even more.  As a child the only rye bread we had was party rye on New Year’s Eve.  This is oh so much better.
     When I was young the nearest grocery was a tiny little neighborhood place called Jay’s.  On the right side was a small market that was great to pick up things you forgot to get when you went to “Schwegmanns,” and on the left was a bar.  We would ride our bikes to Jay’s for bread, soft drinks, luncheon meat, or candy.  (Back then, milk was not sold in the stores; it was strictly home delivery.  Anyone remember Mullen’s?)  You would always have a penny for the gum machine in hopes of getting that elusive striped gumball that would get you a free candy bar.  When Jay’s would not do, the closest “real” neighborhood was Longo’s.  The deli counter had luncheon meat, chopped ham, boiled ham, liver cheese, American and Swiss cheeses.  That was it!    (Of course when you made big groceries the place to go was Schwegmann Brothers Giant Supermarket.)  It was until I was a teenager that I discovered a magical meat called pastrami.  I can still see my first pastrami sandwich at Masperos.  So much thinly sliced pastrami on toasted rye that I could barely put my mouth around it.  My mother raised us to be open to trying new foods.  Today, there is nothing I love more than a good deli counter and cheese cases filled with all types of cheeses to try.  For dinner, we had grilled sandwiches with pastrami, caraway havarti, and creole mustard on the New York Deli rye.  Nary a crumb was left behind.
     Pierre Masperos is still in the heart of the French Quarter and still serving phenomenal sandwiches, as well as lots of great Creole and Cajun cuisine.  They’re obviously doing something right since they’ve been open since 1788.  If you’re ever in New Orleans and want a great sandwich, check them out.

Three Cheese Semolina Bread

  

 I made Three Cheese Semolina Bread  from the King Arthur website.  I added three toes of minced garlic, and a half teaspoon of dried basil and thyme.  This is the first time the aroma of the bread dough caught Wayne’s attention.  The fragrance of the cheeses and the garlic wafted through the house.  This bread was super easy and required no kneading, but I did knead it a little when I deflated it just before shaping it (stretch and fold).  Even though I have a lame (used for slashing bread), I find I do better using a good sharp knife.  Once the loaf was put on the stone, the whole house began to smell divine.  I can say with certainty that while waiting for the loaf to cool we went into a time distortion field.  I’m sure that was at least a 200 minute hour.  (I think I’ve watched a little too much sci-fi.)  The loaf itself is a thing of beauty.  The crust is covered with cheesy bubbles.  The tender inside has beautiful cheese holes. (I baked it on a stone as I have not yet invested in covered bakers.)  This bread would make a wonderful meatball or Genoa salami and prosciutto sandwich.  The bread calls for you to have a nice glass of red wine with it.  Kids would love it with a little pizza sauce and pepperoni.  Oh even better, toast some and have with a large Italian salad filled with artichoke hearts, tomatoes, black olives, and romaine lettuce.   I guess what I’m saying is this bread would be the perfect pairing with just about anything.
      When Wayne and I lived in New Orleans east one of my favorite things on a Friday evening was to have a thin crust pizza with the works and an Italian salad from Tower of Pizza on Downman Rd. delivered.  The crust was always super thin and crispy.  The Italian salad was wonderful.  Chocked full of olives, carrots, roma tomatoes, red onions, marinated artichoke hearts, pepperoncinis, and crisp romaine and ice berg lettuce - the salad was then tossed with a homemade Italian dressing and topped with basil, oregano, and freshly grated Parmesan cheese.  The restaurant itself was a combination hole in the wall/dive.  Nothing fancy, just really good pizza.  I don’t think I had pizza until I was 10 or 11 years old, and then it was frozen pizza from the grocery.  I think the crust was made of cardboard, the sauce tomato paste, and the toppings were mystery meat, and cheese.  Of course, not having had “real” pizza I thought it was good.  I’m glad that I discovered what pizza could taste like and the myriad of toppings that makes pizza wonderful.  As with many things, Tower of Pizza in New Orleans east went with Hurricane Katrina, but the memory of Friday night dinner from Tower of Pizza remains a fond memory of what was. 
     A little laginappe - a few weeks ago I made some pita bread just for the fun of it.  That's what happens these days when I get bored, I look for bread recipes.  It never made it to the blog, but below is a picture of how it turned out.  It was great with some roasted pepper humus.

English Muffins

     I made these English muffins last week using the recipe in my favorite bread book, The Bread Baker's Apprentice.  They were a really thick English muffin.  Not quite as craggy as I had hoped.   The were very tasty and had a beautiful look and crust.  We went to Florida to visit my brother last week, so I was looking for something quick and easy to make.  In the next couple of weeks, I plan on making sourdough English muffins.


     Tomorrow I am going to make a 3 cheese semolina bread.  I wonder if I can use durum in it?  I'll have to investigate.  Let you know what I find out when I post. 

Seeded Oat Bread

   

      Sesame seeds, pumpkin seeds, and sunflower seeds!  How could I resist trying this bread.  It’s also made with whole wheat and oats.  Oat breads are my favorite.   I also added a little quinoa just for the heck of it.  The result was a super seeded oat bread  that was moist and tasty.  The recipe did not say how much it yielded, but I got 4 nice boules out of it.  It is a super simple no knead bread.  I used my new toy from King Arthur -   a dough whisk .  I really could not believe how easily the dough came together with the whisk.  After the first rise, the dough went in the fridge til the next day.   When the first two were pulled off the stone and moved to the rack to cool, I knew this was going to be a winner.  The beautifully browned loaf with additional seeds adhered to the loaf with an egg white wash during baking.  Wayne was impressed with the look of the loaves; I think he was even more impressed with the flavor.  This is definitely a make again bread.  I think I’ll try it in a loaf pan next time.
     Sunflower seeds always make me think of my early teaching days.  Lord, those boys loved sunflower seeds.  Getting them to not eat them in class was an on-going battle.  I can still see little piles of seed hulls inside of desks.  Trails of sunflower seeds in the hallways.  I can still the yellow, red, and white bags with “David” emblazoned across the bag.  When I started teaching many moons ago, St. Bernard High School was an all boys 8-12 public school.  I throughly enjoyed those years.  When there were no girls to impress, they boys were just plain silly.   Over my 30 years I’ve learned that kids are kids. My favorite stories are those of a mother who had 4 sons.  She would stop by and visit.  She was a riot.  I’ll call her Zelda.  Zelda came in one day killing herself laughing.  She spilled coffee on her “baby’s” homework (he was in elementary school) while checking to make sure it was done correctly.   She put it in the microwave to dry it, and she set it on fire.  She was laughing, because her child had been crying, “The teacher won’t believe me when I tell her you burned it up in the microwave.”  Her solution was to write a note and send the ashes in a baggie.  Zelda had a prosthetic leg.  She lost her to leg to cancer when she was very young.  Her 2nd youngest son, I’ll call him Bubba, failed Physical Education.  Bubba was with her when she picked up his report card on conference night.  The next day Zelda paid me a visit.  She told me the story of the ride home.  It went something like this: “You better not say a word to me.  Boy how could you fail f***ing PE.  I passed PE with one leg.”  Bubba would attempt to answer, and she would respond, “Boy didn’t I tell you not to talk to me.  I just don’t understand how you fail PE!  Well, how?  Answer me!”  When Bubba would go to answer her she would again respond with, “Didn’t I tell you to keep your mouth shout.”  That is how the half hour drive home went.  While telling me this story, I don’t know who was laughing harder, me or Zelda.  Her husband worked off-shore, so it was up to her to do the lion’s share of the parenting. The point is, Zelda was an involved parent.  She was at every activity for every child.  She always had a house full of kids.  She would not defend them when they were wrong.  She did not make excuses for them.  She did an excellent job of raising her boys to be responsible men.  I wish all parents were like Zelda.
      Teenagers don’t always make the best decisions.  They don’t always think things through.  They don’t think of consequences.  I would rarely get angry with a child; I would frequently get angry with parents.  I often would wonder how is it that you allowed your child to be in charge of the house.  I remember a senior coming into my guidance office.  He was upset because he was “grounded.”  He told me he deserved it, and he would get grounded all the time, but “this time they really mean it, and it’s just not right.”  I agreed with him, it wasn’t fair.  His parents should have meant it every time.  Teenagers are not easy.  Parents seem to think that they are old enough to “know better.”  The truth is, they don’t.  It is a time in their lives when there are bigger temptations that can have tragic outcomes.  It is a time when peer pressure is at it’s peek.  It is a time when they are trying to grow up, but don’t know how.  It’s also hard on parents.  Just how much freedom do you allow?  It’s hard to let them grow.  You look at your child and see that little child who adored you and wanted nothing more than to please you.  Want to know how to lecture your child?  Do it in 3 minutes or less because after that they don’t hear you.  Tell them you love them, even when they don’t want to hear it.  Ask plenty of questions.  Go to school events.  Be an active parent.