Easy Focacia Bread

Prep Time      15 minutes

Cook Time    25 minutes

Rising Time 10 hours

Ingredients

4 cups          All-Purpose Flour

2 Tsp           Kosher Salt

2-1/4 Tsp     Instant Yeast (1 packet)

• This recipe calls for Instant Yeast which is also called Rapid Rise Yeast. It's quite magical as it doesn't require proofing like regular yeast does. Don't try to use regular yeast in this recipe. You can find Instant or Rapid Rise Yeast at most grocery stores, right next to the regular yeast. You can also buy it in bulk and store it indefinitely in the freezer. It's infinitely cheaper buying yeast in bulk vs purchasing it in the little packets.

2 Cups        Warm Tap Water

1 Tsp          Soft Butter for greasing pan

4 TBSP     Olive Oil divided

Italian Seasoning or finely chopped fresh herbs (optional)

Flaky Sea Salt or Kosher Salt (sprinkle sparingly)

Directions

                                        Prepare the Dough

1. In a medium-large bowl, combine flour, salt, and instant yeast. Stir well. Add the warm water. Using a  Whisk, sturdy wooden spoon or a rubber spatula, mix until all of the flour is well incorporated (there should be no small pockets of flour. Cover the bowl with a plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 8 hours and up to 24 hours.  (Don't worry about exact time with the initial rising of this easy focaccia bread.  Your results will be wonderful as long as it rises at least 8 hours. )

2. Lightly butter two 9-inch cake pans. Line pans with parchment paper. Pour one tablespoon of olive oil into the center of each pan. Divide dough in half with a large spoon or rubber spatula and place one piece of dough in each pan, turning to coat with oil. Tuck edges of dough underneath to form a rough ball. 

3. Cover each pan tightly with plastic wrap and allow the dough balls to rest for 2 hours (it may take as long as 3 hours, depending on the warmth of your kitchen). The dough should cover most of the pan. (The second rise (in the pan) should be at least 2 hours (or until the dough has nicely risen). If your kitchen is really warm, it may take a bit less time. Rather than using an exact time, use the appearance of the dough as your guide - it should be close to filling the pan.)

   
   

     Bake

   
   

   1. Preheat oven to 450˚F with a rack positioned in the center of the oven.
   2. Drizzle another tablespoon of oil over each round of dough. With oiled fingers, using both hands, press straight down and create deep dimples that go all the way through the dough (in other words, you'll actually be making deep holes.) If necessary, gently stretch the dough as you dimple to allow the dough to fill the pan.  Don't be shy when you "dimple" the dough, just before baking. You want to poke your fingers in all the way to the bottom of the pan and actually make little holes with your fingers. This will ensure nice deep dimples that won't disappear in the oven.
   3. Sprinkle tops with Italian seasoning (or fresh herbs) and flaky sea salt.
   4. Transfer the pans to the oven and immediately reduce the temperature to 425˚F. Bake for 22 to 28 minutes, until the tops are golden and the undersides are crisp. Remove pans from the oven. With a metal spatula remove bread rounds from the pans and transfer to a cooling rack.
   5. Serve warm or allow to cool completely then store in a zippered bag.

       To freeze, allow bread to cool completely, then transfer to a ziplock bag and freeze.  Thaw and enjoy at room temperature or warm for 10 minutes in a 350 degree oven.  

      This Easy Focaccia Bread is fabulous as a dinner bread, with salads, for sandwiches, for a dipping bread... You can also  drizzle a little oil in a sauté pan, add the focaccia and let it cook over medium heat until it's golden and crisp. So good! 

      
      

      

      Mmmmm Mmmmmm

      
      
      

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No Knead Bread

With the Stay Home order being given due to COVID-19, I decided when I need something I could  make, I will make it instead of venturing to a shop.  I needed BREAD.  So I dug out Our Family Table cookbook and got to work.

For those of you who do not own a copy of this excellent cookbook, I have copied the recipe for NO KNEAD BREAD:







                                 




































Not having made this bread in years AND not having any Multi-grain Mix Flour, baking was interesting.

First, I used 1-1/2 cups of Whole Wheat Flour, i.e. substituted the 1/2 cup multi-grain for whole wheat.
Second, I started making this at about 4 in the afternoon.  Putting it together was quick and easy.  I covered it with plastic wrap and let it rise in my oven as my room overnight temperature is 16°C which I thought perhaps too cold for this process.

This is what it looked like the next morning.  Pretty good!

                                              

So I punched it down.  It was awfully soft, sticky and wiggly and I wasn't sure I added enough flour, but too late for that thought.

I slid it into a buttered bread pan, again covered it with plastic and set it again in the oven to rise as my room was still chilly.  TIP:  DO NOT COVER AGAIN WITH PLASTIC WRAP.  When it rises again, the plastic sticks to the bread and makes a mess.


     



In pan for 2nd rising with plastic wrap (a no-no)










When it rose this much (2-1/2 hours) I baked it.
It was still pretty jiggly.  But 40 minutes later it looked like this when I removed it from the oven.

                                    

And I had my homemade bread without going into a store.  

I should call it NO FAIL NO KNEAD BREAD.

Next time I will try it with more of a percentage of whole wheat flour and will carefully measure the flour - perhaps even weigh it for future use.  Will add tips to this recipe as I have them.

Cloud Bread

Cloud Bread is light, airy and gluten free.  It is easy to make and according to the original recipe it can be topped with anything from jam to cheese.  As you see below, I made mine into a hamburger bun.  I LOVED IT!  The bun WAS light and airy and it didn't detract from the delicious taste of the bar-b-qued hamburger AND unlike us gluten free eaters that wrap the hamburger in a lettuce leaf, the meat and the accompaniments don't slide out of the bun.  It was great.   

I suggest using the bread the day it is made.  I put mine in a plastic bread bag overnight and it was very limp and spongey the next day.

Ingredients:

3 eggs, separated

1/4 tsp baking soda

3 TBSP mayonnaise

1.  Heat oven to 300°F and line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.

2.  In a bowl, combine egg whites and baking soda.  Beat with a mixer until stiff peaks form.

3.  In a separate bowl, combine mayonnaise and egg yolks.  Beat until smooth.  

4.  Gently fold into beaten egg whites.

5.  Use a 1/3 measuring cup to pour mixture onto baking sheets, leaving space in between each round.  

6.  Bake 30 minutes until firm.

I believe this recipe made 8 rounds perhaps 10 ... I can't exactly remember but no less than 8.

Gluten Free Banana Almond Bread

Seems my most delicious baked gluten free recipes are banana bread.  Well, here is another one.  Was pleased it used Almond Flour ae I am not partial to baking with the rice (or many other varieties of) flour.  Below is a picture of the flour I used for this recipe.  This was labelled "Raw" as the dark outer skin of the almond was not removed before grinding, therefore it is a bit heavier than normal ground almond flour, but it worked well in this recipe.  I ordered it from Well.ca the online grocery store that delivers right to your door (or Post Office Box now-a-days) free of charge.

And not on a cooking note, if you are wondering what is in the background of the above photo of my slice of banana almond bread ...  it is the Queen.

She sits on my window sill and waves while it is daylight.

GLUTEN FREE BANANA ALMOND BREAD

2 Cups (260 g)   Almond Flour
1/4 Cup (35g)    Cornstarch
2 Tsp                  Baking Powder
1/2 Cup (115g)  Unsalted butter, softened
(I used Becel Margarine; it was already soft)

1/2 Cup (105g) Sugar (I used Splenda and used a little less)

2                        Eggs

1-1/4 Cups (310 ml) very ripe mashed bananas (about 3 bananas)

2 TBSP             Sliced Almonds (I only had slivered)

1 TBSP             Almond Extract (I used Vanilla)

As you can see I altered the original recipe on my first go-round and it worked out perfectly.  Don't be afraid to add perhaps nuts to the batter or perhaps chocolate chips.  I haven't tried that yet but am pretty certain it would work out well.  Below are the instructions.

• 
  

• Instructions:

1. With the rack in the middle position, preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Butter a six-cup (1.5 litre) 10 x 4-inch (25 x 10 cm) loaf pan and line it with a sheet of parchment paper, letting it hang over both sides.
2. In a bowl, combine the almond flour, cornstarch and baking powder. Set aside.
3. In another bowl, cream the butter and sugar with an electric mixer. Add the eggs, one at a time, and beat until smooth. Add almond extract.  At low speed, stir in the dry ingredients alternately with the mashed bananas. If adding chocolate chips or nuts, dust them with a bit of flour, then fold into batter.  Spread the batter into the pan. Sprinkle with the sliced almonds.
4. Bake for about 55 minutes or until the loaf is golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the centre comes out moist but without lumps of batter.  My loaf was ready in about 40 minutes.
5. Let cool completely before removing from the pan.

French Bread

French Bread

I have been making and/or buying Gluten Free Bread for two years now.  So far, the best I have tasted is Udi's bread but is is close to $9 a loaf and the loaf is about 1/2 the size of regular wheat bread.  Then is got this recipe.  Finally, finally, finally, I made a loaf of bread that looks and tastes like a loaf of regular bread.  I was so excited.

I didn't have a french bread pan so, as suggested, made my own.

Here is the finished product.  A lot depends on how you make the pan and how much you smooth the top.

Ingredients:

2 Cups plus 2 TBSP GF Flour Mix (I used Pamela's All Purpose Flour)

2-1/2 Tsp Xanthan Gum

1-1/2 Tsp Sugar

1 Tsp Salt

2 Tsp Quick-Rising Yeast

1 Tsp Vinegar or Dough Enhancer

2 Egg Whites (room temperature) 

1-1/2 Cups Warm Water (110-115 Degrees F)

Prepare a French Bread Pan by spraying with vegetable oil or curve a doubled piece of heavy foil about the length of your cookie sheet to form a mold and spray this.

In the bowl of your mixer, combine the flour mix, xanthin gum, sugar, salt and yeast.  Whisk together to blend well.  Add the vinegar, egg whites and water.  Beat at medium speed for 3 minutes.   Spoon dough into the mould to almost the full length.  Smooth the top.  Cover and let rise for 15 minutes.  Preheat oven to 400 Degrees F.

Bake for 1 hour.  Turn oven to 350 Degrees F and bake 15 minutes longer.  To eat it hot and crusty, tear it apart; it won't cut until it's cool.  The bread keeps for several days but the crust gets more tender with time.

Sourdough French:  Add 1-1/2 Tsp Sourdough Starter to the liquids before beating them in.  

Kristin's Banana Bread (Gluten Free)

Banana Bread

1 Cup Raw Sugar (we used 1/4 Cup and it was just fine)
1 TBSP Butter Regular or non-dairy) (we used Coconut Oil)
1 Cup Mashed Over-ripe Bananas (2 or 3)
1 Egg
1 Tsp Real Vanilla Extract
1 Cup Oat Flour (we ground whole flake oats in Magic Bullet)
3/4 Tsp Baking Powder
1/4 Tsp Salt
1/2 Cup semisweet Chocolate Chips (if desired)

Preheat the oven to 350˚F.
Combine all the ingredients in a bowl and mix well.
Cut a piece of parchment paper to fit the bottom of a loaf pan. Put it in the bottom of the pan and spray with cooking spray.
Pour in the batter and cover loosely with foil. (we didn't cover with foil, but if getting too brown, just lay foil over top while it cooks.)
Bake for 30 minutes.
 Cool completely, then slice and serve.