Greta suggested I make a Greek style bread with Feta cheese and olives. I hesitant to make it at first but then the idea of substituting the olives with sun-dried tomatoes appealed to me. So I decided to experiment, here is my recipe.

• 300 grams of Bob’s Artisan Flour – any AP unbleached flour will work
• 100 grams of whole wheat flour.
• 1 teaspoon of salt
• 1 tablespoon of sugar
• 1 cup of feta cheese crumbled
• 1 cup of sun-dried tomatoes – chopped
• ** 3/4 teaspoon of yeast – if you let it rise over night – 12 to 18 hours.
• ** 1 package of instant yeast if you only have 3 or 4 hours to let it rise.
• 1-1/4 cups of water – room temperature.

Directions
– Mix the flours, sugar, salt and yeast in a large mixing bowl.
– Crumble the feta, chop the sun-dried tomatoes and pat dry with paper towel.
– Add the feta and sun-dried tomatoes to the dry ingredients and stir until well coated.
– Slowly stir in the water. Cover and let rise – depending on the yeast you used.
Baking – Preheat oven and Dutch oven to 450 degrees. Bake for 15 minutes at 450, with the lid of the Dutch oven, then reduce temperature to 399 degree and bake 10 more minutes. Then, remove the lid and bake for another 12 to 15 minutes to allow the bread to get crusty.

I think this bread turned out very good. Next time however, I substitute Kalamata olives for the sun-dried tomatoes and add a tablespoon of dried oregano.

Walnut & Raisin Bread – Loaf #45

At 11AM on Saturday morning I decided I needed a bread for breakfast for Sunday brunch. I knew I was going to go on a long bike ride Sunday morning so I needed to bake it Saturday night. So, I used a package of instant yeast and let it rise for about 5-1/2 hours. This bread tasted better after being toasted, was not sweet and very dense – weighted 853 grams(1.88 lbs.) after it was baked.

Ingredients
– 250 grams of Bob’s Artisan Flour – any All-Purpose flour would work.
– 65 grams of ground oats – I ground my own in a old coffee grounder.
– 85 grams of whole wheat flour.
– 1 teaspoon salt.
– 1 teaspoon walnut oil
– 2 teaspoons of cinnamon.
– 1 tablespoon sugar – next time I’ll use brown sugar.
– 1 tablespoon ground flax seed – I think, I will leave out next time.
– 1 cup organic raisins
– 1 cup walnuts – chopped.
– 1 package of instant yeast.
– 1-1/4 cups of room temperature water.

Directions
– Mix the flours, sugar, salt and yeast in a large mixing bowl.
– Add the raisins and walnuts to the dry ingredients and stir until well coated.
– Slowly stir in the water. Cover and let rise – depending on the yeast you used.
Baking – Preheat oven and Dutch oven to 450 degrees. Bake for 15 minutes at 450, with the lid of the Dutch oven, then reduce temperature to 399 degree and bake 10 more minutes. Then, remove the lid and bake for another 12 to 15 minutes to allow the bread to get crusty.

This bread is a spin of my PCB artisan bread – but I substituted the 50 grams of rye flour with 50 grams of buckwheat flour. The finished bread was darker in color and was firmer and dryer than the PCB bread. It had a lot of flavor and texture – I liked it!

• 250 g Organic All-purpose flour
• 100 g White whole wheat flour
• 50 g Buckwheat flour
• 1 Tbsp Wheat germ
• 1 Tbsp Cane sugar
• 1-1/2 tsp Kosher salt
• 3/4 tsp Dry active yeast
• 1-1/4 water

Directions: Use a whisk to mix all of the dry ingredients together, then mix in the water and stir until combined. After all of the loose flour is wet from the water use your hands to form a ball. Drizzle a little extra virgin olive oil on the bottom of the bowl and on top of the ball in your hands. Place the dough in the bowl and cover.

Let the dough rise in a warmish place (about 70 degrees) for 12 to 18 hours. After the dough has risen, pre-heat the oven to 450 degrees with your Dutch oven inside to pre-heat as well. While your oven is pre-heating tear off a piece of parchment paper and flour the surface. With floured hands remove your dough from the bowl and knead with your hands for a few minutes. Knead by pulling the dough and folding under four or five times. Lay the dough back on the floured parchment in the shape you want. Using a sharp knife cut some slits on the surface of the dough and sprinkle a little flour on top – it looks cool.

After the oven has pre-heated carefully remove the very hot Dutch oven and take off the lid. Place the parchment with the dough on it directly into the Dutch oven – with the lid on place return it to the oven. Bake for 25 minutes, then reduce the temperature to 350 degrees, remove the lid and bake for another 10 minutes.

Pam loved a good artisan loaf of bread with good flavor, texture and of course a good crust. I didn’t start making bread until after she died but, I really think she would have loved this bread. I morphed a no knead bread recipe I found on Pinterest. Here is the recipe and directions.

• 250 grams Organic All-Purpose Flour
• 100 grams White Whole Wheat Flour
• 50 grams Dark Rye Flour
• 1 Tablespoon Wheat Germ
• 1 Tablespoon Plain White Sugar
• 1-1/2 teaspoons Kosher Salt
• 3/4 teaspoons Active Yeast
• 1-1/4 Cups Water (home Temp)

Directions: Add all of the dry ingredients to a large plastic or glass mixing bowl (do not use metal), The either using your hands or a spatula add the water. I usually start with a spatula then finish with hands. The dough will be very sticky and will stick to your hands – I usually don’t handle it long. Just before I put back in the bowl I drizzle a tiny bit of olive oil to lightly coat the whole ball of dough. Once this is done cover the top and place it in a warm place for 12 – 18 hours, Preheat the oven with a Dutch oven inside to 450 degrees. I use a 7 quart Le Creuset Dutch oven.

While the oven is preheating take your dough and place it on a piece of floured parchment paper. I usually knead a couple of time where I tuck the edges under until I get the shape I’m looking for. When done make sure your seams are on the bottom. After the oven and Dutch oven have preheated carefully remove the very hot Dutch oven and place your dough, parchment and all into the Dutch oven put the top on and return to the oven. Set your timer for 25 minutes. After 5 minutes reduce the temperature to 400 degrees . After 25 minutes reduce the temperature to 350, remove the top and bake for another 10 minutes.