Irish Cheddar Stout Bread

While my husband is planning to make an Irish beef and potato stew for dinner, I decided to cap dinner with an Irish bread to dip in the stew. After all, St. Patrick’s Day is coming up in less than two weeks. 

I researched some breads and looked at the flours I had. I created this recipe from a conglomerate of blogs and books, taking into consideration the ingredients that were in my pantry and fridge.

The dough was a giveaway for how tasty this bread would turn out. Although it was darker in color than the final product, the dough was sweet and yeasty, without any yeast. The beer and the cheese added a unique depth that brought me to the pub from my kitchen.

The final bread should be on every table on St. Patrick’s Day. It has a thick rustic and buttery crust, with a soft and sweet center that tastes like whole grain. However, I used all-purpose flour, so I believe the Guinness beer added a yeasty taste. 

Overall, let me just say that we ate five slices before the stew was even done.

Irish Cheddar Stout Bread Recipe
Makes 1 loaf

Ingredients
• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• ½ cup granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 2 cups shredded sharp cheddar
• 12 ounces Guinness (or other stout beer)
• 1 Tablespoon butter

Method
1. Line a loaf pan with parchment paper.

2. In a large bowl, mix flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.

3. Gently, toss the cheese into the flour mixture. Make sure that each strand is coated well.

4. Add the Guinness and stir until just combined. Double check that flour at the bottom of the bowl has been incorporated.

5. Pour the dough into the loaf pan and let it rest for 30 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. 

6. Bake in the preheated oven for 45-50 minutes. Remove from the oven and rub the butter into the top crust. Bake for an additional 5 minutes.

7. Let the loaf stand for five minutes on a cooling rack. Then, pull the parchment paper up from the pan and allow the bread to cool completely. 

Rustic Apple Cinnamon Galette

I have a three day Valentine’s Day weekend and was prepared to spend it mostly without my Valentine. My husband was scheduled to work straight through, but he came home on Saturday night and said he was miraculously able to take Sunday off. What a treat for me!

I wanted to make something special for breakfast Sunday morning. It is so special waking up to something baking in the oven. I had a few apples that were approaching their end of days, so I decided to use those. I also had all the ingredients for a pie crust and my ideas began to take shape. I didn’t want to make a straight up apple pie because it was too much work for a lazy Sunday morning. I decided to make a galette, or a free form rustic tart using the pie dough and apples.

I loved making this tart. There was no time push and no expectations. Tossing the apples with the cinnamon and the nutmeg and breathing in the scent, I felt them slide through my fingers. After adding the sugar, I have to admit that I snatched a few before they made it to the oven. And once it began baking in the oven, my entire space began to smell of apples and cinnamon. Add a cup of coffee, and I was in heaven.

This galette has spiced apples inside a sweet crust. It paired well with coffee for breakfast, but I could see adding whipped cream or a glaze to turn it into a dessert.

Rustic Apple Cinnamon Galette Recipe
Serves 4

Ingredients

Crust
1 cup Flour, plus additional for dusting
½ cup Unsalted Butter, chopped into small pieces
3 Tablespoons Sugar, plus more for dusting
¼ teaspoon Salt
1-3 Tablespoons of cold Water
Crsico, or vegetable shortening, for greasing
1 Egg, beaten 

Filling
3-4 Apples, cored and sliced thin (I used Gala)
¼ cup Sugar
1 teaspoon Cinnamon
¼ teaspoon Nutmeg 
1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
Juice from ½ of a Lemon
Salt, a pinch

Equipment
Large Food Processor
Parchment Paper
Rolling Pin
Large Baking Pan
Pastry Brush
*Fridge Space for the crust (I’m adding this to make sure I remember to clear it out if I make this again)

Method

1. In a large bowl, toss the apples with sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, vanilla, lemon juice and salt until they are well coated. Set aside and let them rest and soak up the spice!

2. Using a large food processor, add the flour, butter, sugar, and salt. Process until there are small clumps uniformly spread throughout the bowl.

3. Add a tablespoon of water to the dough mixture. Process for a few seconds. If it hasn’t formed one large ball, add another teaspoon and process. Repeat as necessary. As a hint, the processor will begin to rumble as it forms one large ball of dough.  

4. Remove the dough ball from the processor and place it on top one large sheet of parchment paper. Roll the dough into a circle that measures approximately 10 inches in diameter. The circle doesn’t need to be perfect as this is a rustic tart.

5. When dough has been rolled, place a second sheet of parchment paper on top of the dough circle. Place the dough in the fridge for about half an hour, or until the butter has hardened at the crust is a disc.

6. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and prepare the baking pan with grease and a dusting of flour. 

7. After the dough has set, remove from the fridge and peel one sheet of parchment off. Place it dough side down onto the floured baking pan. Peel off the second parchment sheet.

8. Pile the apples in the center of the pie, leaving about three inches from the edge. The pile will seem very high, but they will cook down while baking. If there is extra juice in the bottom of the bowl, reserve it for a glaze (see note below). 

9. Fold the edges of the dough over, overlapping and pinching the ends together as you go. When finished, brush the crust with the beaten egg and sprinkle some extra granulated sugar over the tart, concentrating on the crust. 

This is what my galette looked like before entering the oven:

10. Bake for about 30-35 minutes, until crust has a golden glow. 

*Note: If you would like to create a glaze, reserve 1-2 tablespoons of apple juice from the bowl of apples leftover in step 8. Add confectioner’s sugar a tablespoon at a time, and continue to stir until desired consistency is reached. Spoon the glaze over the galette upon serving. 

Sub Rosa Bakery

Style: Bakery

My Rating: 5/5 stars

Website: http://www.subrosabakery.com/

Likes: Rustic feel, sturdy wooden boards and stoneware pottery used to plate items, best coffee I have ever had, wood fired oven

Dislikes: Someone stole the tips out of the jar when we were there

There is nothing better than starting a day off having breakfast with friends. When the breakfast turns out to be a wood fired pastry, the best gets an extreme upgrade.

Two of my fellow vacationing teacher friends gladly helped me cross this excursion off of my bucket list for this summer. We met at Sub Rosa Bakery for brunch, and were charmed by the calming rustic environment and earnest smell of baking bread floating around us.

I ordered the Manchego and Fig Croissant, a sweet treat with savory undertones. Although the pastry had a burnt looking quality to it, the soft and flaky croissant had a buttery taste that I haven’t had since I visited bakeries in New York. The taste is what matters to me.  In addition, I had an amazing cup of dark roasted coffee to compliment my breakfast. They have their own signature Sub Rosa blend, created by Lamplighter coffee down the street, which had nutty and chocolate undertones.

My friends also tried the Chilled Turnip and Dill Soup. The smooth soup had a clean finish with a soft dill taste, which was not overpowering. It was served in these adorable stoneware bowls on top of bread boards.

I was so impressed with our experience that I took two different pastries home with me under the assumption that I would give them to my husband who had been at work. They managed to stay intact until his arrival, but I definitely took a few bites once my husband began his snack. One was a Salami and Gruyere Croissant, savory with the addicting meat and cheese combination.  The other was the Pain au Chbuckocolat, filled with a deep and bitter chocolate. 

This was a most successful summer bucket list excursion, and I look forward to returning to this bakery soon. 

Mushroom Feta Mini Quiche Recipe

Preparing to move means cleaning out the freezer. Cleaning out the freezer means facing ingredients that I have put off using. Phyllo dough is one of those ingredients.

I sat down holding the box of phyllo. What do I do with it? My first idea was to make baklava, but I am trying hard no to gain any more weight than is necessary while cleaning out the freezer, so I quickly ruled that idea out. So illogically, my brain jumps automatically from dessert to quiche. How it did that, I have no idea.

This is a recipe I made 100 percent with my own knowledge of cooking. I am actually quite proud of myself. From using a new ingredient, to putting ingredients that taste well together, and projecting baking temperatures and times, I figured this out on my own. I usually take a base recipe and adjust it as necessary, but not this time!

Now that I have applauded myself, I need to add the “but.” I am very proud of myself, BUT the quiche didn’t taste exactly how I had conceived once it was out of the oven. The baking process squashed the strength of the feta, garlic, and onion. However, the tarragon was just fine, so it turned out to taste like a tarragon quiche! It was not bad, but I think I am going to toy around with the fillings for the next set of phyllo mini quiches.

So now that I just admitted that it wasn’t my favorite recipe in the world, you may wonder why I am posting the recipe below. The answer is simple. I am going to use this as a base and change the filling. Plus, it would be rotten to have taken the pictures for nothing!

Mushroom Feta Mini Quiche Recipe

Recipe yields 12 mini quiches.

Special Equipment

12 cup muffin tin

Container with a 4 inch rim (used to cut dough)

Ingredients

Cooking Spray

½ medium yellow, diced

4 oz mushrooms, diced

1 tsp garlic, minced

¼ tsp dried tarragon

1 roll of premade frozen phyllo dough (two rolls come in standard package)

5 oz feta cheese

5 eggs

¼ cup half and half or whole milk

Ground Pepper, to taste

Method

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.

2. Spray cooking spray into a small skillet. Add the onion, mushrooms, garlic, and tarragon. Cook the mixture until the onions are translucent, about 3-4 minutes. Set aside.

3. Spray cooking spray to thoroughly coat the cups of the muffin tin. Stack five sheets of phyllo on a clean work surface (I placed them on a silicone work pad). If they are dry and cracking, moisten them with water. Press the rim of a 4 inch container into the dough to cut circles. I was able to get at least 5 cups filled per stack.

4. Place the circles inside the muffin tin (overlapping is OK). Repeat process until all muffin cups are filled.

5. Put a rough teaspoon of feta cheese into the bottom of each cup.

6. Evenly distribute the mushroom and onion mixture into the cups. Use care not to disturb the phyllo layers if they are jagged and sticking up.

7. Top phyllo cups with one last rough teaspoon of feta cheese.

8. Measure half and half or milk into a liquid measure cup. Add the eggs and whisk until the ingredients are blended.

9. Pour egg mixture gently into each cup, filling them until they are 2/3 to ¾ full. Use care to keep the mixture from spilling over the sides. It is OK for small touches of the filling to be sticking out above the egg.

10. Grind a touch of pepper onto the top of each mini quiche.

11. Bake the quiches in the preheated oven for 20 -22 minutes, turning once halfway though.

The quiches can be served hot, room temperature, or cold. 

Semolina Bread

Growing up Long Island, New York, we always had a grocery store that baked semolina bread. You may ask me, Sara, what is semolina bread? Well, semolina is a type of flour made from hard wheat that is used by Italians to make pasta. In Italy, they make semolina bread in addition to pasta, which makes a distinct light-colored chewy bread.  My personal favorite attribute of semolina bread is that it sports sesame seeds adorned on its crust!

Now that I live in Virginia, it is rather difficult to find semolina bread, let alone semolina flour. I have a fabulous book with a ton of bread recipes in it, The Illustrated Step By Step to Baking, which had a recipe for it. Oh how I wished I could find semolina flour.

Then one day, I took a trip with a colleague of mine up into the Appalachian Mountains for the Green Valley Book Fair. On our way back, we stopped at an Amish grocery store called Yoder’s. Amongst the really cool things they had at Yoder’s was SEMOLINA FLOUR. I felt as though I struck a gold mine.

I loved making this bread because it was rather easy. I could make it using the stand up mixer, and it worked out marvelous. This means no kneading!

For non-New Yorkers who ever cross paths with Semolina, I suggest pairing it with pasta or making bruschetta with it. Or, my favorite, just lather on the butter and bite!

Semolina Bread Recipe

This recipe yields 1 boule

Ingredients

For the Starter

¼ tsp dried yeast

½ cup fine semolina, or semolina flour

Vegetable oil for greasing

For the Dough

1 tsp dried yeast

2 cups fine semolina, or semolina flour, plus extra for dusting

1 tsp fine salt

1 tbsp sesame seeds

1 egg, beaten for glazing

Method

1. To make the starter, dissolve the yeast in ¼ cup warm water. Add the liquid to the semolina and stir until you have a loose, sloppy dough. Place the dough in a large bowl with lots of room for it to expand. Let it sit in a warm place for about 12 hours, or overnight.
   
2. After the starter has been fully created and let rest, make the dough by dissolving the yeast in ¾ cup of water. Put the risen starter, flour, and salt into a large bowl, or the bowl of an electric mixer. Add the liquid yeast mixture.
3.  Stir the ingredients together. If using a mixer, attach the bread hook and mix on medium speed for 5 -7 minutes (or until it comes together fully and makes a “thwaping” sound). Or, you could knead by hand for about 10 minutes. The finished dough should be smooth and elastic.
4. Put the dough in a lightly oiled bowl, cover loosely with plastic wrap, and leave to rise in a warm place for about 1 ½ hours, or until doubled in size.
5. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and gently knock it back. Shape into your desire shape, place on a large baking sheet, and wrap with a clean kitchen towel. Let it rise until doubled in size, about 1 more hour.
6. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.
7. Brush the bread with beaten egg and scatter the sesame seeds on top (I didn’t measure the seeds. Add however much you like).
8. Bake in the center of the oven for 20-25 minutes, or until it is well risen and a light golden brown. Let it cool on a wire rack for at least 30 minutes before serving.
   

Cheesy Garlic Butter Biscuits

Pinterest is riddled with recipes for a specific type of biscuit. Some refer to it as Red Lobster knock offs, or Cheddar Bay Biscuits. Others call them Cheesy Garlic Biscuits, or others have called them Better Than ___ Biscuits. Regardless of what they are called, they all end up with a little biscuit that is made with cheese and brushed with garlic butter goodness. Tonight I conquered this heavenly biscuits, both by baking them, and by eating more than I originally planned. 

The neatest thing about these biscuits was that they were so quick. Lately I have been so focused on baking breads and rolls that require yeast. There is kneading involved, and time is set aside for rising. If the temperature is not perfect, the dough will not rise. Basically, rolls and breads have the potential to be a huge pain. There were just three steps with these little bits of baked heaven:

1. Mix the ingredients together.
2. Form little balls and bake them.
3. Brush the biscuits with butter.

I can handle this.

When I bit into the first one as it was right out of the oven, the butter oozed from the bread and covered my mouth. As I chewed, the cheesy bread easily broke apart because it was so soft and tender. With each bite, I was little bit closer to gaining a full pound of buttery bread weight, but the taste was so indulgent that I just did not care. I am going to work out a lot tomorrow… and the next day… and probably a few after that, too.

I looked at a bunch of different recipes for these. I used my favorite aspects of one from Salt & Tumeric Blog, Cheesy Garlic Biscuits. I made a few changes, however. I had to add a few splashes of milk when I was mixing the dough so that the cheese would adhere to the flour. I also added more butter and took out and extra baking step at the end. I like my biscuits to be soft and buttery. However, if you are a crunchy bread fan, other recipes say that you can bake these in the oven for up to ten minutes more after the biscuits have been buttered. 

Recipe below yields 12 biscuits.

Ingredients

1 pack buttermilk biscuit mix (I used 1 ½ cups of Southern Living Complete Biscuit Mix, Formula L)
1 ½ cups shredded cheddar cheese
1/2 cup milk (plus more splashes if necessary)
3 tbsp. butter
2 tsp. oregano 
3/4 tsp. garlic salt

Directions 

1. Preheat oven to 400F. Spray cooking sheet with non-stick spray or use a silicone baking sheet.

2. Put biscuit mix, cheese and milk in a bowl and mix well to form a sticky dough.

3. Using spoon, drop lumps of dough onto cookie sheets 1 1/2 inches apart. Bake for 10 minutes. 

4. In a bowl, melt butter and mix with oregano and garlic salt.

5. When the timer goes off, take them out and brush with butter mixture.

6. Serve immediately, and eat the most as you can because they will not be around long. 

Irish Soda Scones

Growing up in New York, I became enamored with St. Patrick’s Day. All of the parades, bagpipes, and Irish tap dancing was so exciting. As I got older, the Guinness and Bailey’s made this even more exciting. The one food that was always present through these memories was Irish Soda Bread.

This year was depressing in terms of shamrocks and leprechauns because I did not do anything for St. Patrick’s Day. I actually spent it at the Google Apps Teacher Conference in Charlottesville, VA and even forgot to wear green! I am sure my Great Grandmother Lillian from Limerick would be very disappointed in me.

This past weekend, I decided to make up for my missed holiday and I made some Irish Soda Scones. These are like the soda bread, except that they are denser and are in scone shapes. I also like that they are in six pieces, which saves me from eating half of the bead in one sitting. 

I do not make traditional Irish Soda Bread. I add much more sugar to make them sweeter. Traditional American Irish Soda Bread also calls for raisins and caraway seeds. I definitely add raisins. I used golden ones in this batch of scones simply because it was what I had. I used fennel seeds instead of caraway. They deliver a sweet and subtle licorice taste and are not as harsh.

I like to eat these scones for breakfast, cut in half with some butter and honey. They are also fabulous with a cup of coffee, and even better with Earl Grey tea.

Ingredients

3 cups all-purpose flour
½ cup sugar
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1 ½ cups buttermilk
¼ cup raisins
1 tsp fennel

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit and make sure a rack is in the center of the oven. 

2. Line a backing sheet with a silicone pad or parchment paper.

3. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking soda, and salt.

4. Make a well in the center of the flour mixture and slowly add the buttermilk, blending the flour using a circular motion and a wooden spoon. Feel free to add a splash more of buttermilk if it is needed for the crumbs to draw together. The dough should be moist, soft, and sticky.

5. Place the dough onto a floured surface and knead the dough gently into an 8 inch round.

6. Cut the circle lengthwise three times, creating six triangular pieces. 

7. Place the scones on the baking sheet and brush the tops with a little extra buttermilk and dust with flour.

8. Bake the scones for about 20 minutes. Test the scones by tapping the bottom because it should sound hollow. 

This recipe makes 6 large scones. 

Tarte au Citron (Lemon Tart)

I baked this tart for the first time last year at Easter. My family asked me to bring a dessert that was fruity and not chocolate. I am not really a pie person, so I decided to start thinking of something new to try. I immediately thought of lemon bars. They are so bright and cheerful for Easter, plus tart and sweet at the same time. I did not want to bring bars though. I rather like presenting a whole dessert. There is more of a show when you cut into and present it. Plus, people can have more control over their portion size. You can have a sliver. You can have a chunk. Whatever!

I originally started with a recipe from Illustrated Step by Step Baking, by Caroline Bretherton. So many changes were made to the recipe over the few times my husband and I have made it, that it really has evolved into its own. For example, we made a bigger tart. We had to bake it longer. We added more lemons. You get the picture.

We made it again for Easter this year. My grandmother approved, even of the crust, which I feel is a huge success. She is a Midwest baking expert who makes the most delectable cherry pie. In addition to the approval of the grandmother, this dessert is also good for having the family help. I am blessed with a husband who likes to be in the kitchen. Many times he offers to help. With this dessert, he has become the official lemon juicer and zester. Thanks Hon!

A variation to my recipe that could be feasible, would be to sift some confectioner’s sugar over the top. Mine have been too wet and the sugar gets absorbed so that it is not even seen. You could try it out on yours if you’d like. It didn’t work for me.
I recommend this dessert for spring and summertime palate cleansing. It is tart and sweet, making it a perfect way to end a meal on a warm day. It is also great for High Noon Tea too!

Special Equipment
Food processor with blade attachment
11 inch tart pan with a removable bottom
Baking beans

Crust Ingredients
2 cups all-purpose flour, plus extra for dusting
9 tbsp butter, chilled
½ cup sugar
1 large egg

Filling Ingredients
6 large eggs
¾ cup sugar
Finely grated zest and juice of 5 lemons
1 cup heavy cream

Directions
1. To make the crust, place the flour, butter, and sugar into a food processor and pulse until it resembles crumbs. Add the egg and process until the pastry draws together into a ball.

2. Take the pastry dough and press it into the tart pan. Make sure that the pastry is at least half an inch above the edge. It will shrink during baking.

3. Chill the crust in the pan for at least 30 minutes.

4. Meanwhile, beat the eggs and sugar together with an electric mixer. Beat in the lemon juice and zest (double check for lemon pits!). Whisk in heavy cream. Chill in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour.

5. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. Line the pastry crust with parchment paper, fill with baking beans, and bake blind for 15 minutes. Remove the parchment and beans, and bake the pastry for another 5 minutes, or until the base is crisp.

Tart filled with parchment and baking beans

Finished crust. Notice the fallen crust pieces. I will gently break off others to make it uniform, but will not use a knife to cut them. This way it looks homemade and rustic.

6. Reduce the oven temperature to 275 degrees Fahrenheit. Place the tart pan on a baking sheet. Pour in the lemon filling, being careful not to allow the filling to spill over the edge. Bake for 30 minutes, or until just set. It will look somewhat like Jell-o when moved. 

7. Remove from the oven and cool. I prefer mine just out of the refrigerator, but it can be served at room temperate with at least 1 hour of resting time. It can even be made the day before if left in the fridge and covered.

Ham and Pea Tart

I do like ham, but I don't love it just by itself. I like it in small doses or mixed in other dishes. For example, I love ham and eggs, when they are not green of course. Or I will even pretend I'm a real Southerner and mix it up into grits.Therefore, after Easter, I am in a predicament. I don't  want to eat all of that ham by itself. So my husband and I came up with a new way to use some of it. We used a recipe from The Illustrated Quick Cook as inspiration and added a few of our own little touches. 

The crust on this did not come out exactly as I had wanted. I used a 9-inch spring form pan  which I normally use for thick crusted desserts. I used pre-made crust for a time saver, but this could easily use a homemade crust and be made thicker. When I molded the dough around pan, I raised it too high. I had to make it thinner so that it would go that high. In retrospect, I would make the walls thicker and shorter. I might even use both sheets of the crust to thicken it.

This dish could be served after it cools right out of the oven. However, my husband and I like it cooled and refrigerated. We stored it in the fridge overnight and served it the next day. We also liked to squirt a little Sriracha on it to "kick it up a notch," just for Emrill. 

Ingredients
1 sheet of prepared dough for an 8-9 inch pie
all-purpose flour for dusting
1/2 cup parmsean cheese, divide
2 large eggs, plus 1 extra beaten yolk for egg wash
1 tbsp olive oil
1 onion, diced
sea salt and ground pepper to taste
2 2/1 cups diced ham
1 tsp sage
1 1/2 cup frozen peas
2/3 cup heavy whipping cream

Other Equipment
8-9 inch spring form pan
baking beans or pie weights
parchment paper

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit

2. Roll out the dough on a floured surface and press into the pan. I would make it no more than two inches in height and not like the picture below.

3. Line the dough with parchment paper and fill with baking beans. Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until the edges of the crust are golden. 

4. Brush the crust with the egg yolk and sprinkle 1/4 cup of parmesean cheese in the bottom. Bake for another 3-5 minutes to crisp.

5. Set aside the crust and reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

6. Meanwhile, heat the in a large frying pan.. Add the onion and a pinch of salt and cook until the onions become translucent. Add the ham and sage, and saute the ingredients until the ham is browned and slightly crispy. Stir in the peas and season with salt and pepper.

7. Add the ham and pea mixture to the crust.

8. Beat together the two eggs and heavy cream. Season it well. Pour the cream mixture over the ham and peas. Use a fork and press the solid ingredients down in case they rise above the liquid. Sprinkle the rest of the parmesean cheese over the top.

9. Bake the tart for 20 - 30 minutes until set and golden. I place a pan underneath the spring form in case it leaks.