Kitchen Little

Challah

My mother is a fabulous cook.

In fact, most everyone who has had the pleasure of tasting my mother's cooking considers her culinary royalty (it's true Mom, so if you're reading this, stop blushing). Looking back on my childhood, it's full of all sorts of treats...perfectly layered lasagnas, chicken breasts juicy and flavorful, and her amazing molasses spice cookies (someday I'll share that recipe...maybe).  But the one category that is strangely missing is bread. 

Now, I'm not saying that she couldn't bake bread (I'm not one to mess with the culinary gods). I'm merely noting that she...didn't.  Sure there was the occasional bread-machine loaf, or a sweet, dessert type bread (mmm...banana bread), but as far as yeasty, hand-kneaded goodness, well, we left that to the store.

Which is why I have decided it is my job to take up the fight in that department.  If I am being perfectly honest, I'll admit that there's probably a disproportionately large part of me that wants to eclipse my mom's culinary prowess in some department (any department, really), and bread seems like an easy target.  Still, even that wouldn't have made me bake 3 (yes 3) different loaves of bread in the span of a week and a half. 

The truth is, making bread is fun.  There's just something to comforting and magical about the process...kneading the dough, watching it rise, shaping the loaves...oh, and then there's that SMELL...don't get me started on the smell.

No, it's not burned...still working on the whole food-photography thing!

For my second foray into the world of bread (the first was hamburger buns, which I'm still fiddling with), I decided to try my hand at challah, a traditional Jewish egg bread.  Now, I am not Jewish, but nonetheless this is one of my favorite breads.  It's sweet, eggy, and fluffy, and impressive to look at to boot with its pretty braided coils and lacquered golden crust. Not to mention that it makes the world's best french toast. 

At first, in an attempt to be healthy, I tried a whole-wheat challah, and well, it was a bit of a failure...despite carefully proofed yeast, meticulously weighed ingredients, yada yada, the challah wouldn't rise.  Miffed, but undefeated, I turned to one of my all-time favorite food blogs, Smitten Kitchen.  I halved the recipe and did a four-strand braid, but other than that I followed Deb's fabulous recipe to a "T."  It was super easy to do...give it a try!

Smitten Kitchen's Challah (Egg Bread)
originally adapted by Deb, of Smitten Kitchen, from Joan Nathan

Time: about 1 hour, plus 2 1/2 hours’ rising
Yield: 1 loaf (this is the half-size recipe...the original makes two loaves)

0.75 Tablespoons active dry yeast
0.5 tablespoon plus 0.25 cup sugar
0.25 cup vegetable oil, plus a bit extra for oiling the bowl
3 large eggs (the original called for 5 eggs, but 2.5 eggs seemed silly to me, so I used three)
0.5 tablespoon salt
4 to 4.25 cups all-purpose flour
sesame seeds for sprinkling.

1. In a large bowl, dissolve yeast and 0.5 tablespoon sugar in 3/4 cups + 2 Tablespoons lukewarm water.

2. Whisk oil into yeast, then beat in 2 eggs, one at a time, with remaining sugar and salt. Add flour, a half cup or so at a time. When dough pulls away from sides of bowl slightly to form a shaggy mass that holds together, it is ready for kneading. (You can also use a mixer with a dough hook for both mixing and kneading, but I prefer the bowl and spoon method)

3. Turn dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead until elastic. pliable, and smooth (make sure it passes the windowpane test to make sure gluten is fully developed). Clean out bowl and grease it, then return dough to bowl, turning once to cover all sides of dough ball. Cover with plastic wrap, and let rise in a warm place for 1 hour, until roughly doubled in size (the top of my fridge is the perfect rising place for me). Gently deflate dough, cover again and let rise once more in a warm place for an additional half-hour.

4. Turn dough out onto lightly (very lightly) floured surface, gently deflate and divide into sections for braiding.  For a simple braid, do three sections.  I did four, as I made a four strand braid.  Braid the challah, and place on an oiled baking sheet. 

5. Brush tops with beaten egg, or combo of beaten egg and milk.  Cover lightly with plastic wrap, place somewhere warm and let rise for an hour.  If you use the original recipe and make two challah, make sure to leave at least 3 inches between the loaves, as they'll grow quite a bit.

6. Preheat oven to 375 degrees and brush loaves again with egg/egg+milk wash. Sprinkle bread with sesame seeds, if using.

7. Bake in middle of oven for 30-40 minutes, or until golden (loaves should sound hollow when tapped). Cool loaf on a rack, and try to resist tearing into it immediately!

*NOTE: I have paraphrased Deb's original recipe, as I do not feel it is appropriate for me to simply "cut & paste" her work, though I did not alter the recipe beyond halving it.  For her original post and (wonderful) recipe, follow this link!

Turkey and Mixed Vegetable Frittata

In my experience, there's no better place to start a journey than, well, the beginning.

And so, in the spirit of "taking it from the top," I am starting at breakfast.  When I was younger, I would often eschew breakfast (after all, why take the time for breakfast when skipping it means more sleep).  However, as I've gotten older, I have found that I have a better, more productive day if I go ahead and do breakfast some justice. 

So today I offer you a recipe (and I use the term loosely, as this is more a method than anything else...the ingredients are rather flexible) for one of my favorite breakfasts of all time, a frittata.

Frittatas are one of my favorite breakfast foods for a few reasons, the main one being that although I love omelettes, I am rather hopeless when it comes to making them.  Oh, I've tried...the simple fold-over, the fancy tri-fold, special omelette-specific pans...you name it, I've flubbed it.  Omelettes and I, well, we just aren't meant to coexist (unless, of course, the hubs is making breakfast). 

Hence, when I want something a step up from scrambled eggs, I turn to the frittata.  This one is my standard...lots of veggies and a bit of lean protein, with some cheese to finish it off.  I almost always have the components of this particular recipe in my kitchen, so it's a snap to prepare.  As a bonus, it's one of those special recipes that is dead easy to make but seems rather impressive to most people...ideal for overnight guests.  Have a slice or two with some toast and a piece of fresh fruit, and get your day started right!

Simple Turkey and Mixed Vegetable Frittata

Ingredients
two eggs + one egg white, beaten and lightly seasoned with salt and pepper.
half a medium onion, chopped medium
4 medium mushrooms, sliced thinly
5 grape tomatoes, halved
1 oz. turkey (I used pre-sliced deli-turkey as it was what I had on hand at the time), sliced thin
1 oz. cheddar cheese, shredded
chopped parsley, for garnish

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

2. Heat oven-safe 12" skillet over medium heat, add oil of choice (I used cooking spray only in a non-stick pan to cut back on fat), and saute onions until just barely translucent.

3. Add tomatoes and mushrooms, saute briefly to heat, then season with salt and pepper and add turkey.  Continue stirring and sauteing mixture until nicely colored and brown along edges.

4. Spread sauteed veggies and turkey in an even layer in the skillet, then pour beaten eggs over evenly, moving pan around if necessary to form one cohesive piece.

5. Let cook over low-medium heat to set the bottom of the frittata, about 3 minutes.  Edges should begin to firm up, but center should remain relatively "eggy" and liquid.

6. Place in preheated oven for 5-7 minutes until center begins to firm.  At this point, add cheese, sprinkled lightly over entire frittata.  Place back in oven and continue to cook until cheese is bubbly and the edges of the frittata are lightly browned.

7. Remove from oven and let cool/set for a few minutes before carefully sliding from the pan.  Garnish with fresh chopped parsley if desired, cut into wedges, and serve immediately.

**As I mentioned, this recipe is very flexible.  Feel free to substitute whatever veggies and meat strike your fancy.  Or forgo meat altogether and use more veggies or a soy meat alternative (scrambled tofu works brilliantly in this).  If you want to beef it up a bit, put a little leftover rice in as well when you saute the vegetables.  Basically, except for the eggs, frittata is a blank canvas, so have fun!**

Allons-y!

Ah yes, the time has come...time for another food blog, that is. 

I know what you're thinking.  "But there are so many out there already!"...it's true, I'll admit (that might, of course have to do with the fact that the need to eat is rather universal,
but I digress). Nevertheless, I have decided to go ahead and have a go at it anyway, hence, Kitchen Little.

I should mention that I do not have any formal training.  I've never worked in a restaurant (though I have eaten at more than my fair share), and I'm not in culinary school. The reality is, I just LOVE FOOD.  For me, it's a hobby.  I love talking about, reading about, shopping for, cooking, and serving food.  it's one of my greatest pleasures in life. 

I grew up in a house where "throwing something on the table" meant pork chops, green beans, rolls, and salad.  Pizza was a rarity, and take-out a treat.  As a child I didn't appreciate it quite the way I should have, and always envied the kids in my class who had a regular "fast food night."  Now that I'm older, a bit wiser (hopefully), and on my own, I have learned the error of my ways and am cooking up a storm in my humble apartment kitchen.  The digs aren't fancy (although sometimes the food is), but I always have alot of fun, and I hope you don't mind me taking a little corner of the internet to post my ramblings.  So, here's to a journey...long or short, it's always better with company...

Allons-y!