Aaron, I've been thinking of giving your challah recipe a try, as I've never had one done with apple cider. I assume you use fresh apple cider that hasn't been dosed with preservatives.
I've taken the liberty of entering your formula into my sizing/costing spreadsheet, though I am using canola oil rather than something like avocado oil, which would increase the cost significantly. (I might try grapeseed oil, though.)
The Excel spreadsheet is attached. I sized it for two loaves scaled at 24 ounces each but those settings are easy to revise.
challah
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We had some tomatoes that got forgotten about and developed a swarm of fruit flies (or maybe fungus gnats) over the last week or so.
I tried the vinegar/soap in a bowl thing, it got some, I tried some of the yellow sticky traps, they have yet to catch any.
So, I went out and got a Black Flag bug zapper racket. It runs on 2 AA batteries and works great, I've probably gotten 2 dozen of them in the last hour.
The recipe I used for relish called for the brine and vegetables to be simmered together for 10 minutes. After processing (water bath, minimum 1/2 inch over top of the jars, for 10 minutes) the liquid and veggies did not separate. Years ago, when I made pickles (sliced or quartered cucumbers), sometimes the vegetables were at the top with the liquid on the bottom. They tasted fine, we ate them, we're all still alive today - so I guess they were OK to eat.
I've finished cleaning and freezing the 16 pounds of blueberries I picked last Saturday in Maine. Lots of pies and muffins and pancakes next winter!
I have been using Google to try and figure out my relish issue. I found this comment at Backwoods Home Magazine:
My fruit or tomatoes are floating in liquid in the jars
This is nothing to worry about, although many beginning home canners are distressed to find this happening. The fruit crowds near the top of the jar with lots of syrup or juice below it. Raw packing the fruit is generally what causes this. If you simply heat your fruit (or tomatoes) in their syrup or juice, they won't float in the jars. Be sure to pack your fruit well without smashing it into your jars. The fruit will slightly shrink in processing.
The cooking times in the Ball recipe were short: the vinegar-sugar solution at 180F for 10 minutes, then "simmer" with added vegetables, which I took to mean another 10 minutes at 180F. Maybe I should have used a higher cooking temperature?
Hi IC,
I don't determine who receives a challah. We have a group at our synagogue who keeps track of who might need a challah on Friday to brighten their Sabbath (Shabbat in Hebrew).
So they are anonymous to me and I am anonymous to me. Part of it is the eight forms of tzedakah. Tzedakah is translated as charity but it is a little different and there is not exact English translation. It's from the Hebrew root for "righteous". Giving is the right thing to do and people in need have a right to help from people who can afford to give.
https://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/45907/jewish/Eight-Levels-of-Charity.htm
But also, imagine if someone from your church or whatever organization you belong to dropped off a fresh loaf of bread when they knew you were in need. You didn't know who made the bread you just knew people were thinking of you and wanted to do something nice for you.
The next time you went to church anyone you met could have been the person who made you a gift of bread. It could be anyone. It makes the whole place seem warmer. So I want everyone to receive credit.
We tend to have hot dogs for lunch a lot, especially when Diane is home (weekends and over school holidays and summer.)
I usually have mine on a bun, Diane varies, sometimes she'll have a bun, sometimes she'll have them with pork and beans and sometimes she'll have them with sauerkraut.
The zucchini dill relish I made is OK on a hot dog, but I was expecting something a bit more like pickles. Maybe it'll get that way over time, though.
Tonight we had tomato soup and fried cheese sandwiches.
Today I made a blueberry galette, using some of the 16 pounds of berries I picked in Maine last weekend. I had a terrible crop from my own bushes this summer, due to the heavy freeze of 24* we got on May 17. I usually pick about 50 quarts, but got only about 10 cups. So my sister and I went to a U Pick farm and had a blast. They deliver you in a golf cart to whatever variety you want to pick - acres and acres of beautiful, huge clusters of berries. They also had a live band, lots of food, and happy, knowledgeable employees. Luckily, Hurricane (turned into a plain storm) Lee had tamed down; we got very little rain, just lots of wind, with gusts around 50 mph. A friend in a camper near us had a tree fall on his car and smash the windshield, but no one was hurt.
You are eating a lot of hot dogs, Joan. Maybe that is why I am suddenly wanting one, or maybe it's nostalgia. Now, I wonder how it will taste with zucchini relish....
On Tuesday, I made and canned four jars of Zucchini Relish. I used the recipe in the Ball Blue Book Guide to Preserving (p. 89). I am not sure how well it went. The vegetables were floating in the sugar-vinegar mix after simmering at 180F for ten minutes. In the jars, they were at the top, and the liquid was at the bottom. I was expecting it to be thicker. I followed the directions, except that I used all red bell pepper rather than half green bell pepper. They are cooling overnight, and I will look at them and check the seals tomorrow. I used a large zucchini, and I am wondering if smaller ones might have worked better.
I have also decided that any future canning projects that require a stove will need to be done in my house kitchen rather than the Annex/Guest Quarters kitchen where I do my jam. (For jam, I have the automatic jam maker that does the stirring.) I do not think that the large electric burner is functioning correctly, as it was hard to stay at the temperature I wanted. I am used to gas burners in the house, but I also think that the large burner (other three are small) on the electric stove in the Annex has been used the most and is likely no longer working as well. Perhaps this is the time to talk my husband into a separate induction burner for out there, as canning in the house kitchen takes over the whole place.
I made a big pot of soup on Monday. I used the chicken broth that I made yesterday and added carrots, celery, yellow bell pepper, garlic, and mushrooms sauteed in olive oil and browned ground turkey and 1 ½ cups of Bob's Red Mill Vegi-Soup blend (red and brown lentils, split green and yellow peas; barley) dehydrated onions, and Penzey's Ozark seasoning. After it cooked for 40 minutes, I added a chopped large zucchini, and then some kale, along with a splash of cider vinegar. Although my husband keeps telling me we are headed for a warm spell this week, the forecasts do not appear to be correct so far.
I made eight challot (plural of challah which I have to start using since I'm working with three rabbis right now). Seven were just over a pound and the eighth was about 12 ounces. My spreadsheet calculations are working well now. I still need food costs (I know Mike has that). My estimate is that my loaves cost between $4.50 and $5.00 a loaf. I switched from local honey to Costco honey. The local stuff is great but it is $21 for 32 ounces. I will buy it for my family but the Costco stuff will work for my free loaves.
I may also switch back to KAB bread flour because I can buy 15 lb bags $20 at Costco and BRM is now up to $6.99 for 5 lb bags and I can only buy it in 5 lb bags.
These were round challot for Rosh Hashanah. I may experiment to with adding apples. Many add raisins but for whatever reason I am not a fan of raisin challah.
And my loaves were, again, over proofed but they still came out round. They just lost some of the coils.
I'm going to start making these in the kitchen at my synagogue. I'll make the dough on Wednesday afternoon, give it a 24 hour cold rise, and then bake and proof Thursday afternoon for Friday delivery. I wanted to come in at 1:00 am Friday morning but they're concerned about having someone in the building alone.
CWCdesign--I always grease the Emile Henry bakers with Crisco, then sprinkle it with farina (Cream of Wheat). While it can be messy when turning it out--which is why I do so over a towel--there is never any problem with sticking, and it comes out easily.
For Sunday breakfast, I made Cornmeal-Pumpernickel Waffles (my husband's request). We had them with a bit of maple syrup and the blueberry compote that is leftover from when I bake blueberry pie. I froze the six leftover waffles, which will make fast breakfasts on three mornings for me.
In the afternoon, I baked White Whole Wheat Apple Cider Baked Doughnuts, which I adapted from a King Arthur recipe. I cut back the sugar by another ¼ cup (used 3/4 where original recipe uses 1 1/4 cup), and they are sweet enough and of just the right texture. Nothing beats using homemade applesauce! I sprinkled six of the doughnuts with Penzey's Cinnamon Sugar. I set the other six aside and will make a maple glaze for them tomorrow. I was inspired to bake these today because I came across a 1-cup container of unsweetened applesauce that I froze in November 2021 for this recipe.
I made bread this morning! For the first time in months and I used my Emile Henry long baker which we finally pulled down from the attic.
I made the semolina rye bread from King Arthur, doubled it (except for the yeast which I left at 2 teaspoons and the salt which I used 2 teaspoons instead of the tablespoon it would have doubled to). I left out the onions and the vital wheat gluten I mixed it in the bread machine.
All went well. When it was ½ inch over the rim, I decided to bake it so I wouldn't overproof it and I even did some sort of slashes. When I took the lid off after ½ hour, it had risen beautifully. I took it out after 10 minutes - 5 was too short and I probably could have taken it out at 8 minutes. But then, trouble struck - the directions said to flip it out of the pan to cool and the bread stuck. First thing I realized that the directions to lightly grease didn't mean too lightly - I should have oiled it better. As I struggled to get it out, I broke it - the bottom stayed in the pan. I went off to run an errand and after the pan cooled Will popped the bottom out of the pan. Second lesson learned - leave it in pan for 10 minutes to cool, as I often do.
Good news is that it is really good and I will make it again - Next time I might try it with my sprouted wheat flour from the freezer - it has the same protein as the rye flour.
Yes, BA, I did forget to include it - we use one cup buttermilk. I actually prefer using "real" buttermilk (the low-fat stuff I buy at the store) to using a cup of milk with lemon juice or vinegar to curdle it. The buttermilk does make a difference in the cornbread. BTW, I've been using this recipe for close to 40 years.
I posted the original recipe so you could see what Will was adapting - right below is what he tried for the second loaf (which was better than the first) and also his notes on what he's thinking of trying on the next go round.
I will pass along BA, that you also suggest trying water - he was hoping to mimic the buttermilk flavor - and what do you think of using honey in place of the sugar which would add a little more moisture? How much olive oil do you use in your recipe. I was wondering if he should up that a little bit to add more fat and/or moisture.
One hand right now, we have Bob's Red Mill corn flour which I ended up with when they didn't have the coarser grind cornmeal. It works fine in the gluten recipe, but it probably adds to the denseness in the GF recipe. I much prefer a medium grind cornmeal myself, but it is hard to find here.
Thanks for posting, Mike, it is pretty similar to ours and it includes dairy as well. I will say that Will is on a mission to create a GF DF version of our "family" recipe (it came from a Junior League cookbook from Tucson, AZ).
Thanks for all your comments.
Mike has a recipe for gluten-free cornbread which he says they prefer over the gluten varieties, even though they do not need to be gluten free. I'm unsure if it is posted here.
CWCdesign--did you leave the milk out of the original recipe? If so, was it buttermilk or regular milk? You could probably reduce or eliminate the baking soda if it was regular milk. Too much baking soda can give a bitter taste.
Dairy-free and gluten-free, with some nut allergies thrown in, is a difficult combination. I would definitely try it with water, especially since it includes 1/2 cup sugar. I use minimum sugar in mine (1 Tbs.), but I was raised on a more southern-style cornbread. A stone-ground cornmeal has a natural sweetness to it. I like the Bob's Red Mill medium grind (at least until the Indiana State Park at Spring Mill gets their grist meal repaired and can start selling their medium grind).
Hi! This is primarily for BakerAunt, but if anyone else has something to share, I would love more input. We are trying to troubleshoot our recipe for cornbread.
Will's girlfriend is GF and dairy-free and also allergic to peanuts and walnuts with a sensitivity to almonds. He has been working on adapting our cornbread recipe (he has made it twice). It tastes good but is very dense so he is trying to lighten it up.
Our cornbread ingredients
1 cup flour (AP)
1 cup yellow cornmeal
½ cup sugar
2 eggs
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon baking soda
2 tablespoons butter melted
Basically mixing it all together and putting it in an 8x8 or 8" round pan
So here are his adaptations for the second loaf which is better than the first.
The first loaf he just used measure for measure GF flour and made "buttermilk" with oat milk and cream of tartar (as recommended on a GF site)
Second loaf
1 cup Measure for Measure flour (120g)
1 cup yellow cornmeal (138g)
1/3 cup sugar (60g)
2 eggs
8.5 ounces "buttermilk" made from
4 ounces unsweetened coconut milk
4.5 ounces oat milk
1.5 tablespoons lemon juice
(Mix and let sit for 10 minutes)
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon baking soda
1 tablespoon olive oil ((14g)
And, Will's notes after the second loaf
results: better. a little "lemony," still dry, definitely more moist. i think next i'll try 5oz of oat milk + only 1tbsp lemon (do i try white vinegar?), 45g sugar, a medium ground corn meal. mom suggested subbing the sugar for honey and maybe adding more oil.
Will only baked it for 20 minutes this time, 25 was definitely too long. Also a possibility to reduce time a couple of more minutes. Baking time on original recipe is 30 minutes.
I also just thought of possibly subbing water for the "buttermilk" but he thought that would do away with some flavor. The dairy free milks, even if they are unsweetened still add some sweetness.
Thanks!
