[BakerAunt]

Here is what James Beard says in Beard on Bread:

"Salt-rising bread is one of the oldest breads in this country. It has a delicious and unusual flavor and a very smooth texture. In fact, it is one of the most remarkable of breads. It does present one great difficulty for the breadmaker. It is unpredictable. You may try the same recipe without success three or four times and find that it works the fith time. Or you may get a loaf that is halfway good. If it works, fine; if it doesn't forget it. I am including it in this collection because it is a worth recipe, but I do so with a warning that you may be disappointed" (p. 68)

He also states that the starter, as it sits, needs to be kept at a "steady temperature" of 100F. He gives a time of between 12 and 24 hours for the starter to foam.

It does not have a rise between the mixing of the starter and other ingredients, but he notes that the rising in the pans may take 4-5 hours or longer.

This is definitely NOT a bread to recommend to new bakers. They would have better luck with starting their own sourdough culture. As an experienced baker, I have no desire to try it.

[BakerAunt]

None of those recipes is going to pass the "healthy" test, Aaron!

[BakerAunt]

You (and your Mom) are correct, Aaron. One of my girl scout leaders made her coffee this way. Her husband, who was along for support on the weekend camping trip, looked at it and said, "Is that a pot of grease!"

I'm not positive, but I think that Swedish coffee may be made that way as well. I don't plan to try it. I'm quite happy with my French Press.

The mushrooms have Vitamin D because many are grown under ultraviolet light. I'm not sure about the ones in the woods, not that I know enough to harvest any from there.

• This reply was modified 5 years, 9 months ago by BakerAunt.

[BakerAunt]

Like Len, I answered correctly through a process of elimination. However, like Joan, I learned from the explanation. However, there's probably a good chance that John the Baptist ate insects, which are a food source in other parts of the world.

[BakerAunt]

Or they ran out of room. 🙂

Last December, Kroger had King Arthur AP on sale at a great price, so I bought about four bags, while my husband rolled his eyes, especially as I had a 10 pound container full at home (well, he didn't know that part as he stays out of the pantry). It wasn't foresight on my part but thrift. The best flour prices seem to be in November and December. I mentioned that once on the now closed KAF Baking Circle, and Frick said that she does the same thing, and that her husband was consistently surprised at the places where she had stashed flour bags.

• This reply was modified 5 years, 9 months ago by BakerAunt.

[BakerAunt]

Skeptic--we left the apples in the bags from the orchard. The York were in a paper bag. They are starting to get slightly soft, so I've stuck the bag in the house refrigerator. I plan to bake an apple pie tomorrow, which should leave two or three that my husband can eat. I've wondered about finding a better way to store them. Our garage is heated, so the temperature does not go below the low 40s, and it is built into the hillside, which also protects the temperature.

[BakerAunt]

We finished up the leftover hamburger stroganoff and mixed rice, along with microwaved frozen peas. My husband also split a rather small leftover chicken thigh with our dog in honor of her seventh birthday.

• This reply was modified 5 years, 9 months ago by BakerAunt.

[BakerAunt]

On Thursday, I decided to try again my pottery bread baking bowl that I bought from King Arthur about six or so years ago. I used the KAF recipe for Fruited Sourdough Sandwich Bread, as there was a note that it could be baked in the bread baking bowl. I made a few tweaks in the recipe by substituting ½ cup white rye and ¾ cup whole wheat flour for that much AP and reducing the salt to 1 tsp. I added 2 Tbs. special dry milk and 1 Tbs. flax meal. Instead of a Granny Smith, I used an unpeeled York apple (from those we got last December that have been wintering in the garage). I used golden raisins and opted to use 1 Tbs. sugar (recipe stated 2 tsp. up to 4 Tbs.).

I used the bread machine to mix and knead. I was concerned it needed more water, so I added 1 Tbs., which I probably should not have done, as I had waited to add the apple. I wasn’t sure when to put it in, so I did it before the “additions” beeps, and some of the apple was bouncing around, and I ended up adding a bit more white rye. I added the raisins when the machine beeped. I ended up with a somewhat sticky dough, but it rose well both times (an hour on the first rise and 50 minutes on the second).

I spritzed with water before baking. After 20 minutes, I tented it with foil and then checked 25 minutes later. The interior was only 170F, so I put it back in, re-tented, and let it go another 9 minutes, which brought it to 200F (recipe says 190F). It’s cooling on the rack and looks and smells great. The bread bowl baker worked well on the second rack from the bottom, and with the top tented, I did not have the problem of an overdone top and an underdone bottom. I look forward to slicing it tomorrow at breakfast.

[BakerAunt]

I should have gone with my first cynical guess instead of my second cynical guess.

[BakerAunt]

Those stir-fry dishes are the best, Len!

[BakerAunt]

I need to ask: Is egg shell considered edible?

[BakerAunt]

I answered correctly. The nutrition information I've been reading over the past few years has been helpful in more ways than one.

[BakerAunt]

Thanks, Len and Mike. Part of it was that I didn't want to deal with half an egg in the refrigerator. Silly perhaps but true.

On Tuesday, I baked Whole Wheat Sourdough Cheese Crackers from the dough that I made last week.

[BakerAunt]

For Tuesday night’s dinner, I roasted nine chicken thighs (big batch cooking). In the countertop convection oven, I roasted some cut-up red potatoes, tossed in olive oil and sprinkled with Penzey’s Bavarian Seasoning. We also had microwaved frozen peas.

[BakerAunt]

On Tuesday I tried a new recipe for lunch, “Greek Chickpea Patties with Tomato Sauce—Revithosoutzoukakia” from the Olive Tomato website:

Greek Chickpea Patties with Thick Tomato Sauce – Revithosoutzoukakia

I deleted the water in the patties, as there was some juice from my home cooked chickpeas, and the tomato had some juice. I added 2 Tbs. flax meal and used ½ cup white whole wheat rather than AP flour. The mixture was still too loose to make patties, even after sitting a bit. I added 4 Tbs. Panko, and that brought it together. I did not add any salt, as my chickpeas were soaked, then cooked in salted water. I did not coat the patties in flour, and I used a skillet with a bit of grapeseed oil over a medium-low heat,not the 1/4 inch of olive oil specified. I shaped the patties, six at a time, using a Zeroll #30 (2 Tbs.) scoop. My skillet holds six at a time, and they hold together better if flattened right before being put into the skillet. After the first batch, and heat adjustment, they cooked for 1 minute and 30 seconds on each side. I had 25 patties when I finished. I made the sauce as well, but I drizzled it over the six patties that I ate. The sauce does not have much taste on its own, but it works well with the patties. I’ve stored the remaining patties in a flat dish and poured the sauce over them. I would cook this recipe again, but I think that I will forgo the flour and next time just use the panko and the flax meal. These make a tasty lunch. I might try some on a sandwich tomorrow.

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