Variations on a Ciabatta

What a gift! January 9, 2011--Atlanta gets dumped on. There were at least 5 inches of snow on my car. I got the calling post from school on Sunday evening. Snow day Monday! I scuttled out to my porch to take in the wintry scene. My rosemary plant was giving me that look. Can we bake tomorrow?

Of course; what better to do with a day off? Thus begins the adventure of two fresh rosemary ciabatta loaves. I worked from baker Daniel Leader's ciabatta recipe in Local Breads. One turned into a pizza along the way. Who knew?

We'll start this recipe using a month-old starter that has been hanging out happily in my fridge, cultivating wild yeast particular to the Atlanta region.


Mix some of the starter, unbleached all-purpose flour, and lukewarm water. Leave overnight to talk amongst itself.


In the morning, make the dough! A note on flour: I mixed two types of flour for the ciabatta: unbleached, all-purpose flour and bread flour. Bread flour contains more protein than all-purpose, and that means it forms a better gluten structure.


Add flour and salt to the starter gradually until a very moist dough forms. Knead the dough until it is smooth and stretchy. You should be able to stretch a small piece so thin that you can see through it before it breaks. If you can't do this, keep kneading. Then, place the dough in a well-oiled bowl and leave it to rise, about 3-4 hours.


While you're waiting, set up your workspace. Put baker's parchment on two cookie sheets. Drizzle with ample amounts of flour. Flour a kitchen surface, like a breadboard or countertop. Then, take a romp in the snow. Wear those fancy boots you haven't worn yet this year and enjoy a cinnamon roll with the neighbors.


Done! Elapsed time: four hours.


In one fell swoop, separate the dough from the edge of the bowl with a rubber spatula or baker's helper and pour it onto your well-floured surface. Divide the dough into two equal pieces.


Stretch the dough across the well-floured baking sheet. Dimple the surface of the dough with your fingertips.


Set the dough aside for about 40 minutes to rise again. Bubbles should appear beneath the surface. Meanwhile, prep your ciabatta base. I blended fresh rosemary, olive oil, melted butter, garlic, salt, pepper, and dried oregano. We'll brush this over the top of the bread before baking.

Then, slice your toppings. I chose red pepper, green pepper, onion, tomato, and sausage. Hm...this is beginning to resemble a pizza. (A side note: the sausage I am using is an all-natural chicken sausage that contains no artificial preservatives and meat from chickens that were raised without hormones. These can be some expensive packages of sausage, so I grabbed a couple during a bogo sale and froze them.)




Brush rosemary mixture over ciabatta. Then, strew ingredients evenly over dough and press down with fingers to secure.

Bake at 475 for about 25 minutes, or until the ciabatta turns golden brown. (Hint: for a crispier crust, place a pan of ice cubes on the bottom rack of the oven while preheating. This creates steam and mimicks a bakery oven.)


Meanwhile, crumble about 3/4c goat cheese or a similar cheese of your choice.


Watch as the crust turns golden brown. About five minutes before removing from the oven, drizzle the goat cheese over the ciabatta. (Note:In retrospect, I think I would've added the goat cheese about 10 minutes earlier. It doesn't look quite cooked.)


Take this baby out of the oven, transfer to a cooling rack and let cool before cutting.

Done! Enjoy with a glass of red zinfandel and a side of snowed in.


As for the other ciabatta, I thought I oughta keep this one simple. I brushed the top with the rosemary mixture and baked it for about 22 minutes at 450.


Yum, check out that crumb structure! This is made possible by keeping the dough very wet (I think). Ciabatta keeps for about two days and should be reheated gently before serving. It'd go great with a minestrone soup, marinara, or dipped in some olive oil and spices.

Pomegranates: Worth Your Time

This is a pomegranate. Pomegranates are delicious.


A few years ago, a pomegranate juice craze began. You may have tasted the sweet, spunky dark red liquid, which is rich in antioxidants and vitamins C and K, potassium, iron, and folate. The juice is nutritious, but sugar-and calorie-dense.

Eating a pomegranate in its natural state--that is, crunching on the seeds encased by juice--offers some benefits beyond the nutrients in the juice. One pomegranate contains about 230 calories, 11g fiber, and 5g protein. It also contains 40g sugar, which is why pomegranate seeds are great to sweeten and season, but might make you crash when eaten in large quantities.

Pomegranates are a wintertime fruit, and I always associate their presence in grocery stores with Christmas. Now is a great time to buy the last batch of pomegranates because they are probably on sale. The best price I've found for pomegranates around Atlanta is 3 for $5. When you see pomegranates on sale, stock up--they last up to two months in the fridge.

Today we are going to cut into a pomegranate and harvest the seeds.

See that goofy top part? The part that looks like it belongs on the mouth of a muppet? That's called the "crown." You'll want to cut off the top of the pomegranate about half an inch below the crown.


Pomegranate murder! Just kidding. But the bright red juices of these ruby bombshells stain everything, so be careful! Cutting into the pomegranate reveals the juicy seeds, called arils.


Gently work the rind and membrane away from the fruit. You'll discover the pomegranate is separated into sections, kind of like a citrus fruit. If you're having trouble, you could try cutting along the membrane.


The arils are loose and will separate from the membrane with gentle prodding.


Gently "thumb" arils into a tupperware container. If you're having a hard time keeping the membrane from falling into the container too, you can put the arils in a deep bowl, then fill it with water and shake gently. The membrane will rise to the top and you can skim it off, then drain the arils.


Keep working...you should have a nice-sized pile of rinds by now.


It should be easier to separate the pomegranate as you near the end...


Done! Refrigerate arils in an airtight container for up to two weeks.


A serving suggestion: Drizzle pomegranate seeds over leafy greens and goat cheese.


A note on the arils: some people enjoy pomegranate juice but don't like eating the arils because of the crunchy seeds. I'd encourage you to give the seeds a shot. Their crunch is satisfying. I eat them out of the bowl like cereal. They're also great stirred into yogurt. Pomegranates are often paired with meat for an exotic dinner dish. Click here for a recipe from Rachel Ray.

Think I'm an amateur when it comes to pomegranates? You're right. Check out the experts at pomwonderful.com for nutritional information, handling tips, and recipes. You can watch a video of someone opening a pomegranate at pomwonderful.com/fresh.

1. http://nutritiondata.self.com/facts/fruits-and-fruit-juices/2038/2
Wonderful Inside. POM Wonderful. 2010.

Top 16 Foods and Foodie Things of 2010

You are what you eat! So here are 16 things that made my year.

16. Apple Chips
A great (and sweet) alternative to a potato chip or a granola bar.



15. Sugar Snap Peas
Like to munch snacks on the road? Put a bag of these in your passenger seat. Thirty-five calories for 2/3 cup and some serious Vitamin C too.


14. Brussels Sprouts
This emerald vegetable is like the helpless nerd everyone loves in spite of himself. Don't cringe, just try them.



13. The Orange
Have you ever had that post-dinner sweet tooth? An orange will do the trick. They were a delicacy in the Victorian era, you know. Hydrating, fun to eat, and packed with a full day's worth of Vitamin C. Forget the juice. The real thing has only 80 calories and 1/5 of your daily recommended fiber.



12. Fresh Basil
Smashed up into pesto, sliced into pasta noodles, sprinkled onto a sandwich...I kept a happy plant on my porch until the first frost. Then the plant...not so happy.



11. The Baguette
Though I haven't quite mastered the art of Julia Child's French baguette, I have certainly enjoyed trying.



10. Figs
Dried or fresh, these taste great as a snack. The dried ones taste just like the Newton, but minus the cakey exterior and the weird ingredients. Fresh figs are expensive, so buy them in the fall, when they are in abundance. In 2011, I'll experiment with figs in recipes.


9.Free Range Eggs
My go-to dinner is scrambled eggs with onion, garlic, carrots, green pepper, and any other misfit veggies or meats around the kitchen. This year I learned that chickens are meant to roam free and peck at bugs and other critters on the land. When they eat this way, the fat content in their egg yolk is an ideal ratio of omega-3 to omega-6 fats. Chickens kept in pens and fed grains, or chickens fed "organic" food, or chickens on a vegetarian diet are deprived chickens that produce a lesser egg. The low protein diet upsets the balance between the omega-3 and omega-6 fats in the egg yolk. Why does this matter for humans? The type of egg you eat determines the type of fats you consume. Buying free-range eggs is costly but worth it.


8. Goat Cheese
Besides the fun of saying "Fromage de Chevre," this stuff has a unique flavor that reminds me of tinkling bells and purposeful "baas" high in the Pyrenees. Put it on a pizza, pair it with a cracker and fig jam, toss it in a salad with pears and walnuts.


7. Soft Corn Tortillas
Like a little hug for your breakfast burrito or your turkey taco. And corn tortillas stack up against flour. Seventy calories versus 140. One gram of fat versus three. Fourteen grams carbohydrates versus 25. Careful--most grocery store corn tortillas contain preservatives. Grab them at Whole Foods. Extra points for sprouted corn. (And for those of you who have hated corn tortillas your whole life--try browning in a pan before eating.)


6. Plain Lowfat Yogurt
Gone are the days when I'd eat a Yoplait in two bites and go into a sugar crash. Gone are the days in which I'd eat fat free, sugar free yogurt and still feel hungry. Plain, lowfat yogurt is great by itself. Or, try stirring in a little honey, jam, or granola. It has the same amount of protein as two eggs and a third of your daily recommended Calcium.



5. Fresh Pasta
Mama mia! This is the real deal. Makes boxed pasta look like a diet drink.



4. Butter
Julie and Julia author Julie Powell claims you can never have too much butter. I disagree. But for goodness' sake, why use margarine or that sneeze of a cooking spray when you can use good old butter? If you don't believe me, grab some mushrooms and brown them in three separate pans. Use Pam, margarine, and butter. Then, tell me which tastes the best and leaves you the most satisfied.


3. "Five" Ice Cream
Haagen Dazs makes up for a name that prompts a "Gesundheit" with this simple, honest-to-goodness ice cream. A pint of this got me through a lot of tough spots. Excuse me, did I say a pint? I meant a single half cup serving. Who eats a pint of ice cream in one sitting?



2. Olive Oil
Olive Oil was the starting ingredient for nearly every dinner I made this past year. I learned that "Extra Virgin" olive oil is the best because it comes from the first cold press of the olive. Other olive oils, such as "pure" and "light" are really lesser olive oils in disguise. They use second-rate olives and go through multiple presses.



And the #1 Food of 2010...
...drumroll please...
...I can't hear you...

1. Lobster!
I cracked open one of these babies for the first time on the Fourth of July. I ate her on the lawn of a 17th century farmhouse at a Benedictine Abbey. Quite an adventure, but tasty nonetheless, especially dipped in butter. Lobster: not a date food.

All-Natural Snack Bars

Munching on granola bars has practically replaced baseball as America's favorite pastime. Ok, not quite. But they are a popular snack. Many people reach for a bar (or two) in the morning, or during the mid-afternoon crash. I kept a box of Fiber One bars in my desk at school for several years.

Today I don't typically go for the granola bar. Why? The everday granola bar contains too few calories for a sustaining breakfast or snack, too much simple sugar, the wrong kinds of fat, and not enough fiber. If the granola bar claims to compensate for any of these problems, it probably does so artificially. If you eat a granola bar, you'll end up feeling hungry and tired, and you'll probably grab a second one. Additionally, most 'sport' granola bars have vitamins and minerals that are added chemically, instead of occurring naturally in the ingredients of the bar. Check out a PowerBar or Luna Bar label sometime.

There are also suspect ingredients in most commercialy-produced bars. Three examples:

Quaker Granola Bar: High fructose corn syrup free. That's good, right? Except...it includes regular corn syrup. It also has the preservative BHT(1).

Special K Chocolate Delight Protein Snack Bar: Contains partially hydrogenated oils and the preservative TBHQ (2).

Hint: If an ingredient is an acronym, it's probably not naturally occuring and it probably isn't good for you.

Fiber One Chocolate Chip Snack Bar: Its 22-ingredient recipe contains high maltose corn syrup, caramel color and mixed tocopherols "to retain freshness" (3).

There are some naturally commercially produced bars that offer a change of pace, like Larabar. The bars come in unique flavors, and, because they contain all-natural ingredients, are a great blend of protein, fiber and carbohydrates. I like the "Apple Pie" bar, which contains the following ingredients: dates, almonds, unsweetened apples, walnuts, raisins, and cinnamon. That's it!

I returned home from the 2008 Austin Marathon convention with my runner's bag full of tiny Larabar samples. While munching on some savory flavors, I began to wonder if I could recreate the Larabar experience in my own kitchen. You can buy all the ingredents at the store, after all. So, I set out to make my own all-natural snack bar.

Warning: This is a pretty horrible recipe as far as measurement and technique go,even though the final result tastes great. Making it is kind of like working with adult Play-Dough. I just kind of winged it. Wunged it. Whatever.

RECIPE FOR DRIED FRUIT, NUT and OAT BARS

Ingredients-ish:
6 Cups dried Dates, pitted
3 Cups dried Apricots
2 Cups dried Figs
2-3 Cups Nuts of your choice (almonds, cashews, walnuts, etc.)
1.5 Cups Oats, Toasted
Olive Oil

Tools:
Wooden Spoon
Flat Baking Sheet, preferably 1/2 inch deep
Large Pot
Knife and Cutting Board
Wax Paper
Tupperware Containers or Ziploc Bags

Instructions:
1. Chop up the dried fruit and the nuts and place in separate bowls. (I like fruits and nuts coarsely chopped, but you could also find a machine or take the time and finely chop the ingredients.)
2. Add about 3T olive oil to a large pot and place it on the stove over medium temperature. Dump the dried fruit into the pot. Heat it until the fruit softens and becomes sticky, stirring often with a wooden spoon.
3. When the fruit is very soft and sticky, gradually stir in the nuts and oats into the mixture. Mix until fruit, nuts and oats are evenly distributed. (You might consider adding a tidbit of molasses if the dry ingredients refuse to stick with the fruit.
4. Turn off stove and transfer mixture from pot onto cookie sheet. It will be hot! Using your hands and the wooden spoon, spread the mixture evenly across the baking sheet until the entire sheet is covered. Leave mixture to cool in the baking sheet.
5. After several hours, cut your fruit bars in the desired size, and transfer them into plastic bags or a tupperware container. Since the bars will be slightly sticky, make sure stored bars are separated with wax paper.
6. Enjoy for breakfast or snack! And share. (I think this recipe made about 60 bars.)


PHOTOS:








REFERENCES:
1. http://www.quakeroats.com/products/oat-snacks/chewy-granola/chocolate-chip.aspx
2. http://www2.kelloggs.com/ProductDetail.aspx?id=7370
3. http://www.generalmills.com/corporate/brands/~/media/images/brands/nutritional_images/fiber_one/fiberonechewybarsoatschocolate102.ashx