A Salad James Won't Eat

James won't eat beets. He won't even try them. But I had some in the fridge so I made this lovely salad -- something James won't eat. Thinking back to that long gone pledge to cook every recipe in Jim Lahey's My Bread cookbook. I roasted my beets and followed Lahey's "recipe" for marinated beets which is basically red onions and sliced beets left to marinate in red wine vinegar. Hardly a taxing recipe. I left my beets to marinate and then in my own version of Lahey's marinated beet sandwich I tossed the marinated veggies with olive oil, arugula, and -- because I didn't have goat cheese in the house -- Nicasio Valley Cheese Company's Foggy Morning, a tangy but delicate fresh white cheese.

Today's Bread

James has really taken to this raisin walnut bread I've been baking lately. I'm on my 4th loaf since I tried the recipe in Jim Lahey's indispensable book, My Bread. Today I stretched and added a pan of "stecca." Laheys not quite breadsticks, not quite baguette chewy breads, just right for long, thin sandwiches and antipasto platters.
Looking for new inspiration I was thumbing through some of my cookbooks today and flipped through the pages of Tartine Bread. It's gloriously photographed pages celebrate the genius of baker Chad Robertson and make it seem possible that we mere mortals could create the luscious offerings he turns out in his San Francisco bakery. Until you look just a bit closer. After Lahey's truly revolutionary method could I go back to starters and poolish and multiple rises and kneading? Each recipe in Tartine depends on two or three others (Not unlike my hero superstar chef Thomas Keller's cookbooks).  I was so thrilled when James bought me Robertson's cookbook I couldn't wait to bake like the master. And yet, it sits on the shelf -- beautiful and distant -- while Lahey's recipes trot out every couple days.
Lahey is homemade bread for the real world -- Robertson is still a dream.

Bread Resolution 2013

James and I both love the bread from Petaluma's highly praised Della Fattoria. For quite some time after tasting their chewy crusty wood oven baked loaves I just gave up. How could I ever compete with that rosemary meyer lemon deliciousness. Yet, at about $7 a loaf (not to mention the few places that carry it do run out quickly) it's dangerous to make too much of  habit.
So I went back to my bread basics, My Bread by baking guru Jim Lahey. Lahey's near effortless no-knead method produces crusty chewy loaves from an ordinary home oven.
I flipped through the book for something I hadn't made (when was that I made that resolution to bake everything in his book -- hmm still not accomplished) and settled on a walnut raisin bread that seemed perfect for morning toast.
Chewy, airy, crusty -- it's not a $7 loaf but pretty darn good for home. 2013 might be the year I make more homemade bread.

Back To Sullivan Street

Not long ago I promised myself to make every recipe in my bread hero Jim Lahey's cookbook. I've drifted off. I haven't bought the Romertopf bakers the last recipes call for (where would I put them? I can almost hear James asking). With guests coming to dinner and (yes, I admit it) a kitchen disaster -- burned blood orange tart, I turned to Lahey to save the day. With just 3 hours until they arrived I found a simple, quick and impressive recipe for chocolate budino, a silky soft cake made from melted chocolate, butter, sugar, bread crumbs (hence the Lahey connection), and separated eggs -- started, mixed, baked and ready in 45 minutes. And, if I'd had the sense to plan -- a dessert that can be made in advance -- perfect for, on another day, low stress entertaining.

I had already made a batch of pistachio ice cream and a salted caramel sauce to go with the ill-fated tart. When our budino came to the table dressed with these heady toppings, no one knew or missed what might have been and I adopted a new last minute stand-by.

My Bread is Garbage

I am lucky enough to be in New York City on a job, with a little time off.

And so, on one not so sunny but still very hot morning I decided to make a bread pilgrimage to search out the bakery of my favorite baker, bread guru, Jim Lahey. I have been cooking my way through Lahey's revolutionary bread cookbook, My Bread, since James bought it for me last Christmas. I wanted to see what the real thing was like. And here -- very far from Sullivan Street, behind this unassuming facade (hardly the exterior one expects for a true king of the bread world) I came face to face with Lahey's creations.

I selected a small multigrain roll (paninetto as the bakery says). The minute I bit into the thick crisp crust and felt it shatter like beautiful toasty glass one thought popped into my head. "My bread is garbage."How does he do it? What am I doing wrong?

As I walked the nearly 4 miles back to my hotel in Soho (very near Sullivan street and the bakery's original location) I pondered on the more than 35 years that, somewhat halfheartedly, I have been playing with and have been taunted by homemade bread. I've done quick breads, biscuits, yeast cakes, eggs breads, whole wheat loaves, parkerhouse rolls practically bathed in melted butter but until Lahey's no-knead recipe convinced me to just let the dough sit I can't say homemade bread was a regular treat at our house, or that I was very proud of the results. I was proud that is -- until I took a bite of the real thing. One bite and it was over.

Though I rarely detail it, sometimes I have trouble getting Lahey's recipes to rise or the loaves are flat and sad. The original recipe and the whole wheat are pretty much no-fail but the more exotic flavors, carrot bread and walnut I wasn't sure about, until today. I wondered if my bread came out like the master's, now I know, sadly, it does not.

As I wandered home, flush with this new reality I thought, " there is one more pilgrimage to make."
About two years ago Lahey opened Co (pronounced Company) specializing in wood fired pizza with the baker's justly famous dough. I wandered in, a little worse for the sudden summer rainstorm that hit more somewhere around 34th street, and was met by a cheerful waiter who suggested I sit at the bar thinking it would be more fun than one of the long tables. "The bartender is really chill," he said.

I saddled up the the small marble bar in full view of the Co packaged salt and olive oil and a gleaming espresso machine.

Seemingly seconds later Siri, more charming than "chill", came to tell me about the specials of the day. I immediately fell for the raw vegetables with anchovy dip. A bagna calda I thought, until out came a superbly creamy concoction surrounded by crisp baby vegetables. Salty, savory, with an anchovy flavor so mild it seemed vaguely like the best caesar salad dressing ever. If not for the polite company I'd have been tempted to dive into this small bowl and lick it clean. Spectacular and simple -- I'm hoping My Bread has the recipe, this could be a new party regular at our house.
Sensing my interest (well maybe obsession) with the kitchen -- I could see the beautiful Earthstone oven from my perch at the bar -- Siri, bartender supreme, wrangled me an invitation to visit the kitchen, where Brendan, the man at the oven filled me in on the finer points of pizza cookery.
900 degrees of deliciousness -- Co's wood-fired oven hard at work. A finished pie takes about 5 minutes.
These are no ordinary pizzas. Sure there are Margherita and a meatball versions but Co is justly famous for it's Popeye -- gruyere, pecorino and mozzarella cheese topped with fresh spinach which toasts in the intense heat. Other pies feature fresh arugula, ham and cheese, and, the diet buster Flambé, a combination of lardons, caramelized onions, cheeses, and super-rich béchamel sauce. The menu is simple ( 9 pizzas, some salads, "toast" (crostini with a choice of toppings), and soups thickened with Lahey's delicious bread crumbs) and I suspect changes with the availability of the best ingredients.

Counseled by my new friend the bartender I went with the day's special. Corn purée topped with mozzarella and parmesan cheeses, fresh Italian kale, and sweet juicy golden cherry tomatoes, added after the pie had baked.

Lahey's crust is at once crisp and chewy. The breadmaker's holy grail.

One bite in I swooned for the combination of sweet and yet savory corn and crisp, not quite bitter leaves. Two bites in I started to wonder what a purée so delicious was costing my diet. Three bites in a slight panic set in but I kept going.

Relief set in when my new friends in the Co kitchen shared the recipe with me: fresh corn kernels pureed in the "robocoup" -- the French original that inspired the Cuisinart home version -- and strained through a "China cap." That'll make a few dirty dishes at home but two of James favorite flavors on one crust is worth a home oven try.

While I'm happily munching, Siri tells me that Lahey is working on a pizza cookbook -- have to put that on a future Christmas list.

Better than dessert, after a few minutes of chatting at the bar, Siri knows a groupie when she sees one, and brings the man himself, Jim Lahey, over to say hello. We chat about crust and LA and my problems with some breads. Lahey offers to look at pictures of my home loaves to give some personalized direction (I'll update on that one). A doughy dream come true -- hero worship at the marble bar.

Thank you Siri, my fairy bread godmother!

Apple Bread

It's quite a pledge to keep up, this baking my way through Jim Lahey's My Bread Cookbook. I had no idea.

His no-knead bread is so easy and so delicious it's easy to see why it caused a small scale baking revolution and delivered him the admirations of scores of home bakers like me. No one trick pony, Lahey rallies with delicious variations on his theme like crispy Stecca (Italian baguettes or maybe chewy breadsticks) and sheet pan size pizzas. I even found the carrot bread a welcome treat, especially when slathered with our homemade orange marmalade (not to toot my own horn, but let's face it that marmalade would make cardboard taste good).

This week's apple bread, while very moist and tasty enough just perplexes me. Is this the way Lahey's turns out, I wonder. And, what does he do with this? I've been giving it to James for breakfast sometimes with butter and sometimes with jam (leftover from the pop tart filling) and he seems happy enough. I think it might make an interesting sandwich with sharp cheddar or aged gouda and bacon. Fontina and apples is nice so maybe open-faced with easy melting Fontina. Oh, or how about apple bread crostini with melted Gruyere topped with endive and walnut salad? Now we're talking -- I may have to make another loaf.

If only I had a plan for Lahey's coconut chocolate bread. Oh well, that's a puzzle for next weekend.

A Perfect Bread for California Spring (or Winter)

I'm tired of apples and bananas. I'm ready for cherries and berries, fuzzy peaches and tangy apricots. Real spring is almost here, so in the meantime I went back to my baking quest -- baking my way through Jim Lahey's My Bread cookbook. I took a small being hiatus while I was out of town with no oven, but now I have started in with this simple apricot almond bread.

True to Lahey's no knead method for this colorful loaf I combined 280 grams (2 cups + 2 TB) of bread flour, 20 grams (2 TB) of whole wheat flour, 1 1/3 cups chopped dried apricots (65 grams), 3/4 tsp salt, and 1/4 tsp yeast in a large bowl. Instead of just water, for this recipe, Lahey instructs to blend 3 Tb of unsalted creamy almond butter (okay I used salted, I would have just no use for unsalted at all) and 1 cup + 2TB of water. I mixed the liquid into the dry ingredients and stirred with my hand until there were no lumps and the dough was wet and sticky. I covered the bowl with plastic wrap and left it to sit and rise for 18 hours.

After the first rise I scraped the dough out onto my board and just barely tucked in the edges to make a sort of round ball. I placed the ball, seam side down, on a tea towel I'd heavily dusted with wheat bran with about 2 TB chopped almonds in the center. I sprinkled the top with more chopped almonds and covered the dough to rise for 2 more hours.

Meanwhile I preheated the oven to 450º with my trusty 5 quart Le Creuset (flame orange just like Julia's) inside.

When the dough had risen I turned it, seam side down, into the preheated pot replaced the lid and set the pan in the oven to cook covered for 45 minutes, after which I uncovered the pot and allowed the bread to cook for another 10 minutes to color a rich golden (well maybe dark) brown.

After the bread had cooled I sliced it for toast for James. It's nice with just butter but for a real winner try this slightly tangy, nearly hearty bread with creamy brie or better yet a sharp stilton cheese drizzled with honey. Delish!

A Lahey Bread That's Not For Me

This loaf is a bit of departure for Jim Lahey, bread genius and founder of Sullivan Street bakery. I've been cooking my way through his cookbook, My Bread, since James bought it for me this past Christmas. Lahey's specialty are crusty, artisinal Italian-style breads made easy for the home (and I guess, professional) baker.

This crisp brown "Irish" bread is Lahey's take on that nation's traditional soda bread. Just as the name suggests soda breads -- whether whole wheat, chocolate, or, as tradition prescribes, dotted with sweet raisins are generally leavened with baking soda and buttermilk for the acidic reaction. Lahey's uses yeast and buttermilk and pretty much follows the no-knead method he pioneered for all his other breads.

I can't say I was wowed by the results. When in the presence of greatness (or great recipes) I am always willing to admit I may be at fault or have made some mistake along the way, but honestly this bread seemed like a poor compromise. It had neither soda bread's slightly tangy flavor and hearty texture or Lahey's usual airy, soft "did you really make that yourself" crumb.

Lahey's breads are great the way they are -- I say don't dress them up, don't make them into something they are not, don't pretend to be (although Lahey himself might actually be) Irish. Bake where your heart is and the results will always impress.

Pizza: Sullivan Street Style

To most American's Jim Lahey's idea of pizza would seem as foreign as our beloved spaghetti and meatballs or chicken parmesan subs would seem to most Italians. But, I remember, back in my Florentine school days, waiting for the bus and grabbing a thick square of "pizza" topped simply with tomato sauce and anchovies or thin slices of fried eggplant from the corner "bar". Jim Lahey's recipe is a tasty reminder of a sweet time.

I stretched half a recipe of Lahey's simple, no-knead pizza dough thin across a olive oil coated rimmed baking sheet. The topping, as written in My Bread (Lahey's cookbook I have pledged to bake my way through) is thinly sliced cremini mushrooms (1 1/4 lb), chopped thyme, and diced onion (1 1/2 cup) tossed together. I spread the mushroom mixture thickly on top of the waiting crust, drizzled with ample olive oil and coarse salt, and baked in a hot oven (500º) for about 25 minutes.

Earthy, nutty, delicious. I can hardly wait to try this with a mix of mushrooms -- and maybe some cheese (sorry Jim!).

Onion Pizza

Thin, crispy and heavy on the toppings -- that's what Jim Lahey calls pizza. It would never sell with the 30 minutes or less crowd but, no matter what you call it, it's pretty tasty. Thinly sliced onions, chopped thyme, and a good sized dash of cream are piled on top of Lahey's super easy no-knead crust -- stretched thin on an oiled baking sheet -- and baked in a super hot oven (500º) until the onions are lightly browned and just a bit sweet. Next time I'll mix in a little browned bacon or a sprinkle of gruyere cheese -- hmm pizza Alsace?

Move Over Nancy Silverton: Homemade Olive Bread

Okay I admit it -- weight does matter.

Last week I was watching some cooking extravaganza on TV and heard the MC say that European bakers are better than American bakers because they weigh their ingredients. I have a scale. But somehow I like the slapdash idea of tossing ingredients into a bowl.

I shouldn't be so lazy.

Right then and there I vowed not to be bested by my unknown European baking companions and set out to test my latest Jim Lahey recipe with my scale. I measured the flour, but I still dashed in the yeast and the salt. I used a cup measure for the water.

In the past when I've posted about Lahey's recipes I've mentioned always needing more water. Not this time. I made a perfectly sticky dough that rose up tall with just the prescribed 400 grams of flour and 1 1/2 cups of water.

This loaf was one of my best. Light, lots of air holes inside, a genuinely crunchy exterior, and a fresh almost delicate texture.

Although he loves olive oil and even the occasional tapenade, James is not a big fan of olives themselves. I thought for sure he would ignore this bread or at best tolerate it as another kitchen experiment he has to suffer through. Instead the evening brought a variety of reasons to wander through the kitchen each time grabbing a thin slice.

Following the rules really does work out better . . . sometimes.

Focaccia

I've made hoards of flatbreads over the years. But, this is the first time -- following Jim Lahey's easy instructions that I've gone through the steps to add potato into the dough. Ideally I'd use leftover potatoes. I assume that's how the bread started being made. But the texture and subtle flavor from a bit of yukon gold in the dough makes the extra time boiling and blending your spuds well worth while. Unlike Lahey's other breads this crisp flat loaf was a quick rise (only 3 hours for the first rise I think) and baked up golden brown in a regular baking sheet, in just about 20 minutes.

Easy, delicious and still no-knead. If anything next time I might use a little less oil on top of the loaf and a little more seasoning. I went with just coarse salt and pepper but this one cries out for rosemary or even fresh oregano. Either way -- makes a pretty nice snack sandwich with a thin slice of prosciutto or with a little cheese melted on top.

Loaf of the Week: Crisp Crust Pancetta Bread

Counting down my way through Jim Lahey's cookbook. Crusty white bread with bits of crisp pancetta and red pepper flakes. Nothing really to complain about there. Once again this is sort of a flavored version of Lahey's famous no knead white bread, this time with a bit of the bacon fat (grease from pre-cooking the pancetta) mixed into the dough.

I admit it -- I was lazy and used the pre-chopped, packaged pancetta from Trader Joes. I can't help but feel this silky textured loaf will be improved by better pork products with a heavier dose of the traditional Italian spices. All in all though -- not too bad and maybe the dream slice for a gooey pan fried grilled cheese sandwich.

More Than Just Bread

Another before and after.

I've already decided to make every bread in Jim Lahey's My Bread cookbook. But, he has more than bread in there and I have been going back and forth about what exactly my responsibility to my cooking ethics and and anal retentive nature should be. Must I make every recipe in the book -- sandwiches, soups, pizza toppings -- because I have decided to make every bread? Must I make everything a competition? Will I be secretly (maybe not so secretly) disappointed if I don't do it all? Well yes. Even though I have decided on the leisurely pace of a loaf a week I can't leave stones unturned (or soups uncooked). So, while faced with a harvest of fresh Christmas lima beans and fridge full of delicious greens I spied Lahey's Ribollita recipe.

Ribollita is classic Tuscan peasant food. A thick soup -- or sometimes more like a casserole -- thickened with stale bread. On day one this hearty stew would be called Minestra di Pane (Bread soup), on day two re-heated it's Ribollita (re-boiled) and even better.

Following this recipe created a crisis on conscience. Lahey's instructions called for Savoy cabbage and Borlotti beans -- easily available, and yet I couldn't quite bring myself to go out and buy something new when I had perfectly good (seasonal and freshly harvested) ingredients right at home. Was I still following the recipe if I used chard and kale and radish greens? Maybe not according to some but I couldn't help but feel the substitution, opting for what was fresh and plentiful made the soup certainly more Italian (I know from years of experience Italians don't like waste or that sort of extravagance), more delicious, and more in keeping with the spirit of Lahey's recipe. So I followed his method with my ingredients.

Instead of starting with pancetta as I usually do, Lahey's sautés red onion, carrot, and celery in olive oil along with salt, bay leaves and crushed red pepper. Then the greens are quickly wilted before canned tomatoes, water, a parmesan cheese rind and the beans are added in to simmer for 2 -3 hours. The last step, and the reason Lahey includes the recipe is thickening the stew with cubes of stale (certainly homemade) bread, stirred into the soup pot. To serve drizzle with good quality olive oil and parmesan cheese.

Fresh tasting soup from garden fresh ingredients.

Backyard Lettuce Salad and Crusty Whole Wheat Bread

Consider this the start of the bread a week challenge. I've been poking around through Jim Lahey's Bread Book since the big man gave it to me for Christmas. This crusty whole wheat bread was so successful I am determined to make every recipe in the book. I'm no Julie and Julia (and I've got more than a 9 to 5 job) so I'll just start with a loaf a weekend. So far this version of Lahey's no knead classic is a family favorite.

Bread this good deserves to be more than a side, more than an accompaniment. So to let this hero loaf shine I picked a basket of fresh lettuces from out back yard patch and whipped up a simple Meyer lemon vinaigrette (we are one of the lucky ones with backyard tree). Fresh, simple, delicious.

Jim Lahey is a Genius

This might be the best looking loaf of bread I have ever made. I can't deny it, my heart soared with a mother's pride when I saw the just barely cracked, crusty brown exterior. And, it was the easiest loaf ever. Following Sullivan Street Bakery founder Jim Lahey's easier than easy recipe, I mixed flour, raisins, walnuts, yeast, salt, and water into a sticky dough (I just mixed them a few times with my hands) and left the bread in process to rise in a warm spot for about 20 hours until it was yeasty, bubbly, with a rich floury aroma. I kneaded the dough once or twice -- just to bring it together, formed it into a ball and left it to rise (covered by a floured tea towel for 2 more hours. As the dough reached the end of it's rise I heated the oven to 475º with a covered 5 quart dutch oven inside. At the end of the rise I popped the dough into the super hot dutch oven ( a Le Creuset enameled French oven to be exact) and covered it up to bake for 30 minutes in the hot oven. And then, uncovered the ot and left the bread to finish baking until the crust was thick and crisp and the loaf had taken on a warm brown tone.

Modern kitchen bread alchemy, courtesy of Jim Lahey.