Not by Bread Alone

Decadent describes my husband’s first pecan pie.  See for yourself.  You’ll have to take my word on the richness of the flavor though:

Chocolate Pecan Pie
Chocolate Pecan Pie

Terry didn’t provide me with a link to the recipe.  When/if he does, I’ll update this post.

I thought to try a new Italian bread recipe, just for the chance to bake with my Italian bread pan.

I made a mistake, however, in reading the ingredients and used two tablespoons of sugar instead of just two teaspoons.  I may have to try again today. My other modifications to the recipe are listed below in bold:

Dough

  • 4 cups King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour (Kroger’s Organic All-Purpose Flour)
  • 2 tablespoons potato flour, or 1/4 cup dried potato flakes
  • 1/4 cup Baker’s Special Dry Milk or nonfat dry milk
  • 2 teaspoons salt
  • 2 teaspoons sugar (my mistake … I used 2 Tablespoons)
  • 2 teaspoons instant yeast
  • 1 1/3 cups lukewarm water (1 cup only; I also used 1/2 cup sourdough starter)
  • 3 tablespoons olive oil

Topping

  • 1 egg white beaten with 1 tablespoon water; or substitute Quick Shine
  • sesame seeds

Directions

  1. In a large bowl, stir together all of the dough ingredients till cohesive. Knead the dough for 5 to 8 minutes, until it’s smooth and supple, adding more water or flour as needed.  I used my Kitchenaid mixer with a dough hook.  I let the water, sugar and yeast proof for 5-10 minutes in the bowl while I measured out the other ingredients.
  2. Cover the dough and allow it to rise for 1 hour, or until it’s doubled in bulk.  I let it rise for about 90 minutes (mostly because I was preoccupied watching a movie).
  3. Transfer the dough to a lightly greased work surface and divide it into two pieces. Shape each piece into a smooth 16″ log. Place the logs into the two wells of a lightly greased Italian bread pan, cover, and let the loaves rise until very puffy, about 1 hour.  I love my Italian bread pan (see photo above).
  4. Brush the loaves with the egg wash (or spray them with Quick Shine), then sprinkle heavily with sesame seeds. Bake in a preheated 400°F oven for about 25 minutes, until the loaves are golden brown. For the crispiest crust, turn off the oven, prop the door open, and allow the bread to cool in the oven.  I brushed with an egg-white wash and sprinkled liberally with sesame seeds.  I also scored each loaf three times with my razor-sharp lame.  Again, I misread the directions and baked at 425 degrees for 25 minutes.  I spritzed the oven every five minutes with water from a spray bottle to encourage a crispy crust.  I also let the loaves cool in the oven.

We enjoyed some home-made baked Italian sandwiches courtesy Terry’s early life experiences working for his father at the Grinder Man in Wichita, Kansas.  Terry’s dad conceived, owned and operated several Grinder Man sandwich shops in Wichita during the 70s and 80s.  Sadly, only one remains open now.

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