MilkFreeMe Chocolate Babka

I LOVE kneading dough. There is something divinely peaceful about the process. My joy of all joys is when I turn out my dough and the world stills for a moment while I knead this ball of flour, yeast and water into a springy elastic ball of doughy deliciousness.

My last bread baking experiment did not turn out as planned; the original recipe called for 4 to 4 1/2 cups of flour when it truly should have called for 3 to 4 cups of flour. This resulted in a very dense and unpleasant dough ball. The end product was totally edible, but the texture was not what I hoped for. Lesson learned.

When searching for a viable recipe it's VERY important to consider the ratio of ingredients.  For the most part, recipes that call for 1 packet (or 2 1/4 tsp) of yeast, should call for 1 cup of liquid (water or milk) and 3 to 4 cups of flour. It will also likely call for approximately 1/4 cup of some type of oil. I like the idea of starting with 3 cups of flour and then slowly adding anywhere up to 1 additional cup to get just the right texture. This is very much like making pie crust and slowly adding water based on the humidity in the air. Truth in baking: you can always add more but you can't take it out.

I decided to test my theory by making my own Chocolate Babka recipe. I took the best parts from several different recipes and several different variations of "babka" and came up with my very own MilkFreeMe Chocolate Babka.

MILKFREEME CHOCOLATE BABKA
Makes one 14-inch giant babka or two smaller 7-inch babkas 

• 1/2 cup almond milk (warmed until almost uncomfortable to stick your finger in it)
• 1/2 cup water (let the water faucet run until hot)
• 3 tbs white sugar
• 2 1/4 tsp of active dry yeast (or one yeast packet)
• 1 egg (lightly beaten)
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1/4 cup melted Earth Balance Buttery Spread or oil of your choice (I bet coconut would be good!)
• 3 to 4 cups unbleached white flour
• 1 tsp salt
• 6 oz chocolate finely chopped; dairy free semi sweet (I whirled mine in a mini food processor until pea sized)
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 1 tbs cocoa powder
• (optional: 1 egg combined with 1 tbs water for egg wash and sanding sugar to sprinkle the top)

Turn on your oven to the lowest possible setting, mine is 170 degrees Fahrenheit; this will be used as the environment for my dough to rise. (If you have a warm, draft free, place where your dough rises without this step feel free to omit.)

In a large bowl combine the warmed almond milk, water and sugar. Sprinkle the yeast on top and allow to stand 5 minutes or until frothy.

Add the egg, vanilla, and oil and mix to combine.

Combine 3 cups flour with 1 tsp salt and add to the yeast mixture. Stir with a fork to combine.
As the dough starts to come together, flour a work surface and have up to 1 cup additional flour available. Turn out the dough and knead until a soft, elastic, almost sticky but not quite, ball of dough comes together. Add flour as necessary.

TURN OFF THE OVEN. Oil your large mixing bowl, place your dough ball in the oiled bowl, cover with plastic wrap or a tea bowl and put the bowl in the oven. Allow to rise for 1 hour.
Prepare the filling by combining the chocolate, brown sugar and cocoa powder. Set aside until your dough has risen.

Remove dough from the oven, punch down, turn out onto a very lightly floured surface (you might not actually need the flour if the dough isn't sticking to your hands), knead a few additional times and roll out to approximately a 12 by 8 inch rectangle. Sprinkle generously with the chocolate filling mixture and gently press the filling into the dough. Roll the rectangle jelly roll style (rolling the long side) and decide if you're making two smaller babkas (in which case cut the log in half) or one bigger sized babka. Seal the ends of the logs by pinching them closed and place on your baking stone or a parchment lined baking sheet. Then place back into the oven, lightly covered by a tea towel and allow to rise for a second time, about 45 minutes to an hour.

REMOVE YOUR BREAD FROM THE OVEN and preheat to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. While your oven preheats create slashes in the top of the bread with a sharp knife. At this point you can brush the babkas with egg wash and sprinkle with sanding sugar if you choose.

Bake the babka(s) for 20 to 30 minutes (the bigger loaf may need a longer cooking time than the two smaller loaves). When the outside is a golden brown and the bread sounds hollow to a gentle knock on the dough your bread is done. Remove to a cooling rack and allow to cool at least 1 hour. If the chocolate filling is too hot it will ooze out when you cut it and quite frankly I prefer my filling in the bread!

I'm happy with my babka. The dough had a nice texture and the swirl of chocolate provided a beautiful contrast. Pretty as a picture and SO delicious!

Peace,
Laura

Classic New Orleans Beignets; Milk Free

The first time Hubby and I visited New Orleans we fell in love (as most do) with the deep fried pillows of dough called beignets. This delectable doughnut is French in origin and very popular in the Creole cuisine of New Orleans. Although beignets can be found throughout New Orleans, Cafe du Monde in Jackson Square is famous for their beignets, which are covered in a mountain of powdered sugar. Mmmmm. On our last visit to NOLA we were turned on to the delightful pillows of dough served at Cafe Beignet on Royal St, not to be missed if you're a beignet fan! I daydream about resting my head on a puffy pillow of dough and falling peacefully into a sugar coma.

Needless to say, as Mardi Gras (Carnivale) season is in full swing and Fat Tuesday is just around the corner, my thoughts have been wandering the streets of the French Quarter.  Thankfully, with my yeast bread resolution this year, I have the perfect excuse to make some fresh hot beignets at home!

Since many of the recipes out there call for milk, butter and/or buttermilk, I turned to a recipe by Country Cleaver  http://www.countrycleaver.com/2014/01/raspberry-beignets.html which calls only for water. I was a little apprehensive since she readily admits that she's never been to New Orleans, but her photos looked strikingly like classic Cafe du Monde beignets. Plus, her recipe was adapted from Cooks Country New Orleans Beignets, so I figured it was worth a shot.

MILK FREE BEIGNETS by Country Cleaver (my adaptations noted)
Makes 30

• 1 cup water
• 3 tbs sugar
• 1 envelope quick rise yeast 2 1/4 tsp active dry yeast
• 3 cups flour (plus more for rolling out dough)
• 3/4 tsp salt
• 2 eggs 
• 2 tbs vegetable oil 2 tbs coconut oil, melted (plus more for frying, unless you're baking)

"In a mixing bowl with a dough hook attachment, combine water, 1 Tbsp sugar and yeast. Let the yeast rest until foamy - 5 to 10 minutes.
In a large mixing bowl, whisk together flour, remaining sugar and salt.
Into the yeast mixture, mix in the eggs and 2 Tbsp Vegetable melted coconut oil.
Into the yeast mixture, with the mixer on low, slowly add in the flour (turn out to a lightly floured surface) and knead until the dough comes together.
Remove the Return to the bowl and dough attachment from the mixer, covering the bowl with plastic wrap and placing in fridge until doubled in size - 1-2 hours allow to rise in an warm draft free place (such as an oven first warmed to 170 degrees and then turned off).

On a heavily floured surface, roll out the dough until ¼" thick - Make sure to sprinkle the top of the dough with flour before rolling so the dough doesn't stick to the rolling pin. Using pizza cutter, cut dough into several rectangles, and squares 2x2 inches, or so. They don't have to be exact.

Pour oil into a large dutch oven or electic skillet that measures 1 ½ inches deep. Heat to 350 degrees. Place a few beignets into the heated oil. Fry on each side until deep golden brown, about 2-3 minutes and then flip to continue frying. Remove beignets from oil and place on a paper towel lined baking sheet or cooling rack to drain. Dust beignets with powdered sugar, best if served immediately."

Despite Country Cleaver's lack of personal experience with NOLA beignets she really pulled this one off. These were fantastic!  Her original recipe includes a raspberry sauce, which I decided to forgo in favor of the classic mountain of powdered sugar.

Today, while the snow falls here in Ohio, I'm cozy in my kitchen enjoying hot fresh beignets and dreaming of New Orleans.

Peace,
Laura

"Not Butter Chicken" Dairy Free Chicken Makhani and Naan

"Not Butter Chicken" is all for my baby sister Kelly. She's a big Indian food fan living in rural Ohio where there aren't a lot of other big Indian food fans. Hopefully a do-it-yourself Chicken Makhani will do the trick and give her tummy a little culture!

Chicken Makhani is a favorite in my family and is also known as "Indian Butter Chicken." Well, in case you hadn't noticed, I don't exactly cook with butter so the butter had to go; along with the cream and yogurt which add to the joy of chicken makhani. 

I was delighted to find one recipe that called for coconut milk as a substitution for the cream, and one recipe that called for tomato paste instead of diced tomatoes (which hubby doesn't like), and one recipe that looked like it had a good balance of spices, and one recipe that was made in a slow cooker. Combine them all together and voila; Not Butter Chicken! 

NOT BUTTER CHICKEN/CHICKEN MAKHANI

Serves 4-6 

• 6-8 bone-in, skinless chicken thighs
• 1 medium onion
• 5 cloves of garlic, minced
• 13.5 oz can coconut milk (I went with full fat because it replaces the cream and the yogurt)
• 6 oz can tomato paste
• 2 tbs fresh lemon juice
• 1 inch peeled grated fresh ginger
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp garam masala
• 1 tsp curry powder
• 1/2 tsp ground cardamom
• 1/2 tsp fenugreek (don't worry this will soften in the slow cooker)
• 1/2 tsp cayenne (or more if you like it spicy)

Dice the onion and place in the bottom of the slow cooker. Place the chicken on top. Mix together the remaining ingredients and pour over the chicken and onion. Cook on high for 4 hours or low for 8 hours.  Serve with hot baked naan bread or basmati rice. 

Oh, you picked up on that "hot baked naan" business eh!?  Don't worry, I have a recipe for that as well.    The naan is actually part of my yeast bread resolution for 2014. Two birds you know?

DAIRY FREE NAAN 

Adapted from Avocado Bravo, see the original recipe at http://avocadobravado.net/recipe-pan-fried-naan/

Serves 6 to 8

• 1/2 cup warm water
• 2 tsp active dry yeast
• 1 tsp sugar
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 olive or melted coconut oil
• 1/3 cup Tofutti "Better Than Sour Cream" or plain non-dairy yogurt
• 1 egg
• oil for cooking

In a large mixing bowl combine the warm water and sugar. Sprinkle yeast on top and allow to stand 5 minutes or until foamy. 

Combine the flour and salt. Combine the oil, Tofutti or yogurt, and egg. Mix the oil/Tofutti/egg mixture into the yeast mixture, and slowly incorporate the flour/salt mixture. The dough should be slightly tacky and pull away from the side of the bowl, add a little more flour if needed. Knead the dough until smooth and elastic. 

Oil a large bowl, place the dough ball inside, cover with a towel and allow to rise in a warm location until doubled in size, approximately 1 hour.  (While I'm mixing my dough I preheat my oven to 170 degrees and then promptly turn it off once preheated. Then I allow my dough to rise in the oven. This is the only way I can get dough to rise.)  

Heat a cast iron skillet to medium high. Turn out dough to a lightly floured surface and divide dough into 6-8 pieces. Roll each piece into a tight ball and then roll out to 1/4 inch thickness. 

Add a small about of oil to the skillet and when hot add the naan and cook until medium to large air bubbles form on the surface, flip and cook to a golden brown. You can always brush melted dairy free butter (such as Earth Balance) over the top if you want to take it over the top! 

Oh boy was this good! Definitely a suitable substitution for the original. I hope my little sister will be able to enjoy a little bit of culture out in soybean land. 

Peace, 

Laura

Yeast Bread Resolution: Dairy Free Cinnamon Swirl Bread

Is it weird that nearly all of my 2014 resolutions involve food? I suppose a lot of people make resolutions about food, but I wonder how many other people vow to tackle yeast breads in any given year. It's a pretty intimidating matter. I've tried and tried and my efforts always fall flat. My only success to date is pizza crust and I have to say, it shouldn't be rocket science, but it sure feels like it.

So on this beautiful, sunny, 13 degree Ohio day I have two choices: tackle resolution number #1 which involves hanging out in the kitchen, soaking in the sunshine by my warm oven, or tackle resolution #2 (which is my only non-food related resolution) and purge the mountain of boxes that I hoard in the basement…. the cold…. dark….. basement.

Cinnamon Swirl Bread it is!

Did I mention that purging boxes from the basement does NOT make the house smell like heaven!?

The recipe that I decided to try was from Pinch Of Yum http://pinchofyum.com/homemade-cinnamon-swirl-bread. There was a method to my madness here. First of all, it didn't call for butter and remember how I mentioned that the only yeast bread I was successful with was pizza crust? Well, I chose this recipe because the dough recipe for this cinnamon swirl bread is exactly half of my pizza crust recipe, plus 1/2 a cup of flour and the full amount of sugar. I hoped that the odds were in my favor!

DAIRY FREE CINNAMON SWIRL BREAD
Makes 2 loaves

• 1 cup warm water  (I run my tap until it's warm and then fill a measuring cup, previously, I would get out my thermometer and measure exactly 105 to 115 degrees just like the yeast package says but that was too hot and my yeast died, resulting in hockey puck bread). 
• 2 tsp sugar (be sure to mix this in to the water, it helps to feed the yeast)
• 1 pkg (2.5 tsp) active dry yeast 

• 2.5 cups flour (you can use the high gluten that is recommended in the original recipe, but I used good old all purpose unbleached flour, I'm betting you could do half whole wheat if you want, that's what I do with my pizza crust). 
• 1 tsp salt (never mix this in with the yeast or that will prevent your yeast from working)
• 2 tbs olive oil (or your oil of choice)

• 1/2 cup white sugar 
• 2 tbs cinnamon (mix the cinnamon and sugar together in a small bowl) 

First, you have to consider where you are going to allow your dough to rise. We're basically polar bears and we keep our house at around 69 degrees year round. This is NOT the ideal temperature to allow dough to rise in. I preheat my oven to 170 degrees (because that's as low as it goes) and then turn it off a few minutes before I put my dough in to rise.

Next, mix the water and sugar together in a large bowl. Sprinkle the yeast on top and give it about 5 minutes to get frothy.

Get your work space ready by setting aside a small bowl of flour in a clean area where you can knead your dough. Prepare a large glass bowl with a coating of oil.

Next mix together the flour and salt. Once the yeast is frothy add the oil and mix the flour/salt in with your hands.  Sprinkle your work space with flour and knead the dough for about 5 minutes. Place your dough ball in the oiled bowl and give the top a thin coating of oil.

Cover the bowl (not the dough ball) with plastic wrap and put it in the warm but now OFF oven. Allow the dough to rise for 1 hour.

Prepare your next work station with more flour, your rolling pin, your bread pans or baking stone and your cinnamon sugar mixture.

When the dough has doubled in size pull it out, punch it down and divide it in two. Roll out each half into a long rectangle, to fit your bread pan if you're using one. Sprinkle generously with the cinnamon sugar mixture and then roll into a loaf to be placed in the bread pan or on the baking stone.

Bake 30-40 minutes (this depends on what you bake it in/on). It should be golden brown on top and sound hollow if you knock on it. The original recipe advises to err on the side of over baking if you're not sure. Mine baked for 35 minutes on a baking stone (I don't have 2 bread pans or I probably would have tried that method).

You CAN remove to cool on a wire rack before slicing, OR you can be like me and want warm, fresh, hot out of the oven bread and slice it now. If you're slicing it warm be sure to  use a sharp bread knife and a gentle touch.

So my loaves breached containment. The cinnamon sugar mixture oozed out onto my baking stone and I was pretty concerned. Being a novice yeast bread baker I have no idea why or how that happened, but I'll be Googling away my afternoon trying to find out. I'm guessing if I had used bread pans this would be a non-issue.

Turns out it's a non-issue anyway, it sliced beautifully and tasted delicious!



This was so amazing hot out of the oven and I bet it will be outstanding after a trip through the toaster tomorrow morning.

Peace,
Laura