Take a Megabite

Cornmeal Yeast Rolls

Putting a sandwich on these guys is like having a sandwich on a corn muffin. Honestly, I can’t imagine anything better.

I’m excited to make these the next time Jake makes pulled pork …  ribs or briskit. Basically, these would accompany BBQ-ed goodness in a dreamy way.  But for now peanut butter and strawberry jam will do.

Oh yeah! It’s September! So I guess instead of BBQ-ing we should be thinking about beef stew and pumpkin everything. Well, these rolls are cool in that they can transition effortlessly from summer to fall. Like wearing your favorite dress with tights, or something.

Cornmeal Yeast Rolls
Recipe adapted from cdkitchen

Ingredient:

• 1 envelope active dry yeast
• 1/4 cup lukewarm water
• 1 t sugar + 1/4 cup granulated sugar, divided
• 1/4 cup butter, melted and cooled
• 1 cup milk
• 1 egg
• 1 t salt
• 3/4 cup cornmeal
• 3+ cups all-purpose flour

Directions:

1. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook (or any large bowl+ an electric mixer), combine the yeast, water and 1 teaspoon sugar and let stand until bubbly, about 5 minutes.
2. Mix in 1/4 cup sugar, butter, milk, egg, salt and cornmeal. (If mixing by hand switch from your hand mixer to a wooden spoon before adding the flour.) Add 2 1/2 cups flour and mix until combined.
3. Knead in the remaining 1/2 cup of flour on a lightly floured surface for 7-10 minutes or in a stand mixer for about 5 minutes. Add more flour as needed to keep the dough from being too sticky.
4. Transfer to a medium lightly greased bowl, turning to coat. Cover with plastic wrap and set in a warm place to rise until double in bulk  (1-2 hours).
5. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Form the dough into about 14 (2.5 oz.) rolls and place on the prepared baking sheets leaving a couple inches of space between. Cover lightly with a dish towel and set aside to rise until puffy and almost double in size (45 minutes – 1 hour).
6. Meanwhile preheat oven to 375ºF. Bake for 10-14 minutes, or until golden brown. Allow to cool completely on a wire rack before storing in an airtight container to enjoy for days.

Just dunk this in some beef stew already.

Turkey Burgers + Whole Wheat Burger Buns + Avocado Fries

I get pretty proud of myself when I make a good dinner just for me. Normally I end up eating snacks or weirdo foods instead of a real meal when I’m cooking for one.

Thank you Dana, for making me crazy about turkey burgers … ever since the tasty ones you made us post paddle boating.

Turkey Burgers
Recipe from my homegurl Dana

Ingredients:

• 1 lb. ground turkey + some minced onion + some fresh cilantro, to taste
• salt + pepper
• cheese, for topping
• lots of ketchup + mustard

Directions:

1. Mix together the turkey, onion and cilantro. Add some salt and pepper. Divide into 4 patties.
2. Cook on a hot grill for 4 minutes on one side. Flip and cook for 5 more minutes. Top with cheese and let it get melty for a minute or two. Place burgers in your whole wheat burger buns and get your dinner on. Makes 4 burgers.

These little buns were easy-peasy. They rose effortlessly and were perfectly soft/firm for burgerness.

Whole Wheat Burger Buns
Recipe from Eating Well

Ingredients:

• 1 cup low-fat milk
• 1/3 cup lukewarm water
• 1 package active dry yeast
• 1 large egg, at room temperature, lightly beaten
• 2 t sugar
• 1 t salt
• 1 T extra-virgin olive oil, or canola oil
• 1 3/4 cups whole-wheat flour
• 1 3/4 cups (approximately) unbleached all-purpose flour
• cornmeal, for sprinkling

Directions:

1. Heat milk in a small saucepan over medium-high heat for a couple minutes, until really warm throughout, but not hot. Transfer to a medium bowl and let cool to lukewarm, about 10 minutes. Meanwhile, pour water into a small bowl. Sprinkle yeast and a pinch of sugar over the water, lightly whisk, then let stand for 5-10 minutes, or until super foamy and active.
2. Add egg to the milk; whisk well. Whisk in sugar, salt, oil and yeast mixture. Stir in whole-wheat flour. Using a heavy wooden spoon, stir vigorously by hand for about a minute.
3. Start adding all-purpose flour to the dough, about 1/3 cup at a time, stirring well after each addition. When the dough is somewhat firm and no longer too sticky to handle, turn it out onto a floured surface. With floured hands, knead the dough for 7-ish minutes, using additional flour as needed to prevent sticking. Coat a large bowl with cooking spray. Add the dough and turn to coat. Cover with plastic wrap and set aside in a warm place to rise until double in bulk, 1 to 1 1/2 hours.
4. When the dough has doubled, turn it out onto a floured surface. Gently knead for a minute. Divide dough into 8 equal pieces (about 3.8 ounces each). Form into nice rounds by tucking edges under the center pinching where they meet.
5. Cover a large baking sheet with parchment paper and spray with cooking spray. Sprinkle with corn meal. Place the dough balls on the baking sheet about 2 inches apart. Coat a large sheet of plastic wrap with cooking spray and place it over the buns, sprayed side down.
6. Set the buns in a warm place to rise. After about 30 minutes, gently press down the buns, right on the plastic, to flatten them a little. Let them rise for another 20 minutes. Meanwhile preheat the oven to 375º.
7. Bake the buns on the center rack until golden and crusty, about 15-20 minutes, rotating halfway through. The bottoms should sound hollow when tapped. Cool on a wire rack for at least 15 minutes before slicing. Makes 8 burger buns.

Avocado fries have officially changed my life. In the recipe it said that the amount I made for 1 could serve 3… just saying.

They are so good. Crunchy and creamy and nutty. Pretty much the best thing ever.

Avocado Fries {serves 4-6}
Recipe from Sunset via MyRecipes.com

Ingredients:

• canola oil, for frying
• 1/4 cup flour
• 1/4 t kosher salt + more to taste
• 2 large eggs, beaten
• 1 1/4 cups panko
• 2 ripe avocados, store in the fridge to firm them up for handling

equipment -

• deep fry thermometer or candy thermometer

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 200ºF. In a medium saucepan, heat 1 1/2 inches worth of oil until it reaches 375ºF on a deep-fry or candy thermometer.
2. Meanwhile, mix flour and 1/4 teaspoons salt in a shallow bowl. Put eggs and panko in separate shallow bowls. Dip avocado in flour, shaking off excess. Dip in egg, then panko to coat. Set on 2 plates in a single layer.
3. Fry a quarter of avocado slices at a time until deep golden, 30-60 seconds. Transfer slices to a plate lined with paper towels. Keep warm in the oven while cooking remaining avocados. Sprinkle with salt to taste.

Tomato Goat Cheese Tarts in an Herb Parmesan Crust

Last night I made these tarts. Today I went paddle-boating in a skirt.

It’s been a good weekend so far.

Have you seen baby heirloom tomatoes at Trader Joe’s? They are just so pretty, and the green ones are neon. They would be the most popular tomatoes dancing under a black light at a club.

If I stumble across a recipe that has tomatoes, basil and goat cheese involved, chances are I’ll e-mail it to myself, print it and buy the ingredients that day. It’s just the truth.

And don’t you think that you’d like to have one of these instead of a sandwich sometime? Make these so you can have a fancy and pretty tart all up in your lunchbox. And since it makes 4, you can share them so other people can get in on the goodness … because let me tell you, these guys are goo-ood.

Tomato Goat Cheese Tarts in an Herb Parmesan Crust
{makes one 9-10″ tart or four 4″ tarts} Recipe from Confessions of a Tart

Ingredients:

herb parmesan crust -

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup whole wheat flour
• 1/2 t salt
• 1 stick (8 T) unsalted butter, chilled or frozen
• 2 T grated parmesan
• 1 T dried Italian herbs (I only had dried oregano. Oops.)
• 2-4 T ice water

filling -

• 4 oz. goat cheese, softened
• 1/4 cup milk
• 1/2 – 1 lb assorted tomatoes*
• 1 T chopped fresh basil
• salt + pepper

* I used Trader Joe’s mini heirlooms and only needed about 1/2 pound. Maybe if you make a big tart you’ll need the full pound.

Directions:

1. Make crust. Whisk flours, salt, parmesan and herbs together in a large bowl. Cut butter into small squares and scatter on top of the dry ingredients. With a pastry blender, forks or your hands, quickly cut the butter into the dry ingredients until the biggest pieces are no larger than a small pea. Drizzle in water, one tablespoon at a time, until the dough holds together when pinched. Refrigerate for 10 minutes.
2. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured counter and press together into a ball. (At this point, you can wrap it in plastic and refrigerate it for an hour if you want to be able to roll it out. Or don’t bother and simply press into the tart pan or pans.) If making mini tartlets, divide the dough into four pieces. If not, keep it in one piece. Spray or butter the tart pans and, working quickly so that the pieces of butter don’t melt, press the crumbly dough into the pans. Refrigerate.
3. Heat the oven to 375°. Press greased aluminum foil into the tart pans and fill with beans/rice/baking weights. Pierce the bottom of each crust serveral times with a fork through the foil. Bake for 20-30 minutes, until the crusts are beginning to turn golden. Cool for 10 minutes.
4. Meanwhile, make filling. Combine goat cheese and milk in a small bowl and stir until incorporated. Slice the tomatoes and basil.
5. Divide filling between the slightly cooled tart shells and top with tomatoes and basil. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Bake for an additional 30 minutes, then serve!

Crumby goodness.

Spicy Oven-Roasted Chickpeas

I’ve been snacking on pie this week … pie and chocolate marshmallows. There were definitely the occasional yogurt covered raisin too. And now it’s come to a point where I just feel like I need to get a healthy snack in my life.

So I decided hang out with some chick peas and get my crunch on in a health-conscious way. These crunch like a snack should and kinda smell like christmas. Basically, I wish I would’ve made a double recipe.

Spicy Oven-Roasted Chickpeas
Recipe adapted from The Kitchn

Ingredients:

• 1 (15 ounce) can organic chickpeas
• 1 T olive oil
• scant 1 T chunky sea salt
• sprinkle of black pepper
• 1/4 t cinnamon
• 1/4 t cumin
• 1/4 t coriander
• dash nutmeg
• sprinkle of red pepper flakes

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 400ºF. Pour the chickpeas into a colander and drain and rinse very well under running water. Pat dry.
2. Toss the chickpeas with olive oil and spread out on a large cookie sheet. Roast for 30-40 minutes or until brown and crispy. Turn and stir every ten minutes so they don’t burn.
3. Take out and toss to taste with salt and spices.

I feel like these could be the new crouton.

Sesame Semolina Lunettas

Sesame seeds are just the bread sprinkles.
Semolina is the flour power.
Lunetta is the swirly “S” shape.

This dough was the prettiest bread dough I’ve ever met! Chances are, if you saw this dough on the street, you would roll down the window and be all daaaaaang gurl at it. I totally would.

Oh, and the end result is tasty, just like my friend Alex promised! You see, when I wasn’t sure what kind of bread to make, he told me “Sesame Semolina!” And so I made it. And it’s a dream. So, let’s toast to toast!

Sesame Semolina Lunettas
Recipe adapted from King Arthur Flour

Ingredients:

bread -

• 2 1/2 cups semolina flour
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 t salt
• 2 T olive oil
• 1 packet of rapid rise yeast ( 1/4 oz)
• 1 1/3 cup lukewarm water
• pinch of sugar

topping -

• egg wash (1 egg white + 1 T cold water whisked together)
• 5 t sesame seeds

Directions:

1. Combine the semolina, flour, salt and olive oil in the bowl of a stand mixer or in a large bowl. In a small bowl or measuring cup whisk together the yeast, water and sugar. Set aside for a few minutes or until foamy. Pour over the flour mixture. Beat together using the paddle attachment until a loose dough forms. Switch to the dough hook and knead for about 6 minutes or until the dough is stiff and not sticking to the sides of the bowl. (If you don’t have a stand mixer, stir this stuff together with a wooden spoon and pour onto a clean surface and knead until pliable.)
2. Shape the dough into a ball and place in a greased bowl turning to coat to rise for about 90 minutes, or until double in size.
3. Gently deflate the dough and divide it in half. Shape each half into an 18 inch long rope. Working with one piece of dough at a time, mark the center of the rope and coil the end to the center. Coil the other end to make an “S” shape. Repeat with other half of dough. Like below:
   
4. Place the loaves on a parchment-lined or lightly greased baking sheet, and cover lightly with greased plastic wrap and set aside to rise for an hour, or until they are nice and puffy. Toward the end of the rise time preheat the oven to 350ºF.
5. Brush the loaves with the egg wash and sprinkle with sesame seeds. Bake for about 25 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from the oven and cool on a rack.

Just put a sandwich on this “S”.

Jake + a pork butt + my biscuits

Jake’s a really good cook. Did you guys know that? He even makes dinner three out of the four nights that he’s not working. It’s pretty nice of him.

That up there is what he made Tuesday. It’s an Oklahoma chopped pork sandwich topped with a vinegar based coleslaw. I made the Denver Biscuits, but the rest of it was all Jake. That meat was pretty much a full day of work too. It smokes on the grill for 4 hours and braises in the oven for about 2-3 hours and next thing you know, it’s a dream. He even made the BBQ sauce, using this recipe over at Delish.

So, basically, I’m a lucky lady.

Jake + Elliot

Rosemary Focaccia Bread

I got pretty frustrated the other day. It happened when my kitchen lights decided to stop working. Next thing you know I was feeling annoyed, overheated and my forehead was crinkled. Two lamps plugged in later, I was back to normal and hung out with some rosemary and got my focaccia on.

I took the top photo inside, but the second one outside. Those make-do lamps were making everything look really weird. Kinda like that creepy shadow behind me down there and the spotlight effect up there. Scary!

So anyhow. This bread is really good. I’m torn though. Half of me wants sandwiches made of proscuitto, melted mozzarella and basil and the other half wants to top this bread with peanut butter, bananas and honey. Oh, rosemary, way to be good at being both savory and sweet.

Rosemary Focaccia Bread {makes 2 loaves}
Recipe adapted from Simply Recipes + Rather Be Baking

Ingredients:

• 1 package active dry yeast
• pinch of sugar
• 1/3 cup warm water, about 100ºF
• 2 1/4 cups water, at room temperature
• 2 T extra virgin olive oil + more for topping + greasing the pans
• 3 cups bread flour
• 4 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 T salt + kosher salt for sprinkling
• 2-3 T fresh rosemary

Directions:

1. Stir the yeast and sugar into 1/3 cup warm water. Let it rest for 10 minutes, or until super frothy.
2. In a large bowl, mix the olive oil into the room temperature water. Add the frothy yeast water. Whisk in 2 cups of bread flour and the tablespoon of salt. Add the rosemary. Then, cup by cup, whisk in the rest of the flour (both bread flour and all-purpose). As the mixture goes from a batter to a thick dough, you’ll want to switch to a wooden spoon. By  the time you get to the last cup of flour, you’ll be able to knead the dough. Begin to knead it in the bowl trying to incorporate the flour stuck to the sides and bottom of the bowl. Once the bowl is clean, turn dough out onto the cupboard and knead for 8 minutes, adding flour as necessary. (Note: You can totally use your stand mixer for the dough. I sure did. Just use your paddle attachment until the last cup of flour.Then switch to the dough hook and knead on low for 8 minutes or until the sides of the bowl are clean.)
3. In a large clean bowl, pour in about a tablespoon of olive oil and using your hand or pastry brush, spread the oil out to cover the bowl. Place the dough in the bowl, turning once to coat. Cover with plastic wrap and set aside to rise for an hour and a half, or until just about double in size.
4. Brush the bottom of two small cookie sheets (about 15 1/2 inches by 10 1/2 inches in size) with olive oil. Feel free to cover with parchment paper too and brush that with additional olive oil. Divide the dough between the two pans and using your hands spread the dough out to fit, or until all of the dough is about 1/2 inch thick. Cover the breads and allow them to rest for 10 minutes. After the rest, dimple the breads with your thumb or the back of a wooden spoon. Cover again and leave to rise for 2 hours.
5. With 30 minutes to go before the rise finishes, place a couple cake pans filled with water or a large baking dish filled with water in the oven. Preheat the oven to 400ºF. The pans of water will create steam for when the bread is baking.
6. Once the dough is done rising, brush the tops with olive oil. Sprinkle kosher salt evenly over the bread from about a foot over head. (It helps it spread out evenly.)
7. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until the top is evenly golden, rotating half way through. Turn out onto a wire rack withit 3-5 minutes of removing it from the oven; this will keep the bottom of the bread crispy. Cool for at least 10 minutes before eating. Then eat a sandwich for dinner.

A bit of flour jumped out of the mixer at me. How thoughtful of it to share, right?
Note to self: wear an apron now and then.

Braided Egg Bread

One cool thing about this bread is that when sliced it looks like a cloud. Another cool thing about this bread is that it’s freckled. The obviously cool thing is that it’s braided. Twice! Double decker braiding action happens. You might think it’s so pretty that you’ll take a picture of it to your hair stylist to duplicate. I wouldn’t blame you a bit.

So, see how you braid it? Start in the middle and take the left over the middle then the right over those. Next thing you know: BRAID!

I think sprinkling bread with poppy seeds is really fun. It’s like decorating cupcakes. If anyone needs a professional poppy seed sprinkler, I’m your girl.

Braided Egg Bread {makes 1 loaf}
Recipe from the Taste of Home cookbook

Ingredients:

bread -

• 3 1/4 to 3 3/4 all-purpose flour
• 1 T sugar
• 1 package (1/4 oz.) active dry yeast
• 3/4 t salt
• 3/4 cup water
• 3 T oil
• 2 eggs

topping -

• 1 egg
• 1 t water
• poppy seeds

Directions:

1. In a large mixing bowl, combine 1 1/2 cups flour, sugar, yeast and salt. In a saucepan, heat water and oil to 120º-130º. Add to the dry ingredients along with the eggs. Beat on medium speed for 3 minutes. Stir in enough flour to form a soft dough.
2. Turn dough onto a floured surface; knead until smooth and elastic (about 6-8 minutes). Or knead in your stand mixer using your dough hook. Place in a greased bowl, turning once to coat. Cover and allow to rise until doubled, about 1 1/2 hours.
3. Punch dough down. Turn onto a lightly floured surface. Set a third of the dough aside. Divide remaining dough into three pieces. Shape each into a 13-inch rope. Place ropes on a greased baking sheet and braid; pinch ends to seal and tuck under.
4. Divide reserved dough into three equal pieces; shape each into a 14-inch rope. Braid ropes. Center 14-inch braid on top of the shorter braid. Pinch ends to seal and tuck under. Cover and let rise until doubled, about 30 minutes.
5. Beat egg and water; brush over dough. Sprinkle with poppy seeds. Bake at 375º for 15 minutes. Tent with foil and continue baking 10-15 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from pan to a wire rack to cool.

Last time I made this I didn’t really center the little braid. It ended up all silly-looking. So this time I was pleasantly surprised. Braided bread. It’s where it’s at.

Speedy and Rustic Whole Wheat Tortillas

These are speedy because they took about 30 minutes start to finish; they are rustic because I’m incapable of rolling dough into a perfect circle and I’m much better at rustic shapes that resemble VW beetles.

Some of the other tortillas were shaped like monsters, clouds and spongebob squarepants.

Jake cooked up some panko crusted chicken and made a delicious salad for inside these guys. The salad was: cucumbers, grape tomatoes, dill, oregano, goat cheese and champagne vinaigrette … a refreshing and quick dinner for a toasty day.

Speedy and Rustic Whole Wheat Tortillas {makes 8}
Recipe from recipezaar

Ingredients:

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 cup whole wheat flour
• 1 t baking powder
• 1 t salt
• 4 T canola oil
• 2/3 cup water

Directions:

1. In a medium bowl, combine flours, baking powder and salt. Stir in the oil and water all at once with a fork or wooden spoon, toss quickly! When dough can be gathered into a soft mass, turn onto a floured surface and knead a few times.
2. Divide dough into 8 balls. On a lightly floured surface, flatten gently and roll each ball into a circle-ish shape about 7 inches or larger in size. Roll using even strokes that don’t reach the edge, turning frequently.
3. Place tortillas in an ungreased, frying pan that has been preheated to medium-high heat. Cook 30-40 seconds on each side, turn over with spatula and cook for 30-40 seconds on other side. The first side should be pale but freckled with brown spots and the other side will be blotched. Repeat process with the rest of the balls of dough.
4. Stack tortillas on a plate as they are cooked and cover them with a dish towel, which will keep them soft.

Elliot guarded the warm tortillas and Jake made the salad. It was dinner, family-style.

Light Brioche Burger Buns

So what if I napped while these were on the rise. So what if when they were done, I drizzled one with honey and ate it as my fake dinner. So what?

So what if I can’t wait to make mini these for mini burgers; mini burgers are the cupcake of burgers, really.

Basically these are the dreamiest burger buns ever. You should probably make them right now and make burgers for dinner.

Despite my big oven, I still haven’t upgraded my teeny baking sheets. So I used one little baking sheet plus one heart cake pan. Works for me.

Light Brioche Burger Buns {makes 8, 4-5 inch burger buns}
Recipe from Smitten Kitchen + Comme Ca restaurant in L.A., via the New York Times

Ingredients:

• 1 cup water + 1 T water for egg wash
• 3 T milk
• 1 package (2 t) active dry yeast
• 2 1/2 T sugar
• 2 large eggs, divided
• 3 cups bread flour
• 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 t salt
• 2 1/2 T unsalted butter, softened
• sesame seeds (optional)

Directions:

1. In a glass measuring cup, combine 1 cup water and milk. Microwave for 10 seconds spurts until warm, about 30 seconds total. Whisk in the yeast and sugar. Let stand until foamy, about 5-10 minutes. Meanwhile, beat one egg and set aside.
2. In a large bowl, whisk flours with salt. Add butter and rub into flour between your fingers, making crumbs. Pour in the yeast mixture and beaten egg and stir until a soft dough forms. Scrape dough onto a clean, well-floured counter and knead, scooping dough up, slapping it on the counter and turning it, until smooth and elastic, about 8 to 10 minutes. The dough will be somewhat sticky, but keep in mind that the more flour you knead in, the tougher the buns will get. Try to leave them stickier than your average bread dough.
3. Shape dough into a ball. Place in a medium bowl sprayed with cooking spray, turning once to coat. Top with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place until doubled in bulk, 1 to 2 hours.
4. Line a baking sheet or two with parchment paper. Divide dough into 8 equal parts (4-ish ounces a piece). Gently roll each into a ball and arrange 2-3 inches apart on the prepared baking sheets. Cover loosely with a piece of plastic wrap lightly coated in nonstick spray and let buns rise in a warm place for 1 to 2 hours.
5. Set a large shallow pan of water on the oven floor. Preheat oven to 400° with rack in center. Beat remaining egg with 1 T water and brush some on top of buns. Sprinkle with sesame seeds if ya’ feel like it. Bake, rotating baking sheets halfway through baking, until tops are golden brown, about 15 minutes. Transfer to a rack to cool completely.

Here they are! A family of 8.