The Art of Eating In - Cathy Erway [23]
I put down the magazine and pumped my fist in the air. Someone in a car driving by right then whooped in response. I was seated on the front stoop of my apartment building, having not yet made it inside. I read the sentence again: I’ll admit to enjoying one...
Gosh, he sounded reluctant. But at least he enjoyed mine! I skimmed the rest of the article and came across another slight jab: “Judging from half the entries at the Brooklyn Kitchen bake-off—which were flatter than they should have been—it seemed obvious that some home bakers need more instruction in how to form a loaf.”
He was right; most of the loaves were pretty flat at the bake-off. Except for mine! I scuttled my feet on the concrete stair below me.
So, bread: check. I’d baked a loaf that had not only won a kitchen store’s contest but had earned the favor of the most respected food critic alive. No more soliciting recipes from friends, readers, friends’ moms, cousins, and brothers, I decided right then. If I could bake bread from scratch, kneading or not, I now had the confidence to cook any food in the known world, and even some that weren’t yet.
Peppercorn, Potato, and Parmesan No-Knead Bread
This is a slightly updated version of my winning peppercorn no-knead bread, with a small addition. Who can resist a sprinkle of Parmigiano-Reggiano on top of anything? You won’t see an ungolden crust with this trick.
(MAKES 1 ½-POUND LOAF)
3 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
¼ teaspoon active dry yeast
1½ teaspoons salt
About 3 tablespoons black peppercorns, cracked (I placed mine inside a Ziploc bag and rolled over it with a rolling pin several times)
1⅝ cups water that was used to boil a potato, slightly cooled
Parmesan
In a large bowl, combine flour, yeast, salt, and pepper. Add water, and stir until blended; dough will be shaggy and sticky. Cover bowl with plastic wrap. Let dough rest at least 12 hours, preferably about 18 (or two days), at warm room temperature, about 70 degrees.
Dough is ready when its surface is dotted with bubbles. Lightly flour a work surface and place dough on it; sprinkle it with a little more flour and fold it over on itself once or twice. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and let rest about 15 minutes.
Using just enough flour to keep dough from sticking to work surface or your fingers, gently and quickly shape dough into a ball, tucking folded parts underneath. Sprinkle and gently pat the grated Parmesan across the top of the loaf. Generously coat a cotton towel (not terry cloth) with flour, semolina, or cornmeal, and place loaf seam-side down on it. Coat another cotton towel with flour and let rise for about 2 hours. When it is ready, dough will be more than double in size and will not readily spring back when poked with a finger.
At least a half hour before dough is ready, preheat oven to 450 degrees. Put a 6-8-quart heavy covered pot (cast iron, enamel, Pyrex, or ceramic) in oven as it heats. When dough is ready, carefully remove pot from oven. Slide your hand under the towel and place dough Parmesan side up in the pot. Cover with lid and bake 20 minutes; then remove lid and bake another 15 minutes, until loaf is beautifully browned. Cool on a rack.
Sun-Dried Tomato and Zucchini Breadsticks
These breadsticks make a tasty appetizer at dinner parties and are great for bringing to work for snacks. I like using some of the oil that the jarred sun-dried tomatoes are packed with to brush on top of the breadsticks before baking; also, chopped olives would make a nice addition or alternative to the sun-dried tomatoes.
(MAKES ABOUT 9 8-INCH BREADSTICKS)
3½ cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
1 package active dry yeast
2 teaspoons salt
1 tablespoon rosemary
3¾ cups water
4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil (or a