Herb Garlic Bread...It’s a pull-apart!
 
Nope, well I know I’m too late, the party’s over and done and I’m left with just a whole lot of beautiful bread! It’s not like Cream Puffs and La Mia Cucina didn’t give enough advanced notice. They posted the notice on 11 August with this beautiful logo.  I mean it’s beautiful right down to the torn edges. And what happened to me. Eh, you know life interfered. So, here’s my post party offering for la festa al fresco. I found this recipe years ago (like about 20) in a beautiful book entitled That’s Entertaining: Celebrations for All Seasons written by Yvonne Young Tarr. Published in 1987, I don’t think you’ll find it new but I see it used from Amazon sellers and at Half Price Books in Dallas sometimes. Again that many years ago or close to it, I was involved in the Parents Association where our boys went to school. Every year we put on an auction fund raiser benefiting the school. One of the “things” that got auctioned that particular year was 6 women...to take 6 other women on what we called the East Texas Escapade for an overnight to an East Texas farm. And of course part of the deal was we 6 would do all the cooking. We tried pretty hard to cook things that were impressive but easy enough to do in an unfamiliar kitchen. I loved making bread 20 years ago and I love it still. And this is impressive and actually not at all hard. The secret is all in the fresh herbs and the shape! All the herbs came from my backyard. This is an ultimate garlic bread! Who do you want to impress - this might just do the trick. Herb Pull-Apart Bread 5 - 6 c unbleached bread flour 1 c whole wheat flour 2 t active dry yeast 1/2 c milk or cottage cheese (skim is fine, look at all the butter) 1 1/2 c water (if using cottage cheese, blend with water till smooth) 3 T butter Herb Mix 3 - 4 T butter melted 3 to 6 cloves garlic 1/4 c fresh herb mix I used basil, sage, thyme and rosemary I have used dried like the recipe called for 2 T each of coriander, thyme and marjoram I use my Kitchen Aid mixer with a dough hook to start this bread. With the beater attachment mix together 2 c unbleached bread flour and yeast. Gradually, stir in the milk or cottage cheese blended with the water, water and 3 T butter which does not have to be melted. Beat well for 2 minutes. Add 1 c whole wheat flour and beat again for 2 minutes scraping down the sides of the bowl a few times. Switch to the dough hook and stir in enough of the remaining flour to make a stiff dough. This is about where I remove the dough from the mixer and proceed by hand. Knead the dough until smooth and elastic.  Oil the dough ball and place in the bowl and cover.  Allow to rise until double in bulk.  Punch the dough down. Divide into two equal parts.  Place on a floured counter and allow to rest 15 minutes. Melt butter for herb mix. Finely chop fresh herbs or mix together dried herbs. Finely mince or press garlic.  Roll each piece into a large rectangle (about 12 inch X 8 inch or bigger).  Brush each rectangle with melted butter; sprinkle with herbs and garlic. Sometimes I’ve been known to use a little finely grated parmesan cheese in place of or with the herbs but I didn’t for this time.  Now, give this some thought: The idea here is to cut the rectangle into strips. How wide? Depends on the pan you want to put the loaf into. Cut the rectangle into strips just wide enough to fit into the loaf pan. See that uneven edge on the left of my stack. You have a choice here.  Put these into the pan with the uneven edge up and you get this... Sometimes you just want a little wacky in your life. Put these into the pan with the uneven edge down and you get this... And sometimes you need things to be straighter. Now, you probably have something like four to six strips. Stack them one on top of the other. Cut the strips into squares. Stand the slices on end down the center of the loaf pan. This recipe made 5 mini-loaves but I often make it in one 1 pound regular (Ha, ha is anything “regular” when you’re dealing with the internet and international boundaries) loaf pan and one mini-loaf. Cover loaves and let rise about an hour - almost double in volume. Preheat oven to 400° Bake 30 minutes, until golden brown. Remove to wire racks to cool. Enjoy - the aromas of fresh baked bread and fresh bread.  Well, I’m to late for the party but maybe Cream Puffs will enjoy it anyway since she’s short an oven right now. It’s good for breakfast, lunch and dinner. I’m late; I’ll do the dishes this year but next year I’ll be on time.http://creampuffsinvenice.typepad.com/cream_puffs_in_venice/2006/08/la_festa_al_fre.htmlhttp://llcskitchen.blogspot.com/http://creampuffsinvenice.typepad.com/cream_puffs_in_venice/2006/09/la_festa_al_fre.htmlhttp://technorati.com/tag/la+festa+al+frescoshapeimage_1_link_0shapeimage_1_link_1shapeimage_1_link_3
Knock, knock...May I still come to the party...Please?...
Tuesday, September 5, 2006
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