Italian Bread (Soft loaf)

At our house, we like a loaf of soft Italian bread for different kinds of sandwiches, (especially when we have Italian beef sandwiches). It doesn't take long to make a loaf, it's so easy, and it takes so few ingredients. Let me show you how I make it.

You will need:
1 packet of yeast
1 tsp sugar
1 cup warm water (110 - 115 degrees)
2 1/2 cups bread flour, (or all purpose)
2 Tabs olive oil
1 tsp salt

 In a large bowl combine yeast, sugar, and warm water.  Let it sit for about 5 minutes, until it blooms, (becomes foamy).

 Add to the yeast olive oil, and salt, stir in.

Add in the flour, stirring in until completely incorporated.

I like to use bread flour, but you can use all purpose flour.

The dough will come together and become shaggy, (it will pull away from the sides of the bowl).  It will be slightly damp.   Turn out onto a lightly floured work surface and knead the dough for about 10 minutes.

You can add some more flour to the dough as you knead it so that it forms a smooth ball.  You will know your dough is ready when you press a finger into the dough and it springs back.  Place the dough in a lightly greased bowl, cover and allow it to rise until it doubles in size, (about 1 hour), in a warm place.

After 1 hour, this is what your dough will look like.

Place your dough on a work surface, and gently shape it into a 12-inch long batard, (torpedo).

 GENTLY transfer the dough to a parchment lined, (or lightly greased), baking sheet.  Cover the dough, and allow it to rise for 20 minutes.

Turn on the oven to 400 degrees, and allow the oven to preheat, and get nice and hot.

After 20 minutes, use a serrated knife and cut 3 or 4 quarter inch slits in the surface of the dough, (this allows the bread to bake evenly throughout).  Bake the dough for 20 minutes, checking it during the last couple of minutes.

You want your dough to be nice and brown.  I test my bread with an instant-read thermometer to make sure it reads 200 degrees internally when I pull it out of the oven.

Note:  if you would like a crispy exterior, you can spray the exterior of the bread lightly with water after it has been baking in the oven.

Allow the bread to cool completely before slicing.

Notice the nice texture of the bread.  And it tastes wonderful.

Sometimes when I want to add additional flavor inside the bread, I will add 1 teaspoon of Italian Seasoning to the dough when I add the flour.  It gives the bread another level of flavor.

This bread stores very well.

Tonight we are having Italian roast beef sandwiches.  This is just the bread for these sandwiches.  It soaks up the juices from the meat and carries the heartiness of the meat and peppers.

Try this bread at your house.

Enjoy!

Granny's Sunday Meat Sauce and Noodles

When you come from a large family, (there were 7 children in our family, and 13 children in my mom's family), the meals need to be hearty enough to fill everyone and easy to adjust the quantity to stretch the portions to go around, yet still be tasty.  Grandma's Sunday meat sauce and noodles was a tasty meal that was served many times.  And it was easy to adjust the portions down for a small family or up for large families.  Let me show you how easy it is to make.  These measurements will feed 4 adults easily.

 You will need:
1 pound of ground beef
2 carrots, chopped
1 celery rib, chopped
1/2 medium onion, chopped
2 large garlic cloves, chopped
3 ounces of mushrooms, slices
1 Tab. olive oil, (if you are using lean meat)
1/2 cup whole milk
Kosher salt / black ground pepper
ground nutmeg / oregano / dried thyme
2 Tabs tomato paste
28 ounces of tomatoes
choice of pasta

 In a dutch oven, over medium heat, cook the ground beef.  Note:  if you are using a lean beef, (i.e.: 90/10, then add 1 Tab of olive oil to the pan).  Sprinkle Kosher salt and pepper over the ground beef.  Cook until no longer pink.

Drain off any fat from the beef.  Then, add 1 Tab of olive oil.
Note: if you had to add olive oil, don't worry about draining off the oil
Add the chopped carrots, onions, celery, mushrooms, and garlic.  Sprinkle with salt and pepper.   Cook for approximately 10 or 15 minutes until the carrots and onions have softened.

Add in the oregano, thyme, and nutmeg, and continue cooking for another 5 minutes.

Make a well in the center and add the tomato paste.  Cook and stir in the tomato paste for 5 minutes, (this removes the canned flavor from the tomato paste).

Drain any excess liquid from the tomatoes and using your hands, squish the tomatoes up, then add to the meat mixture.  Stir in the tomatoes.
Note:  I am using tomatoes from my garden, but if you are using canned tomatoes from the store you will want to add 1 Tabs of sugar at this point.

Cover the dutch over and continue cooking over medium-low heat for 1 hour, (making sure to stir every 15 minutes).

 You will notice the sauce had cooked down and is getting thicker.

After 1 hour, stir in the milk.  Continue cooking with the cover off the dutch oven for another 30 minutes.  Meanwhile start a large pot of salted water boiling for the noodles.  Decide what kind of noodle to cook.  You can use spaghetti, wide egg noodles, bow ties, penne, etc.  Tonight, I am using spaghetti.

Taste the meat sauce, for seasoning.  Does it need more salt or pepper.  Maybe a little more sugar?

 Pour the sauce into the serving family sized bowl, (or even leave it in the dutch oven).  Add the cooked noodles, and stir the noodles into the sauce.

Now your meat sauce and noodles are ready to serve.  Just add some grated cheese on top.

A slice of homemade bread, some grated cheese, and dinner is ready.

So yummy, and very filling.

You can make up a double batch of the sauce, and freeze half of it for use later - a real time saver.  And the leftovers for lunch taste even better.

Fresh Basil Pesto and Pesto Chicken

In my last post, I told about drying herbs to use in mixes, and I showed you my Greek seasoning blend mix and an easy Greek salad dressing.  In addition to drying herbs, I also use my fresh herbs to make pesto.  I grow lots of basil and parsley, so I tend to make basil pesto and parsley pesto several times a month during the summer.  On the plus side, you can put the excess in a zip lock bag and freeze it to use during the winter months.  Let me show you my easy basil pesto and my easy Pesto Chicken recipe.

You will need:
2 cups of fresh basil leaves
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
3 cloves garlic
1/4 cup chopped onion
1/4 cup walnuts
1/6 teaspoon salt

 First wash and dry the basil and remove the leaves from the stems.  You will need 2 cups of basil leaves

 Chop 3 garlic cloves, 1/4 cup of onion, and grate 1/4 cup of Parmesan cheese.

 Into a food processor add 1/4 cup walnuts, grated cheese, chopped garlic, chopped onion, 1/6 teaspoon salt, (I like to use sea salt, but you can use whatever you have on hand), and 1/4 cup olive oil.

Process until a smooth paste.

Add in the basil leaves.

Process until a smooth paste, and you have your pesto.

Note:  some people like to use pinenuts, instead of walnuts, (but at this time of year they are $15.99 a pound, so I used walnuts and will wait till the pinenuts go on sale).

You can now use your pesto, or store it in the refrigerator for several days, or freeze it for the winter.

Let's make a delicious, and easy Pesto Chicken.
You will need:
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
basil pesto
fresh tomatoes (I just picked these)
garlic powder
onion powder
ground black pepper
grated Italian blend cheese (or mozzarella)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees

Spray a baking sheet, with baking spray, (I lined my pan with foil for easier clean up, but it's not necessary).
Sprinkle both sides of the chicken breasts with garlic powder, onion powder, and black pepper, then lay the chicken in the pan.

You will notice we didn't salt the chicken, because there's salt in the pesto.

Spread about 1/2 tablespoon of pesto on top of each piece of chicken.

Slice the tomatoes into 1/4 inch slices and lay the slices on top of the pesto.

Sprinkle the shredded cheese on top of the tomatoes.

Bake for about 30 minutes, until the chicken is cooked.

It's been 30 minutes, and oh man does this smell delicious!  And the melted cheese on the tomatoes and pesto is so inviting!  It's ready to serve.

And the chicken inside is so juicy.  Serve this with a green tossed salad and a side of vegetables and you family will ask for seconds.  And it was so easy!

Enjoy!

Eggplant and Meatballs with Pasta

Recently a local grocer had a great sale on eggplants, so I bought several.  After making Eggplant Parmesan and eggplant sandwiches I decided to make eggplant and meatballs with pasta.  This is an old Italian casserole dish that uses few ingredients, yet feeds many.   And the best part, you cook it on the stove top in your dutch oven pan.

You will need:
1 medium eggplant
1/4 cup olive oil
1 28 oz can San Marzano tomatoes
3 cloves garlic
1/4 cup loosely packed fresh basil leaves
1/4 cup Parmigiana-Reggiano cheese
10 - 12 meatballs (1/2 inch sized)
salt and pepper
spaghetti

I always have meatballs pre-made and pre-cooked in my freezer.  This cuts down on time when I am making lots of dishes.  If the meatball is not the star of the dish, I just use a simple meatball made of ground meat, chopped onion, bread crumbs, beaten egg, kosher salt and fresh parsley.  Roll out the meatballs, cook them in the oven, then freeze them and you always have them on hand and ready to go, (just thaw and use in soups, casseroles, etc).

 Peel and chop the eggplant, (about 1/2 inch cubes).

 Peel and slice the garlic cloves.

In a dutch oven, preheat over medium heat, the olive oil.  When the oil is hot, add the garlic.

Once the garlic starts to sizzle, add the eggplant, (about 30 seconds).

The eggplant will fill up most of the pan, but don't worry, it will cook down.

Be sure to salt and pepper the eggplant, so it is well seasoned.  Stir every so often, so the eggplant doesn't stick and burn.  Cook for about 10 minutes.

See how the eggplant has cooked down, and it has a slightly brown coloring.

Now add your tomatoes.

Note:  San Marzano tomatoes are the best to use, (they are naturally sweet), but if you don't have these, you can use regular tomatoes and add 1 teaspoon of sugar.

Break up the tomatoes.  I just use my hands, (the best kitchen tools you have!).

Now add about 1/4 cup of water to the tomato can, swish it around to get all the little bits out and add it to the pot.

Give everything a good stir and simmer on medium low for about 10 to 15 minutes, until the eggplant is softened, (uncovered).














While the tomatoes and eggplant are cooking, start your water boiling and cook 1/2 pound of spaghetti.   If you want, you can use angel hair pasta, tagliatelle, penne', any kind of pasta that will hold the sauce well.

 After about 10 minutes, add the meatballs to the sauce.  Cook for another 10 minutes to thoroughly heat the meatballs.

 While the meatballs are cooking, grate your cheese, and chop your basil.

 Once the spaghetti is al dente', drain and add to the eggplant and tomatoes and stir in.  Give it a taste for seasoning, does it need a little more salt or pepper?

Now plate up, Sprinkle with cheese and basil and eat up !!

Tonight I am serving my eggplant and meatballs with fresh saute' green beans, a green salad, and homemade bread.

This casserole tastes even better tomorrow when the flavors all marry together.

Enjoy  !!