Sour dough discard crackers

 

Discard in the sour dough process seems like such a waste. These crackers are not only simple, they are delicious.

I use a variety of toppings...everything but the bagel seasoning, poppy seeds, sesame seeds, parmesan cheese grated

They take a while to cook, but its worth it.

Ingredients:

for 100 g of sour dough discard

add

1 tbs of melted butter (cool)

Oven to 150 degrees

Mix together discard and butter.

Spread over lined baking tray. 

Sprinkle with flaky salt.

Bake for 10 minutes , then use pizza cutter to cut into cracker sized pieces.

Continue baking until totally cooked through.

If the layer is too thick it might need to be flipped over to cook the underside.

Ciabatta bread

I could not believe how easy this was to make. I prefer 8 buns rather than a loaf but both work really well.

I like to use a container with a lid to my make my ciabatta dough, the same one i use for sour dough baking.

Ingredients:
325ml lukewarm water 
3g fast action yeast
50ml olive oil 
425g strong bread flour
10g salt 

-Water should be warm, once you’ve added all of the ingredients, use a spatula to bring it together the dough will be quite sticky.

-Allow the dough to rest for 30mins in a warm place. 

-After the 30 mins, dip your hands in water to avoid sticking and bring the dough together stretching and folding each corner of the dough.

-Rest for another 30mins

-Now repeat the stretching & folding again and allow to rest for another 30 mins.

-Make sure you flour the surfaces well, then use a floured bench scraper or a knife to cut the dough into rough rectangle shapes.

-Transfer to a baking tray and allow to rest for 15 mins in the tray then bake until golden brown and crispy! (Oven set to 200c fan)

Sour Dough - starter and bread.

 After a sour dough baking period a few years ago I decided to give it another try. This time I have watched lots of videos and read all about it. It's far more sucessful now I understand more. The next step is to get other whānau members making it from scratch!

It bakes best with a well fed starter which has had a few days of feeds...however a wee mistake using discard still made an ok loaf...it just ook longer to proof.

The best recipe for me comes from - The Real Sourdough Mom https://www.facebook.com/p/The-Real-Sourdough-Mom-61555299431119/

It suits me because I can fit it in with my lifestyle. I make it up to the cold ferment stage, then leave it overnight or for a few days on the fridge before baking.

Getting the oven to temp takes about an hour.

Sour Dough Feeding

Feed about every 12 hours. Mix water and starter before adding water. Use warm water if you want to speed up process.

30 g starter

125 g warm water

140g high grade flour

Sour Dough Bread Baking

Ingredients

250g active sourdough starter  (it should have at least doubled in size after last feed, the top should be slightly domed to show it is fully risen)

725g warm filtered water 

1000g high grade flour 

25g salt

Method

Prepare Dough: 

1. In a large mixing bowl, place 250g of active sourdough starter. 

2. Zero out the scale and add 725g of warm filtered water. Mix until the starter is dissolved. 

3. Add 1000g of flour and 25g of salt. Mix with hand until the dough is the same consistency and there are no pockets of dry flour remaining. Stretch and Folds: 

4. Cover the dough and let it rest for one hour. 

5. Perform stretch and folds every 30 minutes for four rounds. Bulk Fermentation: 

6. After the fourth round, cover the dough and let it bulk ferment on the counter for two hours until it increases by 50%-75% in size. (This step may take longer than 2 hours.) Shaping: 

7. Lightly flour the counter. Split the dough in half. 

8. Shape the dough into a large rectangle, then fold one side toward the middle, and repeat with the other side. Roll up your dough into a ball shape. Shape it into a round ball by pushing your dough out in a circular motion and pulling in about 3-4 times (tucking in the underside). Let rest for 20 minutes. 

9. Perform the final shaping by repeating the steps you did in the first shape. Place your dough upside down (seam side up) into a floured banneton. 

Proofing: 

10. Cover your dough with a kitchen towel or plastic wrap and cold-proof in the refrigerator for 2 hours or up to 48 hours. Baking: 

11. Preheat the oven to 500°F (260°C) with a Dutch oven inside. 

12. Once proofed, flip the dough onto parchment paper. Score the dough. 

13. Place the dough with parchment paper into the preheated Dutch oven. 

14. Bake covered at 500°F (260°C) for 35 minutes, then uncover and bake for another 10 minutes at 425°F (220°C). 

15. Remove from the oven and cool for at least one hour before slicing.

Gin and lime marmalade

 I was given a large bowl of limes...too many to drink in gin and tonics. I'm not a marmalade fan but the gin and lime combo attracted me. It's delicious...especially on homemade sour dough bread.

Ingredients (3)

• 1kg limes
• 1.3kg white sugar
• 1/2 cup gin

Method

Step 1

Cut and discard both ends of limes. Halve limes lengthways. Thinly slice lime into 2mm-thick slices. Transfer lime and any juice to a large saucepan. Add 1L water. Bring to the boil over medium-high heat. Drain. Return limes to pan. Add 1L water and bring to the boil over medium-high heat. Boil, covered, for 30 minutes or until rind is soft.

Step 2

Place sugar in a microwave-safe bowl. Microwave on HIGH (100%) for 2 minutes or until warm. Add to lime mixture. Stir over medium heat for 2 minutes or until sugar is dissolved. Bring to the boil. Boil for 15 minutes or until marmalade reaches setting point when tested . Discard scum. Add gin. Stir well to combine. Pour hot marmalade into hot sterilised jars  Seal. Cool

Ricotta Gnocchi

 I was looking for an alternative to potato gnocchi. I had a ricotta version on a recent trip to Melbourne and decided to find a recipe to try out.

It's really fast to make and cooks quickly too.

We prefer a smaller gnocchi. It needs to be cut and put on a well floured board. It can be frozen.

I've been pretty relaxed with the measurements and it still works.

Its great with a tomato based sauce. I've also made it with burnt butter with sage leaves and a garlicky mushroom sauce.

INGREDIENTS

• 1 1/2 cups (425g) whole milk ricotta cheese
• 3 egg yolks
• 1 cup high grade flour
• 3/4 cup  freshly grated Parmesan
• 3/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly-cracked black pepper

1. Prep the water: Bring a large stockpot of generously-salted water to a boil over high heat.

1. Drain the ricotta: While your water is heating, place 3-4 paper towels on a large plate and spread the ricotta on the paper towels in an even layer.  Place another layer of 3-4 paper towels on top of the ricotta.  Then press down gently to let the excess moisture soak into the paper towels, trying to soak up as much of the excess liquid as possible.  Transfer the ricotta to a large mixing bowl.  (If it sticks to the paper towels, just use a rubber spatula to scrape it off.)  The drained ricotta should now weigh about 12 ounces.


2. Mix your dough ingredients. Add the egg yolks to the ricotta and stir briefly to combine.  Add in the flour, Parmesan, salt and pepper, and stir until 
3. evenly combined.  Avoid over-mixing.  The dough will be a bit moist and maybe a bit sticky, but it should be holding together well.  If it feels too wet, just add in another few tablespoons of flour.
4. Roll out and cut the dough.  Shape the dough into a round disk with your hands, then transfer it to a lightly-floured cutting board and sprinkle the dough with lightly with flour.  Using a knife or a bench scraper, cut the dough into eight even pie wedges.  Using your hands, gently roll out each wedge out into an even log, approximately 3/4-inch wide.  Cut each log into individual bite-sized little gnocchi squares.  Lightly dust the gnocchi with flour once more and give them a quick toss so that they are all lightly coated with flour.  (This will help prevent them from sticking together.)
5. Boil the gnocchi. Carefully transfer the gnocchi to the boiling water to cook.  Then once they float — usually after 30 seconds or so — drain the gnocchi.
6. Serve.  Serve immediately, tossed with your favorite sauce and whatever other ingredients sound good!

Sticky 5-Spice Roast Chicken

 

This is simple and really yummy. The skin on bone in thighs are a must.

This is another from Marion Gatsby https://www.marionskitchen.com/

Ingredients

3 tbsp hoisin

2 tbsp honey

1 tbsp oyster sauce

1 tbsp dark soy sauce

3 garlic cloves, chopped

2 tsp Homemade Chinese Five Spice 

4 skin-on, bone-in chicken thighs (or any skin-on chicken pieces)

Steps

• 

  In a large bowl, combine the hoisin, honey, oyster sauce, dark soy sauce, garlic and Chinese five spice. Add the chicken pieces and mix until well coated. Marinate for at least 10 minutes, although 1 hour is best (or overnight if you have the time).

• 

  Preheat oven to 180°C (fan-forced).

• 

  Line a large baking tray or roasting dish with foil. Top with a baking rack and place the chicken pieces onto the rack (make sure you keep the marinade for later). Pour a little water on to the foil to help prevent any marinade dripping on to the foil and burning.

• 

  Transfer tray to the oven and cook, removing every 10 minutes and basting with the reserved marinade, for around 30 minutes or so until the chicken is cooked through.