Sesame seeds
Cornstarch wash for top

Mix and incubate at room temperature for 2 hours.

[optional] rest in fridge for up to two weeks

Shape into loaves and proof at room temperature for ~90 minutes

Bake at 450F for ~30 minutes or until internal temperature of the loaf is 203F

2 t salt

Fit metal blade in food processor; add 4 cups of the flour.  Cut butter in 1/2-inch squares and distribute over flour.  Process, using on-off bursts, until butter particles range from size of peas to dried beans.  Transfer to large mixing bowl.

Back in food processor, process yeast and water with 2 on-off bursts.  Add milk, salt, sugar, egg, the remaining 1 cup flour, and melted butter, and process until batter is smooth.  Pour over butter/flour mixture.  With spatula, carefully turn mixture over just until all flour is moistened.  Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 4 hours, or up to 4 days.

Turn dough onto a floured board, press into a ball, and knead briefly to release air.  Divide dough into 4 equal parts.  Shape 1 part at a time, leaving remaining dough in refrigerator.

On floured board, roll 1 portion of dough into a 14-inch circle.  With sharp knife, cut into 8 equal wedges.  Loosely roll each wedge from wide end toward point.  Curve into a crescent and place, point-side down, on an ungreased baking sheet.  Repeat until all croissants are shaped and placed on baking sheet 1 1/2 apart all around.  Cover lightly and let rise at room temperature.  Do not speed rising by placing in warm spot.

When almost doubled (about 2 hours), brush with egg-water mixture. Bake at 325 for 35 minutes, or until lightly browned.

1/4 cup chopped pecans

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1 cup flour

1 cup whole-wheat flour

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 cup canola oil

2 eggs

1 cup unsweetened applesauce

1 tsp vanilla

3/4 cup buttermilk

1 apple, cored, peeled, and cut into 1/4-inch pieces

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Prepare 12-cup muffin pan.

In a small bowl, mix together 2 T of the brown sugar, pecans and cinnamon. Set aside.

In medium bowl, whisk together both flours, the baking soda, and salt.

In a large bowl, whisk the remaining 3/4 cup brown sugar and the oil until combined. Add the eggs, one at a time, whisking well after each addition. Whisk in the applesauce and vanilla. Stir in the flour mixture in two batches, alternating with the buttermilk, just until combined. Gently stir in the apple pieces.

Pour the batter into the muffin pan, filling each about 2/3 full, and sprinkle evenly with the pecan mixture. Bake 20 minutes.

Let cool on wire rack for 15 minutes and then remove from pan.

• 1 1/4 cups oats
• 1 cup boiling water
• 1/4 cup warm water
• 2 tsp dried yeast
• 1 1/2 cups buttermilk
• 1/2 cup canola oil
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 2 cups whole wheat flour
• 2 1/2 cups flour
• 2 tsp kosher salt

Place oats in a medium bowl and cover with 1 cup boiling water. Mix with a spoon to moisten all the oats. Let sit, uncovered, for 10 minutes, stirring frequently, while water is absorbed.

Place 1/4 cup warm water in a bowl of stand mixer and sprinkle yeast on top. Mix with a whisk to dissolve yeast. Let rest for 5 minutes. Add soaked oats, buttermilk, canola oil, brown sugar, whole wheat flour, flour and kosher salt. Using the hook attachment, mix on low speed for 1-2 minutes to combine ingredients. Increase speed to medium and mix for about 10 minutes. Dough will be wet at first, but will eventually form a ball.

Place dough in an oiled, medium bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Proof in a warm room for about 1 hour. Dough will almost double.

Pull dough from bowl onto a floured surface and flatten with your hands, releasing excess air bubbles. Form dough into equal rectangles and position it so that the long side is facing you. Fold the 2 short ends onto the top so they meet in the middle. Starting with the closest end, roll the dough away from you into a log. Place in oiled bread pans, seam side down. Using your hands, push down on dough to make sure it extends to all corners of the pan. Cover with plastic wrap and let proof for 35-40 minutes. Loaves will rise slightly above the top of the pan.

For 8″ loaves – preheat oven to 350 degrees and bake for 40 minutes, until internal temperature is 200 degrees.

For 9″ loaf – preheat oven to 385 degrees and bake about an hour.

3 cups all-purpose or bread flour, more for dusting
¼ teaspoon instant yeast (such as SAF brand)
1½ teaspoons salt
1½ cups water
1. In a large bowl, mix the flour with the yeast and salt. Add the water and stir until blended (the dough will be very sticky). Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let rest for 12 to 24 hours in a warm spot, about 70°.
2. Place the dough on a lightly floured work surface and lightly sprinkle the top with flour. Fold the dough over on itself once or twice, cover loosely with plastic wrap and let rest for 15 minutes.
3. Divide the dough into 4 pieces and shape each piece into a ball. Generously sprinkle a clean cotton towel with flour and cover the dough balls with it. Let the dough rise for 2 hours.
4. Stretch or toss the dough into the desired shape, cover with toppings and bake on top of a very hot pizza stone.

1/2 cup packed brown sugar

3/4 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp nutmeg

1 tsp vanilla

1 1/2 cup mashed ripe banana (about 3 bananas)

1/4 cup honey

2 eggs

2 cups whole wheat flour

2/3 cup chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line or grease a 12-cup muffin tin.

Beat together the butter, sugar, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg and vanilla in a medium bowl until smooth. Add the banana, honey and eggs, beating until smooth. Add the flour and chocolate chips, stiring until smooth. Spoon into the muffin tin and bake for 23-28 minutes. Remove from tin and cool.

To vary the flavor of the batter, add three-quarters of a teaspoon of ground cinnamon or one-half teaspoon of ground nutmeg with the dry ingredients, or substitute almond extract for the vanilla.

Ingredients

Instructions

1. Heat 10- to 12-inch skillet (preferably cast-iron) over medium heat for 5 minutes. Meanwhile, beat egg lightly in shallow pan or pie plate; whisk in butter, then milk and vanilla, and finally sugar, flour, and salt, continuing to whisk until smooth. Soak bread without oversaturating, about 40 seconds per side for challah or 30 seconds per side for sandwich bread. Pick up bread and allow excess batter to drip off; repeat with remaining slices.
2. Swirl 1 tablespoon butter in hot skillet. Transfer prepared bread to skillet; cook until golden brown, about 1 minute 45 seconds on first side and 1 minute on the second. Serve immediately. Continue, adding 1 tablespoon butter to skillet for each new batch.

Serve the pizza by itself as a snack or with soup or salad for a light meal. Once the dough has been placed in the oiled bowl, it can be transferred to the refrigerator and kept for up to 24 hours. Bring the dough to room temperature, 2 to 2 1/2 hours, before proceeding with step 4. When kneading the dough on high speed, the mixer tends to wobble and move on the counter. Place a towel or shelf liner under the mixer and watch it at all times during mixing. Handle the dough with slightly oiled hands. Resist flouring your fingers or the dough might stick. This recipe was developed using an 18- by 13-inch baking sheet. Smaller baking sheets can be used, but because the pizza will be thicker, baking times will be longer. If not using a pizza stone, increase the oven temperature to 500 degrees and set the rack to the lowest position; the cooking time might increase by 3 to 5 minutes and the exterior won’t be as crisp.

Ingredients

Instructions

1. Place towel or shelf liner beneath stand mixer to prevent wobbling. Mix flour, water, and table salt in bowl of stand mixer fitted with dough hook on low speed until no patches of dry flour remain, 3 to 4 minutes, occasionally scraping sides and bottom of bowl. Turn off mixer and let dough rest 20 minutes.
2. Sprinkle yeast and sugar over dough. Knead on low speed until fully combined, 1 to 2 minutes, occasionally scraping sides and bottom of bowl. Increase mixer speed to high and knead until dough is glossy, smooth, and pulls away from sides of bowl, 6 to 10 minutes. (Dough will only pull away from sides while mixer is on. When mixer is off, dough will fall back to sides.)
3. Using fingers, coat large bowl with 1 tablespoon oil, rubbing excess oil from fingers onto blade of rubber spatula. Using oiled spatula, transfer dough to bowl and pour 1 tablespoon oil over top. Flip dough over once so it is well coated with oil; cover tightly with plastic wrap. Let dough rise at room temperature until nearly tripled in volume and large bubbles have formed, 2 to 2 1/2 hours.
4. One hour before baking pizza, adjust oven rack to middle position, place pizza stone on rack, and heat oven to 450 degrees.
5. Coat rimmed baking sheet with 2 tablespoons oil. Using rubber spatula, turn dough out onto baking sheet along with any oil in bowl. Using fingertips, press dough out toward edges of pan, taking care not to tear it. (Dough will not fit snugly into corners. If dough resists stretching, let it relax for 5 to 10 minutes before trying to stretch again.) Let dough rest in pan until slightly bubbly, 5 to 10 minutes. Using dinner fork, poke surface of dough 30 to 40 times and sprinkle with kosher salt.
6. OPTIONAL: Add toppings, including tomato sauce, etc.
7. Bake until golden brown, 20 to 30 minutes, sprinkling rosemary over top and rotating baking sheet halfway through baking. Using metal spatula, transfer pizza to cutting board. Brush dough lightly with remaining tablespoon oil. Slice and serve immediately.

Materials:

• Kitchen-Aid or equivalent stand mixer (optional)
• Large bowl
• One or more of the following baking devices
  • Baking sheet or stone and parchment paper
  • Covered pot/bowl, a la the NY Times bread recipe
  • Two 4”x8” square loaf pans

Reagents:

• sourdough culture
• non-chlorinated water (see note above)
• white bread flour (not all-purpose, and I have found that better flour generally makes better bread)
• salt
• oil (optional, for greasing bowls, pans)
• OPTIONAL: wheat flour, wheat germ, bran, rosemary, caraway, or other adjuncts to make fancier bread

Ideally, the ratio of flour to water should about 0.62 (by weight). I got this ratio from the Boudin sourdough factory tour in San Francisco, but after several years of making sourdough that ratio seems to be about what it takes to get a nice firm dough and good crumb after baking. However, one should adjust/experiment with it to fit their taste and success, and the water:flour ratio isn’t the only variable. The amounts for a typical recipe are listed below. In a Kitchenaid Professional 600 (6qt bowl), you can make 1.5X this (and you only need 1-2 cups of starter no matter the size of the recipe). 2 cups of water will make two large loaves, either hand-shaped or in 4×8 loaf pans. You can also make four smaller hand-shaped loaves.

For a typical recipe I use:

• 1-2 cups of sourdough culture (it should be active, ie, immediately after doing Protocol 1)
• 2 cups non-chlorinated water
• white bread flour (~1.6 lbs, or 4-5 cups)
• 1 teaspoon salt

Making sourdough is typically a 24 to 36 hour process. The basic outline is: 1) rejuvenate the culture, 2) make the sponge, 3) make the bread.  Here is the protocol:

Sometime on Day 1 (morning, or early afternoon): Rejuvenate the culture

1. Take the culture out of the refrigerator and mix it up if it has a layer of liquid on the top. Dump half of it out into the garbage or sink, leaving 1-2 cups left. Add approximately equal weights of flour and non-chlorinated water and mix. Cover and leave at room temperature until the evening. NOTE: If you have rejuvenated the culture recently (eg, in the past 1-2 weeks), this step can be skipped and you can go directly to the next step.

Evening of Day 1: Make the sponge

1. Dump about half of the culture (1-2 cups) into the mixer bowl. Add 2 cups water and stir in enough flour to make a thick batter. Cover with plastic wrap and leave in a reasonably warm place.
2. Replenish the culture by adding approximately equal weights flour and water and leaving covered at room temperature overnight.

Morning of Day 2: Make the bread

1. Put the culture back in the fridge.
2. Add 1 teaspoon of salt to the sponge, as well as whatever optional goodies (I usually add at least some wheat germ, ~1/2 cup, to add some vitamins and stuff).
3. Add some of the flour with the mixer on medium speed and continue adding until the dough is stiff and pulls away from the bowl easily. See the note above for discussion of the total water:flour ratio (including the flour used to make the sponge. If your mixer is small, you may need to finish kneading on a floured surface.
4. Once the desired amount of flour has been added and kneading has been done, put the dough in an oiled or floured bowl, cover well with plastic wrap, and incubate at room temperature for 2-4 hours or until the dough as almost doubled.
5. Once dough has doubled, dump it out on a floured surface and knead it for about 5 minutes to get all the air out.
6. Cut it into loaves (2 large ones or 4 small ones). These can either be hand-shaped or in loaf pans. If making hand-shaped loaves, put them on parchment paper.
7. Cover the loaves well (dust them with flour or cover in oiled plastic wrap), and incubate until the loaves have doubled, 3-4 hours.
8. Preheat oven to 500F.
9. When loaves have doubled, slash the tops with a sharp knife.
10. Put the loaves in the oven for 10 minutes, then reduce temperature to 425 for another 20 minutes. (One can also bake for 40 minutes at 425F, although I think the initial high heat gives a better crust). Checking the loaves for doneness can be accomplished by taking the internal temperature of a loaf; if it’s more than 200F its done.
11. Cool loaves on a cooling rack. Bread in pans should be dumped out onto a cooling rack immediately, otherwise the crust will get soggy.
12. Loaves should be kept in a plastic bag (put in AFTER completely cooled), and can frozen for at least several weeks.

Time: About 1½ hours plus 14 to 20 hours rising

3 cups all-purpose or bread flour, more for dusting

¼ teaspoon instant yeast

1¼ teaspoons salt Cornmeal or wheat bran as needed.

1 5/8 cups water

1. In a large bowl combine flour, yeast and salt. 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, at warm room temperature, about 70 degrees.

2. 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.

3. Using just enough flour to keep dough from sticking to work surface or to your fingers, gently and quickly shape dough into a ball. Generously coat a cotton towel (not terry cloth) with flour, wheat bran or cornmeal; put dough seam side down on towel and dust with more flour, bran or cornmeal. Cover with another cotton towel 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.

4. At least a half-hour before dough is ready, heat oven to 450 degrees. Put a 6- to 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 towel and turn dough over into pot, seam side up; it may look like a mess, but that is O.K. Shake pan once or twice if dough is unevenly distributed; it will straighten out as it bakes. Cover with lid and bake 30 minutes, then remove lid and bake another 15 to 30 minutes, until loaf is beautifully browned. Cool on a rack.

Yield: One 1 ½-pound loaf.