Valentine’s Day Dinner Run Through: The Bread

Bad news. The poached fish fell flat. Maybe not exactly flat. It looked good and tasted okay but fell short of greatness. Since many restaurants provide okay taste lacking greatness, why bother cooking at home? We cook to greatness, not less.

Fortunately, the bread and potatoes wowed the diners.

Between the decline of fisheries and the evolution of factory food, finding good, fresh fish gets more and more difficult. Especially around the Great Lakes. The only fish available on the weekend had been frozen on its way to market. Poaching frozen fish was a bad idea. it turned out too wet, if you can imagine what I mean. Baked chicken starts to look like a better choice for Valentine’s Day. We’ll see what the market has on hand this week.

The bread, as noted, looked fantastic, tasted great, took no time at all, and compensated for the mediocre fish. The recipe follows.

First, pre-heat the oven to 375 to 380 degrees. Since ovens vary, you’ll have to figure out the perfect temperature on your own. You might want to wait until the oven is halfway to the desired temperature before putting together the bread as the dough comes together so fast that you will otherwise have to wait after you complete the dough.

Second, grease a cookie sheet or pizza pan. The bread bakes on a flat surface.

Third, prepare a breadboard with a light dusting of flour.

Gather your ingredients. Details on the ingredients used for the test loaf follow the recipe:

2 cups flour
3/4 tsp salt
½ tsp baking soda
2 tbsp vinegar topped to one cup with milk

Sift and mix the dry ingredients. Add the milk/vinegar solution. Mix it together with an ordinary fork until it forms a dough. Turn it onto the breadboard and knead it for about 2 minutes. Form it into a disk about 1 ½ inch thick and put it on the cookie sheet (or pizza pan). Cut a ¼ inch deep X across the top of the disk.

Bake the bread in the 380 degree oven for 30 minutes. When the bread is done, it should be golden brown and the X on the top should be opened out.

I used traditionally grown Prairie Gold flour. The wheat has a great aroma and flavor that makes this bread extremely tasty.

You could use buttermilk instead of the vinegar and milk combination. I used vinegar and milk because buttermilk is something most people do not keep on hand. To make the combo, I measured about 2 tablespoons of vinegar into the 1 cup measuring cup, then I filled the measuring cup with milk.

The vinegar gives the dough acidity that is needed to react with the baking soda leavening. Without the acid in the vinegar, the bread would not rise. Since vinegar was used, I selected one with a nice, raspberry flavor. This gave the bread a delightful but subtle fruity taste. You could use balsamic vinegar for a slightly tart bread, or any flavor you desire. Whatever vinegar you use, the bread will take some of the flavor and acquire a secret-ingredient nature.

After the bread comes out of the oven, the potatoes go in for 30 minutes(recipe in the next post). By time the potatoes finish, the bread cools to a perfect temperature to cut and butter. Delicious warm bread and butter can make anyone’s night, and this one could not be easier.

copyright 2006 Chromia Poetics