Traveling

I'm back from traveling. Actually, I was back on Sunday, but I had a marathon day yesterday making lasagna for 120 people.

I went to my parents' house in Abilene, Kansas for a few days, left Rob and the dog to fend for themselves. You'd have thought I'd been gone for ten years when I returned.

I didn't do much cooking while I was at my parents. Lots of bread that's for sure. I made challah and multigrain bread. I've been looking and I've not put the recipe for either of these on the blog yet, so here goes.

Challah. (This recipe is adapted from Shabbat Shalom, a great Jewish Cookbook.)

4-1/2 tsps of yeast,
1 cup of hot water,
1/4 cup of canola oil
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup honey
2 whole eggs
3 egg yolks
4.5 to 5 cups of flour.

Place the yeast and hot water and 1 tsp of the sugar into a large bowl, mix, and let the yeast bloom. Then add the canola oil, sugar, honey, and the eggs. Mix completely and then add the flour a cup at a time. When the dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl take it out and knead it.

Let the dough rise in an oiled bowl for about and hour or until it's double. Divide the dough into two equal halves, and then divide each of these halves into thirds. Make ropes with these thirds and braid the bread. You will have two loaves. Make an egg was and brush both loaves, sprinkle with sesame seeds and then let the dough rise again for about an hour. Bake at 400 for 20 to 25 minutes.


Multigrain bread,

2 cups water
3/4 cup multigrain cereal
1/3 cup molasses
1 tbs butter
2 tsps salt

1 tbs yeast
1/2 cup hot water
2 tsp. sugar

4 - 4.5 cups of flour.

Bring water to a boil and add the cereal, cook until the cereal has absorbed most of the water. Take off the heat and add the molasses, butter and salt.

In a bowl, add the yeast, 1/2 cup of hot water and the sugar, let the yeast bloom and then add the cooled cereal mixture. Finally add the flour one cup at a time, until it is all incorporated. This will be a really sticky dough.

Put it in an oiled bowl and let it rise for at least an hour until doubled in size. Take it out, punch it down, knead it, and then divide in half. Create two loaf shapes, snip two slits in the top for decoration and let rise again for 30 minutes. Bake at 400 for 25 minutes.

I'll get into lasagna tomorrow.