Thursday, August 02, 2012

Blue Ribbon Sourdough Rye and Cherry Quick Bread



I nearly fell over when I saw the ribbon on my bread. I'm not sure what I'll do with my $1.25 prize winnings, but the ribbon is going up on my fridge. Danny's quick bread was given a participation ribbon and .75 cents, which he already has plans for. I think he gets another .75 for the Medusa head, so he's pretty flush with cash at the moment.

The Saunders County Fair runs through Sunday.

You Will Need:

Sponge:
1 cup fed sourdough starter at room temperature
2 cups water
2 cups bread flour

Mix together, cover and let rise 12 hours.

Bread:

All of sponge
1/2 cup water
1 tablespoon malted barley syrup
1 tablespoon kosher salt
1 cup dark rye flour
2 cups light rye flour
2 tablespoons vital wheat gluten
1 tablespoon caraway seeds
2-4 cups bread flour

Glaze:
3 tablespoons cornstarch dissolved in 1/4 cup water
1 cup boiling water

Bring water to a boil, stir in cornstarch mixture and cook until thickened. remove to a bowl, cover and use to lightly brush loaves when removed from oven.

Knead well, until you have a stiff, somewhat sticky dough. Cover in greased bowl and let rise 1 hour. Fold dough in thirds like a letter. Rise another hour, repeat folds. Let rise again until doubled.

Deflate dough and shape. Place on a cornmeal dusted pan. Cover with a damp (not wet) cloth and let rise in a warm spot (atop the oven is fine) until nearly doubled. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 375 with an old pan in the bottom shelf.

Before loading bread in oven, toss a handful of ice cubes in pan to create steam. Score bread and bake 20 minutes. Remove pan, and rotate bread pan. Bake another 25-30 minutes or until brown, and reading an internal temperature of around 195 degrees F. Loaf should sound hollow when rapped with knuckles.

Remove to a rack, glaze while still hot, and cool completely before slicing.

Cherry Coconut Quick Bread:

Grease and flour a loaf pan, or two 8 inch layers. Preheat oven to 350 degrees f.

2 cups cake flour
1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup vegetable shortening
1/2 cup whole milk
1 1/2 teaspoons coconut extract
1/2 cup egg whites (about 4 large)
1/2 cup shredded coconut
1 cup finely chopped dried cherries
3 tablespoons flour to toss with dried fruit

Sift together the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. With a mixer, beat in shortening until it looks like damp sand. Combine milk and extract. Add to mixture and beat 2 minutes on medium. Add egg whites and beat 2 minutes longer. Fol in fruit tossed with flour. Pour into pan (s) and bake 30-35 minutes for layers, about 1 hour for loaf. Test for doneness with a toothpick, etc. Cool 10 minutes in pan on rack, then remove to rack and cool completely. This cake is best second day. Store tightly wrapped in wax paper and cling film.

4 comments:

Raymond said...

Wow! Congrats! (And what I'd give to have a blue ribbon that says "Wahoo Nebraska." That's priceless. You must take a better photo of just it.)

Goody said...

We have to leave our items there until Sunday evening when the fair ends, but I'll try to get a better picture of the ribbon.

I know, "Waaaahooooo!" I've been here so long I forget how funny that sounds to the rest of the world. Chief Wahoo, real person he was.

Raymond said...

And is Danny gloating that he has more in total prize money than mom?

Off topic: I just made what I must say is one of my tastiest breakfasts (or lunch, I guess, at this hour): fried red potatoes + fried plantain + roasted poblano chile + a mild green curry sauce (store-bought - on the discount rack, btw). It all just comes together very nicely.

Goody said...

That does sound good-I wish we could get fresh poblanos around these parts.Guess I cold try growing them. Green curry is mostly cilantro and lemongrass, so yeah, now that you've put it together it makes total sense-I just never would have thought of it.

Danny has his eyes on my money for his (I kid you not) "campaign fund." He has close to a hundred bucks in it so far (Mostly change and small bills he keeps in a large wicker basket) which he is saving for, well, his campaign. He plans to run for local office the day he turns 18. He's already decided everyone needs to be paying a lot more tax than we are. Silly idealistic kids that want good roads, firetrucks, and stuff like that. Anyway, that's where his money has been going for well over a year, and he really won't spend it.