Posts Tagged ‘quick bread’

Episode 150 – “Just Barley”

Posted: December 30, 2021 in Season 10
Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
0

It’s super cold and snowy here and I’ve really been wanting to get a blog post done. I honestly wrote some of this post a few weeks ago, but then I had some health issues that prevented me from finishing it at the time. I won’t go into detail, but 2021 has not been my favorite year. Here’s hoping that 2022 is much better!

We recently had the opportunity to see Alton’s live show, which was super fun. We had previously seen him two other times and both times we were pleasantly surprised by the hilarity of the live shows; that’s not to say that Alton hasn’t been funny on Good Eats, but just that the humor in his live shows has been kicked up a couple notches. I was curious to see how this show would compare to his others, especially since he has publicly stated that this will be his last touring show; I would highly recommend that you catch his show if you so happen to have the chance.

After completing the recipes from this episode, I think it was safe to say that we met our dietary fiber recommendations for that week, as I cranked out all five recipes from Alton’s barley episode in the same week. I enjoy the episodes, such as this one, in which Alton truly demonstrates a multitude of uses for a particular ingredient. And, to make it more fun, barley is an ingredient that I do not regularly utilize.

Baked Barley

This recipe is sort of the stepping stone of the episode, as it is a basic recipe for baked barley that could then be used in myriad ways. Ideally, you will want to use hulled barley for this recipe, but I had to settle for pearled barley. What is the difference? Well, pearled barley has been polished to remove both its husk and bran layers, while hulled barley has only had the outermost husk removed. Hulled barley is more nutritious and takes longer to cook. Still, this recipe seemed to work just fine for the pearled barley I used.

To make baked barley, put 1 C barley in a 1.5 quart lidded casserole dish, along with 1 t Kosher salt, 1 T butter, and 2 C of boiling water. Stir, cover the dish tightly with foil, and place the lid on top of the foil. Bake the barley at 375 for an hour.

Butter, barley, and Kosher salt.
Barley, Kosher salt, butter, and boiling water in a casserole dish.
Barley in foil-topped casserole dish to bake for one hour.

Immediately upon removing the barley from the oven, remove the lid/foil and gently fluff the barley with chopsticks or a large fork.

Barley before and after fluffing.

You can serve the barley immediately or you can refrigerate it for later use. Or, you can use it to make a…

Barley Salad

For this salad, you’ll need to prepare a batch of Alton’s baked barley, as written above. To make the dressing, whisk 2 T extra virgin olive oil with 3 T fresh orange juice.

Extra-virgin olive oil and fresh orange juice for the dressing.
Dressing after whisking.

Add a batch of Alton’s baked barley (cooked and cooled), a julienned head of fennel, 1/4 C of toasted pine nuts, 1/2 C grated Parmesan, 1/2 C cooked/crumbled bacon, 2 T chopped parsley, and Kosher salt/black pepper (to taste).

Alton’s barley salad.

We enjoyed this salad, though the orange juice was almost unidentifiable. I found that adding additional orange juice really jazzed this salad up a few notches. I also found it necessary to add quite a lot of Kosher salt. I would certainly make this again, especially as a dinner side or a lunch salad.

Barley and Lamb Stew

Where we live, at least, it is certainly stew weather. I view lamb as a very polarizing ingredient, as people seem to either love or despise lamb, with very little in between. I happen to greatly enjoy lamb, so this stew was enticing from the get-go. This recipe begins with trimming/cubing 2 pounds of lamb shoulder. Add pinches of Kosher salt and pepper to the lamb cubes, along with 1 T flour. Toss the lamb to thoroughly coat in the flour.

Cubed lamb shoulder tossed with Kosher salt, pepper, and flour.

Heat a 4-5 quart Dutch oven over medium-high heat, adding 1/2 T olive oil. Once the oil is hot, add ~ a third of the meat, browning on all sides. Remove the meat as it browns, and brown the remaining meat in two batches.

When all of the meat has browned and been removed from the pan, add more oil (if needed), 3 sliced carrots, and a pinch of Kosher salt. Cook the carrots until they have some color.

Carrots and Kosher salt added to pot to cook until golden.

Add the lamb back to the pan, along with 1 C of barley grits (we ground barley to a grit-like consistency), and a quart of chicken broth or stock. Bring the stew to a boil, add a cover, and simmer for 30-45 minutes, or until the lamb falls apart.

Serve the stew with fresh oregano.

Alton’s barley and lamb stew.

This lamb stew was good, but not Earth-shattering. I would call this stew simple but tasty. I would recommend serving this stew the day it is made, as it becomes overly thick/congealed when refrigerated and reheated. We ate this stew with a side of…

Barley Bread

When making Alton’s barley bread, you will need 10 ounces of barley flour; you can either purchase this ingredient or you can mill the flour yourself from 10.5 oz of barley. Either way, place the flour in a bowl with 2.5 T baking powder and 1 t Kosher salt, whisking to combine.

Weighing out 10 ounces of barley flour.
Barley flour, baking powder, and Kosher salt.
Dry ingredients after whisking together.

In a separate bowl, whisk together 2 eggs and 2 T honey. Add 1/4 C canola/vegetable oil and 1 C milk.

Two eggs and 2 T honey.
Canola oil to add to eggs and honey.
Milk to be whisked into egg/oil/honey mixture.

Once the wet ingredients are combined, add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients, stirring to combine; since barley is low in gluten, you can thoroughly stir this dough without making it tough.

Pour the dough into a lubed Dutch oven and cook it for 35-40 minutes, uncovered, over a gas grill that has been preheated on low for 15 minutes. Alternatively, you can bake the bread in a 350 degree oven for 25-30 minutes, which is what I did. Regardless of cooking method, seek an internal temperature of 190 degrees.

Cutting the barley bread.
A slice of barley bread, served here alongside Oktoberfest soup.

We enjoyed this bread, which was slightly sweet and nutty. The crumb is very crumbly, so don’t expect a bread that holds together tightly when sliced. I also found that this loaf stuck to my Dutch oven, so I used a dinner knife multiple times to free the edges of the loaf from the pan. I then used Alton’s tip of placing a paper plate on top of the loaf before inverting the loaf onto the plate. Eventually, this worked, though I did have some cracking and breaking at the edges of the loaf. I find this to be a good weekday bread to pair with soup; we ate it alongside an Oktoberfest-style soup.

Barley Water

The final recipe of this episode is one I immediately recognized as being included in Alton’s “EveryDayCook” cookbook. I figured then that this must be an Alton favorite. Barley water, by the way, is a beverage that is traditionally served at Wimbledon. To make it, heat 1 C hulled barley in 2 quarts water over high heat until boiling. Decrease the heat and simmer the barley for 30 minutes.

Barley in a pot.
Barley and water to be brought to a boil.
Barley and water brought to a boil.

While the barley simmers, use a vegetable peeler to zest two lemons into a pitcher, also adding their juice. Stir in 1/4 C honey.

Strain the liquid from the cooked barley into the pitcher, stirring to combine. Refrigerate the barley water until it is sufficiently chilled before serving.

Barley water after straining liquid into the pitcher.
A glass of chilled barley water.

Although we were not enjoying this beverage in the midst of warm weather, I can still say that it is very refreshing. The predominant flavor in this drink is lemon, and particularly the slightly bitter flavor of lemon zest. I would maybe consider decreasing the amount of lemon zest here with hopes of less bitterness. Since I have never consumed any other barley water I cannot say whether this level of bitterness is typical; perhaps it also depends somewhat on the actual lemons you use? That said, I legitimately liked Alton’s barley water and I plan to make it again when the season again turns to warmth.

Episode 64 – “Squash Court”

Posted: August 3, 2016 in Season 5
Tags: , , , , , , , ,
0

It’s been a while since I last posted. While I actually prepared the recipes from this episode of Good Eats weeks ago, I am only just now having time to sit down and actually write them up. Since I last made a post, we have left town a couple times, Ted finished up chemo and had scans (clear – yay!), we hosted a clear scan party, and my mom ended up in the hospital/had surgery. Hopefully things will slow down here at some point!

Anyway, the subject of the 64th episode of Good Eats was squash, and particularly winter squash. Needless to say, this episode would have been more ideal if it had popped up during cooler months of the year. Thankfully, you can purchase winter squash at any time of the year.

Squash Soup

First up in this episode was Alton’s squash soup. Alton used two Kabocha squash to make his soup, though he stated you could use any hard winter squash; I could not find Kabocha squash at my store, so I used acorn squash.

IMG_4843

The hounds, checking out my acorn squash.

You first need to quarter your squash and remove the seeds. Alton quartered his squash by hitting a vegetable cleaver with a wooden mallet.

IMG_4844

Quartered acorn squash.

Brush the squash quarters with melted butter, sprinkle them with Kosher salt and pepper, and stick them in a 400-degree oven.

IMG_4848

Quartered acorn squash, brushed with melted butter and sprinkled with pepper and Kosher salt.

According to Alton, your squash should be tender and roasted within 25 minutes, but my squash took nearly an hour to become tender.

IMG_4851

Squash, after roasting for almost an hour.

When your squash are cool enough to handle, use an ice cream scoop to remove their flesh. You will need six cups of cooked squash, and the easiest way to measure this is using displacement. You can do this by putting the squash in a large measuring vessel with 1 1/2 C chicken stock; when the liquid line hits 7 1/2 C, you know you have 6 C of squash. Dump the squash/stock in a pot and add 1 1/2 C additional chicken stock, 4 T honey, and 1 t grated ginger.

IMG_4853

Squash in soup pot, along with chicken stock, honey, and grated ginger.

Heat the soup over medium-high heat until bubbles begin to form on the surface, and process the soup with an immersion blender until smooth. Finally, finish the soup by stirring in 1/2 C heavy cream, 3 big pinches of Kosher salt, 2 small pinches of white pepper, and 6 grates of nutmeg on a microplane grater.

Pureed soup with cream added.
Kosher salt, white pepper, and nutmeg added to soup.

Simmer the soup over medium heat until it is heated through. Serve in bowls with sour cream. We ate this soup with goat cheese toasts on the side.

IMG_4862

Finished squash soup with sour cream.

Ted is not particularly fond of squash, but he thought this soup was “pretty good.” Honestly, I found this soup to be a little too sweet, so I would consider cutting down on the honey. The sour cream does help to cut the sweetness also. This would be a perfect soup for a chilly night, so it did not seem apropos when we were eating it in the heat of summer. This is a good, easy, traditional squash soup, and it would come together in minutes if you prepped the squash ahead of time.

Butternut Dumplings with Brown Butter and Sage

Of the recipes in this episode, I was most excited to make Alton’s squash dumplings. For this recipe, you will need a one-pound butternut squash.

IMG_4863

A one-pound butternut squash.

Halve the squash, remove the seeds, brush the flesh with olive oil, and sprinkle them with Kosher salt and pepper.

IMG_4867

Halved squash, brushed with olive oil and sprinkled with Kosher salt and pepper.

Roast the squash in a 375-degree oven for 45 minutes, or until tender. When you put the squash into the oven, also add 4 medium russet potatoes to the oven, taking care to prick their flesh with a fork first.

IMG_4866

4 medium russets, skin pricked with a fork.

While your vegetables are roasting, you can gather your other ingredients:  Kosher salt, 1 1/2+ C flour, and an egg, lightly beaten with a pinch of nutmeg.

IMG_4869

One egg, to be beaten with a pinch of nutmeg.

Once the vegetables are cool enough to handle, mash the flesh of the squash together with the flesh of the potatoes, mashing only until combined.

My butternut squash, after roasting.
Squash and potatoes, to be mashed together.
Squash and potatoes, mashed together until blended.

Using a wooden spoon, stir the egg and 1/2 C flour into the squash/potato mixture. You want to add flour gradually until you have a dough that is slightly wet, but not sticky.

A half cup of flour, added to mashed squash and potatoes.
My dumpling dough, after adding additional flour.

While Alton only needed a small amount of flour to get his dough to the proper consistency, I ended up needing over 5 C of flour to get my dough to the point where I could handle it; several online reviewers had this same problem. Once your dough is ready, bring a pot of salted water to a boil. On a floured surface, turn out your dough and divide it into eight equal balls.

Dough, turned out onto a floured surface.
Dough, divided into 8 pieces.

One at a time, roll each ball into a 1/2-inch thick snake, and cut each snake into 1/2-inch pieces.

One dough piece, rolled into a snake.
Dough, cut into bite-sized pieces.

At this point, you can cook the dumplings or place them on a floured baking sheet and freeze for later use. To cook the dumplings, add them to the boiling water in batches, removing them from the water as they float to the surface. To cease cooking, place the boiled dumplings immediately in ice water before drying them on a tea towel.

Dumplings, in ice water after boiling.
Dumplings, drying on a towel.

Next, heat a skillet over high heat, adding 1 T softened butter. Once the butter is melted, add 2 chopped sage leaves and 1 C of the boiled/cooled/dried dumplings. Cook the dumplings until they are golden brown and crispy on all sides.

Melted butter and chopped sage in a hot skillet.
Dumplings added to butter and sage.
Dumplings, cooked until golden brown and crispy on all sides.

Serve the dumplings with lots of Parmesan cheese and pepper.

IMG_4900

A bowl of dumplings with Parmesan and pepper.

We really liked these dumplings, though they definitely needed a healthy sprinkle of Kosher salt in addition to the Parmesan and pepper. The dumplings are fairly dense, but delicious with their crispy exteriors and softer interiors. The dumplings are slightly sweet and pair greatly with the savory browned butter, sage, and Parmesan. I will say that the process of making the dough was much more tedious than Alton demonstrated in the show, but we ended up with enough dumplings for at least three meals. I foresee making these again, especially in the Fall.

Pumpkin Bread

Last up in this episode was Alton’s pumpkin bread recipe. Ideally, for this recipe you will want to use fresh pumpkin, but I had to settle for canned pumpkin since it was the middle of July. Either way, you will need 3 C of pumpkin; if using fresh pumpkin, grate the flesh. You will also want to toast 1 C of pumpkin seeds for 5 minutes at 400 degrees. I purchased pumpkin seeds that were already toasted. In a bowl, sift together 2 C flour, 2 t cinnamon, 1/2 t Kosher salt, 1 t baking soda, and 1/4 t baking powder.

Flour, cinnamon, Kosher salt, baking powder, and baking soda being sifted together.
Sifted dry ingredients.

In a separate large bowl, beat 3 eggs and gradually add 1 1/2 C sugar.

IMG_4908

3 eggs, beaten with 1 1/2 C sugar.

Once the sugar is incorporated, slowly whisk in 3/4 C vegetable oil. Finally, add 1 t vanilla extract.

3/4 C vegetable oil.
Oil added to wet mixture.
Vanilla added to wet ingredients.

Fold the pumpkin mixture into the egg mixture, along with the cup of toasted pumpkin seeds.

IMG_4914

Pumpkin and pumpkin seeds added to egg mixture.

Finally, add the dry ingredients to the wet mixture, and fold everything together. Pour the batter into a nonstick loaf pan and bake at 325 degrees for 75 minutes, or until the tip of a paring knife comes out clean.

Dry ingredients added to wet ingredients.
Finished pumpkin batter in nonstick loaf pan.
Baked pumpkin bread.

Cool the bread in the pan for 15 minutes before turning the bread onto a rack to cool completely. If you prefer to make muffins instead of bread, divide the batter among muffin tins and bake for 30 minutes at 325 degrees.

IMG_4926

Alton’s pumpkin bread.

This is a very delicious pumpkin bread, but I really did not care for the texture of the pumpkin seeds. I found the pumpkin seeds to be very chewy from absorbing the moisture of the bread. I definitely plan to make this bread again, but I will be omitting the seeds. The bread itself has just the perfect amount of sweetness, is very moist, and has loads of pumpkin flavor.