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Qatlama Boregi- Savory Layered Bread

This type of “flatbread” is still eaten and made in countries like Uzbekistan and the Ukraine, and by Turkish groups such as the Kazakhs and Tatars. The origin of this medieval recipe is a mention found in period dictionaries, summarized by Charles Perry in his piece “ Grain Foods of the Early Turks.” Recorded as early as the 11th C and still found today, it is described as a rolled flat dough, filled with various ingredients, sliced and flattened, then fried in butter or oil. With some interpretation we can recapture the essence of this delicious treat. This dish can be eaten sweet or savory. I like to use this version as an appetizer, be ready, they’ll go fast.

• 1 cup white all purpose flour
  
• 1/4  cup whole milk yogurt
  
• 1/2  cup water
  
• pinch salt
  
• 2 tablespoons melted butter
  
• 1/2  cup minced walnuts
  
• 1 cup feta cheese, drained and crumbled
  
• 1 cup canola oil or vegetable oil, for frying
  
• Coriander and cumin freshly ground (1 tablespoon each)
  

Make dough by combining salt and flour in a bowl. Mix in yogurt, water and work with hands until a ball forms. Set aside to rest for at least 1 hour while preparing filling.

In a bowl combine the walnuts and feta cheese.  Set aside.

Cut dough into 4 balls. .On a floured surface, roll out dough ball until very thin. Cover and set aside until all 4 are rolled.

Brush the pastry with melted butter, sprinkle with 1/2 the cheese and walnut mixture. Roll up like a carpet along the length of the dough and slice into 1/ 2-inch pieces, flatten each one slightly by pressing with the palm of your hand and brush with melted butter. Repeat with remaining discs. The stuffing proportion given will fill about 40 pastries, each 2-inches across and about 1/4-inch tall.

Heat oil in a large pan. Place pastries flat side down and cook until browned. Turn and finish cooking. Remove from pan and serve warm.

Serves 20.

LAND OF MILK AND HONEY CUSTARD-LAYERED CORNBREAD

This is a magical, surprising cornbread.  An improbably thin, eggy, milky batter bakes into a tri-part cornbread with a thin but distinct layer of voluptuous custard sandwiched between a cornbready bottom layer and a light topping of the risen bran and corn kernels. From award winning food writer Crescent Dragonwagon's The Cornbread Gospels (Workman Publishing). While testing the recipes for this book Crescent discovered that parrots love cornbread, leading a friend of mine who was not paying attention when I told her about this great book, to say "She wrote a cookbook for parrots!"  The book is chockfull of terrific recipes and interesting information.

• vegetable oil for cooking spray
  
• 1 cup stone-ground yellow or white cornmeal
  
• 1/ 2 cup whole wheat pastry flour
  
• 1/ 2 cup unbleached white flour
  
• 2 1/ 4 teaspoons baking powder
  
• 1 tablespoon sugar
  
• 1/ 2 teaspoon salt
  
• 1/ 3 cup honey
  
• 3 tablespoons butter
  
• 3 1/ 4 cups milk
  
• 2 large eggs
  
• kernels cut for 2 or 3 ears of fresh corn or frozen, defrosted, rinsed off plus 2 tablespoons liquid

BRIOCHE DOUGH

This velvety, light dough will double or triple well, but not in a Kitchen Aid mixer, and don't cheat on using good ingredients when making it. It will be yellow in color, and has many uses. It is a 24 hour dough that has 3 risings, (because of the butter) and needs to be refrigerated overnight before it bakes like a bread. The dough must double in size before baking. The dramatic risings are due to the yeast (the dough will not rise dramatically in the oven because of the eggs). For a nicer presentation brush the brioche dough with an eggwash before baking. Always wash (brush) from the sides to the center with a soft clean brush or the brioche may stick to the mold(s). Everything is baked at 375F and the baking time will depend on the size of the piece. Brioche can be baked free-form on parchment, or shaped and baked in a metal mold (like a loaf pan, brioche mold, or bread pan), but the dough should always be COLD while you are shaping it.

• 8 ounces unsalted butter
• 1/ 4 cup lukewarm water
• 1 package dry yeast
• 5 eggs, beaten, at room temperature
• 1 pound all-purpose flour
• 1/ 4 cup sugar
• 1/ 2 to 1 teaspoon salt
• eggwash: 1 egg +1 egg yolk or 1 egg +1 teaspoon cream

Take the butter out of the refrigerator before making the dough. It should be slightly cooler than room temperature. Cut the butter into tablespoon-sized pieces. Combine the water and yeast. Stir to dissolve. Place the eggs in a measuring cup and beat with a fork to blend whites and yolks. Set aside. Place flour, sugar, and salt in a mixing bowl. Blend briefly to distribute ingredients. With mixer running, add yeast mixture and the equivalent of 3 eggs. Allow the dough to mix on low speed. The dough should be hard and very firm, and begin to leave the sides of the mixing bowl. Slowly add more egg. The texture should be such that the dough begins to stick (to the sides of the bowl) but as mixed, proceeds to clean sides of the bowl and cling to the paddle.

After all the eggs have been added run the mixer for 5 to 10 minutes (to develop gluten). You are looking for a dough that is light, silky and smooth, and barely sticks to your fingers. Only if necessary, can you add water, a spoon at a time until this stage is achieved. It will be like pizza dough. Be sure that the butter is cool, at room temperature, but soft and malleable. If the butter is still too cool, press each piece between fingers to soften the butter. With the mixer still running, quickly add the butter in big chunks or all together. Continue to mix at medium speed for 10 to 15 minutes until the butter is completely incorporated. Stop mixing. Over mixing at this point can begin to warm up the butter. The dough should be very soft, but hold together with noticeable elasticity. It should be silky and elastic. Remove from mixing bowl and place in a medium large bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and let it stand until it has doubled, about 1 to 2 hours only (or the gluten will break). Punch down dough, then stretch up and out of the bowl, and slap (or punch) down 3 or 4 times to deflate it. Place dough in a lightly oiled bowl, cover, and refrigerate overnight. The butter will harden, the dough will double in size It can be frozen at this point.*

To proceed, remove chilled dough and form into a ball, let it rise again, then shape into desired shape by dividing dough in half and then into 5 equal pieces. Roll each piece into small balls, or flatten each into a small rectangle and roll up from the short edge to form fat cylinders of dough about 5" long that fit the width of the pan. Lay the cylinders or balls side by side, tightly, (a parallel pattern) to fit the pan. Glaze with eggwash. Bake in center of oven for 35 to 40 minutes.

Differences:

For NANTEERE the individual loaf pans are filled with one layer of brioche balls (each a little larger than golf balls), for PARISIENNE, the pan(s) is filled with one layer of brioche "logs". In both cases, the molds should only be filled halfway.

Also in both cases, after the dough has doubled in size and after the dough has been eggwashed, as an option, you can cut a little snip in the top of each ball or log of dough just before baking. This makes for an attractice top decoration and keeps the loaf from cracking or exploding when it bakes. To bake, remove from bowl, knead for a few minutes, shape into golf ball size pieces. Roll on a lightly floured surface with the palm of your hand on top of the pieces until it forms a smooth ball.

Repeat until all dough is used to form balls. Using several narrow bread pan which are lightly greased, place 2 balls, one next to the other in the pan at one end, and continue until pan is full….about 8 balls in 2 rows of 4 each. Glaze with egg wash. Preheat oven to 375F and bake for 20 to 25 minutes until golden brown. Remove from pan and cool on a wire rack. Eat while still warm with butter and jam! Or the next day slice and make fabulous BRIOCHE FRENCH TOAST.

* It can be frozen for up to a month at this point, if desired. Just wrap tightly in plastic or aluminum foil, and when you are ready to use it remove dough to refrigerator and let thaw for at least 12 hours, preferably 24. Then shape, rise, glaze, and bake. Already baked brioches should be frozen while still barely warm by wrapping them in a plastic bag or aluminum foil. To thaw, let stand for several hours at room temperature or place in 375F oven for 10 minutes after removing them directly from the freezer. Large brioches should rest at room temperature for 10 to 15 minutes before heating and require 5 or so additional minutes of heating.

BRIOCHE FRENCH TOAST

• Day old brioche (any shape loaf), cut into 1/ 2" slices
• 2 eggs
• 1/ 2 cup milk or cream
• pinch of salt
• 1/ 4 teaspoon vanilla
• clarified butter for cooking
• maple syrup, jam, nuts or confectioners' sugar for topping

Whip together eggs, milk, salt and vanilla. Lightly dip the brioche slices into the batter to coat both sides. Cook the brioche in a large frying pan lightly coated with clarified butter. Cook a couple of minutes on each side until golden brown. Serve hot with toppings of your choice.

Pumpkin Ribbon Bread

My friend and fellow food writer Ginnie Manuel used to live in Remsen, N.Y., where she attended the annual baking contest. This recipe from resident Barb Hurlbut won the blue ribbon in the Quick Breads category. This would be a great treat during the High Holidays.