Hamburgers & Buns

Since it's BBQ season here in the northern hemisphere, I figured it was past time to break out a hamburger recipe. I remember my mom making hamburgers as a kid, shaking and squeezing ingredients into a large bowl, deftly mixing everything, then shaping the patties with sure, swift movements, hands moving smoothly around and around. I make them the same way, though my patties always seem to have rough edges. I've received many compliments on my hamburgers and upon reflection and comparison with other recipes I think the secret ingredient is the ketchup. You totally need ketchup. In the patty, on the patty and as dip for the burger. One of my friends buys sugar free ketchup from the U.S., but I like the regular variety.

As for buns, I've tried out a new recipe today since I love those hamburger thins that you can buy. It wouldn't be The Cookery if I hadn't tweaked it, so I made some substitutions based on what I like. The President's Choice ones have a nutty chewy texture, so I added some oats to try to replicate that.

Hamburgers

Ingredients:

1 lb lean ground beef or bison
1 tbsp. ketchup
3-4 good squirts of Worcestershire sauce (though I was out. Damn! I used soya sauce instead)
1/4 - 1/2 c. bread crumbs (I was out again! I used oats instead)
1 tsp. oregano
1 1/2 tsp. basil
1/2 tsp. thyme
1 egg

Directions:

Dump everything in your mixer and stir until just combined. Using wet hands, take a handful at a time and shape into patties. This recipe should make 6-8 depending on how thick you want your burgers.

Cook or freeze individually, wrapped in parchment or wax paper.


Hamburger/Sandwich Thins (Whole grain)

Ingredients:

1 1/2 c. warm water
1/8 c. sugar
1 tbsp. yeast
1 egg
2 tsp. oil
2 1/2 c. whole wheat flour
3/4 c. quick cooking oats
1/4 c. lightly pulsed flax seed (to open up the seed)
2 tsp. whole flax seed
1 1/2 tbsp. vital wheat gluten
1 tsp. salt

Directions:

Mix water, yeast and sugar until dissolved. Add egg and oil and beat lightly.

In another bowl combine all the dry ingredients. Mix well then add half of the dry mixture to the wet. Let rise 30-45 minutes.

Once risen, add the remaining flour mixture and knead in your mixer for 5 minutes. I ended up having a screaming toddler situation, so it ended up being more like 10 for me. The dough will be very wet and sticky. Weigh it and divide by 16 (mine worked out to just about 2 ounces per bun).

Spread parchment paper on two cookie sheets. Watching your scale, and working with wet hands, shape one bun at a time. One recipe mentioned using a 4 inch biscuit cutter as a guide then smooshing the dough to fit, but I just slapped it on the cookie sheet and spread it around. The edges weren't as pretty, but it worked well.

Once you have all 16 rounds on your sheets, let rise for another 30-45 minutes. Preheat your oven to 350F, with the racks in the middle and bottom third positions.

Once risen, poke a few holes in each round using a wet straw or a wet chopstick. If you want fluffier buns, omit this step. Bake for 15-20 minutes until risen and golden brown.

Let cool on sheets. They'll seem really thin, but they're solid. Cut in half for buns.

And here's the final product! We had leftovers for another meal and it was just as good the second time. Yummah!

Mango Almond Whole Wheat Bread

Don't worry, it's not all baked goodies forever and ever, but I haven't had time yet to go grocery shopping so my meal ideas are still just ideas.

I've been buying mangoes by the dozen, meaning to freeze them so I can enjoy the sweet-sour taste during a January blizzard, but they're so good I keep eating them fresh. I have a noodle recipe for later on with mangoes, but of course it wouldn't be The Cookery if I didn't try to make a mango type bread.

This one uses dried mangoes. Try to make sure you get the sugar free dried mango, no one really needs all that sugar, as delicious as it is. I accidentally bought the sweetened slices, so that's what I ended up using.

Now, full disclosure, I'm not a huge fan of whole wheat bread. It's dry and heavy and usually tastes like cardboard. Well not this one! The dried fruit melts during baking and keeps the bread moist while spreading the flavour around. In the end you have a nice crisp outside with a beautiful fluffy moist interior.

Mango Almond Bread
2 very large loaves (3 regular sized ones)

Ingredients:

5 c. warm water
2 tsp. active dry yeast
6 1/2 c. whole wheat flour
1/4 c. vital wheat gluten*
1/2 c. light brown sugar
scant 2 tbsp. salt
3-4 c. all purpose flour
1 1/4 c. dried mango strips, cut into bite sized pieces
1 c. whole almonds

Directions:

Add yeast to water in a large bowl and stir to dissolve completely. Add the whole wheat flour, 2 cups at a time, until you have a smooth batter. Cover and set aside for an hour, it'll be wicked bubbly and risen.

Sprinkle the brown sugar and the salt on top, then stir to combine. Add the remaining flour a 1/2 cup at a time, stirring and beginning to knead as it comes together. Turn out dough on to a floured surface, adding flour as necessary to prevent sticking, and knead 10 minutes. I just used my dough hook for 5 minutes on speed 2. Your dough should be smooth and elastic. Cut your dough in half, putting each half in a lightly oiled bowl to rise for another hour.

Press each dough into a rectangle and sprinkle on half the mango and half the almonds. Shape dough into loaves (poke in any escapee mangoes or almonds) and place into 2 buttered bread pans (9x5"). Leave to rise 30 minutes while you preheat the oven to 400F.

Just prior to putting the bread in the oven, make three diagonal slashes across the top. Bake for 50-60 minutes, or until golden. The bread is done when it sounds hollow when tapped on the bottom and the corners are firm when pinched. (Why does that sound dirty?) Remove from pans immediately and place on racks to cool. Let rest at least a half hour before digging in.

*
Vital Wheat Gluten helps the bread rise by creating more strands of gluten; it's especially important in breads with a lot of whole wheat flour like this one. I buy the Bob's Red Mill brand. The directions recommend using 1 tbsp. for every cup of whole wheat flour, though in this recipe only 4 tbsp. are used and that's plenty.





I just had a slice toasted with cream cheese and it was super delicious. The mango gives just a bit of tang. In the future I think I'll stick to sliced or slivered almonds, or maybe even pumpkin seeds since my kid had issues with the whole almonds. It's hardly the point to bake this beautiful bread only to have to rip it apart to find and remove the almonds since they may induce a choking fit. The other issue with this bread is that I wouldn't want to make a sandwich with it; it would be too many competing flavours.

This bread would be perfect for breakfast, or sliced for company, or even as buns with a special (or not so special) supper.

Suzanne's Flax Bread

There are so many different types of bread out there and this recipe is a sure-fire success. It's now a stand-by in my kitchen since it's so easily adaptable and convenient. The dough rises either overnight or all day, making it perfect to fit into any schedule. I usually make the dough in the morning and bake it at night since by the time evening comes and the kids are asleep I'm ready to go to sleep myself. I used to do all this baking/cooking during Mister M's nap times, but now having two children, I find that I have to be willing to do everything while he's awake since otherwise I'd never get anything done. He's been fascinated by the mixer for a while (he has my old littler one to play with, unplugged of course), so now we do my baking together. It takes longer, but resolves the whining-child-at-my-feet issue I was having.

My sister came out to visit when I had the new baby and she loved this bread so I'm re-naming it for her.

Suzanne's Flax Bread
Makes 4 loaves

Ingredients:

4 c. warm water
1/2 tbsp. traditional yeast
2 c. milk (I use homo)
3 c. whole wheat flour
2 tbsp. honey
10-12 c. all purpose flour
2 tbsp. salt
2 tbsp. olive oil
1 c. ground flax seed

Directions:

Mix water and yeast. Stir to dissolve, then add milk. Stir in the whole wheat flour, it'll be quite lumpy, but don't worry about it. Add your honey and stir, then add about 4 cups of the all purpose flour and mix until it becomes a smooth batter.

Add the salt and oil, mixing after each addition. Add the flax seed and another 4-5 cups of flour. Knead, adding flour as necessary, until you have a smooth and elastic dough. I've done this both by hand and in my mixer, it works well either way.

Place in a large lightly oiled bowl to rise. During the summer I let it rise on top of my fridge, but in the frigid Canadian winter I put it in the oven and leave the oven light on for some warmth. Let rise overnight or 8-12 hours, whatever is most convenient.

Punch down dough. Turn out onto a floured surface and using a pastry scraper or a sharp knife cut the dough into four pieces. Working with one piece at a time, leaving the others covered with a towel, shape dough into a loaf and place it in your pan. Leave to rise 40 minutes.

Preheat oven to 400F. Bake loaves for 10 minutes, then turn down temperature to 375F without opening the door. Bake for 20 minutes, then rotate pans and bake for another 20 minutes. Loaves should sound hollow when tapped on the bottom.

Brush tops with margarine, but wait until mostly cooled to slice.

This makes great toast because it's nice and dense without being too heavy. No huge airpockets for your peanut butter to melt into. Sorry I don't have a photo, I'll take one next time!

ETA: Found a photo of the dough before I put it aside to rise.

Rosemary & Olive Focaccia

Don't panic! I know this recipe sounds like I'm going to bake some Hollywood children, but it's really just bread. Delicious bread.

Disclaimer: I love bread. We go through at least a loaf a week, more when we're not rationing it. You're going to find a LOT of bread recipes on this blog once I get going. Today it's Focaccia.

I had olives left over from Greek Salad the other night and figured I could pop them in some bread. I needed to make focaccia anyway for a bruschetta recipe I came across the other day.

I used a recipe from Bon Appetit magazine, via Epicurious. I adjusted the instructions based on the comments/reviews.

Focaccia with Olives and Rosemary

Ingredients:

2 cups warm water (105°F; to 115°F;)
2 teaspoons dry yeast (I used quickrise)

4 1/2 cups (about) all purpose flour
2 teaspoons salt

3 tablespoons olive oil
24 black or green brine-cured olives (such as Kalamata or Greek),pitted, halved
1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary or 1 1/2 teaspoons dried

Directions:

Place 2 cups warm water in large bowl. Sprinkle dry yeast over; stir with fork. Let stand until yeast dissolves, about 10 minutes.

Add 4 1/4 cups flour and salt to yeast mixture and stir to blend well (dough will be sticky). Knead dough on floured surface until smooth and elastic, adding more flour by tablespoonfuls if dough is sticky, about 10 minutes. Form dough into ball. Oil large bowl; add dough, turning to coat. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise in warm area until doubled, about 1 1/2 hours. Punch down dough; knead into ball and return to same bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise in warm area until doubled, about 45 minutes or less.

Coat 15x10-inch baking sheet with 1 tablespoon oil. Punch down dough. Transfer to prepared sheet. Using fingertips, press out dough to 13x10-inch rectangle. Let dough rest 10 minutes. Drizzle 2 tablespoons oil over dough. Sprinkle olives and chopped rosemary evenly over. Let dough rise uncovered in warm area until puffy, about 25 minutes.

Preheat oven to 475°F. Press fingertips all over dough, forming indentations. Bake bread until brown and crusty, about 20 minutes. Serve bread warm or at room temperature.

My changes:

1. I made two loaves, one with feta & rosemary and one with olives & rosemary. Both turned out great.

2. I kneaded in the olives and feta slices after the second rise, though I did reserve a few olives for the top.

3. I totally forgot to add the olive oil on top, and to make the little indentations. I remembered the oil about 10 minutes into the baking time and poured it on then. Seemed to work okay. Next time I'll make sure I remember.


Thoughts:

Dense and chewy, this bread is great for sopping up saucy or juicy dishes. We ate the feta loaf with some pasta & sauce, and it was a perfect complement. The dough is quite salty, but that just adds extra flavour to the sopping action. I'm anticipating it toasting/frying up really well tonight for the bruschetta base.

Avocado Bread French Toast

It seemed to me that this would be a good combination, and I was right! I used a half cup of milk and three eggs with a bit of cinnamon and nutmeg. I added a 1/4 tsp of ground cloves too, because I love the taste.







It's not exactly the breakfast of champions, but my husband and I enjoyed it on a lazy Saturday morning. I think that since avocados are good for you (read: have healthy fats in them) that the breakfast isn't a total write-off health-wise. Not to mention that one loaf was whole wheat! I was doing myself a FAVOUR by eating this breakfast. That's how I justify things. Go ahead, give it a try.



Enjoy!

P.S. That's homemade Chokecherry syrup courtesy of my husband this September. See why I cook what I do? He makes it so easy!

Avocado Bread

I'm kinda cheating because I baked this bread the other day, but I have photos and it was delicious, so I'm keeping it anyway!

I'm a compulsive avocado buyer. Not sure what it is about these little fruits that makes me think we'll need 6 a week, but I almost always buy the whole bag. Then within a few days they're all perfect and ready to be eaten, but I can never think of anything to make with them other than guacamole. And there's only so much guacamole a girl can eat, you know?

So I took to Google to figure out what the heck I was going to do with them. Voila! One of the first things I see: Avocado bread. Brainwave! Why have I never thought of doing this before? I love avocados, I love bread, it follows that I would love avocado bread. (Okay, it doesn't really logically follow, but stay with me here.)

I used this recipe.

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 50 minutes

Ingredients:

2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup sugar
1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 large egg
1/2 cup mashed avocado (1 medium avocado)
1/2 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup chopped pecans
Preparation:

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Generously grease a 9 x 5-inch loaf pan.

Combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, soda, and salt in a large mixing bowl. Whisk to blend thoroughly.

In a separate bowl, beat together the egg and avocado. Stir in the buttermilk. Add to the dry ingredients and blend well. Stir in the pecans.

Pour into the prepared pan and bake for 50 minutes to 1 hour or until a wooden pick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Yield: 1 loaf

From: Judy Gorman's Vegetable Cookbook

I made a couple changes though.

1. I used two avocados. I needed to get rid of them and it seemed to be a better balance with the amount of flour. The bread was super moist.
2. I used only about 2/3 c. of sugar. Since the bread was still quite sweet, I think next time I'll only use 1/2 c.
3. I just plain ole 1% milk since I didn't have any buttermilk.

The bread batter was really thick, smack dab in between a proper dough and banana bread.



Once baked, it was a gorgeous crispy golden brown on the outside and a creamy mild green on the inside. If it's possible, it tasted better than it looked. A balance between moist and heavy, creamy and sugary, it rose well and the crumb itself was nice and even. Still a bit too sweet for my taste, this would be a good breakfast bread or even a dessert bread.




I'm going to leave it overnight tonight and try it with cinnamon & nutmeg in french toast for breakfast tomorrow.