How to eat the Bread

Naturally speaking, a bread that is made with some devotion and in a long process doesn't need much to be devoured. Just sweet butter, Fleur de Sel and a mild salad (in the picture: corn salad, corn, feta, beetroots and mustard dressing).

My first Sourdough

The world has seen prettier breads and breads with less flaws but that's ok for me. The only thing that counts for now is that I am in. In in the circle of sourdough bakers!

What is wrong with yeast fermented bread? Nothing.
You can make tasty homemade bread (better than anything from the big bakery chains) with yeast and without fuss.

(Google for no-knead-bread. Or just mix 1/2 kg flour with 1/2 tsp dry yeast, 1 tbs salt and so much water that it can be stirred with a wooden spoon. Let it rise for at least 12 hours. Stir again, let it rise and bake. You won't regret it.)

If you haven't made this type of bread with yeast yet, you don't have to bother with sourdough at all. And there are too many fantastic yeast breads left to conquer.

But after countless no-knead-breads with yeast made on my own, I found out that the aroma and the structure was always the same. And although I don't eat bread on a daily or even on a weekly basis, I was getting bored.
And getting ready for the next bread-baking-level. When the range of yeast bread is a world of its own, sourdough breads make up a universe.

When Bridget presented a country bread by the Tartine Bakery, I thought that this would be the ideal recipe to start. It didn't sound as complicated as all the other ones I had read before.
And when Cenk issued a step-by-step illustration of growing a starter for the Tartine country bread there really was no more excuse to put it off.

Growing a reliable starter (you see, inevitably sourdough bakers start personalizing their starters) took me 2 weeks. It demands no skills, only patience.

However, in this period you don't have to be deprived of sourdough goods because after each feeding there will be remaining starter left to use right away.

I tossed away the remaining starter for the first couple of days. As soon as the starter started to smell pleasantly I collected the remainders in a separate Weck jar and made amazing sourdough waffles out of it (by adding the same amount of flour as the amount of starter, 1-2 eggs, milk, salt, sugar and melted butter). Or decent sourdough bread (by adding the same amount of flour as the amount of starter and so much water that the dough could be stirred with a wooden spoon).

And even now that I have my starter finished I start slowly and don't follow any recipe, but only some principles to make the first very basic sourdoughs.

Whenever I feed the starter (once to twice a week, kept in the fridge) I mix the remaining starter with the double amount of flour and equal amount of water and let it sit for at least 12 hours. Then I add additional flower and water and stir it every now and then. After at least 6 more hours I bake it in a baking form. It yields to a fluffy bread with irregular holes, a sweet sour aroma and a crispy tasty crust.

And as soon as I am getting bored with these basics, I will start with leavens, bigas, folds and turns. But that point of time could still be a while to go from here:)

Btw my starter has no name but I marked Feb 7th 2012 in my calendar as the day of its birth. The day that showed that it was a reliably living thing, ready for its first feed.

Vanities by Larry Fink @ Fahey Klein Gallery, West Hollywood, 2011

Taking a glimpse of this year's academy awards winners' list reminded me of a fine gallery for photography that i hit upon in West Hollywood around this time last year - Fahey Klein Gallery.

Vanity in the world of the rich and glamorous has been a popular theme since ever and although or maybe because it is not in any way relevant for the others, it fascinates those who stand outsinde.

Few people might have had such an intimate insight into that world as Larry Fink who shot at diverse Oscar related parties for ten years.

A collection of his works was exhibited under the title "Vanities" next to
"The Godfather Family Album" and "Taxi Driver" by Steve Shapiro.

See more breathtaking pictures of the exhibition (in high quality) here and via the gallery website.

Because of the many cinema related works in the collection of this gallery it is a good place for visitors seeking for movie air in that part of the city.

Fahey / Klein Gallery,
148 North La Brea,
opens Tuesday to Saturday,
10 am - 9 pm.

kale salad with garlic-chili-oil

The minute I saw Miss Boulette's flavored oil, I knew I had found what I was looking for: a suitable dressing for raw kale. The oil is sensationally simple, strong in flavor and makes up the perfect match for the rustic texture of kale (if you prefer it tender, let it sit marinated for a day).

I kept my oil basic so that it can be complemented with different condiments from case to case.

Garlic chili oil adapted from Miss Boulette

Chop

• 1 red chili,
• 1 small spring onion,
• 2 cloves of garlic, roughly the same amount of
• ginger
  

ultra fine.

In a pan heat

• 2 tbsp butter (for a clear optic use clarified butter) with
• 1/2 cup olive oil.

As soon as the butter has melt completely, turn off the heat and add the garlic, ginger and chili.
Add 1 tsp of sugar, 1 tsp salt and the spring onion. It will yield to one small cup of chili oil.

Before using the oil you can add (1 tsp - 1 tbsp to taste)

• soy sauce (for sweetness and umami) and / or
  
• gochujang (korean red chili paste for fruity sweetness) or
• sesame oil (for a nutty flavor).
  

Kale Salad with Chickpeas

For a big bowl of salad

wash, spin dry and cut 200 gr of kale.

Slice the stems thinly.
Toss the kale with 3 cups of precooked chickpeas with at least 1/2 cup of the garlic-chili-oil (I mixed it with 1 tbsp soy sauce).

If wanted, add a dash of lemon juice (I didn't).

Don't be frugal with the dressing! Everything should be coated heavily with the oil so that it becomes a glossy, indulgent salad.

The salad will stay crisp for a couple of days in the fridge and is good to take away (then best eaten with chopsticks :)).

pan fried dumplings with corn salad and braised pears

I love it when you crave for a dish badly and you have everything on hand (with minor deviations) to go for it right away (ok, I waited till daylight). And when the recipe works out like a charm and the result tastes as good as it looked on the picture. Who wouldn't.

These pan fried dumplings (Kaspressknödel, consisting of old bread and cheese) with plain corn salad, fried onions and braised pears made up a beautifully balanced, beautiful winter dish.

I tried it with and without sour cream and found the cream unnecessary.

Rough directions:

Soak old bread (I took toasted whole meal toast which was fine and reduced the soaking time) in some milk and 1-2 eggs. It should yield to a kneadable consistency. Add 1 grated clove of garlic and grated hard cheese to taste.
Add chopped parsley and 1 small chopped onion.
Add salt, pepper and grated nutmeg.

Mold flat dumplings out of the dough and fry them in a pan with butter.

In the meantime braise some slices of pear in lemon juice (i took some cubes of frozen lemon juice) and little agave syrup.

Fry some onion slices.

Serve all with corn salad, sour cream if wanted and additional grated cheese.

roots spaghetti salad

I have slightly amended my opinion on vegetable spaghetti:

They are very impractical to eat.

And if served to guests they can evoke wrong expectations in so far as somehow they are supposed to taste better than ordinarily cut vegetables. But they taste exactly the same :)

As in these winter days one can never get enough ideas for fresh dishes, I present you this salad still.

And again devote it to Ms Bushcook, who has been recently featured in this lovely interview.

Roots salad (beetroot, kohlrabi, little parsley root, salsify, carrot)

with toasted and ground almonds and

a dressing of chopped herbs, orange juice, olive oil, fleur de sel and orange zests.

Chinese Cabbage and Carrot Salad

I can't stop eating this salad. I don't know if anybody could. I don't know either why one should.

A handful of humble ingredients (I added parsnip), foolproof to make and just divine.

Besides: you can spoon it. And salads that can be spooned falls in the comfort food, soul food category - just in case anybody wonders about the label :)

Chinese Cabbage and Carrot Salad adapted from Heike's Blog (= blog for esthetic German cooking :))

For 2 servings, prep time 10 minutes

Finely slice 5 Chinese cabbage leaves and 1 onion.
Grate 1 large carrot.
Mix all in a bowl together with canola oil (1 tbsp), white wine vinegar (2 tbsp), double cream (3 tbsp), sugar and salt to taste.

Let sit for a couple of minutes and (optionally) serve with crushed nuts as topping.

Update for the diary free folks - you can yield to an equally tasty result with coconut milk.