We had a terrible storm last night and lost an enormous oak tree. This tree was not on the radar to fall because it was full of green leaves and looked healthy. It was quite a shock to see it across the road this morning.
We have a lot of trees and sometimes it doesn’t matter when we lose one. But sometimes it does. And this one did matter. It was next to the road and had a beautiful canopy providing shade to the road. And it was so old. But we found out when it fell that even though it looked healthy, it wasn’t. The wood in the center of the trunk, at the base, was soft and crumbly. It looked and felt like a dry sponge.
This week’s recipe Semolina Bread is being hosted by Renee and Anna. Please read their blogs for the recipe. Or go out and purchase Baking with Julia for this and all the other recipes in the Tuesdays with Dorie challenge.
Anyway, getting back to the sponge comment, the Semolina Bread is a yeast bread that starts as a sponge. In this case the sponge is made from warm water, active dry yeast, and all-purpose flour. I have not had a lot of luck making yeast breads. I always think my risings are not as big as they should be (because my house is too cold), and I am afraid my yeast is bad (even though I just bought it and it does not expire for another year). But this time, I knew after 2 hours that the yeast was good because there were holes galore in the sponge. Yeah!
It really looks like a sponge!
Then I added the sponge to my food processor, and then added the all-purpose and semolina flours and salt as specified. My food processor did the whole mixing part really fast. In the end I had quite a sticky dough.
It could have hung like this for quite a while.
Then it had to rise again. Since the house air conditioning was on, I knew it was not going to rise inside. I decided to bring it outside into the 90 degree plus heat and let it rise there. This worked really well.
After rising for two hours, I brought the dough inside to flatten and then form into a oval log. And then L and I brought it back outside on a covered parchment lined baking sheet to rise again.
After another 2 hours, we brought it inside and I had the kids brush on an egg wash and then sprinkle sesame seeds on top.
Putting on an egg wash
Sprinkling on the sesame seeds
While the dough had been slightly puffed when I brought it inside, as soon as we touched the egg wash to it, it immediately sank. I hoped it would rise in the oven when cooked.
After 35 minutes, we had the results.
Did it rise more? No.
It was all of 1 1/2 inches high. Looked like the biscotti recipe from 2 weeks ago.
This really didn’t matter because within 1 minute of cooling, I was slicing pieces off for all of us to taste. And I kept slicing. And slicing. Right now there is 1/4 of the loaf left on my counter.
Did we like it? Yes! It had a wonderfully crunchy crust and a soft hole-y inside. I slathered some butter on my piece, but it really did not need it because it was just as good plain.
Would I make this again? Yes! Even though it came out quite flat, the taste was really good. I love the crunchiness.
In two weeks we are making a Blueberry Nectarine Pie. I love making pies (and tarts). It should be fun. Check back soon!
Marlise, sorry about the tree but it is nice to see the pictures of your kids again, helping with the preparation of the Semolina Bread. I love it when you post pictures of your “sous chefs” – and it is nice that you liked the bread! I had that “flat” issue also, baked it twice and was reasonably happy in the end. Most importantly, we loved the taste too!
Have a great week!
Thanks so much for the sous chef comment. My kids really like to help, especially my daughter. I wish I knew how to make the bread not flat. It was delicious. Thanks for the comment.
I love your little helpers, and your reference to the biscotti, lol ! It looks deliciously crunchy! Sorry about the oak tree.
Thank you. I did like the crunchiness. Thanks for the comment.
Cute little helpers, bummer about the tree! Your bread looks so golden brown, glad you enjoyed!
Oh thanks. And thanks for the comment.
It is always sad to loose a tree. At least it was not a healthy one. We have had many storms here and many folks have lost their trees, we have been lucky though. I love your little helpers! I think it is great to have an assistant or two! My daughter is 21 and still love to get in the kitchen with me.
Good for you. Thanks for the comment.
Biscotti
Maybe ciabatta?
Tough about the tree – that can get messy.
Yeah, it is still a mess outside. Oh well.
I like your sesame seed rendition!
Oh, thanks!
Sesame seeds semolina biscotti bread:) I am glad that you enjoyed the bread! The elongated shape is quite cool.
Thanks so much for the comment.
I only wish we had some storms around here, although I completely sympathize with your loss of the older tree. It’s always sad to see one go like that. My bread didn’t rise especially high either, but equally tasted great. Can’t wait for the pie either…especially with the beautiful nectarines that are in season!
Bring on the pie! Thanks for the comment.
We had the same problem with it being flat and the yeast! It was tasty though, wasn’t it? Your helpers are absolutely adorable. I bet they make the process even more fun.
Fun and challenging at the same time! Thanks for the comment.
Your helpers are just to cute–who cares what the bread looks like. It was tasty and enjoyed. Score!
Totally agree. Thanks for the comment.
Oh! Your kids helping out with your bread baking is sooo cute!
Aww. Thanks so much.
I love that your kids helped to make the bread – I always think it tastes better when you get to help.
I agree. Thanks for the comment.
So sorry to hear of your tree. Oak is one of my favorites – we have several lining the creek behind our house. Funny how the dough seemed to lose it shape after the last rise – a lot of us seemed to have this problem. It is a tasty loaf though! Your helpers are just so adorable! What a lovely way to spend time together and the memories they will have with them for a lifetime.
I do hope they remember these baking days. Thanks for the comment.
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