CHAPATIS

Indian bread. One of the delicious Indian breads. Chapatis. Let’s get started.

Ingredients:

2 cups chapati flour

½ teaspoon salt

¾ cup water

You can prepare the chapatis on a big and clean table or even on a big bowl. First thing is putting the flour in the bowl or on a table. Add the salt and water and start mixing. You have to work the dough till you get a ball of dough that does not stick to your hands. If you need it, add some extra flour.

The next step is dividing the dough in eight parts. Make eight balls with the dough. Then with the help of a rolling pin start making the chapatis.

Once you have them, heat a pan. It has to be really hot. Put one chapati in the pan and start making it. Make sure there are not bubbles in the chapati. Press the chapati with a fork to do that. Turn the chapati and cook it on the other side. Cook all the chapatis like this.

A delicious bread. Thin and tasty. Perfect to eat with any Indian food. Enjoy!

**more pics**

BAGUETTES

Bread!!! I love bread. And I love Baguettes. I grew up with this kind of bread and that cannot be easily forgotten. Let’s make bread!

Ingredients:

1 cup and 1 tablespoon water

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1 tablespoon sugar

½ teaspoon salt

3 cups bread flour

2 ¼ teaspoons yeast

I normally use my bread machine to make the dough for my baguettes. You can make it by hand too. Or even a stand mixer or a good food processor that can make dough bread.

I used the bread machine and I put the ingredients in this order: water, oil, sugar, salt, flour and yeast. I selected the program just to knead the dough and turn the bread machine on. The machine will do its job and then it will let the dough grow.

If you want to make your dough by hand, you can do it placing the flour on a table making a well with the water inside. Add the rest of the ingredients and make the dough. And then you will have to knead the dough properly. Knead and knead till the dough is elastic. Let it rise in a bowl covered by a wet cloth.

It is important to let the dough rest and rise. To make good bread you cannot do it in a fast way. Good bread takes its time. Let it rest for an hour or so.

Now shape your Baguettes and let them rest for an extra 30 minutes on the oven tray.

A word about humidity. I like crusty baguettes. And to get that you need to have humidity in the oven. This is sometimes difficult to get. The problem is that if you do not have an oven that can provide the necessary humidity, you will have to take care of it. What I do is opening the oven two or three times and spraying the baguettes with some water. By doing this you give humditiy but you also lower the temperature in the oven while opening the oven door. You have to be quick so that the temperature does not get too low.

Let’s come back to our baguettes. Once they have rested, we will start baking them. Make some cuts in the baguettes. Put the baguettes on an oven tray. This tray must be lightly greased. The oven must be preheated to 450ºF. Put another tray with water at the bottom of the oven. Try not to open too much the door of the oven when you spray some water on the baguettes. And be quick doing it. Losing temperature is not good. The time of the baguettes on the oven will depend on the times you open the door and on the water you spray. Minimum 30 minutes. Make sure the bread is well baked.

And then you will have your homemade Baguettes. Crusty Baguettes!

Enjoy!

**more pics**

BEEF AND PROVOLONE SANDWICH

Today we will prepare a delicious sandwich. A Beef and Provolone Sandwich. Perfect for lunch. But very good for dinner too. Let’s start.

Ingredients:

2 pounds Angus beef chuck

2 cloves of garlic

Salt to taste

Some freshly ground black pepper

Sliced tomato

Some sliced onions

Some pickles

Some sliced Provolone cheese

Your favourite bread

Your favourite sauce, optional

First slice the garlic. Then we will prepare the meat buy making some cuts in the Angus beef chuck. Do not make them too deep. Now put the slices of garlic in the cuts of the meat. Put the meat in a pressure cooker and add some salt and pepper to the meat. Cover the meat with water and cook the meat in the pressure cooker for about 30 minutes, starting counting when the pressure cooker begins to steam. Let it cook and when you open the cooker, if you see that the meat needs more cooking, you can do it with the cooker open. You can remove the garlic if you do not want it.

Carve the beef, as finely as you can.

Once you have the beef cooked and carved, you will only have to prepare the sandwich. Take your favourite bread and put pieces of beef inside. Then add tomato, pickle, onion and cheese. You can take the sandwiches and put them in the oven for a couple of minutes. This will melt the cheese.

And then you will have your sandwiches ready. You can add some sauce if you want. I do not think it is necessary though. But make it your way. Get a beer. Or two.

Enjoy!

**more pics**

BEEF SANDWICH

A sandwich for today. Meaty. Easy, delicious and rewarding. Let’s go to the kitchen.

Ingredients:

1 thin beef steak
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
Some water
2 tablespoons chopped onion
Some salt to taste
Some freshly ground pepper to taste
1 slice of favourite cheese
Some roasted red pepper
Your favourite bread
Some sauce to taste (tartar sauce, horseradish sauce, mayo… you choose)

First we will start preparing the meat. Cut the steak in little pieces and put it in an oven tray with the vegetable oil. Put that in a preheated oven to 400ºF. Twenty minutes later add the onion and some water. We add some water, a tablespoon, so that the meat does not get too dry. Cook it for ten more minutes. Remove from the oven.
Now we will prepare our sandwich. Prepare your favourite brand and put a slice of cheese. Put it in the still hot oven for one or two minutes. Remove it from the oven and then fill the sandwich with the pieces of steak and the onion. You can also add some roasted red pepper. I love it. Add some salt and pepper. And top it with your favourite sauce.
Ready to serve. Enjoy!

**more pics**

CHICKEN CURRY PIZZA

We will cook a different pizza today. Pizza made from scratch but with a chicken curry flavor. Italian and Indian together. Let’s cook it!

Ingredients:

Dough,

1 cup and 1 tablespoon water
¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon sugar
½ tablespoon salt
3 ¼ cups flour
½ tablespoon yeast

For the curry,

1 teaspoon coriander seeds
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1 teaspoon black peppercorns
A little piece of star aniseed
½ ground cinnamon
3 cloves
½ teaspoon cardamom seeds
½ teaspoon ground garlic
½ teaspoon fennel seeds
½ teaspoon turmeric
½ chopped onion
1 chopped shallot
½ chopped green pepper
½ chopped red pepper
½ chopped squash
1 clove of garlic, chopped
1 tablespoon chopped fresh ginger
1 chopped tomato
Some extra virgin olive oil
½ chopped chicken breast
Some salt to taste
Some freshly ground pepper to taste
½ cup coconut milk
Some shredded cheese

First we will make the pizza base. I use a bread machine to make my pizza but, of course, you can knead your dough by hand. Using my bread machine, I put the ingredients in this order: water, oil, sugar, salt, flour and yeast. I select the program just to knead the dough and turn the bread machine on. The machine will do its job and then it will let the dough grow. If you want to make your dough by hand, you can do it placing the flour on a table making a well with the water inside. Add the rest of the ingredients and make the dough. And then you will have to knead the dough properly. Knead and knead till the dough is elastic. Let it rise in a bowl covered by a wet cloth.
Once we have kneaded the dough, either by hand or with a machine, we will shape the pizza with a rolling pin. Remember that a floured work surface is always important. With that amount of ingredients you can make two pizzas.
Using a pizza stone will make your pizza crispier because these stones distribute the heat evenly. Nonetheless you will have to preheat the oven earlier and maybe use a pizza peel to transfer your pizza to and from the oven. Anyway, if your oven is powerful, your pizza will be good.
In the meantime, we will have prepared our curry. To do that, we will start preparing the spices. In a mortar we will grind the coriander seeds, the cumin seeds, the black peppercorns, the star aniseed, the cinnamon, the cloves, the cardamom seeds and the fennel seeds. Add to that the ground garlic and the turmeric. Reserve the spices.
Heat some olive oil in a wok and when it is hot, add the green and red pepper, the onion and the shallot. Cook for a couple of minutes and then add the garlic, the ginger, the squash and the chicken. Then we will add the spices. Mix well and keep on cooking. Then we will add the coconut milk. Add some salt and black pepper to taste. Let it cook for some minutes and reserve.
Then we will go to the oven. Preheat it to 450ºF. With the help of a rolling pin, shape the dough into a pizza on a greased tray. Then we will paint the pizza with a little olive oil. Then spread the chopped tomato on top of the though. Add the curry to the pizza. Do this so that the curry is well spread in all the pizza. Add the cheese evenly.
And your pizza is almost ready. You will only have to put it in your oven. Let it cook for about 15 minutes. Let it cool for a minute and serve. A good and original Chicken Curry Pizza. Enjoy!

**more pics**

EMPANADA

We will go to Spain today. We will cook Empanada, a stuffed bread dish typical in Spain and also in Portugal. There are also little empanadas or empanadillas that are popular in South America too. Maybe the most famous Empanada is the Empanada Gallega. Let’s cook!

Ingredients:

Dough,

1 cup and 1 tablespoon water
¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
½ tablespoon salt
3 cups flour
1 teaspoon Spanish pimentón
½ tablespoon yeast

Stuffing,

1 chopped green pepper
1 chopped onion
2 cloves of chopped garlic
1 chopped Spanish chorizo
3 slices of ham
1 tomato
1 roasted chopped red pepper
1 teaspoon parsley
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 teaspoon Spanish pimentón
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
Salt to taste

To brush the Empanada,

1 beaten egg

First we will prepare the dough. I will use my bread machine to make the Empanada dough, but, of course, you can knead your dough by hand. I will use the machine because it is very convenient. You can use a stand mixer as well.
With the bread machine, we will put the ingredients in this order: water, oil, salt, flour, pimentón and yeast. We will select the program just to knead the dough and turn the bread machine on. The machine will knead the dough and then it will let it grow.
In case you want to make your dough by hand, you can do it placing the flour on a counter top making a well with the water inside. Then add the rest of the ingredients and make the dough. Finally you will have to knead the dough properly. Do this till the dough is elastic. Then, let it rise in a bowl covered by a wet cloth.
We will have to prepare the filling too. We will start sautéing the green pepper and the onion in a frying pan with hot oil. A couple of minutes later we will add the garlic and the chorizo. A bit later we will add the ham, cut in little pieces. The next to add is the tomato, the red pepper, the parsley, the ground pepper and the pimentón. We will keep on cooking turning the fire low for about five more minutes. When our filling is ready, we will reserve it.
Now we will come back to our dough. We will split the dough in half. With the help of a rolling pin we will take a half of the dough and we will make the base of our Empanada. When it is thin enough, we will put it on an oven tray. Of course, the tray will have to be slightly greased. We will put our filling on top of that dough. Then we will take the other half of the dough and we will make the top of the Empanada helping us with the rolling pin. We will cover the filling with this and then we will seal the Empanada by putting the outer part of the dough that is below over the top part. Once the Empanada is sealed, we will make a hole in the middle of the Empanada. With a fork we will also make some little holes in the surface of the Empanada. This will be helpful to cook our Empanada.
Now we will brush the Empanada with the beaten egg. And we just have to take it to a preheated oven to 425ºF and let it cook for about 25 minutes.
And then we will have our Empanada ready. Let it cool for a while before serving. Enjoy!

**more pics**

PAN CON TOMATE

A delicious recipe from my country. A Mediterranean pleasure. Bread, olive oil, tomato and garlic. Simple but delicious. A wonderful side and a brilliant way of preparing bread for a sandwich. This means that you can eat it just like that or using the preparation of Pan con Tomate to make your favourite sandwich. Let’s start.

Ingredients:

Your favourite bread, baguettes, ciabatta… But do not use just regular white bread.
Ripe tomatoes
Some cloves of garlic
Some extra virgin olive oil
Some salt to taste

Not much, is it? It is enough, believe me. Just that. Do not add anything else.
We just have to cut the bread. Do it in the way you prefer. Bear in mind that we will have to rub the tomato on the bread.
Once you have the bread ready, cut some tomatoes in half and rub them on the bread. You will do the same with the cloves of garlic. Cut them in half and rub them on your pieces of bread. Chop more garlic and add the little pieces of garlic to the bread.
And finally, add some extra virgin olive oil to the bread. Add some salt to taste and enjoy this wonderful Spanish delicacy.

**more pics**

HAMBURGER BUNS

Today I will make my own Hamburger Buns. And I will make them because I do not like the usual industrial bread made to serve with your hamburgers. The good thing about making your own bread is that you can make it the way you like it. You can choose flours. You can make it soft or crispy. You decide. Let me start.

Ingredients:

1 cup and 1 tablespoon water
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup bread flour
1 cup unbleached all purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
2 teaspoons yeast
Some sesame seeds

Ingredients:

It is not difficult to make your own Hamburger Buns. I know that it is easier to get them in a store but if you have some time and you like to try doing new things, this could be your thing. If you have a bread machine, it will not be that hard. I will use my bread machine.
Let’s start. First I will put the water. Then I will add the oil, the sugar and the salt. Now I will add the flour. If I use different kinds of flour, and this is the case, what I usually do is mixing all the flour before I put it in the bread machine. Once I have added the flour, I will add the yeast. Now, following the machine’s directions, we will let the bread machine knead the dough. When the dough cycle of the machine is over, we will leave the dough in the machine for sixty minutes. Then we will remove it from the machine and let it rest outside the machine, in a warm place, for thirty more minutes. Now we will make our Hamburger Buns. We will make six buns. Sprinkle some sesame seeds on the buns. We will have the oven preheated to 400ºF. When I bake my buns, I normally keep them in the oven for about 20 minutes. When they are done, I remove them from the oven. They are ready for your burgers. Enjoy your burgers made with your own Hamburger Buns!

**more pics**

MUFFALETTA BREAD

We will bake some Muffaletta Bread. I will use a bread machine for the dough and then I will bake the loaves in the oven. I will make individual loaves.
It is very convenient to make the dough in a bread machine but you can also do it by hand. It is harder, though.
I like to use some whole wheat flour in my Muffaletta. These are the ingredients.

Ingredients:

1 cup and 1 tablespoon water
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon sugar
½ teaspoon salt
1 cup bread flour
1 cup unbleached all purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
2 teaspoons yeast
1 tablespoon sesame seeds

If you use a bread machine, you should follow the directions of your machine.
What I do with mine is the following. The first thing is to put the ingredients in the machine. I put the water first, then the olive oil, the sugar and the salt. Then I will mix the bread flour, the unbleached all purpose flour and the whole wheat flour. I will do this in a bowl and once this is done, I will add all the flour to the machine. Then I will add the yeast. I will use my bread machine to knead the dough selecting the program for it. When the dough cycle is over, I will leave the dough in the machine for an hour. That should make the dough grow a bit, but do not let the dough collapse. If you see that the dough is collapsing, remove it from the machine.
The next step is making the Muffaletta loaves. I will grease a tray and take the dough from the machine. I will make four loaves with the dough, giving the loaves the shape we want. When making the loaves, it is important not to manipulate the dough too much. Once the loaves are shaped, I will sprinkle some sesame seeds on them. Now we will let the loaves rest for half an hour.
And the next step is baking. We will preheat the oven to 425ºF. I will put the loaves in the oven and I will keep them there for about 25 minutes. Have a look to your bread and when it is ready, turn off the oven.
Now you will have your Muffaletta loaves, ready to make your sandwich. Enjoy your Muffaletta!

**more pics**

MUFFALETTA

Muffaletta, or whatever you want to spell it, as you will find it spelt in many different ways, is a wonderful sandwich. Typical of New Orleans, one of my favourite cities. I still remember my first Muffaletta. I ate it there, in New Orleans, at Central Grocery, the place that is supposed to have made the first Muffaletta. I love New Orleans and its food.

Ingredients:

Muffaletta bread
¼ cup black olives, chopped
¼ cup green olives, chopped
¼ cup roasted chopped red pepper
1 tablespoon chopped garlic
1 tablespoon capers, chopped
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
½ teaspoon balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon oregano
1 teaspoon thyme
1 teaspoon basil
Some freshly ground black pepper
2 slices serrano ham or prosciutto
6 slices salami
2 slices deli chicken breast (or turkey)
2 slices deli ham
Some slices of tomato
Some slices of onion
2 slices or cheddar cheese
Some grated provolone cheese
Some grated mozzarella cheese
Some mayonnaise sauce
Some mustard

These are the ingredients I used this time. Of course, you can put the ones you like. You can use your favourite deli products.
To make my Muffaletta I will start making my olive salad mix. I use a chopper in which I will put the olives, the red pepper, the garlic and the capers. I do not like to chop them too much but, of course, you can do it the way you like. Once this is chopped, I add the olive oil, the vinegar, the lemon juice, the oregano, the thyme, the basil and the black pepper. I do not add salt because the olives and ham and deli products are already salted, but, you know, it is up to you if you want to add some salt. You can also add some chopped anchovies, pepperoncini, etc.
Now, we only have to make our sandwich. We will open our Muffaletta Bread and spread some of the olive mix that we have prepared before. And then we will add the slices of ham, salami and deli meats. Then we will add the tomato, the onion, all the cheese, the mayonnaise sauce and the mustard.
And now, well, I do not have to tell you what is next. Enjoy your Muffaletta!

**more pics**

THREE-FLOUR BREAD

Who doesn’t like bread? I really love it. And I love baking my own bread. I haven’t bought much bread since I got my bread machine. I bake almost all the bread I eat.
You can make the kind of bread you prefer. You can mix flours. You choose. Your bread is yours!
I will show you how I bake my three-flour bread. You do not need to use mother dough, although the results would be better. You can do something else instead. But first, the ingredients.

Ingredients:

1 cup and 1 tablespoon water
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon sugar
1 tablespoon powder milk
½ teaspoon salt
1 cup bread flour
1 cup unbleached all purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
4 tablespoons “old dough”
2 teaspoons yeast

I make my bread with a bread machine. I put the ingredients in the machine. First the water, then the oil, the sugar, the powder milk and the salt. I mix the three flours in a bowl and then I add it to the machine. As for the salt, what you can do, instead of using regular salt is using some seasoned salt. By doing this you can give your bread a different touch.
As I told you, I will not use mother dough this time. What I do is the following. Every time I make bread, I keep a small piece of dough apart. I take it from the dough once it has risen. I keep it covered in the fridge so that I can add it in my next bread. You can even freeze it. That starts the dough for your bread.
Let’s go on with our bread. Add the piece of old dough to the machine. Then make a little hole in the flour and poor the yeast there.
Now we will select the program to knead the dough and turn the bread machine on. Once the cycle is over, we will let the dough rest in the machine for 60 more minutes. Then we will prepare a tray, grease it a bit and take the dough from the machine to make three loaves. This is important. When we do this, we do not have to knead the dough again, just shaping the loaves without manipulating the dough too much. Then we will let them rest for 30 more minutes. Of course, you can shape your loaves the way you want. You can make small rolls if you want. It is completely up to you.
Now it is the time to bake. We will have the oven preheated to 425ºF. I also put a tray with a bit of water in a lower rack of the oven. This is in order to add some humidity to our bread. In principle, the bread will be in the oven about 25 minutes, but this will change according to the oven you use, so you will have to be careful about this. What I also do is turning over the loaves when these have been in the oven for 15 minutes or so. This will help the loaves to be done evenly.
When the bread is done, I turn off the oven but I leave the loaves in it for a while with the over door open. Now you only have to enjoy your bread. Believe me, once you bake your first bread you will not be able to stop.

**more pics**

SUMMER SAUSAGE PIZZA

Today is pizza day! Do you like pizza? Maybe you don’t like those mushy pizzas. But there is nothing like a homemade crispy pizza! I will show you the way I make my own pizza. You can even make your own dough. It’s not difficult. I will show you how you can do it.
I will make a Summer Sausage Pizza. Of course, you can choose your own ingredients. That is one of the good things of making a pizza. Let’s get started.

Ingredients:

Dough,

1 cup and 1 tablespoon water
¼ cup olive oil
1 tablespoon sugar
½ tablespoon salt
3 ¼ cups flour
½ tablespoon yeast

Toppings,

Some flour
Some olive oil
½ cup tomato sauce
Summer sausage slices
1 chopped mushroom
¼ cup cubed squash
¼ cup cubed dill pickle
1 tablespoon chopped garlic
¼ cup chopped green onions
¼ cup chopped green olives
1 tablespoon roasted chopped red pepper
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 teaspoon rosemary
1 teaspoon oregano
1 teaspoon thyme
Salt to taste
½ cup shredded mozzarella cheese
¼ cup grated parmesan cheese
¼ cup grated romano cheese

First we will make the pizza base. I use a bread machine to make my pizza but, of course, you can knead your dough by hand. Doing it by hand is hard, so, as I have a bread machine, I use it to knead my dough. You can use a stand mixer as well.
Using my bread machine, I put the ingredients in this order: water, oil, sugar, salt, flour and yeast. I select the program just to knead the dough and turn the bread machine on. The machine will do its job and then it will let the dough grow. If you want to make your dough by hand, you can do it placing the flour on a table making a well with the water inside. Add the rest of the ingredients and make the dough. And then you will have to knead the dough properly. Knead and knead till the dough is elastic. Let it rise in a bowl covered by a wet cloth.
Once we have kneaded the dough, either by hand or with a machine, we will shape the pizza with a rolling pin. Remember that a floured work surface is always important. With that amount of ingredients you can make two pizzas. What I do is dividing the dough into two parts. I make a pizza with one portion and I use the other one to make bread rolls. You can make two pizzas if you want, of course.
Using a pizza stone will make your pizza crispier because these stones distribute the heat evenly. Nonetheless you will have to preheat the oven earlier and maybe use a pizza peel to transfer your pizza to and from the oven. I haven’t tried the pizza stone yet but I am planning to get one. I think the results must be good. Anyway, if your oven is powerful, your pizza will be good.
Let’s go to the oven. Preheat it to 450ºF. I hope you will have your toppings ready because now you will have to add them to your pizza base. If you use a pizza stone, put some semolina on the stone. If you use a regular oven tray, make sure it is greased.
First we will paint the pizza with a little olive oil. Then spread the tomato sauce. On top of that put the summer sausage, the mushroom, the squash, the pickle, the garlic, the green onions, the green olives and the red pepper. Do this evenly. Now we will add the spices: black pepper, rosemary, thyme and oregano. Add some salt if you want. I do not add any salt as the dough and some other ingredients already have some. Then I finish the pizza with cheese. You should always use mozzarella cheese in your pizzas. I add parmesan and romano cheese as well, as I like the combination of these three cheeses. And your pizza is almost ready. You will only have to put it in your oven. Let it cook for about 15 minutes. Wonderful pizza!

**more pics**