Bread

I love the 5 minute artisan bread thing. I love that I no longer feel like an idiot who can't make bread. 

I used to have a friend who was a whiz in the kitchen and often mocked me for my fumbling incompetence. Bread, I thought, is only something master bakers can do. There is something magical about the yeast, salt, flour, water combo turning into bread, rising, and then singing. 

And yet, the peasants of France could make it daily. It has been a staple in the diets of humans from the ancient times. Why can't I get this mass of goo to be more than playdough, I often lamented.

Well, now I can make bread. Simple bread. I love this book. I love these recipes. I love that I can share it with others. 

The picture above is the calzone I made last week with the boule. I tried to use the recipe in teh book but it had some problems: my ricotta was spoiled and the recipe used no meat. So I improvised. The stuffing for the calzone is as follows:

1 block of feta cheese

3/4 lb of ground pork, browned and seasoned with black pepper

spinach leaves

2 eggs

Mix eggs and cheese

Roll out floured boule to a large flat circle, layer ingredients on one half, fold over, cut three slits, and bake at 450 until browned.

Today I experimented with size because the complaint at dinner was that it would be easier to eat if made in individual pockets. It is not working in smaller pockets. Today's filling I am using chicken meat and red peppers with the cheese and using pumpernickle bread instead of white boule. Mmmmmmm. I don't care if the cheese busted out of the side. Yum.

* edited to add. Lunch turned out more like a quiche. I am not sure why, but it is still tasty.