Hatch Chili and Roasted Red Pepper Challah Bread

There are a few places that make first rate bread in Metro Phoenix AZ but the majority of breads I tried here are very disappointing particularly Challah Bread.  It seems that people here don’t add eggs or add almost no eggs to the bread. Challah bread that I’ve tried here looks white and shouldn’t look and taste white. Challah is an egg bread that’s similar to brioche and it is suppose to be an eggy bread. The main difference between Challah and Brioche is that Challah must be braided. The secondary difference is that Brioche is very rich and contains butter and challah isn’t suppose to contain dairy. I don’t mean to brag but these challah breads came out FORKING AWSOME! The breads came out moist and flavorful with a nice texture. I thought adding the hatch chili and roasted red pepper would add a nice taste to the bread and would make tasty sandwiches. The only thing I didn’t expect was that while I was formulating this recipe it got to be a big batch and makes two loaves that are very large. After I got my ingredients together I needed to use my stand mixer (kitchen aid) and it just barely was able to hold all the dough. You might want to consider cutting the recipe in half if your mixer bowl is smaller than 5 quarts. I do note that different brands of flour, different ovens and different climates do produce slightly different results but it should be very close.

Ingredients for two large Challah Breads at least 20 servings.

1 Tablespoon sugar

1/4 oz + 1 teaspoon active dry yeast (one 1/4 oz pack + 1 teaspoon)

2 cups water (100 – 110 degrees F or to follow active dry year instructions)

1/2 cup + 1 Tablespoon 100% pure honey (1 Tablespoon is for egg wash)

7 1/2 cups bread flour (plus extra for handling)

1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil

1 Tablespoon + 2 teaspoons course sea salt

7 XL eggs (3 for bread, 4 for egg wash)

3 XL egg yolks

3 oz hatch chili – fire roasted with stem, seeds and most of skin removed – chopped

1 roasted red bell pepper – stem, seeds and skin removed – chopped

3 Tablespoons sesame seeds

Directions

In a large bowl add the sugar, yeast and water and place in a warm place. Wait for the yeast to grow. (15-30 minutes)

Mix in 1/2 cup honey. Add about half the flour and mix. Add olive oil, 3 eggs, yolks, salt, all the peppers and rest of flour. Place dough in stand mixer and start low and turn up to medium speed and let it go till the dough pulls away clean from bowl.

Add a little flour to a bowl and form a dough ball the best you can and add a little flour to the top and place in a warm place till at least doubled in size. Take your time.

About 2 hours latter the dough looked like this.

Punch the dough down and knead. Then cut the dough in half for two loaves.

With one half of the dough make three long pieces that you will braid on a slightly floured surface.

Got a visitor in the kitchen.

Place braid on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.

Don’t worry if the braids don’t look so great. They need to sit in a warm place till they double and will get better. Set the oven to 375 degrees F.

Now they doubled. Mix the 4 eggs with the one Tablespoon of honey and brush it on the loaves twice. Apply sesame seeds.

Place one loaf in the oven. After 15 minutes brush the loaf with egg wash again put aluminum foil loosely over the bread so it doesn’t get too dark and put back in for about 10 minutes or until done.

Repeat with second loaf.

I found that both loaves took 25 minutes in my oven on the middle rack. I baked the breads one at a time because my oven seems to work more efficient that way.

Hatch Chili and Roasted Red Pepper Challah Bread

This bread truly came out FORKING DELICIOUS…..My husband couldn’t stop eating it and kept saying this is really good. Even the dogs wanted to eat it.

Latter I started to prepare Toasted Cheese Sandwiches.

In this moment this little one reminds me of my dear departed Louie.

And here comes the well behaved lady of the house.

“HEY you Forking PIP-squeek..your not getting all that food.”

“I’m cool…..with that….” “I’m happy to eat after you like I should…..” “I’ll do whatever you say…you Amazon Queen”

Forking Delicious Hatch Chili and Roasted Red Pepper Challah Bread. It’s dog-gone good and Forking Delicious!

Hatch Chili and Roasted Red Pepper Challah Bread

The Forking Truth

Tuna Cucumber and Bean Salad

Tuna cucumber and Bean salad is in olive oil, balsamic vinegar and lemon juice. I used a drained $2.00 pouch of wild light tuna instead of wasting $24.00 on fresh tuna that I’d rather eat as an entree. Most people will like the salad. It has a lot of the usual flavors of an Italian style salad but with a few surprises of sweet tangerines and raisins. I think the salad actually taste better if you let it sit a day because the raisins soak up the dressing and get interesting. It’s a pretty easy salad to prepare, it’s healthy and it cost very little to put together.

Ingredients for 4 servings

6.4 oz chunk light tuna drained

1 cucumber diced

1 16oz can large white beans (either butter or gigante) – rinsed well three times

1 celery rib – diced

1/4 large sweet onion – diced

9 katamata olives – cut in quarters

1 XL lemon – zest and juice

1 tangerine – peeled – cut sideways in four slices and separate each quartered segment

2 garlic cloves ground to paste

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

1/4 cup balsamic

1/4 cup raisins (I prefer the jumbo fancy mix)

1 Tablespoon capers

1 teaspoon anis seeds

1/4 cup parsley – chopped

fresh ground sea salt – to taste

fresh ground black pepper – to taste

Directions

In a big bowl combine the tuna, cucumber, beans, celery, onion, olives, zest, tangerine, raisins and capers. Mix gently.

In a small bowl whisk the remaining Ingredients.

Add salt and pepper to taste.

Tuna Cucumber and Bean Salad

Enjoy! Serve with a small chunk of crusty bread.

The Forking Truth

Rosemary Chicken Meatballs

Here’s something just a little different. Rosemary goes really well with chicken so I made rosemary flavored meatballs. They came out juicy and flavorful. I think most people will like them.

Ingredients for about 5 servings

1 lb ground chicken

2 XL eggs – slightly beaten

1 cup whole wheat panko bread crumbs

1/4 cup sweet onion – chopped fine

2 garlic cloves – ground to paste

1 carrot – grated fine

1/2 cup chicken stock

2 Tablespoons fresh rosemary – chopped fine

2 Tablespoons fresh parsley – chopped fine

1/2 teaspoon dried oregano

1/2 teaspoon dried basil

1/4 teaspoon granulated garlic

pinch crushed red pepper

1 Tablespoon sea salt

1 teaspoon black pepper

Non stick cooking spray – (or oil if you prefer)

Directions

Set oven to 350 degrees F

Spray or oil your baking sheet(s)

In a large mixing bowl add everything except the ground chicken. Mix well. Now add chicken and mix well again.

Pinch off a small marble size piece and zap in the microwave in paper towels for about 10 seconds or pop in the oven for about 5 minutes in some oiled aluminum foil and test for seasoning and adjust if you care too. (The taste will be close from the microwave but not exact).

Scoop out balls with a small scooper on to your sprayed baking sheet(s). I made 28 balls.

Cook till done on middle rack. In my oven the meatballs were ready in 15 minutes.

Chicken Rosemary Meatballs

Forking Tasty!

The Forking Truth

Bread and Butter Pickles

These pickles come out light but with a really yummy flavor. They are not too sweet or too salty. I think everyone will enjoy them. It’s usually best to use pickling cucumbers but I used seedless because that’s what I had. Sometimes I substitute yellow squash for cucumbers and sometimes the yellow squash taste better as a pickle than the cucumber. The onions came out tasty and delicious too. You might enjoy them in a sandwich. Let these pickles sit about three days for the best flavors.

Ingredients for about 15 servings

2 1/2 lbs cucumbers cut in thick coin shapes

1/2 sweet onion – quartered and cut in slices

3/4 oz fresh dill

1 cup white vinegar

3 cups water

1/2 cup dark brown sugar

1 cup white sugar

8 garlic cloves – smashed

2 teaspoons turmeric

1 1/2 teaspoon mustard seed

1/2 teaspoon celery seed

2 Tablespoons kosher salt

1 Tablespoon white peppercorns

Directions

In sterilized containers or jars add the cucumber, onions and dill.

Add remaining ingredients to a sauce pot on near to high heat and bring to a boil. Let it medium boil (a tad more than a simmer) for about five minutes. Pour the liquid over the cucumbers and let it sit on the counter till it cools a little. Refrigerate when it’s around room temperature. It’s not necessary to can because they will stay good for several months.

Bread and Butter Pickles

Enjoy!

The Forking Truth

Levant Inspired Butternut Squash, Chickpeas and Israeli Couscous

I had a butternut squash and Israeli Couscous to use up and this is what I came up with. I have to say it really did come out Forking Amazing! I did use a bunch of ingredients that most people don’t use or have such as zahtar, Aleppo pepper, sumac and urfa pepper. The only ingredient that’s hard to find here is urfa pepper (one of my new favorites). The urfa pepper is more intense than Aleppo and a Spanish pepper called Nora. It’s really delicious. It’s fruity, raisin like,lightly smoky and mild heat. It’s worth your time and money to find the urfa pepper for your own creations because it will make anything you make delicious. The recipe is easy to prepare and is sure to be a #crowdpleaser. Sorry now that I didn’t make a bigger batch. This one is really special.

Ingredients for 4 servings

1 small butternut squash – peeled, seeds removed and cut in bite size pieces

1 15.5 oz can 50% less sodium garbanzo beans – drained and rinsed three times

5 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil (1T on garbanzo beans, 2T for butternut squash and 2T for couscous)

1/2 teaspoon urfa pepper

1 Tablespoon zahtar

1 teaspoon Aleppo pepper

1 teaspoon sesame seeds

1 teaspoon sumac

fresh ground sea salt to taste

fresh ground black pepper to taste

1 cup Israeli Couscous

1/3 medium onion – chopped

1 medium tomato – core removed – chopped

3 garlic cloves – sliced razor thin

1 1/2 cups vegetable stock

2 Tablespoons cilantro – chopped

2 Tablespoons parsley – chopped

4 oz goat cheese – crumble it

Directions

Set oven to 350 degrees F

Place the butternut squash pieces in a medium/large bowl and drizzle two tablespoons of olive oil and sprinkle the urfa pepper, and zahtar. Mix well. Place in one layer on a baking sheet(s) and sprinkle  very lightly with a little bit of fresh crushed sea salt and black pepper.

Place the garbanzo beans in a medium bowl. Add one Tablespoon olive oil and sprinkle the Aleppo pepper,seasame seeds and sumac. Mix well and place on a baking sheet in one layer. Sprinkle very lightly with a little fresh crushed sea salt and black pepper.

Place squash pan(s) on the middle rack and the garbanzo pan on the top rack in oven.

Keep the pans in the oven till the beans have a light crisp and the squash is fork tender. In my oven this took thirty minutes.

In your sauce pot on medium high heat add 2 Tablespoons of olive oil and when hot add the couscous. Fry the couscous for about five minutes. Add the onions and cook till transparent. Next add the tomato followed by the garlic. You will smell the garlic soon and then add the stock. Simmer till couscous is done. About ten minutes.

Add fresh crushed sea salt and black pepper to taste.

By now the squash and garbanzo beans are done and carefully stir them into the sauce pan. Mix in the herbs. Serve and sprinkle the cheese on last.

Everyone will FORKING Enjoy this one!

Levant Inspired Butternut Squash and Israeli Couscous

The Forking Truth