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By Request
Baking -- especially when it involves yeast -- is such a precise science, it's not surprising that a guy who turns out to be particularly good at it has a background in engineering. Kneading help
from Bread KingNicholas Anderson might have become a civil engineer but for a job he took while in college at a small bakery in Napa Valley. There among the baguettes and sourdough, he discovered an aptitude for bread.
Fast-forward to modern-day Maui. Anderson finds himself engineering loaves of bread -- 60 a day on average -- instead of whatever civil-type contraptions might have become his destiny.
Anderson's job is to meet all the bread needs of the Ritz-Carlton Kapalua, and to develop recipes for breads special to the resort. He's done it so well, they've dubbed him the Bread King.
"I just enjoy that I know bread," Anderson says. "Bread is like something that you guide along. You have to take care of it, you can't force it to do anything. It's going to do what it wants to do, so you have to know how to see the signs, know when it has to be scaled, proofed and baked."
Generosity being the hallmark of a good king, Anderson has come forth with recipes for several baked goods in response to reader requests. He sent so many recipes, in fact, that it's going to take two weeks to run them all.
In Breads, Part 1, he grants the requests of Ed Ells, who wants to make whole wheat rolls that will turn out light, not heavy, and Jeanne Yagi, who has been searching for a particular stollen recipe ever since she tasted the dessert three years ago at a New Year's potluck (she wants one with a cream cheese and almond filling). Anderson credits Jeff Walters, a former pastry chef at the resort, for the recipe that follows.
For home cooks new to baking, he advises patience because things won't always turn out right the first time. Measure precisely and document such things as temperature and variations in the time the dough takes to reach each stage. These factors can vary depending on humidity and other conditions in different kitchens.
"Bread is alive, it's drinking and eating flour, so it's going to do what it wants," Anderson says. "You've just got to know when the time's right."
Next week: Walnut bread, and some Kapalua specialties.
Jeff's Brioche Stollen
2 pounds bread flour (about 7-1/4 cups)Before you begin: For best results, weigh ingredients. Volume equivalents listed in parenthesis are estimates only.
8 ounces cake flour (about 2 cups)
1-1/2 ounces dry yeast (6 tablespoons)
1-1/4 cup cold milk
12 ounces softened butter (1-1/2 cups)
4 ounces sugar (1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon)
1 ounce salt (5 teaspoons)
12 ounces eggs (about 7 large eggs)
Filling:
1 tablespoon butter, softened
1 pound cream cheese, softened
6 ounces (1-1/2 cups) powdered sugar
8 ounces (2-1/2 cups) toasted almondsCombine bread flour, cake flour and yeast. In a saucepan, heat and stir milk, butter, sugar and salt until warm (120 to 130 degrees) and butter almost melts. Add to flour mixture, along with eggs. Beat with an electric mixer or dough ring on low speed for 30 seconds, scraping bowl constantly. Beat on high speed for 3 minutes.
To make filling: combine butter, cream cheese, powdered sugar and almonds. Mix 1 minute. Divide into thirds and set aside.
Turn dough onto a lightly floured surface. Knead in enough additional flour to make a moderately soft dough that is smooth and elastic (3-5 minutes total). Shape into a ball. Place in a greased bowl; turn once. Cover; let rise in a warm place until double (about 1-3/4 hours).
Punch dough down. Turn out onto a lightly floured surface. Divide into thirds. Cover; let rest 10 minutes. Roll one portion of dough into a 10-by-6-inch oval. Spoon filling on one-half of the oval. Without stretching, fold one of the long sides over to within 1 inch of the opposite side; press edges lightly to seal. Place on a greased baking sheet; repeat with remaining dough. Cover; let rise until nearly double (about 1 hour).
Bake at 375 degrees for 18 to 20 minutes, or until golden. Remove from baking sheet; cool 30 minutes. Makes three loaves (10 slices per loaf).
Approximate nutritional information, per slice: 390 calories, 21 g total fat, 10 g saturated fat, 95 mg cholesterol, 520 mg sodium.*
Buttermilk Wheat Rolls
1 cup branCombine bran, bread flour, yeast, salt and brown sugar. Beat with an electric mixer or use a dough hook. Add eggs, buttermilk and water and mix 2 minutes.
5 cups bread flour
1-1/2 tablespoons yeast
2-1/2 tablespoons salt
1/4 cup brown sugar
3 eggs
3/4 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup waterTurn out onto a lightly floured surface. Knead in enough additional bread flour to make a moderately stiff dough that is smooth and elastic. Shape into a ball. Place in a lightly greased bowl; turn once. Cover; let rise in a warm place until double (about 1 hour).
Punch dough down. Turn onto a lightly floured surface. Divide dough into fourths, then again into sixths. Cover and let rest 10 minutes. Shape each piece into a ball and place on lightly greased baking sheets. Bake at 375 degrees 18 minutes. Makes 24 rolls.
For loaves: Divide dough in half only. Shape each half into a loaf and place in lightly greased 8-by-4-by-2-inch pan. Bake at 375 degrees for 25 minutes.
Approximate nutritional information, per serving: 125 calories, 1 g total fat, 0.5 g saturated fat, 25 mg cholesterol, 680 mg sodium.*
Food Stuffs: Morsels
Send queries along with name and phone number to:
By Request, Honolulu Star-Bulletin Food Section,
P.O. Box 3080, Honolulu 96802.
Or send e-mail to bshimabukuro@starbulletin.com
Asterisk (*) after nutritional analyses in the
Body & Soul section indicates calculations by
Joannie Dobbs of Exploring New Concepts,
a nutritional consulting firm.
