Cuban Bread
Jan. 3rd, 2004 04:37 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
muck_a_luckFor Uisgich, with love! Pierogi recipe to follow. The Small Boy is crabbing at me... (Mommy, how long is this going to taaaaaakkkkeeee? I can't take this much looonnnggerr! Why did you type that? Does it say that in there? *giggle* Aaaaaahhhhhhhh! *giggle*)
From Bernard Clayton's New Complete Book of Breads, Revised and Expanded, published 1987, by Bernard Clayton, Jr. My favorite bread book, because of the Frisian Sugar Bread.
Cuban Bread is a great bread to make when you forgot you wanted bread with the meal. Only one rising required.
Makes 2 loaves
5-6 c bread or unbleached all-purpose flour
2 packages (4 t instant) yeast
1 T salt
2 T sugar
2 c hot water (120-130)
Sesame or poppy seeds (optional)
Place 4 cups of flour in a large mixing bowl. Add yeast, salt and sugar. Stir until well blended. Pour in the hot water and beat wtih 100 strong strokes. Work in remaining flour. Knead for 8 minutes until the dough is smooth, elastic and feels alive under your hands.
Spray bowl with cooking spray. Place dough in bowl. Spray top of dough with cooking spray. Cover with plastic wrap and place in a warm location, free from drafts until double in bulk, about 15 minutes.
Punch down dough. Divide into two pieces. Shape into rounds. With a serrated knife or razor blade, make deep slashes in the tops to form an X.
Pour one cup of water in a pan. Place pan on the lowest shelf or the floor of a cold oven. Place bread on middle shelf. Heat oven to 400. The bread, of course, will continue to rise while the oven is heating. Bake for about 50 minutes, or until the loaves are a deep golden brown. Thump on teh bottom crusts to test for doneness. If they sound hard and hollow, they are baked. Turn loaves onto metal racks to cool.
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FYI, it is great to mist the oven with water in the early stages of baking bread. The steam, also created by the water in the pan, described above, helps the sugar in the crust to caramelize, giving the crust a richer color. I think it may also help the texture of the crust. Although this recipe doesn't call for it, when the oven is hot, I usually go ahead and spray the oven. Be careful not to spray the oven light, if you have one.
From Bernard Clayton's New Complete Book of Breads, Revised and Expanded, published 1987, by Bernard Clayton, Jr. My favorite bread book, because of the Frisian Sugar Bread.
Cuban Bread is a great bread to make when you forgot you wanted bread with the meal. Only one rising required.
Makes 2 loaves
5-6 c bread or unbleached all-purpose flour
2 packages (4 t instant) yeast
1 T salt
2 T sugar
2 c hot water (120-130)
Sesame or poppy seeds (optional)
Place 4 cups of flour in a large mixing bowl. Add yeast, salt and sugar. Stir until well blended. Pour in the hot water and beat wtih 100 strong strokes. Work in remaining flour. Knead for 8 minutes until the dough is smooth, elastic and feels alive under your hands.
Spray bowl with cooking spray. Place dough in bowl. Spray top of dough with cooking spray. Cover with plastic wrap and place in a warm location, free from drafts until double in bulk, about 15 minutes.
Punch down dough. Divide into two pieces. Shape into rounds. With a serrated knife or razor blade, make deep slashes in the tops to form an X.
Pour one cup of water in a pan. Place pan on the lowest shelf or the floor of a cold oven. Place bread on middle shelf. Heat oven to 400. The bread, of course, will continue to rise while the oven is heating. Bake for about 50 minutes, or until the loaves are a deep golden brown. Thump on teh bottom crusts to test for doneness. If they sound hard and hollow, they are baked. Turn loaves onto metal racks to cool.
******************************************************
FYI, it is great to mist the oven with water in the early stages of baking bread. The steam, also created by the water in the pan, described above, helps the sugar in the crust to caramelize, giving the crust a richer color. I think it may also help the texture of the crust. Although this recipe doesn't call for it, when the oven is hot, I usually go ahead and spray the oven. Be careful not to spray the oven light, if you have one.
