We’re into whole wheat lately. You know, “The whiter the bread, the sooner you’ll be….” ah, never mind.

We fell in love with whole wheat not out of fear of a sooner death but because of pure pleasure. I have a whole wheat cheese and ham quiche that I’ve been wanting to share… It’s been sitting on the back burner (figuratively speaking) for months now. Since then, we made these pancakes with 50-50 all-purpose flour and whole wheat. Same for these fried calamari, and, you have seen the challa bread, right?

After all these trials, the premises I had regarding whole wheat got completely shattered. I thought it will be so undelicious and yucky, cardboard-tasting and such, but to my surprise I found that whole wheat flour is the real deal.

It has depth, it has “body”—like good wine in a way. A prettier color, and more texture—sandy (in the quiche crust), toothy (in the bread), and its flavor is earthy (we especially felt that in the pancakes. The kids, on the other hand, didn’t seem to notice the change at all!). All-purpose flour, compared to it, is plain boring.

In short, whole wheat flour… It’s beautiful.

Today I tried in beer bread.

I first heard of beer bread only a few days ago after Mr. Husband very casually mentioned that his friend E. brought beer bread to work and let him try some. I love beer so, naturally, I was intrigued.

Turns out it also takes 5 minutes to make! 5 minutes! Really.

If you have a bread machine, now is the time to throw it in the back of the kitchen cabinet.

And, I trust that you know how to do this,

And you sure can do this, right?

I used Hefeweizen, one of my favorite beers. It’s amber and has hints of honey. It’s smooth and easy to drink.

A couple of minutes of beating in a mixer, you can also do this by hand,

Drop into a pan,

And 50-60 minutes later,

Conclusion: There’s no need to buy bread at the store anymore. 5 minutes!

I found the bread to be more “cakey” than “bready” in texture and flavor. It had a soft and a bit spongy crumb, unlike a typical yeasted bread. It was sweet although I used only 1/4 cup sugar compared to 1/3 or 1/2 cup in other recipes I found. But overall, it is a fantastic bread! Especially considering how easy it is to make.

However, I cannot ignore the potential it has to be turned it into a whole wheat cake. I plan to experiment with adding sugar, goodies like nuts, chocolate, some butter… It has great potential. Oh, I’ve said that already. Anyway, if you get around to playing with it, let me know?

Whole wheat beer bread

All the recipes I found online use pretty much the same ingredients and quantities with slight variations, so I guess there is pretty much a standard to what a beer bread is or should be.

Makes 1 loaf

1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder (next time try to add baking soda as well)
1/4 cup sugar (next time I think I’ll use only 1-2 tablespoons)
1 1/2 teaspoon salt
12 ounces beer, room temp
1-2 tablespoons melted butter

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Butter, or spray, a loaf pan and line it with parchment paper.

In a bowl of a mixer, combine all the ingredients besides the butter and mix well. Pour the batter into the buttered loaf pan and bake for 50 minutes.

Remove from the oven, brush the top of the loaf with melted butter and return to the oven to bake for another 5 minutes.

Let cool for 10 minutes and remove from the pan.

That’s it!

A few weeks ago a woman in my book club who had heard that I have a food blog asked me “So, do you eat healthy food?”

Now, I know that for some people “healthy” in the context of food is a bad word—even to those who know better. So I proceeded carefully, “What do you mean by “healthy” food?”

… and then I preached to her my philosophy in short. Mainly, I believe that healthy food is all food that is grown in a healthy way. From soil and seeds it has everything to do with the way food is treated in all the steps of the process until it reaches the plate. So, yes, I in that sense, I do try to eat as healthy as I can.

However, like “those people”, I also tended to believe that “healthy food” tastes, if we put it gently, not-as-delicious as the “regular”, or “normal” food. (And this is what I thought she meant—which she did.)

But I didn’t start to eat, and love, kale, chard, and other green stuff because I eat “healthy”. I did it because as a fairly adventurous eater, in the 40 years that I’ve been living and eating, I tried many types of foods (like raw, local oysters and sustainably farmed mussels) and I get bored sometimes with food—GASP—there, I’ve said it! After all, it’s been 40+ years of eating a couple of times a day. Every day!!!

Sometimes I wish I could take a break from eating and then I could come back to it refreshed, with a new approach, like you (supposedly) feel after a vacation. Unfortunately, not eating cannot turn into a long vacation…

So, whole wheat… I have approached it out of boredom ‘cause I already know what white flour can do and tastes like. I was mentally ready to try something new. And I’m glad I did.

Of course reading that “The whiter the bread, the sooner you’ll be dead.” (Rule #37, page 81) in Michael Pollan’s Food Rules also served as a little nudge.

I highly recommend the book—it’s like a little handbook—and the introduction alone makes it a worthwhile read. Especially if you don’t have the time to read his In Defense of Food: An Eater’s Manifesto or The Omnivore’s Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals. It’s easy to read and has lots of common sense advice.

And this is how I found myself buying whole wheat flour and substituting some of the white all-purpose flour with it. (Now my spouse and kid play with it too, making whole wheat fired calamari.)

The result was a bread with more body, more depth, far more interesting taste and bite to it. Not at all a yucky “healthy” food.

What can I tell you? I’m definitely hooked on whole wheat flour now.

As for that specific challa, I didn’t have the time to let the dough rise the second time so instead I started the baking in a cold oven, believing the slowly preheating oven will give the yeast some boost and make it rise more than if I had baked it in an already preheated oven… I never tried this experiment with a “control group” but the bread turned out great. Better than store-bought where I have seen flatter and denser ones… and this one had more flavor—nutty.

The original recipe was given to me by a friend and I think she got it from someone living in a kibbutz in Israel.

The preparation is simple and straightforward. Next time I’ll try to make the dough the night before and let it sit in the fridge to rise slowly and develop more flavor—it’s my favorite way to make yeasted breads and cakes.

I haven’t made challa in such a long, long time that at first shot, I forgot how to braid! This is how the first challa turned out

But at the second try the result looked prettier, don’t you think?

Whole wheat Challa bread

Makes 2 loaves

1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup sugar
1 1/4 teaspoons salt
1 packet (7 grams) active dry yeast
7 tablespoons oil, plus more for greasing the bowl
400 ml lukewarm water
1 egg, lightly beaten to make an egg wash
Sesame seeds and/or poppy seeds

Place all the ingredients in a mixer bowl and let it knead on low speed (a rhyme!) for 10 minutes.

Scrape the dough out of the bowl and work it into a ball. Oil the bowl and turn the dough ball inside to coat. (Bowl, ball… did I confuse you?) Cover the top of the bowl with foil and place in a warm spot to rise for 1-2 hours (depending on temperature), or until it doubles in volume.

Divide the dough into 2 parts. Divide each dough into 3 pieces and work each one to make a long strand. Make a braid. Do the same with the second half of the dough.

Place both braids on a large baking sheet with space between them. Brush each challa with egg wash and sprinkle with sesame seeds and/or poppy seeds. Let rise in a warm spot*.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Bake challas for 35 minutes.

* I did not have time for a second rise so I placed the challas in a cold oven and heated it to 350 F, baked for 45 minutes or so.

Notes:
Next time try to add 1 egg to the dough.
Try honey instead of sugar.
Try 1 packet (7 grams) active dry yeast.
Let dough rise overnight in the fridge.
See more here: How to bake Challa bread at home?

What’s the problem with baking bread at home?

The fact that you cannot find fresh yeast at the store? No

It’s difficult to make? No

You don’t have flour in the pantry? No

No time? Yes!

Baking bread is easy. Really. Especially if you have a mixer to do all the kneading, although I find that kneading dough by hand is good them since most of the time what they do is type type type.

But bread making at home requires time and patience for the bread to rise 3 times!

I usually bake bread only when I can stay at home or run short errands and return home soon to babysit the dough.

After baking this recipe dozens of time it was about time to try a different strategy. I invited guests for lunch and didn’t want to get up at dawn to bake bread! The plan:

1. make the first step/first rising on Friday night

2. send the dough to the fridge to “rest”/rise the second time overnight

3. Saturday morning, take dough out of the fridge and let it come to room temperature and continue to rise. I have a few tricks for that. I’ll tell you in a sec. (See notes after the recipe)

4. form the loaves and let rise again for the 3rd time

5. bake

6. have warm fresh bread for lunch to impress my guests

Well, #6 depends on what time you get up on a Saturday morning when it’s still cold and dark outside, pre daylight saving time. Me? I have 2 young kids – they are early birds – so I rise and shine around 7 am. But if you can afford to sleep late – lucky you! – then have the bread for dinner and sleep late. Lucky you! Oh, I’ve said that already.

The recipe is from this book, which I have mentioned to you many many times before. I love this book.

This recipe was submitted to Wild Yeast blog where fabulous bread are being featured. Check it out.

Wolfgang Puck’s Challa bread

Adapted from “Wolfgang Puck Makes it Easy” cookbook
Makes 2 loaves 

For the dough:
2 packets active dry yeast (2 tablespoons + 2 teaspoons)
2 cups warm milk (80-90 F, 26-32 C degrees), divided*
1/3 cup sugar
6 cups bread or all-purpose flour (or a mix of the two), plus more for kneading
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
3 egg, room temperature
2 teaspoons salt
For the egg wash:
1 egg
1 tablespoon water
poppy seeds or sesame seeds, optional

1. Combine the yeast and 1 cup of milk in a bowl of a stand mixer (or large bowl if mixing by hand) and stir to dissolve. Add the sugar and 2 cups of flour and mix together using the paddle attachment. When the mixture is smooth, cover the bowl with plastic wrap and leave in a warm spot for 45-60 minutes, until mixture is bubbly.

2. On low speed, add the remaining warm milk to the sponge and beat in the melted butter. Add the eggs, one at a time, and beat to incorporate. Add the remaining 4 cups of flour and salt and mix. Switch to the dough hook and knead on low speed for 10 minutes until the dough is smooth. If it’s sticky, add more flour. Scrape the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead by hand for 1 minute. Shape into a ball.

3. Using the same bowl, oil it a little and roll the dough in it. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight (or leave to rise in a warm spot). If you chose to refrigerate the dough, bring it to room temperature the next day (see note) and let rise until it doubles in size, 1 1/2- 2 hours.

4. Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface and cut it in half. Cut each half into 3 equal pieces. Roll each piece back and forth to form an even strand 18 inches (40 cm) long. Pinch the ends together and braid the strands. Pinch the other ends together and tuck underneath. Repeat with the second half of the dough to make a second loaf.

5. Place parchment paper on a large baking sheet. Transfer the loaves to the baking sheet(depending on their size/length, do it horizontality or vertically) leaving space between them, or use two baking sheets. Beat the egg with water to make an egg wash. Brush it on the loaves, sprinkle with poppy or sesame seeds. Cover with sprayed plastic wrap or damp kitchen towel and leave them to rise until nearly double in bulk, about 1 hour.* If you are using 2 baking sheets and have only one oven, place one in the fridge and remove it after 1 hour.

6. 30 minutes before baking, preheat the oven to 350 F (180 C). Bake in the middle of the oven for 45 minutes or until deep browned. Transfer loaves to a wire rack to cool.

Notes:
* I warm the milk about 30-40 seconds in the microwave per cup
* when the weather is cold, to help the dough rise, I put a glass of water in the microwave and heat it for 1 minute. I leave it inside the microwave and put the bowl with the dough inside as well. This makes a nice warm and humid environment for the dough to rise (just be careful not to turn the micro on!)
* another trick I do to help the dough rise when the room is cold is to microwave a kitchen towel for 20-30 seconds and place it under/on top of the loaves.
* to see my food photography post about this bread click here.

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Every time I manage to create something delicious using leftovers, I think about my grandmas. Such resourceful women. They lived, worked, raised a family during such hard times, wars, depression, very little rights for women… and A LOT of hard work each and every day. I don’t think they ever went on a vacation. You just got to respect these women.

I feel sorry for not having the opportunity to learn from them how to cook (too late now) but I know that they inspire me. Although I have only a handful of blurry memories of times spent in the kitchen with them, every now and then a new episode comes to life inside my head. Like the other day, when we came back from the farmers market, I asked my son to help me shell the snow peas we just bought. It reminded me of going to the market with my grandma Tovah. I was a child, I believe not more then 10 years old. The market was very different then than today’s farmers markets. Chaotic, dirty, crowded, vendors shouting, the smell of fish swimming in water tubs and the blood of freshly dead chickens in the air. It excited and horrified me at the same time. I loved it and hated it.

Those markets were very unstylish and un-elite. People went there to buy fresh food for less money, unlike today’s markets which make me wonder who shops there besides affluent people and crazy foodies who are willing to spend a little fortune on little food. After grandma finished all her loud arguing and negotiating with the vendors and merchants and was done with all her shopping, we took a bus ride back to her tiny apartment. There she would sit in the small bathroom to clean the very recently killed chicken she bought, pulling off the feathers and all that stuff, and then she would start cooking on her little stovetop with only two burners in the tiny kitchen. No recipes, no cookbooks. She hardly knew how to read and write. But in some mysterious way, her food was magical. So full of flavor with only few basic ingredients and only salt for seasoning it was cooked to perfection. Gosh, she even cooked cakes on that tiny stovetop. On fire! No oven!

I wish I wasn’t too young to learn all that from her. But back then I was given little tasks to do like snap the ends off of green or yellow string beans, sort through rice, “help” knead a dough, polish the silver candleholders.

My grandmas, probably yours too, never threw food away. They would always come up with ways to use ingredients that were about to go bad. This is what today’s recipe is about (as well as the ricotta cheesecake or any cheesecake). Any cheese’s odds and ends and those about to expire can be put to good use here. But use only delicious cheeses like ones you like to eat as is. As they say about wine, don’t use wine you won’t drink in a recipe, same goes for cheese. Cooking is magical, but not to that extent…

(Yes, I use brown parchment paper. It’s unbleached.)

I don’t remember how and where the recipe came from besides that it was created by an Israeli chef who wrote about food from the Balkan countries in Southeastern Europe.

Boykus – Savory cheese cookies

Makes about 30-40 cookies

For the dough:
3 cups flour
1 tablespoon (15 grams) baking powder
14 tablespoons (200 grams) butter, room temperature
1 egg
7 oz. (200 ml) plain yogurt (I use goat yogurt)
8 oz. (250 grams) feta (or another white, salty, a bit dry and firm) cheese, crumbled
7 oz. (200 grams) gruyere (or cheddar, fontina, etc), grated
5 oz. (150 grams) sour cream
1/2 teaspoon salt

For egg wash:
1 egg, lightly beaten
1/2 cup sesame seeds

Put all the dough ingredients in a bowl and mix well (you can do this by hand or in a mixer). Cover and refrigerate for 1 hour.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 C). Line a 1-2 baking sheets with parchment paper.

Make cookie shapes by creating golf-size* balls and then pressing them lightly to flatten a bit. Place on baking sheet/s. Brush each cookie with an egg wash and sprinkle with sesame.

Bake for about 20 minute, or until golden browned.

NOTE: if you have leftover cookies, keep them in the fridge and reheat in the (toaster-) oven. They also freeze well in a freezer-friendly bag/container.

* I don’t play golf but I imagine that’s what they look like…

* * * * *

OK, time to announce the readers who will receive a copy of the book “Not becoming My Mother”.

But before that, I want you to to know that I loved reading your comments and feedback, ideas, and opinions. I appreciate the sharing of your personal stories. This is why I contacted Ruth Reichl’s publicist and she has generously sent me 4 additional copies of the book. I have a lot more goodies waiting to be given away, so if you didn’t get a book today, there will be other chances later on, OK?!

OK.

Thank you all for participating and for your support.

And, don’t forget to give someone a hug.

The people to get a copy of the book are…..
Michele K.
Helen
Kate from Kate’s musings
Katrina from Eating on Tulsa time

… and the SIGNED copy goes to………………….
Jennifer from Awakened aesthetic

Please send me an e-mail (nurit AT familyfriendlyfood DOT com) with the address where to send the book to.

“Where is the photo of the banana bread?”, you might ask. And who is this person in the photo? (Photo was taken by my cousin).

I told you in my recent “a happy place” post that my father gave me an envelope with letters from my childhood years. I read them but will need to re-read them and do a more thorough research. One important thing that I did learn and never knew about before (or maybe it is stored somewhere in the back drawers of my memory) was that my grandma Sarah raised me when I was a little girl. I asked around a bit, trying to learn more. Some say I was living with her for a few months, some say it was for a few years, since the day my father left.

Sadly, the way things turned out, I could not see her much the following years. When I think about it now, it makes me want to cry. I really need to find out more about what happened then. When I grew up, I went back to her and visited her from time to time. I guess my childhood brain had a special place for her that drew me back to her.

She has been living in the same old house for the past 60 years, if not longer. I have some memories of being fascinated by the garden surrounding her house, which seemed so big when I was a little girl, but is really small when I think about it now. Just a narrow strip of land surrounding it. It had herbs, flowers and fruit trees, lemon, clementines, mango. I remember being addicted to mango. I loved it so much. I still do. My kids have inherited my enthusiasm for mangos too. It makes me very happy. And I know, they are definitely mine!

No matter what day I go to her house, the door is always open. I find her sitting in her little kitchen smoking a cigarette. She’s more than 80 years old and still smoking! But her home has the smells of food that has been absorbed in its walls. All those years of living there, cooking for family, friends, neighbors, guests. There is always the smell of food in the kitchen even if she hasn’t cooked at all that day. It smells like home. And food. I’d like to give that to my children. A home they can always go back to, where the door is always open, where they are always loved and accepted, where there is a smell of warmth and food and something delicious to eat.

I’m pretty sure that she had never baked a banana bread her whole life. Her style of cooking is totally different. I don’t have any recipes from her, but I will create and share with you one that reflects her cooking style and food soon.

*** Don’t forget the giveaway – a signed copy of “Not Becoming My Mother” + 4 more copies!!!***

*** Details here. ***

For now, I would like to share this recipe for banana bread that I made with my son over the weekend.

He brought home a cooking booklet the PTSA of his school has put together and wanted to make banana bread. I admit I was skeptic about the recipe and did not expect much. I have plenty of fancy cookbooks and was still looking for the best banana bread recipe. This one was a big surprise. It’s THAT good.

I don’t know the origins for it, but the booklet says the recipe was contributed by Jesse and Aaron. I made a few changes. Of course. Mainly, I like the nuts to be on top and not mixed into the batter. This way they are crunchy and taste a lot better. I also substituted butter for shortening (I never use shortening. Always butter).

Now I noticed that  I placed the bread on a plate my grandma gave me. I guess it was meant to be…
 

Banana nut bread

Using 8-1/2 * 4-1/2 inch (21*11 cm) loaf pan.
 
1 3/4 cup flour
1 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon salt
2/3 cup sugar
1 stick (115 grams) butter, room temperature
2 eggs
2 tablespoons milk
3 small (about 1 cup) bananas*, mashed
1/2 cup chocolate chips – optional
1/2 cup walnuts, chopped

Preheat oven to 350 F degrees. Grease loaf pan with butter (place parchment paper on the bottom of the pan – optional).

Sift together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a bowl. Set aside.

In a mixing bowl, beat the sugar and butter until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Scrape the sides. Add the eggs and milk, and beat until smooth. Scrape the sides again. On low speed, add the flour mixture and bananas alternately, beating until smooth.

Fold in the chocolate chips, if using. Pour the batter into the greased pan. Scatter the nuts on top.

Bake for 1 hour or until done. (Start checking after 45 minutes. I think I baked it for 45 minutes.) Cool in the pan for 15 minutes and remove to a platter to cool completely, that is if you can resist not eating it right away…

* Note: I like to use bananas that are still pretty fresh and not too brown. I don’t like the flavor of old bananas. This is why this bread tasted the best the same day it was baked. It’s good the following days too, but then it gets the taste of older bananas. Some people like that. I don’t. Also, my favorite recipes don’t use any brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg or any other spices, but it you like those, go ahead and add them.