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Mike's
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Those who know
me, know that I enjoy musing and writing a bit. View "Mike's Page" at our
website. My latest thoughts are about "time" and what it says
about us . . . Read
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Flatbreads,
Crackers and Wine
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 Bread and wine - it's a classic! The
pairing of simple breads and a glass of wine have stood the test of
time for years - and we're talking millennia, not a few measly
decades! The combination is not only the perfect food
marriage, it's a style of entertaining that is always in vogue and
always greatly appreciated. Add a chunk of cheese and its supper!
Include a fire in the hearth and it's the perfect, relaxing evening.
If you're ready for a little improvisation on this classic, this
issue's for you! We'll introduce some flatbread ideas to add
to your repertoire, explore homemade crackers, and demystify some
wine serving conundrums. We finish by offering three recipes
for flatbreads and crackers from Joanne Weir's book, "Wine Country
Cooking:" Brown Butter, Walnut
and Cheddar Wafers, Flatbread with Roasted
Shallots and Garlic, and Crispy Cracker
Bread. |
Celebrity
Chef - Joanne Weir
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 Joanne Weir was one of the first cookbook
authors who ever taught at Kitchen Affairs. We have often told you
that we try to get the best instructors before they become
well-known. JOANNE taught here before she was named as the
international winner of the very first IACP JULIA CHILD TEACHER
AWARD OF EXCELLENCE, before she had 4 cooking shows on PBS, and
before she had written 17 cookbooks. We have missed her in our
kitchen, and are excited to have her back in our school. JOANNE's
classes here are underwritten in part by CHANTAL COPPER FUSION
COOKWARE, and each student in each class will receive a CHANTAL fry pan
and an autographed copy of JOANNE's newest cookbook, Wine
Country Cooking; both are included in the price of each
class:
There are just a few seats left for these
classes - call us to register! We know you'll enjoy one or both of
these classes immensely. We look forward to you joining us in
the kitchen! | |
November
Cooking Classes
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Just in time for the holidays, we've
assembled some fantastic classes that will inspire your autumn and
holiday cooking. Make sure to check out the two Celebrity
Chefs featured during November: Jean Pierre Auge and Joanne
Weir. Check out our website to see the
entire Autumn Schedule and
complete class descriptions.
Click
on the class title for full information!
Call
us at (812) 474-1131, or stop in the store to
register!
Sat.,
Nov. 8 at 9:30am - Decorating Christmas
Cookies with Cathy Webb. $42.(also Nov 9th and 10th)
Sun., Nov. 9 at 1:30pm - Decorating Christmas
Cookies with Cathy Webb. $42. (also Nov 8th and
10th)
 Mon., Nov. 10 at 6:30pm - Decorating Christmas
Cookies with Cathy Webb. $42. (also Nov 8th and
9th)
Tue., Nov. 11 at 6:30pm
- A Cornucopia of Holiday
Ideas with Nicki Leathem. $42.
Thu., Nov. 13 at 6:30pm - Simple Pasta with David
Pampuch. $45.
 CELEBRITY CHEF
CLASS
Sat., Nov. 15 at
1:30pm - Tuscan Pork & Shrimp
Risotto with Joanne Weir. $125.
CELEBRITY CHEF
CLASS
Sun., Nov. 16 at
1:30pm - Chicken with Cheese &
Olives with Joanne Weir. $125.
Tue., Nov. 18 at 6:30pm - Basic Knife Skills with
Clark Stone. $50.
Wed., Nov.
19 at 6:30pm - Eating Local: An Intro to
Slow Food with Lelia Gentle. $70.
Join us in January for
some wintertime fun in our kitchen. Watch for our new class
schedule which will be posted on our website between Christmas and
New Year's. Just a reminder: Registration for this upcoming
schedule will open on Friday, January
2nd, not before!
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Fast
Flatbreads
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 Before drive-thrus and neon lights defined fast
food, flatbreads were the original fast food. Flatbreads hold all
the pleasures of homemade bread without quite the time
investment. Flatbreads span a range of unleavened and leavened
varieties, each a simple variation of grain, water, and salt.
Because of their natural thinness and high temperature cooking,
flatbreads do not require much for gluten formation - that's where
the speed advantage originates.
From the basics of flour and
water, flatbreads gather their unique flavors from a variety of
sources: ghee flavors Indian chapatis, olive oil seasons
Italian foccacia, and fermented sourdoughs are the trademark of
Eritrean injera. Herbs and spices delicately added to the
dough or sprinkled on top distinguish many variations.
While perfect just on their own, flatbreads are the perfect canvas
for delicious toppings and serve aptly as platforms for building a
hearty meal.
The term "flatbread" covers a lot of
territory! The many different types of flatbreads native to
countries and regions are part of culturally rich culinary themes
from around the globe and throughout time. Here are a few examples,
some familiar, some perhaps new to you:
List
quoted from Wikipedia - Flatbreads and noted in
accordance with Wikipedia Documentation
Licensing.
One of the things that I find fascinating about flat
breads is that the same breads are often eaten fresh, as soft
breads, or dried out, as crackers. Many are good both ways. One nice
feature of flat breads is that they make great sandwiches. You can
use them soft or if they have/are dried out like crackers, you can
soften them by sprinkling them with a little water and then letting
them rest in between two damp towels for 10 to 20 minutes. Just lay
out your chosen filling items on top, then roll them up. Wrap them
in plastic and refrigerate them for an hour or up to 4 or 5 hours,
the serve. If serving them in slices for a holiday party, just slice
right through the plastic wrap, then unwrap the slices as you lay
them onto your serving platters. We've done this with lavosh (which
we sell in the store), with na'an, with tortillas, with crepes, with
Arab-style pita breads (not the puffy kind you usually find in
Evansville), with steamed rice "noodles" which are actually steamed
flat breads available in Asian markets, and even with matzahs. As
always, you are limited only by your own imagination. Try a couple
of these for hors d'oeuvres or as an accompaniment to that steaming
bowl of home-made soup.
Investigate and incorporate some of
these internationally inspired flatbreads into your cooking
repertory! Start with the recipe below for Flatbread with
Shallots and Garlic. You won't be
disappointed!
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Homemade
Crackers . . . Mmmm . . . .
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 Before becoming the standard in today's
appetizer world, crackers were a practical solution for sailors
desiring ready, non-perishable food. Known as "pilot bread," flour
and water were mixed together, baked, and dried. They became
de rigueur for the long voyages of the 18th century. Legend has it
that the hard biscuits reduced bug infestations compared with stored
flours, though did not completely eliminate the problem. The
hard biscuits were dunked in hot tea, causing any bugs to float to
the surface where they were easily skimmed away. Yummmm . . .
.
Crackers became domesticated by Josiah Bent, a
Massachusetts baker, when his batch of biscuits over-baked and began
crackling in the oven - hence the term "cracker." His mistake
became a marketing opportunity that eventually became part of the
NabiscoŽ Company and today's $10 billion cracker
industry.
 We've outsourced a lot of our cracker making to
NabiscoŽ and KeeblerŽ; after all, they do it so well. But, you may
want to try your hand at making your own crackers. Crackers,
unlike cookies, are more like a pie crust or puff pastry with layers
of dough and fat interspersed then rolled into a very thin sheet.
Crackers are a great place to experiment with
different grain flours such as rye, buckwheat, spelt or other
non-wheat alternatives. Make your own crackers for a fraction
of the cost by using your food processor in a method similar to
making a pie crust: blend the grain and salt with butter/oil, then
gradually add water until a stiff dough is formed. Use
ingredients as follows:
Homemade
Crackers
 1 cup flour (wheat, rye, cornmeal, buckwheat,
rice or other flour)
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 tablespoons butter or
olive oil
3 tablespoons water, added gradually
Seasonings (add
to the dough or sprinkle on top of the rolled
dough)
Depending on the type of flour used, adjust the amount
of water until a firm dough is formed. Allow the dough to rest 20-30
minutes. Roll the dough to a 1/8 - 1/16-inch thickness on a sheet of
parchment paper; transfer the paper to a baking sheet for easy
handling of the very thin dough. Score the dough into the desired
cracker shape. Bake at 350 F for about 10-12 minutes. Get
experimental with the seasonings by trying specialty sea salts,
grilling spice mixes, cheeses, or toasted seeds or
nuts.
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What Wine? Which Glass?
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How you ever
been confused about what wine to serve in which glass? You're
not alone! At one point or another we've all needed to gather
this information and put it to use. Here's a brief synopsis of
some of the basics surrounding wine glasses and pairing them with
the right wine.
The shape and size of a wine glass is
meant to enhance and showcase a wine to its best advantage.
The color
of the wine should be brilliant and clearly shine through the
glass. This implies a purity in the glass that adds no
cloudiness or artifact to the experience. A fine glass will resist
scratches and wear marks that over time might blur the rich colors
of the wine. The temperature
of the wine is facilitated by the stem of the glass which allows the
warmth of the hand to stay distant from the wine. The bouquet
of the wine comprises the "first taste" and is enhanced by a glass
that gathers the wine's aromatics in the upper reaches of the
glass. Finally, the wine's taste
varies by how the glass's rim presents the wine to the mouth.
We're not always consciously aware of these nuances, but they do
make a difference in the enjoyment of a good wine even if you're not
a wine connoisseur.
 Red Wines - Red wine glasses have
a round, wide bowl and narrower opening at the top. The shape
allows the wine to breathe, then concentrates and traps the aromas
in the top of the glass. Among red wine glasses, there are
subsets. A glass intended for Bordeaux or Merlot, or other
full-bodied reds, directs the wine to taste buds in the back of the
mouth. Delicate red wines, like a Pinot Noir or Burgundy, are
served in red wine glasses with slightly larger bowls and a shape
that directs the wine to the front of the mouth.
White
Wines - White wines are served in glasses that are generally
narrower than red wine glasses. The narrower shape helps to
keep the temperature of the wine at the desired coolness. More
specifically, a Riesling glass is narrower than a Chardonnay
glass.
 Sparkling Wines - Gone are the flat
coupe shapes for champagne. Instead, serve champagne and
sparkling wines in tall narrow flutes that preserve the bubbles and
keep the warmth of the hand away from the bowl.
Dessert
Wines - Smaller in size, usually about 6 ounces, dessert wine
glasses are designed to promote the rich bouquets characteristic of
dessert wines, and for the delicate sipping of their
sweetness.
Sherry
- Sherry glasses feature a narrow bowl, approximately 4 ounces in
volume - suitable for a 2 ounce standard serving.
The Riedel company
focuses on making fine wine glasses. We proudly feature their
products in our store. At the Riedel website you'll find a
fantastic informational tool, the Wine & Glass Guide,
that allows you to pick one of hundreds of listed wines and find the
proper glass shape that best promotes the wine's
character.
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Smart
Flatbread and Cracker Tips
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 Tip
#1: Because crackers are made primarily of flour and
water, they are susceptible to absorbing humidity and losing their
crunch. Upon first opening a box of crackers, transfer them to
a zipper bag and reinsert the bag back into the box. If
crackers lose their freshness, a quick stint on a baking sheet in a
medium hot oven will usually revive them to serving
quality.
Tip #2:
Use a pasta maker to roll cracker dough to the desirable, even
thinness.
Tip
#3: A well-heated cooking surface is the key to making
good flatbreads. Ensure that your cast iron skillet, oven
stone, griddle, or panini grill is well-heated before cooking
flatbread. A drip of water should "skip" across the surface
when appropriately hot. Allow 30 minutes for an oven stone to heat
prior to baking your first piece of
dough. |
Q &
A's
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  Q: Crackers always seem to have holes on
their surface. What are these for?
A: The tiny holes in
crackers are officially known as "docking holes." The holes
allow steam to escape from the cracker during baking thus preventing
air bubbles from forming. The surface of the cracker dough is
pricked with a fork or the point of a skewer just prior to
baking.
Q: Why do wine
glasses have stems?
A: The stems on wine glasses
serve at least two purposes: (1) The stem provides a means for
the hand to hold the glass without its heat affecting the
temperature of the wine, and (2) Holding the wine glass by the stem
allows the bowl of the glass to remain free of fingerprints and
showcase the wine (and glass) to its best.
 Q: Wines come with traditional corks,
synthetic corks, or screw caps. Which is
best?
A: The hope in sealing a wine
bottle is to allow the necessary fermentation of the wine while
preventing oxidation and deterioration. Cork is harvested from
the bark of cork trees and is a renewable resource. "Cork
taint," is a condition where otherwise good wine has been tainted by
a chemical in the cork, TCA, which can significantly affect the
taste of the wine. Synthetic corks eliminate this cork
contamination, but are less effective in preventing oxidation.
Screw caps are effective closures for preventing cork taint and
oxidation, but hold a stigma of being "cheap." However, as
more fine wineries shift to screw caps this stigma will most likely
fade. |
Cookbook
Review
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Wine Country
Cooking by Joanne Weir. Published by Ten Speed Press,
Berkeley, CA. www.tenspeed.com. Copyright 1999,
2008.
 The
introduction's title captures the essence of this book, "The Wine
Country: A Latitude and an Attitude." Ms. Weir connects the
dots along the 38th parallel between lifestyles in the Mediterranean
and California's Napa and Sonoma valleys. Further, she defines
wine country cooking as "a simple, unfussy, updated Mediterranean
way of preparing and eating food that changes with the seasons and
celebrates the fruits of the field, the orchard, the pasture, the
river, and the sea, paired with your favorite wines." This
cookbook spans the table with gracious recipes for all types of
dining and for all courses. Every recipe we've tried has
returned top notch results! The rich photography augments the
descriptive writing perfectly and further entices the reader into
creating a "wine country" kitchen for themselves. Joanne Weir
is an award-winning author of seventeen cookbooks, a cooking
teacher, television host, and professional chef. We're
delighted that she's shared her favorite latitude and her great
attitude with us in this book! |
Recipes
|
Recipe excerpted from Wine Country
Cooking by Joanne Weir. Published by Ten Speed Press,
Berkeley, CA. www.tenspeed.com. Copyright 1999, 2008.
Reprinted with permission.
Brown Butter,
Walnut and Cheddar Wafers
 These morsels are addictive! Reminiscent
of a shortbread cookie in texture, the savory elements blend and
shine through each bite. We especially enjoyed the punch that the
cayenne brought. The "slice and bake" log formed from the dough
makes this an easy "do-ahead" prep. We made a double batch
keeping two of the four logs in the freezer ready for holiday
entertaining.
Click here to view the full
recipe.
Click here for a printable version of
the recipe.
Flatbread with
Roasted Shallots and Garlic
 This flatbread recipe is destined to be the
launching pad for all types of flatbread variations. The dough
works up quickly and easily and bakes into a tender, slightly chewy
bite. Enough about the dough! The roasted shallot and
garlic topping was spectacular! The fruitiness of the red wine
paired with the alliums created a "whole greater than the sum of its
parts." We served wedges of the flatbread alongside a simple
cheese plate. Divine!
Click here to view the full
recipe.
Click here for a printable version of
the recipe.
Crispy Cracker
Bread
 A crispy bread, or a giant cracker -- it
doesn't matter what you term it, they're great! The dough came
together in less than five minutes. Our large stone
accommodated four pieces at a time which made the whole process a
snap. We sprinkled a Celtic gray salt on top of each piece and
served them alongside last issue's roasted squash and pear
soup.
Click here to view the full
recipe.
Click here for a printable version of
the
recipe.
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