It's a Bread Revival

This is not a freshly baked loaf of bread. On the contrary. It's a tired old loaf from Trader Joe's that was forgotten during our end of summer heat wave. No one wants toast when it's 100 degrees. I could have wrapped it in plastic and froze it, as I usually would have done; pulling it out to defrost when I was ready. But I didn't. Instead, I left it wrapped in the back of the fridge, to harden like an old leather boot. Was it salvageable? I had no idea. I just needed two slices with my tea...

I have saved many loaves over the years with this one being one of the driest, densest I've attempted to revive; and with nothing to lose, why not make some toast, anyway? At the very least someone will learn how to save a perfectly good loaf of bread.

First, the mission: to reconstitute this thing back to life. We are looking for moisture and slice-ability. Secondly, we want to eat it. I prefer toasting older bread in slices; bringing out the last of its qualities, and maybe even erasing some of its tiredness.

Here is my most simple revival; an elementary technique I have done a hundred times over. But you will need a microwave. Yes, disparaging chefs, a microwave. Hey, if Ferran Adria can use a microwave to bake-off sponge cake... validation right here:



It's not a big deal, the bread is practically dead anyway; just be sure to stand far away from the microwave, like, in the next room.

And if you are a luddite, as we should be, I'm sure you'll find the time to defrost, naturally. It could take at least an hour in a cool kitchen. 

Bread Revival

1) Microwave the loaf in 30 second increments until just market-fresh soft. I find that 90 seconds is usually good enough. You do not want to loosen the bread too much, just soften it to the degree of slice-ability. Avoid a sweaty, steamy loaf, at all costs. It will be spongy.

2) Next, you have two choices: slice and toast to order, or bake the half or whole loaf in a 350' oven for 15 minutes, then slice.

Slicing

Having the right knife is the most important factor when working with whole loaves of bread. People use the wrong knives all the time resulting in injury, or even worse, ruining a good loaf. The wrong knife is a chefs knife, or any knife that is not serrated. Serrated is the only knife one should use for slicing bread.

When you have purchased your serrated "bread knife" from Bed Bath and Beyond, very affordable, remember to gently "saw" the bread. Never push down on the bread, as you will smash it's delicate crumb into a gluey mess.

Update

I can now slice bread with my less dominant left hand... And right dominant hand is less lame everyday(!)

the tired, old boot

the resuscitation begins

the mighty serrated knife, emblazoned with my alma mater

slice and toast up... 

wish I had eggs...

My Godmother: Bay Cities Italian Deli

Sometimes it's too darned hot to cook and if you live on the west side of Los Angeles you probably don't have "air". We brag about our breezy west side weather all the time but occasionally the beach hits close to triple digits and you know what that means: your beautiful beach bungalow is a sweltering 20 degrees hotter than the weather report. Not so beautiful when you look like you've just ran a marathon for crossing your living room.

So, you load up on watermelon and head out to eat in search of cool a breeze and air-conditioning. And there is no place better than the venerable Bay Cities Italian Deli and Bakery. On a hot day no one minds waiting 30 minutes to place an order. The air is on blast and the cool Pelligrino is in the case behind you. In fact, I have waited a damned long time to place my Godmother order because it is worth every minute of every day. Who that Godmother was or is, I do not care, for she's mine now. Her cold-cut combo is perfection. Mortadella meets coppacola, ham, prosciutto, salami and provolone; and piled just so with "the works": onion and pickles, shredded lettuce and tomato, and an Italian spicy pepper salad that is down-right addictive.



And let's wax a little about the bread. The bread is baked fresh on the half hour and the rolls are airy, crusty and chewy.


Just don't go on Monday.

MONDAY CLOSED.

Lake Party ~ Savory Bread Pudding with Manchego, Chorizo and Challa?

Cooking lakeside with awesome people is as fun as it sounds. And even twice as much fun when you have an air-conditioned RV with a hallway kitchen and one of those 1940's pullout drawer cutting boards. Us cooks love that sorta thing. And to make matters better, the only kitchen tool I brought along was a box grater that I threw into the trunk of my car at 4 AM before my 5 hour drive to the lake. Oh, it was gonna be fun.

And better yet, in the midst of loading bags of groceries, a boat and paddle boards Max forgot her tools, too. Like somebody said: great minds think alike. Or possibly, great minds get overwhelmed... Whatever. We just like a challenge anyway, or at the least don't mind one, and certainly wouldn't be chefs if that weren't the case.

But we did plan a menu and had much forethought about what meals would make our lake-crew happy in the 108 degree heat in Arizona. We factored in lake activities, sun exposure, laziness, and built a menu just a few days after Max and her guy Marco stepped off a plane from Peru, from Peru to Costco to the lake, amazing. We would keep it easy and guilty with lots of chips and dips, cheese and salami; tacos with margaritas; sangria; sandwiches for the boat and a big Chinese chicken salad... all kinds of goodness. We wrote our lists and headed to the market. 

I was responsible for a few meals with a suggestion from Max, it was her birthday weekend, to bake-up some bready, cheesy, custardy, sausagey mess for Saturday's brunch. It would be the perfect followup to Friday night's frozen Margaritas and pair real nice with morning mimosas. Plus, we had an oven and air-conditioning. Why not take advantage? Three things immediately came to mind: Manchego cheese, Spanish chorizo sausage and a braided loaf of challa. I would set it up the night before and bake it off in the morning while we nursed our coffee. Simple and lazy. 

So, when Max unhinged that cutting board from its cabinet, on Friday evening, laid it on the table and starting sectioning oranges for sangria with a knife that had probably never had an edge, we all laughed ourselves to tears. Marco blended the drinks and Deborah squeezed avocados from their skin into the only mixing bowl in the kitchen, a "Dorito" bowl... It was darned funny as we crowded around the kitchen table with four dogs at our feet; in wet bathing suits; with Max's mom and dad; and Deborah singing her anthem "this is how we do it", Montell Jordan; you can find it on Youtube, best affirmative dance song ever...

And we did it.

Here it is:

Savory Bread Pudding with Manchego, Chorizo and Challa 

It's a lazy persons recipe because you can throw it together the night before and bake it in the oven the next morning and feel like a champ. And the ingredients are simple:

6 eggs

2 pints of half and half

1 cup of shredded Manchego

1 cup of shredded Gruyere

1 loaf of braided challa bread

1 Spanish chorizo sausage

Salt and pepper

*marmalade onions-- I had some in my freezer from my Onion Marmalade post

pull the bread apart and remove the crust; it's easy

grate your cheeses and slice your sausage

make a custard by combining the eggs and the half and half; don't forget to season with salt and pepper

top the torn bread with the shredded cheese, chorizo and pour the custard of the top, pressing it down with the back of a spoon to evenly moisten and mix

if you have it, crown with onion marmalade

cover with foil and rest in the fridge over night

bake at 400' for 35- 45 minutes and make your coffee

And to be extra guilty, serve with a side of bacon; Max's dad Bo had some good stuff

And again, happy birthday Max, xoxo