Buttermilk American Loaf Breadcooks Illustrated Food

SKILLET CORNBREAD WITH CHIVES

Steps:

• Place a rack in middle of oven and set skillet on rack; preheat to 450°F.
• Meanwhile, whisk cornmeal, sugar (if using), kosher salt, baking powder, and baking soda in a large bowl to combine. Whisk egg and buttermilk in a medium bowl; add to dry ingredients and mix to incorporate.
• Carefully remove skillet from oven, add lard, and swirl in pan to coat. Scrape batter into skillet (it should sizzle around edges on contact). Bake cornbread until top is golden brown and center is firm, 15-20 minutes. Let cool 15 minutes before serving.
• Spread butter over cornbread, top with chives, and sprinkle with sea salt.

BUTTERMILK BREAD FOR THE BREAD MACHINE

Steps:

• Place ingredients in bread machine,as listed above.
• Select basic bread machine cycle and start machine.

NO-KNEAD BREAD

Steps:

• In a large bowl combine flour, yeast and salt. Add 1 1/2 cups/345 grams water and stir until blended; dough will be shaggy and sticky. Cover bowl with plastic wrap. Let dough rest at least 12 hours, preferably about 18, at warm room temperature, about 70 degrees.
• Dough is ready when its surface is dotted with bubbles. Lightly flour a work surface and place dough on it; sprinkle it with a little more flour and fold it over on itself once or twice. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and let rest about 15 minutes.
• Using just enough flour to keep dough from sticking to work surface or to your fingers, gently and quickly shape dough into a ball. Generously coat a cotton towel (not terry cloth) with flour, wheat bran or cornmeal; put dough seam side down on towel and dust with more flour, bran or cornmeal. Cover with another cotton towel and let rise for about 2 hours. When it is ready, dough will be more than double in size and will not readily spring back when poked with a finger.
• At least a half-hour before dough is ready, heat oven to 450 degrees. Put a 6- to 8-quart heavy covered pot (cast iron, enamel, Pyrex or ceramic) in oven as it heats. When dough is ready, carefully remove pot from oven. Slide your hand under towel and turn dough over into pot, seam side up; it may look like a mess, but that is OK. Shake pan once or twice if dough is unevenly distributed; it will straighten out as it bakes. Cover with lid and bake 30 minutes, then remove lid and bake another 15 to 30 minutes, until loaf is beautifully browned. Cool on a rack.

CHERRY LOAF BREAD

Steps:

• Stir all dry ingredients together.
• Beat oil and eggs.
• Add vanilla.
• Mix all dry ingredients with flour. Add oil mixture to flour mixture.
• Stir in cherry pie filling and nuts.
• Pour into two loaf pans. Beat at 300 for 1 to 1 hour.

APPLE-NUT LOAF BREAD

Steps:

• Set oven to 350 degrees.
• Set oven rack to second-lowest position.
• Grease two loaf pans, or 7 mini loaf pans.
• Sift together flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt; set aside.
• Combine sugar, eggs, oil, sour cream and vanilla; beat well.
• Blend into flour mixture.
• Fold in apples and nuts.
• Pour into prepared pans.
• Bake 1 hour or until loaves test done.
• Bake less time for mini loaves.

BUTTERMILK AMERICAN LOAF BREAD(COOK'S ILLUSTRATED)

Steps:

• Adjust oven rack to lowest position and heat oven to 200 degrees. Once the oven temperature reaches 200 degrees, maintain the heat for 10 minutes, then turn off the oven.
• Mix 3 1/2 cups of the flour and the salt in the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with the dough hook. Mix the milk, water, butter, honey, and yeast in a 4-cup liquid measuring cup. Turn the machine to low and slowly add the liquid. When the dough comes together, increase the speed to medium and mix until the dough is smooth and satiny, stopping the machine two or three times to scrape dough from the hook, if necessary, about 10 minute (After 5 minutes of kneading, if the dough is still sticking to the sides of the bowl, add flour, 1 tablespoon at a time and up to 1/4 cup total, until the dough is no longer sticky.) Turn the dough onto a lightly floured work surface; knead to form a smooth, round ball, about 15 seconds.
• Place dough in very lightly oiled large bowl, rubbing the dough around the bowl to coat lightly. Cover the bowl with a damp cloth and place it in the warmed oven until the dough doubles in size, 50 to 60 minutes.
• Gently press the dough into a rectangle 1 inch thick and no longer than 9 inches. With a long side facing you, roll the dough firmly into a cylinder, pressing with your fingers to make sure the dough sticks to itself. Turn the dough seam-side up and pinch it closed. Place the dough seam-side down in a greased 9 by 5-inch loaf pan and press it gently so it touches all four sides of the pan. Cover with damp cloth; set aside in warm spot until the dough almost doubles in size 20-30 minute.
• Keep one oven rack at the lowest position and place the other at the middle position and heat the oven to 350 degrees. Place an empty baking pan on the bottom rack. Bring 2 cups of water to a boil in a small saucepan. Pour boiling water into the empty pan on the bottom rack and set the loaf onto the middle rack. Bake until an instant-read thermometer inserted at an angle from the short end just above the pan rim into the center of the loaf reads 195 degrees, 40 to 50 minutes. Remove bread from the pan, transfer to wire rack, and cool to room temperature. Slice and serve.

BUTTERMILK POUND CAKE LOAF

Steps:

• In a large bowl, beat shortening and sugar until smooth.
• Add vanilla.
• Add eggs, one at a time, beating after each addition.
• In another bowl, sift together flour, baking soda, and salt.
• Alternately add flour mixture and buttermilk, a little at a time into shortening mixture until blended.
• Pour into a greased and flour 9 x 5 inch loaf pan.
• Bake at 325 degrees for 1 hour.