Cornmeal Crust Food

CORNMEAL CRUST FOR PEACH POTPIE

Steps:

• Pulse flour, cornmeal, sugar, and 1 3/4 teaspoons salt in a food processor until combined. Add butter; pulse until mixture resembles coarse crumbs with no large pieces remaining. Add yolk, and drizzle 1/4 cup water evenly over mixture. Pulse until mixture just begins to hold together when pressed between 2 fingers (it should not be wet or sticky). If dough is too dry, pulse in more water, 1 tablespoon at a time.
• Turn out dough onto work surface, and knead once or twice to combine. Divide dough in half. Shape into disks. Wrap in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.

CORNMEAL CRUST

Steps:

• Whisk cornmeal with 1 1/2 cups cold water.
• In a medium saucepan, bring 2 1/2 cups water, salt, and pepper to a boil.
• Gradually stir in cornmeal mixture. Reduce heat; simmer, stirring often, until very thick, 4 to 5 minutes.
• Remove from heat; stir in butter until melted.

CORNMEAL PIZZA CRUST

Steps:

• Fit the kneaded blade on a heavy-duty mixer.
• Proof the yeast in 1/2 cup water with 1 teaspoon sugar until foamy (about 8 minutes).
• In the stainless steel bowl place 5 cups flour, salt, sugar, oil and cornmeal.
• When the yeast is proofed, add to the bowl along with 1-1/2 cups warm water; start kneading adding in more flour as needed to create a soft smooth dough.
• After the kneading is finished, let the dough rest in the bowl for 8-10 minutes.
• Remove the dough from the mixing bowl and shape in a ball.
• Place into a well greased bowl, cover and let rise in a warm place for about 45 minutes, or until doubled in size.
• Punch down dough and let rest for 10 minutes before shaping (this is important, the dough must rest for 10 minutes).
• Roll out the dough into two 16-inch circles.
• Place into lightly greased pizza pans.
• Top as desired.
• Bake in a 400 degree oven until lightly golden brown (about 15-20 minutes).

CORNMEAL PASTRY CRUST

Steps:

• In a large bowl combine flour, cornmeal and salt.
• Whisk to combine well.
• Cut in shortening to resemble coarse crumbs and sprinkle 1 T.
• of water over the mixture.
• Toss with a fork, pushing to the sids of the bowl, repeating until all dry ingredients are moistened.
• Form the dough into 2 balls and chill for 30 minutes.
• Roll out and use as you will.

CORNMEAL CRUST

Steps:

• Heat oven to 425. Grease 12 inch pizza pan with shortening.
• Heat water to boiling in 2-quart saucepan.
• Stir in remaining ingredients with wire whisk until mixture is smooth and thickens.
• Spoon onto pizza pan and spread evenly, mounding edge slightly.
• Bake 5 to 7 minutes or until set and light brown.
• After you top pizza with your favorite toppings, bake for 15 to 20 minutes or until cheese is melted and toppings are hot.

CAJUN CORNMEAL CRUSTED CHICKEN

Steps:

• Preheat the oven 350 degrees F.
• In a medium bowl, whisk 1/2 cup of the flour with the cornmeal, Cajun spice, and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Put the remaining 1 cup flour, buttermilk, and the cornmeal mixture respectively in 3 shallow dishes. Season the buttermilk with hot sauce, to taste.
• With the flat side of a cook's knife or the smooth side of a meat-pounder, pound each breast to equal thickness. Pat the chicken breasts dry and season with salt.
• Lightly coat each breast in flour and shake off any excess. Dip each breast into the buttermilk to coat and remove, shaking slightly so the excess buttermilk drains back into the bowl. Dredge the chicken in the cornmeal mixture, shaking off any excess coating. Lay the chicken on a piece of waxed paper.
• Heat a large (12-inch) cast iron skillet over medium heat with about 1/2 inch of oil. Lay 2 chicken breasts smooth-side down in the pan and cook until golden brown, 3 to 4 minutes. Flip and cook 3 to 4 minutes more. Drain chicken on a paper towel. Repeat with remaining chicken.
• Place all chicken breasts on a rack over a baking sheet and bake until firm to the touch, 6 to 8 minutes. Season with salt, and serve immediately with mustard mayonnaise or sliced tomatoes.

CORNMEAL CRUST

Steps:

• Prepare the butter and lard, if using. Cut the butter into 1/2-inch (12-mm) cubes (a bench scraper is perfect for this, but a sharp knife works well too), and cut the lard into small pieces. Return them to the fridge to cool.
• In a liquid measuring cup, stir together the milk and vinegar. Refrigerate the mixture until ready to use.
• On a clean flat surface or in a large shallow bowl, toss the flour, cornmeal, cornstarch, sugar, and salt together lightly to blend. Add the butter and lard (if using) to the dry ingredients and, using the tool of your choice, cut the fat into the flour with speed and patience, until the fat has been reduced to small pea-sized chunks. Try to use a straight up-and-down motion, as the more you press on the flour the more tough gluten will develop. Avoid using your fingers, as the heat from your hands will melt the fat and further encourage gluten development. Unlike with pasta or bread, gluten is the enemy of pie dough, so be gentle, and be quick!
• Once your fat has been cut down to size, spread your mixture out to expose as much surface area as possible. Gently drizzle about half of your milk mixture over the flour, trying to cover as wide an area as you can. Using bench scrapers or a large spoon, lightly toss the flour over the liquid, then spread everything out again, and repeat the process with the second half of the liquid.
• You should now have a dough that will just hold together when pressed against the bowl, with visible little chunks of butter. If you need to add more liquid to bind it, do so with more cold milk, adding a tablespoon at a time until you reach the right texture. It's not an exact science, as everything from the humidity in the air to the dryness of your flour will affect the consistency of your dough.
• Once you've reached your goal, cover the dough tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate it for at least 1 hour. The dough can be kept in the fridge for up to 1 week, well wrapped, or in the freezer for up to 2 months.

CORNMEAL BUTTER CRUST

Steps:

• Mix flour,cornmeal,sugar and salt in the bowl of a food processor. Add butter and pulse until incorporated. Add water, 1 tbsp at a time while pulsing,until ball forms. Remove and wrap with plastic wrap. Chill at least 30 minutes.
• Roll dough out on a lightly floured surface with a lightly floured rolling pin into a 14-inch diameter round. Fit into a 9-inch pie pan, and crimp excess dough around the edges of the pan. Chill at least 15 minutes.

CORNMEAL PIE CRUST

Steps:

• Combine cornmeal, flour and 1 tsp salt in a bowl.
• Cut in shortening.
• In a separate bowl, beat together egg and 1/4 cup water.
• Add to cornmeal mixture.
• Press into 9 inch pie plate to form crust.
• Use in place of regular pie crust.

CORNMEAL-CRUSTED ROASTED RATATOUILLE TART

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• For the crust: Combine cornmeal, flour, and salt in the bowl of a food processor. Pulse to incorporate. Add butter and oil and pulse about 20 times, until mixture resembles small pebbles. You can also do this by hand, using a pastry cutter to cut the butter in, or the two-knife method.
• Add water and pulse (or stir with a wooden spoon) until mixture forms a loose dough.
• Remove dough from processor (or bowl) and press into the bottom and about 1/8-inch up the sides of a 9-inch tart pan with a detachable rim (or a springform pan).
• Press aluminum foil into the bottom and sides of the pan on top of the dough and weigh down with uncooked rice, raw beans, or pie weights.
• Place tart pan on a baking sheet and bake for 10 minutes.
• Remove from the oven and remove rice (or beans or pie weights) and foil. Return to oven and bake for an additional 5 minutes, or until no longer shiny and wet. Remove from oven and let cool.
• Increase the oven to 400 degrees F.
• For the filling: Heat 1 teaspoon of olive oil in a nonstick pan over medium heat; saute shallots until soft, about 5 to 6 minutes.
• Line 2 baking trays with aluminum foil, and spray with cooking spray.
• Arrange the eggplant, zucchini, and tomato slices on the trays in a single layer and brush with the remaining olive oil. Season with salt and pepper, and roast the vegetables until soft but not browned, about 15 minutes.
• Remove the vegetables from oven and cool.
• Lower the oven temperature to 350 degrees F. Lay the eggplant slices in 2 layers on the bottom of tart; cover with 1/3 of the mozzarella cheese and some of the shredded basil.
• Add the zucchini and shallots, top with another 1/3 of the mozzarella and basil, then the tomatoes.
• Top with rest of the mozzarella cheese and the Parmesan.
• Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until cheese is melted and vegetables have further wilted.
• Remove from oven, let cool for 5 minutes, and cut into 8 slices.
• Serve warm.