Country Sage Bread Food

COUNTRY BREAD AND SAGE DRESSING

Steps:

• Heat large saute pan over high heat. Add the sausage and cook until golden brown. Remove the sausage with a slotted spoon to a plate lined with paper towels. Add butter to the rendered fat in the pan, and then add the onions, celery and carrots and cook until soft. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute. Remove the mixture from the heat and fold in the sage. Scrape the mixture into a large bowl and let cool slightly.
• Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
• When the vegetable mixture has cooled slightly, add the sausage to the bowl. Add the egg and bread and mix to coat. Add the chicken stock until the mixture is moist. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.
• Butter a large baking dish and scrape the mixture into the dish. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until golden brown.

COUNTRY SAGE BREAD

Steps:

• In a large bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water. Add the milk, sugar, shortening, celery seed, salt, sage, nutmeg, egg and 2 cups flour. Beat until smooth. Stir in enough remaining flour to form a soft dough. , Turn onto a floured surface; knead until smooth and elastic, about 6-8 minutes. Place in a greased bowl, turning once to grease top. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1-1/2 hours. , Punch dough down. Shape into a round loaf. Place in a greased 8-in. or 9-in. pie plate. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 45 minutes. , Bake at 400° for 35-40 minutes or until golden brown and bread sounds hollow when tapped. Remove from pie plate to a wire rack to cool.

COUNTRY BREAD

Steps:

• The day before making the bread or early in the day, make the poolish (or biga) by placing 8 ounces of the flour, 7 ounces of room temperature water and the yeast in a large bowl and mixing it well with a wooden spoon. Cover the bowl with a kitchen towel and let it stand for 2 to 3 hours at room temperature or in the refrigerator overnight. The poolish should double in volume.
• Add 1 pound of the flour and 12 ounces of room temperature water to the poolish and mix together well with your hands. It will be very sticky. Cover the bowl with the kitchen towel and let rest for 30 minutes.
• Sprinkle the salt over the surface of the dough and then fold the dough onto itself several times until the salt is incorporated. Cover the bowl with the kitchen towel and let the dough rest for 1 hour.
• Cover your hands with flour and sprinkle flour around the outside edge of the dough. Fold the dough onto itself 6 to 8 times. Cover the bowl with the kitchen towel and let rest for 1 hour.
• Fold the dough onto itself 6 to 8 times, dust a board generously with flour and pour the dough out onto the board.
• Divide the dough into two equal parts and turn and form each part into a ball, stretching the dough to form a smooth top. Sprinkle flour heavily in 2 separate bowls (there should be enough flour to keep the dough from sticking) and turn each ball of dough upside down into a bowl. Sprinkle the top of each ball with flour, cover each bowl with a kitchen towel and let it rise until doubled in size, about 45 to 60 minutes.
• Preheat an oven to 500 degrees F and line 2 sheet pans with parchment paper.
• Turn each ball of dough bottom-side up onto its own sheet pan and use a knife or razor blade to score a tic-tac-toe design on the top of each loaf.
• Place the loaves in the oven, immediately lower the temperature to 450 degrees F and bake for 30 minutes. (Do not open the oven door!) The loaves are done when they are golden brown and make a hollow sound when tapped on the bottom. Cool the loaves on a baking rack.

COUNTRY SAGE BREAD

Steps:

• In a mixing bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water. Add the milk, sugar, shortening, celery seed, salt, sage, nutmeg, egg and 2 cups flour. Beat until smooth. Stir in enough remaining flour to form a soft dough. Turn onto a floured surface; knead until smooth and elastic, about 6-8 minutes. Place in a greased bowl, turning once to grease top. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1-1/2 hours. Punch dough down. Shape into a round loaf. Place in a greased 8-in. or 9-in. pie plate. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 45 minutes. Bake at 400 degrees F for 35-40 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from pie plate to a wire rack to cool.

BASIL AND SAGE BREAD

Steps:

• Sprinkle yeast over 1 cup water in large bowl, stir to dissove.
• Let stand for 5 minutes.
• Mix rye and white flour together to equal 6 cups flour.
• Mix 1 1/2 cups flour in with yeast/water, stir well.
• Sprinkle 1/2 cup flour over dough.
• Cover with plastic wrap or damp towel and let rise in warm area until doubled (1 1/2 hours).
• Heat oil in skillet over low heat.
• Add basil and sage, stir about 1 minute.
• Remove from heat and cool.
• Blend 1 cup of flour, oil mixture, 1/2 cup water (or wine), salt and pepper into dough using a dough hook or by hand.
• Slowly add remainlng 1/2 cup water.
• Stir in remaining 2 1/2 cups flour, 1/2 cup at a time until dough is smooth and elastic (10 minutes if using dough hook), adding more flour if dough is still sticky.
• Grease large bowl.
• Add dough, turning to coat all sides of dough.
• Cover bowl and let rise until doubled (1 1/2 hours).
• Grease two baking sheets.
• Punch dough down.
• Divide dough in half.
• Form each piece of dough into a 14-inch long loaf.
• Place on baking sheets, seam side down.
• Let rise in warm area until almost double (1 hour).
• Preheat oven to 400-degrees F.
• Slash tops of loaves with knife.
• Bake bread 50-60 minutes or until bread sounds hollow when tapped on bottom and is golden brown.

COUNTRY SAUSAGE AND SAGE DRESSING

Steps:

• 1. The bread should be completely stale. If not, spread the cubes on a baking sheet and put in a low oven (250 degrees) for about 1 hour to dry them out. (I think this light toasting gives the dressing a better flavor.)
• 2. Heat the vegetable oil in a large skillet. Add the sausage meat and brown it, breaking up meat into pieces about the size of a quarter. This need not be precise. Transfer meat from skillet to large bowl, using a slotted spoon. Add onion and celery to the skillet. After 1 minute, add the apples and cook 2 more minutes. Place in bowl with sausage.
• 3. Add bread cubes, parsley and sage to the bowl.
• 4. In a separate bowl, mix the eggs and stock with the salt and pepper. Pour this over the sausage mixture and gently toss all the ingredients. They should combine without mushing.
• 5. Generously butter a 16-inch baking pan (2 tablespoons). Spread the mixture in the pan and dot with more butter (4 tablespoons).
• 6. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and bake for 50 minutes to 1 hour. The top should have a nice golden brown crust.

WILD SAGE BREAD

Steps:

• Combine sugar, sage, salt, baking soda and flour.
• Dissolve yeast in 1/4 cup warm water.
• Beat egg and cottage cheese together until smooth.
• Add melted shortening and yeast.
• Add flour mixture slowly to egg mixture, beating well after each addition until a stiff dough is formed.
• Cover dough with cloth and put in warm place until double in bulk (about 1 hour).
• Punch dough down, knead for one minute and place in well-greased pan.
• Cover and let rise for 40 minutes.
• Bake in a 350-degree oven for 50 minutes.
• Brush top with melted shortening and sprinkle with crushed, roasted pine nuts or coarse salt.

SAGE BRAID

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment. Divide dough into 6 equal pieces. Roll each piece into a 16-inch-long, 3/4-inch-wide rope.
• Braid 3 ropes together on a prepared sheet, tucking in sage leaves as you work. Pinch ends to seal; tuck under loaf. Brush with beaten egg. Drape loosely with buttered plastic wrap. Repeat with remaining dough, sage leaves, and egg wash. Let rise in a warm spot until doubled in bulk, about 55 minutes.
• Bake loaves until golden brown, about 20 minutes. Brush center with butter and continue baking until outer crust sounds hollow when bottom is tapped, about 8 minutes more. Brush all over with butter. Let cool completely on a wire rack before serving.