Italian Loaf Rustica Food

RUSTIC ITALIAN BREAD

Steps:

• Note: Preheat your oven to 375 degrees
• There are 2 techniques that I will call out below that deal with where you add the sugar. There is one way where you add the sugar to the yeast and another where you add the sugar to the flour. I have used both ways and they both work for me.

RUSTIC ITALIAN CRUSTY BREAD RECIPE

Steps:

• In a large mixing bowl or your kitchen aid mixer add the flour, salt and yeast. Use a spatula or the paddle attachment and mix to combine well.
• Pour in the warm water and keep mixing until everything is incorporated and a soft dough has formed. It will still stick to the bottom of the bowl and that is OK.
• Cover the bowl with some plastic wrap loosely and a tea towel. Allow the dough to rise at room temperature for 2 to 3 hours until doubled in size.
• Sprinkle some flour on your kitchen counter and dump the bread dough on it. Flour your hands to help it out of the bowl as it will be sticky. Don't panic, this is normal.
• With floured hands fold the dough onto itself forming it into a round ball. Do not knead it, do not handle it anymore than you need to. Use a sharp knife and lightly carve an X in the top of the loaf or just make a few cuts across.
• Place the bread dough on top of a lightly floured pizza peel, cardboard or parchment paper and allow it to rest while your oven is heating up.
• Preheat your oven to 450"F with a pizza stone inside for about 45 minutes before baking the bread. Fill an oven proof bowl with 2 inches of water and place it on the bottom rack. This will create the steam that will cause the crust to become crispy as it bakes.
• Once your oven is hot sprinkle the pizza stone with some semolina flour or corn meal and carefully slide the bread loaf on top. Bake the bread for about 30 to 45 minutes until golden brown all over and cooked through.
• Transfer the bread to a cooling rack and allow to cool off completely before slicing into it. You can also let it cool inside the oven with the door slightly open.

RUSTIC ITALIAN BREAD

Steps:

• BREAD MACHINE DIRECTIONS
• PLACE all ingredients except cornmeal and egg white in bread machine pan according to manufacturer's directions. Process on DOUGH setting.
• SPRINKLE ungreased cookie sheet with cornmeal. At end of dough cycle, remove dough from machine. Place on lightly floured surface. Punch down dough. (If dough is sticky, knead in additional flour before shaping.) Cover dough with clean cloth. Let rest for 15 minutes. Shape dough into baguette-shaped loaf about 12 inches long. Place loaf on cornmeal-coated cookie sheet. Cover. Let rise in warm place (80 degrees to 85 degrees F) for 20 to 25 minutes or until light and doubled in size.
• HEAT oven to 375 degrees F. Make 1 deep lengthwise slash with sharp knife in top of loaf. Brush loaf with egg white. Bake 25 to 35 minutes or until loaf sounds hollow when lightly tapped.
• CONVENTIONAL OVEN METHOD
• SPOON flour lightly into measuring cup. Level off. Combine flour, sugar, salt and yeast in large bowl. Mix well. Add warm water and oil. Mix well. Turn dough out onto lightly floured surface. Knead dough 10 minutes or until smooth. Place dough in lightly greased bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and cloth towel. Let rise in warm place (80 degrees to 85 degrees F) for 30 to 40 minutes.
• SPRINKLE ungreased cookie sheet with cornmeal. Punch down dough. Cover dough with inverted bowl and allow to rest on counter 15 minutes. Shape dough into baguette-shaped loaf about 12 inches long. Place dough on cornmeal-coated cookie sheet. Cover. Let rise in warm place 35 to 40 minutes or until doubled in size.
• HEAT oven to 375 degrees F. Make 1 deep lengthwise slash with sharp knife in top of loaf. Brush loaf with egg white. Bake 25 to 35 minutes or until loaf sounds hollow when lightly tapped.
• High Altitude (3500 ft.):
• No change.

ITALIAN MEATLOAF

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
• Heat 1/4 cup of the olive oil in a medium saute pan over medium heat and add the garlic. Saute 1 minute and then add the peppers and onions and saute until just soft. Let cool.
• Whisk together the basil, parsley and eggs in a small bowl, and then add the salt and black pepper. Combine the Parmesan and breadcrumbs in another small bowl. Thoroughly combine the meat, herbs and eggs, Parmesan and breadcrumbs, the Worcestershire, vinegar and remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil together in a large bowl using your hands, making sure not to overmix.
• Pack the meat mixture into an oiled loaf pan, if you do not have a loaf pan, form the meat mixture into a loaf shape on an oiled oven tray or baking dish. Top with the marinara making sure to spread evenly over the top.
• Bake for approximately 50 to 60 minutes or until an instant-read thermometer registers 160 degrees F in the middle of the meatloaf. Remove from the oven and let rest for 5 minutes. Slice and serve.

PIZZA RUSTICA

Steps:

• Position the rack on the bottom of the oven, and preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
• Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a heavy large frying pan over medium heat. Add the sausages and saute until golden brown, breaking the sausage into pieces, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and saute until fragrant, about 1 minute. Transfer the mixture to a small bowl and set aside to cool.
• Meanwhile, heat 1 tablespoon of oil in the same frying pan over medium heat. Add the spinach and cook until the spinach wilts and the juices evaporate, stirring often, about 10 minutes. Cool to room temperature. Squeeze the spinach to drain as much liquid as possible.
• Into a large bowl, add egg yolks and beat lightly. Stir in the ricotta, mozzarella, and 1/3 cup of Parmesan cheese. Add the sausage, the spinach and prosciutto to the mixture and stir to combine.
• Roll out larger piece of dough on a lightly floured work surface to a 17-inch round. Transfer the dough to a 9-inch springform pan. Trim the dough overhang to 1 inch. Spoon the ricotta mixture into the dough-lined pan. Roll out the remaining piece of dough into a 12-inch round. Place the dough over the filling. Pinch the edges of the doughs together to seal, then crimp the dough edges decoratively. Brush the beaten 1 large egg over the entire pastry top. Sprinkle the remaining 2 tablespoons Parmesan over the top. Bake on the bottom shelf until the crust is golden brown, about 1 hour.
• Let stand 15 minutes. Release the pan sides and transfer the pizza to a platter. Cut into wedges and serve.
• Blend the flour, the butter, the shortening and salt in a food processor until the mixture resembles coarse meal. Blend in the eggs. With the machine running, add the water 1 tablespoon at a time until the dough forms. Gather the dough into a ball. Divide the dough into 2 pieces, with 1 piece twice as large as the second piece. Flatten the dough pieces into disks. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate until the dough is firm enough to roll out, about 30 minutes.

ITALIAN MEAT LOAF

Steps:

• In a bowl, combine the egg, half of the tomato sauce, bread crumbs, onion and green pepper if desired, 1/2 teaspoon of oregano, salt and pepper. Add beef; mix well. , On a large piece of heavy-duty foil, pat meat mixture into a 14x8-in. rectangle. Sprinkle cheeses to within 1/2 in. of edges. Roll up, jelly-roll style, starting with a short side and peeling foil away while rolling. Seal seam and ends. Transfer to a microwave-safe glass 9x5-in. loaf pan. , Microwave, uncovered, at 50% power for 9 minutes, rotating a half turn once; drain. Continue cooking on 50% power for 14-16 minutes or until meat is no longer pink, rotating a half turn once. In a bowl, combine the remaining tomato sauce and oregano. Pour over meat loaf. Microwave, uncovered, on high for 1-1/2 minutes. Cover loosely with foil; let stand 5 minutes before serving.

ITALIAN MEATLOAF

Steps:

• Heat oven to 190C/170C fan/gas 5. Line the long sides and base of a 2lb loaf tin with double thickness baking parchment. Mix 2 tbsp each of the breadcrumbs and Parmesan in a small bowl and set aside. Tip all the remaining ingredients into a large bowl with a good shake of salt and pepper and mix well - hands are the best for this job.
• Press the mixture into the loaf tin and sprinkle with the reserved crumb mix. Bake for 40-45 mins until the top is golden and crunchy. If the top does not colour in the oven, pop the tin under the grill and brown the top for 5 mins. Cool in the tin for 5 mins, then lift out using the parchment and put on a board. Slice and serve with potatoes and green beans.

ITALIAN LOAF RUSTICA

Steps:

• Crumble sausage into large skillet (if sausage comes in casing, remove and discard casing).Add onion and garlic and sauté, stirring occasionally, until sausage is browned. Drain off fat; set sausage mixture aside to cool.
• In large bowl, combine 1/2 cup all purpose flour, the whole-wheat flour, cornmeal, sugar, salt, and yeast. Stir in water and butter; mix will. Stir in remaining 1 cup flour to form a soft dough. Cover dough in bowl and let rest 10 minutes.
• Grease 9- or 10-inch spring form pan. Stir down dough. With buttered fingers, press about 2/3 dough in bottom of greased pan. Add cheese and peppers to sausage mixture; spoon into center of dough. With spoon, spread and press filling toward edge of pan. leaving a 1/2=inch rim of dough at side. Drop remaining dough by tablespoonfuls over filling. With back of spoon or buttered fingers, carefully spread dough to cover and enclose filling (top will be rough). Cover loaf loosely with cloth. Let rise in warm place, away from drafts, until dough is double in size--20 to 30 minutes.
• Heat oven to 400°F Brush top of dough with beaten egg; sprinkle with sesame seeds. Bake at 25 to 30 minutes or until bread pulls away from side of pan and loaf is golden brown. Cool 5 minutes. Loosen loaf from pan with knife; remove side of pan. To serve, cut into wedges; refrigerate leftovers.