Experimental Low Gluten Bread

1½ tsp bread yeast

1 cup sourdough starter (made with rye & spelt flour)

1 cup rye flour

¾ cup spelt flour

¼ cup 9 grain seed mixture

½ cup potato flakes
1 tsp xanathan gum

2 TBSP sugar or honey

3 TBSP olive oil

1 egg

1 tsp salt

½ cup milk

Load it into the bread machine, set it on "Whole Wheat" and fire it off. Adjust consistency by adding milk/flour as needed to make an appropriate bread dough consistency. 

Spaghetti for Company

Serves 12

Ingredients

• 1 lb bacon, cubed.
• 1 lb sage sausage. I used Jimmy Dean.
• 2 heads garlic, peeled and sliced
• ½ white onion, peeled & chopped.
• 2-3 TBSP dried Italian Seasoning
• 1½ tsp ground black pepper, maybe more.
• 2 TBSP dried Italian seasoning
• ½ tsp beef bouillon concentrate (low sodium variety)
• zero salt (this doesn’t need it)
• 1 large can (29 oz) cooked and diced tomatoes.
• 2 jars or cans, prepared tomato sauce; I used “Garlic & Herb.”

Preparations: preheat the cast iron Dutch oven on a stovetop burner. Chop the bacon up & fry it. Set aside on paper towels to drain. Pour off most of the grease, but save it for later.

Toss the sausage in the hot Dutch oven. While the bottom is cooking, use the spatula to cut into modest-sized meatballs. When these are about half done, add the garlic and cook together with the sausage. Drain tomatoes, reserving liquid; add to sausage. Add bacon and stir well while frying. When they're hot and spicy, add tomato sauce and reserved tomato juice. Bring to a boil, stirring.

I cooked the onions separately, in bacon grease. When they’re mostly done, add the beef bouillon concentrate. Cook together for a few more minutes and add to the sauce.

Adjust spices, which mostly means add more of this or that. Reduce heat and simmer for 4 hours. Yes, I said 4 hours.

Serve over whole wheat pasta. Enjoy!

Mashed Potato Italian Savory Bread

2 teaspoons yeast

3 cups flour

¾ cup leftover mashed potatoes

2 tablespoons butter

1½   tsp. salt (more or less to taste)

2 tablespoons sugar

¾ cup milk (slightly more if try potatoes)

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 TBSP Italian seasoning

4 cloves garlic, roasted and minced

4 strips bacon, cooked & chopped

4 ounces sharp cheddar cheese, shredded

1 tsp of your favorite pepper mix. I use Trader Joe’s Everyday Seasoning

Variation: add a batch of sage.

Barbecued Bacon Wrapped Chicken Breasts

Note: This is not suitable for vegetarians, dieters, or wimpy eaters. 

For each portion:

1 chicken breast, at room temperature.

5 or 6 strips of bacon,

6 leaves fresh basil.

    (also consider rosemary, thyme or spearmint)

Directions:

Preheat the barbecue on medium high. Put a Pizza stone or other brick/stone cooking surface on the barbecue’s grilling surface to preheat with the barbecue.

Lightly pound out chicken breast until it’s a uniform thickness. Season lightly with pepper, no salt.

Cut a 14” square of aluminum foil. Lay the uncooked bacon on the foil to form a solid layer. Lay the chicken breast on top of the bacon, and lay the fresh herbs on top of the chicken.

Using the foil, wrap the bacon completely around the chicken. Roll up the edges of the foil (just to take up less space on the barbecue). Do not cover the bacon-wrapped chicken.

Drizzle olive oil on the baking stone, and place the foil with the bacon on the hot stone. Close the lid. Cook undisturbed for ten minutes or until you see bacon fat running off the foil and the backing stone. It will make your cooking fire happy.

Use the foil (and hot pads) to flip the meat over to cook directly on the stone.

Continue to cook, turning regularly but not frequently, until a meat thermometer reads 190⁰ in the center of the chicken breast.

Note: unless the stone is darkened from the smoke and juices of previous cooking adventures, the bacon will cook, but remain its bland, uncooked coloring. Be particularly careful that the bacon is indeed cooked.

Serve with a flavorful beer or ale. A Belgian Dubble or a Pale Ale would go well with this.

Fairly Traditional Pesto Sauce

Ingredients:
1 cup of fresh basil
2/3 cup of freshly grated Parmesan
2/3 cup of extra-virgin olive oil
½ cup of pine nuts
2 cloves of crushed garlic
salt

Method
Chop the basil, garlic, pine nuts and salt in a food processor until a purée has formed.
Slowly add the olive oil, while the processor is still running and continue to blend for a few seconds.
Switch the machine off and stir in the grated cheese.
The sauce is now ready to serve, store in the refrigerator or freeze.

This stuff is excellent!

Fresh Basil & Thyme bread

1¾ tsp yeast
3 cups bread flour
1 cup rye flour
1½ TBSP gluten
1½ tsp salt
2 TBSP sugar
1½ olive oil
1½ TBSP butter, in small pieces
2 TBSP milk powder
1⅓ cups 2% milk

Herbs:
½ cup finely chopped fresh basil leaves
⅓ cup finely chopped fresh thyme leaves
1 TBSP finely chopped fresh mint leaves
1½ TBSP 9-grain seed mix.

Put it in the bread machine in this order, fire it off and come back later to enjoy.

The herbs are fairly mild in the final bread; the bread is firm and well-textured.

Siah's Grilled Taters

4 lbs red potatoes. Smaller is better.
¼ cup olive oil
¾ lb bacon, cooked and crumbled
1 large red onion.
¼ cup white wine vinegar.
2 TBSP white wine vinegar for after taters are grilled.
1 TBSP sugar.
1 cup crumbled blue cheese.
Parsley for decoration.

Boil potatoes until mildly tender. Drain water and half or quarter the taters. Toss taters with olive oil, salt & pepper. Grille until golden brown.

While grilling, sautee onions in 1//4 cup oil, ¼ cup vinegar and sugar (until dissolved).

Mix everything together, and add bacon, cheese & parsley.