Cornbread: BBA Challenge

This week in the Bread Baker's Apprentice Challenge, we made Corn Bread. This particular corn bread is very moist, very sweet and very filling. Peter Reinhart created this version as an accompaniment to Thanksgiving dinner or to help recreate Thanksgiving flavor memories throughout the year. That sounded like a pretty good idea to me. I love holiday meals and I love corn bread...but not necessarily in July.

What is corn bread?

Corn bread is the generic name for quick breads made with cornmeal. We take corn for granted these days, but bread made from cornmeal was a mainstay of colonial diets, in both the North and the South, for almost two centuries.

Southern cooks prefer to use white cornmeal, while Northern cooks tend to use yellow cornmeal and add sweetening to their breads. You can decide which type of cornmeal and method you prefer.

If you're baking along with us, turn to page 151 in the Bread Baker's Apprentice to locate the recipe and list of ingredients.

 

Making the Cornmeal Soaker

Soak the polenta (coarse cornmeal) in buttermilk the night before you plan to make the cornbread. Cover and leave at room temperature overnight. I made the soaker in the morning and let it sit all day. Then, I decided not to bake the cornbread that night so I refrigerated it until the next day. I took the soaker out of the refrigerator a couple of hours before I baked the bread to take the chill off.

Preparing the Bacon

The next day (or night) when you're ready to make the cornbread, prepare the bacon by baking it in the oven until it is crisp. Once the bacon has cooled, crumble it into coarse pieces. Drain off the bacon fat and save for greasing the corn bread pan (or just use vegetable oil to grease the pan). I decided to use the bacon fat this time, but I think next time, I'll forgo the bacon fat and just grease it with vegetable oil. I don't like the thought of all that fat!

Making the batter

Sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt into a mixing bowl. Stir in the sugars.

Lightly beat the eggs. Dissolve the honey in the melted butter. Then stir the warm honey-butter mixture into the eggs.  Add this mixture to the cornmeal soaker.

 

Add the wet mixture to the flour mixture and stir with a large spoon or whisk until all ingredients are thoroughly blended and the batter is smooth.

Stir in the corn kernels until they are evenly distributed.

Baking the Corn Bread

Grease a 10-inch round cake pan (or a 9 by 13-inch baking pan or a 12-inch square pan) with the rendered bacon fat or vegetable oil. I love to make corn bread in my trusty 10-inch iron skillet so that is what I used. Place the pan in the oven for 5 to 10 minutes until the grease gets hot. Then remove the pan carefully (with heavy oven mitts or potholders).


Tilt the pan to grease all the corners and sides, then pour the batter and spread it evenly in the pan. Sprinkle the crumbled bacon pieces evenly over the top and gently press them into the batter.

Bake the corn bread for about 30 minutes or until it is firm and springy and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

The top of the bread should be a medium golden brown.



Allow the bread to cool in the pan for 15 minutes before slicing it into squares or wedges. Serve warm.

I love cornbread, but I decided it's too hot for such a rich version. I enjoyed the first bite because it was very flavorful and the texture was wonderful! However, I had a very hard time finishing even one piece because it was really heavy!

It was really hot in Atlanta this past week so that's probably the reason I didn't enjoy this bread very much. I decided to freeze it and save it for later. I think it would taste good with a bowl of soup or chili in the Fall. I'll let you know...

Thanks for joining us in the Bread Baker's Apprentice Challenge.  Next time, we'll be making Cranberry-Walnut Celebration Bread. I made this bread for Thanksgiving last year and it is wonderful!

Happy Baking!
Cathy

Crusty Yeasted Corn Bread

Today in the bread-baking blog, we're making a Crusty Yeasted Corn Bread with Coarse Salt. I must say that this bread surprised me ... it's really good! I love real corn bread and what I mean by that is Southern corn bread. However, this corn bread has become one of my favorites. I highly recommend it!

 

Let's get started...

If you would like to bake along with us, turn to page 77 in Kneadlessly Simple to locate the recipe and list of ingredients.

Crusty Yeasted Cornbread with Coarse Salt

This yeasted corn bread is made using the Kneadlessly Simple method by Nancy Baggett.

Makes: 1 large loaf (12 to 14 portions or slices)

 

First Rise:

 

In a medium bowl, stir together the polenta and boiling water until lump-free. Let the mixture stand until cooled.

Stir the dry ingredients together in a large bowl until well mixed.

Whisk the water into the polenta mixture.  Scrape down the sides and mix until the ingredients are thoroughly blended.

If the mixture is too dry, add additional water, a little bit at a time. Or, if necessary, add a little extra flour until it forms a fairly soft dough. I added a little extra flour.

Brush the top of the dough with oil. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap.  Refrigerate the dough for 3 to 10 hours. I refrigerated it for 10 hours overnight.

Then let the dough rise at cool room temperature (about 70 degrees F.) for 15 to 20 hours. If convenient, stir the dough about halfway through the rise.

The dough after resting on the counter 10 hours

I stirred down the mixture about halfway through the rise.

The mixture after 18 hours of resting on the counter.

 

Second Rise:

Using an oiled rubber spatula, lift and fold the dough in towards the center. Don't deflate it completely and don't stir.

Oil a 9- to 9 1/2-inch deep-sided pie plate. Sprinkle cornmeal on the plate and tip the plate back and forth to spread the cornmeal on the bottom and sides.

Use an oiled rubber spatula to loosen the dough from the bowl all the way around.

Then, gently invert the dough into the plate.  Sprinkle the dough with more cornmeal.  Pat and press the cornmeal into the dough with your fingertips.

 

Then firmly tuck the sides of the loaf underneath all the way around to form a smooth, round, high domed loaf. It should be about 7 inches in diameter.

 

Cut 5 or 6 2-inch curved shallow slashes starting from the center of the dome to create a pinwheel effect.

 

Spray a sheet of foil with cooking spray and then tent the dough.

Let the dough stand at room temperature for 1 1/2 to 2 1/2 hours. Continue the rise until the dough doubles from its deflated size. Remove the foil if the dough reaches it.

Baking the Bread

20 minutes before baking time, put a rack in the lower third of the oven and preheat the oven to 450 degrees F. Set a broiler pan on the oven floor.

Generously sprinkle the loaf top with water. Then sprinkle coarse salt over the top.  Prepare the pan for steaming by pouring 1 cup of ice water in the broiler pan. Then reduce the heat to 425 degrees.

Bake the loaf uncovered for 25 to 30 minutes until the loaf is nicely browned and the loaf is firm.

Then, transfer the loaf from the pie plate to a baking sheet. I think I must've missed this part because I baked my loaf in the pie plate the whole time. I did cover the top with foil to keep it from browning too much though.

Bake for about 30 to 35 minutes more (depending on your oven) until a skewer inserted into the thickest part comes out mostly clean. Then bake for 5 to 10 minutes more to be sure the center is done.

Cooling the Bread

Cool in the pan on a wire rack for 15 minutes. Then remove the loaf from the pan and let it cool for a little while.  Let it cool completely before slicing or serving.

Serving and Storing

Serve the bread warm or cooled. It will keep at room temperature for 2 days or you can freeze it for up to 1 month. To maintain the crisp crust, store the bread wrapped in a clean tea towel or heavy paper bag. You can re-warm it uncovered on a baking sheet for a few minutes if you like. I just microwaved my slices for a few seconds and buttered them. Yummy!

Here is a slice just for you. Can't you just taste it? Mmmmm....

This bread is so good! I've never had yeasted cornbread before, but I will definitely make this one again. Like I mentioned before, I highly recommend this bread! It goes well with homegrown vegetables from the garden.

Thanks for visiting The Bread Experience Bread-Baking Blog.

Happy Baking!
Cathy

Cinnamon Raisin Bread: BBA Challenge

For Day 9 of the BBA Challenge, we made Cinnamon Raisin Walnut Bread. Oh boy! Is this bread good! And, it's relatively easy to prepare! The only problem with this bread is that my taste tester and I cannot decide which cinnamon bread we like better - this one or the no knead version. I think it's a tie! Both breads are great!

This cinnamon bread can be made in an evening. In fact, I started the dough after work, set it out for the first rise, made dinner, then walked on my favorite trail for an hour, came back and shaped the loaves and let them sit for the second rise, then baked them the same night. Granted, it was a little late when I finished and went to bed, but it was worth it. I had a delicious piece of cinnamon toast for breakfast the next morning! Yummy!!!

Peter Reinhart recommends a couple of substitutions to add additional flavor to this bread. I tried them and recommend them as well. It's worth the little bit of extra time & effort it takes to roll the dough out (instead of shaping in into a loaf), and then sprinkle it with cinnamon sugar before baking. Once it's done baking, you can brush the top of the loaf with butter and add additional cinnamon sugar on top. Mmmmm...


Let's get started baking.

If you're baking along with us, turn to page 147 in the Bread Baker's Apprentice to locate the recipe and list of ingredients.


Cinnamon Raisin Walnut Bread

Mixing the dough:

Make sure you have all of your ingredients together. Stir together the dry ingredients in a mixing bowl. Add the egg, shortening, buttermilk, and water. Mix with a large spoon until all the ingredients come together and form a ball.




Kneading the Dough:

Transfer the dough to a counter sprinkled with flour. Begin kneading. The dough should be soft and pliable, tacky but not sticky. If necessary, add a little flour to achieve this consistency.




Sprinkle in the raisins and walnuts during the final minutes of kneading. You want to distribute them evenly without crushing them too much.  Keep kneading in the raisins and walnuts until they are thoroughly incorporated into the dough.



1st Rise:

Lightly oil a large bowl and transfer the dough. Roll it around to coat it with oil.



Cover the bowl with plastic and let the dough ferment for about 2 hours, or until the dough doubles in size.




Shaping the loaves:

Divide the dough into two equal pieces and form them into loaves.



At this point, you can shape the dough into loaves and bake them. Or, for additional flavor, roll the two pieces out into rectangles and add more cinnamon sugar before shaping them into loaves. That's what I decided to do.

Sprinkle cinnamon sugar on top.



Starting to roll the first loaf.



Continue rolling...

 

There, now we have the first loaf.  Be sure to pinch the seems together.



Then place the loaf seam side down in a lightly greased 8 1/2 by 4 1/2-inch pan. Mist the top with cooking spray.



Shape the 2nd loaf using the same process and cover both loaves loosely with plastic wrap.







2nd Rise:

Proof the loaves at room temperature for 60 to 90 minutes, or until the dough crests above the lips of the pans and is nearly doubled in size.





Baking the Loaves:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F with the oven rack on the middle shelf. Place the loaf pans on a sheet pan. Make sure the pans don't touch each other. Bake the loaves for 20 minutes. Rotate the pans 180 degrees for even baking and continue baking for another 20 to 30 minutes, depending on the oven.

The finished loaves should be golden brown on top and lightly golden on the sides and bottom. The loaves will make a hollow sound when thumped on the bottom.




Cooling the Loaves:

Remove the loaves immediately from the pans and cool on a wire rack for a least an hour. It is best to wait 2 hours before slicing or serving. This is the hard part!




To give the bread even more flavor, brush the loaves with melted butter while they are still warm and sprinkle cinnamon sugar over the top.

Now, all that's left to do is to eat a slice... The best part!



Thanks for joining us this week. Next time, we'll be making Corn Bread. Yes, you heard that right. Corn bread is not normally a yeast bread, but Peter Reinhart included corn bread in this book because he claims it's such a good recipe. Well, we'll just have to see about that! If it's anything like the rest of his breads, it will be fabulous! I'm ready to try something different. How about you?



Happy Baking!
Cathy