Playing With Pita

I've been known to say, "I was made for the kitchen." Maybe that is the reason that even during the time I set aside for vacation from baking people's orders this Christmas season, I somehow couldn't stay out of the kitchen.

One day I decided it was time to try making falafel pita. Everything was going to be from scratch, even down to the tahini to make a garlicky sauce.

First to be made was the tahini and tahini sauce. Since our freezer contains a surplus of sesame seeds from bread experiments, I went on a hunt for sesame recipes. Thus tahini, a paste made from grinding, you guessed it, sesame seeds. I felt like a pro smashing and mincing garlic, tasting, and altering the sauce recipe.

I made the falafel right before the meal. Normally deep fried in patties or small balls, this yummy bean and spice mixture makes a great meat substitute. My recipe came from a health magazine, so I simply fried it in an oiled pan. Talking to my well traveled cousin, I found out that this food is commonly served in Egypt.

Though the falafel and tahini sauce were both easy and enjoyable to make, the most fun, hands down, was the pita. Knowing pita has a bad reputation among home bakers for being flat and uncooperative, I searched my favorite blog for some tips. Sure enough, they had the answer. The secret - baking on a cooling rack!

Here we go. Flat-as-a-pancake dough going into the oven.

Three minutes later: Flying saucers!

Falafel pita with tahini sauce and all the fixings.

Ready to take a bite?

Bacon, Eggs, and... Black Pepper Seed Bread?

Do you have favorite bread and spread/filling duos? I have a few -- Whole Wheat French Boule with peanut butter and jam, Dill-Onion Bread and fresh tomato, Cran-Orange Whole Wheat Bread and chicken salad, and Black Pepper Seed Bread and cheese. Lately my goal has been to broaden my sandwich horizons. Black Pepper Seed Bread (still my favorite flavored bread) should have more matches than cheese, I'm determined. What could they be?

Unfortunately I have only had one loaf of this bread in the freezer and 6 hungry adults to feed, so experimenting has been rather limited. Where to start? How about that recipe I saw in the latest Country Home magazine? I've always loved BLT's, and fried egg sandwiches are a good and easy comfort food, so why not. Here's what I (with plenty of help from the family) did.

Mix together:
2 T. mayonnaise
1/2 tsp. Dijon mustard
1 tsp. capers, drained
Fry:
4 slices bacon
4 eggs (Fry after the bacon in a little of the drippings.)
Toast:
4 slices Black Pepper Seed Bread
Slice:
Tomato (we used Romas - not so sloppy wet)
Snip:
Fresh basil, optional

Spread some mayonnaise mixture on the toasted bread. Pile with egg, tomato, and bacon in whatever order you wish and sprinkle with basil if desired.

This is what it looked like.
Now of course with 6 hearty, country eaters we made more than this, but these are the proportions in the recipe.

This is what I learned from fixing this sandwich:
-Don't try out a new food when you are over-tired and stressed. Nothing tastes good then.
-Basil grown at home from the same packet but on different years (thus different growing conditions) isn't necessarily going to taste the same. I'm curious to know what the conditions were this year that made it stronger.
-Capers aren't my favorite flavoring.
-Eggs, bacon, and tomato mask the wonderful, peppery flavor of the bread.

This sounds pretty negative, but not all the ratings were as critical as mine. I may just have to try it again sometime, with a few alterations of course. Meanwhile the mother-of-all recipe hunt continues. If I don't succeed there is always cheese! Who coined the phrase, "Variety is the spice of life," anyway?

PS - Mom's current spread of choice on Black Pepper Seed Bread is home-made apple butter. Sound strange? Try it, and you may just be surprised.

Hamlet in the Kitchen II

A chosen jury consisting of Mom, Hannah (a sister), and Elsa met at the kitchen counter this noon. After careful consideration they deemed the sesame seeds as unnecessary to the benefit of Black Pepper Seed Bread and banned them from the recipe.

So, what's in Black Pepper Seed Bread? Made with a mix of unbleached and whole wheat flours, it is flavored with course ground black pepper, pumpkin seeds, and raw sunflower seeds. If you asked me which of my savory breads is my #1 favorite (at the present, anyway), I'd have to say this bread. I love the aromatic flavor of pepper mixed with the crunch of seeds. Mom's comment is that it makes delicious sandwiches. Grilled cheese sandwiches made with Black Pepper Seed Bread! Mmmm...

Hamlet in the Kitchen I

To use sesame seeds, or not to use sesame seeds. That is the question.

Black Pepper Seed Bread has nearly passed the rigorous testing stage before being put on my sales list. Today I made two batches - one with sesame seeds and one without. The questions these loaves will answer are: Do sesame seeds make a difference in the bread? Are these seeds even noticeable? Be watching for the consensus and pictures!

Something new I learned: Sesame seeds come in two colors - white and brown. White sesame seeds have their hull removed while the brown ones are unhulled. I opted for the brown ones when trying them in Black Pepper Seed Bread, mainly because of price. I wonder, do the brown ones have more fiber?