On baking day, the housewife generally mixes enough dough for at least fifty loaves of bread.  While the dough is proofing, she lights the firewood in the tannour.  The tannour is ready for baking when the flame dies down and the wood coals are glowing.  Baking in the tannour is usually a collaborative effort with the housewife and her friends.  One of the woman rolls out the piece of dough, then passes it to another woman who tosses it on her hands until it reaches the desirable thickness and size, and she in turn passes it a a third woman, who places the loaf on a round cotton pillow.  Now comes the delicate part of operation.  Using the pillow on which the flattened dough is placed, this last woman literally stick the dough onto the hot clay inside the tannour.  It takes no more than a couple of minutes to have finished loaf, which is removed with great speed by the woman tending to the tanoor itself. 

Sometimes, my grandmother would prepare couple stuffing.  She would make sauteed Swiss chard and onion, zaatar and oil or pepper with tomato.   She would stuff the fresh dough with the Swiss chard stuffing and flatten the dough and then stick it inside the tanoor.  Or, she would brush the fresh baked bread with the zaatar mix or pepper mix.  We used to play around the tannour until the bread is out and  Sitoo, grandmother, brush it with the zaatar.  All what you could hear after that is silence.

http://youtu.be/GpqPcrpcNTk

A tannour is a three foot by two foot oven made from a special kind of clay that retains heat.  Usually, four to five families will share a tannour, so it is placed in a location convenient for all the families involved. It is usually placed on the ground next to a wall.  The space between the tannour and the wall is filled with rocks that are packed smoothly with a special clay.

On baking day, the housewife generally mixes enough dough for at least fifty loaves of bread. While the dough is proofing, she lights the firewood in the tannour.  Thetannour is ready for baking when the flame dies down and the wood coals are glowing.  Baking in thetannouris usually a collaborative effort with the housewife and her friends.  One woman rolls out piece of dough, then passes it to another woman who tosses it on her hands until it reaches the desirable thickness and size, and she in turn passes it to a third woman, who places the loaf on a round cotton pillow.  Now comes the delicate part of the operation.  Using the pillow on which the flattened dough is placed, this last woman literally tosses the dough onto the hot clay wall inside the tannour, and, amazingly, the dough sticks to the wall.  It takes no more than a couple of minutes to have a finished loaf, which is removed with great speed by the woman tending to thetannour itself.

Zaatar Mixture

makes 2 cups

1       cup Mediterranean thyme

1/2  cup Mediterranean sour sumac

1/4  cup ground toasted chickpeas

3      tablespoons toasted sesame seeds

1      tablespoon ground rosemary

salt to taste

-Mix all the ingredients.

-Spread the mixture on a cookie sheet and place in a 350 F. oven for 5 minutes.

-Remove from the oven and allow the mixture to cool before using or storing.

-Add olive oil 2 oil to 1 Zaatar to make zaatar bread or to use as dipping oil.

Caramel Fat Free Bread Pudding

serves 8

4       cups evaporated skim milk

2       cups Eggbeaters

1       cup raisins

1       tablespoon orange marmalade

2 1/2 cups sugar

4      cups of French or Italian bread cubes

-In a large bowl, whisk together evaporated skim milk, Eggbeaters, 1 cup of sugar, raisin, and the orange marmalade.  Mix well.

-Mix the bread with the milk mixture.  Cover and refrigerate for couple of hours.

-In a small heavy sauce pan, mix the rest of the sugar with 1/2 of water and cook over high heat until sugar turn into a nice amber color.  Pour and spread the caramelized sugar into an 8X11 inch baking pan.

-Pour the milk and bread mixture into the baking pan.

-Bake in a 350 F. degree oven for one hour.

-Remove from the oven and allow it to cool. This dessert can be served hot or cold.

Even in Latin America, a tortilla is basic.  Even if it doesn’t look much like bread, at least as we know it. I’ve found that most cultures produce wonderful bread as a routine matter.

Whether in good times or bad,  most societies have fallen back on bread as their staple. In bad times the bread was made darker and more hearty to fill the average stomach.  And in good times, bakeries began bleaching the flour as a way of allowing people to withdraw from what was seen as “poor man’s bread”.

The problem has been that, although white bread became a sign of prosperity, it became less and less nutritious.

In many Third World countries the only food that is still subsidized by the government is bread.  During the French Revolution, sometimes called the bread revolution, the rioting began when the public could no longer afford to buy bread.  It was Marie Antoinette who, when told the peasantry could not afford bread, said, “If they can’t buy bread, let them eat cake.”  It was enough to get her beheaded well ahead of the rest of the aristocracy.

In Europe, bread baking is an art.  Bakers must study their craft in school before they’re allowed to bake a product for sale. When I attended baking school in Paris, there were certain kinds of bread the instructors refused to demonstrate because the recipes were kept a secret.

People in many societies insist that bread be fresh baked, a fact attested to by the presence of a bakery on virtually every street corner.

If you have couple slices left for the second day use them in this easy and filling soup.

Poor man’s soup

serves 4

4     tablespoons olive oil

1     medium onion, finely chopped

6    cups water

1/2  cup tomato paste

1/2  teaspoon oregano

salt and pepper to taste

3    cups dry Italian or French bread, cut into 1-inch cubes

salt and pepper to taste

-Saute the onion in the heated olive oil for a couple of minutes.  Add the water, the oregano, the tomato paste, the salt and the pepper.  Bring to a boil.

-Cover and simmer for 10 minutes.  Turn off the heat and stir in the bread cubes.  Cover and allow the soup to rest for 15 minutes.

-Stir with a fork, mashing the bread against the side of the pot.  When reheating use only low heat to avoid burning the ingredients.

Gluten Free Flat Bread or Pizza Crust

makes 4 loaves or 1 pizza crust

1       cup short grain rice

2       cups water

2       cups quinoa flakes

1/2  cup white sorghum flour

4       tablespoons olive oil

-Place rice with water and little salt in heavy saucepan.  Bring to a boil.  Turn the heat down and cook until the rice is soft and the water is absorbed.  Remove from the heat and allow the rice to cool.

-Add the sorghum flour, the quinoa flakes and 2 tablespoons olive oil.  Knead gently unitl all the flour is incorporated into the rice and you have a sticky dough.

To make pizza crust:

-Grease your palms with olive oil and spread the dough on a greased pizza pan.  Bake in a 375 F. degree oven for 15 minutes.  Remove from the oven, top with tomato sauce, cheese and any other topping.  Bake for extra 10 minutes.

To make flat bread:

-Grease your palms with the olive oil and divide the dough into four balls. Flatten each loaf to become a 1/8-inch thick flat and place on a greased cookies sheet.  Bake in a  375 F. degree oven for 15 minutes.  Remove from the oven and allow the bread to cool at room temerature.  Wrap and refrigerate.

Gluten Free Kalamata Olive Bread

makes 1 loaf

1       cup Kalamata olives, pitted and chopped

1/4  cup olive oil

1/2 cup warm water

1/2 cup caramelized onions

1      tablespoon butter, melted

3     eggs

2     cups sweet white sorghum flour

1      teaspoon salt

1      teaspoon rosemary

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

-In a food processor, puree the olives, oil, butter, water and onion into a smooth puree.  Set aside.

-Mix flour with salt, rosemary and baking soda.

-Whisk the eggs, then add to the olive mixture.

-Gradually add the flour mixture to the egg-olive mixture and mix gently.

-Pour the batter into a greased bread pan.  Bake in a 350 degree oven for 50 minutes or until crust is golden and knife inserted in bread comes out clean.

-Remove from the oven and allow to cool on a wire rack for 1 hour.