Category Archives: Recipes – Cheese

Cheesy Breads and Panini using Yeast

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After a day of no bread in the house I had to provide bread by breakfast time or face a riot  in the kitchen.  To appease everyone I made Cheesy Buns, Panini, Pane di Casa and Foccacia.

I love baking with Biga and it remains my first preference.  Sometimes I have very little time for baking and  because I would rather go without than buy commercial bread, yeast is a fast option. The yeast product is lighter and softer whereas the Biga products are denser and a bit heavier and chewier.  There is no difference in the speed with which both types of breads are devoured by my household!

Cheesy Buns with Yeast

Mix 10 g Sugar and 10 g Dry Yeast with a little temperate water, wisk occasionally and let stand until frothy. This should take only a few minutes.

Mix 500 g Flour, 10 g Salt, 30 ml Olive Oil and the Yeast mix with 320 ml temperate water (taking into consideration the water already used for the yeast mix). Mix and knead well. This will give you a soft dough which should be of a consistency that just clings to your hands when kneading (makes it difficult to knead well). Place it in a warm place until double in size. I use my dehydrator / drier and set it at 38 C for about half an hour. Now mix in 100 g grated Cheese of your choice – I use a sharp Cheddar – and mix well. Divide into 24 equal balls and place in two well buttered muffin / cup cake pans and dust liberally with flour. Leave to rise again – mine goes back into the dehydrator.  Be careful not to over proof these two breads at the second rising, as it will collapse when put into the oven.  Start baking while bread is still rising strongly, even before it has reached the desired size. Bake in the oven at 220 C for 15 minutes.

Panini

Exactly the same as above, but exclude the cheese and size and form the Panini the way you like. Bake in a well buttered oven pan.

 

 

Enjoy!

Ricotta and Beetroot Tops Pasta. One of the best pastas I have ever eaten and I have eaten a LOT of pasta!

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Most of the ricotta has been devoured; we ate it on toast with jam on top, as part of an antipasto spread involving the roast carrots and beetroot that the tops came from, and I am ashamed to say that I ate some ‘straight’ using a spoon. Today’s lunch was delicious and quick to prepare

Ricotta and Beetroot Tops Pasta 

2  cloves garlic

4   tablespoons of olive oil (More if tr is too tight)

1  pinch chili flakes

3  cups cooked beetroot tops. I have quite a lot in the fridge after cooking my harvest.  link

4  strips of bacon, chopped ( normally I would use panchetta, but where I live good quality Italian meats are non existent)

1/2 cup of ricotta (or, in my case, as much as you have left over)

Spaghetti

Parmigiano grated

Put the spaghetti into fast boiling, salted water. Cook until al dente, not soggy. Use a pan big enough to hold the sauce and the pasta. Crisp the bacon  in olive oil and add the chili and garlic. When the garlic has softened add the beetroot tops and fry for a bit. Cook until the beetroot is hot, check for salt and pepper. Stir in the ricotta, not too well,  keep a few lumps in the mix  Add the pasta and mix. Serve with grated parmgiano .

HOMEMADE RICOTTA

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Home made Ricotta is fairly easy to make and can be eaten as is or as an ingredient in other dishes like beetroot tops pasta . Here is my recipe with some cheats to speed up the process a little.

1   liter fresh whole milk. If you can find raw milk the recipe is smoother and richer with an improved taste.

1   teaspoon salt

4  teaspoon lemon juice

3  tablespoons of home made yoghurt, or Greek style yoghurt with live culture in (read the label carefully)

Bring the milk, salt and lemon juice to the boil in a saucepan and simmer for 15 minutes. The curds will rise and float on top of the milk. When cooled down a bit mix in the yogurt, wait for 5 minutes for the curds to rise again and scoop out with a slotted spoon into a colander lined with muslin. Stand the colander in a bowl  that would catch the whey. Leave for 12 to 24 hours until the cheese is the right consistency.