Tuesday, September 25, 2007

Raise your hand if you haven’t made no-knead bread yet. Yep, that’s what I thought—I’m the only one in the world who hasn’t baked this miracle of yeast, flour and water. Heck, my mom, the person who taught me how to knead at a very young age, even she now bakes it. That’s my loss, I suppose, because having had the pleasure of eating it I do find it quite delicious. But Sunday I wanted a loaf of fresh-from-the-oven bread and just couldn’t wait overnight for the dough to work its magic: this meant I’d have to bake bread the old-fashioned way—by kneading.

I grew up with homemade bread and mom always had a jar filled with sourdough starter living the in the fridge. Though she didn’t just make sourdough bread—she also made cinnamon-raisin bread, dark whole-wheat bread, dinner rolls, saffron rolls, hot-cross buns, and a multitude of other baked goods that involved yeast, kneading and patience. When I was young I hated being the only kid with a sandwich on homemade bread, but over time I grew to love that toasty, yeasty smell that filled the house as a loaf baked, and the way butter just tasted better on a soft slice of bread straight out of the oven.

When I graduated from college and realized I’d have to cook for myself otherwise I’d go broke, bread baking became one of my passions. The first loaf I ever baked was a French baguette from The Joy of Cooking. It wasn’t very crispy and the crumb was a bit dense but it didn’t matter, I was hooked. I started spending my weekends experimenting with all sorts of different breads—one in particular that was a big hit with my friends was an olive-rosemary recipe I found in The New Basics Cookbook.

Now that I’m older, I don’t bake bread as often as I’d like—but last Sunday was a lazy day perfect for reading and waiting as my bread dough rose. Laurie Colwin has an amusing chapter about bread baking called “Bread Baking Without Agony” in her book Home Cooking. As she recounts the first time she baked bread with a friend, she expresses frustration with all the time involved for just one loaf. She writes: “The result was a perfectly nice loaf of bread, but after spending an entire day in its service, I expected something a little more heroic.” She has a point—there is a lot of downtime when baking bread, but on certain days I don’t mind being abiding as the yeast does it work. I find it peaceful that so much is happening without my exerting too much energy—save for the mixing and the kneading.

I guess that’s been my reluctance toward no-knead bread: I like to knead. Bread baking can be so non-eventful that if I didn’t knead, I probably wouldn’t feel like I’d contributed much to the process. Not to mention the excellent upper-body workout kneading gives you.

Jalapenos are at their peak right now and after picking up a whole mess of them at the farmers' market, I was searching for ways to use them beyond salsa. I then remembered a delectable bread that can be found at Goode Co. Barbecue in Houston, Texas. Most barbecue places in the state will serve you a standard couple of slices of Mrs. Baird’s white bread with your pile of smoked meat. This malleable bread is excellent for wrapping around a hot link or two to form an impromptu sandwich. But Goode Co. takes its bread to a whole new level—they make theirs in-house and it’s laced with jalapenos and cheese. Barbecue purists may sniff at Goode Co.’s offering; they might say it’s just too fancy-pants for real barbecue. Perhaps. But it sure is tasty.

After looking through the Houston Chronicle archives, I found a recipe for this bread that had been written by none other than Sheila Lukins, author of The New Basics Cookbook, home of that olive-rosemary loaf that made me so popular at dinner parties back in the day. I read through her recipe and while it looked good enough, I made some adjustments.

Where she called for a quarter cup of sliced jalapenos, I used a whole cup. Where she recommended white cheddar cheese, I used Longhorn. And I did some other fiddling, such as using buttermilk instead of regular milk, adjusting the flour quantities and skipping some of her overly detailed directions. I was a little worried that the recipe might not turn out OK, but it actually exceeded my expectations—this was a moist, spicy and cheesy loaf—the only things missing were some hot links and brisket.

Now that I can turn on my oven without stripping down to my skivvies, I’ll be baking bread more often. And since I’m back in bread-making mode, I reckon I’ll finally try no-knead bread as well. But for now, I’m happy with this jalapeno-cheese loaf, my first bread of the season.

Instructions:
Mix together the yeast and water. Mix together the melted butter, egg and buttermilk and add to yeast and water. Add the salt, sugar and bread flour to the liquids and mix well. Then add the semolina flour to the dough and mix well. If the dough is too wet, gradually add more bread flour 1/4 cup at a time.

Place dough on a floured surface and knead for five to ten minutes until dough is smooth. Form dough into a ball and place into a bowl greased with butter. Cover the bowl, and let rise in a warm place until doubled in size—about an hour.

Turn out dough on a floured surface, and slowly knead into the dough the jalapenos and cheese, a little bit at a time. When cheese and jalapenos are incorporated into the dough, place dough into a greased bread loaf pan. You can also sprinkle semolina in the bread pan for additional friction.
Cover the pan and let dough rise until doubled in size (it should be at the top or a bit over the top of the pan)—about an hour. Preheat oven to 350 °F. Bake the bread for 40-45 minutes on a center rack (when you thump the top and it sounds hollow, the bread is done).

Let cool for 10 minutes, and then slide it out of the pan, slice and enjoy!

Yield:1 loaf

Notes:If you can’t find semolina flour, you can substitute bread or all-purpose flour and the recipe will be fine.

Author:Adapted from a Sheila Lukins recipe in the Houston ChronicleHOMESICKTEXAN.COM

61 comments:

radish
said...

hey, i think i have to raise my hand with you... I have the recipe and I have YET to make the bread. I know it's really awful. Maybe I should just start it tonight... Your bread above sounds so awesome... I wonder if I could pull off a bread with just jalapenos (maybe not this recipe), but since KS is lactose intolerant, we just try to limit dairy stuff.

I have looked for Goode Co. bread recipe for a while, and of course, they won't give it away, so thanks for this one. Maybe if you take some down to Kenny C. @ Blue Smoke he'll swap you some sausage and brisket!

Is there anybody that grew up in the Dallas area circa 1970 (+/- 10years) that *didn't* take a tour of the Mrs. Bairds bakery near SMU ??? I see Mrs. Bairds on the store shelf all the time, but only when you mentioned the “….toasty, yeasty smell… “ did I remember those terrific tours in the heart of Dallas.

I've been lurking for a little while... a friend of mine emailed me a link to this site asking "Um, is this YOU?!" as I am, in fact, the quintessential homesick Texan (I moved to NYC - like you! - two years ago for some stupid reason, now I can't leave for a while and everyone I know hears about how I'm gettin' back home as soon as I can!)

I just wanted to say that I love, LOVE your site, as my love of Tex-Mex has neither died nor diminished.

Hands up here too! I *just* got my hands on the no-knead recipe a couple days ago. I am waiting until the weather warms up here in order to try it! I love spicy cheesy bread and this recipe sounds delicious! I shall have to try it soon!

For a minute I thought this was going to be a no knead version of the bread. No matter. Just looking at the picture and reading the ingredients, I can imagine perfectly what this bread smells and tastes like. Yum. I want some. But my damn jalapenos aren't growing fast enough (here in London, it's easier to grow jalapenos from seeds than to find fresh ones in a store). Thanks for posting the recipe!

Vanessa--For a midwesterner you sure do like your spicy food! And they quoted a comment left by Melissa McGee, proprietor of the blog A Variety of Fine Pickles. But still, they mentioned my blog, which was cool!

Olivia--Yes you can and I've been known to do that--it's so irresistible when it's fresh out of the oven.

Mike--That was always the highlight of the year--the annual Mrs. Baird's field trip! That whole neighborhood smelled so delicious.

Hello Sunshine!--Howdy! It seems there's quite a few of us runniing around New York. Hope you can get back home soon!

Cynthia--Did you like the no-knead bread? It has such an toothsome crust.

Gretchen Noelle--It's funny, I thought I was the only who hadn't baked it yet. And yep, you can't beat spicy, cheesy breadl.

Monica--I reckon after I make no-knead I might experiment and try to make a spicy, cheesy version. I've seen some people's variations on it and it seems to be a very malleable recipe. Hope your jalapenos start growing soon!

I too found your awesome blog through Vanilla Garlic and have added it to my google reader. And to answer your question it is a great blog I think you might like her recipe for Chocolate Chipotle Cupcakes, they are awesome! Keep up the great work and I intend on making your bread once the weather cools down. It will be the first bread I bake ever, wish me luck.

Love your pages! I'm still in Texas and know you're absolutely accurate. One hint for your reader, Radish... I'm also lactose intolerant and have learned that "natural" cheeses (cheddar, provolone, etc.) are different and "we" can eat them! Yay!

Bread and Texas reminds me of elementary school in Austin. They'd give us book covers with advertising, and some students would scratch out letters in "Butter Krust" so it would read "Butt rust." Sorry, should I have kept that memory to myself?

Claudia--Welcome, and I'm eager to try those chocolate chipotle cupcakes!

Barbara--Good to know natural cheeses are safe.

PML--Isn't bacon grease the best? I always have a jar on hand for spicing up dishes--nothing beats that smooth, porky flavor.

Veron--I know, I know! I'll try it soon.

Knitopia--Ha! Thanks for the laugh. I remember those ugly book covers they always gave us, though in fifth grade a local TV station was advertising Speed Racer on the covers so we all thought that was cool.

gotta say, here in Houston, we have MUCH better offerings of BBQ than Goode Co. Fancy pants BBQ aside, if you ain't got good sauce, you ain't got good BBQ...and there sauce definitely leaves some to be desired...

that aside, it is worth the trip to Goode Co. for their jalapeno bread alone.

I really feel sorry for the Brits who cannot obtain simple things like jalapenos or fresh corn on the cob. I'll have to inspect a large British grocery store and see for myself why these people are being deprived.

Being the Homesick Texan, do you speak with a Texas drawl ? I sometimes wonder what you sound like as I read your posts as you use a very traditional writing style and of course the picture of you with the hat conjures up some images of what you sound like.You plan on doing a podcast, let us know.

My uncle lives in Houston and got us hooked on Goode Company pecan pie (amazing), but who knew all this time I was missing out on the bread!There is a very similar recipe in Patent's "Baking in America" that I was just eyeing. Kind of funny this uses semolina flour, you would've thought cornmeal would be more traditional. Either way, sounds delicious!

Tommy--I speak with a strong twang when I've been home for a while or when I'm on the phone with friends and family who are still in TX, but otherwise I don't think my accent is all that strong. I do, however, still say "y'all" quite frequently.

Mercedes--They are known for their pecan pies, and my dad who lives in Oregon now has been known to order them. That said, Goode Co.'s pecan pies can't hold a candle to my grandma's! As for the semolina, corn meal is a bit too rough, I reckon. Though I've made some great breads with flour and corn meal so perhaps I should try a substitution.

I made the no-knead bread on saturday to have for dinner sunday with some homemade cheese. It was great, but, now that I've gotten the hang of making kneaded bread I do miss the pushing and pulling, but the flavor of the no-knead bread makes it worth it. That long, slow rise imparts so much flavor and gluten structure that I just haven't achieved yet with my kneaded loaves.

You are so wonderful for posting this recipe. I think about this bread often. I was vegetarian for so long i forgot all about the bread at goode company until i took my barbecue loving boyfriend there and discovered anew the jalapeno bread. I bought a loaf to take home. Goode Company also makes plain bread and to be honest when I read your texas toast entry I couldn't help but think Goode's bread would be a perfect homemade version.

Dontcha just love the Chronicle recipe archives?? Man they have awesome stuff! Thanks for gettin' this recipe, I can't wait to try it even though I'm a native Houstonian livin' in Northwest Houston! *blush* I do love Goode Company's bread but have to admit our barbeque is better. :D ;) Humble right?

Come by my site and read awhile if you get homesick. www.mulliganstewme.blogspot.com and we can talk Texan and TexMex as it is one of the 4 food groups isn't it!

Love your accounts of trips to the farm and your visitin' your grandparents!!!

Cheers!

BZ

p.s. I have now added you to my favorites list so I can keep up with your adventures! :D

YUMMY!! I've got to run out and get the bread and semolina flours but I"m gonna make this asap! I also do a breakfast taco but don't have the meat in it. Just scrambled eggs in corn tortillas with cheese, salsa and sour cream. SO simple and tasty!!

Hmmm... Do you think this bread would travel well? A friend is spending a month at an artists' colony and is begging for baked goods. I've settled on a few sweet things and am thinking about this for savory, but it'll have to travel 2-3 days to get there...

Don't make the no-knead bread! I don't want to be the only one left who refuses to give in :-)

I go through periods where I'm pretty much obsessed with baking bread and right now just happens to be one of those times. I haven't started writing about it yet on my blog (not sure why) but I'm sure it will happen soon. I have a big loaf of sourdough in the oven right now so it's funny that I happened to start reading this :-) Glad to know I'll have a bread-baking buddy when I move to the big apple ;-)

Blue Zebra--Howdy! Yes I do! Especially since I have so many yellowed-with-age clippings from the Chronicle through the years, having the recipe file online certainly cuts down on the clutter. And yep, TexMex is most certainly one of the four food groups!

She Sure is Strange--I hear you, one of my favorite breakfast tacos is just beans, salsa and eggs. The simpler the better, I say!

Jennifer--I might freeze it before travelling with it. I can't say how long it lasts because a loaf in my house is usually gone after a day or so. But it should be fine after 2 or 3 days.

Nicole--Ha! OK, I'll stick to my guns! And I've been admiring your gorgeous loaves over on Flickr. Are you really moving to NYC????

Eep, I haven't given the no-knead a try yet either! But I usually rationalize all the bread I end up eating by saying I got a big "workout" from kneading the dough. Makes sense...right...? (wink, wink)

I've been wanting to make this ever since I saw this post, and I finally got around to it last week -- this bread was AMAZING! My husband loved it, everyone at worked loved it, and I can't wait to make it again, so my whole house can smell yeasty and cheesy and yummy. Thank you so much!

I love your site! I'm a born and raised Texan living in NYC as well. Another fun idea is to add jalanpenos and cheddar cheese to the top of corn bread about half way through the baking process. To give the bread an extra kick, add some jalapeno juice to your corn bread batter too!

I have been a lurker at your blog for sometime now, the only blog I visit. Your beautiful photos, recipes and word bring a quiet yet adventurous comfort, reminding me that I take far too many of the good things in this life for granted.

Seeing as Dad is fetching Swinging Door BBQ for our Thanksgiving dinner, what better time than now to bake my first bread ever. I just took six mini-loaves (I doubled the recipe) out of the oven and they are cooling now (except for the one I already chowed half of). Considering that I did not know there was special bread flour (I used unbleached all purpose) and that once I had all of the first kneading ingredients combined I realized I really did not know how to knead dough, DOH!, this Jalapeno Cheese Bread came out more than presentable for my family. A little heavy but very moist. I used pickled Jals so to keep the heat down for my Grandmother and I really could have stepped it up a few notches but that is not important for this bread baking round. I made bread!!!!

You have made me proud! Look out Mrs. Baird! Thank you forever and eternity! I will be sleeping soundly tonight as this wonderful aroma of home-baked bread fills the air and senses.

I might add that I had a wonderful Tex-Mexican lunch at Los Tios yesterday. I had Golden Tacos and a couple of their awesome margaritas in your honor.

I tried this bread at Publix in Fl., but only one store makes it and for a special cust, but they make two loafs (one for cust to try). And then I just had to find the recipe, so I have made this about 8 times now and everyone just loves it. Thank You So Much!!!!!!

This is SO good!!! My bread rose so much I probably should have made two loaves, instead I had one huge almost overflowing loaf. It is so perfect! I posted a picture along with your recipe (and credit!) to my food blog: http://thefrickinchicken.blogspot.com/2010/02/jalapeno-cheese-bread.html

It's a perfect bread to bring to my "Farewell to Texas" we are throwing for a friend who is moving to California in a few days.

I made this today and it is by far the best loaf of bread I have ever made. Your recipe is perfect! Usually my bread turns out as bread-like bread - close, but something's off. THIS, though, looked and tasted like it could have been made with someone with actual baking skills! Thank you for sharing!

I doubled the recipe and the loaves are in the oven now. I just started making breads and this seems to be right. I am a fellow Houstonian too and love Goode co. I have a great recipe for the Goode co. Seafood campejana that I also found on the chronicle archives. I will post the link when my bread comes out of the oven and hopefully will be delicious as it looks!Sheila

My wife is from Houston and was lamenting spending the 4th of July in NYC without jalapeño cheese bread to go with our Goode Co. spiced ribs. On a whim, I found this recipe and decided to try it out - all I had on hand was pickled jalapeños, and I didn't have buttermilk, but otherwise I followed the recipe and was both easy and delicious, and it was a big hit at our BBQ. You saved the 4th of July, which to a homesick Texan is like saving Christmas.

Made your bread today and have a question. with 8 ozs colby cheese, we didn't find it cheesy enough. Also, the cheese didn't melt into the bread as I'd expected. Wouldn't it be possible to add it to the bread flour at the beginning, instead of for the second rise? Then perhaps it would have been easier to incorporate. Also, the size pan was definitely too small. Instinct told me to use a pan 9x5x2½ and that was fine. All this said, the bread was still delicious! Please let me know what you think.

Hi Colleen--I've never added the cheese at the beginning, but I'm sure it would work, too. And it's funny, I also use a 9x5 pan--as this is an old post, I'm not sure why I listed the smaller size but thank you for pointing that out to me!

I'd never made bread before, and I wanted to start with something Texas Style (you know, a little less Bill, and a little more Billy Joe Jim Bob). All I can say is this exceeded my greatest expectations. I didn't cook it in a loaf pan, but laid it out on a cookie sheet as a french style loaf. One variation you might try is to coat the crust with butter about 10 minutes before it is done. It really makes the crust look and taste great. This may be the best bread I've ever had, and I've stashed this recipe away for permanent keeping.

i do not have any semolina flour and was wondering if cornmeal would work? also, how well does this store? i am thinking of making it tonight for dinner tomorrow. this is my first time making bread so any suggestions would be great! thanks and i love all your recipes!

Wonderful recipe!!! I stumbled on your blog when I googled "jalapeño yeast bread". There's a local market here in Cincinnati that sells jalapeno bread - for $6 a dry loaf! This is the recipe that I thought sounded the most promising - and it is SO good! Moist and soft and it rises and browns beautifully. The only changes I made were to sub AP flour for the semolina (don't have any) and I sprinkled the top with a 1/2 cup of shredded cheddar so it would have that chewy cheesy crust like at a bakery. I cannot wait to try your Tex Mex entrees and other bread recipes.

Made this last week..was gone in 3 days! There is still a Mrs. Bairds Bakery in Fort Worth. Off south 820 loop. Still the great smell there. The only kind I buy. Am a native Texan, lived no where else. No other state is as diverse as mine.