Flaherty Wines

I make a lot of bread. It’s partly from necessity (sadly, there isn’t a boulangerie anywhere in the vicinity) and partly based on taste (Chilean maraquetas are OK, but hallulla has a definite resemblance to a hockey puck). I tend to prefer a French-style pain de campagne, but that’s a long process centered on a really slow fermentation to add complexity to the final dough. It’s worth every minute, of course, but sometimes there just isn’t enough time in the day.

I’ve recently been playing with a  recipe from Pioneer Woman. It’s a totally different process than I generally use, in that the dough contains butter (and a lot of it), it only rises once (so it’s easy to throw together at the last minute), and it bakes in a Dutch oven (which is fun–and also serves to condition my cast iron pot during the baking). The original recipe is for an herb bread, which wouldn’t go over with my kids as they still fear the color green. Instead I’ve been making it as a pepper bread, which I’ve served with soup and with braised ribs. Black pepper provides a touch of clean heat on the mouth; Chilean merquén provides depth of flavor; and paprika rounds out the profile and adds a nice color. Even my kids love it! If you can’t get merquén, try substituting cayenne or chipotle powder.

The recipe below is pretty faithful to Pioneer Woman’s version. I’ve upped the yeast a bit and added the step of softening it in water with a pinch of sugar to get is started (to acommodate the type of yeast I use). I’ve also reduced the flour a bit. The flour we get here is on the dry side, but it could just be the difference between using bread flour versus all-purpose. Be sure to check out Pioneer Woman’s post—she has great pictures of the breadmaking process.

Finally, this recipe also makes a really nice cheese bread. Just eliminate the peppers and add a cup of grated cheddar cheese to the dough.

Three-pepper bread

1 cup water
1/2 tablespoon yeast
pinch sugar
3 1/2 to 4 cups all-purpose flour
8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper
1 teaspoon merquén

In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine the water, yeast, and sugar. Let stand to soften. Add 2 1/2 cups flour, the butter, salt, and peppers, then mix with the paddle attachment on medium speed for about a minute. Switch to the dough hook, add a half cup of flour, and mix on low speed for ten minutes. Add another half cup flour to form a stiff dough and knead a few more minutes. Let rise (in an oiled container, covered with a damp cloth) until doubled in size (about an hour). Knead briefly to redistribute the yeast. Form into a tight ball and place in a well-oiled Dutch oven. Let rest while you preheat the oven to 450 F. Just before baking, cut a deep cross into the dough. Bake, covered, for 30 minutes, then remove the lid of the Dutch oven and continue baking until nicely browned (15 to 30 minutes longer). Cool on a wire rack before slicing.