Criollo Bread Recipes

CRIOLLO BREAD

Steps:

• Place water, yeast and sugar into a small bowl and whisk thoroughly to remove any lumps.
• Place 5 cups of flour into the large bowl.
• Add the water, yeast and sugar to the flour and mix with a wooden spoon.
• The key to this bread is for the dough to be sloppy to start and bring it back to a soft consistency with the addition of the last cup of flour.
• Spread the last cup of flour onto a clean bench and place the sloppy dough on top of the flour.
• Gently knead the dough into the flour.
• Preheat oven to 180°C.
• Grease the muffin tins.
• Cut the dough into 115gm balls and hand knead them in the palm of your hand by folding the sides into the bottom of each bun making sure that the top is smooth.
• Place each bun into the hole of the muffin tin.
• Place the muffin tin into the warming draw to 'prove'.
• This should take approx 35 minutes or until the dough has doubled in size (proved).
• Once the buns have proved remove from the warmer and place onto the middle rack of a hot oven for 15 minutes.
• Once the buns are ready and golden brown remove from the oven flip the buns so they have been slightly removed from the sides of the muffin tins.
• This allows the steam to be released and will stop your from buns from being tainted by the muffin tins.
• Allow to cool.

PERUVIAN TAMALES CRIOLLOS

Steps:

• The original recipe is done with Peruvian white corn, it has the biggest grain in the world and it can be cut off the cob and peeled to prepare for the recipe, but I substituted it for just the frozen bags that we can find in any grocery store. Preferably, grind the corn using a grinding machine , not blender (as last resource you can blend the corn in a good blender using very little liquid). Set aside.
• Blend the salt, pepper, cumin, vinegar and red dried chile (previously roasted and deveined).
• Cut the meat into medium sized pieces and marinade for about an hour in the previous mix.
• Brown the meat in a teaspoon of lard, add the left over marinade and the two cups of water, and bring it to a boil, simmer to cook for two hours. Remove the pieces of meat and set aside.
• Add the broth to the corn, the rest of the lard, peanuts, sesame seeds, 6 yolks and the glass of Pisco ( if you can't find Peruvian Pisco leave it like that, don't substitute).
• Work the dough until it makes "eyes", or air bubbles. Set aside.
• To prepare the banana leaves you must pass them quickly over open fire (gas burner) or grill, exposure to high heat will bring out the flavors they release and turn them flexible enough to be used as wrapping. Make sure to take off the thick nerve like center of the leave.
• To put the tamales together:.
• take about three spoonfuls of dough and place them on the center of a piece of banana leaf.
• dig a hole in the middle and place a piece of meat, a piece of egg, an olive, one peanut, and a wedge of the fresh aji Mirasol, this may be substituted by any fresh chile, although the aji Mirasol or aji amarillo (yellow chile) has a very distinctive flavor and is just mildly spicy.
• Close the hole on the dough by adding a little bit more dough or folding and tapping it closed,pushing some of the surrounding dough on it.
• Wrap well with the banana leaf, closing tightly all four sides on top of the dough. Use another piece of banana leaf to wrap the tamal again starting on the opposite direction and tie tightly using a string cut out of some more banana leaf or a common piece of string. Set aside.
• Place the corn cobs at the bottom of a deep pot (rather big or medium size)and some of the banana leaves on top of the corn cobs.
• Add just enough water to cover the leaves.
• Place the tamales vertically and side by side so the steam travels freely through them and cover them with the rest of the banana leaves.
• Cook for about 4 hours. Serve with a type of onion salad called salsa criolla.
• Salsa Criolla:.
• Chop a whole onion julienne style, rinse once with water and salt, and pat dry.
• Cut one or two small tomatoes in thin wedges.
• Add two tablespoons of mint leaves, two tablespoons of cilantro leaves, and one fresh aji amarillo (yellow chile) deveined and sliced.
• Toss everything together and add the juice of half a lime, freshly squeezed.
• Season with salt and pepper to taste.
• Serve each tamal warm, unwrapped, and with a couple of spoonfuls of salsa criolla on top.
• Decorate topping with a branch of parsley or cilantro. For Sunday breakfast place a roll of fresh french bread on the side of the dish.
• ENJOY!

CREOLE BREAD

Steps:

• Mix together the warm water, yeast, 2 teaspoons of sugar, and 2 TABLESPOONS of flour in a small bowl and set aside for 10 minutes. (Unusual to put flour into proofing.).
• Warm milk, oil, 2 tablespoons of sugar, and salt in the microwave for about 20 seconds-stir together and set aside. Don't let the mixture boil, you just want to heat it up a bit.
• Sift 5 cups of flour into a large bowl.
• Once the milk mixture has cooled enough that you can comfortably stick a finger in it, mix it into the yeast.
• Add all wet ingredients to the flour.
• Mix with a wooden spoon until a dough forms. If sticky, add flour until you have a dough that you can knead.
• Dust your counter with flour and knead the dough until smooth, about 5-8 minutes. If the dough becomes sticky as you knead just sprinkle with flour as required. You may have to add up to a cup of flour at this stage depending on the humidity of your kitchen.
• Put in greased bowl, cover with a damp cloth and let rise until double in size.
• Punch down and knead for two or three minutes.
• Make into two large or six small round balls.
• Place on a greased pan-let rise again, bake at 400 F/205 C for 30-35 minutes until the tops brown and the bottom of a loaf, when tapped, sounds hollow.