Middle Eastern Semolina And Saffron Bread Recipes

MIDDLE EASTERN SEMOLINA AND SAFFRON BREAD

Steps:

• Crush the saffron and mix it in 1 teaspoon of boiling water, set aside.
• In a large bowl whisk together the 1/2 cup warm water, the yeast, and sugar. Let stand about 5 minutes or until frothy.
• Stir in the 1 cup water and 2 tablespoons of the olive oil saffron mix. Add 2 cups of the bread flour, the 1-2/3 cups semolina flour, the turmeric, caraway seed and salt. Beat with an electric mixer on low speed until combined, scraping sides of bowl occasionally.
• Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Knead in enough of the remaining bread flour to make a moderately stiff dough that is smooth and elastic (6 to 8 minutes total). Shape dough into a ball. Grease a large bowl with the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil. Place dough in greased bowl; turn once to grease surface of dough. Cover and let rise in a warm place until double in size (about 1 hour).
• Punch dough down. Turn out onto a lightly floured surface. Divide dough in half. Cover and let rest for 10 minutes. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper; sprinkle parchment with the 1 tablespoon semolina flour. Set aside. Shape each dough half into a 6-inch round loaf. Place dough rounds on the prepared baking sheet. Cover and let rise in a warm place until nearly double in size (about 30 minutes).
• Adjust one oven rack to the lowest position and another oven rack to the lower-middle position. Set a shallow baking pan on the bottom rack. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.
• Using a sharp knife, cut an X into the top of each loaf. Place baking sheet with dough rounds on the middle rack. Place the ice cubes in the shallow baking pan on the lower (as they melt, they'll create steam, which helps the dough rise and develop a crisp crust). Bake rounds about 25 minutes or until deep golden and rounds sound hollow when tapped. If necessary to prevent overbrowning, cover rounds with foil for the last 10 minutes of baking.
• Transfer to a wire rack; cool completely.

MIDDLE EASTERN SEMOLINA AND SAFFRON BREAD

Steps:

• Crush the saffron and mix it in 1 teaspoon of boiling water, set aside.
• In a large bowl whisk together the 1/2 cup warm water, the yeast, and sugar. Let stand about 5 minutes or until frothy.
• Stir in the 1 cup water and 2 tablespoons of the olive oil saffron mix. Add 2 cups of the bread flour, the 1-2/3 cups semolina flour, the turmeric, caraway seed and salt. Beat with an electric mixer on low speed until combined, scraping sides of bowl occasionally.
• Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Knead in enough of the remaining bread flour to make a moderately stiff dough that is smooth and elastic (6 to 8 minutes total). Shape dough into a ball. Grease a large bowl with the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil. Place dough in greased bowl; turn once to grease surface of dough. Cover and let rise in a warm place until double in size (about 1 hour).
• Punch dough down. Turn out onto a lightly floured surface. Divide dough in half. Cover and let rest for 10 minutes. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper; sprinkle parchment with the 1 tablespoon semolina flour, set aside. Shape each dough half into a 6-inch round loaf. Place dough rounds on the prepared baking sheet. Cover and let rise in a warm place until nearly double in size (about 30 minutes).
• Adjust one oven rack to the lowest position and another oven rack to the lower-middle position. Set a shallow baking pan on the bottom of the oven. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.
• Using a sharp knife, cut an X into the top of each loaf. Place baking sheet with dough rounds on the middle rack. Place the ice cubes in the shallow baking pan on the lower rack (as they melt, they'll create steam, which helps the dough rise and develop a crisp crust). Bake rounds about 25 minutes or until deep golden and rounds sound hollow when tapped. If necessary to prevent over browning, cover rounds with foil for the last 10 minutes of baking.
• Transfer to a wire rack; cool completely.

MIDDLE EASTERN CHICKEN FLATBREADS

Steps:

• For the dough: Whisk together the flour, yeast and 2 teaspoons salt in a large bowl. Combine 2 1/4 cups lukewarm water and the oil in a second large bowl. Add the water mixture to the flour mixture, and combine them with your hands until the dough comes together into a rough and shaggy ball.
• Knead the dough on a flour-dusted work surface until smooth and elastic, about 5 minutes. Clean 1 of the large bowls, and lightly coat it with oil. Place the kneaded dough in the bowl, brush it with oil, cover and set aside in a warm place until doubled in size, about 1 hour.
• Position an oven rack in the bottom position of the oven, and put a pizza stone or baking sheet on it. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.
• Transfer the dough to the work surface, and punch it down. Cut it into 12 even pieces. Shape each into a ball. Evenly space the dough balls on the work surface, cover and let rest for 20 minutes. (To make ahead, after shaping the dough into balls, wrap each piece tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight, then let sit at room temperature for 30 minutes before rolling.)
• Working with a few balls at a time, roll each out into a thin round (about 1/8 inch thick), flouring the work surface and rolling pin as needed. Sprinkle a pizza peel or wooden cutting board with semolina or cornmeal, and put 1 or 2 pieces of rolled dough on top. Shake the peel back and forth to make sure the dough rounds are not sticking, then slide them onto the hot pizza stone and bake until they puff up and are just golden on the bottom but still soft and pliable, about 3 minutes. Remove the dough with tongs, press any bubbles down and let cool. Repeat with the remaining balls of dough. (The parbaked flatbreads can be topped and baked at this point or cooled, stacked, wrapped and refrigerated for up to 2 days or frozen for up to 2 months.)
• For the topping: While the flatbreads bake, heat 2 tablespoons of the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onions and bell peppers, and cook, stirring, until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the tomato paste, and stir for 1 minute (add a splash of water if the mixture sticks). Add the remaining 4 tablespoons oil, the chicken, cumin, 1 1/2 teaspoons salt, cinnamon, red pepper flakes and allspice, and continue cooking, breaking up the meat, until cooked through, about 5 minutes more. Stir in the tomatoes, and cook for 1 minute. Remove the skillet from the heat, and stir in the yogurt, lemon juice and parsley . Let cool completely. (The topping can be made a day ahead and refrigerated.)
• For the sauce: Whisk together the yogurt, 3 tablespoons water and a large pinch of salt in a small bowl.
• To assemble, bake and serve: Brush each parbaked flatbread generously with oil, and top with about 1/4 cup of the topping. Bake them, 1 or 2 at a time, on the hot pizza stone until the bottoms are golden and crispy, about 5 minutes, rotating the flatbreads 180 degrees halfway through so they cook evenly. Drizzle the flatbreads with yogurt sauce, sprinkle with salt and parsley, cut into slices and serve.
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SAFFRON BREAD

Steps:

• Steep the saffron in the hot water overnight. Make sure you use a container that is covered to keep the heat inside. This step is crucial to getting the taste and flavor you want in the bread.
• The next morning, Sift the flour into a very large bowl add the sugar then cut in the butter and crisco using a pastry cutter.
• Add the currants, raisins, orange peel, lemon rind, nutmeg, salt and saffron water.
• Mix together, then sprinkle the yeast on the top of the mixture and add the lukewarm water.
• Knead the bread mixture until everything is combined. The bread should be a light orange/dark yellow in color.
• Then place the bread in a warm location, covered. And allow to rise until doubled in size.
• Once doubled, knead the bread again, and allow to rise until doubled one more time.
• Cut the dough into 6 loaves.
• Knead each dough ball and then place the loaves into greased loaf pans.
• Cover the pans and allow to rise until about level with the top of the pans.
• Bake the loaves at 350 degrees for 1 hour.