Torcettini di Saint Vincent (Sugar Crusted Twisted Cookies from the Valle d’Aosta)

Month No. 4 for 'We Knead to Bake' - I am loving this project. I always loved baking breads and cakes and cookies too. However, never actually tried or even knew of so many different varieties out there. This project has made me love bread baking all the more and the beauty is I get to learn new recipes.

This month Aparna who pens at My Diverse Kitchen had us bake a yeasty cookie. It has this beautiful knotty shape and that sugar on top. Its a yummy crunchy on the outside and soft and airy on the inside kinda cookie that can be dunked in tea, coffee or even dessert wine (yes, we tried it with some yummy blueberry wine) 

Torcettini are smaller versions of Torcetti (meaning small twists), and these pear/ teardrop shaped twists are made of a dough of flour, yeast and butter which are shaped and then rolled in sugar before being baked. These biscuits are synonymous with the town of Saint Vincent in Valle d'Aosta, a small mountainous region in North-Western Italy, even though they’re well known throughout the Piedmont region as well.

The origin of these biscuits is believed to be from Grissini (breadsticks) which were made from the leftover scraps of bread dough. According to one story, a Grissini baker had some leftover butter which he needed to use up. Inspiration struck and he decided to add the butter to the last batch of his Grissini dough for the day. To be able to differentiate this lot of “breadsticks”, he rolled them in sugar and shaped them into loops, and the Torcetti was born. Torcetti/ Torchettini taste even better when they’re flavoured with lime/ lemon zest or anise.

These biscuits are crunchy, not very sweet and pair very well with cold milk, hot chocolate, tea/ coffee or wine. They are delicious served warm and equally good cold, and keep very well if stored in airtight containers. Apparently, Queen Margaret, the wife of King Umberto I of Savoy loved these biscuits so much during her stay in Valle d'Aosta, that she gave her servants enough provisions to bake an abundant supply for her consumption.

Recipe adapted from A Baker's Tour by Nick Malgieri

Ingredients

1/2 cup warm water, about 110F

1 1/4 tsp active dry yeast (or 1 tsp instant yeast)

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

2 tbsp cocoa powder (if making chocolate torcettini)

1/4 tsp salt

1 tsp lime/ lemon zest (replace with orange zest for the chocolate version)

40 gms (3 and 1/2 tablespoons) unsalted butter, cold and cut into small pieces

1/3 cup sugar for rolling the cookies

Method

Dissolve the yeast in the warm water, in a small bowl and keep aside.

Put the flour and the salt in the food processor bowl (or a largish regular bowl if kneading by hand) and pulse a couple of times to mix. Add the butter pieces and pulse until the butter is well mixed and the flour-butter mixture looks powdery.

If making chocolate Torcettini, remove 2 tbsp all-purpose flour and add the 2 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder mentioned in the recipe. Don’t add the lemon zest/ anise. Use orange zest and maybe add 1/ 2 tsp instant coffee powder with the flour.

Add the yeast-water mixture and pulse till it all comes together as a ball. Do not over process or knead. Place the ball of dough in a oiled bowl, turning it so it is well coated with the oil. Cover the bowl, and let the dough rise quite a bit. 

This dough does not really double in volume, but it should look “puffy” after about an hour or so. When you pinch off a bit from the top you can see the interior looking a bit like honeycomb. Press down the dough and deflate it, wrap it in cling warp and refrigerate it for at least one hour or up to 24 hours. 

When ready to make the cookies, take the dough out and lightly roll it out into an approximately 6” square. If the dough feels sticky, scatter a little sugar on it. Using a pizza wheel cut the dough into four strips of equal width. Cut each strip into 6 equal pieces, by cutting across, making a total of 24 pieces. The measurements are not very critical in this part because this just makes it easier to have 24 equal sized bits of dough, as compared to pinching of bits of the dough.

Roll each piece into a pencil thick “rope” about 5” long. Sprinkle a little sugar on your work surface and roll the “rope” in it so the sugar crusts the dough uniformly. Form the “rope” into a loop crossing it over before the ends.

Place the Torcettini on parchment lined baking sheets, leaving 1 1/2" between them. Leave them for about 20 minutes or so till they rise/ puff up slightly. Don’t worry, they will not “puff up” much.

Bake them at 160C (325F) for about 25 minutes till they’re a nice golden brown. Cool the cookies completely, on a rack. Store them in an air-tight container at room temperature. This recipe makes 24 to 30  biscuits.

Nutella Brownies (just 3 ingredients)

I had seen this 3 ingredient brownie on pinterest a while ago and always wanted to try them. Super quick and super easy with just 3 ingredients, one bowl and a cupcake mould or a square brownie mould. Yummy brownies in no time and just one bowl to clean after. Who would not like that.

Ingredients

1 cup nutella (chocolate hazelnut spread)
10 tablespoons all purpose flour
2 eggs
Chopped nuts (optional)

Method

Mix the nutella, eggs and the flour well and make a brownie mixture. You can spread this batter into a square brownie tray or add 2 tablespoons of batter to a cupcake mould lined with paper cups. Add chopped nuts on top of the batter. Bake it at 350 degrees farhenhite till done. Cupcakes would take about 10 to 15 minutes - the square brownie tray would take about 25 to 30 minutes. Check if its done by inserting a toothpick into the brownie - if it comes clean its done.

Torta De Cielo (Mexican Almond Cake)

Baking is a passion. Cakes, cookies, bread - you name it and I will jump to have it done. Every year for my husband's birthday I bake a different cake. We have made the humble vanilla cake, chocolate cake, fresh strawberry cake, his favorite pear and ginger cake, date and walnut cake (my mum had baked that one).

This year was no different. I started looking at what I could bake to make his special day extra special. Well,  I found the almond meal packet in my freezer (I had got this to make the french macron - well, never got to make em) and decided to bake an almond cake. 

I had picked up this simple baking book from homegoods and found this cake (torte) recipe that I loved and thought of making it.

Torta De Cielo is a Mexican Almond cake and generally is made by using whole almonds with or without skin which is coarsely powdered in a food processor. Since I already had the almond meal ready, I used that.

This cake is generally bakes in a round baking dish - just like a torte. Well, since half of my stuff is in storage due to our future move, I baked this cake in a bundt pan.

Ingredients

1 cup unsalted butter
1 and 1/4 cup almond meal (you can use whole almonds too)
1 and 1/4 cup sugar
3 eggs
1 teaspoon almond extract
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
9 tablespoons all purpose flour
pinch of salt

Method

Lightly grease an 8" round cake pan OR as I have used, you can use a bundt pan too. If you are using whole almonds, then place them in a food processor and process to form a mealy mixture.
In a mixing bowl, beat the butter and sugar untill smooth and fluffy. Add the eggs, almond extract and vanilla extract to this mixture and mix for about 3 to 5 minutes till its a nice fluffy mixture. Add the almond meal/almond mix and salt to this mixture and mix well. Now add the flour and fold it into this mixture till everything is incorporated. Do not over mix at this stage, just fold everything in.
Pour the batter into the greased pan and smooth the surface with a spatula. Bake in a preheated oven at 350 degrees fahrenheit for about 40 to 45 minutes, or untill a toothpick inserted into the cake comes out clean.
Remove from oven and let it stand to cool. You can dust it with powdered sugar and decorate with toasted almond slivers.

Palak ani Dalichi Vatun Amti - Coconut based Dal curry with Spinach

I follow the blog monsoonspice and love all that Sia has to say there. Her writing is wonderful and the person reading it just does not wish to stop. I also like all her pictures - she is an amazing photographer. Her recipes are simple and tasty. 

The other day she posted a dal recipe also called ambat in Konkani - the link for which is here. This is a staple in konkani households. Infact, I cook this dal atleast once a week and I make it with spinach, malabar spinach, dill, fresh fenugreek leaves, red amaranth leaves - I have even used raddish with its leaves in this dal. We love the use of coconut in our cooking - thats the konkani blood in me and my husband speaking.

Her post made me realise that such staple and simple things which are everyday food we savor and eat can also be a part of the blog and they indeed should be there. I thank her for making me realise this.

My palak Amti/Ambat is very similar to how she cooked - except that I grind the onion along with the coconut and chillies. But, this is simple yummy food with steamed rice and poppadoms and the humble lime pickle. We savor this Amti/Ambat with fried fish too. 

Ingredients

2 cups roughly chopped baby spinach
1 cup toor dal
2 cups water
1/4 teaspoon asafoetida
1 medium onion
1/2 teaspoon tamarind paste
2 cloves garlic (optional)
1/2 cup grated coconut
1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder
2 to 3 dried red chillies (I used 2 byadgi and 1 kashmiri) - you can use more if you like
1 tablespoon coriander seeds (akha Dhania)
1 teaspoon mustard seeds
4 to 5 curry leaves
1 tablespoon coconut oil (you can use olive oil, groundnut oil or canola oil too)

Method

Wash the dal well, add 2 cups of water, the asafoetida and turmeric, spinach and a few drops of oil and pressure cook the dal untill 3 whistles. Release the pressure and mash the dal with the back of a spoon and let it stand.
Mix together grated coconut, roughly chopped onion, garlic, dried red cillies, tamarind paste and coriander seeds in a blender, add about 1/4 cup water and blend this mixture to a fine paste. If the mixture becomes too dry and difficult to blend, add 2 tablespoons water at a time and blend again.
In a kadai/saucepan, take the coocnut oil, when it gets hot, add the mustard seeds and let them splutter, now add the curry leaves and let them saute for about 10 second. Now add the dal and the blended spice mixture and mix well. Add salt to taste and let this mixture boil. Once it comes to a boil, lower the heat and let it simmer for about a 15 minutes to half hour.
Serve with boiled white rice and poppadoms. This goes well with hot and soft phulkas too.

Hokkaido Milk Bread

This month 'We Knead to Bake' was all about an easy fluffy and yummy bread called the 'Hokkiado Milk Bread' also known as the 'Asian Milk Bread' or the 'Hong Kong Pai Bo'. A bread very popular in South East Asia. Well, now its very popular here at our home too.

This bread is super soft because of the use of 'Tangzhong' - thats the secret (well, not so secret now) weapon.

The Hokkaido Mild Bread owes its texture and height to the use of an interesting ingredient called Tangzhong. Basically, the Tangzhong method involves cooking 1 part of bread flour with 5 parts of water (by weight) at 65°C (149 °F) to form a roux.  

At 65°C, the gluten in the bread flour and water mixture would absorb the moisture and create a “leavening” action.  When the Tangzhong is added into other ingredients that go into a bread dough, it produces light, tender and fluffier bread.

This method of using Tangzhong is often seen in South Asian breads and was created by a Chinese woman, Yvonne Chen, who describes this method in her book which translates to “65 degrees Bread Doctor”.

(Picked this note up from the information about Tangzhong as mentioned by Aparna in her blog)

Ingredients

For The Tangzhong (Flour-Water Roux) 
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup milk

For The Dough
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
3 tablespoon sugar
1teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons powdered milk
2 teaspoons instant dried yeast
1/2 cup milk (and a little more if needed)
1/8 cup cream (25% fat)
1/3 cup tangzhong (use HALF of the tangzhong from above)
2 tablespoons unsalted butter (cut into small pieces, softened at room temperature)

Method

The Tangzhong  (Flour-Water Roux)

Whisk together lightly the flour and water in a saucepan until smooth and there are no lumps. Place the saucepan on the stove, and over medium heat, let the roux cook till it starts thickening. Keep stirring/ whisking constantly so no lumps form and the roux is smooth.

If you have a thermometer, cook the roux/ tangzhong till it reaches 65C (150F) and take it off the heat. If you don’t have a thermometer, then watch the roux/ tangzhong until you start seeing “lines” forming in the roux/ tangzhong as you whisk/ stir it. Take the pan off the heat at this point.
Let the roux/ tangzhong cool completely and rest for about 2 to 3 hours at least. It will have the consistency of a soft and creamy crème patisserie. If not using immediately, transfer the roux to a bowl and cover using plastic wrap. It can be stored in the fridge for about a day. Discard the tangzhong after that.

The Bread Dough

I made this dough in the food processor. This dough can be made by hand but the dough is a bit sticky and can take some time and effort to knead by hand. If you have some sort of machine which will do the kneading for you, use it. Don’t punish yourself. And do not add more flour to make it less sticky either!
Put the flour, salt, sugar, powdered milk and instant yeast in the processor bowl and pulse a couple of times to mix. In another small bowl mix the milk, cream and Tangzhong till smooth and add to the processor bowl. Run on slow speed until the dough comes together. Now add the butter and process till you have a smooth and elastic dough which is just short of sticky.
The dough will start out sticky but kneading will make it smooth. If the dough feels firm and not soft to touch, add a couple of teaspoons of milk till it becomes soft and elastic. When the dough is done, you should be able to stretch the dough without it breaking right away.  When it does break, the break should be form a circle.
Form the dough into a ball and place it in a well-oiled bowl turning it so it is well coated. Cover with a towel, and let the dough rise for about 45 minutes or till almost double in volume.
Place the dough on your working surface. You don’t need flour to work or shape this dough. This recipe makes enough dough to make one loaf (9” by 5” tin), 2 small loaves (6” by 4” tins) or 1 small loaf (6” by 4”) and 6 small rolls (muffin tins). Depending on what you are making, divide your dough. If you are making 1 loaf, divide your dough in 3 equal pieces. If you are making two smaller loaves, divide your dough into 6 equal pieces.
The shaping of the portions, whether for the loaf or the rolls, is the same.
Roll out each portion of the dough with a rolling pin into an oval shape, about 1/8” thick. Take one end of the dough from the shorter side of the oval and fold it to the middle of the oval. Take the other end and fold so it slightly overlaps the other fold. (See the collage)
Roll this folded dough with the rolling pin so the unfolded edges are stretched out to form a rectangle. Roll the rectangle from one short edge to the other, pinching the edges to seal well. Do this with each of the three larger pieces and place them, sealed edges down, in a well-oiled loaf tin. Cover with a towel and leave the dough to rise for about 45 minutes.
To make the rolls fold them in the same manner described above, but before rolling them up, place some chocolate chip on the dough. Roll the dough rectangles carefully and pinch to seal the edge. Place each roll of dough in a well-oiled muffin cup and cover with a towel. Allow to rise for about 45 minutes.
Carefully brush the tops of the rolls and the loaf with milk (or cream) and bake them at 170C (325F) for about 20 to 30 minutes till they are done (if you tap them they’ll sound hollow) and beautifully browned on top. Let them cool in the tins for about 5 minutes and then unmould and transfer to a rack till slightly warm or cool.
Serve or else store in a bread bin. This bread stays soft and delicious even the next day. This recipe makes enough dough to make one loaf (9” by 5” tin), 2 small loaves (6” by 4” tins) or 1 small loaf (6” by 4”) and 6 small rolls (muffin tins).

I have mentioned the recipe exactly as Aparna wrote in her blogpost (for Hokkiado Bread) on her FoodBlog