Pain de Campagne: Baking Through The Bread Baker's Apprentice

Boy, this is quickly turning into a vegan baking blog. Well, I guess that just reflects where all my culinary energy is these days. Baking through The Bread Baker's Apprentice has turned me into more of a baking enthusiast than ever before. There has not been a single recipe that I have not been able to veganize, which makes me realize how overrated eggs are in baking. Yes, vegan baking is delicious and diverse.

So, on to the bread at hand. I thought I would enjoy this loaf much more than I did. It uses pate fermentee, like the french bread that I totally love, but also has whole wheat flour for texture and taste. I made little batards to use like a hoagie roll for lunch at work. The result was good, but not great. Don't get me wrong, it was tasty, but I was not blown away like I have been with other recipes in this book.

GENERAL NOTES
1. I used whole wheat flour, but Reinhart suggests rye can be used as well. Net time I will use rye.
2. I made 4oz batards and baked them for 15 mins.

VEGAN NOTES
- none

Vegan Chocolate-Glazed Donuts

I'm not sure why I have not tried to make a vegan donut before now. I think I was convinced that eggs were absolutely essential to the dough but they totally are not. Having baked quite a few yeasted sweet doughs in the past year I now know that eggs really aren't needed for leavening, but are just another way to enrich the dough (along with the shortening and milk). So, I went with flax seed to give the dough some pliability and cohesion. Worked like a charm. I veganized Alton Brown's recipe on the Food Network site, mainly because he only called for 2 eggs and other recipes asked for 5. The end result was perfection: a tender and tasty donut that kicks the butt of anything they serve at Tim Horton's (or Dunkin' Donuts for those outside Canada).

INGREDIENTS
Makes at least 24 small donuts
- 3/4 cups soy milk
- 1 1/4 oz vegetable shortening
- 2 tbsp sugar
- 3/4 tsp salt
- 3 tbsp warm water
- 1 tbsp ground flax seed
- 2 1/4 tsp instant yeast
- 11.5 oz all purpose flour
- canola oil for frying

METHOD

1. Heat soy milk, shortening, salt, and sugar in the microwave, or on the stove, stirring regularly until shortening melts. Set aside.

2. Whisk flax into water. Let sit a few minutes, then whisk again until thick. Set aside.

3. In a large bowl, mix together yeast and flour. Add soy milk mixture (making sure it is between 95 and 105 degrees F) and flax mixture. Mix together into a rough dough, then knead for about 5 mins until smooth, adding more flour or more water as needed to make a nice soft and tender dough.

4. Transfer dough to a lightly oiled bowl, cover, and let rise for 60-90 mins, until doubled in size.

5. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Spray with oil.

6. Roll out the dough on a lightly floured surface to 3/8" thick. Cut out 2" circles with a biscuit cutter, then cut out a 5/8" centre (or use a donut cutter. I cut the end off a kid's medicine syringe. It was the perfect size and I use the plunger to push out the dough). Dough scraps (and holes) can be re-rolled and cut. Place on prepared baking sheet, spray with oil, and cover. Let rise for 1/2 hour.

7. Heat oil to 350 degrees. Fry donuts in batches (30-60 seconds per side) until golden, drain on paper towel or paper bags, then let cool on wire rack. Let fully cool before glazing.

For the glaze, I used this recipe, subbing margarine for butter and soy milk for milk. This recipe makes a lot, so cut it in half.

The donuts (glaze and all) freeze and thaw very well. Place on a sheet pan to freeze. Once frozen, they can be placed in a bag and they won't stick together.

Pain a l'Ancienne: Baking Through the Bread Baker's Apprentice

This bread was a very tasty exploration into some new techniques. The dough is made with ice cold water, kneaded, then placed in the fridge to retard overnight. Like most rustic breads, the dough is very wet and sticky and so plenty of flour is needed to shape the final loaves. The end result is a wonderfully chewy loaf that has an absolutely amazing flavour for the relatively little amount of work that goes into making it.

GENERAL NOTES
- none

VEGAN NOTES
- none

Multigrain Bread Extraordinaire: Baking Through the Bread Baker's Apprentice

I'm not sure this bread is really as extraordinary as Reinhart thinks it is, but it is still really good. Making this bread was also a good reminder about how you can make a bread sound really healthy even though it is still pretty much made with white flour. This loaf is multigrain, made with whole grains, has bran, but is still essentially white bread with a tan.

GENERAL NOTES
1. The recipe calls for rolled oats, but I used a 12 grain cereal mix.
2. The recipe makes one large loaf, so you may want to double the recipe.

VEGAN NOTES
1. I replaced the honey with maple syrup.

Penne with Seitan Sausage and Tomato Sauce

I am still on the quest for kid-friendly dishes for my newly veggie nephew and had recently concocted a pasta dish with lentils and beans, but then found out that he really does not like beans. Alas! So, this is a much less complex dish that uses good ol' seitan sausages and a simple but tasty tomato sauce. Since this dish only calls for 2 sausages, fire the other two in the freezer to have ready for next time. This is adapted from The Sopranos Cookbook. If you want more zing, add some red pepper flakes to the sauce.

INGREDIENTS
- 1 lb penne, or rigatoni, or ziti
- 2 seitan sausages, cooled and sliced
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
- 1/2 cup dry white wine
- 1 28 oz can plum tomatoes (juice and all) passed though a food mill, or 1 28 oz can crushed tomatoes
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1 tbsp basil
- 2 tbsp tomato paste
- 1/2 cup nutritional yeast

METHOD
1. Prepare pasta according to the directions on the box.
2. While paste is cooking, heat 2 tbsp of the oil in a large pan over medium heat. Fry sliced sausage for a few mins on each side, until nicely browned. Remove from pan and set aside. Add remaining tbsp of oil, then fry the garlic until very lightly browned and fragrant.
3. Add wine and simmer until wine reduces by about a third to a half. Add tomatoes then seasons with salt, pepper and basil. Simmer for 10 mins, uncovered.
4. Add tomato paste and nooch and stir well to thicken. Add more paste if needed. Add sausages to the pan and heat through.
5. Drain pasta and toss with the sauce. Serve.