Oh, I am so sorry to learn this. Henry was such an enjoyable, helpful and upbeat person. We were all blessed to make his acquaintance.
Sent from my iPhone On Mar 18, 2013, at 4:44 PM, "Helen Whitehead" <hwhiteh...@cogeco.ca> wrote: > Unfortunately, Henry Caston has passed away. He was a long time cooking in > the dark list member. > ----- Original Message ----- > From: "Will Henderson" <will.henderson...@gmail.com> > To: <cookinginthedark@acbradio.org> > Sent: Monday, March 18, 2013 2:10 PM > Subject: Re: [CnD] Bread Lessons From Henry > > > Oh wow. This looks interesting. > > Who is Henry? > > > -----Original Message----- > From: Cookinginthedark [mailto:cookinginthedark-boun...@acbradio.org] On > Behalf Of Helen Whitehead > Sent: Monday, March 18, 2013 4:40 AM > To: cooking-in-the-dark > Subject: [CnD] Bread Lessons From Henry > > Bread Lessons From Henry > > Hi, > I have sent these bread lessons to this list before, but I am sure, there > are many who have not yet seen them. > These came from the mind of a good, departed friend, wesley Pitts. > He references FIDO, that was back in the old days, before we had the > internet as we now know it. > We also had a mutual friend who put Squid in anything, so, the reference. > Enjoy Wesley'S humor, but realize, the old cowboy knew what he was doing. > Henry > > Title: Bread Lessons > From: Wesley Pitts Date: 13 Jan 94 > > Food historians tell us that "bread" was first discovered on a supermarket > shelf in Rye, New York, in the mid 1950's. Named for the city of its > discovery, it was called "Rye Bread". > > A different flavor of bread was found about the same time in White Plains, > N.Y.....called "White Plains Bread", the name was eventually shortened to > "White Bread" which is what we call it to this very day. > > Other types of bread appeared in Whole Wheat, Kansas... Sourdough, Alaska... > Pumpernickel, Germany, and various cities in France. > > Modern store bought bread, as we know it today, is generally cut into > "slices"... > this development came about because someone discovered that it was difficult > to insert a whole loaf of bread into a toaster. This gave rise to the > popular expression "That's the neatest thing since sliced bread!" > > "Toasted" bread is a fairly recent development, originating, of course, in > Texas in the 1970's. Texas Toast is regular toast with a thyroid problem. > The French picked up on this idea and ran with it, but, as we all know, > French Toast isn't really toast at all, but what can you expect from a > nation that eats garden slugs for dinner. > "Bread" has always been associated with poverty. Poor folks. Hence we have > the phrases "I knead dough"..."I want more bread"...etc.... > Well, let's cut to the chase... this ol' cowboy is going to teach all y'all > who don't own bread makin' machines, how to make a perfect loaf of home made > bread... > > Sign up for the class, we're gonna start out with the BASICS and then we'll > get fancy. > > Anyone interested? > > P.S. Go buy some flour and some yeast, that's all y'all need for lesson one. > (In which the neophytes make their first REAL loaf of bread)..... > Y'all still with me, li'l buckaroos? Okay, here we go... > Just remember, it's not the finished product that counts (yet), it's the > fact that we're all a'havin' a little fun here. And we're gonna get our > hands a li'l messy in the process, but after it's all done, y'all can thumb > your nose at all them Yuppies with their fancy dan Porches and Well Built > bread makin' > gadgets. > > If the bread turns out OK, well, go ahead and serve it, and if something > goes wrong, well, the dawg might eat it. If Fido or Rex turns up his nose, > you better go back to lesson one, or join the water cooking echo. > > Remember, the ol' Cowboy is right here with you, and I'm gonna be makin' a > loaf of bread right along with you, so read this 'un real slow..... do what > I do, when I tell you to do it, you'll be OK. Trust me. :) > > Step One: Go wash the dishes. > > OK, while I'm doing the dishes, this is a real good time for you to go > check your pantry, just to make sure you have everything we're gonna' > need... > you need flour and yeast. Easy as that. I'm assuming you have some water > handy. > > For now, "all purpose" flour will work. We'll get fancy later. > Yeast? I'd use one package of Fleishmann's (you know, the stuff that comes > in the yellow and red package)... now's your chance to run to the 7 - 11... > hurry! > > * ONE HOUR LATER * Dishes are done. Never said I was *fast*... > > Here's what I want you to do... this recipe will make ONE loaf of bread... > once we get this down pat, we'll worry about making two or three at a > time... > > Put THREE cups of flour, your package of yeast, and 1 1/4 cups of HOT tap > water into a mixing bowl. By hot, I mean 110 to 130 degrees F. Normal HOT > tap water should be about 110 degrees. This'll work. Now, take a mixer, and > mix this goop SLOWLY for about three minutes. It should start to look like > something we're gonna call "dough". > > This is where it starts to get fun. At this point, I'm gonna allow you to > add more flour/water to your mixture until *YOU* feel it's right. Oh, the > joys of baking!! (Don't get carried away here, Gomer!) > > Now we have to "knead" the dough. This is a VERY important step, no > short-cuts allowed here! Trust me! To "knead" is to bang, crash, beat to a > pulp, mutilate, pretend it's your mother-in-law, smash, and otherwise do > really nasty things to your mess. Do NOT take a second less than ten > minutes doing this. I could give you a technical explaination of what > you're doing here, breaking down the gluten, etc., but it's more fun if you > pretend that the dough is Mike Tyson and you're the challenger. Feel free to > add a little more flour to the dough (and your hands) at this point. If the > dough is sticking to your hands/fingers, you need more flour. Add it JUST A > LITTLE BIT AT A TIME until it feels right. You'll know when it's right. > Trust me. > > The next part's real easy. Cover your mess with a towel, in a fairly warm > place (75 to 85 F) and let those li'l yeasty thingies do their thing. That's > what we hired 'em for. This should take about an hour or so, and in an > hour, your original mess should be about twice it's original size. Boy, > Howdy, ain't Nature Grand? What's happening here is the li'l boy yeastie > thingies are getting together with the li'l girl yeastie thingies and, well, > this is a family net, so let's leave it at that. They're doing their job. > 'Nuff said. > * Another hour passes as the yeast orgy continues * Woof!! Those li'l > suckers are really gettin' it on, aren't they? By now, your dough should be > about twice what you started with. Here comes the neat part... PUNCH IT > DOWN!!! Really... beat the heck outta that sucker... punch all those air > bubbles out, flatten that baby! > > Now, guess what? Those li'l yeasty babes are still in a partyin' mood, so > we're gonna let 'em play for another HOUR! Yup. Cover 'em > up with a towel (they're really modest) and let 'em party in a warm place > for about another hour. The Monster from Hell is gonna double in size > again! > > * Another hour passes, ... slowly... * OK, that's enough. If we > let > it go too long, it would take over the Universe. > > Put this puppy in about a 5" x 9" greased baking pan at about 400 degrees F > for 25 to 35 minutes. It'll be done when you "thump" it and it sounds kinda > hollow. > > For record keeping purposes, I need to know the following: Number of > students signed up for Bread 101________ Number of students still alive > after eating Bread 101_________ > > NEXT LESSON: Bread 102 In which we get a little fancy... > > 3 c All purpose flour > 1 pk Yeast > 1 1/4 c Water > > Hello once again, all you li'l ol' bread makers! Ready for lesson two? > > First, let's review the basic recipe: > > Mix, knead, let rise, punch down, let rise, bake. > > Hopefully you've tried a couple of loaves of this and are fairly comfortable > with the technique. Now, try this: > > To the basic recipe, add one teaspoon of salt, 1 1/2 tablespoons of sugar, 1 > egg, and substitute milk for water. After the second rise, just before you > pop it in the oven, sprinkle some dill seed or sesame seed on top. > > An important note here is do NOT "guesstimate" the sugar and/or salt. You > can > get away with this when making chili or squid, but NOT when baking. > > Now it's starting to look and taste a little more like bread. > > Note that home made bread will NOT "keep" for longer than a day or so before > it becomes hard as a rock. This is normal, and is why our forefathers had > recipes for such neat stuff as bread pudding, bread crumbs, etc. > > It's also interesting to note that the basic recipe makes a KILLER pizza > dough, if you're into home made pizza. I'll leave the add ons as an > exercise for the student, as no two people can ever agree on what makes a > good pizza filling. > > Lesson three; > > 3 c All purpose flour > 1 pk Yeast > 1 1/4 c Liquid (water or milk... milk recommended) > 1 Egg (optional but recommended) An egg can be added for extra flavor and > nutrition; it softens the crust and gives the interior a finer crumb. > 1 ts Salt (optional but recommended) > 1 tb Sugar (optional but recommended) > (In Which We Get a Little Fancy) > > First, let's review the basic recipe for one loaf of "plain" white bread > > Mix about three minutes until dough does not stick to floured fingers. Knead > for no less than 10 minutes; cover with towel and let it rise in a warm > (75 - > 80 F) place for about an hour, or until it has about doubled in size; punch > it down; let it rest about 15 minutes; place in greased bread pan; cover; > let it rise about another hour; bake at 400 degrees for 25 to 30 minutes or > until it sounds "hollow" when thumped; remove from pan; let cool. > > To make 2 loaves, simply double everything EXCEPT the yeast. > > Now, for a couple of variations on a theme: > > Rye bread instead of 3 cups of all purpose flour, use 2 cups of all purpose > and 1 cup of rye flour (available at a health food store)... add 2 > tablespoons of caraway seed to the dough... use buttermilk instead of plain > milk or water... add 1/3 cup of light molasses to the dough... omit the > sugar... the egg is still optional... > instead of baking in a bread pan, shape into a round ball and bake on a > lightly greased cookie sheet. Reduce the baking temperature to 350 > degrees... baking time may be 5 - 10 minutes longer...( > > Whole wheat bread increase sugar to 1 1/2 tablespoons... > use 1 1/2 cups of all purpose flour and 2 cups of whole wheat flour... > use milk instead of water... > add 1/4 cup of butter or margarine... > add 1/2 cup molasses... the egg is still optional. > The method is the same except the baking time may be 5 10 minutes longer. > > For the above two variations, do NOT be tempted to use ALL rye flour or ALL > whole wheat flour. Those flours do not have enough gluten in them for > proper rising action, so you MUST use some all purpose flour, otherwise your > finished product will be very heavy and close textured. > > For high altitude baking (above 5,000 feet), use 1/2 the yeast. > Yeast dough rises faster at high altitudes. > A "perfect" loaf of bread should: > > * O Have a well browned, evenly rounded top o Have a soft and moist > interior, easily pulled apart o Have a uniform color o Have an even texture > holes are small and uniform in size from top to bottom > > To keep bread fresh, wrap each cooled loaf in foil or plastic wrap, or seal > in a plastic bag; store in a cool, dry cupboard or bread box. Bread may be > stored in the refrigerator but it goes stale more quickly. > > Bread keeps in the freezer for up to 3 months if tightly wrapped in foil, > heavy-duty plastic wrap, or freezer wrap, or sealed in plastic bags. Always > make sure to press out as much air as possible. > > Well, that's about it, li'l buckaroos. Don't be afraid to experiment ~ Add > raisins, nuts, cheese, finely diced and lightly sauteed onions, or anything > else you can think of to the dough. > Add green food coloring for St. Patrick's day! > Add a squid or two... > play around with using different liquids... > a friend of mine recently told me she was baking a cake and ran out of milk, > so she substituted baby formula... said it was the best cake she'd ever > made! > > Play around with different shapes... knots, pinwheels, crescents, rolls, > etc. > Use your imagination! Make a heart-shaped loaf of bread for Valentine's day > or a birthday! > Tell us about your successes, give your not so valiant efforts to Fido. > The main thing is to HAVE FUN and ENJOY!! > > _______________________________________________ > Cookinginthedark mailing list > Cookinginthedark@acbradio.org > http://acbradio.org/mailman/listinfo/cookinginthedark > > _______________________________________________ > Cookinginthedark mailing list > Cookinginthedark@acbradio.org > http://acbradio.org/mailman/listinfo/cookinginthedark > > _______________________________________________ > Cookinginthedark mailing list > Cookinginthedark@acbradio.org > http://acbradio.org/mailman/listinfo/cookinginthedark _______________________________________________ Cookinginthedark mailing list Cookinginthedark@acbradio.org http://acbradio.org/mailman/listinfo/cookinginthedark
