2 tablespoons Diamond Crystal kosher salt, or 1 tablespoon fine sea salt
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for the pan and finishing
Flaky salt, for finishing
For the brine:
1 1/2 teaspoons Diamond Crystal kosher salt
1/3 cup lukewarm water
INSTRUCTIONS
In a medium bowl, stir together water, yeast, and honey to dissolve. In a very large bowl, whisk flour and salt together to combine and then add yeast mixture and olive oil. Stir with a rubber spatula until just incorporated, then scrape the sides of the bowl clean and cover with plastic wrap. Leave out at room temperature to ferment for 12 to 14 hours until at least doubled in volume.
Spread 2 to 3 tablespoons oil evenly onto a 18-by-13 inch rimmed baking sheet. When dough is ready, use a spatula or your hand to release it from the sides of the bowl and fold it onto itself gently, then pour out onto pan. Pour an additional 2 tablespoons of olive oil over dough and gently spread across. Gently stretch the dough to the edge of the sheet by placing your hands underneath and pulling outward. The dough will shrink a bit, so repeat stretching once or twice over the course of 30 minutes to ensure dough remains stretched.
Dimple the dough by pressing the pads of your first three fingers in at an angle. Make the brine by stirring together salt and water until salt is dissolved. Pour the brine over the dough to fill dimples. Set the focaccia aside to rise for 45 minutes until the dough is light and bubbly.
Thirty minutes into this final proof, adjust rack to center position and a second rack to the upper position. Preheat oven to 450°F. If you have a baking stone, place it on the center rack. Otherwise, invert another sturdy baking sheet and place on that rack. Allow to preheat with the oven until very hot, before proceeding with baking.
Sprinkle focaccia with flaky salt. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes directly on top of stone or inverted baking sheet until bottom crust is crisp and golden brown when checked with a metal spatula. To finish browning top crust, move focaccia to upper rack and bake for 5 to 7 minutes more.
Remove from oven and brush or douse with 2 to 3 tablespoons oil over the whole surface (don’t worry if the olive pools in pockets, it will absorb as it sits). Let cool for 5 minutes, then release focaccia from pan with metal spatula and transfer to a cooling rack. Serve warm or at room temperature.
RECIPE NOTES
Storage: To store, wrap in parchment and then keep in an airtight bag or container to preserve texture. Gently toast or reheat any leftover focaccia before serving. Alternatively, wrap tightly to freeze, then defrost and reheat before serving.
And speaking of breaks……..Happy Anniversary to my Arm!! Twenty-two years ago I feel off a horse and got a nasty break. This was the year that you, dear Boo, that you got your heart’s desire. Your very own horse! His name was Spotty and that pretty much describes his performance. Spotty. The Buffalo County Fair is the end of July, so with lots of lessons from Mary under your little 4-H belt we entered you in both barrels and pole bending. The “read” on Spotty was that if he did good with the pole bending, he would blow up on barrels. And if he did good with barrels we could count on him going nutsy on pole bending. It was always a gamble. That day sitting in the grandstands watching you perform my stomach was in my mouth the entire time. You loved doing the speed events and I was a nervous wreck.
First was pole bending. You were scheduled to be about the sixth competitor. I crossed every finger, toe, leg, hair, whatever I could cross I crossed. The announcer called your name and you and Spotty shot out of the gate. You raced past all the poles to the very last one. He zigged when you gave him the command, he zagged when he felt the reins, never missing a pole! You made the last pole with a tight go-round and started back. Again, he zigged and zagged on command and you just flew back through the gates! Hallelujah! I have no idea of your time – all I know is that you were safely back and all in one piece. Here is a video I found on YouTube. It’s not of your race, but it shows a pole bending event.
Whew……….now I could rest my stomach and nerves until your next event. If possible I was even more nervous, as I knew what was coming. Spotty was going to be a total poop in the Barrel Racing event. I so wanted to withdraw you from the event, but that was not the right thing to do. As Mary told us, you had to learn that you were in charge in the arena and Spotty had to learn that lesson also. However, Mary did go out in the outdoor arena and raced Spotty around trying to get out his energy.
Here is an example of a sweet little five year old girl doing barrels. Now THIS is the speed I wanted to see you and Spotty race, but did you do as I wanted???? Heck no! Once Spotty got through the starting gates it was “Katy Bare the Gates” he was a mad demon possessed. He shot out of the gates like a green grass through a goose! From my point of view all I could see is your hands holding tight to the reins, that darn horse running full out, past the barrels and just running around the arena and almost running over the judge. You were determined to make that nasty little buggar do the barrels correctly, even though you were DQ (dis-qualified) at this point. All I knew is that I needed to save my baby!! Look up in the sky, its a Bird… its a Plane… No Its SuperMom. Faster than a speeding horse, more powerful than a locomotive, able to leap six foot fall fences in a single bound. Who disguised as a suburban housewife, mild mannered Mom for a local 4-H Horse Group, fights the unending battle for life, limb, and the keeping her baby safe. I never knew I could move so fast! I was up and out of my seat and into the arena ready to throw a body block on that nasty little buggar as he shot past me. However, once he saw the look in my eyes and my determination he gave up the fight. You were crying your eyes out, I thought in fear. Your father picked up the horse and all but head butted him into the horse trailer (not really, but I wanted that to happen!). As we were walking out of the arena you were finally able to tell me that you were not afraid, but were horribly embarrassed that you were not able to finish the competition – and it was your first one.
Fast forward to three weeks later, when I was riding the Appaloosa horse that your father had given to me for my birthday. Darn it all if the spotted horse got us again! This buggar was not that well trained and was feeling his oats that afternoon. He crowhopped up the first hill and peed and peed and peed every twenty steps. I was very frustrated and did not know what to do when the crowhopping started. Gus, that was his name, just hated to be the last horse in the pack, so after he was done peeing he would run to catch up with everyone. And I do not like speed. I do not like to go fast, so I was pulling up the reins trying my best to get him to slow down. As we were going down a hill fast to catch up with the others both of us became frustrated with each other. So, Gus decided that he would just spin in a circle to try to show me who was boss. While we were spinning I could see that I was not that far off the ground, so I let loose and let go. To the ground I went and using my hands/arms to help break the fall. What I did do was to break my right arm in two spots and shatter the majority of bones in my right hand. That night I had surgery to put an external fixator device into my arm. Not fun, not fun at all. The boys in your kindergarten class called me “The Terminator”, as I guess I must have looked like him. Oh well, we both survived that summer.
Here is a tasty treat we like to have for “BLD” (break-fast, lunch dinner). So many ways to mix it up, change out the protein, the veggies, the cheese.
It’s a fun and fast way to clean out the refrigerator or to try out new veggies. Joy Rising!
BLD Quiche
Skill Level: Easy
Bake Time: 350 degrees 15 minutes to blind bake shell, 30-35 minutes for filled quiche
Ingredients:
1 pie crust (I cheat and use the ones in the dairy section of grocery store, but you can make your own
3 eggs
1 c cream
1/2 cup milk
1 c cooked meat
1 c of chopped veggie
1 c of second chopped veggie
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1 c shredded cheese (cheddar, swiss, greyure, whatever you have on hand)
salt and pepper to taste
Directions:
Place pie crust into 9″ pie pan and “blind” bake for 15 minutes. (You want to blind bake so that the bottom crust is not soggy. To blind bake after you line pie plate with crust place a sheet of aluminum foil on top of the crust. Then place layer of uncooked beans or rice to help weigh down the foil. Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes. Take out of oven and remove the foil and bean/rice. )
If your meat is not already cooked, place in skillet and cook until browned. (I either used whatever leftover meat we have in the fridge or I fry four slices of bacon cut into 1/2 pieces.) Or you can omit the meat and have a vegetarian dish.
In same skillet saute your veggies until translucent. (I always use onions, as we like the flavor, but you can omit the onions and I use the grease from the meat to help flavor the veggies). Depending on what veggies you use this could take six or seven minutes.
In bottom of pre-baked pie crust layer on the veggies and then the meat.
In bowl mix together the eggs, cream, milk, nutmeg, salt and pepper.
Pour egg mixture over the veggie/meat mixture.
Sprinkle the cheese over this mixture in the crust.
Place in 350 degree oven and bake until knife inserted into center of quiche comes out clean. This should be 30-35 minutes.
Cut into slices and serve with a nice green salad or fruit salad.
Dearest Boo, I found these videos on YouTube and I could not resist, since you and I are such Cupcake Fiends.
When you were a wee one you were never really into dolls. One time, much to my surprise you asked for a Cabbage Patch Doll. There was such a craze for these bald headed cuties and I wanted to give you the world, so I was one of those awful parent who stood in line for hours and hours just to get our hands on one. Once you got it the doll sat on a shelf in your bedroom, still in the package. Pretty sure it is buried someplace in our basement today. Then there was Barbie. It was not exactly the Barbie doll that you wanted, it was all her horses. First there was Tawney, then Dancer, Dallas, Midnight, Honey, Dixie, Silky Mane, Sun Runner and lastly for you Western Star. Of course, we had to get a couple of Barbies and Skippers and Ken doll just so that you would have someone to ride your horses. And, since their clothes were so hard for little fingers to put on, all your riders were, in all sense of the words, bare back riders. Prancing around on your bedroom floor were Lord and Lady Godivas.
The only doll that you collected and even made any attempts to play with were the ones from the Strawberry Shortcake series. Not sure what was the attraction with these dolls. Maybe it was because each one was made to emit a long lasting fragrance based on fruits, flowers and candies. And, a bonus for you, each one came with their own little pet. Some of the ones you had were:
Huckleberry Pie and Pupcake Pie
Angle Cake and Souffle Skunk
Blueberry Muffin and Cheesecake Mouse
Strawberry Shortcake and Custard Cat
Orange Blossom and Marmalade Butterfly
Raspberry Tart and Rhubarb Monkey
Butter Cookie and Jelly Bear
Apricot and Hopsalot
Cherry Cuddler and Gooseberry
Lem and Ada with Sugar Woofer
Apple Dumplin’ and Tea Time Turtle
Cafe Ole
Mint Tulip
Lemon Meringue with Frappe
Almond Tea
Crepe Suzette with Eclaire
Purple Pie Man with Blueberry Bird
Sour Grapes with Dreg the Snake
Of course, you real true collectible love was the Breyer’s Traditional Horses. No wait, it was a tie between Breyer’s and My Little Ponies. The My Little Ponies were ever so much cheaper and we must have several 50 gallon tubes of them in our basement. In looking at them I am embarrassed at how much I “enabled” this addiction of yours. This line of plastic toys came out in 1983, the same time that your obsession with horses started. Although, to be fair, most little girls have a slight obsession with horses at about this age. They were the rage in the 1980’s and at one time outsold Mattel’s Barbie doll. In thinking about all your MLP we own I am thinking that Hasbro should have sent me at least a thank you note for making that event happen all by myself.
According to WikiPedia many different sets of Little Ponies were produced, starting with the Rainbow Ponies (which all sported rainbow-colored manes and tails) in 1983. Other variations included the So-Soft Ponies (which were entirely covered in flocking), Twinkle-Eyed Ponies (with small rhinestones in place of the eyes), Twice As Fancy Ponies (with sigils covering most of the body), and Brush n’ Grow Ponies (which had a longer-than-usual tail stored inside the body that could be drawn out through brushing). There were also the Earth Ponies (which had symbols on their haunches representing their names), followed by the Pegasus Ponies, Unicorn Ponies, Flutter Wing Ponies, Windy Wing Ponies, and Summer Wing Ponies. The last grouping of ponies that I can remember buying were the Sea Ponies. Each night you could find the entire “fleet” of Sea Ponies in the bathtub with you. I realized that I had to stop the buying insanity when the three inches of water in the tub was totally displaced by the gazillion Sea Ponies who filled the tub to overflowing.
As much as you loved the MLP and loved to play with them, the Breyer’s horses were on a totally different level. And by “level” I mean shelves. Your Breyer horses were named, for the most part, after breds of horses or a famous horse. For you those were the ” Piece de resistance” to your collections. This collections was not for playing, it was strictly for collecting. The joy for you was to collect them for their beauty and for the sheer joy of the appreciation of their workmanship. In looking at the horse it was as if some evil Wizard had zapped them down in scale. They were just so perfect. And the joy was also in the hunt for the latest model in this collection. This was long before the Internet, so we had to rely on us blindly stumbling into a store and seeing the new horse on the self, as a new one came out maybe two or three times a year.
The last time I can remember our buying on was the day that will forever be known in our family as the “Day of the Knife”. We were visiting some friends and the men were out golfing, so we three “girls” (Barb F. you and I) decided to go shopping. As we were shopping when what do we discover but a new Traditional Breyer horse, of course we had to buy it. Once we were in the car Barb and I started to talk and you asked if you could open up your horse. Of course, no problem. The box was opened and the horse was removed, only to discover that it was attached to the cardboard insert by those nasty plastic ties, problem. Aha! You remembered that I had a pocket knife in my purse, so you asked to use it, problem solved. Barb and I were busy talking in the front seat and you were busy in the back seat, quietly setting about to release your horse. In my memory what happened next could easily have been called “Nightmare on 120th Street”. All I remember is your tiny little voice saying that you cut yourself, sticking your arm between the front seats for me to see, and then terror set in. In my mind you had cut your artery and your blood was pumping in a steady beat, like a geyser, all over the front windshield, the car seats, Barb and myself. I was too terrified to turn around to see if Freddy Krueger was in the back seat with you. Luckily, my “momsense” kicked in and we got you to an emergency room. My memory of the emergency room is blocked, thank God, as I am sure I was a screaming whack-a-doodle about the fact that my precious daughter was bleeding to death and it was all my fault for giving her that machete knife to injure herself. After the poor nurses got me calmed down they assured me that your finger would only need a couple of stitches. Seriously? All that blood from a tiny finger cut?? Lord help me if ever I am in a real emergency! Pretty sure I will not be any help at all. Once we got out to Barb’s car I could clearly, and sanely, see that the “geyser” of blood in my mind’s eye was only maybe four big drops and took no time at all to clean up. All in all, it may not have been that much, but it does make for a great “family legend” of the day we learned that you are not that good with knives and I am not that good with blood. Oh, by the way…….Happy 17th Anniversary of the Great Finger Cut! And I can say that you have learned how to use a knife correctly and safely. Joy Rising!
A couple of pictures of some of the 115 cupcakes that I made for Cindy’s Dad’s 80th birthday. So much fun to get creative in the kitchen! The flavors we decided upon were Red Velvet with Cream Cheese Frosting, Raspberry with White Chocolate Raspberry Frosting, Mint Chocolate with Grasshopper Frosting, Apple with Apple Cinnamon Frosting, Chocolate with Mocha Frosting, Key Lime with Toasted Coconut Frosting, Vanilla with Butterscotch Frosting. My favorite was the Key Lime, but you loved them all. Bless your heart! Yesterday I made Dr. Pepper Cupcakes with Whipped Chocolate Frosting and some with Cherry 7-Minute Frosting. Way too many for us to eat, however, bless your heart you do take after me, you want to take some to work for your co-worker to enjoy and I will spend this afternoon going up and down our street looking for some dear soul who will take the rest.
Above are the birthday cupcakes and below are the Happy Friday Chocolate Cherry Dr. Pepper cupcakes.
Here is the recipe for the Chocolate Cherry Dr. Pepper Cupcake.
Ingredients:
2 1/4 c Dr. Pepper soda
2 c sugar
2 1/2 c cake flour
2 whole eggs
4 oz. unsweetened chocolate
1/2 c maraschino cherry syrup
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
2 sticks unsalted butter
pinch of salt
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp vanilla
1/4 c sour cream
Directions:
Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
In a medium size sauce pan bring Dr. Pepper and cherry syrup to a boil.
Place chocolate and butter into a bowl and pour hot Dr. Pepper mixture over it; cover and let set for 10 minutes.
Whisk mixture until smooth.
Stir in sugar, salt, cinnamon, baking soad, baking powder, vanilla and sour cream.
Add flour in two parts, alternating with the eggs and whisk until smooth.
Fill cupcake cups 2/3 full (please note mixture will be very runny).
Bake approximately 15-20 minutes or until skewer comes out clean.
Frost as desired.
Seven Minute Cherry Frosting
Ingredients:
4 egg whites
1/2 tsp cream of tartar
2/3 c maraschino cherry syrup (you may need more)
2# powdered sugar (also called confectioners sugar)
1/4 tsp salt
Directions:
In sauce pan that is large enough for bowl to rest inside, but not touching the bottom of the sauce pan, place enough water to make water bath for frosting. To do this place empty bowl into sauce pan making sure that the water comes to slightly below the bottom of the bowl (making your own double boiler). The steam from the water will cook the frosting.
Place the sauce pan on medium high and allow water to boil. Should take just a couple of minutes.
Put egg whites, cream of tartar, powdered sugar and salt into heat proof bowl.
Using hand mixer pour 1/2 c of the cherry syrup into the mixture and mix for one minute.
Place the bowl over the saucepan, allowing the edge of the bowl to rest on the edge of the sauce pan, and beat on high for seven minutes, adding more cherry syrup as needed to obtain desired consistency.
Scrape down the sides of the bowl so that the frosting will not turn into large meringue cookie.
