I'm off to see the MUFFULETTA Store, the Wonderful Muffuletta Store of New Orleans

Check out my post from last week...

Tuesday, October 20, 2009
I am Eating a MUFFULETTA Today thanks to -
SMOKEY MOUNTAIN CAFE

My dear blogging buddy, Katherine from the SMOKEY MOUNTAIN CAFE blog wrote a marvelous guest post on the sandwich and the origins of this uniquely NEW ORLEANS treat! Today, I want to talk a little about my Muff experience, and a lot about blogdom...

OK, if you have not read Katherine's post, please take a second and drop on over. She gives you an easy to follow recipe to recreate the sandwich if you don't have the good fortune to visit N'Awlins. Thanks to being pre-armed with Katherine's information...

Here's what I did...

It was a bright beautiful day in the Big Easy. My wife and I made the journey to the edge of the French Quarter, 923 Decatur Street (across the street from an open air street market, which is the site of the very first farmer's market in the nation... but I digress). This is the home of the Central Grocery Company. It is an incredible old world store. I imagine the look has not changed in 50 years. And that is it's charm. Hey, in researching this post, look what I found... CENTRAL GROCERY has it's own wikipedia listing (click HERE). I have visited New Orleans many many times, but thanks to Katherine, this was my first time in this marvelous land of Muff...

A place out of time that I hope never changes. The history of the sandwich ties into the history of the city. Many immigrating Sicilians ate this sandwich while doing the delivery grunt work that made the city run. It is truly a locally created New Orleans product, available in a storefront that created it and for the most part has not changed in decades. this is living history.

My first Muffuletta sandwich was bought several trip back. I have gotten them for lunch when I was seated with tablecloths and silverware on the table. Central grocery has a few community tables, and the back is lined with a wonderful old counter top and stools.

But no service... pony up to the counter, order a whole or a half (anyone who can eat a whole is just showing off). They come cut in quarters.

We were incredibly blessed with perfect weather. Highs everyday we were there were in the upper 70's, low humidity and blue skys (only rained for a few hours one evening, out of 5 days!). Much as I was tempted to eat at the counter, we chose to take our sandwich and take the short three block walk to Jackson Square.

And dig in...
Here's our view as we ate...

And the verdict... Everything I love about New Orleans. The smallest thing has an incredible history. Dig a little deeper and that history comes alive. Dig just a little under that and you find a part of living history. Imagine, in a city filled with the sauces of the French and the spices of the Spanish, a creation for the hard working Italian immigrants still exists in it's original form today.

Everyone knows about Cafe Du Monde and Beignets. In their place, wonderful. But the Cafe has changed over the years to accommodate tourist expectations. Central Grocery and their Muffuletta has not changed in 50 years. Here's hoping it never does.

And oh yeah, Central Grocery is just a short walk to Jackson Square, and Jackson Square is just a short walk to...

Pat O'Briens, home of the hurricane drink (named for the glass, not the big wind)... and they make a mean Sazarac as well. So, a uniquely New Orleans lunch, a picnic, drinks and a little jazz... sounds like a good afternoon to me!

So, here's what I want to say to wrap up my tale of Muffs...

Bloggers - what an amazing bunch. I learn everyday things I didn't know the day before. I am comparatively new to blogdom, only 4 months. But in that time, I have met some wonderful people. Always willing to share, always positive and always wanting the best for others. Katherine, willing to share her knowledge led me on a wonderful journey for the afternoon. It sounds like such a simple thing, just a sandwich review, but this was my best afternoon of my vacation. Lots of history, lots of fun... but I also got to have a picnic with my wife. I LOVED every bit of this day. had I not met Katherine, got to know her back story and had she not volunteered to help, I would have had a pleasant enough Muffuletta sandwich at your basic boilerplate tablecloth and silverware lunch place. I have done this several times, and enjoyed it each time. But, because I blog, because bloggers share, I had a perfect afternoon.

So, next time you are going away... let us all know where... Maybe we can direct you to something unexpected... something wonderful.

Thanks Katherine, and do me a favor... Return to Katherine's site, take a look around and thank her for me...

SMOKEY MOUNTAIN CAFE she is worth getting to know!

If you want to win, you have to belong to the ALL BOYS CLUB!

Finally, I can announce the winners of the POM WONDERFUL giveaway the good folks at http://pomwonderful.com/ (make it easy for you, Click HERE to get there without cutting and pasting) let me conduct. And (hee hee hee) I am sorry to say (hee hee hee hee) that of the 153 entrants in the contest (giggle giggle), 90% or more of which are the lovely ladies of blogdom (HAHAHAHAHA)... My TWO winners belong to the all boys club! Sorry girls, male food bloggers are in the vast minority, but this time - MALE SOLIDARITY BROTHERS!

Seriously, I was surprised as you are that when i assigned all 153 entrants a number, went to www.random.org and drew the two winning numbers out of the hat,

CHRIS from NIBBLE ME THIS

and

BOB from COOKING STUFF

were the winners!!! So, boys, drop me an email at

YearontheGrill@yahoo.com And I will see that they get it out ASAP (makes a great BBQ sauce)

And ladies, all I can say is ... HMMM, a small part of me wants to say, "In your face, Bitches", but I will fight that urge and say I have a couple more giveaways coming soon, and I sincerely wish everyone could win and better luck next time... Yeah, that's what I want to say, ignore that nasty stuff, I would never say that (out loud).

So, I do wish everyone could have won... better luck next time

My MOST UNEXPECTED Night in New Orleans - ARNAUD's RESTAURANT

OK, I am behind, and I promise tomorrow I will be back on track. The response to the POM giveaway was huge, and I need an extra day to sort every one's entry in order to get it right. BUT, I promise a winner will be announced tomorrow.

But, today, I want to share just a bit more about my vacation in the Big Easy. Today I want to share a story that will tell you the very best side to the city...

I have tried to write this several different ways, each makes either the group I was with sound like country bumpkins, or makes assumptions about wait staff that are unfair. I will get to the point of the story by giving you the short version... I was with a large group, and we were inappropriate for the restaurant. Short version, a group of 13 tourists, inappropriately dressed, and not prepared for the type of restaurant we wandered into.

Arnaud's Restaurant is a work of art. A beautiful old style place, with more character in the architecture than you can imagine. It is also one of the more expensive fine dining experiences you will have in NO. Nothing wrong with that. I enjoy a night of pampering and amazing food. But, I like to be ready... dressed correctly, have the budget planned and prepared and ... well, I can't find the words, but I just like to have my mind wrapped around the experience of fine dining if I am going to make the financial commitment. The short version of the tale, all 13 tourists were in the same position I was. Another time, another day, and with planning, I would have felt right at home. But honestly, the minute we walked into the place, we were the country cousins in the big city.

But then something wonderful happened... We were gifted with our waiter... AARON.

OK, let me digress again for a second... Fine dining waiters work on tips. For a party this size, he would be guaranteed 20%. He also could have coasted through the evening, confident he would be compensated well, but not really working the extra mile. I also know what restaurants like in a dining party. They like drinkers (wine and cocktails can easily double a ticket). They like alla cart orders that include appetizers, salads and desserts. From the minute we sat down, Aaron could see that we were not going to be that group.

I ordered my beloved Sazarak cocktail (that's me at the bar, with my drink. Take a look at the wonderful old lamp, dressed for Halloween), and my wife ordered a glass of wine. Two others ordered drinks, and the rest informed Aaron that they would be drinking tap water tonight. Aaron saw that he would not be getting much extra from the bar tab.

Once the drinks came, we started ordering. Arnaud's did have a $40 Prix Fixe menu that I was hoping would satisfy everyone. Ordering the many excellent dishes on the menu alla cart would easily have doubled that cost. Unfortunatly, the first person to order decided he was going to "share" one order with their spouse. The next couple the same, the next and the next. What should have easily been a $500 total order ($100 tip) was turning into barely $250. Wanting to make my friends comfortable, my wife and I agreed to the plan, and went along with splitting the prix fixe menu. OK, if it were me, and if you honestly thought about the amount of work it was going to take to service a table of 13 people, you would agree that Aaron would be justified to go into the back, kick a busboy, spit in our food and curse his misfortune for drawing the unlucky hand.

Instead... First, he brought out a couple pitchers of sweet tea, explaining in good humour that it was the champagne of the south and wanted us all to try it. Those pitchers were never empty throughout the night.

When serving bread, not in a basket, but offering each person an individual choice, he pointed out interesting bits of architecture, paintings of the owner, the owners sister and his mistress. Told us tales of his life, his Katrina experiences. He was entertaining. Not in a forced manor, but genuinely was good natured.

But next, I have never seen any waiter do. And certainly not one where his tip was being cut in half... EACH person received what I believe was a full order. Many ordered the red fish. Each person received a plate with a full piece of fish on the plate. It is hard for me to believe, although possible, that the full order featured two pieces of fish... But I doubt it. Aaron was quizzed. We were concerned that we were going to receive a bill for $80 per couple. He just shrugged the questions off, said not to worry, he understood what we wanted, he just had the kitchen plate the orders separate. Now, my guess is that we were towards the end of the evening, they had plenty of fresh fish left that was going to waste and decided to do a nice thing. I don't know how much of this was Aaron's decision, or the management or possibly really is standard; but since Aaron is the face of the front of the house, I am happy to credit him with this wonderful bit of above and beyond service.

Aaron had an opportunity to punish and belittle a group of outsiders who would likely never return to the restaurant. Instead, he and his restaurant made us feel welcome, provided positive experiences at every opportunity and made it one of the most memorable nights of our vacation...

But wait, there was more...

Arnaud's offers two flaming dessert options. One, bananas foster is my wife's favorite (JACKIEtober continues). Aaron double checked with everyone, and two of us ordered the extra dessert (we got seven desserts from the prix fixe menu order). He made the dessert table side, with dramatic flair. Flaming brandy was flying and everyone enjoyed the show. He made sure my wife was well served, but then... Magically, a small dish of ice cream appeared for everyone else. Everyone got a small scoop of ice cream and a 1/4 of a banana and some of the caramel liqueur sauce... Again, way beyond expectations.

But wait, there was more... the house specialty dessert coffee is called Cafe Brulot. It again is prepared table side, flaming and comes with a show and story. The back story is that this was something that the pirate Jean Lafitte would make these and while people were watching the show, their pockets were picked. Aaron told the story better...

By this time, more people were understanding the bargain we were getting, and 4 of these were ordered. Below, I copied the recipe from a website. It is (near as I remember) the ingredients and the presentation.

CAFE BRULOT RECIPE

1 orange, peel cut into 1 long, intact spiral
6 whole cloves
1 orange peel, cut into 1 by 1/8-inch strips,
1 lemon peel, cut into 1 by 1/8-inch strips
4 sugar cubes
1 (2-inch) cinnamon stick
1/4 cup brandy
1/2 cup orange flavored liqueur
2 cups hot, freshly brewed, strong black coffee

Stud the orange peel with the cloves.

Light the burner under a Brulot bowl, chafing dish or wok. Adjust the flame to low. Into the bowl place the orange and lemon peels, sugar, cloves, cinnamon stick brandy and orange liqueur. Cook for 1 to 2 minutes, stirring constantly with a long-handled ladle, to dissolve the sugar and warm the ingredients.

When the mixture is warm, ignite with a match.

Quickly, while the mixture is still flaming, hold the spiraled orange peel with the prongs of a fork over the bowl, and ladle the flaming coffee mixture down the peel several times into the bowl for a spectacular presentation. Add in the hot coffee to extinguish the flames

Ladle the Cafe Brulot into Brulot or demitasse cups, being careful to leave the flavorings (peels, cloves, cinnamon) in the bowl. Serve immediately while hot.

Yield: 4 servings

Of course, all of us that ordered the full cup received what we ordered, but Aaron also (magically) had additional smaller cups available so that everyone that wanted could sample the drink. Aaron continued to hover around the table, telling tales of the restaurant and staff, and just generally entertaining his customers.

Sure enough, the bill came. Everything we ordered, 4 extra drinks before dinner, 2 desserts, and 4 after dinner coffee drinks, 13 people well feed and entertained, all for @$350. No surprises... except very pleasant ones. I would not have been surprised had a waiter give us the bum's rush, poor service, no extras, and the labor intensive table side presentations rushed through. I absolutely did not expect separate plating for the people sharing food, nor the extra tasting samples of the flaming desserts and coffees.

But wait... There really was more...

Arnaud's has a wonderful history, founded by a Count (who was never really a Count) 90 years ago, and has been a focal point for many events in the city. The restaurant has converted a banquet room into a Mardi gras Museum featuring the gowns worn by the founder's wife and daughter during their 22 separate reigns as queens of the parades.

Aaron of course offered to give us a tour. Now, the bill had been paid, the tip was given (more than the suggested 20%) and no one would have been offended had he just pointed, and said his goodbyes. Instead, he spent an additional 30 minutes, showing us around the museum, explaining details that could have been missed, and then showed us several of the private dining rooms that most guests never see.

As any old building in New Orleans, Arnaud's is rich in history and Aaron was proud of his job and proud of his restaurant. He had stories of ghosts and famous patrons. Some spectacular artwork that was hidden away waiting to be pointed out to lucky few patrons. The extra time he spent was truly the icing on the cake.

I am sharing this, not to brag about the price we got or the wonderful freebies. I am trying to share a story about what could have been a very disappointing evening for Aaron, as well as us. Instead, he went beyond any one's expectations to provide the best night possible for all. It is easy for a restaurant receiving $100 per customer to provide superior service. Any waiter receiving tips of $10 to $20 per person would be expected to make sure their dining experience was everything it should be. On very rare occasions, a group of poorly dressed tourists, trying to get by in a superior restaurant on the cheap; are treated so well.

If you visit New Orleans, check out Arnaud's for a special evening... Ask for Aaron

http://www.arnauds.com

Day of Rest - New Orleans School of Cooking

Well, I am back... 5 days, 4 nights and 7 Sazerac Cocktails later, JACKIEtober has officially ended for another year. We spent our days sightseeing and walking the streets. We spent our evenings dining in some of the finest restaurants in the world, and we spent our nights drinking and dancing at some terrific jazz clubs (and we even left the French Quarter to find those). Of course, we spent our afternoons taking naps. I have dozens and dozens of stories that will bore you to death. I have hundreds of photos that you will have no interest in (be honest, is there much more boring than hearing about someone Else's vacations). But I do think I can come up with four posts over the next four days that may interest you.

Eventually, New Orleans is one of those cities that everyone should make an attempt to visit. I have been lucky enough to have spent a lifetime travelling. I have seen plenty of tourist destination cities, and hands down, New Orleans does it best. There are plenty of cities that "fake it". They do fake it well, but it is an act for the tourists. "Ye Olde Days" has nothing to do with modern London, Eating out in Paris was the most insulting, over-rated experiences I have ever had (don't get me started on Parisians), New Yorkers do not attend the theatre any more and LA is as fake as the look-a-likes in front of MANN's Chinese theatre. These great cities put on a wonderful "show" for the tourists.

But with few exceptions, New Orleans in general and the French Quarter in specific is a world where tourists can feel that the guides, restaurant servers, bar keeps, etc. genuinely love their city, and want visitors to enjoy their stay. They work hard at showing you why their city is different. They show you a "real" New Orleans. Are happy to give you a glimpse into their lives and have a family history that is unique among the melting pot that is America.

Today, I want to tell you about my absolute best tip for any visitor to New Orleans... First morning in town, take the cooking class at the NEW ORLEANS SCHOOL OF COOKING. You can find their website by clicking HERE. The class is about 3 hours long. But in that three hours, you will get a wonderful history lesson about how food shaped the history of the city. Founded by lazy French aristocrats, engineered by creative Spaniards, Expanded by industrious Germans and worked by People of Color. Each of these groups learned to cook with the available ingredients, altering their "home cooking" to create the unique mixture that is the foods of New Orleans. The stories are told in a fun and entertaining manor that never hits you in the head with history. It is the perfect introduction to the city, as well as to the foods you can expect to be eating over the next few days. And, oh yeah... You eat what is cooked for lunch. Making this the best bargain in the city.

I have taken the class 5 different times (twice this week). In each class, you learn an appetizer (Crab bisque or Gumbo or AN AMAZING SHRIMP AND ARTICHOKE HEARTS SOUP or Cajun Corn Bread). You also learn a main course (Jambalaya or Shrimp Creole or CRAWFISH ETOUFFEE or Red Beans and Rice). There is a dessert, Pecan Pie or Bread Pudding... And as a bonus, a little candy making with FRESH HOT Pralines! Their website has the menu for the day printed in advance, so you can plan ahead. They provide a locally brewed microbrew beer or root beer or sweet tea. Everyone gets a plate of each item, and there was enough for seconds of everything for whoever wanted more (same with the beer - WHOO WHOO). No one left even a little bit hungry. The whole class costs $27 (but there are $3 off coupons almost everywhere around town, ask at your hotel, and I am sure they can advise you on getting the discount). So, a fresh hot tasty 3 course lunch, candy, booze AND history, education, entertainment makes this experience at the top of my things to do list.

The class starts daily at 10 AM. ALWAYS call for reservations in advance, as each day we attended, the class was sold out. They also seat people in the order they make reservations, so the earlier you call the better. The class starts in the front of the store, where all manors of Louisiana spices, rubs, marinades and snacks are available for sale. Arriving early is fun just to read the labels of the products.

Study this picture closely. This is Anne, our chef for the day. She starts with greetings, a little of her personal history and the basic history of the founding of the city. BUT, notice above her. They have hung mirrors over the counter top stoves to show what is happening while she cooks. The school is perfectly laid out to make the experience as positive and personal as possible.

Anne did a great job of explaining what she was doing as she cooked for her new crop of 56 "friends". No additional food was brought in, so each day, she starts with the raw ingredients and cooks for 56 people. Imagine! Also during the class, she explains the ingredients and makes suggestions about what to buy in the store. Many items are only available in the area. If you want to replicate these recipes, this is the place to shop for souvenirs.

This is not a good photo, but this is our cook on the second day we attended the class (different menu). Our cook is a wonderful older Creole grandmother that had the best stories of her youth, experiences and what it means to be Creole. We were so glad we attended a second class, just to meet her. She gave a story that only cooks could relate to. She was a resident of the infamous 9th Ward pre-Katrina. Her home was washed away. When she returned, all that was left was the concrete front steps. She was covered by insurance, and has settled into her new home. But, she lost her great grandmother's perfectly seasoned set of cast iron cookware in the disaster. Insurance replaced the goods, but she will always taste the difference in her post-Katrina cooking.

These are not hands on cooking classes. We just sat and watched, as the cooks made lunch for us. That is why I am including this in my "Day of rest" series, as I did none of the cooking. But, armed with the recipe booklet you receive free with your admission, I certainly am confident that I now have the skills and knowledge to duplicate any of these recipes. For foodies and non-foodies alike, this is a perfect introduction to the city and it's unique cuisine.

The class lets out into the convenient grocery store. The prices are competitive with other gift shops. They do make an effort to rotate their stock, so you do feel a bit more confident that the product you buy is fresher than in the average T-shirt shop that also sells a few spices. I dd find the combination of "Slap ya Mama" and "Punch ya Daddy" to be funny, but below is a picture of the only souvenirs I took home from New Orleans this trip...

I mean really, how many T-shirts do you need?

But, the Peuchaud's Bitters I need to make my own Sazarak Cocktail...

The Cajun Power Garlic Sauce is not available in Kansas (I have looked), and is the most amazing thing to put on Jambalaya.

The vanilla has something special about it, that the sweet little Creole cook gave us a secret about. I will be making a blog post about this stuff in about 6 weeks, and will keep you informed.

Finally, the Cajun Power Sweet Treat is something my wife wanted. It is Cinnamon sugar, but with a vanilla accent infused. The school uses this generously as a top coating to their bread pudding. It makes a wonderful crust on the pudding that really adds something special.

In the next couple of days, I will blog about my most unexpected dining event, my trip to the Central Grocery to eat my Muffuletta and an overview of what I did, thanks to my love of the sazerac cocktail... so if any of that interests you, come back tomorrow. And I am smoking a couple racks of spareribs as we speak, so soon I will be back to cookkin and grillin in my back yard...

And to the good folks at the NEW ORLEANS SCHOOL OF COOKING, which you can find their website by clicking HERE, thanks for the DAY OF REST!

WORLD's BEST FRENCH TOAST

I am still on vacation. Today is my last day in New Orleans, the unofficial end of JACKIEtober (the near two week long celebration that is all about my wife's anniversary of her 29th birthday). But, before I return to my beloved grill, I still have another couple of tribute recipes. Yesterday, I posted about making my first loaf of bread. Today, I am going to expand on that success with a posting about my morning after breakfast... enjoy the fanciest french toast you have ever seen...


OK, you all remember yesterday's post when I bragged about being a master baker. If not, scroll down a post and read the incredible story of this knuckle dragging neanderthal and his pretty loaf of bread. It was the morning after; the big chili feed was a huge success, and my skills as a baker had been displayed. But best of all, even after feeding half of the neighborhood, I still had a loaf of bread left. Remember, I doubled the recipe, and made two loafs.

I could easily have just slopped up the leftover chili with the remaining bread for the next few days and been very happy. This bread is perfect for chili. But I wanted to try something special. I am going to claim full credit for this recipe. I had the ingredients in mind prior to creating. I did a quick Internet search and did not come up with anything like this. So...mine mine mine. Which means I get to name it... OK, I present...

The
"MASTER BAKER's
FRENCH TOAST"
RECIPE!

(Yeah, still pretty full of myself
after my first and only loaf of bread)

As always, assemble the ingredients...

3 large EGGS
1/2 cup BUTTERMILK
A pinch of SAFFRON THREADS
Fancy JELLIES (Peach Jalapeno and Sweet Onion and Garlic)
3 THICK (3/4 inch thick) slices of the FUGASSE Bread (see yesterday's post for the recipe to the best loaf of bread I have ever made)

Combine eggs and buttermilk, whisk until well blended.

Coat the bread generously with the eggy buttermilk.

Put on the griddle, set at 300 degrees. At this time, sprinkle some of the saffron threads onto the still raw eggy coating (careful, not too much, this stuff has a strong earthy taste that can be overwhelming if used in too high a quantity). I sprinkled at most 10 threads on each slice of bread.

After about 5 minutes, the first side is well toasted... Time to flip. Yeah, the first two flipped easy, the last piece split in half as I was flipping, but that was OK. I was going to serve 1 and 1/2 pieces of bread per serving anyway.

If you have been reading my blog in the last few weeks, you know that I was gifted some fancy jelly (FISCHER & WIESER Brand). Whatever kind of jelly you like would be fine with this. I was lucky enough to have some Sweet Onion and Garlic Marmalade and some Jalapeno Peach Preserves! But a nice orange marmalade would work (almost) as well.

For presentation, I only put the jelly on half of each slice, It was thick enough to dip the unflavored half into the flavored half.

A breakfast worthy of any MASTER BAKER (and his apprentice... that had to clean the house from the night before's chili feed). In all seriousness, Saffron threads and eggs are a natural fit. the threads have an earthy taste that melds with the eggs perfectly. the extra richness of the buttermilk means no need for butter on the toast. And the sweet and spicy combinations in my fancy jellies really flavored a wonderful meal. Give this one a try, but be sure to give thanks to the master baker!

******************************

Dave again... Do me a favor and drop by Shelly's site (Adventures With the Woods) and thank her for being a guest blogger of sorts today, as I stole her recipe for that incredible bread. Even if you left a message yesterday, go ahead and drop her a second comment today (can we really get too many comments?). I hope that she is honored by my efforts and pleased with how well her instructions worked! Shelly, thank you so much for inspiring this post!

Just a reminder, I am in the middle of the BIGGEST giveaway contest I have ever held... Coupons for 4, 15-oz bottles POM WONDERFUL (you pick the flavor). Check my post from Sunday (you can get there by clicking HERE) for the details on how to win, but one of the important ways to enter is to leave a comment here... Do a little advertising, and drop me a message that directs me to your favorite recipe you think I should try. Tomorrow, I will select one commenter to win this terrific prize!

I am A Master BREAD BAKER - FUGASSE BREAD

Today is an exciting day for me. As long time readers of my blog know, I am not a cook. I came to cooking for fun late in life, and there are many experiences that you all had at your mama's knee while I was watching Baseball, burping and learning poker at my Daddy's knee (and even worse stuff at other joints). But today, I join the ranks of the great bakers of the world. Today, I am going to blog about the very first loaf of bread I ever made in my life. Like many of you all, I have several bloggers that I visit whenever they have a fresh post. I also like to keep an eye on the good blog buddies that "follow" me (those bunch of little photos at the top of my center sidebar). You all have amazing recipes that I wish I had the time to cook and blog about. I have a data base built with over 100 recipes that I will be cooking... Someday. When I leave my comments, I honestly have great intentions to make something, but The siren call of the grill and the magic possibilities of pork force me to abandon that database for something new (or old) on the grill. But recently, I came across a Fugasse Bread recipe from ADVENTURES WITH THE WOODS. It looked so pretty, had peppers in it (grunt grunt grunt... love peppers - fire good - peppers good - insert your own mental image of hairy knuckled neanderthal deciding what to cook). The photo above is from Shelly's (owner/operator of Adventures With the Woods) website. I was hosting the Neighborhood Chili Throwdown, and I figured that this bread would make a GREAT accoutrement dish to go with the chili... It did. So, one of three things is going on with this recipe...

1. EITHER Shelly gave GREAT easy to follow directions for this beautiful finished product
2. OR no matter how spectacular the finished product looks, it is a very easy recipe to replicate.
3. OR I am a cooking gOD

At least one, and probably 2 of those statements is true...

Here's what I did...

Assemble the ingredients first. It does sound silly that I always start with this step, but more than once before I started doing this, I had to stop in the middle of preparations for a masterpiece and either run to the store or substitute something inferior... But I digress, here is a copy of Shelly's ingredient list...

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1/2 cup finely chopped onions
• 1 1/2 cups chopped peppers (this can be one color or a combination of colors)
• 1 package dry yeast
• 1 1/4 cups lukewarm (110°F) water
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
• 4 cups King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
• 2 cups shredded sharp Cheddar cheese
• coarse sea salt (optional)

I am lucky enough to own a little electric chopper. Works similar to a big food processor, but is terrific at finely chopping onions, peppers, garlic, little bits of herbs, etc. I chopped up the onions and peppers...

And then I... - (Anything in BOLD ITALICS print, I admit to stealing word for word from Shelly)

1. Cook oil, onions and peppers slowly in a large skillet over medium-low heat until the onions are transparent. When you cook onions and peppers slowly, the natural sugars caramelize, and they become quite sweet. Set aside to cool to lukewarm.

Still stealing her words, I...

2. In a large bowl, stir yeast into warm water to soften. Add salt, sugar, 2 cups flour, 1 cup cheese, and the cooled peppers. Beat vigorously for 2 minutes.

Recipe thief that I am, I next...

3. Gradually add flour, a little at a time, until you have a dough stiff enough to knead. Turn dough out onto a floured surface. Knead, adding flour as necessary, until you have a smooth, elastic dough. Put the dough into an oiled bowl. Turn once to coat the entire ball of dough with oil. Cover with towel and let rise until doubled, about 1 hour.

I was (and always will be) Lazy. I let the Kitchenaid mixer do all the kneading. Am I posting too many pictures when I show photos of an oiled bowl waiting to receive the dough?

Here it is in the bowl...

And here it is covered...

And here it is doubled in size. I peed my pants a little when i uncovered it.

But wait, I was so optimistic, I doubled the recipe... What's the worst that can happen... Trust me, there is a second ball of dough under that second towel.

Next, I checked Shelly's recipe and I ...

4. Turn the dough out onto work surface. Knead in the remaining 1 cup cheese, leaving large streaks of the cheese visible. The streaks will toast and add an attractive look to the bread, not to mention a marvelous flavor.

Look Ma, I'm kneading!!!

And look at the streaks of golden cheese!!! And here's what Shelly told me to do next...

5. Shape the dough into a ball. Flatten the top slightly, and place on a well-greased baking sheet. Cover with a towel and let rise for 45 minutes.

I feel like such a terrible blogger, I failed to take a picture of the bread covered with the towel. Can you forgive me, can you possibly picture it in your mind's eye this ball of dough covered with a towel? Trust me I did it (although among BBQ bloggers, if you didn't photograph it, it didn't happen.

But I was busy, as Shelly said to do these steps...

6. Just before baking, brush the tops of the loaves with cold water and sprinkle with coarse sea salt, if desired. Slit the loaf in three places, about 1/2-inch deep, across the top.

And look closely, those are ice cubes in the bottom of the oven. Yeap, ice cubes, that is a trick only master bakers know... or, if you read master baker's instructions, master baker wanna Be's...

7. For added crispness, steam should be added to the oven for the first 10 minutes of baking. I put 2 cups of ice cubes directly on the floor of my oven. By the time they have melted and evaporated the 10 minutes is usually up. Since some people have trouble working with this theory, you can also put a pan of boiling water on the bottom shelf of the oven and remove it after the first 10 minutes of baking. Just be sure to work quickly to prevent loss of oven heat.

8. Bake in a preheated 400°F oven for 30 minutes, or until done. Immediately remove bread from baking sheet and cool on a rack. Makes 1 large loaf.

Hey... Look what I did!!!

And here's a tip I learned from my sainted mother... While the bread is still hot, take a little butter and gently rub into the crust of the bread. Makes it gleam, and prevents the crust from getting too hard... maybe, what do I know?

A HUGE HIT... just as good as it looks!

The second loaf looked just as good. I honestly was very surprised at how easy and satisfying this turned out. The sauteed onions and peppers made the bread sweet. The bread was very moist, solid (perfect for dipping in the chili). Best of all (to me), the presentation left everyone in awe. I could have presented smoked ribs, brisket and 12 pounds of pulled pork, and I do not think I would have received as much praise as when I showed off this loaf of bread. A real crowd pleaser...

In all humility... TOP O' THE WORLD MA

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Dave again... Do me a favor and drop by Shelly's site (Adventures With the Woods) and thank her for being a guest blogger of sorts today, as I stole her recipe. It is always exciting to see one of your recipes made by a reader. I hope that she is honored by my efforts and pleased with how well her instructions worked! Shelly, thank you so much for this post!

Just a reminder, I am in the middle of the BIGGEST giveaway contest I have ever held... Coupons for 4, 15-oz bottles POM WONDERFUL (you pick the flavor). Check my post from Sunday (you can get there by clicking HERE) for the details on how to win, but one of the important ways to enter is to go to http://adventureswiththewoods.wordpress.com/ and leave a comment, letting Shelly know what I did with her bread then return here, and comment to me that you thanked Shelly for her guest inspitation blog. You will get one entree for each of my guest bloggers (or inspirees) you thank for giving me a blog vacation. On Sunday, I will select one commenter to win this terrific prize!