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The One who Bakes this is the Chefre.
This week's Resolution Recipe: Ham and Goat's Cheese Couronne.
"I'm very fond of the French 'crown', because it's a great way of getting flavour into a dough."
250 g strong white flour
1 tsp salt
7 g instant yeast
50 g unsalted butter, diced and softened
1 egg, lightly beaten
135 ml warm full-fat milk
8-10 slices air-dried ham (I took that to mean proscuitto)
250 g soft goat's cheese
15 basil leaves, shredded (see what didn't work)
no garlic (Ha! I used... actually that amount.)
Put the flour into a large bowl and add the salt on one side, the yeast on the other. Add the butter, egg, and 2/3 of the milk, then turn the mixture with the fingers of one hand. Add the remaining milk a little at a time, continuing to mix until all the flour from the side is taken in and the dough is soft and slightly sticky; you might not need all the milk.
Transfer the dough to a lightly floured surface and knead it for 5-10 minutes. Initially the dough will be sticky but it will become easier to work as you continue to knead. When it feels smooth and silky, put it into a lightly oiled bowl, cover, and leave to rise for about an hour until doubled in size.
Line a baking tray with parchment (I used a Silpat). Turn the risen dough onto a lightly floured surface. Without knocking back, roll it into a rectangle about 33x25 cm with the long edge facing you. (That's 13x10 inches, for USians.) Lay the ham slices over the dough. Break the goat's cheese into pieces and scatter them over the ham, then sprinkle over the basil. (Pedantic note: you mean "sprinkle the basil over." Otherwise you're trying to sprinkle the goat's cheese over the basil. Trying to avoid ending a sentence with a preposition doesn't make sense when it changes the meaning.)
Starting at the long edge, roll the dough up tightly like a Swiss roll. Roll it back and forth a little to seal, then cut it in half lengthways, leaving it joined at the top. Twist the 2 dough lengths together, as if wringing out a cloth, then join the ends to form a circle. Transfer to the lined tray and leave it to prove until doubled in size. Bake at 400° for 25 minutes until risen and golden brown. Cool on a wire rack.
What worked: We liked it. Not complicated or particularly fussy, it made a good weekend dinner with a salad. I had to puzzle out "wringing out a cloth" because I was expecting plaiting, but this is easier (once I figured it out by wringing out a cloth in my head).
What didn't: The dough didn't seal without a bit of help (water brushed along the edge). It took a bit longer to brown, and could have perhaps gone longer. It was on the blander side; we would have liked it better with some garlic, obviously, and perhaps some pepper.
We were unable to get fresh basil so we got the closest we could, which was semi-dried shreds. It wasn't as flavorful, of course. The leftovers were blander cold than warm from the oven (or reheated in the toaster oven).
Will I make it again? Yes, this will go into the occasional weekend rotation.
"I'm very fond of the French 'crown', because it's a great way of getting flavour into a dough."
250 g strong white flour
1 tsp salt
7 g instant yeast
50 g unsalted butter, diced and softened
1 egg, lightly beaten
135 ml warm full-fat milk
8-10 slices air-dried ham (I took that to mean proscuitto)
250 g soft goat's cheese
15 basil leaves, shredded (see what didn't work)
no garlic (Ha! I used... actually that amount.)
Put the flour into a large bowl and add the salt on one side, the yeast on the other. Add the butter, egg, and 2/3 of the milk, then turn the mixture with the fingers of one hand. Add the remaining milk a little at a time, continuing to mix until all the flour from the side is taken in and the dough is soft and slightly sticky; you might not need all the milk.
Transfer the dough to a lightly floured surface and knead it for 5-10 minutes. Initially the dough will be sticky but it will become easier to work as you continue to knead. When it feels smooth and silky, put it into a lightly oiled bowl, cover, and leave to rise for about an hour until doubled in size.
Line a baking tray with parchment (I used a Silpat). Turn the risen dough onto a lightly floured surface. Without knocking back, roll it into a rectangle about 33x25 cm with the long edge facing you. (That's 13x10 inches, for USians.) Lay the ham slices over the dough. Break the goat's cheese into pieces and scatter them over the ham, then sprinkle over the basil. (Pedantic note: you mean "sprinkle the basil over." Otherwise you're trying to sprinkle the goat's cheese over the basil. Trying to avoid ending a sentence with a preposition doesn't make sense when it changes the meaning.)
Starting at the long edge, roll the dough up tightly like a Swiss roll. Roll it back and forth a little to seal, then cut it in half lengthways, leaving it joined at the top. Twist the 2 dough lengths together, as if wringing out a cloth, then join the ends to form a circle. Transfer to the lined tray and leave it to prove until doubled in size. Bake at 400° for 25 minutes until risen and golden brown. Cool on a wire rack.
What worked: We liked it. Not complicated or particularly fussy, it made a good weekend dinner with a salad. I had to puzzle out "wringing out a cloth" because I was expecting plaiting, but this is easier (once I figured it out by wringing out a cloth in my head).
What didn't: The dough didn't seal without a bit of help (water brushed along the edge). It took a bit longer to brown, and could have perhaps gone longer. It was on the blander side; we would have liked it better with some garlic, obviously, and perhaps some pepper.
We were unable to get fresh basil so we got the closest we could, which was semi-dried shreds. It wasn't as flavorful, of course. The leftovers were blander cold than warm from the oven (or reheated in the toaster oven).
Will I make it again? Yes, this will go into the occasional weekend rotation.