Day 21: Vegetable Bread With Scallions, Dill and Parsley - Ψωμί Με Σχοινόπρασο, άνηθο και μαϊντανό - March 23, 2014

When we first read this recipe, it sounded like it was very simple.  We were impressed with making bread without yeast, which means no waiting around for the bread to rise.  But, then, we thought about quick breads, like muffins and biscuits, and realized that the word "bread" may be a misnomer.  This is more like a vegetable biscuit -- a really big biscuit!  Now that we have made it by following directions exactly, we know that we are able to make smaller biscuits which would suit our needs more than one large loaf.  However, the presentation on this large loaf was beautiful!  That made this bread totally worthwhile and something that we will make again, perhaps with some variation in the vegetables.

There were a couple of suggestions given in the cookbook that we thought about, but decided that the original recipe sounded better.  We want you to know the variations, and you can decide which version to make.  The recipe calls for hard flour and soft flour.  We had all purpose flour or self rising flour.  We chose the all purpose flour only.  There is a note that reads:  "You may bake it with farina instead of flour  Then omit baking powder and soda (you will not need them for the bread to rise)."  In other words, you can use farina, hard flour, soft flour, or all purpose flour.

Next, the vegetables and herbs listed in the ingredients list are considered optional.  In the cookbook, after some of the ingredients, the cookbook reads "(optional)".  We included what we had in our pantry, and thought about other things that would go nicely in this bread for future baking.   It would be great if we could learn what other ingredients you would add to this bread, and how it turned out for you.  Once again, as we often do, we cut the recipe in half for making this at home, but we are providing the full amounts for you here.  You can adjust the recipe as you need.

For this recipe, you will need the following:

 4 1/2  - 5  cups all purpose  flour

2/3 cup olive oil 

1 cup water (it depends on the flour) 

4 - 6 scallions or chives, chopped

1/2 cup (heaping) chopped dill

1/2 cup (heaping) parsley (very finely chopped) (optional) 

Some salt  (about 1 teaspoon)

3 Tablespoons baking powder    

1 teaspoon baking soda 

Mix everything together well.  Once you get all the ingredients in the mixing bowl, just fold the ingredients at once, instead of mixing each ingredient into the first.  Put everything together and mix.  You will see the mix come together.  We folded the ingredients several times to make sure all the flour was incorporated into the wet ingredients, and found that is all this needed.  The mixture will be a soft dough, or a very very thick batter.  It was a biscuit mixture, so it does not hold its own shape well.  Do not expect to see a ball of dough in the bowl!

Then, lay mixture in a dry baking pan.  We used a cake pan to put the mixture in the oven because of the soft nature of the mix.  We thought about a cookie sheet, a pie plate, and a Dutch oven.  But, the cake pan gave us a lovely shape.  Do not add any oil, the pan did not need to be oiled, did not need parchment paper, and was ready to use as is.  There is enough oil in this recipe that no greasing is necessary.

We baked the bread for about 45 minutes in a 415º F convection oven.  The colour was beautiful, and the texture was a bit crumbly when cut.  It was clearly a biscuit when we were eating the bread.  But the flavour of the dill and the scallions really came through.  We thought that this would be best with a salad, because this bread would absorb the leftover dressing so nicely.  It is airy and light, and easy to eat!  It was also very easy to make and we enjoyed that part, too!  This would be a nice bread to take to a host or hostess one day, for fasting and for non fasting days.

Source of image: http://orthodoxchurchquotes.files.wordpress.com/2013/07/st-basil-the-great-3.jpg

“A psalm implies serenity of soul; it is the author of peace, which calms bewildering and seething thoughts. For, it softens the wrath of the soul, and what is unbridled it chastens. A psalm forms friendships, unites those separated, conciliates those at enmity. Who, indeed, can still consider as an enemy him with whom he has uttered the same prayer to God?"

St. Basil the Great

Source of quote: http://orthodoxchurchquotes.com/tag/angels/