Spinach Salad - Testing

I've made this a few times. The vinaigrette is very nice, but I've never recorded the salad part.

2 bunches spinach

1 Tbsp chives, minced

4-6 eggs, hardboiled and sliced

Optional - bacon, cooked crisp and broken into small pieces

For the Vinaigrette

1/2 cup olive oil

3 Tbsps red wine vinegar

2 tsps Dijon mustard

Alternative Vinaigrette

3 tablespoons lemon juice

2 tablespoons olive oil

¼ teaspoon dijon mustard

¼ teaspoon pepper

¼ teaspoon salt

1-2 teaspoons honey

1. Tear spinach into bite-sized pieces. If using, mix in the bacon pieces. Sprinkle over the chives.
2. In a small jar, pour in the vinaigrette ingredients, put the lid on and shake until it emulsifies. Pour on top and toss the salad.
3. Arrange the egg slices on top and serve.

Pizza dough - PUBLISHED

I found this recipe posted years ago by Roy on Facebook and thought it would be worth a try. I vaguely remember having pizza he made and liking it.

1 - This makes a really good crust, nice and crispy!

2 - All of this works really, really well. I just need to work on my dough spreading skills.

3 - I noticed that the yeast pellets stayed whole in the dough this time. I'll check next time to see if the same thing happens. The dough seemed to rise just fine in the oven, but I wonder if I shouldn't dilute it in a little water before mixing it into the flour?

4 - I recently discovered that 1 cup of white flour weighs 120g. I had the recipe at 508g for 3½ cups which should be at 420g. So I'm trying that out. It also means I reduced the amount of water to 1¼ cups from 1¾. If this works, I will return the testing to Test 1. It worked, with caveats. The crust was far too thin. I divided the ball of dough in 2 as with the other quantity. I suspect it would be too thick if I used the whole ball of dough. I will increase the flour to 480g and try it again. Keeping it at Test 3.

5 - Used 520g flour and same amount of water, 1¼ cups. I also put the flour and salt in a bowl, made a depression and poured in the oil and the water, then added the yeast. I let the yeast dilute a bit, mixing the floury water a bit, and then kneaded the dough all by hand instead of the machine. The crust came out really good but full of big fat bubbles which made it a bit challenging to stretch out. I kneaded the dough in the bowl, and maybe it didn't allow for enough spreading of the yeast? I should knead it on the board I suppose.

6 - It's been a few times now that I've put in the dry active yeast into the flour mixture and it just remains the hard little pellets. I've tried dissolving it in some of the water first which seems much better. Also, the baking could be hotter for a crispy crust.

7 - Added info about how to do it all by hand.

Makes : 1 thick crust or 2 thin crusts

3½ 4 cups (520g 480g 420g 508g) white flour + more as needed
2½ tsps. dry active yeast
1½ tsp salt

2 Tbsps. + more for brushing olive oil

1¾ 1¼ (?) cups warm water (105 to 110°F)

1/4 cup tomato sauce

Cheese of choice (80-100g)

Toppings of choice 

1. Use some of the water (the ¼ cup is fine) to dissolve the yeast.
2. If using a mixer, combine all the ingredients. With a dough attachment, turn on the machine to medium-low speed (Kitchen Aid = 2) 
3. Let rest 2 min then mix another 30 secs.
4. Remove and hand knead on a floured surface for at least 4 mins. NOTE also cover with flour before starting to knead. The dough is sticky! It will absorb the flour on the board, so add more flour to the board as it becomes too sticky.
5. If mixing by hand, on a board or the counter, make a mound of flour, sprinkle on the salt, create a bowl in the center of the flour mound, and start adding the oil, water and dissolved yeast, combining with your fingers. 
6. As when making pasta, the dough is sticky! It will absorb the flour on the board, so add more flour to the board as it continues to stick to your hands. Otherwise, it will be quite sticky to start but should become whole feel like slightly tacky ball of dough.
7. Oil a bowl and put the dough in to rise. Cover with a damp cloth. Let rise for 1½ hours and a warm draft-free place.
8. Put a pizza stone in the oven and preheat to 500°F for 30 mins (if no stone use a cast iron frying pan as preheat-sink and place dough on top of heated cast iron pan).
9. While the oven and pizza stone are heating up, spread out dough by hand. Use a fork to pierce the dough all over, then brush with olive oil. 
10. Put the toppings on.
11. Turn down the temperature to 425°F and cook for 20 mins OR until the edges start to brown (note that the dough will cook another 5 on the counter as it cools).
12. Let cool on rack or perforated pizza pan.

Finocchio al forno - Testing

https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/12301-fennel-al-forno

1 - I Frenchified this recipe and substitute the mozzarella for Gruyère and it worked a treat! Very good. But next time I will treat the filling as I would a quiche, as in I will mostly cook it before throwing it in the oven to melt the cheese and brown the top.

4 medium fennel bulbs, about 2 1/2 pounds, topped, a few green fronds reserved
 Salt and pepper
3 Tbsps extra virgin olive oil, plus more to oil the baking pan
½ tsp fennel seed, crushed or roughly powdered in a mortar or spice mill
3 garlic cloves, pressed
⅛ teaspoon red pepper flakes
½ tsp fresh rosemary, minced
½ lb fresh mozzarella Gruyère, sliced or shredded
2 tsps fresh rosemary leaves, whole
¼ cup coarse dry homemade bread crumbs from an Italian or French loaf
½ cup grated Parmesan (about 1 1/2 ounces)
2 Tbsps chopped parsley, or a mixture of parsley and fennel fronds

1. Heat oven to 375 degrees. Remove a thin layer of the fennel bulbs’ tough exterior with a paring knife or sharp vegetable peeler. Cut the fennel crosswise into half-inch-thick slices. 
2. Bring a large pot of salted water to boil. Boil the fennel for about 7 minutes or until al-dente. Season with salt and pepper and set aside. 
3. Lightly oil an oven-proof baking dish. Layer in the fennel to a depth of 1 1/2 inches (pushing down, if necessary). A 9x9 dish seems about right.
4. In a small bowl, stir together the olive oil, the fennel seed and the garlic, with a little salt, the pepper flakes and the minced rosemary. 
5. Drizzle 2 Tbsps of this mixture over the fennel. Sprinkle with the rosemary leaves. Cover with a layer of the cheese, then sprinkle with bread crumbs. 
6. Drizzle over the remaining oil mixture, then sprinkle with Parmesan. (The dish may be prepared to this point several hours before baking.)
7. Bake, uncovered, for 20 to 25 minutes, until nicely browned. Garnish with the chopped parsley or a mixture of the parsley and fennel fronds.

Pan fried arugula stalks - Untested

https://www.marthastewart.com/315817/wilted-arugula

1 Tbsp olive oil

2 garlic cloves, finely minced

8 oz arugula flower stalks (see note)

1 Tbsp balsamic vinegar

1/4 tsp salt

Black pepper

1. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat for about 5 minutes.
2. Add the garlic and cook, stirring frequently, until it starts to go blonde. Remove the garlic and set aside.
3. Add the stalks and fry in the garlic oil for a couple of minutes before adding the vinegar.
4. Stir constantly until most of the vinegar has evaporated.
5. Remove from the heat, reintroduce the browned garlic, season with salt and pepper.

NOTE: The stalks may have woody ends. Make sure the stems are fresh and crisp, and bend them until they easily snap. If they don't snap, that part is woody. Move up the stem towards the flower buds a bit and try again until it snaps. Discard the tough lower bits.