Pasta Shells with Prosciutto, Ricotta, Mushrooms and Marinara Sauce

My husband and I really enjoy spend the weekends cooking together. Everything is so much fun for us, from choosing and shopping the ingredients to the preparation of the dish. We love to share all these moments. Most of the times we choose a challenge, like dishes with many preparation steps and long cooking time. But sometimes we have an early appointment, so we decided for something simpler and also quicker.

This pasta shells are very simple to prepare. They are stuffed with ricotta, parsley, mushrooms and prosciutto, covered with marinara sauce. I made the stuff while he prepared the marinara sauce, and then we stuffed the shells together. We spent a short time in the kitchen, but it was very fun. Besides, who said that a quick and easy meal could not be savory? These pasta shells are the perfect example that proves the opposite.

Pasta Shells with Prosciutto, Ricotta and Mushrooms

(adapted from here)

• 
  
• 12 jumbo pasta shells

• 3 tablespoons butter
• 2 ounces prosciutto, fat trimmed, chopped
• 2 large shallots, chopped
• 8 ounces cremini or button mushrooms, chopped (about 3 cups)
• 1/2 cup ricotta cheese
• 3 tablespoons chopped fresh basil or 1 tablespoon dried, crumbled
• 3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
• 1 15-ounce container prepared marinara sauce (about 2 cups)

• 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese (about 2 ounces)

Preheat oven to 350°F. Cook pasta in large pot of boiling salted water until just tender but still firm to bite, stirring occasionally to prevent sticking. Drain.

Meanwhile, melt butter in heavy large skillet over medium-high heat. Add chopped prosciutto and shallots and cook until shallots are translucent, stirring frequently, about 4 minutes. Add chopped mushrooms and cook until tender and juices evaporate, about 8 minutes. Remove from heat. Stir in ricotta, basil and parsley. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

 Spoon 1 rounded tablespoon mushroom mixture into each pasta shell and add marinara sauce.

Marinara Sauce


1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil

2 small onions, finely chopped

2 garlic cloves, finely chopped

2 stalks celery, finely chopped

2 carrots, peeled and finely chopped

1/2 teaspoon sea salt

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

2 (32-ounce) cans crushed tomatoes

2 bay leaves

basil

oregano

In a large casserole pot, heat the oil over a medium-high flame. Add the onions and garlic and saute until the onions are translucent, about 10 minutes. Add the celery, carrots, and 1/2 teaspoon of each salt and pepper. Saute until all the vegetables are soft, about 10 minutes. Add the tomatoes and bay leaves, and simmer uncovered over low heat until the sauce thickens, about 1 hour. Remove and discard the bay leaf. Season the sauce with more salt and pepper, to taste. (The sauce can be made 1 day ahead. Cool, then cover and refrigerate. Rewarm over medium heat before using.)

This recipe was featured on Foodbuzz Top 9: April 30, 2011

Easter Eggs Part II

I love flowers, I love the spring time. The life’s explosion everywhere brings me such a happiness and peaceful felling. When I was living in England I had the pleasure and happiness to see the bloom of lovely and gorgeous flowers. Peonies, tulips, cherry blossoms… they are my favorite! Those flowers are the reason of my love affair with photography. I was so impressed with such beauty that I started to photography every flower that I saw in front of me.

As I come from a country where Easter is in the autumn season, that spring felling led me understand the true meaning of the rebirth celebration. The Easter on that year was very special for me. I had a great day with a lovely couple of friends. The day was very beautiful and sunny. Beyond the wonderful meal that my dear friend Biankita prepared and the good talk, she gave me an adorable gift, a bit of her childhood. She gave me an Easter egg shell handmade by her mother. 

I loved to listen how she and her sisters appreciated the egg hunt on her home and how her mother liked to prepare this activity. I really loved my gift.


Two years later, when I saw the April edition of Martha Stewart Living, those memories come to my mind and I was very inspired to make dyed Easter Eggs. As I like painting I decided to make little flowers, dots and leaves, something very simple. To dye them I used food coloring, vinegar and hot water and to decorate I bought a water-based acrylic colors special for eggs.

These gorgeous eggs can be used for egg hunts, filled with chocolate or candy, and to decorate the house. Here are some examples that I made.

I also made some solid domino chocolate eggs. So yummy!

The egg shells make beautiful vases for tiny flowers centerpieces. I used orchid and Schlumbergera, also known as Easter cactus (flor de seda).

Besides the chicken eggs I used quail eggs too. How cute they are!

There are countless options to decorate Easter eggs. I had a great time making those eggs and this will become a beloved tradition for me. I have to say that one day I wish I could learn the pysanky technique. This Ukrainian style is wonderful, so rich in details and colors, a great masterpiece.

Chocolate Egg 

(how to from Martha Stewart)

Using a pin, poke a hole in the bottom of a large raw egg; insert the tip of a utility knife, and turn to open the hole slightly. Using a rotary drill fitted with a 3/8-inch bit, carefully widen the hole to at least 1/2 inch in diameter. Insert pin into the hole to pierce and "stir" the yolk. Hold the egg, hole down, over a bowl, and blow air into the hole with a rubber ear syringe (the air will displace and expel the egg). Rinse out egg. Repeat to make 12 blown eggs (you may want to make extras in case some break).

Sterilize eggs: Submerge them in a pot of cold water with 1 tablespoon white vinegar; bring to a boil, then simmer, skimming foam from surface, 10 minutes. Let drain on a pin board. If not dyeing eggs, let dry completely on pin board, 2 to 3 days (check insides for moisture).

 If dyeing eggs: Mix 4 tablespoons vinegar and 12 drops of blue food coloring with 2 cups boiling-hot water in a heatproof glass or enamel bowl. Fill a separate cup with white vinegar. Using a plastic spoon, dip eggs in vinegar, then into the dye, 2 to 3 minutes. Pat eggs with paper towels to eliminate streaks. (If dye begins to cool while you're working, make a new batch.) Let the eggs dry as described above.

 Using an offset serrated knife, very finely chop 3 pounds of chocolate. Reserve 1 cup chocolate; using a bench scraper, transfer remaining chocolate to a large heatproof bowl.

 Temper chocolate: Set bowl over a pan of simmering water. Melt chocolate, stirring occasionally, until a chocolate thermometer registers 131 degrees. (Note: Many brands of dark chocolate should not be heated to more than 118 degrees.) Remove from heat; stir in reserved cup chocolate until completely melted. Pour 2/3 of the melted chocolate onto a clean smooth work surface (such as marble or stainless steel). Spread thinly with an offset spatula. Then gather together chocolate, and take temperature. Continue spreading and gathering chocolate until it cools to 82 degrees to 84 degrees.

 Scrape chocolate back into bowl with remaining chocolate. Stir until it cools to 82 degrees to 84 degrees. Set bowl over a pan of warm water, and reheat to 88 degrees. To check consistency, dip a spoon in chocolate and remove; chocolate should set in about 2 minutes, turning shiny and hard. Note: This temperature must be maintained as you fill the eggs; keep a thermometer in the chocolate, and check frequently. Rest the bowl on a heating pad wrapped in a towel, or set bowl over the pan of warm (not hot) water.

 Place eggshells in an egg carton. Place a disposable pastry bag in a tall glass, and fold top down. Fill bag with chocolate; cut tip to create a 1/4-inch opening.

 For solid chocolate eggs: Insert tip of bag into each egg, and fill with chocolate (about 1/4 cup per egg; fill a new bag with chocolate as needed). Let set completely, about 4 hours.

Easter Eggs Part I

Chocolate eggs, a symbol of Easter, are a sign of birth and new life. I remember my happiness on Easter Sunday, when I was a child. Now, my happiness is making my own eggs! Yes, it was my first time and it was so much fun.

I made 3 flavors: Belgian white chocolate with M&M'S; Belgian semisweet chocolate with almond praliné brigadeiro filling and Belgian semisweet chocolate with coconut filling. I also made some bonbons with the same flavors.

The secret of a beautiful egg is the chocolate tempering. Every brand of chocolate requires different tempering temperatures. When done correctly the chocolate will be perfectly creamy, smooth, and shiny. David Lebovitz explains how to do here.

Handmade chocolate eggs are simple to make and are a great occasion to cook with your family. 

Chocolate Easter Egg

(how to from here)

You will need 400-500g of chocolate, depending on the size of your moulds. Break the chocolate into similarly sized chunks, so it will melt easily and evenly.

It's best to melt the chocolate slowly in a bowl over a pan of hot water, rather than on the hob - you don't want the chocolate to get warmer than 42ºC (44ºC for dark chocolate). If you don't have a cooking thermometer, dip the crook of your little finger in the chocolate – if it's barely warm, you're doing fine. If you want a glossier finish to your egg, take a few extra minutes to temper it.

Using a ladle fill the egg mould about a quarter full with chocolate, then tilt and twirl the mould until the chocolate covers the whole thing. Tip the excess back into the bowl. Do the same with the other half.

Wipe around the edges if any chocolate escapes the mould.

Leave the first layer of chocolate to set. 

Once the first layer of chocolate is set in the egg mould, pour in another ladleful and swirl the chocolate round again. You'll need to do this three of four times until the egg is thick enough. After the second time you can add the filling. Don't allow the excess to pool in the bottom of the mould – you'll end up with fragile edges and rock-hard centre.

Put the egg halves into the fridge to set. After an hour or two, take them out and gently but firmly pull the corners of the mould – the egg will pop out easily

Using a teaspoon or pastry brush, paint the edges of the two halves with melted chocolate and glue them together. Put the whole egg back in the fridge for 5 or ten minutes to firm up.


Almond Praliné
Vegetable oil cooking spray 
1/2 cup sugar 
1/3 cup  almonds

• Spray a rimmed baking sheet with cooking spray; set aside. Bring sugar and 1/4 cup water to a boil in a small saucepan over medium-high heat. Swirl pan to dissolve sugar. Wash down sides of pan with a wet pastry brush to prevent crystals from forming. Boil until sugar turns light amber, about 7 minutes. Add almonds and salt; cook, stirring constantly, until almonds are toasted and caramel turns dark amber. Pour onto prepared sheet. Let cool completely.
• Break into shards. Transfer to a food processor; pulse until finely ground with a few larger pieces remaining.

Chocolate Brigadeiro

1 can sweetened condensed milk (395g)
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
100g chocolate

Mix the condensed milk, butter and chocolate in a saucepan and cook over low heat, stirring constantly – when the bottom of the pan starts to show and the mixture is a bit thicker, remove from heat and set aside to cool.

Sweetened condensed milk coconut

1 can sweetened condensed milk (395g)
200g unsweetened coconut

Mix the condensed milk and coconut in a heavy-bottom saucepan and cook over medium-low heat, stirring constantly – when the bottom of the pan starts to show and the mixture is a bit thicker (20-25 minutes), remove from heat and n set aside to cool.

Marolo Candies and Ice Cream

I forgot to mention before that I’m finishing my doctorate in the field of quantum medicinal chemistry. Substituting the computer simulations for baking and photographing was a big change in my life, and I’m passionate and excited with those discoveries. As I have to return to Brazil to finish the program, I decided to stay in my parent’s house to learn and share with you some typical recipes from my region.

The autumn is beginning in the southern hemisphere. It is also the marolo’s season. Marolo (Annona crassiflora) also known as Araticum is a Brazilian fruit relative of the soursop, cherimoya, and sugar apple fruits. This fruit is fairly large, with highly aromatic pulp. It is native to Central and South America occurring in semi-arid scrub land forests. In Brasil, it occurs between March and April in a tropical savanna ecoregion named Cerrado, mainly in south Minas Gerais. I took the photo below on my uncle’s farm. It is exotic, isn't?

The marolo pulp contain up to 40 black seeds. It is white or reddish in color, aromatic and flavorsome. It has a creamy texture and with a delightful sweet-sour balance. The exterior is grayish green, rough and knobbly. It is eaten mostly fresh and also employed to make liqueur, sweets, ice creams and cakes. The best way for eating it is to split open the fruit, scoop a spoonful of pulp into the mouth, and enjoy the fleshy segments while separating the hard seeds in the mouth. To be honest with you, this fruit is best served as candies, especially using my mother’s marolo candy recipe, which it prepared with dulce de leche. 

The preparation of these sweets it is a little bit dificult. First, it is necessary to remove the seeds from the pulp by cooking with water for 40 minutes, until it form a paste. Then dulce de leche is made combining milk and sugar in a cooper pan. When the dulce de leche is dark caramel, the marolo pulp is added. In this step the mixture needs to be stirred vigorously with a wood spoon. The candies can be creamy and hardy according to the stirring time. The hardy is done when the candy loose from the pan.

This time, beside the candies, I also prepared ice cream. It was the first time that we did this and the result was absolutely fantastic. To prepare it, I mixed the marolo creamy candy, cream and milk.

Marolo Candies

(my mother's recipe)

1 marolo (about 250g without the seeds)

1 cup water

1 kg sugar

2 l milk

Place the pulp and the water in a saucepan and cooking in a medium heat for 40 minutes or until form a paste.

Combine the milk and sugar in a large pan and place over medium heat. Bring to a simmer, stirring occasionally with a wood spoon, until the sugar has dissolved. Once the sugar has dissolved, reduce the heat to low and cook uncovered at a bare simmer. Stir occasionally, but do not re-incorporate the foam that appears on the top of the mixture. Continue to cook until dark caramel for approximately 2 hours . Add the marolo pulp. In this step the mixture needs to be stirred vigorously. The candies can be creamy and hardy according to the stirring time. The hardy is done when the candy loose from the pan.

Marolo Ice Cream

(how to make without a machine from David Lebovitz)

250g marolo creamy candy

250g cream

450 ml milk

Combine the marolo creamy candy, the cream and milk in a blender and blend until smooth. Put a deep baking dish, or bowl made of plastic, stainless steel or something durable in the freezer, and pour your mixture into it. After forty-five minutes, open the door and check it. As it starts to freeze near the edges, remove it from the freezer and stir it vigorously with a spatula or whisk. Really beat it up and break up any frozen sections. Return to freezer. Continue to check the mixture every 30 minutes, stirring vigorously as it’s freezing. If you have one, you can use a hand-held mixer for best results, or use a stick-blender or hand-held mixer. But since we’re going low-tech here, you can also use just a spatula or a sturdy whisk along with some modest physical effort. Keep checking periodically and stirring while it freezes (by hand or with the electric mixer) until the ice cream is frozen. It will likely take 2-3 hours to be ready. Transfer the ice cream to a covered storage container until ready to serve.

Foodbuzz Tea Party Takeover for a Cause

The Foodbuzz Top 9 is a great opportunity that encourages all the food bloggers to get better with the experiences and knowledge shared everyday. The Top 9 on March 25th will be for a noble cause. Foodbuzz and Electrolux are partnering to host Top 9 Tea Party Takeover with 9 tea party recipe posts. For every tea party recipe created by a Featured Publisher, Foodbuzz will donate $50 to the Ovarian Cancer Research Fund.

 

The Ovarian Cancer Research is to fund research to find a method of early detection and ultimately cure for Ovarian Cancer. Cancer of the ovaries is an insidious disease that can often strike without warning. Ovarian cancer is difficult to detect, as the symptoms of ovarian cancer are often vague and subtle, similar to those in other non cancer conditions affecting women. There is no effective screening test for ovarian cancer but tests exist that can identify women who are at higher risk for the disease. Visiting the Kelly Confidential site you will be able to donate to Ovarian Cancer Research Fund. 

 

Unfortunately, I already had the experience of losing some women in my family to cancer, and it’s very painful. So when I saw this takeover I didn't hesitate to support this great cause sharing traditional family recipes. In Minas Gerais we have the habit of join people around the table to take tea and coffee accompanied by a lot of divine treats like cream biscuit, cheese bread, corn cake, Minas Cheese, broa de fubá (cornmeal puff) and sequilho (tapioca biscuit). 

My grandma has a lot of passion for making these treats and then get together friends and family at her home. It was a great pleasure for her baking and rejoices people, and we also could see that. The treat that most represents this passion are the sequilhos. Besides its wonderful flavor, it is gluten free and perfect for all kind of Tea Parties. These little sweet circles are made with sour tapioca flour, sugar, butter and eggs. The biggest surprise about this story is that my grandma, helped by my mother and aunts, also used to prepare the tapioca flour itself in the farm. Nothing was purchased in the market, making all the process extremely laborious. 

Tapioca flour is made with cassava roots, which are widely used in Brazilian cuisine. Nowadays, it is very common to find sour tapioca flour in Asian and Brazilian markets, but in the past, each family had to prepare  its own tapioca flour. My mother explained me how they used to make it. To obtain tapioca starch, they peeled and grinded the roots. The dough obtained was rinsed several times for the total extraction of the starch. With the process of decanting, the tapioca starch was separated from the water mixture. To get the sour type, the starch was maintained for a fermentation period and then dried in the sun. The sour type is considered a starch modified by oxidation, whose main characteristic is its expansion property without the use of leavening agents (baking powder or yeast).

 

Sequilhos are not difficult to make (if you have the sour tapioca starch in hands). You just have to mix all the ingredients together. This was the first time that I made sequilhos and I tried to make them with the same passion as my grandma.  She used to flavor them with lemon zest but I made it different. For the first I used coconut. The results were light and soft biscuits. To accompany these adorable sequilhos, I prepare a tea with fresh lemon balm, followed by corn cake, cream biscuits, and cornmeal puffs with fennel seeds.

Coconut Sequilhos

2 cups sour tapioca flour
1 ½ cup sugar
2 tablespoons butter
3 eggs
1cup coconut

Preheat the oven to 360°F
Sift the sugar with the tapioca flour. Add remaining ingredients and work the dough with your hands until it forms a ball. Make the biscuits, as desired, and bake in moderate oven in a greased sheet pan about 10 minutes or until golden.

Cornmeal Puffs With Fennel Seeds

1,1 lb yellow cornmeal
1,1 lb all purpose flour
3 eggs
½ cup butter

3 cups milk
Fennel seeds

Preheat the oven to 350 °F.
In a pan, place milk, sugar and butter to boil. Sift the cornmeal and flour on the pan, stirring until to form a polenta. Place the eggs, one at a time, stirring constantly, and  then the fennel seeds.  With an ice cream scoop make the buns and then dust with cornmeal. Place them in a greased pan and baking until golden brown.

Salty Fresh Corn Cake

10 ears of corn, kernels removed
2 cups milk
1 cup cheese (Mozzarella or Minas Cheese)
1 tablespoon salt

Pulse the corn kernels with the milk in a food processor. Pour pulsed corn into a large mixing bowl.
Add the cheese and salt. Mix well with a spoon. Pour into a cake pan and bake at 350 degrees for 40 minutes.

Cream Biscuit

http://lulussweetsecrets.blogspot.com/2011/01/cream-biscuit-bolachinha-de-nata.html

Banana Bread With Dried Cranberries And Golden Raisins

My dear friend Hugo sent me a very interesting banana bread recipe, which has no granulated sugar and is sweetened  by raisins and, of course, bananas. This combination is so amazing that I had to share with you!

It is very easy and quick to make. Its texture was smooth and moist. For this recipe, I added almonds, golden raisins and dried cranberries to improve the flavor. Feel free to add yours favorite nuts and dried fruits too. I decorated it dusting a little bit of powdered sugar, but you can top it with chocolate ganache, as suggested by Hugo. This was the best banana bread I have ever eaten. I love it!

 Banana Bread With Dried Cranberries and Golden Raisins

4 very ripe bananas 

3 eggs
1 cup black raisins
2 cup oats
1 / 2 cup oil
1 tablespoon baking powder
200g almonds

100g dried cranberries

100g golden raisins

Powdered sugar for dusting

Preheat the oven to 300°F.

Combine the oil, eggs and raisins in a blender and blend until smooth. Then, add the bananas and blend again. Add the almonds and oats and blend all these together until smooth.

In a bowl, mix with a spoon the blended mixture with baking powder, dried cranberries and raisins.

Bake the banana bread in the loaf pan greased with cooking spray for 45 - 60 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the bread is clean when removed. Any wet mixture that sticks to the toothpick indicates that the bread needs more time in the oven.

Ciabatta Bread

Cooking, photographing and writing has been a challenge for me and every day I become passionate and interested in learning more. In my journey to conquer these arts, I discovered that making bread is so much fun. After my success making French bread I tried ciabatta bread this time, and again it was a delight.

Ciabatta is an Italian word that means slipper. This rustic-style bread is made from very wet dough. It also needs a slow-rise and long-fermentation process to create the big holes in the webbing and the shiny crumb.

As said in the book Crust and Crumb by Peter Reinhart “As a general rule, long, slow fermatantion draws forth the fullest flavors and the best result for the dough… The best way to increase the fermentation time without over fermenting is to build the bread in stage…”. That’s the secret of ciabatta bread. The yeast is not mixed directly on the dough. First you have to prepare a sponge, which consists of a combination of yeast with a small amount of flour plus a large amount of water. After at least one day of fermentation, you can use the sponge to prepare the dough.

You need to plan several days ahead before start it: the first day for making the sponge, the second day for mixing the bread dough, the third day for shaping, and the fourth day for baking. If you prefer, the loaf can even be held over for baking on fifty day.

Poolish-Style (Sponge) Pre-Ferment

(From Crust and Crumb, Peter Reinhart)

4 cups unbleached bread flour

4 cups cool water (65 to 70F)

1/4 teaspoon instant yeast, or 1/3 teaspoon active dry, or 3/4 teaspoon fresh, crumbled yeast

Combine all the ingredients in a mixing bowl large enough to hold the batter after it has doubled in volume.

Best or whisk for about 1 minute, until the batter is well mixed and quite smooth. (Any remaining small lumps will dissolve when the final dough is mixed, if not before.)

Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and leave it at room temperature for 3 to 5 hours, or till foamy and bubbly.

Refrigerate the poolish, well covered, overnight.

Ciabatta Bread

(From Crust and Crumb, Peter Reinhart)

6 cups unbleached bread flour

1 1/4 teaspoons malt powder or brown sugar

3 teaspoons salt

1/4 teaspoon instant yeast

1 1/2 cups cool water (65 -75F)

2 1/4 cups poolish-style sponge 

vegetable oil cooking spray

Combine the flour, malt, salt, yeast, water, and poolish in the bowl of an electric mixer with a paddle attachment.

Mix on low speed for 1 minute, then on medium speed for 5 minutes. The dough will be sticky. Some will be pressed against the bowl and some bunched around  the paddle. Dip a rubber spatula in water and scrape all the dough down into the bowl. Switch to the dough hook for another 7 minutes on medium speed. The dough will be very wet and stretchy. if not, add a few drops of water, as needed.

With a wet spatula, scrape down all the dough, cover the bowl with plastic wrap, and let the dough rise for 3 hours at room temperature. It will rise slowly, almost imperceptibly. Refrigerate it, covered tightly, overnight.

When you are ready to prepare the loaves the next day (or up to 2 days later), set out 3 sheet pans, parchment paper, cooking spray a pastry cutter or knife, a bowl of cold water, a damp tower for wiping your hands, and semolina or bread flour for dusting. 

Invert the pans, cover the bottoms with parchment (cut it to fit if necessary), and mist the parchment with cooking spray. Liberally sprinkle the parchment with semolina and your work surface with flour.

Dip your hands into the water and transfer the dough to the work surface. Liberally sprinkle more flour over its surface. Dip a pastry cutter or knife into the water and cut the dough into 3 equal pieces, pulling them to almost the width of a sheet pan. When you lay them down they may shrink in a little but should retain an oblong shape.

With either floured oe wet hands, transfer 1 piece to the first cheet pan, gently pulling it to the desireed length. Repeat with the other pieces, placing them on separate sheet pans. Lightly dimple each piece all over with moistened fingers, pressing gently to break up any air pockets.

Mist the tops of the loaves with cooking spray. Enclose each pan inside a plastic bag, and let the dough rise for about 4 hours at room temperature. The loaves should swell noticeably, as if ready to burst at the seams, nearly doubling in size. You may then bake the loaves. (If refrigerating them overnight, put them in the refrigerator after just 1 hour.)

Put an empty steam pan on the bottom rack. Preheat the oven to 500F.

Carefully slide the pans out of the bags, slowly peeling the bag off it has settled on the dough. Allow the dough to warm to room temperature while the oven is preheating (it takes at least 30 minutes for most ovens to reach 500F). Lightly dimple any noticeable air pockets (or pop them with a toothpick).

If baking on a stone, slide the dough, parchment and all, from the back of the sheet pan directly onto the stone, or carefully lift the parchment, lay the dough on a lightly floured peel, and transfer the dough to the stone. If not using a stone, simply place the sheet pan in the oven. Do not attempt to score this bread.

Spritz the bread and the oven walls with water, and pour 2 cups of hot water into the empty pan. Shut the oven door, wait 2 minutes, and spritz the oven walls again.

After 5 minutes, reduce the oven heat to 450F. Bake for about 30 more minutes, or till the crust is a deep, rich brown and feels very crisp.

Turn off the oven and open the oven door, but leave the bread in for an additional 5 to 10 minutes. The goal is to take it as long as possible without burning, so that the crust sugars deeply caramelize and the interior crumb develops a nutty flavor. The bread is done when the internal temperature of the loaves reaches 205F to 210F, and the loaf feels light and airy, almost hollow, when lifted off the paper (the read will soften as it cools).

Remove the parchment from the bottom of the bread and let it cool on a rack for at least 1 hour before eating.