Ciabatta in Ar fryer

I've been getting pretty successful with the ciabatta and I thought I try a bit of baking in the Air Fryer.
After my not too successful effort with crumpets, I thought I'd split my bets and do some rolls in the Air Fryer and the main loaves in the oven as normal, to compare.

Rolls and loaves proofing in closhe. I have rollled up tea towels under to support sides and baking paper for the dough to sit on

after 2nd proofing I split it into 3 rather than 2 so that I could do a couple of rolls. Having sat for 20 min prior to going in oven I put some water in the bottom of air dryer and oven, and preheated oven 10 minutes before putting them in, the air dryer I left for 2 minutes before.
In oven they go in for 12 minutes, and are then turned.
In air fryer I looked after 6 minutes and they had baked a bit so I took off the baking paper and turned them over, hoping for an all over bake.

Air fryer versus oven

I looked at them at about 11 minutes and they looked quite pale, so I got a brush out and the milk, looking to put a wash on it, and when I opened the basket next it was quite brown on the bottom, so I just turned them over and then let it run on until about 17 minutes.
I'm waiting for the oven ones. They are taking a bit longer than normal as I moved the oven trays further down for my two roasts, so they seem to be baking slower.

 The end result of both look fine. I'll have to put them all to the taste test.

Flour in creases

When shaping the dough after the 2nd rise you put on a floured surface. The batch before last I had some real creases in the bottom of the loaves that were quite deep and full of uncooked flour. I don't like that very much.
so for the last couple of times I've tried to be as light as possible with the flour on the bench. I actually found that when I was shaping the dough if I lifted up an edge with the dough paddles I could see lots of flour all bunched up on the bench whilst the base of the dough was floured alright, so if I moved the dough over I could clear this excess flour away and put it on top of the dough as needed. No flour in creases since then.

Ciabatta rolls in Air Fryer

 A thumbs up for that. I just had a cheese and onion roll and it was fresh and delicious.
I'll now need to do some research on freezing the dough so that I can take some out of freezer the night before and have some breakfast rolls.
I have found this article so far.  It suggests doubling the yeast as the freezing process kills some of it off.
This forum discussion suggests because of the freezer you need to thaw in fridge overnight then double proofing time to allow for the yeast being not so effective. One person says half bake and then freeze, then you can stick straight back in the oven. That's more my style.
Sometimes I have the loaves around for a few days, so for the loaves I have to cut them up before I freeze them, and they are only good for the toaster. 
 If its only dough in the freezer then it takes up a lot less space, but not handy for a quick breakfast roll.
 I appreciate that but too long for a couple of rolls. I think I'll try the half baking and freezing method. Maybe 7 minutes for 2 roll in the Air Fryer, then let cool and freeze.
I'll make some poolish now for baking tomorrow. It looks like I'd get 6-8 rolls from the same mix.
 

Par baking

After watching mr Youtube from some bakers, apparently you par bake and freeze as quixckly as possible. This keeps the moisture in the bread roll.
I did 5 minutes with rolls in baking paper, then took the paper out of the air fryer, turned them and did another 2 minutes at 200 deg C (highest setting). They looked cooked through and were slightly browned.
I tried to do 4 minutes then take baking paper out but they were slightly doughy in parts so went back to the 5 min and 2 min.
I got 8 rolls out of the mixture that I normally do for the ciabatta loaves.
I wrapped them in a tea towel and put them straight into the freezer (over the fridge) to hopefully cool them down fast) then I'll transfer to a plastic bag and put them in the chest freezer.
I still have quite a bit of bread from the last bake, so I'll report back after trying them out later.

Reheating

2 rolls were defrosted overnight. In the Air fryer at 200 deg C for 5 minutes after preheating fryer for 2-3 minutes. It came out doughy. I think a different setting required. Maybe longer but at a slightly lowered temperature. I'll try 10 minutes at say 170 deg C for 2nd roll.

Ciabatta rolls in fridge- 15th April 2019

Trying the par-baking of the bread rolls didn't really work for me. They are handy, but they do not taste right. So I thought I'd try storing the rest of the ciabatta batch in containers in the fridge and bake them when I need them. I really enjoy the ciabatta rolls in the air fryer, they come out fine, and are fresh and springy. I baked 2 of the 6 to have wiuth Gambas Pil Pil and had one left over for breakfast. Since I have bread frequently in the week I think I'll try baking from scratch from the fridge to see if they have a different taste. I suppose I should get them out an hour before to let them come to room temperature before I bake them. Not sure if I should knock them back and let them rise again. To be tested in the coming days.

Fruit Bread

1st time- dense, cut thick and frozen-need to find another recipe for lighter loaf

2 cups brown wheat flour
2 cups white bread flour
1 table spoon sugar
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons instant yeast
stir 30 sec in mixer

1/2 cup deried raisins
1/2 cup of sliced almonds
1/2 cup walnuts
stir 30 sec
1 1/2 cups water at 43 deg c
mix in mixer

leave to rise for 1 hour
punch the dough and shape the dough and put into bread tin
let it rise for another hour
bake in oven 180 deg C  for 25 min
cool down and eat

Review

I did this but with white flour. A very heavy loaf and I had to cut it quite thick. Too heavy for me.  I froze a few slices, putting a couple of slices  in each bag, and used over time.
Handy to have something like this for a quick eat, especially for breakfast, but if its thick then the butter doesn't penetrate too far and it ends up being quite dry.
I may try another recipe in winter when this will certainly be appreciated.

HashBrowns, Rosti's or Latkes

 

 My attempt. I parboiled potatoes. I was disappointed, far too oily.  

Different types and videos below. In the end I just bought them from the Supermarket and put them in the toaster straight from the freezer. An easy breakfast addition. 

I tried the McCains brand and I've just got another brand, 20 in a packet for 6$, so about 30c each. 

The only thing I'm conscious of with shop bought ones is they will most probably have heaps of salt in them.

This is Latkes video
a basic rosti (for students)
this one has proscutio? Ham and onion, also potatoes raw and squeezed to get starch and moisture out.
 

and Hash browns

Freezer meals

I was talking with my daughter about freezer space and she suggested I get a bigger freezer as she prepares veges and other things on the weekend for the week and stores it all in the freezer.
As a totally ignoramus male I thought what a good idea and then started to look at YouTube videos about storing stuff in the freezer.
This lady just blows me away with her organization and process.

I get a bit demotivated with cooking as I end up having to eat the same thing for the next few days. Then the epiphany, freeze the meals so that they can be had anytime.I'd never considered this as my freezer was always full (bread, ice cream tub, a few pieces of meat, chips and frozen veges) and it was full.

Chest Freezer 

 I bought a chest freezer. There were a couple on sale that fitted my need about 145l capacity for about $400 and $50 delivery cost from warehouse.
I bought the more efficient of the 2. As this runs 24/7/365 the more efficient it is, the cheaper it'll be, so it more than pays back capital cost in the long run.
 I also bought some containers, one a square box , the other a slim folder box, for putting food in upright and organizing it. I need another square box for on top, and I'd like another wire basket at the lid and I'll kook out for those when I'm out and about.
The lady in the video uses soft bags, I may consider that for the container meals.

Ideas on uses

Initially I was just going to get lots of meat for Manu, the fussy dog, on special and store it.
I usually buy fresh meat every other day so he has fresh food. He is a fussy boy and doesn't like the same meal twice in a row, so having lots of meat means I can mix his food. I'll just have to portion it up and thaw it as I go. We'll see how that works out.
Also, I thought I could buy stuff in bulk and portion it in the freezer. But after watching the lady above I thought I do some batch cooking. I also have a new label maker, so I thought I'd try that out.

Meals to plan 

I walk past the freezer section in the supermarket and see the frozen meals in there and consider buying them. Now I can just make my own.
I'm excited about making a roast. I haven't had one for so long as it is always too much meat.  But I plan to do a leg of lamb, roast potatoes, veges, gravy and Yorkshire pudding.

I plan to do some of the following also:

• Prawn curries with rice
• Potato curries with rice
• Mash & mince in some way.

I have to think about portion size now. Previously I'd be trying to buy the smallest amount, now I have to cook for 4 to 6 portions so that I can stock the freezer with a few meals.

Containers

I've just been down to Moore Wilsons, a food wholesaler, and seen all the bulk items you can purchase.  A bit of a distraction as I went there for the containers.
I was able to buy 50 750ml containers and lids for $12, so that works out as 25c/container. They are also reusable so that should suffice for a while.

Bulk buying

at the wholesalers they had larger bags of frozen stuff that are not available at normal supermarkets. Some of them quite good value.
I was going to get some cauliflowers and blanch them and freeze them for meals but a kilo bag is only about 6$, so it might be better to purchase those instead.
I had been thinking about chili's which are expensive, even at the open Market and you can get 1/2 Kg for about $6, so I may look into that as well.
I'll need to do some strategic planning before filling up the freezer with things I'll not use much or stuff that takes up a lot of room but doesn't get used regularly.

Inventory

 This is an interesting issue for me. I'm just filling out an excel file with the list of things I have in the freezer at the moment. I wonder if I could use google forms to manage meal containers on a spreadsheet?
I now have a  Google Sheets online link on my mobile, so I can easily delete a container if I've used it from the inventory. I've added a bookmark to my main computer with  a keyword abbreviation for the address bar 'fz" so it opens the spreadsheet if you type those letters and enter in the address bar.
Quick and easy access for adding items after a shop. I realised that I'd forgotten something on the list, it was easy to add another row of information, even on the mobile.

End thoughts

 My freezer came on Tuesday and I cleaned out my tiny freezer, lots of different breads in there that I didn't even know I had plus a couple of bags of soup, not sure what of though. They can stay until the cold weather.
There were a couple of frozen meals in there, one is a Macaroni cheese and the other is a couple of home made burgers. I'll eat them now so I can have a clean start.
I'm dying to get in and start batch cooking but i think I'll clean up what I have first. Also I'll wait until after Sunday morning when I go to the vege market.
One good thing is that i can now have one ciabatta loaf fresh and freeze the other one, so I'm a bit more flexible as to when I need to bake next.

I'm currently grilling some chicken drumsticks for Manu and will put them in containers.
Regarding the grilling. I hate the grill I have as its too big for the sink and a real pain to clean. I have been putting tin foil on top but that tears and the fat and juices drain into the grill tray and smoke and that still needs cleaning. I'm now trying a shallow baking tray with sides to catch the fat and juices.  It is working to a point but its buckling with the heat. Keeps all the fat and juices in though.

This is the screen labels I'm using on a 12mm (1/2") tape for labeling containers.

The  strip is plastic so water wont affect the labels on the containers, so its easy to put another label over the previous one.

Baguettes with John Kirkwood

I wanted to do a Baguette and John Kirkwoods  baking results in pretty good results for me.
I have had this blog set up for it for months and hadn't got around to making it. On looking at the video for his normal baguette it has 4 rises which seems a long process. That sort of lost me
Then I came across his Cheesy baguettes that only take 2 rises of 45 minutes and I thought I'd try that. A similar time to the Ciabatta recipe, but this one does not need the poolish overnight but more yeast.
 So I thought I'd try the cheesy recipe without the cheese in it.  it and have been very happy with the result. Maybe slightly sweet, but I suppose I'm used to the Ciabatta which has no sugar. No sugar in baguette recipe either, maybe the yeast creates it?
 I thought his was a very large recipe for one, so I halved it to make 4 shorter sticks.

The video

 The recipe

350 g Flour
260g bottled water
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 teaspoon of Dry Active Yeast

Steps, flour, salt mix, then yeast, mix , then water (cool)
Mix for about 1 1/2 minutes and then let rise for 45 min
Take out, fold, then let rise for 45 minutes.

Flour surface, pour out and shape. Cut into 2.
Knead and fold as per video and then let rest for 15 minutes.
Then cut into 2 again (for 4 rolls) and knead and shape (see video)
Then on coush thing (I use baking paper) rest for 20 minutes
Then turn on oven- rest for further 10 minutes (total rest time 30 min)
Oven at 230 deg c
Score top of dough (to allow for oven rise) and spray with water.
Into oven for 10 minutes then turn (overall 16 min in video) I turned and then for another 8 min.
Take out, wrap in towel and put on rack. Then eat.

 Process and result

I put yeast in first then salt, I should have done other way around (no explanation as to why)
After mixing dough and leaving to rise in hot press I found there was almost no rise at all.
After 2nd rise it was only starting to bubble a bit, so I did a 3rd rise.
Followed rest of process and result was great. Tiny bread loaves, some fatter, some thinner. Like little artisan ones.
I was very happy with the result. I will do this recipe again to get some practice in.
I'm pleased I had something edible at the end, I think my baking is improving (apart form last time with Ciabattas forgetting sugar, then on remake I forgot to put yeast in Poolsh!!-July 19)

Appendix-The longer process- for reference

This is first video,all done on the same day.

This is one with poolish that is left overnight, so faster the next day

Stage 1 The Poolish or Sponge 

200g / 7oz Strong white bread flour
300g / 300mls / 10½oz Cold water
 ½tsp / 2g of instant or active dried yeast, if using fresh yeast 8 grams

 Stage 2 The main Ingredients

500g / 17½oz Strong white bread flour
220g / 22omls / 7½oz Cold water
1tsp / 6g Salt
 the  Poolish or Sponge made earlier

1. Mix poolish and water
2. Mix all the dry ingredients
3. Mix poolish and  all the dry ingredients
4. Cover and leave for 45 minutes to let rise
5. Take out & Knead
6. Cover and leave for 45 minutes to let rise
7. Take out & Knead again

(his ambient temp is 23 deg C, so put in airing cupboard to rise/proof the dough)
Flour workspace (next to couch cloth)
Digital scales, divide the dough into 4/6/8 accurately. 4 big, 6 medium, 8 small.
7 minutes into video, knead/fold/form bread on floured surface, some on dough as well. Into small roll shape
Cover with oiled clingfilm for 15 minutes.
Form the dough in baguette shape  about 9 minutes into vid.
Then put on couch and Proof for 30 minutes
After 20 mins turn over on to 230 deg C to warm oven
Hot water on bottom shelf.
Once baguettes are on tray, spray water over top and cut diagonal cuts in them
Then in oven for 16 min
Spray water over before closing oven door.
After 10 minutes swap shelves and turn around.
After further 6 min, if right colour, get out, if you want darker keep checking every 2 min,

Sourdough starter

In the end I'm making Sourdough pancakes (see the post on the topic) and I really enjoy them each week.
I may try making a another loaf in the future but am, at present, contented with making the pancakes.

 I followed Patrick Ryan's video for making the starter below and am currently on day 6 of that, but I've just seen that John Kirkwood has some videos on Sourdough Starter and Sourdough bread.
Here is video on starter:

He also has a video on Sourdough bread in dutch oven:

He also has a tip on using the sourdough starter that he tips away to keep the starter going to make pancakes

 Which I think is a great idea to save it for something useful. I will have to try that.

Anyway, I think I'll follow his recipe for making the sourdough bread the first time. Its like his process for Ciabattas in that he leaves the poolish overnight and does it the next day.

Ingredients For the Sponge/Poolish 

100g/3.5oz Starter
100g/3.5oz Filtered or bottled water
100g/3.5oz White bread flour

Mix and leave overnight.

 Ingredients For the Bread

 230g / 8oz Filtered or bottled water
460g / 16oz White bread flour

1 Tablespoon Vegetable oil
1tsp table salt
1 tablespoon Sesame seed   (use later- dont add now)

1. Mix together in bowl then
2. Cover and leave for 45 minutes to let rise
3. Take out & Knead
4. Cover and leave for 45 minutes to let rise
5. Take out & Knead again
6. Then put into a preformed bowl ( he puts it in 200mm dia wok and puts butter and oil inside then sesame seeds into the bowl (sticks to oil/butter) 
7. Then wets the top of the dough (that is going to stick to sesame seeds) and puts in bowl
8. Flour to top (actual bottom of loaf to stop sticking when transferred to dutch oven)
9. Cover and leave for 30 minutes to let rise
10. Warm oven for casserole dish 220 degrees C (very hot) - put casserole dish in
11. Then after 30 min flip dough into caserolle dish and lid on into oven- middle of oven
12. In oven for 30 min. then check.
13. Leave lid off dutch oven and let it cook further for 3-5 minutes to brown

Take out, cool down and eat.

Sourdough bread

For 2 loaves, base on video below:
800 g of bread flour
460 g water
10 g salt
320g sourdough starter

Knead for 10 minutes (or use mixer)
(Window pane effect, sticks together and you can see through it)
Proove - 3 hours
Knock back and work again
Put into tins
Prove again for 3 1/2 hours or Put in fridge overnight

Bake for 30-35 min- water in oven
or
Dutch oven- Bake with lid on and it cooks in its own steam

 Sourdough starter

 The sourdough starter begins at about 45 seconds in on video below:


 It takes about 7 days to get started.
 I am using a 1.3l jar with a screw-top lid that I got from the Warehouse.
Leave out at room temperature for first 7 days so its active. Then, to slow it down, put it in the fridge. 

Day 1.  

add:
 50 g of flour , 50ml (50g) Water
Total  now:
100g Mixture.

It picks up yeast spores from air so leave in a warm room with lid off overnight- for about 12 hours.

 Day 2. 
add:
 50g of flour , 50ml (50g) Water
Total  now:
200g Mixture.

Day 3.  

Discard:
100g of mixture  add:
 100g of flour , 100ml (100g) Water
Total  now:
300g Mixture.  

Day 4.  

Discard:
150g of mixture  add:
 100g of flour , 100ml (100g) Water
Total  now:
350g Mixture.  

Day 5.  

Discard:
200g of mixture  add:
 150g of flour , 150ml (150g) Water
Total  now:
450g Mixture.  

Day 6.  

Discard:
250g of mixture  add:
 200g of flour , 200ml (200g) Water
Total  now:
600g Mixture.

Review

21st March 2019
I made the bread in a tin last Sunday (10/3), it sort of stuck getting it out but it didn't actually tear, so I got it out in one piece after using a knife at sides and corners of the tin.
I ended up cutting quite thick slices, and they were nice and moist, not as aerated as the ones in the videos.
Not really that impressed. Being thick, it felt a heavy bread and I struggled with finishing a slice.
It toasted fine.
It only made one loaf, even with all the flour put into it. It was very dense, I did notice the difference in weight between that dough and the ciabatta dough I make. 
I have the starter in the fridge now. I may try using it for a pizza, but not for a while. I go to some techy meetups in the evening a couple of days a week and they always order in pizza. So I'm a bit pizza'd out at the moment.
Interesting is that some of them have quite poor dough. In some instances I actually prefer mine to the bought ones. Still, there is a slight bias, I prefer thin crusts and a all of the pizzas are thick crusts so you notice the dough a lot more.

Chilli con queso

I have always ordered this if its on the menu at a Mexican restaurant. I just love it.
Chilli con queso = a dipping sauce of melted cheese and chopped chili peppers 
I think there are a lot of variations out there, some quite creamy to cater for conservative tastes and very mild chillis.  Some come out quite pink as restaurants add tomato sauce or an equivalent to it.
I like to add onion to mine and sometimes chop up tomatoes and throw in some jalapenos as well to give it a bite.
Here is one recipe from taste.com.au

1. some butter, about a teaspoon full  into a pot on the stove, medium to high
2. Half an onion sliced and diced, do not over caremalise it (I sometimes put it in later so it has some crunch)
3. Some milk, about 1/2 cup 
4. Grated cheese. About 1 to 1 1/2 cups. I use cheddar but lots of variations on theme. Generally firm to hard cheeses with medium to strong taste. Things like Brie/Camembert  are too mild.
5. some flour (about a tablespoon (to thicken the mixture, although you may need more) ) 
6. Chopped and diced tomato 
7. Jalapeno peppers (from tin, they are usually quite soft).
8. Serve up in a ramekin bowl  

A large bowl of corn chips to go with them. The more natural they are the more flavour you get from the dip
A nice entree before a Mexican meal of tacos or as a snack.

Gambas Pil Pil

This is a favorite meal of mine, and I'm glad I have anti-reflux pills as my recipe is a bit potent.

• Gambas-  prawns
• pil-pil -A sauce of Basque origin made from olive oil, garlic and chili.

• Gambas al Ajillo- Garlic Shrimp is the more common menu item in the south of Spain, but in the North they would have the pil pil version, and in Madrid too is what i recall personally.

I use

•  200 g frozen raw prawns (broken pieces, deveined and no tails), defrosted. If I remember to get them out early, I thaw on windowsill in sealed container, if not, 10min in microwave on that. (Actually ends up about 15 min overall)
• 1 whole garlic
• 3 fresh chillies (from Vege market) 
• Salt
• Olive Oil

The Spanish tapas dish is filled with oil to cover the garlic & chillies. Heat up until oil is hot, add some ground salt to oil and then put in garlic , chillies a minute later, then the prawns about 2 minutes after that, stirring all the time. When the prawns have turned pink and look cooked, take to table and eat.
Some fresh ciabatta bread, about 3 slices to mop up the mixture. Delicious.
I usually do this on Sundays as I've been to the vege market and got chillies and also to Supermarket to get fresh bread. Now I just use my ciabatta bread instead. ¡Buen provecho! ¡Buen apetito!

Tortillas la patatas

This one turned a little dry as I was not watching it enough. Its my fault, I zip into the living room and get engrossed on the computer and forget to check things.

I will try and use the kitchen timer more to keep me watching.

 I like the slightly runny centre. Its also good for re-heating later, its not as dry then.

Tortillas la patatas is a great snack and side dish as well as a good breakfast. Omar Allibhoy's video on how to make them is the one I follow: Simple, make sure you leave it runny in the middle so its not dry on later days Good for reheating and having with main meals.

I really enjoyed  Tortillas in Spain. I tried it once in Ireland and as I was working through my recipes I watched quite a few YouTube chef videos on how to make them but Omar Allibhoy's seems really good and straightforward, so I followed his version.
The first time I did it it came out dry, and I have since followed his recipe with more rigor to ensure it stays moist in the middle.
I heat it up for breakfast and its great, I also use it as a side to a meat dish if I have it available.
It can be a bit dry and bland if you overcook it, that is why under-cooking it helps with when you reheat it.
I did try to get fancy and add garlic to one of the batches, not a good idea. It overwhelmed the taste of the potatoes and eggs.
Frying pan size. I did try with a large pan initially, but it ended up a very shallow tortilla which was dry as it cooked through so quick. I now have a smaller frying pan and that allows the mixture to go right up to the rim, so is deep and the centre stays moist.
Ingredients:

• 500ml Olive oil (drain and reuse so have another bottle ready for that)
• 1 Onion, sliced thinly
• 3 large potatoes. I use Agria potatoes, but its also fine with new baby potatoes
• 6 eggs

Fry onion in olive oil in frying pan (large)
Then add thinly sliced potatoes (I use mandolin to slice the potatoes)
10-15 minutes on high to caramelized.  Stir potato and onion.
Break 6 eggs into a big bowl .
Then lift out  potato and onion and drain oil and drop into eggs and move around.
Add some salt.
Let rest for 10 to 15 minutes.
Then into small frying pan. On high for 1 minute, then low for 2 minutes.
Then use a plate and flip over and put raw side down. 1 minute high then 2 minutes low.
Touch it to test, see if it bounces.
Then eat.
The mixing of the potatoes and onions into the eggs and letting it rest does part of the cooking. 

Pizza dough and toppings

John Kirkwood's pizza video: This works for me 4 nice thin pizza bases, you can put them in fridge or freezer for another day



I tried following Gennaro's video but it didn't work for me, it was just a heavy carboardy pizza base that you'd find in a supermarket. That was my fault as I wanted a quick pizza and rushed the process.
I have tried getting pre-prepared pizzas from supermarkets, or fresh bases but none of them are right. In Ireland we used to make pizza's and they were great. I was far too excessive with the toppings and overdid that part of the pizza, I just wanted lots of everything.
I think though, that Mies Van De Rohe's adage of "Less is more" applies to pizzas.
 I have since allowed myself time to prepare the dough properly and as I was happy with John Kirkwood's ciabatta recipe I decided that I'd use his process.
After making the first batch, I could only eat one at a time, so I stored the other 3 dough balls away, 2 in the freezer and one in the fridge. The one I made first I tried to follow a hand shaping of the pizza and it was very very thin in the middle and thick around the edges and didn't bake well. It was hard and dry, quite disappointing. The second I just rolled with a rolling pin and it was even throughout (even homogeneous) and it was great. So I think I'll stick to the rolling pin method.

Ingredients

I make the dough balls then freeze 3 of them.

Toppings

A few things:
1. Mozzarella cheese is better than Cheddar on the pizzas. I found a reasonable value grated bag at the supermarket.
Definitely not as dominant as Cheddar. So other topping flavours come out
2. The local Italian pizza place in Newtown, the Mediterranean shop used to do a potato topping, then they stopped it. I was a bit disappointed as it makes a nice topping.
3. I tried to be restrained today and ended with a vegetarian one that was delicious. Brochette Tomato sauce base, mozzarella cheese, potatoes, 1 small chilli, red capsicum, milk mozzarella ball, olives (de-pipped- a bit bland)

Mini calzones- 17/4/2019

I have been making some mini calzones in the air fryer. I can get 3 out of a single dough ball. So, 10 min one side and 5 turned over. Preheat for 2 minutes. Temp 200 deg C and canola oil spray both sides prior to putting in.

1. Pancetta choppied into fine pieces on bottom, mozzarella cheese over, olives, bruschetta mix on top (for calzones wet stuff to the top otherwise you get a soggy botto).
2. Same as above but I used tortilla potatoes on top of mozzarella cheese with bruschetta sauce over. It didn't work. Potatoes too soft. I did wonder if I had too many flavours in it. Still a fine calzone though.

These are quick to do, so I've had 2 for a late lunch (4pm) and will just make the last one up around 7pm after walking the dog. I may even think of having a salad with that one.

 Pizza toppings 19th Dec 2019

I've just had the pizza below, bruchetta topping with tomato paste for base, 1/2 1/2 mozarella and tasty cheddar grated, fresh tomato, sliced frsh onion, sliced ham, chilli bits and Brie. Light, tasty, but not overwhelmingly so, the chillis give a bite, and a thin base, I'm now letting rest after rolling for 10-15 min and then stretching up all sides of tray.
A really delicious meal. Over 230 deg C , Fan assist, preheat over, put in for 10 min and then turn and then 5 min and check.
lovely

 

Poolish for Pizza dough

I came across this article of using a poolish for the pizza dough that looks quite interesting:

https://www.weekendbakery.com/posts/pizza-dough-with-a-poolish/

You use less yeast, idea of doing in th morning and making in the evening.