Sunday Bread - Broa (Portuguese Corn Bread)

by: Bill Egnor AKA Something The Dog Said

Sun Jan 30, 2011 at 08:55:30 AM MST

Happy Sunday Bread Heads!

This week were going to start on a round of corn bread recipes. Now, I should warn you that this is not just going to be variations on the standard quick bread corn bread which is really a batter and does not rise except in the pan. We'll probably do some of both.

In any case we are going to kick things off with Broa, which is a Portuguese style of corn bread. What makes this bread unique is that you pulverize the corn meal in a blender or food processor. It gives the bread a lighter crumb and texture than you run-of-the-mill corn bread. The addition of olive oil also brings a different flavor to the party.

But enough talk! Let's bake!  

Ingredients:

1 ½ cups yellow corn meal
1 ½ teaspoon salt
1 ½ boiling water
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 packages (4 ½ teaspoons) yeast
1 ¾  cups flour (bread or all purpose will work for this)

Baking Pan:
1 baking sheet, lined with parchment paper

Method:

To pulverize your corn meal work in ¼ batches. I like to use the blender for this but you can use your food processor if you have one. If you don't have either, you can still make this bread, just skip this step. You'll lose the finer texture but you'll still have a damned fine loaf. Working in ¼ increments run the blender or food processor at full speed for about 3 minutes. The corn meal should be light and powdery by then.

When all of the corn meal is processed, in your large mixing bowl or the bowl of your stand mixer, combine 1 cup of the corn meal, the salt and the boiling water. Whisk them together until they have formed a smooth batter. Stir in the olive oil and set aside for 10 minutes to cool. Then stir in the yeast.

If you are using a stand mixer fit it with the paddle attachment. If you're doing this by hand pick up a wooden spoon. Add the rest of the corn meal and 1 ½ cups of flour gradually, stirring constantly while you do.

Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and allow it to rise until it has doubled in volume, about 30 minutes.

Uncover the dough and either attach the dough hook attachment or turn it out onto a liberally floured work surface. You can add up to ¼ cup of flour to make a firm but not stiff dough. Knead for 8 minutes at low speed or by hand with a push-turn-fold method.

Shape the dough into a ball and place on your prepared baking sheet. Cover with wax paper and allow to rise until it has doubled in volume, about 30 minutes.

Twenty minutes before baking, place a rack in the middle of your oven and preheat it to 350 degrees.

Remove the wax paper from the loaf and slip it into the hot oven. Bake for 40 minutes or until the loaf is golden brown. Tap the bottom of the loaf to test for donness. You should hear a nice hard, hollow sound. If you don't then put the loaf back in the oven for ten more minutes.

Remove the bread from the oven and cool on a wire rack. This bread is great with chili and cream soups. It does not toast particularly well, but it does make a great vehicle for butter and some sage honey.

Oh, one last picture below is what happens after you tell your family "Okay you can eat it now" elapsed time, 48 seconds.

The flour is yours!