Two more interesting recipes

Louise Piper's Oil Pastry
Tuesday, October 02, 2007 from Oregonian.com

Makes one 9-inch double-crust pie

Louise Piper is a perennial pie winner at the Iowa State Fair, one of the biggest in the country, and she's been using this crust for almost 40 years. If you substituted olive oil for the vegetable oil, and water for the milk, you'd have my mother-in-law's crowd-pleasing -- and vegan -- pie crust recipe instead. Cut the recipe in half for a single-crust pie. Before using, check your oil to make sure it's not rancid. Sticky oil and a musty, off-odor are clues. To measure the flour, spoon it into the measuring cup and level off.

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup cold whole (or 2 percent) milk

Combine the flour and salt in a large bowl. Measure the oil and milk into the same liquid measuring cup but do not stir. Add to the flour and mix briskly to combine. The dough will pull together into a ball.

Divide the dough in half. Roll out each half to 1/8 inch thick between 2 sheets of wax paper. Use as directed in your recipe. Note: Because this is made with oil, the dough must be used right away. After a day in the fridge the oil will start to separate and seep out.

-- From "Pie" by Ken Haedrich


Olive Oil Bread Sticks
Tuesday, September 18, 2007
From Oregonian.com
Makes 4 dozen

For speed and ease, this dough gets mixed, kneaded and risen in the bowl of a food processor. Rich with olive oil, it stretches willingly into short or long bread sticks and, while excellent plain, they welcome flavorful improvisation. Choose just one ingredient from a list of options, or make up your own combination, using the suggested measurements below. Try sesame dill; walnut cumin; basil pine nut; an aromatic blend of basil, rosemary and sage; or a confetti-like sprinkling of flax, poppy, sesame and fennel seeds.

3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 envelope instant yeast (2 1/2 teaspoons)
2 teaspoons salt
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons warm water (80 to 90 degrees)
1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil, plus 2 tablespoons (divided)
1 teaspoon coarse sea salt
Optional mix-ins:
1 cup chopped fresh basil, dill or cilantro
1/2 cup chopped fresh rosemary
1/4 cup chopped fresh sage
1 cup pitted, chopped olives, such as kalamata, green or Italian
1/2 cup chopped nuts, such as walnuts, hazelnuts or pine nuts, toasted (see note)
Optional toppings:
2 tablespoons sesame seeds
2 teaspoons poppy seeds
2 tablespoons flax seeds
1 teaspoon fennel seeds
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

In the bowl of a food processor fitted with the plastic dough blade, place the flour, yeast and salt. If using fresh herbs, olives or nuts, add them now. Attach the cover and mix for 5 seconds. Combine the warm water and 1/3 cup oil in a measuring cup and pour it through the feed tube with the machine running. A ball of dough will form and slap around the bowl. Let the dough spin around 10 times to knead it before stopping the machine. The dough will feel warm, soft and tacky.

Collect any bits of dough from around the bowl and attach them to the ball. Replace the cover on the food processor bowl, slip in the feed tube pusher and let the dough rise for 45 minutes.

Lightly flour the countertop. Scrape the dough from the bowl onto the flour. Use your hands to press it into a rectangle, 12 inches by 6 inches, with a long side facing you.

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.

Pour the remaining extra-virgin olive oil onto 2 baking sheets (about 1 tablespoon per sheet) and use your hands to spread it around. Spread the oil left on your hands all over the top of the rectangle of dough. After wiping your hands dry, sprinkle the coarse salt onto the dough. If using seeds or spices, sprinkle them on now and lightly press them into the dough. (Some of them will fall off while shaping, but that's OK.) Use a pizza cutter or chef's knife to slice the dough into 1/2-by-6-inch strips, making 24 strips. Cut those strips in half to make 48 pieces.

For short, tender bread sticks, pick up each strip of dough and gently stretch it to about 6 inches. Twist each one as you lengthen it, if desired. Lay the bread sticks on the oiled pans 1/2 inch apart. Or, for the softest bread sticks, position them side by side (twisted or not) so that they can be pulled apart once baked. Let them rise uncovered for 10 minutes. Bake one baking sheet at a time for 15 to 17 minutes, until pale golden brown and firm to the touch.

For long, snappy bread sticks, stretch the dough by grasping both tips, one in each hand, of each strip and lift up, like you're holding a piece of string. Gently bounce the strip of dough until it stretches to the length of your sheet pan, 12 to 16 inches, twisting it as it lengthens, if desired. The breadsticks will be as thin as drinking straws. Place the first 24 bread sticks 1/4 inch apart on one of the oiled sheet pans and bake immediately for 13 to 15 minutes or until lightly browned and crisp. Repeat with the second baking sheet. Note: To toast pine nuts, spread on a baking sheet and bake in a 350-degree oven for 3 to 5 minutes, until they turn light brown. Watch carefully, as they go from browned to burned in a matter of seconds. Other nuts will take a few minutes longer. If using hazelnuts, bake until the skins crack and then remove skins by rubbing the warm nuts in a rough cloth or between your hands.

-- Lynne Sampson

PER SERVING: calories: 52 (37% from fat); protein: 1 gram; total fat: 2.2 grams; saturated fat: 0.3 gram; cholesterol: 0; sodium: 146 mg; carbohydrate: 7 grams; dietary fiber: 0.3 gram