Cheese Danish Delkelekh

FOR THE DOUGH:
1 tablespoon yeast
1/3 cup milk, at room temperature
2 large eggs, at room temperature
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
½ cup sour cream
1/3 cup sugar
½ teaspoon salt
3 cups all-purpose flour, sifted

For the filling:
12 ounces farmer’s cheese
1/3 cup sour cream
1/3 cup sugar
2 tablespoons flour
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 large egg yolk
Finely grated zest of 1 lemon

For assembly:
Flour, for dusting
1 large egg mixed with 1 tablespoon water
Confectioners’ sugar, optional.

1. For the dough: In bowl of an electric mixer, combine yeast and milk and allow to sit for a few minutes. Stir in eggs, butter, sour cream, sugar, salt and flour. Mix well until dough turns into a ball. Transfer to a covered container and allow to rest for 30 minutes, then refrigerate overnight.

2. For the filling: In bowl of an electric mixer, combine farmer’s cheese, sour cream, sugar, flour, vanilla, egg yolk and lemon zest. Mix well. Transfer to a covered container and refrigerate until needed, up to 24 hours.

3. For assembly: Preheat oven to 350 degrees, and line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Lightly dust a work surface with flour and roll out dough into a rectangle 1/8 inch thick. Cut into 4-by-4-inch squares. Spoon about 1 tablespoon filling into center of each square. Pick up corners of each square and press points together.

4. Arrange pastries on baking sheets about 1½ inches apart. Brush with egg mixture. Bake until golden, about 20 minutes. Allow to cool and serve as is or sprinkle with confectioners’ sugar.

Yield: About 24 pastries.

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Fleur de Sel - The word's Finest Salt

Mellow and delicate flavour : Fleur de sel

- Fleur de Sel develops in the heat of the summer, when the conditions are favourable, as fine crystals shimmering on the surface of the œillets, the shallow salt beds

- The salt farmer harvests and carefully sorts the crystals, and then places them in baskets to dry naturally in the sun, so they retain all the magnesium and other minerals. The salt that crystallizes on the water’s surface is uniquely white and flavourful.

- Noirmoutier Fleur de Sel is rare and noble, featuring a slightly violet aroma and a wonderfully mellow flavour. It develops into a complex, lasting essence without being too strong or bitter.

- When sprinkled as a final touch on vegetables, grilled meat or fish, it greatly enhances the flavour of traditional dishes such as beef stew, crunchy vegetables such as radishes, and fine foods such as truffles and foie gras.

Tips on Salt:

Fleur de Sel (flower of salt) is the premier condiment salt, (much like Aceto Balsamico Tradizionale, the finest extra-virgin olive oil). It's the crème de la crème of sea salts and can cost up to $56 per pound.

Fleur de Sel is used only for "finishing," while regular sea salt is used for cooking.
Sea salt is popular among the health-conscious because it contains none of the as anti-caking chemicals and additives typically used in table salt.

Ancient Romans were sometimes paid in salt; this practice was the source for our common expression "worth their salt." Also, the Latin word for salt, sal, is the root of the English word "salary."

Sea salt harvesting is limited to about three months of the year.

"The quality procedure of the entire sea salt network is based on a strict set of regulations known as the "Sélection du saunier" [Salt Worker’s Selection] which respects both the quality of the salt and the environment."

Toscany Pizza Recipe - Mushroom and Bacon Pizza with "over easy egg"

Ingredients:

-7 cups bread flour

-6 teaspoons kosher salt

-3 cups lukewarm water (95-100 degrees Fahrenheit)

-6 teaspoons sugar

-6 teaspoons dry yeast

-6 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

Procedure

Whisk flour and salt in medium bowl to blend. Combine lukewarm water and sugar in bowl of heavy-duty mixer fitted with paddle attachment. Sprinkle yeast over warm water and let stand until mixture is foamy, about 15 minutes. Add olive oil to yeast mixture; beat until blended. Add flour mixture and beat until soft, very sticky dough forms.

Using rubber spatula, scrape dough out onto generously floured work surface and knead until dough is smooth, adding more flour by tablespoonfuls as needed for soft but still slightly sticky dough, about 5 minutes. Gather dough together and place in oiled bowl; brush dough lightly with olive oil. Cover bowl with plastic wrap, then kitchen towel and let dough rise in warm draft-free area until doubled in volume, about 1 hour.

Line a baking pan with parchment paper. Turn dough out onto surface without any flour. Divide dough into 5 ounce pieces. Roll each piece into ball. Cover with plastic wrap and let rest on floured work surface 15 minutes. Using fingers, press dimples into each ball, then with a lightly floured rolling pin, roll out into 10-12 inch round or oval shaped pizza.

For the Béchamel Sauce

Ingredients:

-.50 pound unsalted butter

-.50 pound all-purpose flour

-.50 each onion1 each bay leaf2 each cloves

-.50 gallon milk

Procedure

Melt butter in a heavy-bottomed saucepot. Slowly add flour while stirring with a whisk. Let roux cook for about 2 minutes while stirring constantly. Add the milk slowly while whisking to avoid clumping of the roux.

Bring sauce to a simmer over very low heat and add onion, bay leaf, and clove. Let cook very slowly over very low heat for 1 hour while stirring once every 5 minutes. (If heat is too high, the sauce will burn. If you notice it starting to scorch, switch pans.) Pass sauce through a fine strainer and season with salt.

Assembly for one pizza

Ingredients:

-as needed flour-corneal mixture,

-equal parts2 ounces Béchamel cream sauce

-4 ounces mushrooms (fresh chanterelles, morels and porcinis suggested but any will do)

-2 ounces thinly sliced bacon, cut into 1-inch piecesas needed

shaved Parmesan Reggiano cheese

-6 leaves fresh basil

-1 egg

-to taste salt

-1 ounce extra virgin olive oil

Procedure

Sprinkle table with a mixture of flour and cornmeal. Lay pizza dough over floured surface. Spoon béchamel sauce over pizza dough leaving a .25- inch rim un-sauced for the crust. Top with mushrooms and bacon spread out evenly, but leave an empty area in the middle for the egg.

Crack 1 egg into middle of the pizza. Sprinkle pizza lightly with kosher salt and drizzle entire pizza with extra virgin olive oil. Using pizza paddle, place into 450 degree Fahrenheit pizza oven and cook until crust is golden brown. By then the bacon should be crispy and the egg should be cooked over easy. While pizza is still hot, top with fresh basil and shaved Parmesan Reggiano cheese.

Serving tip: Ceramic Portuguese individual Pizza dish for a cool modern way to eat pizza.

photo Courtesy Finest Linens and Things