Little Sesame Seed & Rosemary Breads of Joy May 7, 2010

I found some pre-made whole wheat pizza dough at Trader Joe’s (swear I don’t work there) and thought, hmmmm…I can do a lot with this!

Thought I’d make a pretzel.  Nope, didn’t work—too stretchy shrinky.  I’ll have to do that one from scratch some other time.

So what I did do, and do well if I may say so, is make little breads.  Since it was pizza dough the breads were dense, but that’s not a bad thing!

I decided to make 2 little loaves:  Black and White Sesame Seed and Rosemary:

I chose rosemary because I had some Pecorino Toscano cheese that I knew would pair well with it, and after consulting with Deano (mentioned in an earlier post, aka the KING of all things wine), I (we) decided to keep the Italian theme by choosing a 2008 Caravaggio Montepulciano d’Abruzzo. I understand that a Beaujolais or a Chianti Riserva would also pair well with the cheese.

I also made an olive oil concoction with rosemary and black volcanic salt for dipping.  Delicious and oh-so-simple.

Black Tahini of DOOM April 28, 2010

Sourdough boule broiled with olive oil & sea salt, basil leaf and black tahini.

Looks strange–tastes good!  It is a very strong-tasting experience and the color is disconcerting when eating it, but I will say it is quite good as long as you add another strong flavor, such as the basil leaf.  Worked very nicely together.

Black Tahini:  black sesame seeds + food processor.