Portuguese Olio Nuovo Ultra Premium Cobrançosa Olive Oil Peasant Loaf

This loaf is just out of the oven.  It has Cobrançosa incorporated in the dough and drizzled over the loaf as it went in, and came out.  Upon removing it from the oven, the test kitchen was positively perfumed with the fresh, herbaceous notes of this fantastically fresh, Ultra Premium olive oil.

The recipe below will work in a bread machine, stand mixer, or with good ol' fashioned hand kneading.  This bread is a fantastic served warm with a hearty stew, or any dish that generates sauce, and or gravy for dipping.

Portuguese Olio Nuovo Cobrançosa Peasant Loaf
4 1/4 cups all purpose flour
1/4 cup potato flour
1 tablespoon sea salt or kosher salt
1 tablespoon light amber honey or granulated sugar
3 tablespoons + 3 tablespoons Olio Nuovo Cobrançosa Olive Oil from Portugal 
1 1/2 cups warm water
1/2 cup whole milk
2 1/4 teaspoons active dry yeast

If using a bread machine, add all of the liquid, honey/sugar, salt, and 3 tablespoons of olive oil to the pan.  Then add both flours, followed by the yeast last.  Follow the manufacturer's instructions for your bread machine if you intend to bake it in the machine.

If using a stand mixer or mixing kneading by hand, mix and then knead the dough for about 6 minutes.  The dough should be very soft, but not sticky.  Add more flour, in small amounts as needed to keep the dough from sticking.  Allow to rise in a warm spot for about an hour.  Lightly punch the dough down, transfer to a baking sheet lined with parchment and gently reshape in to a rustic loaf.  Cover the dough with plastic wrap lightly greased with olive oil.  Allow the dough to rise for 45 additional minutes 

Preheat the oven to 375 and adjust the rack to the center of the oven.   

Drizzle the loaf with two tablespoons of Cobrançosa, and bake for about 40 minutes, until golden brown, or a digital thermometer inserted in to the center of the loaf registers 199 degrees.  Remove the loaf and immediately drizzle with remaining tablespoon of Cobrançosa.  Allow to cool for at least 10 minutes before before serving.  Best served warm!      

Cinnamon & Olio Nuovo Blood Orange Agrumato Olive Oil Streusel Küchen Buns

<==== Das ist wunderbar!  Well, I thought so at least.  After developing this recipe, I learned that streusel küchen is straight-up comfort food.  It meets most if not all of the criteria to obtain the distinction.  It is warm, sweet, billowy, soft, fragrant, rich, and thanks to a few tweaks I made, fragrant with blood orange, with the heart healthy benefits of replacing a good portion of butter with olive oil.

Oh, did I mention that this dough can be made in your bread machine?  Oh yes, baby!
  

Cinnamon & Olio Nuovo Blood Orange Agrumato Olive Oil Streusel Küchen Buns
1/2 cup warm water
1/2 cup warm whole milk
1/2 cup sour cream, at room temperature
1 large egg, beaten, at room temperature
1/4 cup turbinado or granulated sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
4 Tbs. Fresh Blood Orange Agrumato Olive Oil  or 4 Tbs. Fresh extra virgin and the zest of one orange

4 cups all purpose flour
2 packages or 4 1/2 teaspoons active dry yeast
2 tablespoons powdered sugar

This dough can either be made in a bread machine, stand mixer or by good ole' fashioned hand kneading.  It's your choice.  The dough will be soft and slightly tacky but should not be very sticky.  Add more flour in small increments as necessary.  After 5 minutes of kneading, allow the dough to rise for 1 1/2 hours.  Grease and then lay parchment over the bottom of a half sheet pan.  Roll  the dough out in to a rectangle large enough to cover the bottom of the half sheet pan.  Using a very sharp knife, cut the dough in to 2" x 2" squares for approximately 12-15 squares.  Cover with greased plastic wrap, and low to rise again for an hour.

Meanwhile make the streusel topping.

Streusel Topping

1 cup all purpose flour

2/3 cup light brown sugar
1/3 cup chopped pecans
1/4 teaspoon salt
6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) unsalted butter, melted

In a food processor or a medium sized bowl, mix the dry ingredients.  Drizzle in the melted butter and stir with fork or process until moist clumps form, about the size of peas. 

Preheat the oven to 350.  Distribute the streusel topping evenly over the dough and in to the crevices between the buns.  Bake on the center rack of the oven for 30-35 minutes.  DO NOT OVERBAKE!  Allow to cool slightly and dust with powdered sugar.  Serve while still warm.



Makes between 12-15 streusel küchen buns 

Roasted Chicken With Thyme, Lemon & Olives Over Leek & Point Reyes Blue Cheese Polenta with Olio Nuovo Manzanillo Olive Oil

 Rachel's Roasted Chicken with Lemon, Olives & Olio Nuovo Manzanillo 

1 five - 6 pound roasting chicken, cut up

2 fresh lemons - one sliced thin, one juiced for about 1 1/2 tablespoons of juice

1/2 cup Pinot Grigio or similarly crisp white wine

1/4 cup Olio Nuovo Spanish Manzanillo

8 cloves of garlic sliced in half

1 2-3" sprig of fresh thyme 

1/2 cup pitted olives, such as Kalamata, Picholine, and or Gordal

2 teaspoons kosher salt and fresh ground pepper to taste

Preheat the oven to 375.  Wash the chicken and pat dry.  Season both sides with salt and pepper.  Arrange the chicken in single layer in a large roasting pan with the larger pieces on the outside and smaller pieces in.  

In a blender or food processor,  add the wine, lemon juice, salt, pepper, one garlic clove, and Manzanillo olive oil.  Blend until smooth.  Pour the liquid over the chicken in the pan, making sure to drizzle over each piece of chicken  Arrange the sliced garlic, lemon slices and olives around the chicken pieces.  Sprinkle with thyme leaves and additional pepper if desired.  Roast  for 30-35 minutes until chicken is golden brown or until a digital thermometer inserted in to the middle of the thickest piece of chicken registers 165 degrees.

Optionally, separate the fat from the pan juice, reserving the garlic and olives for plating. Reduce by half in a small pan over medium heat.  Plate the chicken over the polenta drizzled with the pan reduction, reserved garlic and olives.    

 

Rachel's Leek & Point Reyes Blue Cheese Polenta

1 cup polenta

4 cups chicken stock or broth

2 tablespoons Robust Olio Nuovo Cobrancosa

2 large leeks, washed, white portion sliced thin in to rounds

1/3 cup best quality blue cheese, crumbled

1 teaspoon salt and fresh ground pepper to taste

While the chicken is roasting, heat 1 tablespoon of Cobrancosa over medium high heat, in a 3-4 quart sauté pan.  Sauté leeks in Cobrancosa for 6-8 minutes, until tender.  Increase heat, add four cups of chicken broth to the sautéed leeks and bring to a boil. Add 1 teaspoon of salt. Gradually whisk in the cornmeal. Reduce the heat to low and cook until the mixture thickens and the cornmeal is tender, stirring often, about 20 minutes. Turn off the heat. Add the second tablespoon of Cobrancosa, and the blue cheese and stir until melted.  Adjust seasoning and serve with pan juices from the roasted chicken.

Serves 4-6