cookouts » Wonderland Kitchen
Browsing Tag

cookouts

Ultimate DIY Picnic: Housemade Buns & Mayo

rolls_top

I did not intend to bake my own hamburger buns when the week began.

The thing of it was, I kept eating Brian’s whole wheat store-bought ones, simultaneously lamenting both their dwindling number and their shoddy quality. After polishing off half the bag–what? I was feeling nostalgic for the NYC egg sandwiches of my youth–it seemed only fair that I replace them, but I was hoping for something a little less prone to collapse. Maybe I could make them? That seemed likely to be prohibitively labor intensive for any pre-workday morning, but before I hit the store, I hit the Google. As per usual, King Arthur Flour delivered a recipe for a spectacular dough: a snap to mix, a dream to shape, and an end product that elicited a satisfying number of “You made these?!” responses from their consumers.

I mixed in some whole wheat flour, melted and cooled (rather than just softened) my butter accidentally, and reduced the sugar a bit the second time around (they go fast!), but this recipe is stellar either way.

Everything Burger Buns and One Minute Mayo

Everything Burger Buns
only slightly adapted from King Arthur Flour

3/4 cup water
1 T instant yeast
3T sugar
100 g whole wheat flour
318 g all purpose flour
1 egg plus 1 egg white for wash (add remaining yolk to dough, if you like, or reserve for homemade mayo–see recipe below)
1 1/2 tsp kosher salt
2 T butter, softened
3 T “everything bagel” topping

Place all ingredients in a large bowl or stand mixer and knead, but hand or by hook, until a smooth dough has formed. Lightly oil the bowl and surface of the dough, cover, and leave to rise until doubled, about 90 minutes.

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Deflate the dough and divide into eight equal piece. Shape each piece into a ball (I like to gather the edges of the dough into something of a very small balloon knot, and then place each roll on the sheet, knot-side down, patting it gently on top to spread the roll out a bit). Cover and leave to rise another hour.

During the second rise, preheat your oven to 375F. Beat the egg white with a little cool water and, when the rolls are ready for the oven, remove cover and gently brush the tops with the wash. Sprinkle each with the “everything bagel” topping, or the seed combo of your choice. Bake for 15-18 minutes, until golden. Cool completely on a wire rack before slicing.

Everything Burger Buns and One Minute Mayo

One-Minute Mayo

After two batches of the buns above, I had two yolks hanging out in the ‘fridge, demanding I make good use of them every time I opened the door. There are, of course, a million mayo recipes out there online, and I make no claims to have had any part in inventing this process. But I do love executing it. This is the formula I’m using currently. You’ll need an immersion blender for this method.

2 egg yolks
1 tsp. lemon juice
2 tsp. vinegar
1 tsp. mustard
1/4 tsp. salt
1 cup vegetable oil (some people include a bit of olive oil, but this has never worked for me; it always overpowers, never in a good way)
1 garlic clove (optional)

Allow all ingredients to warm to room temperature. Place everything but the oil and garlic in the base of a container just wide enough to accommodate your immersion blender (the cup that often comes packaged with one is perfect). Cover these ingredients with the business end of the blender wand and gently pour in the oil around it, so that the oil remains suspended above the rest. Begin pulsing the blender in two-second bursts until streams of emulsified mayo start to appear at the bottom of the glass. This won’t take very long at all. Continuing with the bursts, slowly moving the blender up towards the top of glass, plunging up and down a bit as needed, until all oil is incorporated. Scrap down blender. If using the garlic, use a press to crush the clove into the mayo. Stir well to incorporate. Taste and add additional salt as needed. Transfer to a container with a tight-fitting lid and refrigerate until picnic time!

A Roasted Potato or Two (Fermented Mustard Edition)

potato_top

This roasted potato recipe has been copied, adapted, and praised all over the internet, so I wouldn’t have bothered posting about it myself if I hadn’t also been looking for the chance to tell you about this fermented mustard. Of course you may use store-bought (I’ve always made it that way before) and it is a very satisfying way to quickly prepare simple red skinned new potatoes (I promise you), but this variation–a unique mustard, a brightly colored mix of purple fingerling and sweet potatoes, plus a few sliced shallots–made it an especially fun dish.

Mustard Spiked Roasted Potatoes

The fermented mustard was a recent kitchen experiment of mine inspired by this post on Well Preserved. We’ve been enjoying the resulting condiment on sandwiches and such, but even though I’m guessing the high-heat roasting removes some of the health benefits that regular eaters of lacto-fermented foods are looking for, it was still a great tasting (and great smelling while roasting) addition to this dish. The shallots turned sweet in the oven, some a little crispy (these bits I hoarded for myself), and the color in the potatoes deepened into rich jewel tones.

The verdict: a perfect side for a summer cookout.

Mustard Spiked Roasted Potatoes

Mustard Spiked Roasted Potatoes
My take on an already popular recipe further inspired by Joy the Baker

1 quart purple fingerling potatoes, halved
1 sweet potato, cubed to a similar depth
2-3 shallots, halved and sliced
1/2 cup fermented mustard or whole grain Dijon
2 T olive oil
2 T melted butter
3 T lemon juice
Salt and pepper to taste

Line a rimmed baking sheet with foil and preheat the oven to 425°F while you prepare the vegetables and dressing.

Whisk together mustard, olive oil, melted butter, lemon juice, salt, and pepper. Place cut vegetables into a large bowl and drizzle with the dressing, tossing until pieces are evenly coated. Spoon the vegetables out onto the baking sheet, leaving any excess dressing in the bowl. Roast for 25-35 minutes–stirring half way through–until the potatoes have browned and are easily pierced with a fork. Enjoy with the picnic fare of your choice, or straight out of the bowl when no one is looking.