Bread of Love

February 8 2008 at 07:23 am

Red wine bread with figs and pine nuts

For the record, let me say that any home-baked bread, and indeed all home-cooked food, has aphrodisiac potential. Any lover who does not recognize a lovingly-prepared dish as an eminently romantic gesture is clearly the wrong sort of lover.

That said, there are of course a few foods reputed to possess extraordinary amatory powers. In honor of this month of love, here’s a bread whose three starring ingredients are officially on Aphrodite’s List:

  • Red wine stimulates the senses and relaxes the body and mind.
  • Pine nuts are rich in zinc, an essential mineral for male potency. (Does anyone get “Pi|\|e |\|uts” spam?)
  • Figs‘ aphrodisiacal power is said to lie in their resemblance to the female anatomy.

Kitchen of Love event The recipe, adapted from from Dan Lepard’s The Handmade Loaf (a must-have for any serious bread-baker’s library), is my contribution to Mele Cotte’s Kitchen of Love.

This flat, dense loaf has an incredibly rich, sweet flavor that is amazing with tangy cheeses. Guaranteed to leave your beloved begging for more.

Slices of red wine bread

Red Wine Loaf with Pine Nuts and Figs

Yield: 1450 g (2 loaves)

Time:

  • Soak figs and pine nuts: 8 – 12 hours
  • Mix: 45 minutes (very little of this is active time)
  • First fermentation: 1 hour, with folds at 30 and 60 minutes
  • Divide/rest/shape: 10 minutes
  • Proof: 2 hours
  • Bake: 50 minutes

Wine soaker ingredients:

  • 250 g red wine
  • 100 g pine nuts
  • 200 g dried figs, cut into eighths

Final dough ingredients:

  • 250 g flour
  • 250 g whole wheat flour
  • 265 g liquid (wine drained from soaked figs/nuts, plus enough water to make 265 g) at room temperature
  • 10 g salt
  • 2 g instant yeast
  • 166 g mature 100%-hydration sourdough starter
  • all of the soaked, drained figs and pine nuts

Method:

  1. Combine all of the wine soaker ingredients in a saucepan and heat to boiling. Simmer for a minute and remove from the heat. Leave covered overnight, stirring once before bed.
  2. Drain the figs and nuts, reserving the drained wine. Combine the wine with enough water to make 265 g.
  3. In a large bowl, combine the flours with the salt. In a medium bowl, whisk together the starter, wine/water, and yeast.
  4. Add the liquid ingredients and figs and nuts to the dry ingredients. Mix with your hands until the ingredients are just combined. Cover and let rest for 10 minutes.
  5. Turn the dough onto a lightly-floured counter and knead for 10 – 15 seconds. Return the dough to the bowl, cover, and let rest for 30 minutes.Knead the dough for another 10 – 15 seconds.
  6. Return the dough to the bowl, and let it ferment, covered, for one hour, with a fold at 30 minutes and another at the end of the hour. The dough will not have expanded much in volume. :i:
  7. Divide the dough into two pieces and shape them lightly into balls. Cover with a cloth and let rest for 5 minutes.
  8. Using as little flour as possible to prevent sticking, roll each ball into an oval about 3/4″ thick. Place the ovals on a floured linen, and cover with another cloth.
  9. Proof the loaves at room temperature for 2 hours. They will not rise very much.
  10. Meanwhile, preheat the oven, with baking stone, to 410F. You will also need steam during the initial phase of baking, so prepare for this now. :i:
  11. Before baking, slash each loaf in a criss-cross pattern with the slashes about 1/3″ apart.
  12. Bake with steam for 15 minutes, then another 30 minutes or so without steam. The loaves should be a dark rich brown. Then turn the oven off and leave the loaves inside, with the door ajar, for another 5 minutes.
  13. Place the loaves on a wire rack to cool.

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Post a comment » 24 Comments

  1. David Aplin February 8 2008 at 08:00 am 1

    Hi Susan, I must try this one. A red wine soaker yet. With Valentines Day approaching, I have the necessary ingredients on hand…to set the night on FIRE!
    I gotta get a location.
    Best, David

  2. Hillary February 8 2008 at 12:43 pm 2

    Well that is one intensely romantic bread! I love your line about any lover not appreciating homebaked bread is the wrong sort of lover :)

  3. Chris February 8 2008 at 07:09 pm 3

    I never thought of wine and bread. Wonderful! Thanks for participating.

  4. Jeremy February 9 2008 at 06:04 pm 4

    Actually figs are hermaphrodites Susan!
    Love that red look, I have seen on some pro French sites, saucisson and wine breads, and Richard Bertinet gets this wine flour, actually made from grapes I think?

    Jeremy

  5. Aparna February 10 2008 at 09:16 am 5

    Thats a most beautiful and unusual looking bread. Never seen anything quite like it before.

  6. Bev February 10 2008 at 12:34 pm 6

    I agree, so unusual looking, but really lovely!

    I like the sound of this and the flavours, hubbie would LOVE this!

  7. MyKitchenInHalfCups February 10 2008 at 01:07 pm 7

    Susan: We must have a problem here. Do you have a hidden camera in my house or some robotic spy? I have those pine nuts, wine and figs soaking in my fridge now (actually for 3 days)!!
    Seeing yours, I’m more excited than ever to bake this one!

  8. Susan February 10 2008 at 07:55 pm 8

    David, I hope you have a very fiery Valentines Day.

    Hillary, I got one of the good ones, I hope you did (or will) too.

    Chris, I remembered that Dan Lepard’s book had a red wine bread and thought of it for your event. What a bonus when it turned out to have the other ingredients as well. Thanks for hosting this fun event. I’m looking forward to seeing what the other participants come up with.

    Jeremy, I’d never heard of wine flour before — now I am intrigued and must find out more.

    Aparna & Bev, Lepard’s book has many unique recipes like this. Take a look at it if you haven’t already.

    Tanna, hmmm, it appears we are actually the same person.

  9. Jeremy February 11 2008 at 02:14 am 9

    http://www.viniferaforlife.com/

    Check it out Susan!

    Jeremy

  10. katy February 11 2008 at 09:21 am 10

    That looks amazing! I really love the criss-cross pattern — do you think it would work on other breads, too?

    I cooked for every Valentine’s Day while my boyfriend and I were in law school, but this year he’s planning a surprise! (I’m actually a little disappointed!)

  11. Bart February 11 2008 at 02:00 pm 11

    Wow! Looks very nice, I was looking to make a special bread on Feb. 14. This might be it!

  12. LisaRene February 11 2008 at 10:10 pm 12

    Wonderfully unique bread, just beautiful!

  13. Ann February 12 2008 at 06:10 am 13

    Oh my… I’ve got to make this for our wine and cheese nights! I love bread with fruit in it paried with a runny brie….

  14. Andrea February 12 2008 at 07:08 am 14

    I just love the color and the fillings! A really beautiful loaf.

  15. Angel February 12 2008 at 08:41 am 15

    Your bread looks so thick and moist and wonderful. That with a slab of cheese could be a great meal on their own.
    Fabulous!!!

  16. Tina February 12 2008 at 08:52 am 16

    Wow! Now that is an awesome looking loaf of bread, Great job!!

  17. Núria February 12 2008 at 10:09 am 17

    Hola Susan, what a savory bread! Now it’s been some days I feel so curious about baking bread. Never done it before. I’m bookmarking your blog… You are an expert!!!! ;-)

  18. Susan from Food Blogga February 13 2008 at 05:29 pm 18

    Bread with red wine, figs, and nuts — how fabulous. There isn’t a person in my family who wouldn’t adore this. Many thanks from another Susan.

  19. Bart February 14 2008 at 12:42 am 19

    I made it! Awesome!

  20. Susan February 16 2008 at 02:20 am 20

    Jeremy, thanks for the link. It definitely looks interesting, if a little pricey. But I guess a little would probably go a long way.

    Katy, now that you (and we all) know what your surprise is, I’ll wager you’re not disappointed any more! The very narrow criss-cross pattern I think would work best on other breads like this that are fairly dense and do not give much oven spring.

    Bart, yours turned out beautifully!

    LisaRene, this is indeed a unique recipe and I highly recommend Dan Lepard’s book for more interesting ones like this.

    Ann, this bread would indeed be great with brie.

    Andrea, thanks! The bread does have a beautiful rich color. Mine seems to have turned out somewhat darker than the photo in the book, which I guess is due to differences in flour between here and the UK.

    Angel, we do bread, cheese, and fruit (and wine) for dinner quite a lot. Definitely a satisfying meal.

    Tina, thanks and welcome!

    Núria, I hope you will bake your first bread soon, and many times after that!

    Susan, you’re welcome. Do try it!

  21. Laura February 16 2008 at 10:26 am 21

    Susan, you’re blog makes me want to get out the butter and start spreading it on! You bake such magnificent breads, bagels, donuts, etc. and it’s always a treat to visit and peruse the pictures, wishing all the while that I could bite into just one of them, LOL.

  22. Laura February 18 2008 at 10:01 pm 22

    Gorgeous bread, as always. I am tagging you, the details are at:
    http://thespicedlife.blogspot.com/2008/02/ive-been-tagged.html

  23. Consigli di vini March 3 2008 at 09:20 am 23

    Mmmmmh seems nice! Reminds me of some traditional Italian wine biscuits made with Montefalco Sagrantino!

  24. Emilio May 16 2008 at 08:08 pm 24

    yes there is wine flour, and its made in canada.. expensive though 400g 10 dollars :P

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