Stephanie from Stevens Point, WI (2017 Week 6: Botanical)

Baker

Stephanie

Location

Stevens Point, WI

Baking Challenge

Leaf-shaped Herb Fougasse

Give your botanical creation a clever name – and tell us about your recipe.

Chive Blossom & Cheese Fougasse. I looked at several recipes, cookbooks and online, read about the bread, then altered a basic recipe to make it Wisconsin. I made the dough with a Kitchen Aid stand mixer and utilized all the baking pans I had including pizza pans. I chose to shape them like Sugar Maple leaves, being the Sugar Maple is our official state tree. I baked the dough on parchment. I wanted the finished product to have color reminiscent of fall leaves.

Any disasters? Did you take any risks? Proudest moment? Lessons learned the hard way? Tell us about it.

Having never made Fougasse before, I was uncertain how the dough should feel. Most recipes make 2 large loaves. Being I made 4, I was concerned the baking time would need to be adjusted, so watched carefully. The weather has been hot and humid, not exactly ideal weather for baking. I put a pan of water in the bottom of the oven to create steam for a crusty finish. I found shaping the dough into my desired shape challenging and time consuming, however thought the results were lovely and delicious. This would be beautiful for a fall, Halloween or Thanksgiving gathering. I would serve it with whipped butter and/or a hot cheese sauce. I also found it difficult to keep a consistent thickness while trying to cut and shape the leaves.

How did you add a Wisconsin twist to your flavors or decoration?

I shaped the dough to look like Sugar Maple leaves, our state tree. I incorporated chive blossoms from my own garden in the dough and Wisconsin Colby cheese from Star Dairy. Instead of brushing them with olive oil as they came out of the oven, I brushed them with melted Wisconsin butter.

How did you do?

Pleasantly satisfied.