“STOP IT!” As soon as put the Naan (nän) in the oven, the fire alarm started to beeeeeeppp. Obviously I opened the back door and let the kitchen air out a bit. It didn’t help. The fire alarm continued to beep for the 20 minutes that it took to bake the naan. It then beeped for 10 minutes after I turned the oven off! Fortunately, the naan turned out to be absolutely delicious.
I was just very annoyed and turned up The Shins to full volume.
I have been wanting to try making naan from scratch for a while. It is an oven baked flat bread that originated in Southern Asia. So usually you find it in a lot of Indian, Mediterranean, or Pakistani restaurants. It is delicious and very simple. You just have to have time to knead it & let it rise (for 2 hours). After you bake it for ten minutes you get to brush it with a flavorsome garlic butter. Yep. That’s right.
I made the couscous with leftover zucchini & red bell pepper. It paired quite nicely with the naan.
music pairing: The Shins, New Slang
Couscous with Zucchini & Red Bell Peppers
serves 2
1 cup water
3/4 cup couscous
1/2 tsp salt
2 TBSP diced red bell pepper
3/4 cup chopped zucchini
1 TBSP olive oil
Cavender’s all purpose Greek seasoning
Salt
Feta cheese, garnish
Bring water to a boil. Add the couscous & salt. Cover and let sit for 5 minutes. Meanwhile heat 1 TBSP olive oil in a pan. Saute the zucchini & red pepper until tender. Mix in with the finished couscous. Season with Greek seasoning & salt. Garnish with feta cheese.
Roasted Garlic Naan
Inspired by Baking with Julia via Eat, Live, Run
makes 4 naan breads
1.5 cups warm water, about 100 degrees Fahrenheit
1 tsp active dry yeast
3-3.5 cups all purpose flour
1.5 tsp salt
1/2 tsp sugar
roasted garlic:
2 TBSP butter
1 TBSP minced garlic
Combine the yeast, water and sugar and stir gently. Let sit for about five minutes so the yeast can dissolve.
In the bowl of a Kitchen Aid, combine the water/yeast plus a cup and a half of the flour. Mix on low speed for about three minutes. Add the rest of the flour and the salt and increase the speed to high. Let ‘er rip for six minutes, or until the dough begins to pull away from the sides of the bowl and, when pulled, is elastic.
Remove the dough from the bowl and place in a new, lightly oiled, bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise for about two hours. It should double in size.
After the dough has finished rising, turn it out onto a floured counter-top and divide into four equal sections. Flatten each section down into a rectangular shape and then sprinkle with water and prick your fingers in each. This gives it classic naan “dimples”. Lay each on a lined baking sheet and bake at 475 for ten minutes.
While it’s baking, Melt the butter in a pan and add the garlic. Saute until the garlic is golden brown.
Let cool for ten minutes and then brush each naan with garlic butter. Broil for four minutes.
honeycrisp 