Apollo Olive Oil

The recipe for this month was gracoiusly donated by Tania T., one of our happy customers.

Nut-free pesto

To a blender or vita-mix, add:

1/2 c. Apollo olive oil (I love Miller’s Favorite Organic)
1 clove garlic, broken in half

Start blender and add:

8 oz.fresh washed and dried fresh basil leaves, a handful at a time (adding more oil as needed to make a smooth green basil paste)
1/2-3/4 t. salt (to taste)

Once the mixture has blended into a paste, add:

2-3 T cream cheese (I use Nature Valley Organic Cream Cheese)

Blend until creamy and fluffy.

If you want to go beyond the predictable use on our favorite pasta, try smothering a baked sweet potato or yam in pesto. There is something about the sweet of the potato with the pungent, garlicky, salty, basil taste.

From Albert Bevia:
TIPS & TRICKS to make this Recipe: I used the bake + broil option when I baked this bread. If your oven can´t do both functions at the same time, just bake it for the same time I baked mine, then add to the broiler for 2 to 3 minutes. Or, if you have the bake option with fan, just use that setting with the same baking time. Maybe a 1 or 2 minute difference, since every oven heat´s differently.

Cheesy Garlic PULL-APART Bread

For those of you that follow Spain on a Fork, you know I´ve been making a ton of bread recipes during this lockdown. There is just something so rewarding about making homemade bread.

Watch Albert preparing this recipe: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U_lk54M-Vmg&t=297s

Ingredients

• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 3 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp sea salt
• 1 1/2 tbsp dried oregano
• 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 1 cup water
• 7 oz block mild Manchego cheese
• 4 cloves garlic

Instructions

1. Cut 24 cubes that are 1/2 inch by 1/2 inch from a block of Manchego cheese, then shred a generous 2 cups, set aside
2. Add 3 cups all-purpose flour into a large bowl, along with 3 tsp baking powder, 1 tsp sea salt and 1 tbsp dried oregano, mix the dry ingredients together, then add in 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil and 1 cup water, mix all the ingredients together, once they start forming a dough get in there with your hands and continue to mix, once you end up with a compact dough, knead inside the bowl for 1 to 2 minutes, shape into a ball
3. Sprinkle some all-purpose flour on a clean flat surface, add the ball of dough on top, cut it into 3 evenly sized pieces, shape each one into a ball, cut each ball of dough into 8 evenly sized pieces, to end up with 24 pieces of dough
4. Grab a cube of the cheese and add into a piece of dough, seal the dough well over the cheese and shape into a ball, do this until you end up with 24 stuffed pieces of dough
5. Line an 8-inch round baking pan with parchment paper, add the balls of dough, making sure they´re all tightly compacted together
6. Add a generous tbsp of extra virgin olive oil into a bowl, shred in 4 cloves of garlic and add in 1/2 tbsp dried oregano, mix until well combined, pour the mixture over the pieces of dough and brush all over until it´s evenly divided
7. 
   Add the baking pan into a preheated oven, bake + broil option 210 C – 425 F, after 15 minutes open the oven and slide the pan out, sprinkle the shredded cheese all over the bread and add back into the oven, after 5 minutes remove from the oven, transfer to a serving dish, sprinkle with freshly chopped parsley and serve at once, enjoy!

From Albert Bevia:
TIPS & TRICKS to make this Recipe: Since this is a quick bread, make sure you knead the dough for at least 1 minute. This helps develop some of the gluten strands in the dough. Which gives the bread a great flavor and texture. I cooked my breads between 60 to 75 seconds per side on a medium heat. This was enough to cook the dough fully through and made the cheese perfectly melted.

No-Yeast No-Bake Homemade Bread Stuffed with Cheese & Herbs

Watch Albert preparing this recipe: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p4tikrNkpQo&t=3s

Ingredients

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp sea salt
• 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 2/3 cup water
• 4 slices white cheese
• 1 tbsp dried oregano
• 1 tbsp dried thyme
• 1 tbsp dried parsley

Instructions

1. Add 2 cups all-purpose flour into a large bowl, also add in 2 teaspoons baking powder and 1 teaspoon sea salt, mix the dry ingredients together, then add in 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil and 2/3 cups water, mix together until you form a dough, then get in there with your hands and knead the dough inside of the bowl for 1 to 2 minutes, then shape into a ball
2. Sprinkle some all-purpose flour on a cleaned flat surface, add the ball of dough on top and cut into 8 evenly sized pieces, shape each piece of dough into a ball
3. Using your hands or a roller, shape each piece of dough into a circular design that is about 1/8 of an inch in thickness
4. To assemble each bread, add 1 slice of white cheese on top of one of the doughs, then sprinkle some dried oregano, dried thyme and dried parsley over the cheese, grab another dough and place on top, fold the bottom dough over the top dough through the outer edges, then use your hands or a roller to make sure it is well sealed, do this until all 4 breads are assembled, then brush a kiss of extra virgin olive oil on top of each one
5. Heat a grilling pan or nonstick fry pan with a medium heat, after 2 to 3 minutes and the pan is hot, add in one of the doughs, oil side down, brush another kiss of extra virgin olive oil over the top dough, after 60 to 75 seconds flip to cook the other side, after another 60 to 75 seconds remove the bread from the pan and transfer to a dish, continue to do this until they´re all cooked, serve immediately, enjoy!