I made several dishes for a potluck Thanksgiving dinner I attended, including a pumpkin pie with assorted goodies. Having decided that coconut milk would be just right, I was going to improvise my own recipe when someone posted one from The Savvy Vegetarian that was just like what I had in mind, so I went ahead and used that one. Then I roasted the pumpkin seeds (sweetly this time) with the idea that they might make a good topping. The next day, having chilled the pie sufficiently, I considered how nice a whipped topping would be, so I used the leftover tofu and coconut milk to attempt one, but while it would have likely been perfect out of a whip-it (and was quite delicious), it was too thin on its own. I thickened it a bit with some tapioca before deciding to just call it a sauce. It worked wonderfully on the pie as well as on the apple crisp I’d also made.

Yay for experimentation! Click through for the many recipes.

Pumpkin Pie

• 1 3/4 cups fresh pumpkin puree (see below)
• 1/2 cup coconut milk
• 1/2 cup silken tofu
• 2 Tblsp cornstarch
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 3/4 tsp. cinnamon
• 1/8 tsp nutmeg
• 1/8 tsp cloves
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 3/4 tsp ginger
• 2 Tbsp maple syrup
• 1/2 c. sugar
• 2 Tbsp flour
• 1 pie crust (see below)

1. Blend all ingredients except the flour (and the pie crust, duh) in a blender until smooth.
2. Lightly coat the pie crust with flour and pour in filling.
3. Bake in a preheated oven at 425° for 10 minutes, reduce to 350° and bake an additional 30 minutes.
4. Allow to cool completely (ideally, chill) before serving along with vanilla sauce and sweet pumpkin seeds (see below).

Pie Crust (for one two-crust or two one-crust pies)

I’ve been making this pie crust for years. It’s a pretty standard recipe and it just works, but I’m sure your favorite recipe will work just fine, too. I find it pretty straightforward, but I know a lot of people have trouble with pie crust, so let me know if you have specific questions, since I know I’m being brief here. I’ve taught a number of people, so if you’re local and need help, drop me a line.

• 2 2/3 cups flour
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 cup shortening
• 7-8 Tbsp ice water

1. Using two knives or a pastry blender, cut the shortening into the flour and salt until mixture resembles coarse crumbs.
2. Tossing gently with a fork, add the water one tablespoon at a time until the dough will hold together. If you want to be fancy, you can also use a water sprayer for this part.
3. Gather the dough into two equal balls and refrigerate while you’re not working with it.
4. Carefully roll one of the balls into a circle about 1″ large around than your pie plate. A flexible cutting board makes a great surface for this step, or use a piece of wax paper, parchment paper, or plastic wrap. Why? Because the easiest way to get it into the plate is to flip the plate onto the crust, flip the whole thing, and peel away the board/paper/plastic.
5. Carefully press the dough into the plate, taking care not to stretch it, and crimp or shape the edge as you desire. Keep refrigerated until ready to use.

Five-Minute Maple-Vanilla Sauce

• 12oz silken tofu, minus 1/2 cup
• 1 can coconut milk, minus 1/2 cup
• 1/4 cup maple syrup
• 1/2 cup powdered sugar
• 1 1/2 tsp vanilla
• pinch of salt
• 2 Tbsp tapioca (optional)

1. Blend everything except the tapioca, adjusting sweetener and vanilla to taste.
2. If you want to thicken the sauce a bit, pour off about 2/3 cup of the sauce, mix in the tapioca, and microwave to boiling, then mix back in with the sauce.

Mashed Pumpkin

Cut a pumpkin in half, remove the stem, scoop out the guts, and place cut side down in a baking dish with about 1/4″ water. Bake at 350° for 1 hour (until tender), allow to cool, and mash or mill the pumpkin (sans skin, of course). If the pumpkin is very moist, let it sit in a cheesecloth-lined strainer.

Maple Spiced Pumpkin Seeds

• pumpkin guts
• 1/2 Tbsp vegetable oil (like canola or safflower)
• 1-2 Tbsp maple syrup
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 tsp pumpkin pie spice (ie, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and cloves)

1. Separate the pumpkin seeds from the guts&stuff as best you can (no need to rinse or get anal about it).
2. (Optional step, but I think the results are better this way.) Spread the seeds out on a cookie sheet and leave to dry for a few hours or overnight. (The oven (turned off) is a good place for this.)
3. In a bowl, mix the seeds with the oil, maple syrup, salt, and spices. Spread on a cookie sheet and put in a 300° oven for 45 minutes or until done. Use a spatula to toss the seeds every 10 minutes or so and keep tasting.
4. Cool on parchment or wax paper to prevent sticking.

The important points to keep in mind when making this bread are avoid adding extra flour to the dough and handle it with a very light touch after rising. Extra flour is very tempting because the dough is so hard to work with, but really, don’t do it except for when you need it to shape the loaves. After rising, do not punch down and be very gentle while shaping. Also, you really can’t use too much flour for the shaping process. If you have silicone baking mats (sadly, I do not), this would be a very good time to use them.

Ciabatta

for the starter

• 1/2 tsp dry yeast
• 2/3 cup warm water
• 3 Tbsp soymilk (or the like)
• 1/4 tsp sugar
• 1 cup unbleached flour

for the dough

• 1/2 tsp dry yeast
• 1 cup warm water
• 1/2 Tbsp olive oil
• 2 1/2 cups unbleached flour
• 1 1/2 tsp salt

1. Make the Starter: Sprinkle the yeast into the water and milk in a large bowl. Let sit for 5 minutes, then add the sugar and stir to dissolve. Mix in the flour to form a loose batter. Cover the bowl with a dish towel and let it rise for 12 hours or overnight. I like to do this in the oven.

2. Make the Dough: Sprinkle the yeast into the water in a small bowl. Let sit for 5 minutes, then stir to dissolve. Add along with olive oil to the start and mix well.

3. Mix in the flour and salt to form a wet, sticky dough. Beat steadily with a wooden spoon (be careful here if you live in Attleboro) for 5 minutes — the dough will become springy and start to pull away from the sides of the bowl, but will remain too soft to knead.

4. Cover the dough with a dish towel. Let rise until tripled in size and full of air bubbles, about 3 hours. DO NOT punch down the dough. Generously flour two baking sheets and have ready extra flour to dip yours hands in.

5. Use a dough scraper to divide the dough in half while in the bowl. Scoop half the dough out into one of the heavily floured baking sheets.

6. Use well-floured (do you detect a theme here?) hands to pull and stretch the dough to form a roughly rectangular loaf about 12″ long. Dust the loaf and yours hands again with flour. Neaten and plump up the load by running your fingers down each side and gently tucking under the edges of the dough. This an be challenging — just do your best and don’t overworry it.

7. Repeat the previous step with the other half of the dough. Leave the loaves uncovered to proof for about 20 minutes. The loaves will spreads out as well as rise. Remember, it’s supposed to look like a well-worn slipper.
8. Bake in a preheated oven at 425° for 30 minutes until risen, golden, and hollow-sounding when tapped underneath. Cool on a wire rack, then hide them if you don’t want them eaten immediately.

I wanted to can pickles this year and I’d tried to grow pickling cukes in my garden, but they didn’t really flourish. I ended up with many small ones, useful (& yummy) for one or two salads apiece, but not really appropriate for pickling, and I neglected to buy a bushel from a local farm. Ah well. Still, these were all nummy and quite popular at potlucks.

Both of these can be scaled as far up as you want to go and keep quite well, assuming you can keep them from getting et.

Sour Refrigerator Pickles (from this recipe)

• 1 1/2 lb cucumbers, sliced into rounds
• 8-12 cloves garlic
• 4 sprigs fresh dill

• 1 Tbsp mustard seed
• 1/2 tsp celery seed
• 1 Tbsp dill seed

• 1 tsp red pepper flakes
• 2 cups water
• 2 cups white distilled vinegar
• 3 Tbsp kosher salt
• 1 Tbsp sugar

1. Divide dill, garlic, and cucumbers among wide-mouthed pint or quart jars.

2. Mix the next four ingredients (spices) in a small bowl, crush slightly to release flavors, and divide amongst the jars.

3. Mix together the water, vinegar, salt, and sugar in a large bowl or measuring cup and fill each jar, allowing the liquid to fill the caps and topping off and carefully topping off.

4. Cap the jars, shake ‘em up, and refrigerate for at least two weeks before eating — the longer the better!

Notes: When you eat all the pickles, you can also refill the jars with more cucumbers and that works fine, too. Another option when making them is to heat the liquid (with the spices in it) to get things going a little faster. Despite the fact that I sliced them, these are NOT bread and butter pickles, and are quite sour, but I like it that way. In addition to munching on their own, they made very yummy additions to a grilled veggie dog or brat on a bun.

Sweet Swedish Refrigerator Pickles (from this recipe)

• 1 English cucumber or a comparable number of the regular kind
• 1 Tbsp kosher salt
• 1/2 cup water
• 1/2 cup white wine vinegar
• 1/2 – 1 cup sugar (depending on just how sweet you want these to be)
• 1 bay leaf
• 2 allspice berries

1. Slice the cucumbers very thinly (I used my food processor slicing disk), toss in a colander with the salt, and let them it while the rest of the dish is prepared, or up to 30 minutes.

2. Combine water, vinegar, sugar, bay leaf and allspice in a medium saucepan, bring to a boil, remove from heat, and allow to cool.

3. Rinse the salt off the cucumber slices and squeeze out as much moisture as possible, using paper towels to blot them dry.

4. Put the cucumbers in a medium bowl or jar along with the liquid, making sure the slices are completely submerged. Cover and refrigerate for at least 3 hours before serving.

This was actually my first time baking bread in a loaf pan, and the lesson learned was to grease more thoroughly next time (or acquire a non-stick or silicone pan). I couldn’t find a recipe that sounded just right, so I mixed some up, based largely on the pain ordinaire (fancy-speak for basic bread) in Ultimate Bread. I think I slightly overbaked, but the long process of getting it out of the dang pan may have been a factor there, too. Although I called this whole wheat, like most whole wheat breads, there is still a fair bit of white flour. After a few days, I did what I always do with my sandwich bread and froze the remainder in slices. It toasts up beautifully from the freezer.

Whole Wheat Sandwich Bread

Ingredients

• 2 tsp dry yeast
• 1 1/3 cups warm water
• 2 cups unbleached white flour
• 1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
• 1 1/2 tsp salt

1. Sprinkle the yeast into 1/2 cup of the water in a small bowl and leave for 5 minutes, then stir to dissolve. Sift the flour and salt into a large bowl, make a well in the center, and pour in the dissolved yeast.

2. Use a wooden spoon to draw enough of the flour into the dissolved yeast to form a soft paste. Cover the bowl with a dish towel and let the paste “sponge” for 20 minutes until frothy. (I like to sponge and rise in the oven with the light on, which maintains a sufficiently warm and draft-free environment.)

3. Pour about half the remaining water into the well and mix the flour in from the sides. Continue to mix, using as much of the water as needed to form a firm, moist dough.

4. Turn the dough onto a lightly floured work surface (my flexible cutting board works wonderfully) and knead until smooth, shiny, and elastic, about 10 minutes. Form into a round.

5. Put the dough in a clean, lightly oiled bowl and cover with a dish towel. Let rise until doubled in size, about 1 1/2-2 hours. Punch down and let rest for 10 minutes.

6. Shape the dough into a long loaf by flattening then folding in thirds, rolling to slightly longer than the pan, tuck the ends under and place into the pan. A well-oiled pan, let me add, not merely lightly oiled. Cover with a dish towel and proof until doubled in size, about 45 minutes.

7. Optionally, dissolve a little cornstarch in water, heat for a few minutes, and when cool, brush the top of the loaf. If you want a split top, you can also make a slash lengthwise with a razor or sharp knife. Bake in a preheated oven at 400° for 45 minutes or until the top is nicely browned and loaf sounds hollow when thumped underneath.

I have no doubt one of the keys in these in particular being so yummy is the really good Dutch process cocoa that my roomie acquired at Amsterdam’s Schipol Airport during a layover. While I’m sure you could get yummy results with regular cocoa, it would throw off the acid balance and who knows what might happen.

Chewy Chocolate Chocolate Chip Cookies

Ingredients

• 1 Tbsp flax seed meal (or 1 Tbsp + 1 tsp whole flax seeds)
• 1/2 cup soymilk
• 2 cups flour
• 3/4 cup Dutch process cocoa
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 3/4 cup canola oil
• 1 1/2cups sugar (or less, even)
  
• 2 tsp vanilla
• 1 cup chocolate chips

In a small blender (I like to use the little container-chopper attachment on my hand blender for this), grind the flax into powder, then add soymilk and blend. Set aside.

Sift together the flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt.

In a separate bowl, cream the oil and sugar. Add the flax/soymilk mixture and mix well, then mix in the vanilla. (I usually use electric beaters for this part.)

Fold in the dry ingredients in batches. Go ahead and use your hands when the dough gets too stiff for a spatula. Mix in the chocolate chips.

Roll dough into 1 inch balls and flatten into ~1 1/2 discs an inch apart on an ungreased (optionally parchment-lined) baking sheet.

Bake for 10 minutes at 350°. Remove from oven and let cool for about 5 minutes, then set them on a wire rack to cool completely.

The final steps are more important than they look! First, the cookies will not seem done after 10 minutes, but trust me (and Isa), and take them out. Similarly, do not try to remove them from the baking sheet immediately. They are still quite soft at that point and will fall apart. While still yummy, they won’t be as pretty. (Ask me how I know this.)

I usually cut the tofu into slices, but cubed it this time to facilitate skewering. It was hands-down the best grilled tofu I’ve ever had.

Marinated Tofu

Ingredients

• 1 pound firm tofu, drained
• 1/2 cup water
• scant 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1/4 cup red wine vinegar
• 1/4 cup tamari
• 1 1/2 Tbsp mirin
• 1 tsp dried oregano
• 1 tsp whole cloves (or 1/8 tsp ground)
• 1/2 tsp dried marjoram
• 1 tsp chopped garlic
• 1/4 tsp salt
• A grind or two ground black pepper

Wrap the tofu in a clean towel, top with a weighted plate or other heavy object for at least 10 minutes to press out water, or use your preferred method for same. (Don’t do this if you’re using silken tofu!)

In a small saucepan, combine the remaining ingredients and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer and cook for 5 minutes.

Cut the tofu into cubes or slices are desired and put into a bowl. Cover the tofu with the marinade and marinate overnight.

Add to a salad, grill, fry, eat plain, whatever. Or top slices with caramelized onions and bake. (Sometimes I include the caramelized onions with the marinade, too.)  This stuff is so good baked.

On the left is Chipotle Corn Soup (or maybe it needs a better name?) and is something I came up with. The first time, I just processed the corn raw, which was great, but I felt that roasting would really add depth so I wanted to try it that way, too. Then the second time, I didn’t roast because I was in a hurry. But after that, I took the time to grill the corn and really love the added smokiness. It’s great either way, though.

On the right is a Bean, Corn, and Chili Soup from DD’s Stillman CSA newsletter that Mark made while they were both over. The recipe called for pinto beans, but he also used Great Northern. All the vegetables except garlic were from my or DD’s share (the cilantro and celery I’d frozen), with tomatoes and basil from the garden. Very different from the first soup, it was still delicious.

Chipotle Corn Soup

Ingredients

• 6-12 ears of corn (use what you got)
• ~1/2 cup light coconut milk
• 2-3 cloves of garlic or 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• 2 chipotle chilis or 1/2 tsp chipotle powder (or to taste)
• 1/2 tsp salt (or to taste)
• 1/2 tsp agave nectar (optional)

If you are roasting the corn, do that first, either in or out of the husk. Grill over medium-high flame until it starts to blacken. De-cob the corn, going over it twice with a knife to get all the creamy corn goodness. Meanwhile, if using fresh garlic, roast the cloves in the toaster oven.

Put the corn and garlic in a blender or food processor and pulse, adding enough coconut milk for the mixture to blend and shoving with a spoon or spatula as needed. Add salt and chipotle, tasting for desired level of spice. If using chipotle in adobo, the agave nectar is useful to counteract the vinegar, but not necessary when using dried or powder if your corn is naturally sweet.

Using a sieve or a food mill, strain the soup to remove the corn skins, then heat in a saucepan, again adjusting seasonings as desired. Garnish with cilantro (I didn’t have any handy) or tortilla chips as desired.

Bean, Corn, and Chili Soup (from Stillman’s Farm’s newsletter)

Ingredients

• 2-3 cans pinto beans (we used one can pinto & one can Great Northern)
• 1 mild hot chili
• 3 gloves garlic
• 4 medium tomatoes, chopped (~2 cups)
• 2 medium carrots, chopped (~1 cup)
• 1 stalk celery with leaves
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 1/2 tsp salt
• 4 ears corn, de-cobbed
• 2 Tbsp chopped basil
• 2 Tbsp chopped cilantro

In a dutch oven or heavy stock pot, cook onion, garlic, and chili over medium heat 5 minutes or until tender. Add tomatoes and cook 15 minutes or until tomatoes break down, stirring often.

Add drained beans, carrots, celery, bay leaf, salt, and about 4 cups water (or more) to cover all the veggies. Reduce heat to low and simmer, uncovered, until the veggies are very tender, ~30 minutes or more.

Remove the bay leaf, and with potato masher (or immersion blender), mash the mixture to desired consistency. Stir in corn, basil, and cilantro, and simmer 5-10 minutes more until corn is tender, adding more water if you prefer a thinner soup.

In addition to eating it with chips (shown are Trader Joe’s Flax Seed Tortilla Chips), I think it’d work very well over quesadillas or other spicy dishes.  Last night, DD and I grilled some tempeh rubbed with a hot cajun mix and the salsa made for an excellent topping.

Salsa Verde (Tomatillo Salsa)

Ingredients

• 3 pts tomatillos
• 1/2 cup chopped white onion
• 1/2 cup fresh cilantro
• 1 Tbsp lime juice
• 1/4 tsp sugar
• 3 jalapeño peppers, stemmed, seeded, and chopped
• 1/2 tsp salt, or to taste

Remove papery husks from tomatillos and rinse well in warm water to wash off the weird sticky coating.  Cut in half, coat lightly with olive oil, and place cut side down on a roasting pan or cookie sheet.  Broil for 5-7 minutes, or until the skins have started to blacken and bubble.

Put tomatillos in a blender (or FP) along with the remaining ingredients and mix until smooth.  Cool and serve.

Menotomy Beer & Wine (for those of you who might have raised an eyebrow at the location) is the first store licensed to sell alcohol in the town of Arlington, MA since Prohibition. For those of you who’ve never lived anywhere near Massachusetts (or Utah), let me assure you that I Am Not Making This Up. For more context on Arlington, the Red Line ends at Alewife because back when it was extended, Arlington refused to slum it by allowing a stop within their hallowed borders. But I love Arlington. Living just a few blocks from the line, my walks often range into their territory and I’ve frolicked in Spy Pond more times than I count. And I love Menotomy Beer & Wine (hard liquor sale are still verboten), and the fact that I can walk there easily.

Walking there is key because they host a weekly Beer Tasting (Friday) and Wine Tasting (Saturday), and I’m a lightweight. Last week’s were lovely, offering five beers and seven wines, respectively. I love these events because they offer the opportunity to try and learn about varieties that I would not likely be expose to otherwise, and there is usually at least one that I put on my list of things I should have more of. Details and more photos can be found behind the cut.

Beer Tasting: 9/28/07

Friday’s Beer Tasting was a little odd, in that three were from the same brewery. The offerings, from left to right, were Krusovice Cerne, Smuttynose Old Brown Dog Ale, Smuttynose Portsmouth Lager, Smuttynose IPA, and Peroni Nastro Superior.

Luke, the resident beer expert, was affable and friendly in presenting the assortment, but to be honest, none of the Smuttynoses appealed to me. The Peroni was a perfectly adequate pilsner, but pilsners don’t thrill me. The Krusovice, on the other hand, was wonderful! I definitely recommend you check this out, whether you’re a big fan of beer (like my roommate) or not really a beer person (like me), because it is, I think, the first beer ever that we’ve both really enjoyed.

Luke had the following to say about the Krusovice:

The Czech Republic makes awesome beer. Their beer isn’t simply awesome, it’s often revolutionary. They’re responsible for pilsner, they brew fantastic light beers, and they also know how to cook up one mean “schwarzbier.” Schwarzbier simply means “dark beer” and it’s well known for its coffee and chocolate flavors, low alcoholic content, and easy drinkability. The Krusovice version also happens to be fizzy, meaning it’s not like drinking chocolate milk or dessert. This is no joke: Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (the guy responsible for the epic Faust drama) absolutely loved schwarzbier. He loved it so much he wrote about it a number of times in his journals. He was also a philosopher and a musician, basically an all-around genius. Krusovice Cerne just might make you a genius, too, but I’m not promising anything because the last thing I need are lawyers breathing down my neck

He also gets points for scritching Molly during his cigarette break.

Wine Tasting: 9/30/07

Saturday’s Wine Tasting was also a bit odd, as instead of the five varieties previously listed, there were seven, and the one I liked best was not on the list, so my information is limited to what is visible in the photo. From left to right, we tried Fairview Sauvignon Blanc (South Africa), Four Vines Naked Chardonnay (California), Borgo M Tocai Friulano (Italy), Casa Julia Cabernet Sauvignon (Chile), Este de Bodegas Alto Almanzora (Spain), Coto de Hayas Campo de Borja (Spain), and Alamos Malbec (Argentina).

Mary, also affable, did not seem to be quite as knowledgeable about wine as Luke was about beer, but the shop does have other wine folks around. For example, after the tasting, we had a very nice conversation with Jean who answered a number of questions for us. (Mary also did not scritch Molly, but that was only because she did not come outside. She did admire Molly out the window, though.)

My hands-down favorite of the bunch was the Tocai. I think it was also my first Tocai, and even the white-haters (what the hell is it with wine snobs who turn up their noses at white wines?) seemed to enjoy it. It has a bright, fruity flavor and I recommend it highly.

If you’re local, stop by Menotomy Beer & Wine to pick up a bottle of the Tocai or Krusovice (or something else), and don’t forget to tell ‘em that Frog Food sent you.

This recipe is from Ultimate Bread by Treuille & Ferrigno. I’ve found this book useful both for its breadth of recipes as well as detailed instructions concerning all the steps of the process. It was also already in the house, and thus won on convenience. I’d still like a copy of The Bread Baker’s Apprentice (and Crust & Crumb) but this will have to do until there is more discretionary income.

Pide is a Turkish seeded bread. I did not have the seeds the recipe called for (nigella), so I used white sesame seeds on one and zaatar on other. This is a delicious, simple, and versatile bread, which worked great not only for eating alone, but also in strips alongside soup or dip or spread with Spiked avocado or even split the long way as a base for toaster oven pizza using assorted leftovers. It was just like French bread pizza.

Pide

Ingredients

• 2 tsp dry yeast
• 1/2 tsp sugar
• 1 1/2 cups warm water
• 3 1/2 cups unbleached white flour
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• nigella seeds (or sesame seeds, zaatar, etc)

1. Sprinkle the yeast and sugar into 1/2 cup of the water in a bowl. Leave for 5 minutes, then stir to dissolve.

2. Sift the flour and salt together into a large bowl. Make a well

in the center and pour in the dissolved yeast and the olive oil.

3. Mix in the flour. Stir in the remaining water, as needed, to form a firm, soft dough

4. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface. Knead until smooth, supple, and elastic, about 15 minutes. (Initially, the dough will be quite stiff. It will soften and stretch gradually as you continue kneading.)

5. Put the dough in a clean, oiled bowl, turning it to coat evenly with the oil. Cover with a dish towel, then let it rise until doubled in size, about 1 1/2 hours. Punch down, then let it rest for 10 minutes.

6. Divide the dough into two equal pieces. Roll each piece into a smooth ball. On a lightly floured baking sheet, roll out each piece of dough to form a ~10″ round, ~1/4″ thick. Cover with a dish towel and proof for 20 minutes.

7. Use the blunt edge of a knife draw four parallel lines across the top of each dough round, then four more perpendicular to those to make a criss-cross pattern. They, uh, should be deeper than mine were.

8. Brush the rounds with a soymilk or water glaze and sprinkle with your topping of choice.

9. Bake in a preheated oven at 425 for 10-15 minutes, until puffy and lightly colored.

Optionally (but I always like to), add steam. When the bread is put in to bake, use a mister to spray the sides of the oven with water. Do it again after two minutes, then after another two minutes for a third time. This improves the texture of the crust.

Pictures from my first try, when I scored too gently:

Before baking: