Ingredients

• 3/4 cup / 180 ml

  whole milk, plus 1 tbsp / 15 ml for the crust

  Pasteurized. Warm the 3/4 cup; keep the extra tablespoon cold.

• 2 1/4 tsp / 7 g

  instant yeast

  One standard packet.

• 3 tbsp / 38 g

  granulated sugar

• 1 large (about 50 g out of the shell)

  egg

  A grocery egg. Most are not pasteurized in the shell. The loaf is baked to 190°F / 88°C; do not taste the dough.

• 3 tbsp / 42 g

  unsalted butter, melted and cooled, plus 1 tsp / 5 g for the pan

  Cool the melted butter below 110°F / 43°C before it meets the yeast.

• 1 1/4 tsp / 7 g

  fine sea salt

  Weigh it. If you only have kosher salt, still use 7 g.

• 3 cups / 360 g

  bread flour

  Weigh the flour. A cup of bread flour packed hard will make the loaf dry.

• 2 tbsp / 10 g

  dried whole crickets and dried mealworms, already roasted

  Labeled for human consumption. Not feeder insects, bait, pet food, or wild bugs. Press them into the tops. The loaf bakes at 350°F / 175°C for at least 30 minutes. Skip this garnish if you have a shellfish or crustacean allergy.

Method

1. 1

   Butter a 9×5 in / 23×13 cm loaf pan with the 1 tsp butter. Warm the 3/4 cup / 180 ml milk to 100–110°F / 38–43°C. If it climbs past 120°F / 49°C, cool it before you add yeast.

2. 2

   Stir the yeast and sugar into the warm milk. Wait 5 minutes. The surface should look creamy and a little swollen. If it stays flat and lifeless, the yeast is dead or the milk was too hot; start over.

3. 3

   Whisk in the egg, the cooled melted butter, and the salt. Stir in the bread flour until no dry pockets remain. The dough should be soft and slightly tacky, about 680 g / 1 1/2 lb including the milk and egg.

4. 4

   Knead in the bowl, then on a clean counter, for 8 minutes, until the dough is smooth and springs back slowly when pressed. Use a scraper rather than a heap of extra flour. If it sticks badly, dust with at most 1 tbsp / 8 g more bread flour.

5. 5

   Set the dough in a lightly oiled bowl, cover, and let it rise in a warm spot about 75°F / 24°C until doubled, 60–75 minutes.

6. 6

   Turn the dough out and divide it into 12 equal pieces, about 57 g each if you used the gram weights. Roll each into a smooth ball. Set them in the pan in three rows of four, touching.

7. 7

   Cover and let the pan rise until the dough domes just above the rim, 35–45 minutes. Heat the oven to 350°F / 175°C while they rise.

8. 8

   Brush the tops with the remaining 1 tbsp / 15 ml milk. Press the roasted crickets and mealworms into the tops. Bake 30–38 minutes, until the crust is deep gold, like a lit lantern, and an instant-read thermometer in the center of a middle piece reads 190°F / 88°C. Do not let the probe touch the pan. If the top is dark before the center is 190°F / 88°C, tent the loaf with foil and keep baking.

9. 9

   Cool in the pan 10 minutes, then turn out. Pull the pieces apart. The crumb should be set and moist, not glossy-wet or sticky like dough. Do not serve it under temperature.

Bake until an instant-read thermometer in the center of the loaf reads 190°F / 88°C and the crumb is set, not wet or doughy.

People with a shellfish or other crustacean allergy can react to insects as well, and they should skip every recipe that uses crickets, mealworms, or cricket flour.

Ingredients

• 1 cup / 120 g

  all-purpose flour

• 1/3 cup / 40 g

  cricket flour

  Commercial flour labeled for human food and already heat-treated by the maker. It is still baked here. Do not taste the dough.

• 1/2 tsp / 3 g

  fine sea salt

  In the dough.

• 1 tsp / 1 g

  dried thyme

• 2 tbsp / 8 g

  fresh flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped

  Grocery herbs, not a plant from the path.

• 1/2 tsp / 2 g

  baking powder

  About 1/2 tsp for 1 1/3 cups flour.

• 2 tbsp / 30 ml

  olive oil

• 1/3 cup / 80 ml, plus up to 1 tbsp / 15 ml

  cold water

  The extra tablespoon is only if the dough stays dusty.

• 1/4 tsp / 1.5 g

  fine sea salt

  For the tops.

Method

1. 1

   Heat the oven to 350°F / 175°C. Line a half-sheet pan, 13×18 in / 33×46 cm, with parchment.

2. 2

   Stir both flours, the 1/2 tsp salt, thyme, parsley, and baking powder in a bowl. Add the oil and 1/3 cup / 80 ml water. Stir, then press, until the dough holds together. If dry flour remains, add water 1 tsp at a time, up to 1 tbsp / 15 ml. Cover and rest 10 minutes.

3. 3

   Roll the dough on the parchment to about 1/16 in / 1.5 mm, a rectangle near 12×10 in / 30×25 cm. Dock it with a fork. Cut into 24 rectangles. Separate them slightly if they touch. Sprinkle the 1/4 tsp salt over the tops.

4. 4

   Bake 16–20 minutes, until the crackers are dry, the edges a deeper green-gold, and a cracker from the center snaps after 1 minute on the pan. If it bends, bake 3–5 minutes more. Do not pull them while the middle is still dough.

5. 5

   Cool on the sheet. They crisp as they cool. Store covered once they are fully cool and dry. About 24 crackers, 4 to a serving.

Bake the crackers until they are dry and snap, so the cricket flour is fully cooked and no raw dough remains.

People with a shellfish or other crustacean allergy can react to insects as well, and they should skip every recipe that uses crickets, mealworms, or cricket flour.

Ingredients

• 1 (8 oz / 225 g)

  yellow onion, thinly sliced

  Skin off, so the broth stays pale.

• 1 (6 oz / 170 g)

  leek, white and pale green only, thinly sliced and rinsed

  Wash out the grit.

• 2 (6 oz / 170 g)

  carrots, thinly sliced

• 2 stalks (4 oz / 115 g)

  celery, sliced

• 4 cloves

  garlic, crushed

  Simmered in the pot, not stored in oil.

• 8 sprigs

  flat-leaf parsley

• 1

  bay leaf

• 1/2 tsp / 1 g

  black peppercorns

  About 8 peppercorns.

• 8 cups / 1.9 L

  cold water

• 1 1/2 tsp / 9 g

  fine sea salt

  Starting amount in the pot.

• 1 tbsp / 15 ml

  olive oil

  For the drops on top, not for frying.

• 1/4 tsp / 1.5 g

  fine sea salt

  Stirred into the oil.

• 1/2 tsp / 2 ml

  lemon juice

• 1/8 tsp

  ground coriander

• 2 tbsp / 8 g

  dried whole crickets, roasted until crisp, legs, shells, and antennae kept for the bowls

  Labeled for human consumption. Roast in one layer at 350°F / 175°C for at least 12 minutes until they snap before they touch the broth. Not feeder insects or wild bugs. Skip the garnish if you have a shellfish or crustacean allergy.

Method

1. 1

   Put the onion, leek, carrots, celery, garlic, parsley, bay leaf, peppercorns, water, and the 1 1/2 tsp salt in a 4-quart / 4 L pot.

2. 2

   Heat over medium until the pot reaches a bare simmer, small bubbles only at the edges, about 185–195°F / 85–90°C. Do not let it roll at a hard boil or the broth will cloud. Skim any foam.

3. 3

   Hold that bare simmer for 45 minutes. The vegetables should be fully soft and spent.

4. 4

   Strain through a fine sieve lined with a clean lint-free cloth. Do not mash the vegetables or the broth turns muddy. Discard the solids. You want about 6 cups / 1.4 L of pale, clear broth. If you have more, return it to the pot and simmer at about 200°F / 93°C until it is down to 6 cups. If you have a little less, leave it. Do not thin it with raw water.

5. 5

   Stir the olive oil with the 1/4 tsp salt, the lemon juice, and the coriander.

6. 6

   Ladle about 1 1/2 cups / 360 ml into each of 4 warm bowls. Float 4 or 5 drops of the oil on each surface. Set roasted cricket legs, empty shells, and antennae on each bowl. Serve hot. Refrigerate leftovers within 2 hours.

Simmer the broth until the vegetables have given up their flavor, then strain and serve it hot rather than as a raw infusion.

People with a shellfish or other crustacean allergy can react to insects as well, and they should skip every recipe that uses crickets, mealworms, or cricket flour.