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Archive for the ‘Bread’ Category
Well, hello there. I’ve been out of commission since late Friday night, but everything is back on track again. Thank goodness – I’ve been like a junkie the day before payday.
Oh, and for the record, no – it was not the installation of the Foodbuzz ad that brought the site down. It was my own incompetence.
Ahem. Moving forward.
Anyhoo, since the Spin Cycle this week is “roles” and Jen suggested that if we had a great roll recipe we could use that and because I 1) do indeed have a great roll recipe and B) haven’t had much chance to think of a post about my many roles in life (I wear so many hats I make Bartholomew Cubbins look like a piker) I decided to go with the easy option.
Oh, so shoot me. Besides, the rolls are good, fairly easy (as yeast breads go) and you can make them ahead and eat them all week, if you’re so inclined.
We usually are.
Seriously, though – nothing beats home-baked bread, and these combine that very home-baked goodness with the convenience of store-bought brown and serve rolls. Once they’ve been pre-baked, you can store them in the fridge for a week, baking as many as you want when you want, or store them in the freezer for up to 3 months.
I mix and knead these in my KitchenAid stand mixer, but these can also be mixed and kneaded by hand (in fact, from time to time I’ll make these completely by hand – it’s marvelous stress relief). I’ve included instructions for each method here – give one a try.
Because they smell heavenly while baking. Oh, and they taste really, really good.
Note: The flour should be sifted directly into the measuring cup, then leveled off with a knife before pouring it in the mixing bowl.
Brown and Serve Rolls
makes 2 dozen
1 package or 2¼ teaspoons dry active yeast
½ cup tepid water
½ teaspoon sugar
2 tablespoons honey
1 cup scalded milk, cooled
5 cups sifted bread flour
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
1 heaping teaspoon salt
Mixing by hand: Combine the yeast with the tepid water and sugar in a small bowl; allow to sit for about 5 minutes.
Whisk the flour and salt together in a large mixing bowl. Make a well in the middle and pour in the milk, honey, and yeast mixture. Add the butter and mix with a wooden spoon until all the ingredients are well-incorporated and a rough dough forms.
Scrape down the sides, cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let it sit for 20 minutes.
Turn the dough out onto a well-floured counter or board. Knead for 10 to 12 minutes until smooth and shiny, then place in a large, buttered bowl. Turn the dough to coat with the butter, then cover with plastic wrap and allow to rise in a warm place until doubled in bulk, about 1 to 1½ hours.
Mixer method: Combine the yeast with the tepid water and sugar in a small bowl; allow to sit for about 5 minutes. Whisk together the flour and salt in a medium mixing bowl.
Place the milk, softened butter and honey into the mixing bowl of the stand mixer; add the yeast mixture, then the flour/salt. Attach the dough hook to the mixer and mix all the ingredient on low until the ingredients are well- blended and a rough dough forms. Scrape down the sides, cover the bowl with plastic wrap and allow it to rest for 20 minutes.
Knead the dough with the dough hook for 7 to 10 minutes, until the dough clears the side of the bowl and is smooth and shiny. Place in a large, well-buttered mixing bowel. Turn the dough to coat with the butter, then cover with plastic wrap and place in a warm place until doubled in bulk, about 1 to 1½ hours.
Turn the dough out onto a well-floured counter and press down with your hands until deflated. Form it into a ball and place it into the buttered bowl again; cover with the plastic wrap and allow to rise until double in bulk once more, about 45 minutes to an hour.
Melt about 4 tablespoons, or ½ a stick, of butter in a small bowl and allow to cool. Position two racks in the center of the oven and preheat to 275º F. Bring out 2 standard muffin pans, each with 1 dozen muffin cups.
Turn the dough out onto a well-floured counter once more. Pat out into a rectangular shape about ½ an inch thick and dust lightly with flour. Dividing the dough evenly, cut into 48 equal pieces and cover with plastic wrap.
Roll each piece of dough into a ball, dip in the melted butter and place in a muffin cup, allowing 2 balls of dough in each muffin cup. Repeat until all cups are filled with 2 balls of dough; cover with plastic wrap and allow to rise in a warm place until doubled in bulk, about 1 hour.
Place each muffin pan on a rack in the oven – one on the upper rack and one on the lower rack – and bake for 30 minutes, rotating the pans halfway through, until cooked through but NOT BROWN. Set the muffin pans on a cooling rack for 20 minutes, then turn the rolls out onto the cooling rack until completely cooled.
Seal in a large, ziplock plastic bag and refrigerate for up to a week, or freeze for up to 3 months.
To brown, preheat the oven to 400º F. Bake the rolls for 5 to 7 minutes, until warm and brown. Serve hot with butter.
Printable version (requires Adobe Reader)
I found myself in the midst of another side dish crisis last night. I had one of my in-danger-of-imminent-freezer-burn roasts in the crock pot since our current financial situation is backing up Beloved’s demand suggestion that I cook from the freezer, refrigerator and pantry (thank you, Uncle Sam, for your yearly fleecing), and I had to decide what I could make to go with said roast. Potatoes? No, we’re having those tonight with the rest of the roast. Pasta? No, we’ve had that the previous two nights, in the form of mac ‘n’ cheese and spaghetti. Rice? No, we’re having that Friday night (either teriyaki chicken or a stir fry). There are grits and couscous in my pantry, but neither seemed to scream “Make me with your roast!”
So I threw together this spoon bread. It was pretty good, warm and comforting and filling, but in retrospect there were things I could have done to make it more…exciting, I guess. I’ll make it again, but will probably throw in some sauteéd onions and garlic, maybe a pinch of red pepper flakes and a bit more salt. I might also leave off the “custard topping”, which was pretty decadent but didn’t really lend a lot to the overall quality of the dish (and added a ton of calories).
At any rate, here it is as written. And as written, it might also make a pretty decent brunch dish. (I also apologize for the cruddy picture – I was in a hurry when I took it.)
Custard-Topped Spoon Bread
serves 8
1 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 cup cornmeal
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
2 rounded tablespoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
2 cups milk
1 1/2 tablespoons plain white vinegar
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
1 can corn, well-drained
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1 cup heavy cream
Preheat oven to 350º F. Generously butter an 8 x 8 inch baking dish.
In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, cornmeal, baking powder, baking soda, sugar and salt. Add the eggs, milk and vinegar and stir until well-moistened, but still a bit lumpy. Stir in the melted butter, then fold in the corn and cheese.
Scrape the batter into the prepared baking dish, the pour the heavy cream slowly and carefully over the batter without stirring.
Bake for 50 to 60 minutes, until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean. Allow to rest for 5 minutes before serving.
Printable version (requires Adobe Reader)
I’m in a hurry again today (I’d threaten to run away and join the circus, but who’d be able to tell the difference?) so here’s another recipe.
I liked how yogurt worked in my new pancake recipe so well that I decided to make some waffles using buttermilk this weekend. The results were interesting – while they didn’t come out quite as crisp as my regular waffle recipe, the taste was so good that I consider it a fair trade-off.
If you can find a full-fat buttermilk, so much the better. And as with any waffle recipe, don’t over mix the batter or they’ll come out tough.
And a tough waffle is an unhappy waffle.
Buttermilk Waffles
Makes about five 8″ round waffles
2 cups all purpose flour
2 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1½ teaspoons baking soda
2 cups buttermilk
2 eggs, separated
1 stick of butter, melted and cooled to room temperature
Preheat the waffle iron according to the manufacturers instructions.
In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, salt, baking powder and baking soda. In another large mixing bowl, beat the egg whites until stiff, but not dry. In a smaller bowl, lightly beat the egg yolks.
Stir the egg yolks and buttermilk into the dry ingredients until just mixed – the batter should be lumpy. Stir in the melted butter, then gently fold in the egg whites.
Bake in the hot waffle iron until the waffle iron stops steaming and the waffle is a golden brown. Serve immediately.
Printable version (requires Adobe Reader)
This week for the Spin Cycle, Jen has tasked us with Holiday Baking.
I don’t bake and make candy for the holidays like I used to in the days when I couldn’t afford to buy “real” gifts (funny, but the gifts people seem to remember the most were those homemade ones). These days the only time I really do any cooking or baking for the holidays is when we have the annual holiday party for our employees, which we host in our home (and I hope they’ll be able to ignore the fact that I didn’t have the carpets cleaned before this year’s gala…’cause it’s a mess).
However, I have enough holiday recipes that it took me awhile to decide what I’d post. I have an absolute kick-ass fruitcake recipe, but it needs to age for at least six weeks (it’s routinely doused in Southern Comfort while it ages – you glow in the dark when you eat a piece), so I figured it was kind of late for that. I thought about my pumpkin bread, but then again most people have a great pumpkin bread recipe, even if it isn’t baked in a coffee can. I posted my peanut butter fudge recipe last year and didn’t want to recycle it, and everyone makes cookies. Then it occurred to me:
Amish Friendship Bread.
If you’ve never heard of this, you’re in for a treat. The version I make is not a yeasty-type bread that you’d run out and make a ham sandwich with, it’s more of a sweet quick bread. (Actually, if you want my opinion, it’s really a cake.) It is delicious: sweet and cinnamony with a wonderfully moist crumb.
I also have to warn you, if you’ve never heard of this, you’re going to start off loving me – it is damned good – and then probably end up hating me. Why? Well, one of the great things about Amish Friendship Bread is that not only can you give the baked goods to friends and family, but also a “starter” of the batter that will multiply for them to use, not only to bake this marvelous bread/cake, but also leave them with lots of starter to give to their friends, and so on and so on.
It’s like a happy little chain letter you bake in the oven.
The problem is, while your family will ask for this lovely dessert/quick bread/coffee cake on a regular basis (and if you keep up your starter, you’ll be able to make it on a regular basis), you’re going to sooner or later (and it will probably be sooner) run out of people to give the starter to. Which has always been my problem – I end up with starter for the bread running out of my ears, and eventually just pour it all down the drain.
HOWEVER, before I go on to the recipe, which includes the recipe for the starter, the instructions for tending the starter and giving it away, and the recipe for the final product, let me just say that I LOVE the internet because I have found instructions on how to tend just enough starter for personal use – no giving it away when your friends and family start to avoid you because they are drowning in vats of their own starter.
So, without further ado, Amish Friendship Bread. CLICK HERE FOR INSTRUCTIONS ON HOW TO MAINTAIN THE STARTER FOR PERSONAL USE ONLY.
NOTE: Do NOT use metal bowls or spoons. Mix the starter/batter in a glass bowl and stir only with a wood/silicone spoon or spatula. Also, do not refrigerate the starter. Yes, it is perfectly safe.
Amish Friendship Bread
makes 2 standard loaves or 1 Bundt pan cake, 2 cups of starter to give to friends and one cup to use for the next batch
1 package (2 1/4 tsp) active dry yeast
1/4 cup warm water – about 110° F
1 cup all purpose flour
1 cup white sugar
1 cup warm milk – about 110° F
Sprinkle the yeast over the warm water in a small bowl and set aside for 5 minutes. In a medium glass mixing bowl, whisk together the sugar and flour. Gradually add the warm milk, whisking constantly to keep the mixture smooth; add the yeast/water and stir until well combined.
Pour the mixture into a gallon zip-lock bag; seal and leave it. This is Day 1. (When giving the starter and instructions to friends, make note that they do nothing with the bag on Day 1.)
Don’t be alarmed if the mixture bubbles after it’s been sitting on the counter for awhile; it’s supposed to.
Day 2: Mush the bag briefly with your hands. Walk away and forget about it.
Day 3: Mush the bag briefly with your hands. Walk away and forget about it.
Day 4: Mush the bag briefly with your hands. Walk away and forget about it.
Day 5: Add a cup of flour, a cup of sugar and a cup of milk to the bag. Seal; mush with your hands until well mixed. Walk away and forget about it.
Day 6: Mush the bag briefly with your hands. Walk away and forget about it.
Day 7: Mush the bag briefly with your hands. Walk away and forget about it.
Day 8: Mush the bag briefly with your hands. Walk away and forget about it.
Day 9: Mush the bag briefly with your hands. Walk away and forget about it.
Day 10: Add a cup of flour, a cup of sugar and a cup of milk to the bag. Seal; mush with your hands until well mixed.
You should now have 4 cups of starter; place 1 cup each into three 1 gallon zip-lock bags; seal and set aside – you will give two to friends, and keep the other for your next batch. Use the fourth cup for the bread you’ll make that day.
NOTE: When you give away the starter, make sure to include the instructions for tending the starter and baking the bread.
Amish Friendship bread
2 cups all-purpose flour
1(6-serving size) package instant vanilla pudding mix
1 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup sugar
1 cup starter
2/3 cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup milk
3 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup sugar combined with 1 tablespoon of cinnamon, divided
Preheat the oven to 350° F; grease two standard sized loaf pans or a 10-cup Bundt pan. Dust the inside of the pan(s) with about half of the sugar/cinnamon mixture; set aside.
In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, pudding mix, baking powder, cinnamon, salt and baking soda; set aside.
In a large glass or ceramic mixing bowl, combine the remaining ingredients (except for the sugar/cinnamon mixture), mixing well. Stir in the flour mixture, mixing only until just combined; do not over-mix. Pour into the pan(s) and sprinkle with the remaining sugar/cinnamon mixture.
Bake for 50 to 60 minutes (the Bundt pan may take longer) or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes before turning out onto a rack; cool completely before slicing.
A certain bloggy friend of mine has brought to my attention that the lovely Jen from Blissfully Caffeinated had her little bundle o’ joy last week, and she wasn’t doing too terribly well when the blessed event occurred. As a result, another lovely blogger, Oscarelli, is generously hosting a carnival today as sort of a huge, cyber “Get Well” card where we are all invited to do a post about, well, coffee.
Here is mine, and in the spirit of the week, I’m also posting my very favorite Coffee Cake recipe for my week-long celebration of the Recipe Spin Cycle (aren’t ya’ll glad it’s Friday??).
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I was in my mid-thirties before I became a coffee drinker. I simply hated the stuff as a kid and could not for the life of me understand how my grandparents could drink it constantly. When I became an adult, I drank Coke for my caffeine fix (I am a bit of an outcast in my family – I don’t think the sun rises and sets on Dr. Pepper), then after I lost a great deal of weight, Diet Coke.
Then, around the time I turned 35, I began dating a Canadian Mennonite Chemist (yeah, I know it sounds like the beginning of a bad dirty joke, but it’s true). Anyhoo, he loved coffee, drank a lot of coffee and 95% of what we did when we went out included going somewhere for a cup of coffee. To keep him company, I decided to try coffee again and found that my adult palate tolerated it fairly well – in fact, I decided I liked it. A LOT.
Once I’d had a cup of coffee (yes, with cream and sugar) and a chocolate croissant, I knew I’d discovered Nirvana…or at least Pearl Jam.
My Next Big Coffee Discovery was New Orleans style coffee with chicory. A friend of mine at work introduced me to French Market Coffee, and it is to die for – I love it and it has been my coffee of preference ever since. Not too long after that, another coworker introduced me to Starbucks, and while I can’t stand their regular coffee (good gawd, you could use that stuff to strip varnish off of your furniture) before I knew it I found myself uttering phrases like “Triple Venti White Chocolate Mocha Extra Hot No Whipped Cream” and people were peeling me off of the ceiling an hour later.
But no matter your coffee preferences, it is always nice to have something to nosh while you’re drinking it. Why not coffee cake? This one is so very, very good. A little involved, yes, but oh – so worth it. Leftovers freeze fairly well, and if you don’t care for nuts or can’t eat them, just leave them out; it will still be quite tasty.
Note: If you use a Greek-style yogurt, such as Fage (which I just love), mix the batter either with a hand mixer or in the bowl of the stand mixer; the thick consistency of the yogurt makes it too difficult to beat by hand.
Coffee Cake
serves 8 – 10
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon salt
10 tablespoons cold, unsalted butter cut into 1/2″ cubes
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 cup buttermilk or yogurt
1 large egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
3/4 cup chopped pecans or walnuts
1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Have all ingredients (except butter) at room temperature; position a rack in the center of the oven. Preheat the oven to 350° F. Generously grease and flour the bottom of a 10″ springform pan; lightly grease the sides.
In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar and salt until well blended. Cut the butter in with a pastry blender or two knifes until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Remove 1 cup of the mixture to a separate bowl and set aside.
Add to the remaining flour/butter mixture the baking powder and baking soda and whisk well; then add the buttermilk or yogurt, egg and vanilla. Whisk vigorously (or mix with a mixer) until the batter is smooth and fluffy. Scrape the batter into the prepared springform pan and smooth the top.
For the topping, added the nuts, brown sugar and cinnamon to the reserved crumb mixture and toss with a fork until well blended. Sprinkle the topping evenly over the batter.
Bake for 50 to 60 minutes, or until a skewer or knife inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean. Let cool in the pan on a rack for 5 to 10 minutes; slide a slim knife or flexible spatula around the outer edge of the cake to detach it from the pan. Remove the ring and let cool for at least 30 minutes before serving.