Replies

http://mydiversekitchen.blogspot.com/2008/05/eggless-oatmeal-bread.html

Eggless Oatmeal Bread

This is a recipe I had saved sometime back from somewhere (cannot remember and was long before my blog was born) and a bread I have made a few times. I like oats and this bread is healthy and easy to make. But the nicest part is that once the bread is made and sliced, you just cannot see the oats in it. This makes it great for people who do not like oats and also for those who want to avoid eggs.

When I realised last month’s Bread Baking Day was centered on making bread with oats, I felt a little sad that I had a recipe but couldn’t send in an entry to an event I enjoy baking for. Then Melissa announced “Breakfast Breads” as the theme for this month’s BBD, it seemed the perfect chance for me to send my recipe in. This oatmeal bread is perfect for breakfast. I don’t usually add raisins but you may add ½ a cup of raisins to the dough if you prefer.

Ingredients:

1½ tsp active dry yeast
2 tbsp honey
1 cup oats (I used Quakers)
1 tbsp oil (I used rice bran + sunflower oils)
1 tsp salt
1 cup all purpose flour + ½ cup for kneading
½ cup whole wheat flour
½ cup wheat germ

Method:

Add the yeast and honey to 1 cup warm water, mix and allow to prove. In a bowl, mix the oats and oil and then add the yeast mixture. Stir and keep aside for about 5 minutes. Now add the flours, wheat germ and salt and knead into a soft mass. The dough will be a bit sticky so use some more flour while kneading. Cover and allow to double in size.
Now, punch down the dough and knead till smooth and shape into a loaf. Allow to rise till almost double.
Bake at 190C for about 40minutes. Cool on a rack for about 15 minutes at least before slicing. This bread is slightly dense but soft and crumbly in texture.This is my entry for Breakfast Breads at BBD #10 being hosted at Baking A Sweet Life. If you would be interested in some more varieties of Oatmeal Breads, then do check out last month’s BBD #09 Round-up at Paulchen’s FoodBlog.

http://canelaycomino.blogspot.com/2008/05/sweet-potato-cinnamon-rolls.html

Sweet Potato Cinnamon Rolls
Adapted from Southern Living
Makes 12 rolls

1 tablespoon of instant yeast
1/2 cup of warm water (100F to 110F)
1 teaspoon of sugar
4 1/2 cups of flour, divided
1 cup of mashed sweet potatoes
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 cup of drinkable plain yogurt
1/2 cup of sugar
1/4 cup of melted butter
1 tablespoon of powdered orange rind
1 teaspoon of salt
1 teaspoon of baking soda
cooking spray
filling (see below)

1. Combine yeast, water and 1 teaspoon of sugar in a large bowl. Stir with a wooden spoon until yeast is dissolved and allow the mixture to rest for 5 minutes.

2. Add 1/2 cup of flour and mix for 2 minutes. Add mashed sweet potatoes, egg, yogurt, sugar and butter mixing until combined. Add orange rind, salt, baking soda and remaining flour, 1 cup at a time. Stir with a wooden spoon or with your hands until the dough forms. Knead gently, if needed, to bring the dough together.

3. Place dough in a well-greased bowl, turning to grease top. Cover loosely, and let rise in a warm place (85F), free from drafts, about 1 1/2 hours or until doubled in bulk.

4. Punch dough down. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface, and roll into a 10- x 18-inch rectangle. Spread evenly with Filling, leaving a 1-inch border. Roll up dough, jelly-roll fashion, starting at 1 long side. Cut into 12 slices, and arrange in a lightly greased 15 x 10 inch baking pan. Cover loosely, and let rise in a warm place (85F), free from drafts, for 30 minutes. Preheat oven to 400F.

5. Bake rolls at 400F for 17-20 minutes until lightly browned and a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean.

6. Remove rolls from oven, and invert onto a baking sheet. Invert again, onto a cooling rack or a serving platter. Let cool 20 to 30 minutes. Serve warm.

Filling

1/4 cup of melted butter
3/4 cup of light brown sugar
1 tablespoon of ground cinnamon

In a small bowl, combine butter, brown sugar and cinnamon.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

http://toxobread.wordpress.com/2008/06/06/herb-and-cheese-scones/

Herb and cheese scones

These scones are dedicated to my friend, who doesn’t didn’t like scones.

R: I don’t like scones.

Me: What do you mean? How could you not like scones?

R: Well…

Me: Okay. I will bake scones for you to try and if you still don’t like them after that, I won’t bug you anymore.

At R’s request, I made savoury scones with herbs and sharp [Vermont!] cheddar cheese. This is a modified version of a basic scone recipe that I use for sweet scones (which I personally like more, but I’ll post about those another time).

R’s verdict?

Muchas gracias, muuuuy rico!

Herb and Cheese Scones

Recipe adapted from Grandma Johnson’s Scones on Allrecipes.com
Ingredients

- 1 cup sour cream
- 1 tsp baking soda

- 1 egg

- 4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese
- 2/3-3/4 cup butter, cut into small cubes (if you use the lesser amount, you may need to decrease the amount of flour used to achieve the same consistency)
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp Italian seasoning or 1/4 tsp each of basil, oregano, rosemary and thyme
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp ground black pepper
- 1/4 tsp cream of tartar

Directions

1. In a small bowl, blend the sour cream and baking soda, and set aside.
2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Lightly grease a large baking sheet. Alternatively, you could line the baking sheet with a silicone baking mat or parchment paper.
3. In a large bowl, mix the flour, shredded cheese, herbs, ground black pepper, baking powder, cream of tartar, and salt. Cut in the butter (small pea-sized lumps are okay). Stir the sour cream mixture and egg into the flour mixture until just moistened. Do not overmix.
4. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface, and knead briefly. Divide dough into two, and pat each portion into a 3/4 inch thick round. Cut each round into 8 wedges, and space scones evenly on the baking sheet.
5.
6. Bake 12 to 15 minutes in the preheated oven, until golden brown on the bottom. (I had to bake mine for slightly longer because I used a silicone mat on top of the baking sheet.)

Makes 16 small scones.

http://canelaycomino.blogspot.com/2008_09_01_archive.html

WHB - Mung Bean & Brown Rice Meal

Are you adventurous? Are you timid? When you see a new fruit or vegetable in the produce section, do you buy it? Or do you shy away from it?

I always wonder if I will happen upon a new favorite fruit if I buy something I have never seen before. But I also wonder if it will be the worst thing I have eaten. There are some fruits that must be cooked before eating and some vegetables that must be prepared in specific ways to make them edible. There is always a chance I am taking when taking something new home.

While shopping a few years ago, I found small dry green beans for sale. Not knowing exactly what they were, I bought them. I am like that. I then learned that they were called mung beans. Still, I had no idea what to do with them!

While researching about these little green beans, I found a recipe that sounded good, probably because of the curry powder! After trying it, I found it was a keeper.

Mung Bean-Brown Rice Meal

1 cup of brown rice
1 cup of mung beans
1 1/2 teaspoon of cumin powder
1 teaspoon of curry powder
1/2 teaspoon of palillo (turmeric)
1 1/2 teaspoons of salt
1/2 teaspoon of pepper
1/2 teaspoon of oil
1 teaspoon of mustard seeds
5 cups of water

In a medium sized bowl, combine brown rice, mung beans, cumin powder, curry powder, palillo, salt and pepper. Set aside.

In a large pot, heat oil and add mustard seeds; stirring until they pop. Add rice mixture and water. Stir to combine. Bring to a boil and reduce to simmer for 45 minutes. Remove from heat. Serve with a cabbage & carrot salad. Serves 6-8. Adapted from Wikibooks.

http://canelaycomino.blogspot.com/2008_09_01_archive.html

Garlic & Cracked Pepper Lavash Crackers

Although crackers have been something I wanted to try making, I have so many other things on my “Make Now” list that this months Daring Baker challenge waited patiently on the sidelines. I expected to be underwhelmed. Every time I thought to get the recipe started, I couldn’t help but think...they’re just crackers!

I can tell you, mine were anything but “just crackers.” Each and every person in the house commented things like, “I never knew anyone made their own crackers” and “crackers...on purpose?” But as soon as they were baked, I had to fight people from stealing them before I could take their picture.

I decided to split the dough in half and bake one sweet and one savory version. The sweet version had a bit of brown sugar and pumpkin pie spice (the Trader Joe’s version, of course!) and the savory version was topped with ground garlic and fresh cracked black pepper. The sweet version did not puff like the savory ones, but I found them to be crispier and crunchier. I loved the puffiness of the savory ones though, I was very proud! The Garlic & Cracked Pepper Lavash Crackers were served with a delicious & simple tomato salsa.

These may or may not be something I make again. They were tasty, but I am not sure I would find them worth the effort each and every time. I have a few ideas in mind of flavor combinations I would like to try. So, these may be in my kitchen again one day.

Lavash Crackers
Makes 1 sheet pan of crackers

1 1/2 cups of unbleached bread flour
1/2 teaspoon of salt
1/2 teaspoon of instant yeast
1 tablespoon of sugar
1 tablespoon of vegetable oil
8 to 10 tablespoons of water, at room temperature
Poppy seeds, sesame seeds, paprika, cumin seeds, caraway seeds, or kosher salt for toppings

1. In a mixing bowl, stir together the flour, salt yeast, sugar, oil, and just enough water to bring everything together into a ball. You may not need to use all of the water, but be prepared to use it all if needed.

2. Sprinkle some flour on the counter and transfer the dough to the counter. Knead for about 10 minutes, or until the ingredients are evenly distributed. (I really think I kneaded for 30 minutes to get a good texture, but it never passed the windowpane test.) Lightly oil a bowl and transfer the dough to the bowl, rolling it around to coat it with oil. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap.

3. Ferment at room temperature for 90 minutes, or until the dough doubles in size. (You can also retard the dough overnight in the refrigerator immediately after kneading or mixing).

4. Mist the counter lightly with spray oil and transfer the dough to the counter. Press the dough into a square with your hand and dust the top of the dough lightly with flour. Roll it out with a rolling pin into a paper thin sheet about 15 inches by 12 inches. You may have to stop from time to time so that the gluten can relax. At these times, lift the dough from the counter and wave it a little, and then lay it back down. Cover it with a towel or plastic wrap while it relaxes. When it is the desired thinness, let the dough relax for 5 minutes. Line a sheet pan with baking parchment. Carefully lift the sheet of dough and lay it on the parchment. If it overlaps the edge of the pan, snip off the excess with scissors.

5. Preheat the oven to 350F with the oven rack on the middle shelf. Mist the top of the dough with water (I patted it with water and everything stuck well) and sprinkle a covering of seeds or spices on the dough (such as alternating rows of poppy seeds, sesame seeds, paprika, cumin seeds, caraway seeds, kosher or pretzel salt, etc.) Be careful with spices and salt - a little goes a long way. If you want to precut the cracker, use a pizza cutter (rolling blade) and cut diamonds or rectangles in the dough. You do not need to separate the pieces, as they will snap apart after baking. If you want to make shards, bake the sheet of dough without cutting it first.

5. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the crackers begin to brown evenly across the top (the time will depend on how thinly and evenly you rolled the dough).

6. When the crackers are baked, remove the pan from the oven and let them cool in the pan for about 10 minutes. You can then snap them apart or snap off shards and serve.

http://livinginthekitchenwithpuppies.blogspot.com/2008/09/herbed-bean-stewp-for-my-baby.html

Herbed Bean Stewp for my Baby

Some of you may have noticed by now that my baby girl is a sensitive gal. Generally squeamish towards meat and troubled by dairy. Sugar and caffeine can also be problematic if she is feeling low. I must have the only child who, when feeling vulnerable, craves legumes, lentils and vegetables. Not that she is a child anymore. My baby recently turned 19 and is technically an adult, but she still comes home to mom for some healthy food to get her energy up.

Her favourites are soups (which are technically stews in my house as you can generally stand a fork up in them) and curries and dahls. When she came home from her first few days of university with sneezes, mommy made her soup. Or stewp, to be exact.

I used herbs from my garden, a generous amount of sage, and tied them up in a bouquet garni. Bouquet garni is just a fun French term for cute little bundle of aromatics that you can fish out of the pot when you are finished with them without any trouble at all. Or something like that. This is a great way to cook with sage as it can be fuzzy and strong to actually chew on.

Herbed Bean Stewp for my baby.

1 Bouquet Garni - Small handful of sage leaves, thyme and peppercorns, tied up in a cheesecloth bundle
2 leeks, cleaned - white and light green parts only - sliced
2 tbsp olive oil
In a heavy bottom pot, heat oil and leeks on medium. Sprinkle with salt and cook, stirring often, covered, until soft. About 15 minutes.

Veggies
2 ribs celery with leaves, chopped
3 carrots, chopped
1 medium zucchini, chopped
4 cloves garlic, chopped fine
2 cups chopped green cabbage
1 hot pepper, chopped fine

Add veggies and bouquet garni to leeks, combine and gently sauté for 5 more minutes.

Add:
3 cups stock, chicken or vegetable
1 cup white wine
1 square good vegetable bouillon
Generous grind of black pepper

Bring to boil, reduce heat to low simmer and let cook 20 minutes or until veggies are tender.

Add:
1 can white beans, 14 fl oz, drained and rinsed
1 cup parsley leaves, plus more for garnish

Let cook 10 more minutes, stirring gently.
Remove bouquet garni.
Adjust seasoning to taste.
Serve with some whole grain crusty bread and garnish with more parsley.

I am submitting this dish for Weekend Herb Blogging, a weekly event celebrating herbs - created by Kalyn of Kalyn’s Kitchen. This week is hosted by Gretchen from Canela & Comino.

[Just for you]

http://dulmina.blogspot.com/2008/05/cocoa-cinnamon-or-cheese-pastries-bbd.html

2008. május 30.
Cocoa, Cinnamon or Cheese Pastries (BBD #10)
For this month’s BreadBakingDay, Melissa has asked for breakfast breads.

I often make this dough with various fillings and in various shapes. Incredible, but the first batch can be eaten about half an hour after beginning the preparation, so it’s just ideal for a delicious Sunday breakfast.

Recipe: Cocoa, Cinnamon or Cheese Pastries

Ingredients:

For the dough:

* 250 ml warm milk, or water
* 35 g fresh yeast
* 1 tablespoon honey, or unrefined cane sugar
* 150 ml sunflower oil
* 1 egg, or 1 tablespoon ground flax seeds mixed with 50 ml hot water
* 1 pinch salt
* 500 g wholemeal flour
* 7 g baking powder

For the filling:

* sweet version: sunflower oil to smear the dough, dark cocoa powder or ground cinnamon and unrefined cane sugar to taste
* savoury version: cca. 2 tablespoon sour cream to spread on the dough, and plenty of ground cheese
* (and the variations are endless: I’m planning to try it with ground walnuts, ground poppy seeds, ajvar, etc.)

Preparation:

1. Turn on the oven and pre-heat it to 180 degrees Celsius.
2. Put the honey into the lukewarm milk (or water), then crumble the yeast in it. A few minutes later add the other ingredients as well, and knead until you get a soft, homogeneous dough. (Add some more water or flour, if necessary.)
3. Halve the dough and roll it out into a rectangular shape.
4. Sprinkle the filling on it and roll up. (I always make one half with sweet and the other half with savoury filling.)
5. Cut into trapezoids. With the broad side down, put them on a lightly greased baking tin, and press the top.
6. Bake for cca. 15 minutes.
7. Prepare the other half of the dough in the same manner.
8. Serve with your favourite morning drink and enjoy.

Bejegyezte: Dulmina dátum: 5/30/2008

http://thespicedlife.blogspot.com/search/label/curry%20powder

Curry Chickpea Potpie

Source: The Martha Stewart Living Cookbook: The Original Classics
Ingredients

4 T unsalted butter

1 cup millet

2 cups boiling water

2 large eggs

¾ t kosher salt

2 T fresh chopped flat leafed parsley (I used curly as it was all I could find)

8 oz frozen broccoli (actually she calls for fresh which she has you blanch in a separate

step—to me frozen was just fine and probably fresher given the time of year)

1 medium onion, chopped

2 cups (from ½ head) shredded green cabbage

(possibly why I did not like the dish—cabbage is something I am trying to train

myself to eat)

2 garlic cloves, minced (I used 6)

1 T freshly grated

ginger (I used 2 T minced)

1 T curry powder

2 large carrots,

cut into ½ inch dice

8 oz small potatoes, quartered

1/3 cup dried red

lentils

½ cup canned chickpeas, drained

Melt 1 tablespoon butter in skillet over medium high heat. Add millet and toast, stirring, for 3 minutes, until golden brown. Add another tablespoon butter and the boiling water; return to a boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer, covered, for 25 minutes. Transfer to a bowl to cool slightly and tent loosely with foil. When cool, mix in the salt, parsley and 2 eggs.

Preheat the oven to 350 F. Melt 1 tablespoon butter in a skillet over medium high heat. Add onion and cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes or until onion is softened. Add cabbage and cook another 3 minutes. Add garlic, ginger and curry powder; cook for 2 minutes. Add 2 cups water and stir, scraping up any bits that are stuck to the bottom of the pan. Add carrots, potatoes, lentils and chickpeas and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium low, cover and simmer for 20 minutes. Stir in broccoli and season with salt and pepper to taste.

Place the stew in a 1 ½ qt ovenproof dish and cover with the millet mixture. Dot with remaining 1 tablespoon butter. Place the dish on a baking sheet and place in the oven. Bake for 30 minutes, until golden brown and crisp. Serve hot.

http://thespicedlife.blogspot.com/search/label/easily%20made%20vegetarian

The title of this post is a play on Rick Bayless’s Salsas That Cook, in which he presents 6 different salsas and the variety of dishes you can make with them. Sweet Hot Thai Dipping Sauce is my version of those salsas—I always have a bottle of it in my fridge and it has a lot of uses. I keep it for broccoli, for Thai spring rolls, for pad thai, for Thai fried rice…. It also makes an amazing Thai Sweet and Sour Stir Fry. Although I give amounts for the various condiments in this recipe (the stir fry), I should warn you in advance this is truly a taste as you go recipe. And do not expect it to taste like Chinese Sweet and Sour—which is much sweeter, heavier and uses deep fried meats. Thai Sweet and Sour is light, refreshing, the meat (or tofu) is never deep fried, and many of the veggies are thrown in at the end and served nearly raw, like the cucumber. This is a great spring dish.

Thai Sweet Hot Garlic Dipping Sauce

Ingredients

1 head of garlic, minced

Chile pepper flakes, to taste (I used Pakastani ones from Penzey’s, i.e., the hottest ones, and I throw in 1-2 tablespoons)

1 cup white vinegar (cider vinegar will work as well)

1 cup water

2 cups sugar

1 t salt

Bring the ingredients to a boil in a medium heavy saucepan. Lower the heat to a simmer, and leave the mixture simmering for at least 15 minutes, as long as 30 minutes. Although it will thicken and reduce considerably, the thickening will not be evident until it has cooled, so take it off the heat after 30 minutes even if it still seems a bit thin. Store in a sealed jar in the fridge. I have had mine since September (I made a much larger quantity than above) and it is still fine. Shake gently before using as the garlic and chile pepper flakes will settle.

Thai Sweet and Sour Stir Fry with Pork

Ingredients

1-3 T of neutral oil (depending on pan and to taste—will be easier of course with more oil)

5 scallions, roughly chopped, white and green parts separated (the Thai would leave the white parts longer but I like them a bit smaller)

6-8 cloves of garlic, minced

Mushrooms, quartered if small to medium, “sixthed” if larger (crimini, button, straw or shitake are all fine)

1 sweet bell pepper, sliced and then chopped in half

1 pork tenderloin, sliced into bite sized pieces*

Carrots sliced into medallions (optional**)

Broccoli florets (I use frozen and add near to the end)

½ pineapple, chopped (or one can, stored in juice, is fine too)

Hothouse cucumber, peeled and seeded and sliced into half medallions (or use baby cukes, in which case do not bother peeling or seeding)

Grape tomatoes or tomato wedges

1 1/2 T Fish sauce

1 T Oyster sauce

1 T Ketchup

2-3 T Sweet Hot Garlic Dipping Sauce

*My picture has shredded chicken, which only emphasizes the versatility of this recipe. I had some frozen shredded rotisserie chicken and we were in a hurry, so I threw that in. But I like it best with pork tenderloin.

**This dish is great for using up whatever you have in your vegetable drawers. Don’t fret if you don’t have something on my list and feel free to add something I have not thought of. I do think some form of onion is crucial (wedges of yellow onions work well also) and we especially love the pineapple and cucumber. Just be sure to add the fruits/veggies in the correct order (see below).

I learned to make this dish in a cooking class in Chiang Mai, Thailand (although I have since fiddled with the sauce to my own taste, consisting largely of reducing the ketchup and using other condiments in its place). Heat a large skillet to high and add the oil when hot. There is not much to it, other than this very simple rule of thumb, familiar to anyone who has ever made Asian stir fries: have ALL items ready and waiting before you start and add the longest to cook items first and the least time ones last. For my list above I would add: garlic (toast the garlic for 15-30 seconds first to flavor the whole dish), scallion whites and carrots and stir fry for a minute. Then add meat and stir fry for one minute. Then add mushrooms and bell peppers and stir fry for one minute. Then add broccoli and pineapple and stir fry for one minute. Then add the condiments to taste. Then, last, add the scallion greens, cucumber and tomatoes. Remove from heat. Fragile, easily overcooked items such as cucumber and fresh tomatoes should be added after you have the sauce to taste as you don’t want to risk overcooking them while you fiddle with the sauce, getting the flavor right.

For saltier sauce, add fish sauce. For more savory, add oyster. For tarter, add ketchup. For sweeter, add the dipping sauce. Serve with jasmine rice.

Dorie Greenspan’s French Yogurt Cake was a great starting point. It used oil and yogurt for its fat, so it did not need to even involve the mixer, let alone softened butter. Her basic version uses plain yogurt with some lemon zest and a little vanilla. Her Riviera version uses Greek yogurt and olive oil with some rosemary or mint. I kind of combined the 2 based on what I had around, and enhanced the vanilla and lemon flavors (but did not use rosemary or mint).

It came out very tasty, but next time I think I would butter the loaf pan and then use parchment paper on the bottom with additional greasing, because while it came out tasty, it did not come out in one piece. The bottom stuck pretty badly. Otherwise this was an excellent cake, the crusty top in particular was spectacular—kind of crisp and crunchy. It almost tasted like I had sprinkled the top of the cake with sugar—but I had not!

Lemon & Vanilla Yogurt Cake

Adapted from Dorie Greenspan’s Baking From My Home To Yours

Ingredients

1 ½ cups AP flour

2 t baking powder

pinch of salt

1 cup vanilla sugar

¾ t lemon oil (I used because I did not have any lemons—this is a great ingredient to keep around for just this reason; feel free to substitute lemon zest, maybe 1 ½ T)

1 T vanilla extract

½ cup full fat Greek yogurt

3 large eggs

½ cup olive oil

Center a rack in the oven and preheat it to 350 F. Cut a piece of parchment paper to fit the bottom of an 8 ½ X 4 ½ inch loaf pan. Generously butter the loaf pan, place the parchment paper into the loaf pan and butter it.

Whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside.

Whisk together the sugar, lemon oil or zest, vanilla and yogurt. Add the eggs and whisk vigorously to combine. Add the flour mixture and whisk to combine. Switch to a rubber spatula and mix until the flour is totally combine. Add the ½ cup of oil and fold it in. The batter will be thick—Dorie says it should be smooth but mine had some tiny lumps which seemed to not matter in the end. Pour and scrape the batter into the prepared pan and smooth its top.

Bake at 350 F for 50-55 minutes, until a tester comes out clean. Set on a cooling rack to cool for 5 minutes. Then run a knife around the sides of the cake to loosen it and turn it out onto the cooling rack. Cool it right side up.

http://thespicedlife.blogspot.com/search/label/easily%20made%20vegetarian

I should give you one warning about the granola (and maybe it is as good a time as any to divulge something about me in general and my recipes): I have a MASSIVE sweet tooth. Totally incorrigible—and defiant too I might add. I am extremely annoyed by food writing that treats preferring the sweet (and salty for that matter) as common, mundane, bourgeois, whereas something can be very sour or bitter and it is sophisticated. I actually love sour—sour and sweet are my 2 favorite flavors, but they are just individual preferences. Anyway, I do have a sweet tooth and I definitely prefer my granola sweet. If it is too much sugar for you, just reduce the brown sugar or reduce some of the liquid and replace it with either oil or a tart, sugar-free applesauce. The same goes for any of my recipes—if it sounds like too much sugar for your tastes, hold back until you see if you need it. I promise you that is what I do with anything bitter!

Laura’s Granola

Ingredients

Dry

4 cups thick, old fashioned rolled oats

1 cup barley flakes

1 cup oat bran

1/3 cup wheat germ

1 cup raw sunflower seeds

1 cup raw pumpkin seeds

1 cup slivered almonds

1 cup pecan pieces

1/3 – ¾ cup brown sugar (light or dark)

Wet

3 T neutral vegetable oil

1 ½ t vanilla

1 t kosher salt

1/3 cup maple syrup

1/3 cup honey

Cinnamon for sprinkling on the granola after it bakes and ½ teaspoon vanilla sugar for sprinkling on the granola after to help it crisp

I am fairly new to homemade granola but it is obvious almost immediately that granola is very flexible. If you see something you don’t like, simply remove it from the list. If you want to add some other grain, sesame seeds or shredded coconut, go for it. Dried fruit and chocolate chips should be added after it cooks.

Place the racks in the top and bottom thirds of your oven. Preheat to 300 F.

Mix the dry ingredients together in a large bowl. I like using my hands.

Whisk the wet ingredients together in a smaller bowl. Pour them over the dry ingredients—I do this in stages, just in case my ratio of wet to dry is such that I do not need quite all of the wet mixture. I then mix with a large spatula, making sure that all of the dry granola becomes coated in the wet mixture (but it should not be gloppy wet).

Spread the granola out over 2 half sheet pans (cookie sheets which have rims). Bake at 300 F (I keep it low because of the wheat germ) for 40-60 minutes, until golden brown. Check the granola every 15 minutes, rotating the pans and turning, mixing and re-spreading the granola, in order to ensure that it toasts evenly. When it is done, sprinkle a tiny bit of vanilla sugar and several shakes of cinnamon over the granola and then mix it up to distribute the cinnamon. Let it cool completely on the pan, at which point it will become crunchy. Place in an airtight container—if you plan on it being around for a while, store in the refrigerator or freezer. I honestly have not experimented enough to know when wheat germ will turn rancid (or the nuts for that matter).

Double Chocolate Shortbread

Adapted from: Carole Walter’s Cookies

This recipe makes quite a lot—but because shortbread has such a wonderful shelf life, I like to make a lot and spread the wealth among friends and family.

Ingredients

2 ½ cups AP flour, spooned in and leveled

1 cup white rice flour, spooned in and leveled

1 cup Dutch processed cocoa powder, spooned in and leveled

½ t salt

2 cups (4 sticks) unsalted butter, slightly softened

1+ 1/3 cups superfine sugar

2 t vanilla extract

10 oz good quality semi or bitter sweet chocolate (at least 60% cacao)

2 t neutral tasting vegetable oil

Position the shelf in the middle of the oven. Preheat the oven to 300 F. You will need 2 cookie sheets and one of them must be a half baking sheet with rim (13 X 18, or a smidge smaller would work as well).

Sift the flours, cocoa powder and salt together 3 times. Set aside.

Place the butter in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (or use a large bowl with a hand mixer or a wooden spoon). Cream the butter for 1-1 ½ minutes on medium low speed, until smooth and creamy. Gradually add the sugar over 2 minutes. Mix for an additional 1½ minutes. Add the vanilla and mix to combine.

Add the sifted flour mixture and stir very slowly, pulsing in the beginning to avoid coating yourself in flour and cocoa powder. Only stir until the dough starts to come together in a shaggy ball. Then dump the dough onto a clean work surface. Bring it together with your hands and knead it, just enough to totally blend the ingredients and form a smooth, somewhat putty-like dough. Do not overwork. (And in case any of you ever wondered how much I want out of my rental kitchen—check out that hideous turquoise/green counter top!!!)

Press the dough into the rimmed baking sheet. Get it as even as possible—although between you and me I rarely manage to get my shortbread perfectly even. You can use a toothpick to determine if it is even but I just don’t care enough if some of my shortbread is a little thicker than others. Plus when you have a toddler helping you (she LOVES to push shortbread into the pan) you can only get so particular.

Place the shortbread into the oven and bake for 50-55 minutes, or until set on top. Then take it out and let it rest for 5 minutes. Using a dough scraper or a pizza cutter, cut the shortbread in a gridlike pattern set to the size of cookies you want—mine are rarely the same. I have some fat rectangles and some thin—so far no one eating it has ever complained. Return to the oven and bake for another 10 minutes.

Remove from the oven and let rest for 10 minutes. Place the baking sheet side by side with the second baking sheet. Carefully, using a turner or a dough scraper, lift up a row of cookies along one edge and move them to the other sheet. The first row is the hardest. Gradually remove half of the cookies to the other sheet, and then make sure that both sets of cookies are now spaced out on the 2 pans. Using oven mitts, move the oven racks to the upper and bottom thirds of your oven. Put the cookie sheets back into the oven for 10 minutes, to crisp and dry the individual shortbread pieces.

Place a cooling rack over wax paper (or some other means of keeping the counter clean, if you care—I just wiped mine up afterwards). Remove the baking sheets from the oven and let cool for 5-10 minutes before transferring to the cooling rack.

In the meantime, chop and melt the 10 oz of chocolate in a microwave safe bowl by microwaving at 50% power in 30 second increments. When it is melted, whisk it with the 2 teaspoons of oil.

While the cookies are still tepid, dip the tops of the shortbread into the chocolate and replace onto the cooling rack to set and finish cooling.

When the cookies have finished setting they can be stored in between layers of wax or parchment paper in an airtight container for at least 3 weeks.

http://thespicedlife.blogspot.com/search/label/easily%20made%20vegetarian

Taos Sun Bread

Adapted from Beth Hensperger’s Breads of the Southwest

Ingredients

1 ½ cups of whole buttermilk*

½ cup cornmeal, white or yellow, fine or medium grind

1/3 cup honey

3 T melted lard (or corn oil)

1 T active dry yeast

pinch of brown sugar

¼ cup warm water

2 t salt

½ cup whole wheat pastry flour

4 cups of bread flour (give or take a little)

In a medium saucepan, bring the buttermilk to a boil, whisking, and then add the cornmeal to the buttermilk in a slow drizzle, whisking the whole time. Reduce heat to a simmer and cook for 5 minutes, whisking the entire time. It will become a thick porridge. Stir in the lard and honey. Scrape the mixture into a large mixing bowl or the bowl for your mixer. Set aside to cool for 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, in a small bowl, mix the yeast and brown sugar into the warm water. Let stand until foamy.

Check the temperature of the buttermilk porridge, either with a thermometer (it needs to be under 120 F) or your finger (it should be lukewarm). When it is cool enough, add the salt and whole wheat pastry flour to the porridge and beat on medium speed for 1 minute. Add the yeast and 1 cup of the bread flour and beat one medium speed for an additional minute. Then add the rest of the bread flour, ½ cup at a time, on low speed, until the dough becomes a soft, shaggy mass that just clears the side of the bowl. (Switch from paddle to dough hook when a rough mass forms.)

Knead the dough either by hand (3-5 minutes) or by machine, 1-3 minutes. I took around 3-4 minutes because I needed to add a bit more flour to get the dough less sticky. The final dough should be quite soft and somewhat sticky, but ultimately you should be able to form a ball with the dough. Place it in a greased large bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Set aside to rise until doubled in bulk, 1-1 ½ hours.

Grease 2 9X5 loaf pans. Divide the dough in half, gently deflating and patting down. Form the dough into oblong balls, stretching the dough across one side to pinch underneath the other side. Place the ovals, seam side down, into the loaf pans. Cover with plastic wrap and set aside to rise until doubled, about 45 minutes.

About 20 minutes before baking, turn the oven on and preheat to 450 F.

When you are ready to place the loaves into the oven, turn the oven temperature down to 350 F and place the loaves in the oven. Set a timer for 40 minutes—if your oven heat is uneven as mine is you will want to rotate the pans front to back and side to side at the 20 minute mark. Start checking the loaves for doneness at the 40 minute mark, although it could take up to 10 minutes longer. The loaf should be nicely browned and sound hollow when tapped. You can also use an instant read thermometer—the loaves should be 200 F internally.

Turn the loaves out of their pans and place on a cooling rack.

Many professional bread bakers will tell you to wait until the bread is cooled to slice. I have never met a bread eater yet who didn’t prefer hot bread. The key of course is waiting long enough that your loaves do not totally squish when you slice them; I usually find that 20-30 minutes will do the trick. Likewise, when we have leftovers the next night, I wrap the second loaf entirely in foil and then place it in a 300 F oven. After 15 minutes or so I remove the bread and voila! We have hot bread for dinner.

*Hensperger calls for 1½ cups of water to make the cornmeal porridge and then adds ½ cup buttermilk powder to the bread with the whole wheat pastry flour. This would make a lower fat bread—but I did not have buttermilk powder, so I used whole milk buttermilk to ensure it would not curdle.

http://thespicedlife.blogspot.com/search/label/peanut%20butter

A word of caution: do not be impatient when spreading the peanut butter frosting. I was, and as a result one end of pan ended up more swirled than layered (as you can see to the right). Actually I recommend, especially if you have a warm kitchen now that spring is here, storing these in the fridge. Just take them out about 15 minutes before serving (which will also help the oatmeal not be so blasted white, which is what happened in the pics I took).

Peanut Butter Bars

Adapted from CLBB (Magpie’s Mom)

½ cup (1 stick) butter
½ cup sugar
½ cup brown sugar
1 egg
½ cup peanut butter
½ t soda
¼ t salt
½ t vanilla
1 cup AP flour
1 cup rolled oats
1 ½ cups chocolate chips
¾ cup powdered sugar
½ cup peanut butter
2 to 4 T cream
Decent pinch of salt

Preheat oven to 350.

Cream together butter, sugar and brown sugar. Blend in egg, 1/2 cup peanut butter, baking soda, salt and vanilla. Stir in flour and oats. Spread this out into a greased 9 x 13 pan. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes- just until firm and beginning to brown at the edges.

While still hot, sprinkle chocolate chips over the cookie layer and let stand about five minutes until the chocolate melts. Spread to make a smooth layer. Let this cool completely, preferably in the fridge. Do not be impatient!

Combine the powdered sugar, pinch of salt, remaining 1/2 cup peanut butter and milk. Don’t be afraid to taste and alter—more peanut butter if you want more of a peanut flavor, more salt for saltier, more sugar for sweeter... Spread this over the chocolate. Chill for 30 minutes (as I *should* have but did not). Cut into bars.

http://thespicedlife.blogspot.com/search/label/peanut%20butter

Nutty for Oats Cookies

I first discovered this recipe last year when I got King Arthur’s Whole Grain Baking Cookbook for Christmas. Like a gazillion other bakers out there, I fell in love with the book and its myriad of recipes for whole grain flatbreads, yeasted breads, quick breads, scones, cookies and cakes, among other things. I don’t use the book quite as much now but I think that is an even more positive comment on the book, as I learned enough from it that I am now pretty comfortable subbing whole grains into recipes where previously I might have hesitated. But this recipe has been an absolute keeper—I have made these cookies more than any other dessert in the past year. You will never guess they are 100% whole grain.

Nutty for Oats Cookies
King Arthur Whole Grain Baking Cookbook

Ingredients

2/3 cup smooth peanut butter* (6 ¼ oz)
4 T (1/2 stick, 4 oz) unsalted butter, softened
¾ cup (5 5/8 oz) packed brown sugar
1 t vanilla
½ t salt
¼ t baking soda
2 large eggs
1 cup (3 ½ oz) rolled oats, processed to flour (I just weigh out 3 ½ oz of ground oats)
1 ½ cups (5 ¼ oz) old fashioned rolled oats
2 cups (12 oz) chocolate chips

Place your oven racks in the top and bottom thirds of the oven. Preheat the oven to 350 F. Line 2 cookie sheets with parchment paper.

Cream together the first 6 ingredients—I add them gradually, as I have been taught by most other recipes, but King Arthur does not seem to care about the order. Add the eggs and beat them into the batter until incorporated—remember to scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed. Then mix in the ground oats, the rolled oats and the chocolate chips. Drop the dough by the rounded tablespoonful onto the prepared cookie sheets.

Bake the cookies, rotating from top to bottom and front to back halfway through, for 11-13 minutes. They should be barely set and just beginning to brown at the edges. Let them cool completely on the pans.

*On the CLBB I remember last year discussing whether people’s Nutty for Oats cookies stayed super-thick (mine did) or flattened and spread. I have not experimented with this but I do wonder if mine stay so thick because I use 100% natural peanut butter—no sugar or shortening added. If you make yours with natural peanut butter (not the easily spreadable kind but the 100% peanuts only kind) and they do spread leave me a comment and let me know!

The original recipe calls for all AP flour and no peanut butter chips. I however have found that peanut butter cookies really benefit from peanut butter chips to boost the peanut butter flavor and I have also found that peanut butter cookies really embrace whole grain flours. Next time I will use an even greater percentage of white whole wheat flour—but if you don’t have any just use all AP.

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chunkers

Adapted from Nancy Baggett’s The All-American Cookie Book

Ingredients

1 cup white whole wheat flour (5 oz)

1 ½ cups AP flour (6 ¾ oz)

¼ t salt

1 t baking soda

1 cup (2 sticks) softened unsalted butter

1 ¼ cups smooth or crunchy peanut butter (I used a combo of all natural and no stir natural)

1 ½ cups packed brown sugar

2/3 sugar

2 large eggs

1 T light corn syrup

2 t vanilla extract

*10 oz bittersweet or semi sweet chocolate, chopped (we used Scharffen Berger semi sweet; we strongly prefer semi sweet with peanut butter in this house)

¾ cup peanut butter chips or swirled peanut butter and milk chocolate chips

½ cup (2 ¼ oz) chopped unsalted peanuts

Preheat oven to 350 F.

*After chopping the chocolate, remove about 5 ounces of it into a separate bowl. If you are like me, and chopping your chocolate produces a lot of shavings, then remove all nice chocolate chunks into one of the bowls—the other bowl can have chunks and shavings.

Whisk together the salt, baking soda and flours and set aside.

In a large bowl, cream together the peanut butter, butter and sugars for 2 minutes, or until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, corn syrup and vanilla and beat until well blended. Stir in the flour mixture until evenly incorporated. Stir in the peanut butter chips and the nice chocolate chunks (i.e., no shavings). Let the dough sit for 5 minutes to firm up.

While the dough is firming, mix the other chocolate chunks and shavings with the shopped peanuts. Place in a wide shallow bowl.

Shape portions of the dough into 1 ¾ inch balls with lightly greased hands. Dip the ball into the peanuts/chocolate chunks mixture, pressing lightly on one side. Place the balls, coated sides up, onto parchment lined baking sheets. The recipe makes 36 cookies—I made 12 cookies per sheet.

Bake the cookies for 13-16 minutes, until lightly browned and still soft to touch. Reverse the sheet from front to back halfway through (and top to bottom if cooking 2 trays at once). Transfer the sheet to a cooling rack and let the cookies cool until they are firm enough to move. Because I like my cookies on the underdone side, I let them cool completely on the sheets. Remove them to a cooling rack individually sooner if you are concerned they will cook too much on the hot sheet.

http://thespicedlife.blogspot.com/search/label/peanut%20butter

“Birthday Pie is better than Birthday Cake!”

So announced my daughter, loyal to the latest dessert, after trying this confection. I have better pictures of it because, unless you get up really early, it is a 2 day affair, with frequent chillings. It is worth it. John found it perfect as is—I would have like a stronger chocolate and peanut butter flavor, so I might have decreased the whipped cream topping. The crust is sublime.

Tish’s Chocolate-Peanut Butter Cloud Pie

Baking By Flavor, Lisa Yockelson (taken from Tish Boyle)

Peanut Butter Cookie Crust

2/3 cup AP flour

½ t baking powder

1/8 t baking soda

pinch of salt

4 T (1/2 stick) unsalted butter

1/3 cup creamy peanut butter

¼ cup granulated sugar

¼ firmly packed dark brown sugar

1 large egg yolk

½ t vanilla

Chocolate-Peanut Butter Mousse Filling

2 oz bittersweet chocolate, chopped finely

2 T cornstarch

½ cup granulated sugar

pinch of salt

1 ¾ cup milk

2 large egg yolks

½ cup creamy peanut butter

½ t vanilla

1 cup heavy cream, chilled

Whipped Cream for Topping the Pie

1 cup heavy cream, chilled

1 T superfine sugar

½ t vanilla

Chopped roasted peanuts and/or semi sweet chocolate curls and shavings for garnish

Crust:

In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and soda and salt.

Cream the butter and peanut butter together in a mixer on medium speed until smooth. Add the granulated sugar and beat for 1 minute. Add the dark brown sugar and beat 1 additional minute. Blend in the egg yolk and vanilla. On low speed add the flour mixture in 2 additions. Beat just until the flour is absorbed. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed.

Turn the dough onto a sheet of plastic wrap and shape into a disk about ½ inch thick. Wrap it up and refrigerate it for 45-60 minutes.

Place the chilled dough disk into the bottom of a 9 inch pie plate. Using your fingertips, press the dough evenly into the bottom of the pan and up the sides. Refrigerate the pan with the crust for another 45 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 375 F about 20 minutes before removing the pie crust. Bake the pie crust in the pan for 13-15 minutes, or until golden brown around the edges. The crust will be soft and puffed when it comes out, but it will firm up and flatten as it cools. Place the pie pan onto a cooling rack and let it cool completely.

Mousse Filling

Place the chopped chocolate into a medium sized mixing bowl and set aside.

Sift the cornstarch, sugar and salt into a medium sized heavy saucepan and then whisk to combine thoroughly. Turn the heat onto medium high and slowly blend in the milk, stirring as you pour. Heat until it thickens (this is similar to making a white sauce); it will take 5-7 minutes for this to happen.

In a small, heatproof bowl, whisk the egg yolks. Add 2-3 T of the hot milk mixture to the egg yolks to temper them. Off the heat stir the tempered egg yolks into the saucepan. Then put the saucepan back onto moderate heat and let it bubble, stirring, until thickened, 2-3 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the peanut butter and vanilla.

Pour 1 cup of the heated peanut butter/milk mixture onto the chopped chocolate. Stir until the chocolate is completely melted and incorporated.

Scrape the chocolate mixture onto the cooled pie crust. Smooth the top with a spatula or offset palette knife. Refrigerate for 60-90 minutes or until completely set.

Transfer the remaining peanut butter filling to a medium sized bowl and cover with plastic wrap, pressing it directly onto the surface of the peanut butter mixture. Chill for 45 minutes, or until cool but not set.

Place the chilled cream into a bowl and whip until soft peaks are formed. Stir 2-3 large spoonfuls of the whipped cream into the peanut butter mixture, then gently fold the rest in. Scrape this mousse onto the chilled chocolate layer of the pie, smoothing the surface. Chill until set, at least 4-6 hours.

Whip the remaining cream until just beginning to mound. Add the sugar and vanilla and whip until softly firm peaks have formed. Top the pie with the whipped cream and chill for one more hour.

Garnish the pie with chopped roasted peanuts and/or chocolate shavings and curls. I opted for the chocolate (which was my change, not listed in the recipe).