It Snowed!!

If you have been reading my blog for any length of time you know what I'm going to say next.  When it snows for the first time each season we make gingerbread.  Not just any gingerbread, but Laura Ingalls Wilders' gingerbread.  We stop everything we are doing and make the gingerbread.

 

 

This stuff gets better every year!!  If I do say so myself.  It's so easy to make I should make it more often.  But I think that would take the fun out of the first snow. 

 

 

So what did you do today?  Any snow where you are yet?

 

 

English Muffin Bread~Cooking Thursday

I love english muffins....sort of.  I do not like the price for starters.  I also do not like the after taste you get from eating one.  It's more of a processed-grease kind of flavor.  I've seen many recipes to make your own english muffins, but I don't like to make things with a lot of steps in them.  I'm just funny that way.  I've had this recipe written down for a long time now.  I decided to give it a try with the bread maker.

English Muffin Loaf

1 cup water plus 2 tablespoons

1 tablespoon honey

2 1/2 cups flour

1/2 cup whole wheat flour

3 tablespoons powdered milk

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1 1/2 teaspoon yeast

Place all ingredients into bread maker in order suggested by the manufacturer.  Select the Basic Wheat cycle and the light crust setting.

You can do this by hand as well.  Just mix all the ingredients in a standmixer or by hand until mixed.  The dough will be sticky.  It will not look like you average bread dough. 

Cover and let it rise for about an hour.  Brush a loaf pan with melted butter and sprinkle with cornmeal to prevent sticking.  Cover and let it rise again.

Bake in a preheated oven at 350 degrees.  Bake for 35-40 minutes. 

I'm linking up with Diary of a Stay at Home Mom for Cooking Thursday.

Cooking Thursday~~Sally Lunn Bread

About this time each year I start longing for the living history museum we go to near us.  Being able to leave this fast paced world and step back to the 1800's.  One way I can keep the museum around us year round is through the food.  So this week I'm sharing with you one of the recipes they make often at the museum.

Sally Lunn Bread

1 cup milk

1 pkg. dry yeast

1/3 cup sugar

1/2 cup butter

3 eggs

4 cups flour

1 tsp. salt

Heat the milk to almost boiling.  Let it cool until it is lukewarm and add the yeast.  Cream the butter and sugar until well incorporated.  Then add the eggs and beat well.  Add flour and salt.  Mix well.  Cover and let rise until it is doubled in size.  Punch down and stir again.  Put into a bunt pan or spring form pan.  Bake at 350 for 45 minutes.

This bread is SO good.  Buttery and light that melts in your mouth. 

Cooking Thursday~~Easy Banana Bread

Since we are entering fall here in NY, I've been getting the baking itch again.  While looking through my book of recipes I found this one.  It was handwritten on a piece of paper.  Not sure where it came from or why I've never made it before. 

Easy Banana Bread

1 box of cake mix

3 bananas mashed

3 eggs

1/3 cup oil (I often use apple sauce)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

To the bananas add the cake mix, eggs and oil.  Mix completely.  Pour into greased 9 x 5 bread pan.  Bake for 40 minutes, or until done.

Like I said....easy!  I'm going to make pumpkin bread the same way....but use spice cake as well.

To see other recipes go on over to Diary of a SAHM.

Cooking Thursday~~

I LOVE making bread.  When I heard about Artisan Bread in 5 a day I thought it was complicated.  Not in the least bit!!  I make up a batch of dough and cut off a piece and bake.  I've even done cinnamon rolls with this dough.  After a while I'm just able to do it very quickly without measuring.  I got this recipe from their website.

The dough will be pretty wet.  But this is how it's supposed to look.

Artisan Bread in Five a Day!

3 cups lukewarm water

1 1/2 tablespoons granulated yeast

1 1/2 tablespoons Morton’s Kosher Salt

6 1/2 cups (2-pounds) unbleached all-purpose flour

In a 5 or 6 quart bowl or lidded Food Storage Container, dump in the water and add the yeast and salt. Because we are mixing in the flour so quickly it doesn’t matter that the salt and yeast are thrown in together.

Dump in the flour all at once and stir with a long handled wooden spoon.

Stir it until all of the flour is incorporated into the dough, as you can see it will be a wet rough dough.

Let it sit on the counter for about 2 hours.  It will look something like this...

At this point you can place a vented cover on it and place in the refrigerator for at least 24 hours.  You can use it right away, but it's better the next day.

I used an ice cream bucket container, I probably could use a bigger container but I like to use what I have.

Go HERE to see recipes on using this dough.  I've been doing it for a while now I just grab and go!

Cooking Thursday--Zucchini Bread

Our garden is finally starting to give us a lot of goodies.  Especially zucchini!!  Most of it I'm shredding and putting in the freezer so we can enjoy it in the winter...when i really enjoy baking!!

Amish Zucchini Bread

3 eggs

2 cups of sugar

2 cups of zucchini, shredded

1 cup of cooking oil (I always use applesauce instead of oil)

2 teaspoons of vanilla

3 cups of flour

1 teaspoon of salt

1 teaspoon of baking soda

1 teaspoon of baking powder

2 teaspoons of cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon of nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon of cloves

1/2 cup of chopped nuts

1/2 cup of raisins

Beat eggs until foamy. Stir in sugar, zucchini, oil and vanilla. Gradually add dry ingredients and spices. Stir in nuts. Pour into bread pans which have been greased only on the bottoms. Bake at 325ºF. for 60 to 80 minutes. Cool 10 minutes. Remove from pans and cool completely.

Makes 2 loaves.

Go on over to Diary of a SAHM and see other recipes...better yet join us!!

Sourdough Starter Day 1 and 2

Sandra over at Diary of a SAHM made a sourdough starter from the recipe the West Ladies shared on their video "The Art of Breadmaking".  I decided to give it a try.  Little did I know I would be blessed the next day with the video!!

DAY 1

- Put the flour, yeast, sugar, and salt in the jar.

Next add the warm water. Stir well!

Now watch the bubbles appear!!

Just an FYI:  Make sure the jar you are using is large!!  My first batch over flowed...creating a big mess! LOL!  No pictures of that...sorry!

DAY 2

I noticed yesterday my starter looked like this!  My first reaction was ewww!  What did I do wrong??  So I went back to the video and noticed they said I need to stir it from time to time.  So after I stirred it, it began to look ok again.

Tada!!  There are no bubbles, but I'm going to feed it later and I'm sure the bubbles will come back.  Like the foil under my jar?  I'm not cleaning up another mess on my counter!! :-)

How is your sourdough starter?  If you have not ever made this, give it a try!  It really is hard to mess up...I think...LOL!

If you have questions like I did you can go HERE and read all about your starter.  This website is full of information and pictures.  I like pictures :-)