Berry Best Muffins

I found this recipe in a cook book that the Young Women in our ward put together and sold as their girls-camp fund raiser.  I've discovered that I like my quick breads and muffins much more when they have some sort of topping; this is one such recipe.  The berries can be fresh or frozen.  Enjoy!

1/2 c. brown sugar
1/3 c. flour
1 1/2 tsp. lemon zest
1/2 c. pecans or walnuts, chopped and toasted
2 Tbsp. butter

1 1/2 c. flour
3/4 c. sugar
2 tsp. baking powder
1 1/2 tsp. lemon zest
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 c. milk
1/2 c. butter, melted
1 egg
1 1/2 c. berries (blackberries, blueberries, raspberries)

1.  Preheat oven to 350.  For streusel topping: mix brown sugar, 1/3 c. flour and 1 1/2 tsp. lemon zest together in a bowl.  Stir in nuts and 2 Tbsp. butter.  Mix together until butter is evenly distributed and mixture is crumbly.  Set aside.
2.  For muffins: combine flour, sugar, baking powder, lemon zest, cinnamon and salt in a large bowl.  Make a well in the center.  Add milk, butter and egg to the well and mix just until dry ingredients are well incorporated.  Fold in berries.  Spoon into 12 paper lined muffin cups, filling each only 2/3 full.  Top with 1 Tbsp. of the topping.  Do not overfill.  Bake on middle rack 20-25 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.  Place on rack and cool 5 minutes.

Yield: 12 muffins

Homemade White Bread

Homemade bread is one of my very favorite things to eat.  I can remember when I was growing up my mom would make bread and give each of the six kids a small amount of dough to make their own loaf.  We each got a small loaf pan and we were responsible for shaping it and making sure that it was put in a warm place, then we were in charge of checking it when it was done rising.  We would put our loaf pans on the hearth around our big black pot-belly stove in the family room.  I love that memory.  I found this recipe here  it makes 4 loaves plus a little extra for fry-bread or as the author of the blog calls them 'scones'.  I halve the recipe and it makes 2 large loaves and 1 small loaf, which is just the right amount for my family, sometimes if I'm feeling generous I will give the small loaf to one of my neighbors.
When mine are finished baking I like to take a stick of butter and rub it on the tops of the bread, no need to melt the butter, just take the whole stick and go to town!  (You aren't going to rub the entire stick of butter on to the top - although who am I to tell you how to live your life - just enough to give the tops a nice buttery glow.)

1 1/2 Tbsp. yeast
3/8 c. warm water
1/2 tsp. sugar
2 c. very warm water
1/2 c. powdered milk
1 Tbsp. salt
1/2 c. oil
2 eggs
1/4 c. sugar
7 1/2 c. flour

1.  Stir together the yeast, 3/8 c. water and 1/2 tsp. sugar; set aside to allow the yeast to activate.
2.  In the bowl of a stand mixer combine the 2 c. water, powdered milk, salt, oil, eggs, 1/4 c. sugar and 3 1/2 c. flour.  Mix together for 3 minutes on medium speed.
3.  Add the yeast mixture and the remaining 4 c. flour.  Knead for 5 minutes in the mixer or my hand for 10 minutes until you have a smooth and elastic dough.
4.  Transfer to a greased bowl (turn dough to coat all sides), cover and allow to rise in a warm spot for 1 hour or until double in bulk.
5.  After the dough has doubled punch it down and shape into loafs.  Place in greased loaf pans, cover and allow to rise for an additional hour.
6.  Preheat oven to 400.  Bake for 10 minutes then lower the oven to 350.  Bake and additional 15-20 minutes.  Allow to cool in the pan for 5 minutes then turn out onto cooling racks.

Overnight Cinnamon Rolls

This is sort of a chain reaction recipe.  I found it on Pinterest on the blog http://sugarandspice-celeste.blogspot.com/2008/12/absolutely-sinful-cinnamon-rolls.html who copied the recipe from Pioneer Woman.  I have to say these really are Uh-May-Zing.  I didn't do them overnight I baked them the same day I made them.  I do, however, plan to use that little trick in the future.  I also will at some point freeze the cinnamon rolls to use at a later date and if I have any negative feedback with either of these methods, I will note them in an appendage to this post.  I didn't use the coffee flavored glaze that PW and S&S use on their rolls, instead I used a cream cheese frosting recipe I found on Epicurius, it was really, really perfect.  In both the PW and the S&S recipes it calls for 1 c. white sugar, I opted for 1/2 cup white and 1/2 cup brown sugar because I like the caramely flavor the brown sugar provides..  Several reviewers on Sugar and Spice said that their dough was very wet; mine was not.  It was a bit on the stiff side, but in the end it didn't matter.  The rolls turned out perfectly: gooey where they need to be, crusty where they need to be, and delicious where they need to me: in my mouth.  I ate 4 in as many days and do not at all regret my decision.  I honestly don't think I will ever use another cinnamon roll recipe.  I did use a little trick I kind of made up for the rising time: I preheated my oven to warm (in my oven that is 175) and put my pizza stone in it while it preheated.  After it was done, I took the pizza stone out of the oven, put it in the microwave and put the bowl with the dough that needed to rise on top of the pizza stone, closed the microwave door, and let the warmth do it's work: like a charm, the dough rose just the right amount. 

2 c. whole milk
1/2 c. vegetable oil
1/2 c. sugar
2 1/4 tsp. yeast
4 1/2 c. flour
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 Tbsp. salt

1 c. melted butter, plus more as needed
1/8 c. ground cinnamon
1/2 c. white sugar
1/2 c. brown sugar  

4 oz. cream cheese, softened
1 c. powdered sugar
1/4 c. butter, at room temperature
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

1.  Mix milk, vegetable oil, and 1/2 c. white sugar in a pan.  Scald the milk (heat until just before the boiling point).  Remove from the heat and let cool 45 minutes to 1 hour.
2.  When the mixture is lukewarm to warm, but NOT hot, sprinkle in the yeast.  Let this sit for a minute then add 4 c. of the flour.  Stir mixture together.  Cover and let rise for at least 1 hour.
3.  Next, add 1/2 c. flour, the baking powder, baking soda, and salt.  Stir mixture together.  From here, you could cover the dough and put it in the fridge until you need it, overnight or even a day or tow, if necessary.  Just keep your eye on it and if it starts to rise out of the pan, just punch it down.  Or continue to make the rolls:
4.  Sprinkle work surface generously with flour and roll the dough into a thin rectangle shape, about 1/4" thick.  Brush melted butter on top, then sprinkle sugar over the butter, and finish with a generous sprinkling for cinnamon.
5.  Starting with the wide end, roll the dough tightly towards you in a neat line.  Next, pinch the seam to the roll to seal it.  Spread 1 Tbsp. melted butter in each pan/dish (I got enough rolls to fill one 9" round cake pan and one 6" round cake pan, the original recipe says it will make 3-4 pans, I'm not sure how that would happen, but that's what they say) .  With a sharp knife (or with dental floss) begin cutting the dough into 1 inch slices.  Lay them in your pans.  Let rise for 20-30 minutes.  Bake at 375 for 13-17 minutes, or until golden brown.
6.  While rolls are baking: with your electric hand mixer, whisk together all of the frosting ingredients until smooth.  Slather over the top of the rolls after they have cooled for about 10 minutes.

IF MAKING AHEAD FOR LATER USE:  Instead of putting directly into the oven, put the assembled rolls into the fridge and let them rise for their 2nd rising (the step right before you bake them) in the refrigerator overnight.  Then in the morning let them sit at room temperature for about 30 minutes, then bake them as directed.  If you plan to freeze the rolls, place the pan of prepared rolls in the freezer.  On the day you plan to bake them.  Take them out to defrost and rise about 3 or 4 hours before you want to devour eat them.

Croissants

My husband and I visited Paris 5 years ago and I still love to remember the delicious pastry they have there.  The quality is so much higher than anything you can find here in the US.  I'm not sure if it's the ingredients, the freshness of the product, the water (as Parisiennes like to claim) or a combination of or none of the above, it doesn't matter, their baked goods are superior.  One of my cooking bucket-list items was to make croissants that closely match (as much as possible) the treats I had in Europe; while these are not the exact twin of my culinary experience in Europe, they are VERY, VERY good.  Time consuming, but if you are determined enough to see it through, they are worth every second of effort.

1/3 c. warm water
1 pkg. active dry yeast (2 1/4 tsp.)
1 Tbsp. sugar
1 Tbsp. salt
1 1/3 c. warm milk
1 lbs. (about 3 1/2 cups) all purpose flour, plus more for work surface
2 Tbsp. vegetable oil
3 1/2 sticks (14 oz.) chilled unsalted butter
1 large egg yolk
2 Tbsp. heavy cream

1.  In a liquid measuring cup, combine water, yeast and 1 tsp. sugar.  Stir to combine.  Let stand 5 minutes to allow yeast to proof.  In a second measuring cup, dissolve the remaining 2 tsp. sugar, salt and milk.
2.  In a large bowl, whisk the flour.  Add the yeast mixture, milk mixture and oil.  Blend everything together by cutting and pressing with a rubber spatula, being sure all the flour is incorporated.  The dough with be very wet.
3.  Turn dough out onto a well floured work surface.  Let stand for 3 minutes to allow the dough to absorb some of the liquid.  Start kneading by lifting near the edges, with a bench scraper, and flipping it over onto the other side. Rapidly repeat the movement from one side to the other, and end over end, until the dough feels smooth and begins to draw back into shape when pushed out, 8 to 10 times.  Do not over-knead.
4.  Transfer dough to a clean bowl.  Cover with plastic wrap and let stand in a warm place until doubled in bulk, about 1 1/2 hours.  Punch down the dough, and turn out onto a lightly floured work surface.  Using lightly floured hands, pat and push the dough out into a rectangle about 12X10 inches.  Fold the dough in three, like a business letter.  Place on a lightly floured baking sheet or plate; cover with plastic wrap and let stand in a warm place until doubled in bulk, about 45 minutes.  This second rise can be done in the refrigerator, overnight.
5.  Punch down dough.  Cover the dough again with plastic wrap, and transfer to refrigerator for 20 minutes; this will allow the gluten to relax, and make rolling out the dough easier.
6.  Place butter on a lightly floured work surface and beat with a rolling pin to soften.  Then smear it out with the heel of your hand until it is of spreading consistency, but still cold; it must not become soft and oily, refrigerate if necessary.
7.  Place dough on a lightly floured work surface, roll it out to a 18X10 inch rectangle.  Spread butter as evenly as possible over the upper two-thirds of the dough, leaving a 1/4 inch border.  Fold the bottom (unbuttered) third of the dough up to the middle.  Fold the top third down to cover it.
8.  Lightly flour the top of the dough, and work surface.  Turn the dough so the edge of the top flap is to your right.  Roll dough into a rectangle, about 18X8 inches.  Roll rapidly, starting an inch from the near end, and going to within an inch of the far end.  Fold again in three, as above.  Wrap in plastic wrap, and transfer to the refrigerator for 1 hour.
9.  Remove dough from refrigerator.  Sprinkle lightly with flour, and deflate the dough by tapping lightly with rolling pin.  Cover with plastic wrap, and let rest 8 minutes to relax gluten, if necessary.  Repeat rolling and folding process twice more, as above.  If the butter has hardened and congealed into flakes, beat the dough with light firm taps going from one side to the other until butter has softened.  It must be able to extend the length and width of the rectangle inside the dough as you roll it out until it has softened.  Refrigerate for 2 hours or overnight.  If refrigerating overnight, cover with a board and a 5 lbs. weight.  Resting overnight will facilitate shaping.
10.  When shaping the croissant, keep the dough that you are not working with refrigerated.  Place chilled dough on a lightly floured work surface.  Deflate dough.  Roll the dough out to a 25X12 inch rectangle.  (If at any time the dough becomes too elastic to work with, cover with plastic wrap, refrigerate, and let rest 10 minutes to relax gluten.)  Cut in half lengthwise.  Working with one piece of dough at a time, using a pastry wheel or a croissant cutter, cut into triangles with a 5 inch base.
11.  Roll the triangles out to enlarge slightly.  Roll towards the tip, creating tension by using your other hand to stretch the top of the triangle away from you.  The dough should overlap 3 times with the tip sticking out from underneath.
12.  Place on a parchment lined baking sheet leaving 2 inches between croissants.  Curve the ends of the croissant inward, forming a crescent shape.  Repeat with second piece of dough.  Cover lightly with plastic wrap, and let stand in a warm place until very spongy and doubled in size, 1 to 1 1/2 hours.
13.  Preheat oven to 475 degrees.  In a small bowl, whisk together egg yolk and heavy cream, and lightly brush over the tops of croissants.  Open the oven door, spritz the oven heavily with water from a spray bottle, and quickly close the door.  Place croissants in oven, and spray bottom of the oven with water once more.  Bake until puffed and golden brown, about 15 minutes.  After 10 minutes, rotate pan to ensure even baking.  Reduce oven temperature to 400 degrees and continue to bake until cooked through, about 5 minutes more.  Transfer to a wire rack to cool for 15 minutes before serving.

Lemon Blueberry Bread

I freely admit it.  If lemons were people they would be my best friends.  I love them.  Living in Citrus land we have an abundance of the little gems.  I love their color, their smell, their flavor, the way they brighten everything they come in contact with, the power they hold over fish, the use in both sweet and savory dishes.  I don't know if I would be willing to live in a world where the lemon was non-existent. 
I had some fresh blueberries who were just about to go bad and some lemons who were calling out to me to be made into something delicious.  I came across this recipe and knew it was what these two ingredients were meant to become. 
This is a perfect quick bread recipe, soft and awesome in the middle and crusty on the edges.  You might think you don't want the end pieces because they are almost on the too brown side, but that is the piece you should fight for; it has soaked in all of the lemon/sugar glaze goodness and become the perfect bite. 
I made this recipe for the first time about 2 weeks ago and have since made (and eaten, almost single handedly) an additional 5 loaves (one I gave away).  It does not last long around our house.  The only one who doesn't love it is my 5-year old, but that's fine with me because that means one less person I have to share with. 
Tips:  I've made it separately with both fresh and frozen blueberries, both turn out great, the frozen blueberry loaf takes just a little bit longer to cook.  I've also tried baking 2 loaves at the same time and this also, takes a bit longer; I think I would rotate the pans if I did this again (swap which side of the oven they are on, left to right/right to left).  The lemons I use come from my mother-in-laws garden and are significantly more juicy than those I would get at the grocery store.  When I make the lemon/sugar glaze I use all the juice from one lemon, it is more than 2 Tbsp. but works perfectly still, (the lemons seem to give on average 1/3 c. juice).

Awesome!

1/3 c. butter, melted
1 c. sugar
1 lemon, juiced
2 eggs
1 1/2 c. flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 c. milk
2 Tbsp. lemon zest
1 c. blueberries, fresh or frozen (do not defrost if using frozen)

2 Tbsp. lemon juice
1/4 c. sugar
The zest from 1 lemon

1.  Preheat oven to 350.  Grease and flour a 9X5" (or three 3X5" mini loaf pans) loaf pan, set aside.
2.  Mix together the flour, baking powder, and salt.  In a separate bowl cream together the butter and sugar; add the eggs and beat well.  Mix in the juice from 1 lemon and 2 Tbsp. lemon zest.  Add the flour half of the dry ingredients, then the milk, followed by the remaining dry ingredients, just until combined (mixing too long with make your bread tough and dry).  Gently fold in the berries. 
3.  Pour into the prepared baking pan and bake for 60-70 (35-45 for mini loaves) minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. 
4.  While bread is baking mix together the 2 Tbsp. lemon juice, 1/4 c. sugar and the remaining lemon zest.  When bread comes out of the oven and is still hot, pour the lemon/sugar mixture over the bread.  Cool completely and try to not eat the whole loaf in one sitting.

Easy Homemade French Bread

My friend who is the queen of recipes gave me this one.  It makes two large loaves that are a little bit bigger, and 100% yummier, than those you could buy in the grocery store bakery department.  They turned out golden brown, crispy outside and super soft and excellent texture on the inside, even two days later.  Plus this is a very simple to make recipe.  We ate one half of a loaf for dinner as garlic bread, cubed up the other half and used it in bread pudding, and I've sliced the other and put it in the freezer to use in a french toast dish I'm signed up to make for a teacher's luncheon at my boys' school.  You could easily mix up the dough, bake one loaf and freeze the remaining dough (before the 30 minute rise) for later use as bread, breadsticks, pizza dough, cinnamon roll dough, hoagie rolls, etc.  Just take the dough out of the freezer, allow to come to room temperature and proceed at the 30 rise mark (approx. 3-5 hours total time).

1/2 c. warm water
2 1/4 tsp. (one 7g pkg.) dry yeast
2 c. very hot water
1/3 c. oil
3 Tbsp. sugar
1 Tbsp. salt
6 c. flour

1.  Combine the warm water and the yeast.  Set aside.
2.  In a large bowl, combine the hot water, oil, sugar, salt and half of the flour.  Stir with a wooden spoon (I used my electric mixer instead).
3.  Add yeast mixture and stir.
4.  Add the remaining flour and stir.  Leave spoon in the dough.  Let rest for 10 minutes.  Stir and let rest again.  Repeat the rest and stir process three more times (for a total of 5 times). 
5.  Divide dough in half.  Turn dough out onto a floured surface.  Press out to a rectangle.  Roll up (like making cinnamon rolls) and place on a greased baking sheet (one 11X17" baking sheet works just fine) repeat with the other half. 
6.  Let rise in a warm place for 30 minutes.  With a sharp knife, make 3 diagonal slashes across each loaf.  Brush with egg white. 
7.  Bake in a preheated 400 degree oven for 25-30 minutes.  Remove from the baking sheet to a cooling rack.

Enjoy!

You could place an oven safe dish of water on the lower rack of the oven while these are baking to give the crust some extra texture, it's not necessary, but dosen't hurt anything.

Fast Breadsticks

Taisey is my source for great recipes.  She sent me this recipe over a year ago and I just got around to trying it two nights ago.  They are delicious. My usual go-to for breadsticks is my Soft Italian Breadsticks recipe but in a pinch these worked perfectly.  These are delightfully crispy on the outside and soft in the center.  The 'easy' part is that they only rise once for 30 minutes.  Yummy breadsticks in about an hour?  Yes, please!

1 1/2 c. warm water
1 Tbsp. yeast
3 1/2 c. flour
2 Tbsp. sugar
1/2 tsp. salt

3 Tbsp. butter, melted

1.  Mix all the ingredients except the melted butter, in a large bowl (or electric mixer).  Knead for 3 minutes.  Let the dough rest for 10 minutes. 
2.  Heat oven to 375*.  Spread melted butter onto an 11X17 baking sheet. 
3.  Roll out the dough about 1/4 to 1/2 thick and cut into strips with a pizza cutter.  Twist slightly, if desired and place breadsticks about 1/2 apart on the baking sheet.  Sprinkle with garlic salt, choice of herbs (either.rosemary, basil, and/or thyme, crushed finely) and grated Parmesan cheese.  Cover with greased plastic wrap and let rise for 30 minutes (I did this on a cooler day by preheating my oven to 200, turning it off and placing the baking sheet in the oven for 20 minutes, then pulled it out to finish rising then preheated my oven to 375*).
4.  Bake for 15-20 minutes until golden brown.

Yield: 20-25 breadsticks

Hoagie Rolls

These turned out really tasty.  I used them for Sausage, Pepper and Onion Sandwiches.  The rolls were a little like ciabatta bread; crisp on the outside and soft in the middle.  I'm not super and making them look pretty, but they sure do taste great!

1/2 c. warm water
1/2 c. warm milk
1 egg, lightly beaten
2 Tbsp. sugar
1 Tbsp. butter, softened
1 Tbsp. mince chives
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. garlic salt
3 1/4 c. bread flour
3 tsp. active dry yeast

1.  In bread machine pan, place all ingredients in order suggested by the manufacturer.  Select dough setting.

2.  When cycle is complete, turn dough on to a lightly floured surface; divide into 9 pieces.  Shape each into a 4 X 2 inch rectangle.  Place 4 inches apart on a greased baking sheet.  Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled. 

3.  Bake at 375 for 12-15 minutes or until golden brown.  Remove from pans to wire racks to cool.

Yield: 9 rolls

Honey Whole Wheat Bread

Who doesn't love warm homemade bread? No one that I know, that's for sure. My usual hesitation with making bread in the bread maker is that the bread is only delicious for a few hours, but the next day or so it becomes too airy and not as good, I would never use it for sandwiches. I found this recipe on the back of the Gold Medal Flour package and it's very good. I even will use it for making a sandwich. My whole family loves it. After dinner one night E ate 3 whole slices as his dessert. It's also very good as toast. On cooler days when my house is too cold to raise dough very well I will sometimes take the dough out to the car and use that as a proofing box, it works wonderfully; and sometimes if its too cold outside I will use a space heater to heat up my closet and put the dough in there to proof. I'm still want to but am too nervous to try making real whole wheat bread without any white flour. When I do attempt it and it works I'll post that recipe too.
When I made 1 large and 3 small loaves I put the smaller ones in with the big loaf after 20 minutes cooking and they came out great.

4 1/2 tsp. active dry yeast
1/4 c. warm water
1/2 c. honey
1/4 c. butter or margarine
3 tsp. salt
2 1/2 c. very warm water
4 1/2 c. whole wheat flour
2 3/4 to 4 3/4 c. all-purpose flour

In a small bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water; set aside. In large bowl, mix honey, butter, salt and very warm water; cool 5 minutes.

To cooled honey mixture, beat in 3 c. of the whole wheat flour with electric mixer on low speed, scraping bowl frequently, until moistened. Beat on medium speed 3 minutes, scraping bowl frequently. Beat in remaining 1 1/2 c. whole wheat flour and dissolved yeast. With spoon, stir in 2 1/4 to 2 3/4 c. of the all-purpose flour until dough pulls cleanly away from side of bowl.

Place dough on floured work surface. Knead in remaining 1/2 to 1 c. all-purpose flour; continue kneading 5 to 10 minutes until dough is smooth and springy. Grease large bowl with shortening or cooking spray; place dough in bowl, turning dough to grease all sides. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and cloth towel. Let rise in warm place 30 to 45 minutes or until doubled in size.

Generously grease 2 (8X4 or 9X5 inch) loaf pans with shortening or cooking spray. Gently push fist into dough to deflate; divide in half. On lightly floured surface, roll each half of dough with rolling pin into 18X8 inch rectangle. Starting with one 8 inch side, roll up dough tightly, pressing with thumbs to seal after each turn. Pinch edge of dough into roll to seal; pinch ends to seal. Fold ends under loaf; place seam side down in pan. Cover; let rise in warm place 30 to 45 minutes or until doubled in size.

Heat oven to 375. Uncover dough; bake 30 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 350; bake 10 to 15 minutes longer or until loaves sound hollow when lightly tapped. Immediately remove from pans to cooling racks. Cool completely, about 1 hour.

Yield: 2 loaves (16 slices each)

Crepes

These are time consuming to make, so I suggest making them ahead on a day when you have the extra time, layering them with wax paper between each crepe and freezing until you’re ready to eat them (up to 1 month). The filling options are enormous, and it’s fun to make up your own flavor combinations. My favorite is with fruit salsa, orange fruit dip, and Nutella; it’s completely amazing!

Basic Sweet

½ c. flour
½ c. milk
¼ c. lukewarm water
2 large eggs
2 Tbsp. butter, melted
1 ½ Tbsp. sugar
Pinch of salt


1. Combine all ingredients in a blender or food processor until smooth.
2. Pour the batter into a pitcher or other container with a pouring lip. Cover with plastic wrap and let stand for 30 minutes or refrigerate for up to 2 days. (This allows the flour to thoroughly absorb the liquid and gives the gluten in the flour a chance to relax).
3. Place a nonstick or seasoned crêpe pan over medium heat. Coat the pan with a little butter.
4. Stir the batter and pour about 2 Tbsp. into the pan, lifting the pan off the heat and tilting and rotating it so that the batter forms an even, very thin layer. Cook until the top is set and the underside is golden. Turn the crêpe over, using a spatula or your fingers (fingers work best here) and cook until the second side is lightly browned. Remove the crêpe to a piece of wax paper. Continue cooking the rest of the crêpes, buttering the pan and stirring the batter before starting each one. Stack the finished crêpes between sheets of wax paper.

Basic Savory

Prepare Basic Sweet Crêpes, above, omitting the sugar and increasing the salt to ½ tsp.

Soft Italian Breadsticks

Not Pretty, but Delicious

I have yet to master the process of making these look pretty, but they still are tastey. They are really yummy dipped in Alfredo Sauce.

1 c. water
3 Tbsp. butter or margarine, softened
1 ½ tsp. salt
3 c. flour
2 Tbsp. sugar
1 tsp. Italian seasoning
1 tsp. garlic powder
2 ¼ tsp. (1 packet) active dry yeast

1 Tbsp. butter or margarine, melted
1 Tbsp. grated parmesan cheese
1 tsp. garlic salt

1. In bread machine pan, place the first eight ingredients in order suggested by manufacturer. Select dough setting (check dough after 5 minutes; add 1 to 2 Tbsp. or water or flour if needed).
2. When cycle is complete, turn dough onto a lightly flour surface; divide in half. Cut each portion into 12 pieces; roll each into a 4” to 6” rope. Place 2 inches apart on greased baking sheets. Cover and let rise in warm place until doubled, about 20 minutes.
3. Bake at 350° for 15-18 minutes or until golden brown. Immediately brush with butter; sprinkle with parmesan cheese and garlic salt. Serve warm.

Yield: 2 dozen

Pita Bread

I keep the dough semi-thick, steamed the baked pita’s in a towel for approximately 2 hours, they turned out very, very good, not flat like store bought pita’s, but acceptable. I love using these for BLT’s.

1 1/8 c. warm water
3 c. flour
1 tsp. salt
1 Tbsp. oil
1 ½ tsp. white sure
1 ½ tsp. yeast

1. Place all ingredients in bread pan of your bread machine, select dough setting and start. When cycle is complete, turn dough onto a lightly flour surface. Gently roll and stretch dough into a 12 inch rope. With a sharp knife, divide dough into 8 pieces. Roll each into a smooth ball. With rolling pin, roll each ball into a 6 to 7 inch circle. Set aside on a lightly floured countertop. Cover with a towel, let pitas rise about 30 minutes until slightly puffy.
2. Preheat oven to 500°. Place 2 or 3 pitas on a wire rack. Place cake rack directly on oven rack. Bake pitas 4 to 5 minutes until puffed and tops begin to brown. Remove from oven and immediately pace pitas in a sealed brown bag or cover them with a damp kitchen towel until soft.
3. Once pitas have softened, either cut in half or split top edge for half or whole pitas. They can be store in a plastic bag in the refrigerator for several days or in the freezer for 1 to 2 months.

Buttery Pan Rolls

I do not remember where I got this recipe but I sure am grateful that I have it. It’s a very easy pan roll recipe that turns out great every time. Any bread that doesn’t require a ton of kneading is O-K with me!

2 pkg. (2 ¼ tsp. ea.) dry yeast
½ c. warm water
4 ½ c. unsifted flour
¼ c. sugar
10 Tbsp. butter, melted and cooled, divided
1 egg
1 c. warm milk
1 ½ tsp. salt

1. In large bowl, dissolve yeast in water. Let stand till bubbly (15 minutes). In bowl of mixer, stir together 2 c. flour, sugar and salt. Add 6 Tbsp. butter, egg yeast mixture and milk. Beat 5 minutes to blend. Add 2 ½ c. flour. Cover and let dough rise in a warm place until doubled (45 minutes).
2. Pour half of remaining butter in 9X13 inch baking pan to coat bottom. Punch down dough and divide into 15 balls. Place in pan to rise. Drizzle with remaining butter. Cover lightly and let rise in warm place until doubled (30 minutes). Bake at 425° for 12 to 17 minutes until lightly browned.

Crescent Rolls

This makes a lot of rolls; I prefer to halve the recipe when I’m making it for my family, because there are so many.
This dough is VERY sticky, closer to cookie dough than a traditional bread dough. I thought for sure I hadn’t made the recipe correctly the first time I did it, but it was just fine. Do not be tempted to add more flour or they will not be as soft as they should be.

1 ½ c. warm milk
2 c. softened margarine, divided
1 c. sugar
1 ½ tsp. salt
6 eggs
8 c. flour
2 Tbsp. yeast + 2 tsp. sugar (mix in ½ c. warm water)

1. Using 1 c. of the softened margarine, blend all ingredients except yeast mixture in a mixer. Add yeast mixture and blend. Store in a very large Tupperware bowl in the refrigerator overnight.
2. In the morning, stir down. Divide dough into 4 sections for very large rolls (I divide mine into 6 sections for dinner sized rolls). Roll one section at a time into a 12-14 inch circle on a well floured surface. Spread with additional softened margarine.
3. Cut into 8 pie shapes (I use a pizza cutter). Roll crescents from the large end to the small end, leaving a ¼ to ½ inch tail. Curve the roll into a crescent and place on a greased heavy cookie sheet or shallow baking pan.
4. Cover with a lightweight flour sack towel. Let rise 4-5 hours or until doubled. It takes a long time since the dough was cold.
5. Bake at 350 for 7-12 minutes or until lightly browned. Do not overcook.
6. If you are transporting these, do not stack them, they are very light and fragile.

Yield: 32 very large rolls or 48 dinner rolls

Banana Crumb Muffins

The crumb topping is what makes these banana muffins stand apart from the ordinary.

1 ½ c. flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. baking powder
½ tsp. salt
3 bananas, mashed
¾ c. white sugar
1 egg, lightly beaten
1/3 c. butter, melted
1/3 c. packed brown sugar
1/8 c. flour
1/8 tsp. cinnamon
1 Tbsp. butter

1. Preheat oven to 375°. Lightly grease 10 muffin cups or line with muffin papers.
2. In a large bowl, mix together flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. In another bowl, beat together bananas, sugar, egg and melted butter. Stir the banana mixture into the flour mixture just until moistened. Spoon batter into prepared muffin cups.
3. In a small bowl, mix together brown sugar, flour and cinnamon. Cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse cornmeal. Sprinkle topping over muffins.
4. Bake in preheated oven for 18 to 20 minutes (22-25 for jumbo muffins), until a toothpick inserted into center of muffin comes out clean.

Yield: 10 muffins (6 jumbo muffins)

Baked French Toast Casserole with Maple Syrup

This was served at one of the Gourmet Groups I attended. Delicious!

1 loaf French bread (13 to 16 ounces)
8 large eggs
2 c. half and half
1 c. milk
2 Tbsp. sugar
1 tsp. vanilla extract
¼ tsp. ground cinnamon
¼ tsp. ground nutmeg
Dash salt
Praline Topping, recipe follows
Maple Syrup

1. Slice French bread into 20 slices, 1” each. (Use any extra bread for garlic toast or bread crumbs). Arrange slice in a generously butter 9X13 inch flat baking dish in 2 rows, overlapping the slices, slightly. In a large bowl, combine the eggs, half and half, milk, sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt and beat with a rotary beater or whisk until blended but not too bubbly. Pour mixture over the bread slices, making sure all are covered evenly with the milk-egg mixture. Spoon some of the mixture in between the slices. Cover with foil and refrigerate overnight.
2. The next day, preheat to 350°.
3. Spread praline topping evenly over the bread and bake for 40 minutes, until puffed and lightly golden. Serve with maple syrup.

Praline Topping:
½ pound (2 sticks) butter
1 c. packed light brown sugar
1 c. chopped pecans
2 Tbsp. light corn syrup
½ tsp. ground cinnamon
½ tsp. ground nutmeg

1. Combine all ingredients in a medium bowl and blend well. Makes enough for Bake French Toast Casserole.

Golden Honey Pan Rolls

1 c. milk (70 to 80 Fahrenheit)
2 eggs (one separated, using the yolk for the dough and the white for the glaze)
1/2 c. vegetable oil
2 Tbsp. honey
1 1/2 tsp. salt
3 1/2 c. bread flour
2 1/4 tsp. active dry yeast

Glaze:
1/3 c. sugar
2 Tbsp. butter or margarine
Egg white from the above separated egg
Additional honey, optional

1. In bread machine pane, place first eight ingredients in order suggested by manufacturer. Select dough setting (check dough after 5 minutes of mixing; add 1 to 2 Tbsp. of water or flour if needed).
2. When cycle is completed, turn dough onto a lightly floured surface. Punch down; cover and let rest for 10 minutes.
3. Divide dough into 24 pieces; shape each into a ball. Place 12 balls each into two greased 8" baking pans.
4. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 30 minutes.
5. For glaze, combine sugar, butter, honey and egg white; drizzle over dough.
6. Bake at 350 (Fahrenheit) for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown.
7. Brush with additional honey, if desired.

Yield: 2 dozen

Jodi's Fabulous Bread

My Sister-in-Law Jodi gave me this recipe. She swears she didn't name it herself, that it was originally someone elses. Regardless, it's easy and yummy.

Jodi’s Fabulous Bread

2 tsp. yeast
2 ½ c. warm water
2 ½ tsp. salt
2 Tbsp. oil
2 Tbsp. sugar
6 c. flour

Dissolve yeast in water. Add other ingredients and mix together.
Knead. Let rise 1 hour.
Divide into loaves and put on greased cookie sheets. Brush with egg white and let rise 30 minutes.
Bake at 375° for 15-20 minutes.

Honey Cream Filled Crescents

4 oz cream cheese, softened
3 Tbsp. honey, divided
¼ c. sliced almonds
1 package (8 oz) refrigerated crescent dinner rolls
Dash of ground cinnamon

Preheat oven to 375˚. Mix cream cheese and 2 Tbsp. of the honey. Stir in almonds.
Unroll crescent roll dough; separate into 8 triangles.
Spread 1 rounded Tbsp. cream cheese mixture onto each triangle; roll up each loosely, starting at shortest side of triangle, rolling to opposite point. Place rolls on ungreased baking sheet; curve each into crescent shape. Sprinkle with cinnamon.
Bake 12 – 14 minutes or until golden brown. Serve rolls warms, drizzled with remaining honey.

Yield: 8 crescent rolls (1 serving each)

Pepper Biscuit Pull-Apart

I almost always serve this when we're having Orange Grove Chicken Avocado Salad.

¼ tsp garlic powder
¼ tsp salt, if desired
¼ tsp dried oregano
¼ tsp dried basil leaves
4 ½ tsp olive oil
1 (12 oz) can refrigerated flaky biscuits
¼ c. chopped green bell pepper
¼ c. chopped red bell pepper
1 oz (1/4 c.) shredded mozzarella cheese
2 Tbsp. grated Romano or Parmesan cheese

1. Heat oven to 400˚.
2. In small bowl, combine garlic powder, salt, basil and oregano; blend well. Set aside.
3. Separate dough into 10 biscuits. Place 1 biscuit in center of ungreased cookie sheet.
4. Arrange remaining biscuits in circle, edges slightly overlapping, around center biscuit. Gently press out to 10 inch circle.
5. Brush with olive oil; top with bell peppers and cheeses. Sprinkle garlic powder mixture over top.
6. Bake at 400˚ for 12 to 15 minutes or until golden brown. To serve, pull apart warm biscuits