Sourdough Bread

Sourdough bread is so yummy, but it can be a bit daunting to make if you haven't made it before. I have wanted for a while to have a good sourdough starter, and this past Christmas, I was gifted one. A friend had a starter that his family had kept going for several years (yes, years!), and he gave some of it to me and my husband. I have used it several times now and divided it twice so I always have bread on hand. It makes the most fabulously-soft bread and is now my go-to  sandwich bread.

Rather than re-type the directions, I will direct you to a website that has nearly-identical directions to those my friend gave me. This site has the directions also to begin your starter, as well as feeding directions and how to make the bread. One difference I will point out is that it works better to feed every 2-3 weeks rather than every 3-5 days.

I've included below pictures of my starter  and the bread I made with it today.

Apple Crisp

It's snowing here in Virginia. When I get cold, I want to bake. Tonight's creation was an apple crisp. This one is positively delightful!

For the sugar, I used an unrefined cane sugar, which is essentially a light brown sugar.

To make it, you will need:

Apple mixture:
4 cups of apples, peeled, cored, and diced
2 tbsp sugar
1/8 tsp salt
3/4 tsp cinnamon

Streusel:
1/2 cup rolled oats
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/8 tsp salt
1/4 cup butter

Preheat oven to 350F. Lightly grease an 8" square baking dish (or equivalent).

Mix the ingredients for the apple mixture and pour into the prepared dish.

Mix together the dry ingredients for the streusel. Using a grater, grate in the butter. Use your fingers to blend the butter with the dry ingredients.

Spread the streusel evenly over the apple mixture. Bake 50-60 minutes, or until apples are soft.

Bean and Corn Salad

This recipe was given to me by a good friend of mine, Katie, who had it for dinner some night last week. I was there when she made it, and it looked so yummy that I asked her the recipe. I've made it twice now and it will be on my menu at least once a week now!

I did make a few customizations to the original to suit my tastes, but nothing major.

To make it the way I did, you will need:

1-2 cans of black or pinto beans, drained and rinsed
1/2 red onion, finely chopped
1 bell pepper, finely chopped
1 cup corn kernels
2 roma tomatoes, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced or pressed
Juice of one lime (2 tbsp)
2 tbsp olive oil
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1-2 tbsp chopped parsley (I used dried)

Mix it all together and let it sit for an hour or two before serving. Fantastic with chips!

Challah Bread

This bread is so yummy that I will dispense with any further introduction and get right to the recipe!

The following are directions for one loaf (easily mixed in stand mixer, bread machine, or food processor). The original recipe can be found at Allrecipes.com (search for "Challah I").

1-1/4 cups warm water
1/2 tbsp dry yeast
1/4 cup honey
1 egg (plus one additional egg for the glaze)
2 tbsp oil
1/2 tbsp salt
4 cups all-purpose flour

Start by mixing the water and yeast. Stir till the yeast is dissolved.

Add honey, egg, oil, and salt. Stir till completely mixed. Helpful hint: Using a whisk will make your job easier!

Add the flour a cup at a time till a dough forms (use a whisk when you add the first cup and a large spoon after that!). It will probably be a bit shaggy, but it will become smooth after kneading.

Turn out onto a floured surface and knead for several minutes. By the end of the kneading process, your dough should be smooth.

Let rise in a warm place for about an hour or until doubled.

Turn out onto a lightly-floured surface. Divide doug into 3 equal pieces and make these pieces into 18" long "snakes."

Spray a large baking sheet with cooking spray or line with parchment. Place your three "snakes" on the prepared pan side by side. Braid the strands together just like you would braid hair. When you reach the end, pinch each of the ends together.

Mix your second egg with about 1/2 tsp water and brush over your completed braid. Let rise for about 30 minutes.

Preheat oven to 375. Bake in the preheated oven for 35-40 minutes or until it sounds hollow when you tap on the bottom. If your bread is browning too much, you can tent it with aluminum foil for the remainder of the cooking time.

This bread make excellent toast and is divine with some good butter slathered on it!

Manicotti Shells

I'm back from a long hiatus. This summer has been very busy for Stacey and I and full of quite a few changes for both of us.

I haven't done much cooking this summer (at least none that was worth posting!), but I am getting back to the kitchen now and hopefully will have a lot more to post.

This recipe is so easy and has quite a few applications. I use these pasta sheets for manicotti, lasagna, and even lasagna roll-ups. They're super simple to make, and you can easily customize the recipe.

To make these, you need:

2 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups water
6 eggs
Pinch of salt

Start by preheating a large non-stick skillet on medium heat.

Mix the flour and water in a large mixing bowl till there are no more lumps. Add eggs and stir till smooth. The batter will be runny, but this is what you want.

Pour 1/4 cup of batter on preheated skillet, turning skillet slightly to spread out batter. Cook until top is completely dry. Remove to a cooling rack.

Repeat with remaining batter. I usually 14-16 shells.

For manicotti, stuff with your favorite filling, roll up, and top with sauce and cheese. For lasagna, use as you would lasagna noodles.

100% Whole Wheat Muffins

It's been a while since I posted last, but it's not from lack of cooking!  Things have been pretty busy around here lately and probably getting a lot busier soon!  I didn't want you all to think I'd forgotten about you, so here is a new recipe I found and a couple of variations.

This one comes from King Arthur Flour and is just about as healthy a muffin as you can get, short of making it sugar-free.  I started originally with just the blueberry recipe and then decided to try apple cinnamon muffins as well.

The base recipe will stay the same, and here it is:

2-1/4 cups whole wheat flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp salt
1 cup brown sugar (I reduced the sugar to 1/2 cup organic sugar + 1 tbsp molasses)
1 tsp cinnamon (I omitted this in the blueberry version)
1-1/2 cup buttermilk (I used 1-1/2 cup unsweetened almond milk + 1-1/2 tbsp lemon juice)
1/3 cup oil
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup berries or diced apples (use pretty much whatever fruit you want, just make sure it's the size of blueberries)

Preheat oven to 400F/200C.  Grease or line 12 muffin cups.

Mix all ingredients together, just till combined, and pour into prepared muffin cups.  An ice cream scoop (1/4 cup) works pretty well for this.

Bake in preheated oven for 18-22 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.

Here are the blueberry ones...

...and the apple ones.

Both were equally scrumptious, though I am more partial to blueberry.  You can probably do these with just about any fruit and maybe even add some chopped nuts! 

No Knead Pizza Crust

I feel like I should call this the "Sara Harper Pizza Crust." It was inspired by a friend of mine who wants to cook, but like many people, she's a bit wary of yeast doughs. They can be a bit scary if you haven't done many of them or have had bad experiences with them.

I have definitely been there, but after lots and lots and lots of practice and errors, I've found that they are not so scary after all.

To introduce the yeast-phobic to the wonderful world of yeast doughs in a gentle manner, I took a basic no-knead bread recipe and tweaked it to become an easy pizza crust.

Without further ado, here it is!

You need:

3 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp salt
1 pkg yeast (2-1/4 tsp)
1-1/3 to 1-1/2 cups water

Put everything in a big bowl and mix till it's combined. It will be very sticky, but this is fine. Let it sit a few minutes for the gluten to relax.

Oil your pizza pan. Spread out your dough to the size you want, wetting your fingers to keep sticking to a minimum. Place in a warm oven (turn it to lowest setting for 1 minute, then turn off) for 15 minutes.

Take the crust out of the oven and preheat oven to 450. While you wait, brush crust with olive oil.

Bake crust for 8-9 minutes or until starting to brown slightly.

Brush crust with a bit more olive oil and sprinkle some salt around the edge. Top with your favorite toppings and bake an additional 9-10 minutes or until the doneness you prefer.