There are few things more satisfying than biting into a freshly made, crispy-on-the-outside, soft-and-supple-on-the-inside slice of perfectly baked bread.
Bread is the foundation of a meal, the center of daily life, and each loaf tells the story of the baker who shaped it. Many home cooks find bread baking rewarding but intimidating.
In addition to wheat, bread is often made with rye, barley, potato, oat, spelt, soy and other lesser known grains. Added seeds, nuts and fruit often include one or more of the following (partial list):
sunflower seeds
pumpkin seeds
poppy seeds
fled seeds
walnuts
raisins
currants
sesame seeds
olives
linseed
hazelnuts
almonds
oat flakes
whole gain groats
whey
In Germany, at any common bakery on the street, most, if not all of the items described above would be available on any given day. No need to go to a special, overpriced “organic” or “gourmet” bakery in some high end neighborhood. Just any average bakery will do.
Oddly, these same ingredients are often touted in online health advice articles – implying that there are health benefits to adding these “special” ingredients to one’s diet, all while other countries have had them as daily menu items for centuries if not thousands of years.
You can’t go through fall without making (or receiving) pumpkin bread at least once, and my recipe won’t disappoint.
Pumpkin Walnut Bread
Ingredients
1 (15 ounce) can pumpkin puree
3 eggs
1 cup vegetable oil
2/3 cup water
3 cups white sugar
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup walnuts pieces
3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
2 teaspoons salt
1 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
Directions
Step 1 Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour three loaf pans.
Step 2 In a large bowl, mix together pumpkin puree, eggs, oil, water and sugars until well blended. In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, walnuts, nutmeg, cloves and ginger. Stir the dry ingredients into the pumpkin mixture until just blended. Pour into the prepared pans.
Step 3 Bake for about 50 minutes in the preheated oven. Loaves are done when toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.
1 medium yellow onion, diced (approximately 1 cup)
1 green bell pepper, diced (approximately 1 cup)
1/2 teaspoon garlic salt
½ teaspoon onion powder
8 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled
1/2 cup brown sugar (this is optional – you could omit)
1 can Hormel Chili with beans
2 cans (28 ounces each) baked beans, we used Bush’s Original Baked Beans
1/2 cup catsup
1/4 cup mustard
Instructions
Preheat oven to 350°F.
In a 4 quart, heavy bottom, oven-safe pot (like a Dutch oven) over medium heat, add ground beef, onion, bell pepper, garlic salt, and onion powder. Cook until the hamburger is no longer pink. Drain the excess liquid.
Add cooked bacon crumbles, brown sugar, baked beans, chili beans, barbecue sauce, and mustard. Stir to incorporate all ingredients.
Cover and bake for 1 hour. (When done, the beans should be hot and bubbly and thickened.) Serve warm.
Sprinkle yeast on lukewarm water in mixing bowl; stir to dissolve.
Add sugar, salt, and stir to dissolve; add flour and knead dough until smooth and elastic.
Let rise at least 1/2 hour.
While dough is rising, prepare a baking soda water bath with 2 cups warm water and 2 Tbs.
baking soda.
Be certain to stir often.
After dough has risen, pinch off bits of dough and roll into a long rope (about 1/2 inch or less thick) and shape.
Dip pretzel into soda solution and place on greased baking sheet.
Allow pretzel to rise again.
Bake in a 450 degree oven for about 10 minutes or until golden.
Brush with melted butter and enjoy!
Toppings: After you brush with butter try sprinkling with coarse salt.
Or for Auntie Anne’s famous cinnamon sugar, try melting a stick of butter in a shallow bowl (big enough to fit the entire pretzel) and in another bowl, make a mixture of cinnamon and sugar.
dip the pretzel into the butter, coating both sides generously.
Line up a muffin tin with paper liners and set aside.
In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, salt, baking soda and baking powder. Stir with a fork to combine and make a large well in the center.
Pour in orange zest, milk, vanilla extract, eggs and oil into the well and stir until just combined.
Spoon into prepared tins to be 3/4 full and bake 15 to 18 minutes. Cool completely before frosting.
Directions for Icing
Whip butter, heavy cream, zest, and vanilla together. Slowly stir in powdered sugar until it starts to mix in. Scrape sides and whip 30 seconds until light and fluffy. Frost cupcakes and store in an airtight container until ready to serve.
Toss 4 Skinless Boneless Chicken Breasts with Olive Oil. Pound the Chicken until 1/2 inch thick, then brush with more Olive Oil. Season with salt, pepper and dried oregano.
Grill on oiled grates over medium high heat. Flip and top with pizza sauce, thinly sliced mozzarella and tomato slices.
Cover and grill until cooked through. Season with salt, pepper and red pepper flakes. Top with basil.
Step 1 Juice the lemons to make 1 cup of juice. To make your labor easier, FIRMLY roll the lemons between your hand and counter top before cutting in half and juicing.
Step 2 In a gallon pitcher combine 1 cup lemon juice, 1 cup sugar, and 6 cups cold water. Stir. Adjust water to taste. Chill and serve over ice.
2 lb navy beans (soak according to package directions)
1 cup onions (chopped)
1 cup carrot sticks
1 cup celery (chopped)
1 garlic clove (minced)
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
3 cups ham (chopped)
1 bay leaf
1⁄4 cup chopped parsley
1 tablespoon thyme
14 ounces diced tomatoes (optional)
DIRECTIONS
In large pot add 1 tsp of olive oil – bring to medium high heat and add onion, celery, garlic and carrots – cook till onions become clear. Add beans and allow to cook for 5 minutes stirring frequently.
Add ham hock or bone and cover with water. Bring to a boil add salt, pepper, thyme and bay leaves. Cook till beans are tender. Approximately 2 – 3 hours.
Add ham meat, parsley and tomatoes (optional). Cook over medium heat until beans are tender.
Spread about 1/3 of the potato slices into the bottom of the prepared baking dish. Top with about 1/3 of the onion slices. Sprinkle 3 tablespoons flour over the potato and onion. Arrange 2 tablespoons butter on top of the flour. Season the entire layer with salt and pepper. Repeat layering twice more
Heat milk in microwave 60 seconds until warm. Pour enough warm milk over the mixture in the baking dish so the top of the liquid is level with the final layer of potatoes
Spread the Le Gruyere Cheese all over top
Sprinkle some paprika over the top if desired
Bake in preheated oven until potatoes are tender, 45 to 60 minutes.
The Rolling Pin 