Category Archives: Breads

May 5, 2011 · 10:44 am

Quick & Easy Nutella Crescent Rolls

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A quick and easy idea today that isn’t really a recipe, as it only contains three ingredients: a tube of packaged crescent rolls, a jar of Nutella and some chopped nuts. I used walnuts, but chopped hazelnuts, pecans, or almonds would also be good. These are the jumbo-sized rolls, but you can make them with any of the varieties.

Great for kids to make for a Mother’s Day breakfast (or dessert). And always popular with hungry teenagers after early-morning seminary.

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Open tube of crescent rolls; separate dough into triangles. Spread with Nutella. Sprinkle with chopped nuts.

3711 129-1Roll into crescent shape, beginning with wide end. Curve ends into crescent shape. Place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or a silicon liner. Bake according to package directions until golden brown. Serve warm.

RECIPE:

Nutella Crescent Rolls

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1 tube Pillsbury Crescent Rolls (regular or jumbo)
Nutella
Finely chopped nuts (walnuts, hazelnuts, almonds or pecans)

Unroll and separate raw crescent roll triangles. Spread with Nutella. Sprinkle with chopped nuts. Roll into crescent shape, beginning with wide end. Curve ends into crescent shape. Place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or a silicon liner. Bake according to package directions until golden brown (about 15-18 minutes at 350°F for the jumbo size).

Cool slightly. Serve warm.

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March 8, 2011 · 9:49 am

Homemade Indian Naan

0401010 087-1Indian Naan is a perfect accompaniment to curries, or marinated grilled meats. It can be made pretty quickly if you use instant yeast, which does not require proofing or an initial rise of the dough. And there is no second rise with a flat bread like naan. Naan can be cooked either in the oven on a baking stone or baking sheet, or cooked on the stove in a hot pan, like a cast iron skillet. I prefer to use a baking stone, as the oven temperature needs to be very high, which can make a baking sheet warp.

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Naan is traditionally cooked on the sides of a tandoor oven, but you can have good results at home in a very hot oven. The dough is a simple yeast bread mixture with yogurt added to help give it elasticity. You can also add some fresh minced garlic for a garlic naan.

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Roll out individual pieces into an oblong shape. I love that naan does not require perfect circles! Little J likes to roll them out for me, and then keep them moist under a kitchen towel. I usually reroll them a little bit thinner just before I put them into the oven.100110 008-1

If you are using a baking stone, place it in a cold oven and let the oven preheat to 500°F for 15-20 minutes. Throw carefully place your rolled naan pieces onto the hot baking stone. My baking stone will hold 4 small pieces of naan at a time.

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Switch the oven to “Broil” and cook for 2-3 minutes. On the first side, they should start to bubble in places. Flip and cook the other side for about 2 minutes.

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Brush naan with melted butter as they come out of the oven. Serve hot with Butter Chicken, or other curries or grilled meats. Also good for dipping in hummus or Tzatziki.

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RECIPE:

Naan

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¾ cup milk (or ¾ warm water + ½ cup powdered milk)
2/3 cup plain yogurt, at room temperature
½ cup olive oil
2 Tbs honey
1 egg, at room temperature
4 ½ – 5 cups flour
1 tsp salt
1 Tbs instant yeast
2 tsp minced garlic (optional)
¼ – ½ cup butter, melted

Scald milk (bring to a boil, then remove from heat and cool to about 110°F). OR: Use very warm water instead of milk and add ½ cup powdered milk to the dry ingredients. Combine warm milk or water with yogurt, olive oil, honey and egg. Mix in flour, salt and yeast (and powdered milk, if using). Knead into a smooth ball, adding more flour if necessary. Knead in garlic, if desired. Cover and let dough rest 10 minutes.

While dough is resting: If you have a baking stone**, place it in a cold oven on an upper-middle rack (not the top rack position). Preheat oven to 500°F for 15-20 minutes.

Roll small pieces of dough into an oblong or long teardrop shape. Place 2-4 pieces of dough on the hot baking stone. Switch oven to Broil. Broil naan for 2-3 minutes, or until dough just begins to bubble or puff; turn naan over and broil an additional 2 minutes.

Brush cooked naan with melted butter. Cover with a kitchen towel while cooking additional bread. Serve warm.

**NO BAKING STONE: Cook on a baking sheet, but DO NOT leave baking sheet in preheating oven. OR: Brush uncooked naan with melted butter and cook in a hot cast iron or non-stick skillet. Cook 1-2 minutes. Brush other side with butter and turn. Cook until blistered and cooked through. Naan can also be cooked directly on an outdoor grill (oil grates first).

Makes 16-20 naan, depending on size (I make smaller sizes for kid-sized portions)

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February 8, 2011 · 12:10 pm

Whole Wheat Tortillas

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Making your own tortillas is a simple process that gives you a delicious wrap for everything from tacos and enchiladas to shredded meats or sandwich fillings. And an additional bonus: they are much healthier than store brought tortillas. Especially if you use whole wheat flour.

You can use all whole wheat flour, all white flour, or a combination of both. These tortillas are about 3/4 whole wheat and 1/4 white all-purpose flour. If you are using all whole wheat flour, try to use a fine mill of a softer wheat, like White Wheat. 12-31-10 079-1

Roll a golf-ball sized piece of dough into a thin circle (or as close to round as you can get-perfection is not necessary!)

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Cook in a hot, dry skillet for about 10 seconds, or until the tortilla begins to bubble.

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Turn over and cook for an additional 20-30 seconds, or until tortilla starts to brown. Flip tortilla again and cook the first side again until it begins to brown on that side as well.

While one tortilla is cooking, I will roll out the next ball of dough.

12-31-10 086-1 Keep tortillas warm under a kitchen towel while cooking remaining tortillas.

Make a large batch and freeze extras between layers of waxed paper.

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We served these tortillas with a Shredded Thai Pork filling.

RECIPE:

Flour Tortillas

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2 cups flour (whole wheat or all-purpose white, or a combination of both)
1 ½ tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
¼ cup coconut oil or shortening
¾ – 1 cup boiling water

Bring 1 cup water to a boil; set aside. In a large bowl, mix flour, baking powder and salt. Cut in coconut oil or shortening with a pastry blender or two knives. Add 3/4 cup boiling water. Stir with a fork until mixed. Add additional water (1 Tbs at a time), if necessary. The total amount of water needed will depend on the type and humidity level of the flour used. Knead dough 3-5 minutes, until smooth and elastic. Roll into 10 balls (about golf ball sized). Keep balls of dough covered while rolling out and cooking individual tortillas. One at a time, roll balls into circles about 8” in diameter. Cook in a dry non-stick or cast iron pan over medium-high heat:

1st side: 10 seconds (until tortilla starts to bubble)
2nd side: 20-30 seconds (until it starts to brown)
1st side (again): 15-20 seconds (until it starts to brown)

Remove tortilla from pan and cover with towel to keep moist while other tortillas are cooking.

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January 12, 2011 · 8:20 pm

Baking & Board Games: A Perfect Snow Day

View Snow Day Baking

Baking and Board Games:
What better way to spend a mid-week, school-canceled SNOW DAY!

View Snow Day Monopoly

With a little sledding, snow-fort making and hot chocolate sipping added to keep things balanced.

View SnowDayJan2011

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080610 022-1Raspberry Chocolate Oatmeal Muffins (recipe below)
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021910 095Our Favorite Chocolate Chip Cookies (recipe HERE)

RECIPE:

Raspberry Chocolate Oatmeal Muffins

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**Prep Note: the oats need to soak in the milk for 1 hour before adding the rest of the ingredients.

1 cup buttermilk (or 1 cup milk + 1 Tbs white vinegar or lemon juice)
1 cup rolled oats
1 large egg, at room temperature
½ cup brown sugar
½ cup sugar
½ cup butter, melted and cooled slightly
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup plus 2 Tablespoons all-purpose flour
½ teaspoon salt
1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/8 teaspoon nutmeg (optional)
½ teaspoon cinnamon
1 cup raspberries or mixed berries (fresh or frozen)
½ cup dark chocolate chunks or chips

Combine buttermilk and oats in a large bowl and let stand for one hour. Preheat the oven to 375°F. Line a muffin tin with paper liners.

Stir the egg into the oat and milk mixture; add brown sugar and sugar; mix to combine. Stir in melted butter. In a small bowl, combine flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda, & spices. Gently fold into batter, taking care not to over mix. Gently stir in raspberries and chocolate.

Spoon batter into muffin tins. Bake until light brown and tops spring back when gently touched, about 15 minutes (they will take slightly longer if using frozen berries).

Cool on a wire rack.

Recipe from Aimée at Simple Bites

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November 12, 2010 · 7:34 am

Thanksgiving: White or Whole Wheat Dinner Rolls

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These white rolls are incredibly light and fluffy. Perfect for sopping up gravy, or spreading with cranberry sauce and filling with leftover turkey. The recipe is from one of my favorite food blogs: Our Best Bites. You could also shape them into crescents before baking.

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For a heartier roll: try this recipe for
Whole Wheat Honey Pull-Apart Rolls:

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The whole wheat recipe is a simpler recipe than the white rolls, as it uses instant yeast (which only requires one rise) and there is no need to heat and then cool milk. But as they are made with 100% whole wheat, they are not as light and fluffy. I happen to prefer a hearty roll, but my kids prefer the white ones.

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When making rolls for big gatherings I like to prepare and prebake them a few days ahead. To make and freeze: Bake rolls on a large parchment paper lined baking sheet, leaving a little more space between rolls than if they were in a 9×13”pan. Bake for 10-12 minutes, or until rolls just barely begin to brown. Remove from oven. Cool. Place in Ziploc freezer bags. Freeze.

On serving day: Place frozen rolls on a baking sheet, bake for about 7-10 minutes, or until hot and golden brown. Brush tops with butter.

RECIPES:

White Dinner Rolls

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2 cups whole milk
½ cup + 1 Tbs sugar, divided
1/3 cup (5 1/3 Tbs) butter
2 tsp Kosher salt
2 pkg active dry yeast (or 4 ½ tsp)
2/3 cup warm water
8-9 cups all-purpose flour
3 beaten eggs

Combine milk, ½ cup sugar, butter, and salt in a medium saucepan. Heat over medium heat until butter melts. Remove from heat. Allow to cool to lukewarm.

While the milk mixture is cooling, dissolve the yeast and 1 Tbs sugar in warm water. Let stand about 10 minutes.

In a large mixing bowl, combine 3 cups flour and milk mixture. Beat on low for 30 seconds, scraping sides of bowl constantly. Add yeast mixture and beat on high for 3 minutes. Add beaten eggs.

Stir in as much remaining flour as needed to make a soft dough. This dough should be very soft–it will be coming away from the sides of the bowl, but it will still stick to your finger when you touch it. Place the bowl in a warm place and cover with a clean towel; allow to rise 1 hour.

Punch down dough. Lightly flour your work surface and turn dough out onto surface. Divide in half.

Spray 2 9×13 glass pans with cooking spray. (You can also use large baking sheets) Shape each half of dough into 12 balls and place in prepared pan. Repeat with remaining dough in the second pan. (Dough can also be formed into crescent rolls by rolling each dough half into a circle and cutting into 12 wedges, then rolling up in crescent shape)

Cover with a clean cloth and allow to rise in a warm place for about 30 minutes. When dough has about 15-20 minutes to go, preheat oven to 375°F.

Bake for 15-18 minutes or until golden-brown. When done, remove from oven. Rub a stick of cold butter over the tops of the rolls.

Yield: 24 rolls

Recipe from Our Best Bites

NoEmptyChairs.me

Whole Wheat Honey Rolls

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2 ½ cups warm water
2 eggs
6 Tbs honey
¼ cup olive oil
5 cups whole wheat flour
½ cup wheat gluten
¼ cup dry milk
1 Tbs salt
1 Tbs instant yeast ***
1 – 2 cups additional whole wheat flour

In a large mixing bowl (preferable a stand mixer), add wet ingredients. Add 5 cups flour, gluten, powdered milk, salt and yeast. Mix until well combined. Knead in enough additional flour so that dough just begins to form a ball. Knead for 5-6 minutes. Let dough rest for 10 minutes before shaping rolls.

Shape into balls (or other shape: knots are my favorite). Place in greased pans; brush with oil, cover and let rise until doubled in size. For a shiny roll: brush with slightly beaten egg  just before baking (or brush with butter immediately after removing from oven). Bake at 375°F for 15-18 minutes, or until golden brown.

***Note: If using instant yeast, the dough only needs to rise once (after being shaped). If you are using regular yeast, allow dough to rise before shaping dough, then rise again in pans before baking.

Yield: about 3 dozen rolls

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**To prebake for serving another day: Bake rolls on a large baking sheet lined with parchment paper, leaving a little more space between rolls than if they were in a 9×13”pan. Bake for 10-12 minutes, or until rolls just barely begin to brown. Remove from oven. Cool. Place in Ziploc freezer bags. Freeze.

On serving day: Place frozen rolls on a baking sheet, bake for about 7-10 minutes, or until hot and golden brown. Brush tops with butter.

NoEmptyChairs.me

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October 22, 2010 · 12:41 pm

Pumpkin Nutella Bread

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Don’t you love it that you can mix together the same basic ingredients, but bake it in a loaf pan instead of a round pan, and you suddenly have bread for “breakfast”, instead of cake for “dessert” ?!

Add a couple of ingredients like Pumpkin and Nutella, and you’ve just added vegetables and nuts (ie protein!), and now you can really fool yourself into thinking that you are eating a balanced meal.

If you have never eaten Nutella, you are definitely missing out. It is a creamy, spreadable combination of ground hazelnuts and chocolate. Cooking with it leaves you with a great excuse to lick that spatula clean-just don’t do it when your kids are around, or there will be lots of tears when you don’t share.

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I brought this Pumpkin Nutella Bread, along with some banana and zucchini breads, to our Seminary class for breakfast this morning, and it was the first to go! Although at six in the morning, a class full of teenagers will eat just about anything sweet.

The batter is a basic pumpkin bread batter, with Nutella beat into part of it, and then swirled together in a loaf pan.

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The Nutella swirls were especially moist and rich!

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This was the first time I’ve tried adding Nutella to my pumpkin bread, but I will definitely continue making it this way from now on!

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RECIPE:

Pumpkin Nutella Bread

  • Servings: Makes 2 medium loaves
  • Print

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4 eggs
1 ¼ cups sugar
1 cup melted coconut oil (or mild olive oil)
1 tsp vanilla
1 (16 oz) can of pumpkin
2 cups flour
1 tsp baking soda
2 tsp baking powder
2 tsp cinnamon
½ tsp ground ginger
¼ tsp nutmeg
1 tsp salt
¾ cup Nutella

Preheat oven to 350°F.

Beat eggs, sugar, oil, vanilla, and pumpkin until light and fluffy.

Stir together flour, baking soda and powder, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and salt.  Stir into pumpkin mixture.  Remove 2 cups of batter and place in a small bowl. Using the mixer, beat the Nutella into the batter in the small bowl until smooth.

Grease and flour two medium loaf pans (or make one large loaf and several mini loaves or muffins). Spoon half of pumpkin batter, and then half of chocolate batter into the loaf pans. Swirl with a butter knife. Repeat layers with remaining pumpkin and chocolate batters. Swirl again.

Bake at 350°F for about 1 hour, or until top of loaf springs back when touched gently (or toothpick comes out clean). Check bread after about 30 minutes: cover loosely with foil if it is beginning to brown too quickly.

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