CHEDDAR MUFFINS

These are moist, cheesy, flavorful and most importantly light and fluffy muffins that complement any chili, soup or stew!

CHEDDAR MUFFINS yields 18 regular sized muffins
3 strips bacon, chopped and cooked crisped
2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
2 tablespoons sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 LARGE egg, room temperature
1 1/2 cups buttermilk
1/2 cup avocado oil
2-3 cloves garlic, minced
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
1 small bunch green onions, halved and sliced
2 sweet mini red peppers, FINELY chopped
2 tablespoons chopped sun-dried tomatoes in oil, DRAINED well
1/2 cup shredded Parmesan cheese

• Preheat oven to 400°.
• Whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
• In another bowl, whisk together the egg, buttermilk and oil. Add in minced garlic.
• Add wet mixture to dry mixture JUST until moistened.
• Fold in cheddar cheese, onions, peppers, tomatoes and bacon pieces.
• Fill greased or papered muffin cups 3/4 full.
• Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.
• Bake 15-18 minutes until toothpick comes out clean.
• Cool 5 minutes before removing from muffin tins.
• Serve warm with FRESH butter.

BAKING PARTNERS ~ CINNAMON CHOCOLATE BABKA MUFFINS

Cinnamon Chocolate Babka Muffins

DOUGH
1/2 cup whole milk, warmed 110 degrees
1/4 cup sugar
2 teaspoons instant rapid rise yeast
1 large egg at room temperature
2 cups all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons unsalted butter at room temperature

• Using a stand mixer, use a paddle to combine the milk, sugar and yeast, stirring to blend.
• Add the egg, flour and salt mixing on low until a sticky dough begins to form.
• Mix in the butter until well blended with no remaining chunks.
• Switch to a dough hook and knead on low for about 10 minutes. The dough will be loose and sticky.
• Butter a large bowl.  Add dough, cover with tea towel and let rise until doubled in a warm place. This will take 1-2 hours.

FILLING
3/4 cup milk chocolate chips
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
pinch of salt
3 tablespoons unsalted butter at room temperature

• Chop chocolate pieces in a food processor until small coarse pieces.
• Add brown sugar, cinnamon and salt and pulse until coarse crumbs.
• Set aside.

EGG WASH
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 tablespoon heavy cream

• Whisk together until well blended.

STREUSEL TOPPING
1/3 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup all purpose flour
3 tablespoons unsalted butter at room temperature

• In a small bowl combine the brown sugar and flour.
• Cut the butter in with a pastry blender until it resembles coarse crumbs.
• Set Aside.

ASSEMBLY

• VERY GENEROUSLY butter 12 muffin tins OR use muffin papers for easier clean up.
• Turn out the dough onto a floured work surface.  Gently depress the center to deflate.  Let rest 5 minutes.
• Roll the dough into a 12x20 rectangle.  (flour as needed to prevent sticking)
• Sprinkle the filling evenly over the dough.
• Roll the dough into a tight log.
• Cut the dough into 12 equal pieces (HINT: I now use dental floss for all this type of cutting.  You get a good clean cut every time.)
• Place each piece into you prepared tin or papers.
• Cover with your tea towel and let rise 30 minutes or so.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• After 30 minutes, brush tops with the egg wash.
• Sprinkle each with the streusel topping.
• Bake for 15-20 minutes or until puffed and brown around the edges.
• Cool completely on wire racks in the tin. (I use the papers because I like them warm, but the come out of the tins better cool).

An InLinkz Link-up

APPLE RUM RAISIN CINNAMON ROLLS with CARAMEL ICING

These are inspired by and adapted from a secret family recipe for cinnamon rolls that my aunt made for many years.  Since I've been making these recipes I have adapted a good and easy to follow plan kinda like changing the batteries in your smoke detector at New Years.  At Christmas time I replace my yeast, baking powder and baking soda supply so they are always fresh.

APPLE RUM RAISIN CINNAMON ROLLS

DOUGH
2 cups whole milk
1/2 cup Canola oil
1/2 cup sugar
4-1/2 cups All-purpose Flour
1 package Active Dry Yeast
3/4 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1-1/2 teaspoon salt
FILLING
4 large honey crisp** apples, finely diced
1 cup golden raisins
1/2 cup spiced rum
3/4 cup real butter
1 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup heavy cream
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 tablespoon vanilla powder
CARAMEL ICING
8 tablespoons butter, room temperature
1 cup packed brown sugar
1 teaspoon Starbucks vanilla powder
1/2 cup heavy cream
2-3 cups powdered sugar
1/4 teaspoon Salt

**Honey Crisp are my favorite apple full of flavor and coincidentally only available during Christmas time.

•In a small bowl pour the rum over the raisins and set side to allow the raisins to plump. The rum is the first secret ingredient and is only to plump the raisins.  Remember to pour off the rum before adding them to the apples.
•Combine the milk, canola oil, and sugar in a large saucepan or small pot.
•Heat it until is is just about to boil, but don't allow it to boil. Turn off the heat and let it cool until warm...but not too warm!
•Add 4 cups of the flour and the yeast, and stir to combine. The dough will be very sticky at this point. 
•Cover the pot and let the dough rise for an hour.

While the dough is rising prep the filling. 

•Saute’ the apples in a large skillet over medium-high heat for 3 to 4 minutes.  Pour apples into a colander to drain off excess moisture and set aside.
•In the same skillet over medium heat, add the butter and brown sugar continually stirring it until the butter melts and the sugar dissolves.
•Add cream slowly constantly stirring until it bubbles and begins to thicken. •Lower the heat and add the apples back into the skillet. 
•Add the drained raisins.
•Sprinkle with the cinnamon and vanilla.   The vanilla is the second secret ingredient that make these rolls so yummy. Cook a few more minutes to allow thickening.
•Spoon it into a bowl to cool. (If mixture is too thin once again use the colander to remove excess moisture. Remember apples are full of water depending on their ripeness.)

•Add the remaining flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt to your pot of dough stirring to combine.
 

At this point you can make the rolls or

refrigerate the dough until you're ready.

•Preheat the oven to 375˚.

•Roll out the dough on a floured surface to a rectangle about 10 x 30 inches.  I use Press-N-Seal to coat my counter - easy to roll out dough and easy to clean up that way.
•Spoon the apple raisin mixture all over the dough and spread it out evenly.
•Roll the dough toward you into a long, tight roll pinching the seam to seal the roll at the end. Roll it over so that the seam is on the bottom.
•Slice each roll 1/2 inch to 3/4 inch thick placing them into prepped cake pans.
•Set the rolls aside and let them rise for another 30 minutes.
•Bake rolls for 15 to 18 minutes or until they're nice and golden.

While the rolls are baking, make the icing.

•Melt the butter and brown sugar in a saucepan over medium heat.
•Add the brown sugar stirring to dissolve until it starts to bubble.
•Add the cream, cooking for 2 minutes, whisking constantly. Remove from heat.
•Whisk in 2 cups of powdered sugar until well blended. Add up to 2 more cups of powdered sugar to get to the consistency you want. Ice the rolls as soon as they come out of the oven.
•Serve warm or cool completely to freeze.  If freezing, wrap in several layers of saran, sealing all the edges well.

MEATBALL STEW & PARMESAN ONION WEDGES

MEATBALL STEW & PARMESAN ONION WEDGES
1/2 cup white wine
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 tub KNORR beef gel
3 1/2 cups hot water
1/4 cup WONDRA flour
1 pound small red tomatoes cut into bite size pieces
3 ribs celery, sliced thin
2 cups baby carrots sliced in half lengthwise
1 package frozen pearl onions (thawed)**
1 tablespoon Avocado oil
12 oz. package frozen meatballs
1 package McCormick Au Jus
Himalayan pink salt and Garlic pepper to taste

• Whisk together the hot water, gel tub, vinegar, Au Jus seasoning and white wine until well blended.
• Add flour and whisk until lump free and set aside.
• Heat oil in dutch oven over medium-high heat.
• Add celery, potatoes, carrots and onions, sauteing until slightly softened (about 8-10 minutes).
• Add broth mixture and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer 10 minutes. 
• Add meatballs and simmer 15 minutes or until meatballs are heated through.  Broth will thicken as it simmers.

**While the pearl onions look good, I prefer to make this recipe with sweet Maui onions.

PARMESAN ONION WEDGES
2 cups biscuit/baking mix
2/3 cup WHOLE milk
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
1 small onion, minced
1/2 mayonnaise**
1 teaspoon salad seasoning

• Preheat oven to 400°.
• In a small bowl stir biscuit mix and milk together just until moistened.
• Turn onto a floured surface and knead a few times.
• Roll out to a 11-12 inch circle and transfer to a pizza pan.
• Combine the cheese, mayonnaise, onion and salad seasoning. Spread on top of dough.
• Bake 15-20 minutes or until golden.
• Serve war.
• Refrigerate leftovers.

GINGER PUMPKIN BREAD - BAKING PARTNERS

We are a group of home bakers helping each other to achieve baking perfection. Baking partners was begun by Swathi at Zesty South Indian Kitchen. In order to achieve the best results, a perfect recipe and the right techniques are required. We are a small group of home bakers, who love to bake and want to learn more about the tips and secrets of baking and baking well. We are planning to try out recipes from books/magazines and cooking shows. Every member gets a chance to present their choice of recipe and share important points with the rest of the group. The main purpose of this group is to learn the techniques, critic procedures if there are ways to improve and to eat delicious food.

This month we are baking for Fall and pumpkin is our key ingredient. We have a choice between a sweet version - GINGER PUMPKIN BREAD with a MAPLE BROWN BUTTER GLAZE or a yeasted version OF PUMPKIN BREAD from King Arthur Flour that will be used for turkey cranberry sandwiches at our house during Thanksgiving time.  I'm making both recipes, but started with the sweet version.

SWEET NON-YEAST VERSION from  SIMPLY SCRATCH BLOG
GINGER PUMPKIN BREAD & MAPLE BROWN BUTTER GLAZE

Delicious pumpkin bread smothered in a maple brown butter icing. Ginger Pumpkin Bread adapted from Martha Stewart.
Yield: 8-10                                      Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 60-70 minutes             Total Time: 1 hour 30 minutes

12 tablespoons {1 1/2 sticks} unsalted butter, melted
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for pan
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons ground ginger
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup packed light-brown sugar
1 can (15 ounces) pumpkin puree (1 3/4 cups)
3 large eggs

**2/3 cup golden raisins

**1/2 cup chopped walnuts

**these were my additions and we loved them!!!

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
• In a 8x5 loaf pan; lightly butter or spray with baking spray and then dust wit flour (tap out any excess flour and discard), set aside.
• In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, ginger, and salt.
• In a large bowl, whisk together sugars, pumpkin, melted butter, and eggs. Next add in the flour mixture, and stir until just combined.
• Pour batter into the prepared pan. Bake until a cake tester is inserted into the center and comes out with only a smidgen coating it, which is about 60 to 70 minutes.
• Let cool 10 minutes; invert pan and transfer the loaf to a wire rack to cool completely.

FOR THE GLAZE:
1/4 cup Real Maple Syrup
1/4 teaspoon Real Vanilla Extract
2 tablespoons Unsalted Butter
1/3 cup Powdered Sugar, plus more if needed
1 tablespoon Heavy Cream
A pinch of Kosher Salt

• Heat a small skillet over medium/medium-high heat.
• Once the pan is hot, add in the two tablespoons of unsalted butter. The butter should instantly start to melt and turn golden.
• Once melted and a deep golden, turn off the heat and add in the maple syrup and vanilla, whisking constantly {it should bubble up}.
• Once the bubbles have subsided a bit, whisk in the powdered sugar.
• Keep whisking while adding the tablespoon of heavy creamy and a pinch of kosher salt.
• Drizzle warm icing over cooled cake. Slice and serve!

Though pumpkin is available in cans all year long, I seem to associate this bread with autumn. It makes marvelous turkey sandwiches spread with cranberry sauce. Because of the golden color, it also makes especially festive dinner rolls for the holiday table.You can make half the dough into rolls, and the other half into loaves for sandwiches.

PUMPKIN YEAST BREAD
1/2 cup warm water


2 packages (2 tablespoons) active dry yeast


2/3 cup warm milk


2 large eggs, beaten


1 1/2 cups puréed pumpkin, either fresh or canned


2 tablespoons vegetable oil


6 1/2 cups (approximately) King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour


1/2 cup brown sugar


2 teaspoons salt


1/2 teaspoon ground ginger


1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom

• In a large bowl, stir yeast into water to soften. Add milk, eggs, pumpkin, oil, 4 cups flour, brown sugar, salt, ginger and cardamom to yeast mixture. Beat vigorously for 2 minutes.
• Gradually add remaining flour, a little at a time, until you have a dough stiff enough to knead. Turn dough out onto a floured surface. Knead, adding flour as necessary, until you have a smooth, elastic dough.
• Put dough into an oiled bowl. Turn once to coat entire ball of dough with oil. Cover with a towel and let rise until doubled, about 1 hour.
• Turn dough out onto a lightly oiled work surface. Divide dough in half. Shape dough into loaves and place in well-greased 10 x 5-inch pans or, shape half into a loaf, and other half into 12 large dinner rolls. Cover with a towel and let rise until almost doubled, about 45 minutes.
• Bake in a preheated 375°F oven. Loaves bake about 30 minutes, rolls about 20. Check the internal temperature of each with an instant-read thermometer; a reading of 190°F means bread or rolls are done.
• Immediately remove bread or rolls from pans and cool on a wire rack to prevent crust from becoming soggy. For a shiny crust, brush tops of bread or rolls lightly with vegetable oil. Makes 2 large loaves, or 1 large loaf and 12 dinner rolls.

This recipe reprinted from The Baking Sheet Newsletter, Vol. III, No. 1, November 1991 issue. 

I added a slight blend of cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves to create a marbleing.   It made a little heavier bread and slightly sweet, but was very delicious.

ZUCHINNI NUT BREAD

ZUCHINNI NUT BREAD
1 cup packed brown sugar
1 cup butter, 1/2 soft & 1/2 melted
2 jumbo eggs
1 teaspoon cinnamon
2 tablespoons sugar
1/2 cup golden raisins, currants or craisins
1/2 cup crushed walnuts
2 1/2 cups shredded zuchinni
2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda

• Combine the melted butter, brown sugar and zucchini in a sauce pan.
• Cook until smooth and then add nuts and raisins.
• Stir until well coated & set aside to cool.
• Cream softened butter, sugar and eggs until fluffy.
• Sift together flour, baking powder, baking soda and cinnamon.
• Add this to the creamed mixture gradually until well blended.
• Add cooled banana mixture.
• Pour into greased and floured pan(s)*
• Bake at 350 degrees for 45+ minutes.

*This recipe will make 2 large loaves

BAKING PARTNERS #5 - SHAPED DINNER ROLLS & HOLIDAY CAKES

We are a group of home bakers helping each other to achieve baking perfection.  Baking partners was begun by Swathi at Zesty South Indian Kitchen.

Baking a homemade bread, cake or cookies will give the best outcome. However in order to achieve the best results, a  perfect recipe and the right techniques are required.

We are a small group of home baker friends, who love to bake and want to learn more about the nook and corners of baking.  We are planning to try out recipes from books/magazines and cooking shows.  Every member gets a chance to present their choice of recipe and share important points with the rest of the group. The main purpose of this group is to learn the techniques, critic procedures if there are ways to improve and to eat delicious food.

I'm making up for last month, which was shaped dinner rolls and we had to choose 3 shapes, and I failed to post during the move.  This month's theme is holiday cakes and I chose the Brazil Nut cake. 

For the dinner rolls I chose Lion House, Clover Leaf and small braid knots.  I loved the Lion house and small braid knots, but my clover leafs were embarrassing.

Loved the Brazil Nut Cake!

Faye Levy Chocolate Sensations, HP Books Inc., USA, 1986, p.22-23

Chocolate –Brazil Nut Cake

1-1/2 cups Brazilian nuts (about 7 oz)

6 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped

¾ cup Sugar

¼ cup all purpose flour

½ teaspoon baking powder

¾ cup (6 oz) unsalted butter slightly softened

6 eggs separated, room temperature

¼ teaspoon cream of tartar

Chocolate Honey Frosting

½ cup whipping cream

6 oz. semisweet chocolate, very finely chopped

6 tablespoons (3 oz.) unsalted butter, slightly softened but still cool

3 tablespoons + 1 teaspoon honey

Garnish

¼ cup Brazil nuts chopped

• Preheat oven to 350F(175C). 
• Toast nuts in a shallow baking pan in the oven for 10 minutes. Transfer nuts into large strainer. Rub nuts against the strainer with a towel and remove most of the skin and keep aside.
• Melt chocolate in double boiler or heatproof medium bowl over hot, not simmering, water over low heat, stirring occasionally until smooth, remove and set aside to cool.
• Butter 9”x3” springform pan, line base with parchment paper and grease and flour the sides of the pan.
• Grind the nuts with 2 tablespoons sugar into a fine powder. Transfer into a bowl and sift flour and baking powder and mix thoroughly.
• Cream butter and 6 tablespoons of sugar and beat until smooth and fluffy. Add one egg yolk at a time and beat till all 6 are blended and pale. Stir in the melted chocolate.
• In another bowl beat egg white and cream of tartar in medium speed until it forms soft peaks. Gradually beat in the remaining 2 tablespoons of sugar and beat till white are stiff and shiny but not dry.
• Gently fold in 1/3 of the white into the chocolate flour mixture, repeat folding in batches until batter is blended.
• Transfer batter into prepared pans and bake for 40 minutes or till the tooth pick inserted in the center comes out clean.
• Cool in pan on a rack for 10 minutes. Using a spatula go around the cake gently and invert onto a cake rack and allow cooling completely.

Frosting

• Bring cream to a full boil in a small saucepan remove from heat and immediately.
• Add the chopped chocolate. Stir quickly till the chocolate is melted and the mixture is smooth. Cool to room temperature. 
• Whip this at high speed till it thickens and becomes pale.
• Cream butter in a medium bowl until it is soft and smooth, gradually add the chocolate mixture and honey and beat well
• Using a long spatula spread frosting evenly on the side and top of the cake. 
• Fill the center with chopped Brazil nuts.

BUTTERMILK RAISIN BRAN MUFFINS

BUTTERMILK RAISIN BRAN MUFFINS
2 eggs
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 1/2 cups flour
2 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 cup canola oil
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon cloves
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1 teaspoons vanilla
2 cups buttermilk
1 teaspoons salt
1 cup golden raisins
1/2 of a 14 ounce box  Raisin Bran (about 2 1/2 cups)
PURE

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
• Spray muffin tin with PURE.
• Beat together the eggs and sugar.  Beat well.
• Add oil to egg mixture and blend well.
• In a large mixing bowl sift together the flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, cloves and nutmeg.
• Merge together the wet and dry mixtures until blended well.
• Fold in raisin bran and golden raisins.  If a bit dry add milk until desired consistency.
• Fill muffin tins 2/3 full.
• Bake 15 minutes.

BUTTERMILK RAISIN BRAN MUFFINS

BUTTERMILK RAISIN BRAN MUFFINS
2 eggs
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 1/2 cups flour
2 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 cup canola oil
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon cloves
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1 teaspoons vanilla
2 cups buttermilk
1 teaspoons salt
1 cup golden raisins
1/2 of a 14 ounce box  Raisin Bran (about 2 1/2 cups)
PURE

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
• Spray muffin tin with PURE.
• Beat together the eggs and sugar.  Beat well.
• Add oil to egg mixture and blend well.
• In a large mixing bowl sift together the flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, cloves and nutmeg.
• Merge together the wet and dry mixtures until blended well.
• Fold in raisin bran and golden raisins.  If a bit dry add milk until desired consistency.
• Fill muffin tins 2/3 full.
• Bake 15 minutes.

BANANA JUICE the key to perfect BLACKBERRY BANANA BREAD

Did you know that Banana's have juice? Don't worry, most people don't.  But, they do and the juice is the best part of making a moist banana bread.  The key to banana juice is using a banana that is "JUST RIGHT", one that is heavily speckled, in my opinion, one that is just short of rotting.  I take it one step farther many times and when they are "JUST RIGHT"  remove them from their skins and freeze them in recipe ready proportions.  Freezing them yields the liquid readily without the steps I'm about to tell you about.  I didn't even know I'd been doing  "JUST RIGHT" for years with the freezing process and then I read an article about how to juice a banana.

1 3/4 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
5 large very ripe bananas
1 cup blackberries
1/2 cup golden raisins

1 medium not so ripe banana, thinly sliced

1/2 cup butter, melted & cooled

2 JUMBO eggs
3/4+ cup packed light brown sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon

1 teaspoon PURE vanilla extract
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
2 teaspoons crsytalline sugar

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• Grease your loaf pan with the butter wrapper or spray with non-stick cooking spray.  Dust with flour.
• Sift together the flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt in a large mixing bowl.
• Place 5 bananas in a microwave safe bowl and cover with a food cover lid with the vents open.
• Microwave on high for 5 minutes - until the bananas are soft and have released their juice.
  
• Transfer bananas to a sieve and allow them to drain over a small saucepan for about 10-15 minutes.
• Place bananas, raisins and blackberries in a medium mixing bowl.
  

• Cook juice over a medium high heat for about 5 minutes until juice is reduced to 1/4 cup.
• Stir reduced liquid into the banana/blackberry mixture and mash together until well blended.
• Add butter, eggs, vanilla and brown sugar and mix to a smooth consistency.
• Pour banana mixture into flour mixture and with a wooden spoon fold together until just combined.
• Fold in walnuts gently.
• Pour into prepared loaf pan.
• Layer banana slices around the edges.
• Sprinkle with crystalline sugar.
• Bake 50-60 minutes based on loaf pan size.

BANANA JUICE the key to perfect BLACKBERRY BANANA BREAD

Did you know that Banana's have juice? Don't worry, most people don't.  But, they do and the juice is the best part of making a moist banana bread.  The key to banana juice is using a banana that is "JUST RIGHT", one that is heavily speckled, in my opinion, one that is just short of rotting.  I take it one step farther many times and when they are "JUST RIGHT"  remove them from their skins and freeze them in recipe ready proportions.  Freezing them yields the liquid readily without the steps I'm about to tell you about.  I didn't even know I'd been doing  "JUST RIGHT" for years with the freezing process and then I read an article about how to juice a banana.

1 3/4 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
5 large very ripe bananas
1 cup blackberries
1/2 cup golden raisins
1 medium not so ripe banana, thinly sliced
1/2 cup butter, melted & cooled
2 JUMBO eggs
3/4+ cup packed light brown sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon PURE vanilla extract
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
2 teaspoons crsytalline sugar

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• Grease your loaf pan with the butter wrapper or spray with non-stick cooking spray.  Dust with flour.
• Sift together the flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt in a large mixing bowl.
• Place 5 bananas in a microwave safe bowl and cover with a food cover lid with the vents open.
• Microwave on high for 5 minutes - until the bananas are soft and have released their juice.
  
• Transfer bananas to a sieve and allow them to drain over a small saucepan for about 10-15 minutes.
• Place bananas, raisins and blackberries in a medium mixing bowl.

• Cook juice over a medium high heat for about 5 minutes until juice is reduced to 1/4 cup.
• Stir reduced liquid into the banana/blackberry mixture and mash together until well blended.
• Add butter, eggs, vanilla and brown sugar and mix to a smooth consistency.
• Pour banana mixture into flour mixture and with a wooden spoon fold together until just combined.
• Fold in walnuts gently.
• Pour into prepared loaf pan.
• Layer banana slices around the edges.
• Sprinkle with crystalline sugar.
• Bake 50-60 minutes based on loaf pan size.

Giving Thanks ~ Oatnut Sourdough Herb Dressing

This week I'm sharing a "new" scratch recipe for my Oatnut Sourdough Herb Dressing. My brother has been after me for years to always make it the same way (my late father's recipe) I always have (tradition) and write it down, so this one is for him and to see if he really does read my blog! LOL! We use this recipe for both Thanksgiving and Christmas and I always make enough to freeze for weekday meals too. It's a great way to use up stale bread. Sometimes I will collect the stale bread into a wrapper in the freezer until I have enough to make a large batch.

Oatnut Sourdough Herb Dressing
10 slices Brownberry or Oroweat OATNUT bread, cut intobite size chunks
1/2 loaf sourdough French bread, cut into bite size chunks
1 large sweet onion, chopped fine
1 small bunch celery (leaves and all), chopped fine
1/2 bag baby carrots, chopped fine
1 box mushrooms, chopped fine
1 tablespoon sea salt
1 tablespoon white pepper
2 sticks unsalted butter
4 cups hot water
2 tablespoons Better than Bouillon Chicken base
2 tablespoons Buttery Herb & Garlic Mix (I believe McCormick makes it)
4 teaspoons minced garlic, Jar

• Cut bread into bite sized chunks and spread out in a thin layer over cookie sheets.
• Bake at 200 degrees for 3-4 hours until pieces are actually hard.
• Chop all the vegetables.
• In a large cast iron pan melt 1/4 cup of the butter.
• Add the onions and saute until translucent. The add the celery and carrots and continue sauteing until crisp tender. Add the garlic last as it will burn first.
• Whisk together the water, better than bouillon chicken base and all of the seasonings.
• Add the melted butter.
• In a large pan toss the bread slices together.
• Add the sauteed vegetables and toss again.
• Add the liquid mixture and toss again until well absorbed.
• Fold entire mixture into at least a 9x13 baking dish.
• Bake uncovered 1 hour.
• At this point I use a small portion for our dinner that night and freeze the rest.
• When it's time to cook it again, I defrost it, put it back in the same baking dish and bake it again, but this time covered with foil until the last 15 minutes so it doesn't dry out. We like it crisp on top so I remove the foil the last 15 minutes.

PARMESAN CHEESE BREAD/ROLLS

PARMESAN CHEESE BREAD
3 1/4 cups unbleached flour
1 tablespoon active dry yeast
2 teaspoons sea salt
1 1/3 cup warm water
1/2 cup freshly grated Asiago Parmesan Cheese
extra-extra virgin olive oil

• Sift together the four, yeast and salt.
• Stir in the water until dough forms.
• Sprinkle with 1/2 the cheese.
• Transfer to a well floured surface.
• Knead until soft, elastic and no longer sticky (about 10 minutes). Add flour as necessary to reduce stickiness.
• Knead the dough until it remains rounded and doesn't flatten out when left to sit for a few minutes.
• Arrange into a round.
• Brush the surface with olive oil.
• Cover loosely with a tea towel and let rise in a warm place until double in size (about 2 hours).
• Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
• Brush a 9 inch round pan with olive oil.
• Put remaining cheese on a plate.
• Punch down the dough and knead a few more times with fresh flour.
• For rolls - divide dough into12 pieces.
• Roll each piece into a ball.
• Roll each ball in the cheese and then place in pan with the edges touching. 9 balls around the outside, 3 balls in the center.
• Cover with a flour sack towel and allow to rise again.
• Cut a small slash in the top of each ball.
• Sprinkle with more Parmesan cheese.
• Bake for 10 minutes and the reduce oven temperature to 375 degrees and continue to bake until golden and crispy, about 20-30 minutes more.
• Serve hot or transfer to a wire rack and cool and then slice.

READY, SET, START YOUR OVENS!

The (3rd Annual) NEED TO KNEAD has moved to OUR KRAZY KITCHEN.
We all have some favorite family bread recipes tucked away.

I know that at certain times I have the NEED TO KNEAD, primarily during the holidays or from October through April, those long cold months of winter.
The rest of the time my Bread Machine Rules.

I thought we could all come together and share our daily bread recipes.

And I mean all breads! White, wheat, banana, braided, etc...
whatever you're in the mood to share.

Ironically National bread month is November at the beginning of our holiday baking crunch.

Just post your recipes anytime until November 15, 2010, go over and link up at OUR KRAZY KITCHEN so that we can all visit you. You can even link to recipes you have previously posted. Add this button to your participating posts and link to this blog. Your blog can be in any language, but a translator on your site will help any who don't speak the same language.

Bread History According to National Bread Month:

.."It was only after the Pilgrims came to America that baking bread in private homes became the norm. Our ancient forbearers baked bread in communal ovens. These ovens were built on the out skirts of villages, near water due to the extreme fire hazards of the early brick ovens. Later in Europe, after the Romans taught the indigenous peoples about bread making, bread was still baked in large ovens. Except these ovens were not communal ovens they were owned, as was the mill, by the local lord. This made families dependant on the lord for their daily bread. By the Middle Ages baking guilds controlled who and how bread were baked and sold. These organizations limited the number of bakers and bakeries in each village and that meant even impoverished peasants had to purchase bread.

When the first colonists came to North America they demanded the right to be in control of their daily bread. Households at last could bake bread at home. Even commoners were in control of their daily bread...."

Resource LinkCelebrate National Bread Month with crusty water rolls: recipe

Bread is one of the oldest prepared foods, dating back to the Neolithic era. The first breads produced were probably cooked versions of a grain-paste, made from ground cereal grains and water, and may have been developed by accidental cooking or deliberate experimentation with water and grain flour. Descendants of these early breads are still commonly made from various grains worldwide, including the Mexican tortilla, Indian chapatis, rotis and naans, Scottish oatcake, North American johnnycake, Middle Eastern Pita bread (Kmaj in Arabic and Pitot in Hebrew) and Ethiopian injera. The basic flat breads of this type also formed a staple in the diet of many early civilizations with the Sumerians eating a type of barley flat cake, and the 12th century BC Egyptians being able to purchase a flat bread called ta from stalls in the village streets. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bread

Have you heard about the Need to Knead Bread Roundup?  The need to knead bread round-up is almost here. I thought maybe it was time to share with you some food for thought (Pun intended) with a few great resource sites for baking.

• Recipe Curio has a lot of wonderful tips as well as many vintage recipes
• Yeast Dough gets down to the basics of the ingredients and how to work with them.
• Bread World is Fleischmann's Yeast site for recipes and baking tips.
• Bread Baking 101 is all encompassing site of information and recipes.

 General Tips to remember:

• Baking in a high place, a dry place or in a place that can have sudden changes in barometric pressure. All these factors can alter how yeast breads knead, rise and bake.
• To determine if your yeast is still active, dissolve 1 tsp. sugar in 1/2 cup lukewarm water in a see-through measuring cup. Sprinkle 1 tbsp. yeast slowly over the water. Stir and let stand for 10 minutes. At the end of this time, the yeast should have foamed up to reach the 1 cup mark. Yeast that does not reach this mark in 10 minutes will not produce a good loaf and should be discarded.
• Water can replace milk. The texture will change a little, but the bread will still be very tasty and good to eat.
• White sugar, brown sugar, honey and molasses can be interchanged equally in bread dough. The sugar in bread dough supplies the tiny yeast plants with instant food and gets them off to a fast start. Artificial sweeteners are not recommended for yeast breads because they cannot be used by the yeast as natural sweeteners can.
• Fats can be replaced with applesauce or prune puree. The texture of the bread will be more dense. A general rule of thumb is to substitute 1 1/2 tablespoons of applesauce/prune puree for every 3 tablespoons of fat.
• Salt is added to yeast breads not only for flavor but also to keep the yeast fermentation in the bread dough under control. Too little salt will allow the yeast to push the dough so high that it may even collapse. Too much salt will keep the dough from rising enough.

In preparation for the upcoming National Bread Month in November and for our driving desires and "NEED TO KNEAD" as well as the upcoming Holidays let's all join in together on October 31st, 2010 to November 15, 2010 and round-up all of our delicious bread recipes to look back on when we need to bake fantastic bread. I know many of mine were handed down by my grandma.

~ We are looking for all sorts of breads: quick breads, savory breads, sweet ones, yeast breads, no-knead breads, 5-minute breads, vintage or gluten-free breads, etc, etc, etc!

~ Help us promote this bread roundup by putting the above banner in your sidebars and posting about the 3rd Annual Need to Kneed Roundup on your own blogs.

~ We would love it if you would join us, and we would love it if you would help us spread the word by putting this button in your sidebars or even writing a short post about the roundup. Post your links from October 31, 2010 to November 15, 2010 for all your bread recipes.

~ Have fun blog hopping through the bread recipes, make new friends, find new family-favorite recipes, comment, enjoy the process of community-building.

OATMEAL NUT MUFFINS

OATMEAL NUT MUFFINS
1 cup quick cooking oats
1 cup buttermilk
1 stick butter, softened
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
2 Jumbo eggs
1 cup flour, sifted
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup chopped pecans

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
• In a large bowl layer the oats.
• Pour the buttermilk over the oats and let them soak for an hour.
• Cream the butter.
• Add the sugar and cream until smooth.
• Add the eggs one at a time beating after each addition.
• Sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
• Gradually add dry ingredients to the wet until well blended.
• Fill muffin tins 2/3 full.
• Sprinkle nuts on top.
• Bake for 18-20 minutes.

BLACK & BLUE WHITE CORN BREAD

BLACK & BLUE WHITE CORN BREAD

2 cups white corn meal

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

3/4 cup sugar

5 eggs

2 cups sour cream

1/2 cup peanut oil

1 cup fresh blueberries

1 cup fresh blackberries

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• Lightly spray 9x13 pan with PURE.
• Sift together the corn meal, sugar, baking soda and salt into a large mixing bowl.
• Make a well in the center.
• Pour in the eggs, sour cream and oil.
• Mix until well blended.
• Fold in blueberries and blackberries.
• Pour batter into pan and leverl out.
• Bake 30 minutes or until golden brown.

BUTTERMILK BISCUITS

What makes biscuits rise?

Baking Powder and Baking Soda are both leaveners and when activated create carbon dioxide which produces the rise. Baking Soda aka sodium bicarbonate has been commonly used for 200 years and works by simple chemistry. It's reaction is immediate, but does not continue once the biscuits are in the oven. Ironically Baking Powder is the main ingredient in Baking Soda, but baking powder also includes an acid or two. Double acting baking powder is the perfect one for biscuits because it has the immediate acting acid as well as the heat activated acid. In order to use baking powder alone you have to use way too much and it dries out the dough. So finding the perfect combination of baking powder and baking soda is the key to tall and fluffy biscuits.

PERFECT TALL & FLUFFY BUTTERMILK BISCUITS  
2 cups flour + 1 cup flour  
1 tablespoon double acting baking powder  
1 tablespoon sugar  
1 teaspoon salt  
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
4 tablespoons butter, diced  
2 tablespoons butter, melted  
1 1/3 cups low-fat buttermilk

• Preheat oven to 500 degrees.
• Spray a 9 inch cake pan with PURE.
  
• In a food processor pulse dry ingredients several times to combine.
• Add butter pieces scattered over dry ingredients and pulse until crumbly.
• Transfer to a medium bowl.
  
• Stir in buttermilk. (Dough will be wet and lumpy).
• Spray a 1/4 cup measure with PURE.
  
• In a mixing bowl add the remaining 1 cup flour.
• Drop the dough 1/4 cup at a time into the flour.
• Shape into 12 balls. Shaking off excess flour.
  
• Arrange balls (9 around the perimeter and 3 in the center) in the pan.
• Brush tops of dough with melted butter.
• Bake 5 minutes.
• Reduce oven temperature to 450 degrees.
• Bake another 15 minutes.
• Cool 2 minutes.
• Invert biscuits into a clean towel, turn right side up breakaing them apart and cool another 5 minutes.

♥