Buttery Breakfast Biscuits

(biscuits before baking)

When I was a little girl my mother used to make baking powder biscuits and cut them out with a floured drinking glass. I do not have her recipe. These make flaky, tender biscuits and can be eaten as a bread with dinner or can be used as a base for a meal or dessert. This recipe is from the Better Homes and Gardens Old Fashion Baking Cookbook. I have used this recipe since 1990 when the cookbook came out. I have usually made this with whipping cream, but it also works well with milk. I always double the recipe!

Ingredients:

2 Cups Flour
1 Tablespoon Baking Powder
1 Tablespoon Sugar
1/2 Teaspoon Cream of Tartar
1/4 Teaspoon salt
1/2 Cup Butter
3/4 Cup Whipping Cream, Light Cream, or Milk

Directions:
In a bowl stir together flour, baking powder, sugar, cream of tartar, and salt (I use a wire whisk). Using a pastry blender, cut butter into the dry mixture until it looks like crumbs. Make a well in the middle and pour in liquid all at once. Stir lightly with a fork until well moistened.

On a lightly floured counter (I use a pastry cloth) dump contents of the bowl. Flour hands and knead by gently folding and patting the dough 10-12 times. Dough will be very soft and sticky, add a little flour to make it easy to pat out into a thickness of about 1/2. Cut out with a 2 1/2 inch cookie cutter, I prefer heart shaped. Dip cutter in flour between cuts. Place on ungreased baking sheet. Bake at 450 degrees for 10-12 minutes. Remove immediately from baking sheet.
Serve hot.

Makes 10-12 biscuits.

Potato Bread (Bread, Rolls, Pizza ,Scones...)

This versatile recipe can be used for bread, rolls, fried scones, cinnamon rolls, pizza, and more. this makes a tasty, soft, but dense loaf.  The dough freezes well for baking later. Makes 6 regular loaves.

Pint Size Banana Nut Bread in a Jar

What? Bake banana nut bread in a pint sized canning jar? You bet! This makes a moist, nice size loaf. One thing I like about this size is it is perfect for gift giving, just the right size for our shrinking household, and great for when unexpected guest drop in.

Star Spangled Muffins

These red, white, and blue muffins are the perfect touch for a patriotic breakfast celebration (or any time of the day...yum).

Banana Nut Bread

Makes one loaf.

Ingredients:
1/2 cup butter (not margarine)
1 cup brown sugar (cane sugar, not beet sugar)
2 eggs
2 cups unbleached flour (can substitute 1/2 whole wheat)
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground all spice
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 cup mashed bananas very ripe
1 tablespoon and 1 teaspoon milk.
1/2 cup of chopped walnuts or pecans
  
Directions:
Grease or line a loaf pan with wax paper. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a bowl or electric mixer cream butter and sugar together. Add eggs, beat well and set aside.In another bowl sift all the dry ingredients together and set aside. In a third bowl combine milk and smashed bananas. Alternately add banana mixture and flour mixture a little bit at a time to the butter mixture; beginning and ending with the banana mixture; mixing in between each. Alternating like this helps insure that the large amount of dry ingredients gets thoroughly mixed in with no dry pockets/ clumps. Pour into greased/ lined pan and bake 1 hour or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. 

Eat warm or let cool on a rack. Enjoy!

One batch will make four Pint Jar Loaves.

Lloyd's Whole Wheat Bread

My friend Lloyd is always experimenting with bread to improve the nutrition and quality of loaf for his large family. By adding ascorbic acid and lecithin the loft and crumb of the bread is better.  The lecithin also provides the needed amino acids to make this a complete protein. This is his current recipe. Yum!!!  Makes 6 loaves, or 4 extra long loaves. (updated 22 May 2010)

Ingredients:
11-12 cups of Hard White Spring Wheat (Golden 86) ground fresh into flour.

6.5 Cups Hot Water

1 Tablespoon Oil
3/4 Cup Honey
1/4 Teaspoon Ascorbic Acid or 1 Vitamin C, crushed (500 mg)-
4-6 Tablespoons Lecithin
1 Tablespoon Salt

3+ Tablespoons Yeast

Directions:
1. Grease pans.
2. Swish 1 tablespoon cooking oil in glass measuring cup and then pour into Bosch mixing bowl. As a side benefit this will make it easier to measure the honey and pour it out.
3. Measure 3/4 cup honey in the same glass measuring cup and then pour into mixing bowl.
4. Measure  in the same glass measuring cup- hot water from the tap as hot as you can get it and pour into mixing bowl. As a side benefit using the same measuring cup will result in rinsing all the oil and honey from the cup.
5. Measure 1/4 teaspoon Ascorbic Acid or crush 500mg of Vitamin C. This acid will bind the enzyme in the wheat that interferes with the yeast rising.  Adding this can make the loaf lighter.
6. Measure 4-6 tablespoons granulated Soy Lecithin and pour into mixing bowl. If you use powdered Lecithin, the powder can be added in with the wheat flour. Soy Lecithin provides Lysine to complete the amino acids to make this bread a complete protein.  This helps make the bread hold together better.
7. Measure 1 tablespoon salt and add in the mixing bowl.
8. Turn on the mixer.
9. Add 2/3s of the fresh ground wheat flour to the mixing bowl. This should make a lukewarm mixture that is like a thick pancake batter.  You want it warm, but not hot, so the yeast will rise.
10. While mixer is still on, add 3+ tablespoons SAF or Fermi-pan Instant Yeast. You may need to add more yeast if it is older yeast towards the end of its shelf life. (Fleischmann's does not perform well in this recipe).
Mix in until yeast is mixed in and cannot be seen.
11. While mixer is still on add wheat flour until dough pulls away from the sides and the center post. Add another 1/4-1/2 cup wheat flour.
12. Continue mixing on medium speed for 7-10 minutes.  If you are to err let it be longer rather than shorter mixing.  Gluten takes longer to develop and loses its elasticity slowly. If the dough gets sticky again it is over mixed.
13. Divide dough into six equal balls.
14. To form loaves, roll into rectangles, and then roll up the rectangle and fold ends under and place in pans.*
15. Cover with lightly floured dish towel. Let rise 30+ minutes (until more than double) in a warm oven (not more than 140 degrees). Place a cake pan of warm water in the bottom of the oven while rising, it keeps the dough from drying out while rising.
16. Remove dish towel and the pan of water from the oven. Turn oven to 325 degrees while bread is still in oven and bake for about 38-40+ minutes. Loaf should sound hollow when thumped.
17. Remove bread from pans while still hot. 
18. Butter loaf tops and cover with towel. Even if the first loaf cut is not as done as you would like, the towel covered loaves will continue to cook on the counter.  This will make six light crusted loaves of whole wheat bread.

If loaves cracked then heating oven with loaves in it was done too quickly.  Next time gently remove and preheat and then return bread to oven for approximately 40 minutes.  If you are not gentle in dealing with risen but uncooked bread, the rise of the bread will drop.So, be careful!

Dough can be used to make rolls or cinnamon rolls.

* Note on Freezing Uncooked Bread Dough: I am presently experimenting with freezing the dough at this point for baking in the future.  My family size has decreased and I no longer need such a large batch. I will post here when I have satisfactorily worked out the results. When freezing bread dough it is usually just after forming into loaves or rolls.  When forming loaves I would put it into the pan and freeze it a few hours then dump out of the pan and store frozen loaf in a plastic bag.  Rolls would be frozen on a cookie sheet and then poured into a plastic bag. When you want fresh bread, remove from freezer and place in prepared loaf pans or on a prepared cookie sheet. Continue with step 15 above.

Donna's Blueberry Muffins

Change to: medium muffins US Metric

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Ingredients:
Makes 10-12 Makes 24
1 3/4 cups sifted flour 3 1/2 cups
1/4 cup sugar 1/2 cups
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder 5 teaspoons
3/4 teaspoon salt 1 1/2 teaspoon
1/3 cup melted shortening or salad oil 2/3 cup shortening
1 egg 2 eggs
3/4 cup milk 1 1/2cup milk
1 cup blueberries 1-2 cups (I like to double the ingredients but not
the berries)
 

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 F. Mix sugar, baking powder, and salt in a small dish. Then sift together flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. In a different bowl combine shortening, egg, and milk. Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients blending with a fork just until moist. Carefully fold in blueberries. You will probably burst a few berries, no worries, the juices make a nice color swirl. Fill greased or paper lined muffin tins 2/3 full. Bake at 400 F for 20-25 minutes until lightly golden.

Homemade Flour Tortillas

Tonight, my friend Alex's mom, Dianna taught us how to make tortillas from scratch. Dianna is from Corpus Christi, Texas. She used to have a family Tex-Mex Restaurant. These were flavorful and I tried my hand at making a few.

Makes 20+ 8 inch tortillas. Dough can be made ahead of time but should be used within 24 hours.

Ingredients
6 cups unbleached all purpose flour or whole wheat flour
2 tsp sea salt
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 cup vegetable oil (corn, sunflower, olive oil, or canola)
2 cups of very hot water (or less)

Directions
In a large mixing bowl or Bosch place flour, salt, baking powder, and mix with your hands or sifter, or in the Bosch with the wire whisk attachment until well blended. Add oil and mix with a fork, or fingers, or with the Bosch until thoroughly mixed an crumbly like pie crust.

Add hot water slowly, and mix with hands, making sure all flour mixture mixes. If using a Bosch, exchanged whisk for dough hook. Make sure you add water slowly and make sure the flour from the bottom of the bowl gets mixed into the dough. Add a little water to collect flour from bottom of the bowl. Mix until dough pulls away from the side of the bowl and forms a ball. Whole wheat flour is less smooth and pulls apart easily. Place dough on un-floured board and knead until smooth, or slam on the counter about 20 times. Let dough rest about 15 minutes.

Pull the dough into approximately 20 gulf ball sized balls. Keep covered with a damp cloth. Squeeze each ball into a flatten disc shape. Then place back under the moist cloth. Remove one disc from under the towel, and roll out into a circle. Place in a medium high pan for 30 seconds, until you see small bubbles appearing on the underside. Turn tortilla for another 30 seconds.

Cool on a paper towel, serve. Fill with desired filling.

100% Whole Wheat Bread

This was the bread I made by hand, before I was married and until I bought a Bosch. I still like this recipe because it is full of flavor. I always made this with hard red winter wheat.

Ingredients:
3 cups milk or water*
3 Tablespoons oil
½ cup honey
1/4 cup molasses
2 Tablespoons active dry yeast
1/4 cup lukewarm water
6-7 ½ cups whole wheat flour

*water brings out the flavor, milk adds protein and calcium.

Directions:
Combine milk, oil, honey and molasses in a saucepan. Heat and stir until blended; remove from heat and cool until lukewarm. Dissolve yeast in 1/4 cup of warm water (if you use the cup you measured the honey and molasses in it will bubble faster. Pour liquids from the sauce pan into a large bowl and add yeast. Stir in 3 cups of flour, beating well to develop the gluten. Stir in remaining flour and turn on to a well floured board. Knead thoroughly, until dough is smooth and elastic. Turn into well oiled bowl, turning once to coat. Cover with a damp cloth and let rise 1 hour. Punch down, form two loaves, place in two well greased bread tins; let rise covered, 45 minutes. Bake at 375 F for 45 minutes, or until loaf sounds hollow when thumped. Remove from pan, brush with butter or oil, cover with a cloth until cool.

This will keep for a week in the fridge if stored in a plastic bag. If it gets crumbly, just toast it.

If using for sandwiches, do not let over rise or it will have holes!

Donna's Apple Stuffing

I do not like to cook my stuffing in the turkey. So, I created this dish that I can bake in the oven.

Ingredients:
1 lb. of dry stuffing
2 1/2 cups chicken stock
1 stick of butter
1 cup celery, sliced into moons
1 diced onion
1 cored and sliced apple

Directions:

Saute' onions and celery in melted butter until celery turns bright green. bring stock to a boil. Toss all ingredients together and mix with a fork until all is moist and mixed. Pour into a 4 quart casserole and bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.

Betty Goff's Lemon Poppyseed Bread

1 January 1980, my father-in-law, Robert Davis Goff, married Elizabeth Jane Bassford. Elizabeth preferred being called Betty. This was Betty's contribution to the family cookbook. We served this for the Princess Academy Open House.

Ingredients:

1 box lemon cake mix (any kind but chiffon)
1 small box instant vanilla pudding
4 eggs
1 cup water
1/2 cup oil
1/4 cup poppy seeds (use just under 1/4 cup poppy seeds).

Directions:

Mix all ingredients together and then mix four minutes. Pour into three small, well greased, bread pans. Bake at 325 degrees for 40 minutes.

Roger's Pumpkin Bread

This is a recipe my husband brought back from his mission in Minnesota-Manitoba Mission 1970-72. We had this for refreshments at the Princess Academies Open House this week.

Ingredients:

Single batch Triple Batch

1 cup pumpkin 3 cups pumpkin (1 large size can)
2 eggs 6 eggs
1 1/2 cups sugar 4 1/2 cups sugar
1/2 cup vegetable oil 1 1/2 cups vegetable oil
1 1/2 flour 4 1/2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda 1 Tablespoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon baking powder 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg 1 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon 1 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon cloves 1 1/2 teaspoon cloves
3/4 teaspoon salt 2 1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup chopped walnuts 3/4 cup chopped walnuts

Directions:

Mix all spices in a small bowl, then blend well with flour. Add the rest of the ingredients and mix thoroughly. Pour into greased loaf pans. Bake in preheated 325 degree oven for 90 minutes. If baked in a glass pan, 75 minutes. Cool 10 minutes. Remove from the pan. Slice and serve, good hot or cold. Stores well in the freezer. To store in freezer, cool completely, and store in ziplock bag.

Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls with Caramel Frosting

Ingredients:

1/3 cup milk
2 tablespoons butter
½ cup mashed cooked
pumpkin, or canned pumpkin
2 tablespoons sugar
½ teaspoon salt
1 beaten egg
1 package active dry yeast
1 cup unbleached flour
1 cup bread flour
1/3 cup packed brown sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 tablespoons melted butter
Caramel Frosting

Directions:

1. In a small saucepan, heat milk and two tablespoons butter until warm (120°-130° F) and butter is almost melted, stirring constantly. In a large mixer bowl, combine pumpkin, sugar and salt. Add the milk mixture; beat with an electric mixer until well mixed. Beat in egg and yeast.

2. In a mixing bowl, stir together unbleached flour and bread flour. Add half of the flour mixture to the pumpkin mixture. Beat mixture on low speed for 5 minutes, scrapping the sides of the bowl, constantly.

3. Add remaining flour; mix thoroughly (dough will be very soft). Turn into lightky greased bowl; grease surface of dough lightly. Cover and let rise in a warm place until double; about 1 hour.

4. Punch the dough down. Turn on to a floured surface. Knead a few turns to form a smooth dough, sprinkle with enough additional flour to make the dough easy to handle.
On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough into a 12x10 inch triangle.

5. Combine brown sugar and cinnamon. Brush surface of the dough, with melted butter. Sprinkle with brown sugar mixture. Beginning with the longest side of the dough, roll up jelly roll style; seal seam. With a sharp knife (or long piece of thread– it works better than a knife), cut roll into 12 one inch pieces. Place rolls, cut side up in a greased 9x9x2 baking pan. Cover; let rise till nearly double; 30-45 minutes.

6. Bake in 350° F oven for 20 minutes or until done. Meanwhile prepare caramel frosting. When rolls are done, immediately remove from pan to wax paper lined wire rack. Cool 10-15 minutes. Drizzle with Caramel Frosting.


Caramel Frosting

Ingredients:

1/4 cup butter
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 tablespoons milk
1/4 teaspoon vanilla
a dash of salt
1/2-3/4 cup powdered sugar

Directions:

In a small saucepan heat one 1/4 cup butter till melted. Stir in ½ cup brown sugar and 2 tablespoons milk. Cook mixture over medium-low heat for one minute. Transfer to a small mixer bowl and cool. Add 1/4 teaspoon vanilla, a dash of salt, and ½-3/4 cup powdered sugar. Beat with an electric mixer until well blended.