cinnamon swirl bread

I love making bread. I love feeling the warm elastic dough in my hands while kneading, I love the fragrance that lingers in your entire house and on your hands all day, I love watching the dough rise into huge peaks and then watching those peaks turn a beautiful rich brown while baking. 

This is a really great cinnamon bread recipe. The bread itself is light and airy yet has enough density to satisfy your hunger. I substituted half the flour for whole wheat and it still turned out fluffy and not overly dense. The cinnamon filling is spicy and intense but not overly sweet. This recipe has intriguing depth to it.

Recipe from http://www.sophistimom.com/

1 scant tablespoon instant or rapid rise yeast (1 packet)

3 1/2 cups (350g) unbleached all-purpose flour

1 1/4 cups (295mL) warm water (110 degrees)

2 tablespoons oil

2 tablespoons honey

3/4 teaspoon kosher salt

butter for pan and brushing on finished bread

1 egg white

1 cup (150g) granulated sugar

2 tablespoons ground cinnamon

1. In an electric mixer fitted with the dough hook and set to low speed, mix together yeast and 3 cups of flour. Pour in the water, oil, honey, and salt. Mix on low speed for about 10 minutes, until the dough is smooth and elastic.  Add up to a 1/2 cup more flour if needed.
2. Turn out onto a lightly floured board and knead by hand a few times. Drizzle the inside of the mixer bowl with a bit more oil. Roll the dough around in the oil and cover in plastic wrap. Let rise in a warm place until doubled in size.
3. Butter a large loaf pan and set aside. Turn out the dough onto a floured surface and roll out into a long rectangle the width of the loaf pan.  In a small bowl, mix together the egg white, sugar, and cinnamon, and spread out evenly across the dough.  Roll up carefully, and pinch the dough on the ends, and all along the edge to create a seam that will hold in the filling.  Lay the dough, seam side down, in the prepared pan.  Cover with a clean kitchen towel, and allow to rise for 30 minutes, or until almost doubled in size.  Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
4. Bake for 25-30 Turn minutes, or until the top and bottom of the bread is golden brown. Brush the top of the bread with butter. Tilt the bread pan on its side and allow to cool for 20 minutes. Turn the bread out and allow to cool completely, if you can with that long. 

spicy moroccan chickpea and lentil soup

recipe from The New Glucose Revolution Vegetarian Cookbook

Serves 6, prep time 20,  cook time 50

1 TBS olive oil

1 large onion, finely chopped

3 cloves garlic

1 in piece fresh ginger, finely grated

3 tsp ground cilantro

2 tsp ground cumin

1/2 tsp chili powder

1/2 tsp saffron threads soaked in 2 TBS boiling water (Saffron threads are apparently "the most expensive spice in the world", $9 for a stack of 15-20 tiny threads. I decided to pass on this and just amped up the other spices and that turned out fine, still and had an awesome flavor.)

14 oz can Italian chopped tomatoes

4 c veg stock (or chicken if you're not a vegetarian) 

1 c red lentils

2 2/3 c cooked chickpeas, drained

1/3 c chopped cilantro

1/3 c chopped flat leaf parsley 

salt and pepper

low fat yogurt, to serve

1. Heat oil in large saucepan over med heat. Add onions and cook 607 min, until soft. Add garlic, ginger, cilantro, cumin, chili powder, and cook for 1 minute.
2. Add saffron with its soaking water, tomatoes, stock, lentils and 4 cups water. Cover and bring to simmer. Simmer uncovered for 30 min. Add chickpeas and cook for a further 10 minutes. 
3. Remove from heat and stir in cilantro and parsley. Serve with a dollop of yogurt.

apple, cranberry and walnut bread

recipe from The New Glucose Revolution Vegetarian Cookbook

Makes 12 slices, preparation time 40 minutes,  cook time 45 minutes

1/2 c rolled oats

10 oz milk

1 1/2 c self-rising whole wheat flour

(I only had regular whole wheat flour. Recipe for self rising flour: 1 c flour,  1 1/2 tsp baking powder, 1/2 tsp salt)

1 tsp baking powder

4 1/2 oz dried cranberries

2/3 c firmly packed dried apple, cut into small dice

1/3 c brown sugar

1 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp allspice

1/3 floral honey

1/4 c walnuts, finely chopped

1. place rolled oats in a bowl, pour over the milk and set aside 30 minutes.
2. preheat oven to 350 F.
3. Sift flour and baking powder into large bowl. Add the oat mixture, cranberries, apples, sugar, spices and honey and mix well to combine. (I only had fresh fruit and agave nectar, worked fine).
4. Spoon mixture into non-stick (or greased) loaf tin, sprinkle with the walnuts. Bake for 45 minutes-1 hour. 

This is great with a spoonful of ricotta cheese drizzled with honey. 

Deer, Beer & Bacon (in that order)

To follow up the chocolate cheese and wine cupcakes I tried Maple Caramel Pumpkin Bars with Bacon. Now I may have out done Paula Dean on this one... It was interesting to say the least. The recipe is from noblepig. The pumpkin cake itself was very good, and the caramel icing was fantastic. The maple flavored bacon accented the cake's flavor and added a crunchy complexity to the texture. I took this to a deer burger party, so I figured it would fit well either way. 

Chris got a free deer courtesy of the lovely hunters at BARC, one of the many perks of being a fellow employee.  With the help of Volvo, he made pulled-deer, deer steaks, deer burgers, and deer jerky. The steak was phenomenal. I've never had deer before, so I wasn't sure what to expect. I don't really know what "gamey" tastes like and still don't because but these burgers were definitely not.

Cabbage from Christopher's Lab

Master chef, slaving over a pot of boiling water.

Bars:
8 oz. bacon, diced
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon table salt
1-1/2 cups pumpkin puree
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1 egg
2 Tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
2 Tablespoons bacon drippings
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/4 cup chopped, toasted pecans 

Preheat oven to 350^o F.  Coat a 9 x 13 baking pan with nonstick spray.  Cook bacon in a saute pan over medium heat until crisp; drain on a paper towel lined plate and set aside.  Reserve 2 tablespoons drippings.

Whisk together flour, baking soda, cinnamon and table salt for the bars in a medium bowl; set aside.  Whisk together pumpkin puree, granulated sugar, 1/2 cup brown sugar, egg, melted butter, bacon drippings and vanilla in a large bowl until well blended.  Stir in flour mixture and pecans.

Spread pumpkin batter evenly into prepared pan; bake until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, about 20 minutes.  Let cool completely before frosting. 

Frosting:
 2 cups packed brown sugar
1/3 cup water
Pinch of salt
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 stick unsalted butter, cubed
4 oz. cream cheese, cut into 1-inch cubes
Sea salt

In a medium saucepan over medium-high heat, melt butter. Add sugar and salt. Cook, stirring constantly, until sugar is completely dissolved, then adjust heat to medium and boil 2 minutes longer. Add maple syrup and boil, swirling the pan occasionally, until sauce is thick, smooth, and coats a spoon, 2 to 4 minutes longer.

Pour hot caramel into a clean stand mixer bowl fitted with the paddle attachment. Beat at medium-high speed, scraping down sides occasionally, until sides of bowl are no longer hot to the touch and closer to room temperature and caramel is thick. Add cream cheese, one cube at a time, until frosting is smooth.
 

Bobbie's chicken

From Mary Reel's Cook book. 

Pound chicken breasts

dip in milk, then in bread crumbs.

Brown in oil, drain.

Wrap chicken in prosciutto with Havarti cheese between,

Place in dish, layer with fresh spinach.

Pour 3/4 c chicken broth over chicken.

Cover dish, bake at 350 for 45 min.