my mother's bread, part III

One of these days I'll write an Ode to the Bosch . . .

. . . but for now can I say how much I love my three baking experts?

And now, here's a bread recipe that I've been loving lately. It's one of my favorites because it's super easy and super yummy.

Easy Whole Wheat Bread
2 1/2 tsp instant yeast, or 1 packet active dry yeast dissolved in 2 TBSP water
1 1/3 cups lukewarm water
1/4 cup vegetable oil (i use olive or canola)
1/4 cup honey, molasses, or maple syrup
3 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
1/4 cup nonfat dried milk
1 1/4 tsp salt

In a large bowl, combine all of the ingredients and stir till the dough starts to leave the sides of the bowl. Transfer the dough to a lightly-greased surface, oil your hands, and knead it for 6-8 minutes, or until it becomes smooth and supple. {I do all the above in my Bosch mixer, which you can do if you have a mixer, food processor, or bread machine.} Transfer the dough to a lightly-oiled bowl, cover the bowl, and allow the dough to rise until puffy, though not necessarily doubled in bulk.

Transfer the dough to a lightly-oiled work surface and shape it into an 8-inch loaf. Place the loaf in a lightly-oiled 8 1/2 x 4 1/2-inch loaf pan, cover the pan loosely with lightly-oiled plastic wrap {sometimes i use a warm, damp dish towel} and allow the bread to rise for about 1 hour, or until it's crowned about 1 inch above the edge of the pan. A finger pressed into the dough should leave a mark that rebounds slowly.

Bake the bread in a preheated 350 F-degree oven for about 40 minutes, tenting it lightly with aluminium foil after 20 minutes. Test it for doneness by removing it from the pan and thumping it on the bottom {it should sound hollow}. Remove the bread from the oven, and cool it on a wire rack before slicing. Enjoy!

Pumpkin Waffles with Buttermilk Syrup

This is the recipe you have all been waiting for, even if you didn't know it. The pumpkin waffles are lovely, but the piece de resistance is without question the buttermilk syrup. I think we've made the syrup 3 times in the last month. Sooo good! Oh, and a big thank-you to my lovely sister-in-law Laura Dahl who sends great recipes my way!
(There might be more pumpkin recipes to come . . . maybe!)

Batter:

2 cups flour

2 TBSP baking powder

2 TBSP cinnamon

1 TBSP sugar

1/2 tsp nutmeg

1/4 tsp salt

Mix ingredients together, then add:

4 egg yolks (save whites)

1 cup pumpkin

1 TBSP vanilla

1 1/2 cup milk

3/4 cup butter

Beat the 4 saved egg whites until stiff peaks form and fold them into the batter. Cook in waffle iron.

Buttermilk Syrup:

1/4 cup butter

1/2 cup buttermilk (can substitute 1 TBSP lemon juice + 1/2 cup milk OR buttermilk powder)

1 cup sugar

1 tsp light corn syrup

Bring to a boil and take off heat. Add 1 tsp baking soda and 1 tsp vanilla. It will bubble up quite a bit, so make sure your pan is large enough. Stir until it settles.

Serve over warm pumpkin waffles. Yummy!

Pumpkin Swirl Cheesecake

Thanks to my little sister Jeannette for this delish and mouth-watering recipe. I do love me a slice of regular pumpkin pie, but what could be more divine than cheesecake? We've been known to make this almost every Thanksgiving since she gave me the recipe (back in 2001). Do yourself a favor and whip this baby up!

Pumpkin Swirl Cheesecake

Crust:

2 cups graham cracker crumbs (or vanilla wafers)

1/3 cup melted butter

1/4 cup granulated sugar

Combine crumbs and butter; press onto bottom and sides of 9-inch springform pan.

Filling:

2 8-oz packages cream cheese

3/4 cup sugar

1 tsp vanilla

3 eggs

1 cup canned pumpkin

3/4 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp ground nutmeg

1. Combine cream cheese, 1/2 cup sugar and vanilla, mixing at medium speed on electric mixer until well blended. Add eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition.

2. Reserve 1 cup cream cheese mixture; add pumpkin, remaining sugar and spices to remaining cream cheese mixture. Mix well. Layer half of pumpkin mixture and half of cream cheese mixture over crust; repeat layers. Cut through batter with knife several times for marble effect. Bake at 350 for 55 minutes. Loosen cake from rim of pan; cool before removing rim of pan. Chill. Makes 10 to 12 servings.

Pumpkin Chocolate Panini

Arguably, I have a thing for pumpkin and chocolate. It's unusual, I admit, but if you made the pumpkin bread recipe I posted earlier, I'm positive you're a fan. I make the following recipe any time I feel that the girls aren't getting enough orange veggies in their diet. It originally comes from The Flavor Point Diet (great book!) and is "rich in antioxidant nutrients and fiber". Great quick FHE dessert. Enjoy!

Pumpkin Chocolate Panini
butter
2 slices whole grain bread
2 TBSP canned pumpkin
Ghirardelli Double Chocolate Chips (we use any kind)
Opt: 1 TBSP pecans

1. Spread butter on 1 side of each slice of bread.
2. Spread the pumpkin on the plain side of one slice, sprinkle chocolate chips, and nuts (if desired). Place the second slice on top with butter facing up.
3. Place the sandwich in a hot panini grill or a nonstick skillet over medium heat, close the grill (if using skillet, press the sandwich with a spatula), and grill for 2-3 minutes (if using skillet, turn the sandwich and press again).

Pumpkin Extravaganza

My friend and old BYU roomie, Gwyn, wrote a pumpkin-inspired post on her blog. And oh, did it inspire me. Have I mentioned that I love pumpkin? I decided to lead up to next week's festivities by posting a pumpkin recipe a day. These are my all-time favorite pumpkin foods. So today, I bring to you the best pumpkin cookies. These little guys are light, fluffy, and very addictive.

(Unfortunately, I'm not making a recipe a day, so pictures are courtesy of the world wide web.)

Pumpkin Cookies

1 cup brown sugar

1 egg

1 cup butter

1 tsp vanilla extract

2 cups AP flour

1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp salt

1 tsp ground cinnamon

1 cup canned pumpkin

1. Preheat oven to 350 F.

2. Cream together sugar, egg, butter, and vanilla. Sift together flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon. Add to wet ingredients, then stir in pumpkin. (Add walnuts & raisins if desired.)

3. Bake for 10-15 minutes. Dust with powdered sugar while still warm.

Taste of Autumn

This recipe tells me that autumn is really here. This weekend we enjoyed some great spiritual enlightenment & the most delish pumpkin bread you'll ever eat. (Thanks to the Jensens for hosting a festive conference dinner!)
What are your favorite autumn flavors or memories? Do share! I discovered a new fall favorite--Starbucks salted caramel hot chocolate. Another little taste of autumn coziness!

Spicy Pumpkin Bread
1 (15 ounce) can pumpkin puree
4 eggs
1 cup vegetable oil
2/3 cup water
2.5 cups sugar

3 ½ cups whole wheat flour
2 tsp baking soda
1 ½ tsp salt
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp ground nutmeg
½ tsp ground cloves
¼ tsp ground ginger

*Don't forget the chocolate chips!

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease and flour three 7x3 inch loaf pans
In a large bowl, mix together pumpkin puree, eggs, oil, water, and sugar until well blended. In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and ginger. Stir the dry ingredients into the pumpkin mixture until just blended. Stir in chocolate chips. Pour into the prepared pans.
Bake for about 50 minutes in the preheated oven. Loaves are done when toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.

Taste of Summer

What do you associate with different seasons? Music? Smells? Sounds? Summer for me this year has been all about flavors, particularly lemon & lime. Here are a few summer cuisine standouts. From my kitchen to yours. Peach and Blueberry Crumble
For the fruit
2 pounds firm, ripe peaches (6-8 peaches)
2 tsp grated lemon zest
2 TBSP freshly squeezed lemon juice
½ cup granulated sugar
¼ cup all-purpose flour
1 cup fresh blueberries (1/2 pint)
For the crumble
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/3 cup granulated sugar
¼ cup light brown sugar, lightly packed
½ tsp salt
¼ tsp ground cinnamon
¼ pound (1 stick) cold unsalted butter, diced
1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
2. Slice the peaches into thick wedges, and place them in a large bowl. Add the lemon zest, lemon juice, granulated sugar, and flour. Toss well. Gently mix in the blueberries. Allow the mixture to sit for 5 minutes. Spoon the mixture into individual ramekins or a 9x13-in pan.
3. For the topping, combine the flour, granulated sugar, brown sugar, salt, cinnamon, and the butter. Sprinkle evenly over the fruit. Place the ramekins (or 9x13-in pan) on a sheet pan lined with parchment paper and bake for 40-45 minutes, until the tops are browned and crisp and the juices are bubbly. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Nectarine Mint Salsa (serve with grilled fish)
2 fresh nectarines, pitted & diced
3 TBSP finely chopped bell pepper
2 TBSP sliced green onions
2 tsp fresh lime juice
½ TBSP chopped fresh mint
½ finely chopped small seeded jalapeno

Tomato, mozzarella & pesto panini
2 large tomatoes
1 (16-oz) ball fresh mozzarella
12 slices bakery white bread, sliced ½-inch thick
1 cup prepared pesto
salt
unsalted butter
Spread the top & bottom of each sandwich with softened butter. Spread the inside evenly with pesto, put a layer of mozzarella & cover with a layer of tomato. Sprinkle the tomato with salt. Grill the sandwiches in the panini grill for 2-3 minutes, until the mozzarella starts to ooze. Cut in half & serve warm.