Easy Homemade Bread Bowls

Yesterday I had plans to make potato soup for dinner. After searching recipes online and paging through some cookbooks the last couple evenings, I came up with a game plan. Then, early afternoon, when checking email, I saw a post that mentioned homemade bread bowls. What great timing!

I don’t think I’ve ever had anything in a bread bowl before even though I’ve seen them filled with dip at parties and on restaurant menus filled with soup or salad. But coming across a recipe to make them from scratch got my attention. And it was from Sally’s Baking Addiction, a very trusted source for all things baked.

With not a lot of hands-on time required and only one full rise, it looked doable to have these ready in time for dinner. With only a couple short breaks from my work-from-home workday, they were ready and cooling before I even started on the soup, plus, the house smelled amazing.

Following the recipe, the only change I made was to use instant yeast in place of active-dry. That made for a really quick rise to double in size, about 35 minutes. And the second rise after you form the dough balls is only the time it takes to preheat your oven. The egg wash gives the bread bowls that beautiful shiny golden exterior and the interior is a perfectly soft, heavenly texture that you only get with homemade.

Fill with your favorite soup, salad, or dip, take a deep breath, relax, and enjoy! It’ll taste even better if it’s cold and snowy where you are.

• Servings: 6
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From Sally’s Baking Addiction

4 and ½ teaspoons either instant yeast or active-dry yeast (2 packets)

2 and ¼ cups (540 ml) warm water (105-115 degrees F.)

2 teaspoons granulated sugar

2 teaspoons salt

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

6 cups (780 grams) bread flour, plus more for hands and surface

Egg wash: 1 large egg beaten with 1 tablespoon milk (any kind of milk, including almond or soy)

Pour the warm water over yeast in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook. If you don’t have a stand mixer, a regular large mixing bowl will work. Whisk together and allow to sit for 10 minutes, until foamy.

If you do not have a stand mixer, mix by hand in this step. With the stand mixer running on low speed, add the sugar, salt, olive oil, and 4 cups of the bread flour. Mix on low speed for 1 minute, then add remaining 2 cups of flour. Mix on low speed for 5-6 minutes. The dough should be thick, yet soft, and only slightly sticky. It should pull away from the sides of the bowl as it mixes. If it’s too sticky, add more flour, 1 tablespoon at a time, until it pulls away from the sides of the bowl.

Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface and form it into a ball. Grease the bowl you mixed the dough in with a little olive oil. Return ball of dough to the bowl and turn it over once to oil the top. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and place it in warm area to rise until doubled in size, 45-90 minutes, depending on whether you used instant or active dry yeast.

Once doubled in size, punch down the dough to release any air bubbles. Remove dough from the bowl onto a lightly floured surface. Punch down again. Using a sharp knife or bench scraper, cut the dough into 6 equal pieces. Form each piece into a ball.

Line 2 large baking sheet with parchment or silicone baking mats. Place 3 dough balls onto each sheet. Cover lightly and set aside to rest as your oven preheats.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Just before putting in the oven, brush the dough balls with the egg wash. If desired, using a sharp knife, score an X into the tops of each (I did this on 5 of the 6 and it looks pretty, but isn’t a necessity).

Bake for 30 minutes or until golden. About halfway through, rotate the pans from top to bottom and rotate each 180 degrees, for even baking. Let cool on pan or cooling rack. The bowls will be easier to cut if they have cooled somewhat.

For serving, cut a large round off the top of each bread bowl. Scoop out the center (either save to dunk in soup, or reserve for another use). Fill with soup, stew, or salad. Leftover bread bowls can be stored covered, at room temperature for a couple days, or wrapped and frozen for several months (bring to room temperature before serving). I wasn’t able to eat an entire bread bowl (my husband, however, found it easy to do), so I refrigerated the uneaten portion and enjoyed it with soup (in a regular bowl) the next day—don’t let any of that delicious bread go to waste! Make 6 bread bowls.

Panettone Muffins

A few weeks ago, I ordered a new-to-me ingredient from King Arthur Baking Company, Fiori di Sicilia. It’s a blend of citrus and vanilla with a subtle floral aroma that reminds me of an Orange Julius. This secret ingredient can be added to cakes, cookies, sweet breads, muffins, and scones for a lovely mysterious flavor that you just can’t quite put your finger on when describing.

Eager to bake something with it, I turned to the King Arthur website for a recipe and chose Panettone Muffins. Perfect for the season and I had all the ingredients on hand. Fiori di Sicilia (flowers of Sicily) is traditionally used in Panettone, which is a classic Italian Christmas yeast bread. If you don’t have the Fiori di Sicilia, you can sub orange extract or orange essence, or just leave it out. You won’t get that special “je ne sais quoi,” but will still have a mighty tasty muffin.

The recipe calls for soaking the dried fruit in ¼ cup of apple juice, orange juice, or rum, but after reading the comments, I followed a suggestion and used Cointreau, an orange flavored liqueur (plan ahead and start the soaking the day before—it’s worth the extra time). To make the muffins partially whole-grain, I subbed in whole wheat pastry flour for some of the white all-purpose. If you don’t have the whole wheat, just use all-purpose for the full flour amount.

Made on a Saturday morning, we had them with scrambled eggs for a delicious treat that tasted like Christmas. Wanting to use my pretty muffin papers that hold more batter than a typical muffin pan, we ended up with a size in between regular and jumbo. If you do that too, you’ll need to increase the baking time.

Enjoy! And merry Christmas!

• Servings: 12
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Adapted from this King Arthur Baking Company Recipe

1 ½ cups diced dried fruit (I used a combination of dried cherries, cranberries, gold and regular raisins)

¼ cup apple juice, orange juice, or rum (or do what I did and use Cointreau or another orange liqueur)

4 tablespoons butter, at room temp

2 tablespoons vegetable oil (I used grapeseed—any neutral oil will do)

2/3 cup granulated sugar

2 large eggs, at room temp

¼ teaspoon Fiori di Sicilia (you can sub orange extract or orange essence, or just omit)

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

2 teaspoons baking powder

½ teaspoon fine grain salt

1 ¼ cups all-purpose flour

1 cup whole wheat pastry flour

2/3 cup milk

Several tablespoons of coarse sugar (turbinado, demerara, or sparkling sugar)

In a small bowl, mix the dried fruit with the juice or booze. Cover and let it rest overnight, stirring it up occasionally so the fruit is evenly saturated. You can speed this up by heating the fruit and liquid in the microwave until very hot and then letting it cool to room temperature, although I think it really benefits from the longer soaking time.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. (or 350 on a convection setting). Lightly grease a 12-cup or two 6-cup muffin tins. If you use muffin papers, lightly spray them before adding the batter so the paper will come off the muffins easily.

In a medium mixing bowl, beat the butter, oil, and sugar together until smooth. Add the eggs and beat to combine. Stir in the Fiori di Sicilia and vanilla.

In a small bowl, whisk together the baking powder, salt, and flours. Stir the dry ingredients into the butter mixture alternately with the milk, starting and ending with the flour mixture and making sure everything is thoroughly combined.

Stir in the dried fruit and include any remaining liquid.

Spoon the batter evenly into prepared muffin pans or cups. Sprinkle the tops generously with the coarse sugar. Bake for 18-20 minutes (for standard muffins. If making larger ones, the cooking time will need to be increased), until a toothpick stuck in the middle comes out clean or with just a few crumbs clinging to it.

Remove muffins from the oven and let them sit in the pan for a few minutes before moving them to a cooling rack. Makes 12 standard muffins, or in my case, with the larger muffin papers, 7.

One comment after the recipe on King Arthur’s webpage said they are even better the next day and we’ll find out tomorrow if that’s true. With the boozy fruit and Fiori di Sicilia, I’m betting that will be the case.

Big Crunchy-Lidded Blueberry Muffins

Last weekend, while preparing for what feels like the apocalypse (Covid-19 pandemic), I turned to the comforting task of baking, thinking it would be nice to have something on hand I could freeze and take out for a little treat here and there. We all still need treats!

Recently I made muffins for a work party welcoming a new staff member and they were delicious. With blueberries still in the fridge, making blueberry muffins was the obvious choice, but I had run out of grapeseed oil, my go-to neutral oil when a recipe calls for canola or vegetable oil.

Having made some cakes and sweet breads with olive oil, I thought that might make a suitable substitute, but wasn’t sure if the flavor would overwhelm the blueberries. What I ended up using was a mixture of olive oil and melted butter, and I actually think it made for an even better muffin than the original. Also, instead of the coarse sugar the recipe suggested sprinkling on the muffins prior to baking, I opted for cinnamon sugar. And to make the muffins lean a little healthy, I used whole wheat pastry flour for half of the all-purpose flour the recipe called for.

Off to the freezer these muffins went. We’ll dig into them once the Chocolate Stout Cupcakes with Irish Whiskey Buttercream I made for the office birthday party that was cancelled because we’re all now working from home are gone. I hope this social distancing thing doesn’t result in packing on a few extra pounds—I am making sure to work out a little longer each day now that I don’t have drive time.

Enjoy these treats if you make them, and by the way, frozen blueberries will work equally well. Wishing you all good health in the days to come!

• Servings: 8 large or 14 regular muffins
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Adapted from this Sally’s Baking Addiction recipe, one of my go-to sites for all things baking. I used these muffin/cupcake molds and they make a large, but not jumbo muffin. They stand by themselves on a baking tray. You could also use a large muffin tin. If you want standard size muffins, the baking time will need to be shorted and I have listed the different times in the recipe instructions.

1 ½ cups unbleached all-purpose flour

1 ½ cups whole wheat pastry flour

4 teaspoons baking powder

½ teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

2 large eggs, at room temperature

1 cup granulated sugar

1 cup low-fat buttermilk, at room temperature

¼ cup (half a stick) butter, melted

¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1 ½ cups fresh or frozen (do not defrost) blue berries, divided

Cinnamon sugar for sprinkling (1/4 cup granulated sugar mixed with one tablespoon cinnamon)

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. If not using muffin molds or liners, spray your muffin pan with non-stick spray or butter it.

In a large bowl, mix together the flours, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs, sugar buttermilk, butter, oil and vanilla extract.

Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and pour in the buttermilk mixture. Mix together until just combined—don’t over mix. Batter will be thick. Gently fold in 1 ¼ of the 1 ½ cups blueberries.

Scoop batter into prepared molds or muffin pans, filling about ¾ of the way full. Top each muffin with a few blueberries from the reserved ¼ cup. Sprinkle generously with cinnamon sugar (you will probably not use it all—save for cinnamon toast on a rainy morning).

If making large muffins, bake at 425 degrees F. for 5 minutes, and then reduce oven temperature to 375 degrees F. Bake for an additional 20 minutes or until tops are golden and a toothpick or tester inserted into the center of muffins comes out clean. If making regular-sized muffins, cook 5 minutes at 425 degrees F., reduce oven temp to 375, and continue baking for another 12 minutes or so.

Set pan on a cooling rack for 10 minutes, then remove muffins from pan and continue cooling on rack. Makes about 8 large or 14 regular muffins.

 

Spiced Pear Butter

A while back I spied some beautiful organic Bartlett pears on sale at Whole Foods and decided to buy a big bag of ‘em. I left them on the counter to ripen and then put them in the crisper drawer of the fridge with plans for lots of pear snacking. Fast forward a week or so and that bag o’ pears was still in the crisper, said snacking had not happened, and the pears were starting to lose their beauty.

A dessert using all those pears would be mighty big and I certainly don’t need those calories, so I decided to see if there was such a thing as pear butter. Pears are kind of like apples, and apple butter is delicious, so pear butter must be a thing. Sure, enough, I found several recipes online.

The result is wonderful! Full of warm fall spices with a richness from the brown sugar and vanilla—I’ll be finding many uses for this deliciousness! On ice-cream, English muffins (paired with peanut butter it’s especially good!), mixed in with plain yogurt, a sweet touch to a savory grilled cheese sandwich, pancake topping, a smoothie mix-in—so many ways to use this concoction! Enjoy!

• Servings: three 12-ounce jars
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Adapted from this USA Pears recipe

3 pounds ripe Bartlett pears

¼ cup water

¾ to 1 cup light brown sugar, use the lower amount for a less sweet version

2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice

½ of a vanilla bean or ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract*

¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/8 teaspoon ground cardamom

1/8 teaspoon ground allspice

1/8 teaspoon ground ginger

1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg

Wash, quarter, and core pears (if you do not have a food mill, mentioned later in the recipe, peel pears after washing, and skip the food mill step).

Place pear quarters and water in a large stockpot, over medium heat, until water starts to simmer. Cover pot and adjust heat to maintain a simmer, and cook until pears are soft, about 20 minutes. It may seem like you should add more than a quarter cup of water, but the pears will release liquid as they soften—I assure you there’s no need for more water.

Remove pot from heat and mash pears with a potato masher (if you don’t have a potato masher, carefully mash the pears with the bottom of a large drinking glass).

Place a food mill over a large bowl and run mashed pears, in batches, through mill, discarding pear skins that are left in the mill. Dump the bowl of pear pulp back into the stockpot, add the brown sugar, the vanilla bean, and the spices.

*If you are using pure vanilla extract instead of vanilla bean, add the vanilla later, after the cooking process, where the instructions have you remove the vanilla bean.

Cook pear mixture, uncovered, at a simmer, for about an hour, until desired thickness. Stir every few minutes to prevent scorching. Mixture will thicken somewhat as it cools.

Spoon mixture into jars and, if freezing, leave about an ½ to an inch of headspace in jars for expansion. Will keep in refrigerator for a couple weeks and in freezer for a couple months. Makes about three 12-ounce jars.

 

Ultimate Zucchini Bread

Up until recently, if you mentioned zucchini bread to me, I would have said, “Meh.” It was okay, but nothing I would have chosen to make unless I was desperate to use up some zucchini and wasn’t feeling a savory recipe.

So when I saw a zucchini bread recipe pop up on the Smitten Kitchen, the only reason I didn’t skip right over it was the word “ultimate” in the title. Deb Perelman doesn’t throw around words like that without the goods to back ‘em up.

With that in mind, and some farmers’ market zucchini in the crisper, I baked a loaf that Pete and I enjoyed the heck out of. Soon after, another one when I had a tooth pulled and needed something moist and soft that didn’t require actual chewing (and kept this one all to myself). And another loaf after that to serve with breakfast when my parents were visiting. And, again, to take to take to the cabin. In between, I was craving this stuff. Crazy, right? Never in a million years did I think I’d actually be craving zucchini bread!

The nice thing is, this loaf of yumminess is so quick to mix up and pop in the oven. A one-bowl feat of ease with no need to wring the moisture out of the zucchini. And it freezes beautifully!

Deb mentions using a neutral oil, melted, butter, or olive oil. Wanting to maximize the health factor, I opted for olive oil. With the first loaf, I think I used whole wheat pastry flour for ½ cup of the 2 cups flour, and each time I made it, I increased the percentage of whole wheat till there was no white flour included. Totally whole grain without any heaviness or grainy texture—yay!

The only hard part about this recipe is the suggestion requirement of waiting 24 hours after baking to dig into it. Be assured, though, this is necessary in order for it to live up to the “ultimate” moniker. Once you’ve waited that excruciatingly long full day, I think you’ll agree, the delay was worth it.

In order to keep the crunchy dome of this treat crunchy, don’t cover it, just let it sit out on the counter in the pan in which it was baked—no need to do anything else—I’ve got four (or more by now) loaves under my belt, so am speaking from experience. Just wrap the cut end in foil and return it to the pan and keep it on the kitchen counter. I pretty much guarantee it won’t last long–it’s that good!

Eaten plain or slathered with whatever spread, butter, or topping you please, let this warmly-spiced sweet treat ease you into fall. And if you happen to have made a batch of the Smitten Kitchen’s Peach Butter like I did, it will elevate this “ultimate” zucchini bread to super ultimate status. Enjoy!

Amazing Zucchini Bread

• Servings: 8-10
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Slightly adapted from this Smitten Kitchen Recipe

2 cups (13 ounces or 370 grams) grated, packed zucchini, not wrung out, grated on the large holes of a box grater

2 large eggs, room temperature

2/3 cup (160 ml) extra-virgin olive oil, butter, or a neutral oil like safflower or grapeseed

½ cup (95 grams) packed dark brown sugar

½ cup (100 grams) granulated sugar

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1 teaspoon fine sea or table salt

1 ¼ teaspoons ground cinnamon

1/8 teaspoon ground or freshly grated nutmeg

¾ teaspoon baking soda

½ teaspoon baking powder

2 cups (9.65 ounces or 275 grams) whole wheat pastry flour (I like Whole Foods 365 Organic)

2 tablespoons raw or turbinado sugar

Heat oven to 350 degrees F. or 335 if you have a convection oven. Lightly coat a 6-cup or 9×5 inch loaf pan with cooking spray.

Place grated zucchini in a large bowl and add oil, eggs, brown and granulated sugars, vanilla, and salt. Mix with a fork until combined.

Sprinkle cinnamon, nutmeg, baking soda, and baking powder over the surface of the batter and mix until combined. Then, to ensure ingredients are well-dispersed, mix an additional 10 or so stirs.

Add flour and mix until combined, with no pockets of flour remaining. Pour into prepared pan and smooth the top. Sprinkle with the raw or turbinado sugar—use it all—it will make that awesome crunchy dome.

Bake for 55-60 minutes or until a toothpick or tester inserted into the middle of the loaf comes out batter-free. Because I have a history of quick breads being doughy in the middle, to ensure doneness, I also use an instant read thermometer to test the internal temperature. If it’s not between 195 and 200 degrees F., I put it back in the oven until it reaches that temperature range.

Remove from oven and cool completely on a wire rack. Leave in the pan, unwrapped, overnight or 24 hours. Remove loaf carefully from pan, being careful not to ruin the crunchy lid, and cut into slices. Zucchini bread keeps 4-5 days at room temperature. Only the cut end of the loaf needs to be wrapped in foil; store the bread in the baking pan.

Makes 8-10 servings.

 

Buttermilk Chive Bread

After returning from an all-too-short cabin trip over the 4^th of July, we had a big bag of cabin chives to use. I’ve written about our cabin chives before—they come from the most prolific chive plant I’ve ever seen, and it’s situated smack dab in front of the cabin. The Lake Superior air must be good for it.

You can cut chives from this plant almost any time of the year. We’ve even dug through the snow to find fresh chives in winter. Seriously!

A couple years ago after bringing a bag of chives home, I got to thinking about chives and buttermilk pairing so well together and wondered how that would translate into bread. I found a recipe online, tweaked it some, including incorporating whole wheat flour and doubling the chives (hey, when you’ve got good chives, flaunt ’em!), and the rest is history. It’s become a staple in our house whenever we bring home chives. Perfect for either sandwiches or toasted and spread with good butter, it’s got a pleasant tang from the buttermilk and an oniony hint that lots of chives bring. I see sandwiches in your future! Enjoy!

By the way, if you’re lucky enough to have the chive flowers, in addition to being pretty, they add a delicious delicate flavor to whatever you add them. We love the on salads!

• Servings: 2 loaves
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Adapted from this Iowa Housewife recipe

4 cups bread flour, divided

2 cups whole wheat flour

4 teaspoons instant yeast (if using active dry yeast instead, double rising times)

2 tablespoons sugar

1 tablespoon salt

¼ cup neutral oil (grapeseed, avocado, canola) or melted butter

1 ¼ cup warm water, about 110 degrees F.

1 cup warm buttermilk (I use low-fat), about 110 degrees F.

½ cup chopped chives

2 tablespoons butter, melted, for brushing on cooked loaves (optional)

Grease two 4 ½ x 8 ½ inch loaf pans. Set aside.

Place three cups of the bread flour, the whole wheat flour, yeast, sugar, and salt into the bowl of a stand mixer. Mix until combined (if you don’t have a stand mixer, use a whisk).

With mixer on low speed, add the oil/butter, water, and buttermilk. Gradually add the remaining cup of bread flour and mix until dough leaves the sides of the bowl. Turn speed up slightly and mix for about two minutes. If you don’t have a stand mixer, mix all ingredients together using a wooden spoon.

Add chives and change to the dough hook, and, at low speed, knead about five minutes (if you don’t have a stand mixer, knead by hand on a lightly floured surface for about 5 minutes). Cover bowl and let rest in a warm place for about 10 minutes. Turn dough out of bowl onto a floured surface and divide in half. Form into loaves and place in prepared pans. Loosely cover the pans with a tea towel and let rise in a warm place for about 30 minutes.

While dough is rising, preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Bake loaves for 25-30 minutes. Remove loaves from pans onto a cooling rack. Brush tops with melted butter. Slice and eat either warm or room temp. Loaves freeze well. Makes two loaves.

Pumpkin Butter

Similar to jams and jellies, fruit butters (and in this case vegetable butter) are slow-cooked to evaporate moisture and caramelize sugars. When finished, they’re dense and smooth with the spreadable texture of room temperature butter, thus, the name.

The result has a concentrated flavor of the fruit or vegetable that’s deep and luscious in a way that jams and jellies aren’t. I’ve made peach butter a couple times and love it on toasted English muffins, as an ice-cream topping, and even as a sandwich spread to give a sweet edge to a savory lunch. Makes me look forward to peach season!

This time of year, pumpkin is perfect for the butter treatment. Going light on the added sugars lets the natural sweetness of the pumpkin shine through and the apple cider and spices give it that cozy, fall warmth that is so welcome when the temperatures start to drop.

Limited only by your imagination, the uses for this magical elixir are endless: Spread on warm biscuits, swirled into plain yogurt, mixed into cream cheese and slathered on bagels, as a pancake topping, an oatmeal mix-in, or ice-cream topping. And because this doesn’t hit you with first with sweetness, it can be used in savory dishes like maybe mixed into browned butter, sage, shallots, and crushed red pepper for a delicious seasonal pasta sauce. The thought has my mouth watering!

One of my favorite things about using whole pumpkin or squash, as opposed to canned, is the seeds. I almost never discard them. Once cleaned, tossed with a little neutral oil, sprinkled with salt, and roasted until crisp and golden, they are an addictive snack (instructions included at the end of the recipe).

Whatever uses you come up with for this fall treat, you’ll be happy you made it. Enjoy!

• Servings: 1 1/2 pints
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Adapted slightly from this Food & Wine Magazine recipe

1 (approximately 3 pound) sugar or pie pumpkin, stemmed, halved lengthwise, and seeded*

1 tablespoon neutral oil (grapeseed, canola, vegetable)

¼ cup apple cider

1/3 cup brown sugar (light or dark)

3 tablespoons pure maple syrup

1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar

¾ teaspoon ground cinnamon

½ teaspoon ground ginger

½ teaspoon kosher salt (if using a fine salt, reduce to ¼ teaspoon)

¼ teaspoon freshly grated or ground nutmeg

Pinch of ground cloves

Pinch of ground allspice

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Brush cut sides of pumpkin halves with the oil. Place pumpkin halves, cut side down, on a large, rimmed baking sheet (less mess if you line the sheet with parchment paper, but not essential). Bake until very tender when pierced with a sharp knife, about 50 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool slightly, 10-15 minutes.

Scoop flesh from cooled pumpkin halves and transfer to bowl of a food processor. Discard pumpkin shell. To food processor, add apple cider and process until smooth, about one minute, stopping to scrape down sides of bowl when necessary. Add brown sugar, maple syrup, vinegar, cinnamon, ginger, salt, nutmeg, cloves, and allspice. Process until smooth, about 30 seconds, scrape down sides, and give it one more pulse.

Transfer pumpkin mixture to a deep saucepan, cover, and bring to a simmer over medium heat, stirring occasionally. Reduce heat to low, keep cover on, but vented (it sputters and spatters), and cook, stirring occasionally with a rubber spatula so that bottom of saucepan doesn’t scorch. Cook until mixture is reduced by about one-third and turns slightly darker in color, about 40-45 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool to room temperature, about 30 minutes. Transfer to jars and refrigerate. Keeps in the refrigerator 2-3 weeks and can be frozen for several months. Makes about 1 ½ pints.

*Don’t toss out those seeds! Roasted, they make a delicious and nutritious snack. Simply clean the pumpkin flesh out of the seeds, toss them with a little neutral oil (a couple teaspoons to a tablespoon, depending on the amount of seeds), and sprinkle with salt. Cook at 400 degrees F. in a single layer on a baking sheet for about 30 minutes, stirring once or twice for even browning. If you don’t eat them all right away, store in a zip-lock bag or other air-tight container.

No-Knead Cinnamon Chip Bread

We recently hosted our friends Lori & Scott at the cabin for a fall color weekend, which was a great time and the leaves were gorgeous! Preparation for cabin trips is especially fun for me because it involves cooking and baking in advance so we have more time to get outside and enjoy the great outdoors once we’re there.

This trip, to go with our hearty cabin breakfasts, I made cinnamon chip bread with homemade cinnamon chips. Having made the cinnamon chips several times before (great in muffins and cookies!), I knew they would be good, but it was a first time for this bread recipe, which is adapted from one I got years ago from baker extraordinaire, Renee Saxman, a friend from my running days in Rochester.

A “Renee” recipe is always delicious when made by Renee. I just wasn’t sure if it would be as good when made by me. Hesitant to serve this untested to friends, I decided to cut off one slice of the finished bread to make sure it was “company-worthy.” Long story short, it was so good that Pete and I polished off the entire loaf. Fortunately, there was plenty of time to make another loaf and pop it in the freezer until the trip.

Why, you may ask, make homemade cinnamon chips when you can buy a good-tasting package at the grocery store? Most grocery store versions (Hershey’s, I’m talking to you) have some sketchy ingredients like partially hydrogenated vegetable oil, artificial colors, and natural & artificial flavors (but no mention of the word cinnamon—can you believe it?), so making my own was an easy choice. The King Arthur Flour brand, which has more natural ingredients, can be ordered online, but I’ve never seen it in stores.

The cinnamon chips are quick to make and once cooled and broken into pieces, will keep for several days in a covered container at room temperature. If you make them rather than using store-bought, you’ll be happy you did, plus, it will give you super-baker cred!

This is a perfect autumn and winter bread. Slightly sweet, with a crunch of cinnamon sugar on top, it’s delightful toasted or not. A little butter or jam, maybe peanut butter even, make for comfort-food bliss, and it’s a wonderful addition to breakfast—either at the cabin or at home. Enjoy!

• Servings: One loaf
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2 cups all-purpose or bread flour

1 cup whole wheat flour

½ cup sugar

2 teaspoons instant yeast

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon salt

1 cup warm milk (105-115 degrees F.)

¼ cup butter, melted

1 large egg

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 cup cinnamon chips (recipe follows)

Cinnamon sugar for topping (1/8 cup organic sugar mixed with ½ tablespoon cinnamon)

In a large bowl, whisk together the flours, sugar, yeast, cinnamon and salt. In a separate bowl, whisk together the milk, butter, egg, and vanilla. Combine the wet and dry ingredients, and mix until smooth (I used a stand mixer, which works better than a hand mixer).

Cover the bowl and let rise at room temperature for about an hour. Stir in the baking powder and cinnamon chips.

Scrape batter into a greased 8 ½ x 4 ½ inch loaf pan. Sprinkle the top with cinnamon sugar (you probably won’t use it all). Bake at 350 degrees F. for 45-50 minutes (it should read 200 degrees on an instant read thermometer when done).

Cool in the pan for about 5 minutes, then transfer from pan to a wire rack to cool completely. This freezes well, so is ideal to make ahead. Makes 1 loaf.

Cinnamon Chips
From this All Recipes post

1/3 cup sugar

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1 tablespoon non-hydrogenated shortening (I used Spectrum Organic Shortening)

1 tablespoon light corn syrup

Pre-heat oven to 275 degrees F. Mix together all ingredients in a medium bowl to form a dough. Between two sheets of parchment paper, roll dough to 1/8-1/4 inch thick. Transfer to a baking sheet and remove top layer of parchment. Bake for about 20-25 minutes, until bubbly.

Transfer, on parchment, to a wire rack and cool completely. Break into pieces. Makes about 1 cup.

Salted Radish Toasts with Superfoods Cheese

Since we started harvesting this year’s bumper crop of radishes from our garden, they’ve been used raw in salads, on sandwiches, in omelets, and cooked with garlic and mushrooms over pasta (yum!). Last year I found out how good they are on pizza. If you don’t have garden radishes at your disposal, the local farmers’ markets are overflowing with them and those will have much more flavor than the ones you’ll find at a grocery store.

When I post a recipe, it’s because I love it and want to share the foodie love with everyone and that is especially the case with this radish toast with superfoods cheese creation. I wanted to do something a little different with our radishes and I’ve heard so much about butter and radishes being such a great combo. Thing is, I’ve got a lot of radishes, so that means using a lot of butter, which I certainly don’t need.

Then I remembered the superfoods cheese I made a few weeks back and had a couple rounds left in the freezer. It’s a tangy, vegan cheese made with macadamia nuts, probiotics, and nutritional yeast. From the cookbook Superfoods Snacks by Julie Morris, it was the recipe that caught my eye and made my decision to buy the book. Oh my, what a delicious combination!

The cheese is a little labor intensive and with the 1-2 day “aging,” it’s not something you’ll whip up at a moment’s notice, but it’s worth the effort. This is truly a worthy substitute for a soft dairy cheese, and bonus, it packs a big nutritional wallop.

If you would rather not make the time commitment, you could make the radish toasts with another soft cheese, such as chevre or boursin, or a vegan cream cheese to keep it plant-based, but if you opt for the superfoods cheese, I promise you will love it! And splurge on a box of quality, flaky sea salt like Maldon, the taste is amazing and you’ll find tons of uses for it, in both savory and sweet recipes. Enjoy!

A few notes about the superfoods cheese recipe:

• As an alternative to cheesecloth, a nut milk bag can be used. If you have one, use it. Much easier than cheesecloth. I got mine a couple years ago from Amazon (this one). I’ve also seen them at my local co-op.
• Trader Joe’s is a good source for the macadamia nuts and hemp seeds, and their prices are great. Buying from the bulk section of your grocery or natural foods store would also save money.
• For the probiotic powder, you can find the capsules in the refrigerated area of the natural foods section at large grocery stores or at a natural food store. You can also order them online. Pull the capsules open and dump the powder into a small bowl until you have the amount listed in the recipe.

Cheese recipe from Julie Morris’ Superfood Snacks

2 cups macadamia nuts

¼ cup hemp seeds

1 ¼ cups filtered water

1 teaspoon probiotic powder*

1 tablespoon nutritional yeast

¾ teaspoon sea salt

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Thick slices of good quality fresh bread (sour dough is extra good!) or your favorite gluten-free version

Thinly sliced radishes

Fresh chopped herbs such as basil, parsley, tarragon (optional)

Flaky sea salt, such as Maldon

Place the macadamia nuts in a bowl and add enough water to cover them by an inch. Refrigerate and let the nuts sit for a minimum of 4 hours up to overnight to soften and slightly swell.

Drain the nuts and place in a blender. Add the hempseeds, water, and probiotic powder. Blend until very smooth, stopping the blender and scraping down the sides, as needed. This may take a few minutes to blend the mixture to a super smooth consistency. If needed, add a little more water (up to ¼ cup) just to get the mixture blending–the less water you use, the better.

Put two 12-inch square layers of cheesecloth (or use a nut milk bag) inside a colander. Place the colander inside a large bowl or tray to catch excess liquid. Use a silicone spatula to scrape all the nut mixture from the blender into the center of the cheesecloth. Gather up the ends of the fabric to create a bag, hold it over the bowl, and gently squeeze all of the mixture in a downward motion into a ball at the bottom of the bag. Squeeze the cheese ball lightly to encourage excess milky liquid to be pushed through the cheesecloth, but not too hard, or else the nuts will begin to push through the cloth as well. Twist the ends of the cheesecloth together to wrap snugly around the cheese ball and set it inside the colander. Place a heavy weight—such as a water-filled mason jar in a small pot—on top of the cheese. Cover the whole thing with a towel, and let it rest at room temperature for 24-48 hours.

Peel away the cheesecloth and place the cheese inside of a bowl. Add nutritional yeast, sea salt, and lemon, and mix to combine. Taste and adjust seasoning as needed. Put a quarter of the mixture onto a piece of plastic wrap and shape it into a 4-inch compact cylinder, rolling it gently inside the plastic wrap to form a symmetrical shape (or you can use a small ring mold to create the rounds). Repeat with remaining cheese.

The cheese will last for up to 2 weeks and continue to firm up slightly in the refrigerator. It will also become slightly sharper with age. Alternatively, wrap the cheese tightly in plastic wrap and then in aluminum foil and store in the freezer for up to 6 months. Before serving, defrost the cheese for a couple hours.

If your bread is super fresh, by all means, skip the toasting step if you’d like. Otherwise, toast bread slices, spread a thick slather of superfoods cheese on each slice and top with radish slices. Dust with fresh herbs, if using, and sprinkle with sea salt. Mmm…you’ll be in heaven!

*Simply open probiotic capsules and empty the powder into a small bowl. A teaspoon is usually equivalent to 6-8 capsules. Probiotics are friendly bacteria that are often taken as a health supplement. The powder is used here as the “starter” for culturing the nuts that will improve the cheese’s flavor and texture. The remaining probiotics will keep in the fridge for your next batch of cheese.

Yeasted Belgian Waffles

Waffles didn’t used to be a food that excited me. They just seemed a little blah compared to their pancake and French toast cousins. But then I discovered the Belgian waffle. Of course I had heard of Belgian waffles before, and it’s rather ironic I hadn’t had one given my 50 percent Belgian ancestry, but for some reason they had never made it onto my plate.

My interest grew after seeing a New York Times Food recipe for yeasted waffles. Certainly yeast would automatically take them out of the blah zone. And the Belgian waffle seemed to be thicker and lighter than the more conventional round variety. Then I saw a recommendation for the All-Clad Belgian Waffle Maker on Heidi Swanson’s website 101 Cookbooks, and I plunged into the waffle world.

From Amazon (it was the cheapest), I ordered the smaller two-square version of the four-square model Heidi swore by and lo and behold, I received the four-square one. I looked back at my order to check and it clearly showed the two-square listed and the two-square price, so I had somehow been blessed by the waffle gods with a bonus. It was around $150, which may seem pricy for a kitchen gadget with only one use, but it’s substantial, easy to use, and should last for many years.

My parents coming to visit for the weekend was the perfect time for a first foray into the yeasted Belgian waffle-making ranks. It’s nice you can mix the batter the night before, cover the mixing bowl, and put it in the fridge until you’re ready to go the next morning. Just whisk in the eggs and baking soda.

Served with warm, pure maple syrup, fresh raspberries and Field Roast Grain Meat Company’s Smoked Apple Sage Sausage (my favorite veggie sausage with breakfast), this was a truly scrumptious family meal. Everyone had seconds on the waffles and I think Pete may have even had thirds.

If you have leftover waffles, which we did, just toss them in a zip-lock bag and freeze. Warm them in your toaster and they are damn close to freshly made. My Belgian waffle breakfast sandwich was one of the best breakfasts I’ve ever had, leftover waffles, homemade buttermilk ranch dressing, sliced tomato, an egg over-easy then topped with a sprinkling of fresh parsley. I’m craving this again as I type and I can truly now say Belgian waffles excite me. Enjoy!

• Servings: 6-8
• Print

Slightly adapted from this New York Times Recipe

1 ¼ cups milk (I used skim)

1 cup low-fat buttermilk

1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter, cut into cubes, plus more for the waffle iron

1 tablespoon organic sugar (15 grams)

1 teaspoon sea salt (5 grams)

1 package active dry yeast (2 1/4 teaspoons)

2 cups all-purpose flour (240 grams)

3/4 cup whole wheat flour (90 grams)

2 large eggs

¼ teaspoon baking soda

In a small pot over medium heat, combine milk, buttermilk and butter until melted and hot but not simmering. Stir in sugar and salt; remove from heat and let cool to lukewarm.

In a large bowl, combine 1/2 cup warm water and yeast. Let stand until foamy, about 5 minutes.

Add warm milk mixture to yeast and stir. Whisk in flours. Cover with plastic wrap and let stand until doubled in volume, 2 to 3 hours at room temperature or overnight in the refrigerator.

Heat waffle iron. Whisk eggs and baking soda into waffle batter. Using a pastry brush or paper towel, lightly coat iron with melted butter.

Cook waffles (using about 1/2 cup batter per waffle, or per manufacturer’s instructions) until golden and crisp. Butter the iron in between batches, as needed. Serve waffles immediately as they are ready, or keep them warm in a 200-degree oven until ready to serve (on a wire rack set on a baking sheet). Makes about 12-16 waffles.