Our Daily Bread

For the last couple of years I've been making bread regularly. It's gotten to the point where, except for sour dough bread, my kids prefer homemade bread to store bought. That's mostly ok. Sure, it's a pain to hear them complain if I need to serve store bread, but when we eat homemade I know exactly what's in the bread, and more importantly what's not. Here's the recipe I fall back on for our every day bread.

Maple buttermilk Bread
(modified from Bread Machine Baking, by Lora Brody and Millie Apter)

1 Tbsp butter or oil
3 Tbsp real maple syrup or honey
1 cup buttermilk or 1 cup water plus 4 Tbsp powdered buttermilk
3 Tbsp gluten
3 cups whole white wheat flour
1 tsp salt
1 tsp yeast

Mix and knead in bread machine dough cycle or by hand
Let rise in loaf pan on 2nd rising
Bake 350 F for ~25 min.


Notes:

I didn't put in rise times because around here that varies with the house temperature and me remembering I was making bread. Whole wheat generally takes longer to rise than refined flour, and a dry loaf can take a bit more time than a wetter loaf. I'd give at least 2 hours to each rising.

Yes. I'm still making my own buttermilk and sour cream. It's that easy, and that good.

I've used the powered buttermilk in this and it turns out fine.

I've used regular whole wheat flour, and white flour in this. They're both fine, although regular white flour is a bit pasty after you get used to whole wheat.

This is a nice dough to use to make cinnamon raisin bread, or pecan rolls, or monkey bread.

Stolen idea

I think I've mentioned A Year of Slow Cooking before. I love her blog. Well, she's done it again.

This year I got 6 cabbages bigger than my head in the fall from gleaning at a local farm. I've still got a couple in cold storage (ok, cool storage, an unheated basement room) and I made something like 3 gallons of sauerkraut with 1 1/2 others. (I turned the difference into krautburgers, yuum!)

Then I had to ask - "What do I do with all this sauerkraut?" I have a limit for how much brautwurst I'm willing to feed my family. I gave half of it away in pint and quart sizes, and the rest is sitting in the extra fridge, waiting for inspiration.

And here is Stephanie O'Dea to the rescue! Pulled pork with sauerkraut looks fantastic, and it uses up all the carrots I have left from the gleaning too.

Rene's Dad's Salsa

Fall is here and the mornings are giving us a hint of the frost that can't be far behind. It's time to use up all those tomatoes and peppers that are finishing in your garden or on sale at the markets.

Here's where I admit, yet again, that a foreigner is better at an ethnic recipe than me. ;-) OK, so we're both American, but Rene's Dad is of Dutch decent, and I'm of partial Hispanic decent. His salsa recipe is too excellent to turn my nose up at, so it's what I use. We ran out at the beginning of the summer, and this year my garden was almost worthless, so I'm using store bought veggies. Sigh.... poor me.

Rene's Dad's Salsa

1/2 bunch cilantro (~4 oz)
30 Roma tomatoes (~5 lbs)
1 jalapeno pepper
3 yellow or red sweet bell peppers
2-3 onions
2-3 green bell peppers
1 Tbs canning salt
15 oz tomato paste
1 1/2 tsp black pepper
1/3 cup sugar
3/4 cup white vinegar

Chop all vegetables very fine (skin tomatoes if desired)
Put all ingredients into bot and bring to a boil.
Simmer for 3-4 hrs

May can using water bath method for canning.

Notes and modifications:

Skim the extra liquid off if you like a thicker salsa. You can use the extra liquid for cooking other dishes.

I'm told you can halve this recipe, and I have successfully doubled and tripled it.

I have made lots of changed to this recipe as dictated by what I had on hand - different varieties of peppers and tomatoes, no tomato paste, more cilantro, and all of them have turned out great, just taste test as you go so you know what to expect. Some variations came out hotter than others. I give this away at Christmas time and it would be mean to give a spicy variation to my gringo friends. :-P

Not your mother's coleslaw

I got a couple of cabbages and this recipe from a friend about 15 years ago. It was a gift that lasted far longer than that first salad.


Asian Slaw

6 cups thinly sliced cabbage
6 thinly sliced green onions
6 oz snow peas - stringed and thinly sliced
1 large sweet red pepper thinly sliced
1/2 cup peanuts

Asian Dressing

whisk or shake together:

1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/3 cup rice vinegar
2 Tbsp toasted sesame oil
1 1/2 Tbsp soy sauce
salt and pepper to taste

Toss all vegetables and salad dressing together, top with chopped roasted peanuts


Notes and modifications:

I make a batch of this dressing and keep it around for putting on our everyday lettuce salads.

Leave off the peanuts if you're feeding someone with a peanut allergy.

You can substitute olive oil or peanut oil for vegetable oil, but the sesame oil really boosts the flavor, so I've never left it out.

I have made this with many different raw veggies when I don't have the right ingredients. I've subbed red onion for green onion, julienne raw carrots for red pepper or peas, etc. The key is to keep the volume of the salad about the same, and always have the cabbage and something onion like.

Pocket Sandwiches

Frozen pocket sandwiches were all the rage when I was in college and flat broke. No worries, I had my secret weapon - the ability to cook. These are great for a quick meal or hearty snack.

Krautburgers and Pasties

Use your favorite bread recipe. After the first rise roll it out flat in batches.
Slice into rectangles. (twice as large as you'd like the finished pocket to be)
Put your favorite filling in and pinch the bread closed with your fingers. Use water to dampen if necessary. Bake at 350 for ~20 min, or until bread is done and filling is warm.

Fillings:
I've always made these with precooked meat and veggies.

Use any left over meat and veggies, chop into smallish bite sized pieces. Add left over gravy, or cheese to add moisture. Mix together in big bowl and then spoon onto prepared dough.

Examples:
Chopped leftover turkey, peas, mashed potatoes and leftover turkey gravy

Chopped steak, mushrooms, peas, fried onions and a bit of beef gravy

Chopped broccoli, cheddar cheese, cubed left over baked potato, and a bit of pepper

Cooked and drained spinach, feta cheese, fried onions, spiced with a bit of dill



Krautburgers
(I remember eating these as a kid, and even now a local fast food place sells something like them)

1 lb ground beef
1/2 head of cabbage, sliced
1 large onion, sliced
salt and pepper to taste

Fry up all together until browned and yummy. Eat up all on it's own or make into a pocket sandwich.

Notes and modifications:

There is no limit to what you can put in a bit of bread and call food. Taste as you go and you're not likely to go too far wrong.

These freeze and reheat well. To freeze put in freezer on a baking sheet. When hard wrap in plastic wrap, bag together and put back in the freezer. To reheat, microwave for ~2 minutes. I like to put them in the toaster oven for just a little bit when they come out of the microwave, just to make the bread toasty.

Comfort food

Here's something I make that I have never had a recipe for. My mom made it, and who knows where she learned it? Still it's cheap, hearty, and delicious. If you've never had scallop potatoes you're in for home-style a treat.


Scallop Potatoes

~ 5 lbs Potatoes, sliced, or enough to fill your casserole dish
~ 1 lb grated cheddar cheese
4-6 eggs
~3 cups milk
3 Tbs flour
1 onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic pealed
1 tsp pepper
ham (optional)

Put milk, eggs, flour, onion, garlic, pepper, and handful of cheese in blender, blend until smooth.

Grease casserole dish.
Layer potatoes and cheese (and ham if you want it) in casserole dish. Leave out one handful of cheese.

Pour milk/egg mixture over potato/cheese in casserole dish. Add more milk if it doesn't come to the top layer of potatoes.
Sprinkle cheese over the top of the whole thing and bake for 1 hr. in 350 degree oven.

It's done when the potatoes are just tender.


Notes and modifications:

You can use up whatever extra cheese you have around, I've even been known to throw sour cream or yogurt in the blender with this.

Ham is what I've always added, but you could add just about any leftover you had around that appealed.

This freezes fine. I put it in the fridge to firm it up, then cut into chunks that look like about a meals worth, wrap with plastic wrap, and freeze. Then just microwave it for a few minutes to heat. You could also take it out in the morning to thaw and warm it in the oven. I just never think that far ahead.

Chicken Frangelico

This is another often requested recipe. It has a heavenly fragrance. It's not too spicy for kids, but has enough flavor to endear itself to the grown ups.


Chicken Frangelico (as modified from Colorado Collage)

1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp curry powder
3 Tbs flour
1 1/2 lb boneless, skinless chicken breasts cut in 1" cubes
1/4 cup butter or olive oil
1/2 lb mushrooms, sliced
1/4 + cup Frangelico (hazelnut liqueur)
3 Tbs lemon juice
1 tsp grated lemon zest (~ 1 lemon's zest)
1 Tbs cornstarch
1 1/2 cups chicken broth

In pie dish mix spices and flour.
Coat cut chicken in flour mixture.
Brown on all sides in skillet with oil or butter coated chicken.
Add mushrooms, Frangelico, lemon juice, and zest.
Simmer 5 minutes.
In a small bowl combine cornstarch and chicken broth.
Stir into chicken mixture.
Cook over low heat until mixture bubbles and thickens.

Serve over pasta.


Notes and modifications:

This doubles and triples well. I will often thicken a large batch in a casserole dish in the oven as my skillet isn't big enough for a triple batch.

This freezes and reheats well.

If you like extra sauce, add more chicken broth and Frangelico.

I've never been told I added to much garlic or Frangelico.

This is another dish we made on the boat, modifying it with turkey, dehydrated mushrooms, and chicken bullion. Hunger makes the best sauce, and we enjoyed it just as much there as here.