Honey Whole Wheat Bread

I've gotten some requests for the bread recipe I use.  =]  This recipe was given to me by my mom, and I'm not sure exactly where she found it.  I'm going to add a link to this post under 'Our Favorite Recipes' at the top of the page so that it's easy to find!


Honey Whole Wheat Bread

1/3 c honey
1/3 c oil (I use extra virgin olive oil)
2 1/2 c warm water
1 1/2 TBSP yeast
2 1/2 tsp salt 
6-7 cups whole wheat flour
1 1/2 TBSP dough enhancer (vital wheat gluten)

Combine the warm water, yeast and 2 cups flour in mixing bowl. Allow to sponge (aka just sit there) for 15 min. Add the honey, oil, dough enhancer, salt and 4-5 cups of flour until the dough begins to clean the sides of the mixing bowl. Do not make the dough too stiff (dry). It is common to add too much flour.

Knead 6-10 minutes in mixer until the dough is smooth and elastic.

Form dough into 2 loaves - allow to rise in a slightly warm oven till doubled. (30-60 minutes)

Bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes. You can tell if it's done by taking the loaf out of the pan and tapping it on the bottom. You want to hear a hollow sound. =]

I almost always half this recipe to make just one loaf. But you can always make 2 and freeze one for later!  And one of the best parts (to me) is that you only let this dough rise once (in the pan) so it takes a lot less time to make!

little happies

::knitting.  actually this project is a love/hate.  I've started it over maybe, 5 times.  I want to love it!



::honey whole wheat bread in the oven.  Even though I made a loaf Monday.  We love our bread.



::homemade soap in the soap dish!!  It's real soap!  And we made it in our kitchen!  Woah!



::a very primitive matchbox car road made out of painter's tape.  Z calls it her 'first car' and 'first road'  I have no idea why.

What are your little happies today?

How to Cook Rice Perfectly

Making dinner tonight, I thought, "Hey.  More people should know how to do this!"

I cannot make rice on the stove top.  It always seemed to boil over or not be done when the water was gone, or stick to the bottom.  Once I made it in the microwave, and when I lifted the cover I got a nasty steam burn!  Oh it was bad.  And we don't have a microwave anymore, so, not an option.  A friend taught me this fool-proof method for rice cooking a few years ago.

Here's how I cook my rice!

::Boil water in your kettle or a pot.

::Add rice to a oven-safe dish (I use a 9x9 pyrex).  Tonight I did 2 cups dry rice.

::Add 2 parts boiling water.  (So I added 4 cups)

::And a good drizzle of olive oil or butter.

::Salt and pepper if you like.

::Cover with aluminum foil, stick in an oven preheated at 350, and come back in an hour! 

::(Brown rice takes an hour, but white rice probably takes about half as long.)

::Remove from the oven and check to be sure all the water has cooked into the rice.  Fluff with a fork and serve!

We're enjoying our rice over yummy beef & broccoli tonight!

catching up

Ahh it's been a busy Monday.  I feel like I was in the kitchen all morning, and well, I basically was.

Saturday afternoon, we were sitting on the couch as a family.  The hubs reading to Ziva and me listening and knitting.  His dad had come down to drop off a bed they wanted to get rid of for my sister and as soon as he walked in the door, Z started throwing up. =[ (Not at all related to seeing her grandfather.) =P  Poor baby was so nonchalant about vomiting that I didn't even hear or notice while I was sitting right next to her.  The hubs turned around and said, "Ummm..." and pointed, and I used her dress to catch.  (Sorry, TMI!)

The rest of the afternoon she hugged me and ran a fever.  The hubs & Grampa went out to fetch some herbal teas and a temporal artery thermometer.  (Which makes life a lot easier with a sick toddler!)  I felt so bad for my poor little lady, but, I did enjoy the cuddling, I'm not gonna lie.  It's been a loooong time since she would simply lay on my chest (make that, entire body, now) with no monkey-business.  So yeah, I'm a mean mom who got a tiny bit of pleasure out of my child being sick.  So sue me. =P

We ended up staying home from church Sunday just to make sure, and by the evening she was pretty much back to her normal self.  I don't think her appetite is 100% back yet, and she sounds a little raspy, but all in all she's acting fine.

Anyway, what does this have to do with being in the kitchen?  Due to caring for a sick child, lots of dishes that didn't get done Sunday night, and some baking was in order.

I try really hard to make from scratch as much as I can.  I bake bread at least once a week and we don't usually buy processed snacks for the hubs to bring to work so I have to keep snack type things stocked up too.  We do this to save money, and to control the ingredients that go into our foods.  Plus, we only have one car, so if we're out of something I can't just run down to the store.

(I was pretty tired this morning so I didn't get up and help him with his lunch.  I hope he found some food.)

This morning I made whole wheat bread and some chocolate chip cookies made with whole wheat flour and chickpeas.  I'm trying to come up with a wide variety of recipes for things with 100% whole wheat flour - if you have any that you use, please share!



Oh, did you notice that rack of square things behind the bread?  It looks like giant slabs of peanut butter fudge, doesn't it?  Well it's not.  Care to take a guess?

Snacking

Snacking.

Healthy snacking.

It isn't always easy or delicious.

We're really digging this muffin recipe via Joy the Baker.  Here's my take on it!

Oatmeal Blueberry Applesauce Muffins

Makes 12-15 muffins

• 1 1/4 cups whole wheat flour
• 1 1/4 cups oats
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1 cup unsweetened applesauce
• 1/2 cup low-fat buttermilk  almond milk
• 1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar  evaporated cane juice
• 2 tbsp canola oil (I used the almond oil I had on hand)  1/4 cup ground flax meal
• 1 large egg, lightly beaten
• 3/4 cup blueberries (fresh or frozen)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Line a 12 cup muffin tin with paper cases or spray with nonstick cooking spray. I simple greased and floured a muffin pan, saving the paper.
In a large bowl combine flour, oats, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon. In a medium bowl combine applesauce, buttermilk, sugar, oil and egg. Make a well in dry ingredients and add applesauce mixture. Stir until just moist. Fold in blueberries. Fill muffin cups 2/3 full.


I've made this recipe a few times and they're really yummy.  The first couple times I made it my only sub was the almond milk.  I was so surprised at how moist they are with no white flour.  Win!  The last time I made them I added the other two subs, evaporated cane juice (which is new to our household) and flax.  I kind of just wung it but they came out good again so I thought I'd share!  They're not super sweet, but we love them.

I'm new to healthier sugar substitutes, and I know they still need to be used in moderation.  If anyone has anything to share about evaporated cane juice or other natural sweeteners please do!  I'd love to know more. 

Our evenings

I was working on the dinner dishes last night and the hubs started peeling and slicing up apples.  He's not much of a cook or baker, (but he's recently learning and getting more interested in kitchen stuff) so I'm like, "what are you doing?"  "I want an apple pie and I don't want you to have to do all the work.  Do you mind that I'm dirtying more dishes?"  Of course not, silly hubs, you can dirty dishes to your heart's content if pie is the result. =]  I made the crust and he made the filling, we paused to put the Z to bed, and put it together and baked it afterward.  Mmm warm apple pie on the couch with my hubs is the best.  It was delicious.

I think it tastes better when you make it with someone you love. =]

Making

It's so easy for me to slip into buying convenient products like store bought bread and bottled drinks. Another one is laundry detergent. I used to make my own. I'd really like to make a batch when our store bought jug runs out.

Besides the money saving and healthiness factors, there's just something about homemade, well, anything. A fresh baked loaf of bread cooling on the counter does something for the soul that slices in a plastic bag just can't.

In our kitchen today we are working on iced tea and sour dough starter.

What are you making this week?

Today

I'm loving...

A silly little 19 month old!

Seeing her wearing handmade clothing. <3

Nutella cookies.

Living Simply

I love to make things. (Could you tell?) While recently chilling pool-side with some friends, the kiddos were snacking on goldfish crackers. Which reminded me that I had bookmarked this recipe and I decided it would probably be cheaper and healthier.

My take:
The cheese puffs only have a few ingredients, which makes them really great. I used colby-jack cheese, and they came out really yummy. Two of my siblings and I ate half a pan when they came out of the oven. =] The hubs loved them too. Ziva took one bite and threw hers on the floor - but maybe she'll like them next time. ;] I think I added too much water, and may have rolled them out a little too thick because I was hoping they'd be crispier. Next time I'm going to try making them with some whole wheat flour which should help to dry them out a bit. =]

Since today is Cinco de Mayo,

And I got this ridiculous platter in a yankee swap last Christmas, I decided to put it to good use! Cookies!

Wordless Wednesday

Mmm yum!

The beef stew was in the crockpot this AM before 8. It cooked on low all day and it was DELISH! I also love that I used the meat from a previous meal so tonight's dinner cost basically nothing. =] It's things like this that make me feel like a very accomplished housewife. And getting like 10 things done on my to do list before 1pm. =]