Category Archives: Make it Yourself

Honey Oatmeal Bread

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Another day, another bread recipe! I enjoy trying out new ones as often as possible, and this one seems to be pretty popular on Tasty Kitchen so I decided to give it a try. I made sure not to add the full amount of flour while kneading this in my stand mixer. I held back 2/3 of a cup and added just enough to make the dough not too sticky. I err on the side of caution when dealing with bread dough now after learning what adding too much flour can do to the finished bread. Mine was only slightly sticky and while I formed it I used a small amount flour on my work surface and hands. I haven’t used egg in a bread recipe for some time, but this loaf came out soft and tender even with all the wheat flour in this. In my experience with wheat breads, the flavor is usually bitter and the crumb isn’t nearly as nice. I’m really happy with how this turned out and hopefully I can get my husband to like it too 😉 He’s not a big fan of mostly wheat breads a, like this one; and oatmeal isn’t his favorite either. Thanks for reading, enjoy!
Honey Oatmeal Bread – adapted from Belle of the Kitchen
  • 4-½ teaspoons Active Dry Yeast (2 packages worth)
  • ½ cups Honey
  • 4 Tablespoons Butter
  • 2-Âź cups Water
  • 1 Tablespoon Salt
  • 8 tsp vital wheat gluten (optional)
  • 2-ž cups All-purpose Flour (I used 2 1/4 cups)
  • 4 cups White Whole Wheat Flour
  • 1 cup Old Fashioned Oats
  • 1 whole Egg
Directions –
In a medium sized bowl, add HOT water, oats, butter, salt and honey. Stir to combine – let sit until butter is melted and it’s cool enough to add your yeast (110 -115 degrees or less).

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook, combine 2 cups whole wheat flour and 1 cup all-purpose flour and oat mixture. With mixer on low, gradually blend liquid into dry ingredients until just blended. Increase the speed to medium, beat for two minutes, occasionally scraping bowl. Gradually beat in the egg and one cup of whole wheat flour to make a thick batter. Continue beating for two minutes. Stir in 1 cup whole wheat flour and 1 cup all purpose flour. Knead till smooth and elastic. Use more flour if dough is too sticky.

Place in a greased bowl and cover. Let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1 hour.

Punch the dough down. Turn onto a floured surface; cover with the bowl and let rise for 15 minutes. Shape into two loaves and let rise for 1 hour in greased 9 x 5 loaf pans.

Bake at 350 degrees (F) for 35 to 40 minutes.


Homemade Hot Pockets

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Yum! These are worlds better than store bought Hot Pockets:) I made several different combinations for these and they all turned out to be really flavorful, cheesy and satisfying. I made a chicken, broccoli and cheese pocket, a pepperoni, sausage and cheese, and ham and cheddar cheese. Next time I think I’ll use a garlic and herb flavored dough to take the flavor up a few notches. We enjoyed the pizza pockets with what else – pizza sauce, drops of Frank’s Red Hot or green Tobasco. I had to stop myself from eating more of these – cheese and bread in combination are my weakness! The recipe below is really just a rough guideline for making these. They’re pretty fool-proof and don’t require any real measurements. I just made sure that I didn’t over-fill the dough. Thanks for reading, enjoy!

Homemade Hot Pockets –

  • 4 ounce balls of pizza dough (*I made 9)
  • cheddar, Swiss, mozzarella, Parmesan cheeses – odds and ends are great for these
  • pepperoni, ham, chicken sausage, and shredded chicken breast – cut into small pieces
  • steamed broccoli, mushrooms, tomatoes – or whatever leftover cooked veggies you have

Directions –

Take one ball of dough and roll it out on a lightly floured surface so that the long side is perpendicular to your body. It should have a rectangular shape and be only slightly thicker than paper thin. Add about about 1/4 cup of your filling over the dough, leaving a 1-inch border along the edges of the dough.

Pull the shorter ends toward each other and then pull the longer ends toward the middle. Seal the roll by pinching this last portion of dough against the roll. Smooth out with your fingers by gently pressing the seam. Place the pocket into onto the prepared baking sheet seam side down. If you’d like a crisper crust you can brush the tops with olive oil or egg wash. Repeat with the remaining pieces of dough. Bake in a 375 degree oven for 20 – 25 minutes.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sun Dried Tomato Pesto

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Quick Post: This pesto has rich flavor and was perfect mixed in to goat cheese for stuffed chicken breasts. I plan on using this again in some pasta and probably tossed with some kind of mild white fish. I bet it would taste amazing spread onto a grilled chicken sandwich – I’ll have to try that too 🙂 I had just enough sun dried tomatoes left for this and the food processor makes this a breeze to whip up. Also, the recipe makes about two cups and keeps well in the fridge for up to six weeks according to the author. Thanks for reading, enjoy!

Sun Dried Tomato Pesto – adapted from Imafoodblog

  • 1/2 cup packed basil leaves
  • 1/2 cup toasted whole almonds
  • 4 garlic cloves
  • the zest of one lemon
  • 1/4 tsp coarse salt
  • 1 generous packed cup sun-dried tomatoes
  • 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
  • 1 cup extra virgin olive oil
Directions:
An hour before you make this, soak your sun dried tomatoes in hot water for at least an hour. Drain and slice, set aside.

Toast your almonds in a dry shallow pan. They will take about 10 minutes, and you will smell when they are done.

In a large food processor, combine the basil, toasted almonds, garlic, lemon zest, and salt. Process until coarsely chopped.

Add the sun dried tomatoes and parmesan cheese and process until the tomatoes are coarsely chopped.

Now stream in the olive oil slowly and process until the pesto comes together.

Serve immediately or store in an air tight container in the fridge for up to 6 weeks.

Roasted Garlic Bread

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Quick Post: This is so darn good – it’s dangerous! The last time I mentioned it, I didn’t get a chance to photograph it cause it disappeared before I was able to. I figured that I would make this again really soon so I could share it with you 😉 I saved up carbs so I was able to eat this pasta with Italian chicken sausage and at least two pieces of the garlic bread. This dinner is definitely a carb overload, but totally worth it! Thanks for reading, enjoy 🙂

Roasted Garlic Bread –

  • 1 loaf of french bread
  • 1 bulb of garlic
  • 6 TBSP of butter
  • 2 – 3 TBSP of olive oil
  • kosher salt and fresh cracked pepper (to taste, optional)
  • dried herbs – I used parsley (optional)
  • Parmesan and Pecorino Romano cheeses
Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Cut the bulb of garlic in half and place it on a square of foil, large enough that you can make a little package for roasting. Place the cut garlic into the center of the foil and drizzle with a little olive oil. Close the package up and roast for 30 to 35 minutes or until golden brown. Set aside.
2. Squeeze the cloves into a small bowl to smash up with the butter, olive oil and seasonings. Blend well and set aside. Cut your french bread in half and then take the two halves and split those down the middle lengthwise. Spread the butter mixture generously over each piece. Place your bread on a foil-lined baking sheet and bake for 7 minutes – take the bread out and sprinkle your grated cheese over top each piece. Place back in the oven until the cheese melts and is nicely browned – about 3-5 minutes. Cut into slices and enjoy!

Cinnamon Raisin Bread

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Yum! In my opinion, cinnamon and raisins got together so well. My husband doesn’t agree – he hates raisins. I cut this recipe in half just to make sure I don’t over do it with this yummy bread. It smells wonderful while baking and the scent lingered until this morning. My only issue with this bread is that it took so long to rise – at least 4 hours for the first one and almost 2 for the second rise. I was bummed that it didn’t rise quite where I had hoped before baking it off; but I was already staying up past my preferred bed time waiting for it to crest over the top of the pan. I even tried proofing it in my oven in hopes that it would speed up the process, and that took an hour. This recipe doesn’t have much yeast in it for some reason (only one packet worth for two loaves), so it probably didn’t help that I cut the recipe in half. Next time I’ll add a touch more yeast or just be extra careful with the temperatures of the liquids I add. I’m not sure what the culprit was, but the flavor is great and the bread isn’t as dense as I feared it might be. It’s not too sweet and it has a great cinnamon spiciness to it. This is the perfect kind of bread for Fall and I’m sure I will make this one or another recipe similar to it. Thanks for reading, enjoy!

Cinnamon Raisin Bread – adapted from King Arthur Flour

  • 1 1/2 cups milk
  • 1/4 cup (4 tablespoons) butter
  • 1 heaping cup dark and/or golden raisins
  • 1 cup rolled oats
  • 1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon brown sugar, divided
  • 2 teaspoons salt
  • 2 tablespoons ground cinnamon
  • 1 tablespoon active dry yeast or 2 1/2 teaspoons instant yeast
  • 1/2 cup lukewarm water, 110°F
  • 5 1/2 to 6 cups King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour

Directions:

Combine and heat the milk and butter (on the stove or in the microwave) until just hot to the touch (about 120°F). Transfer to a large bowl and add the raisins or other fruit, oat flakes, 1/2 cup brown sugar, salt and cinnamon; stir well and set aside.

In a separate bowl, dissolve the remaining tablespoon of brown sugar and active dry yeast in the water and let sit until bubbles appear. (If you’re using instant yeast, skip this step; simply add all of the remaining ingredients to the milk mixture once it’s cooled to lukewarm.) When the milk mixture has cooled to lukewarm, add the yeast mixture and mix well. Stir in the unbleached flour, 1 cup at a time, until the dough begins to pull away from the sides of the bowl.

Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic, about 8 minutes by hand, adding additional flour only as necessary to prevent sticking. You can also do this whole process in the bowl of an electric mixer, kneading the dough for 5 minutes. Place the dough in a lightly oiled bowl, turn to coat it on all sides, cover with plastic wrap and let rise in a cozy place until doubled in size, about 1 1/2 to 2 hours.

Knock down the dough, knead briefly on a lightly floured surface and divide in half. Shape into loaves and place into two lightly greased 8 1/2 x 4 1/2-inch loaf pans. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise until doubled in size, about 1 hour.

Preheat the oven to 375°F. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes until nicely browned. Near the end of the baking time, if the loaves are getting dark too quickly, cover them with a piece of aluminum foil, shiny-side up. Turn out onto a wire rack to cool.

Honey Chipotle Barbeque Sauce

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I decided to make this because I thought my husband would appreciate a spicy barbecue sauce to go along with these chicken strips. Woo – this was spicy! Not so much that it cleared our sinuses, but it has a kick to it. The future chili head, Little Boy didn’t break a sweat. Sometimes I wonder if he’s covering it up, but he didn’t even flinch! I guess it has something to do with his love of all things spicy for the past 5 years of his 8! 😉 Next time I would cut down on the amount of chipotles, maybe two instead of the three large ones I used. I love that I have such a wide variety of spices in my cupboard 🙂 Ancho and smoked paprika are hard to find so I end up purchasing them online. I love online shopping because it’s always a treat to get a package in the mail 😉 Thanks for reading, enjoy!

Honey Chipotle Barbecue Sauce – adapted from Crumb

  • 1 cup finely diced onion
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 3/4 cup ketchup
  • 1/4 cup brown sugar
  • 1/4 cup honey
  • 2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
  • 1 1/2 tbsp unsulfured molasses
  • 3-4 chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, chopped
  • 1 1/2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
  • 2 tsp ancho chile powder
  • 1 tsp smoked paprika
  • 1 tsp cayenne pepper
  • 1/2 tsp dry mustard powder
  • Salt and pepper to taste
Directions –
1. In a small saucepan set over medium-high heat, saute the onions and garlic in olive oil for 8-10 minutes, or until onions are very soft and lightly golden. Stir in the remaining ingredients. Bring the mixture to a simmer, then reduce heat to low and cook, stirring occasionally, for 20 minutes to blend the flavours.
2. Using an immersion blender or food processor, puree the mixture until very smooth. If the sauce is too thick or chunky, add a little water (a tablespoon or two at a time), until the desired consistency has been reached.

Soft Garlic Knots

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Soup needs bread! 😉 I didn’t have a couple of the ingredients that these knots required, but thankfully my improvisations didn’t ruin these. The dough improver is a necessary ingredient though with all the shaping these required. It prevents the dough from snapping back easily and rolling these out and tying them up would have been a pain with out it. These were fun to shape, but I didn’t roll them out like in the directions. I made sure that all my 16 pieces were at least 1.5 ounces each before shaping so I could make sure that they would all bake evenly. I took each ball and rolled it into about 11 inches (think of Play Doh snakes!) and made the knot, then tucked in the ends per the instructions. I baked off all 16 but only buttered half of them so I could store or freeze the rest. My family enjoyed these and they were a perfect accompaniment to our chicken noodle soup. Thanks for reading, enjoy!

Soft Garlic Knots – adapted from King Arthur Flour

Dough:

  • 3 1/4 cups (13 3/4 ounces) Mellow Pastry Blend or 3 cups (12 3/4 ounces) King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
  • 1/4 cup (1 ounce) Baker’s Special Dry Milk
  • 3 tablespoons (1 1/4 ounces) potato flour (*I used a couple TBSP of potato flakes)
  • 1 tablespoon sugar
  • 2 teaspoons instant yeast
  • 3 tablespoons King Arthur Easy-Roll Dough Improver (optional)
  • 1 1/4 teaspoons salt
  • 4 teaspoons Pizza Dough Flavor (*I didn’t use this)
  • 2 tablespoons (7/8 ounce) olive oil
  • 1 cup (8 ounces) lukewarm water*

*Add an additional 2 tablespoons water in the winter, or if you live in a very dry climate.

Glaze:

  • 2 to 6 cloves peeled, crushed garlic
  • 4 tablespoons melted butter
  • 1/2 teaspoon Pizza Seasoning or Italian seasoning, optional (*I used parsley flakes)

Directions: 

Dough: Whisk the dry ingredients together to prevent the potato flour from clumping when liquid is added. Stir in the olive oil and water, then mix and knead — by hand, mixer, or bread machine — to form a smooth, elastic dough, adding additional water or flour as needed. Place the dough in a lightly greased bowl, cover it, and allow it to rise for about 1 hour, until it’s doubled in bulk.

Shaping: Divide the dough into 16 pieces, and roll each into a rope about 11 inches long; tie each rope into a knot, tucking the loose ends into the center. Place the knots on a lightly greased or parchment-lined baking sheet, cover, and let rise for 45 minutes to about an hour, until very puffy looking.

Glaze: Whisk together the melted butter and garlic. Set it aside.

Baking: Bake the knots in a preheated 350°F oven for 15 to 18 minutes. They should be set, but only very lightly browned. Remove the knots from the oven, and brush or drizzle them with the garlic butter. Sprinkle with freshly grated Parmesan cheese, and pizza seasoning or Italian seasoning, if desired. Eat the knots warm. Yield: 16 garlic knots.

Chicken Noodle Soup

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It’s officially Fall which means I get to make pot roast, chicken pot pie and other belly warming dinners again. It hasn’t exactly started cooling down here yet, but I was craving a rich chicken noodle soup. This wasn’t quick by any means, but the flavor that the three hour simmering  created was well worth it. I also have three quarts of flavorful chicken stock stashed in the freezer! Thanks for reading, enjoy!
Cooking the Chicken – 
  • 1  4 – 5 pound whole chicken (rinsed and dried)
  • 1 box of chicken stock
  • 2 – 4 carrots cut in half
  • 2 – 4 stalk celery, roughly chopped *make sure you put lots of leafy tops in too*
  • 1 large onion, quartered
  • 5 – 6 garlic cloves, smashed
  • 1 TBSP peppercorns
  • 3 -4 bay leaves
  • 1/2 tsp dried sage
  • 1 TBSP dried parsley
  • 1 tsp dried thyme
  • 3 sprigs lemon thyme
  • kosher salt and pepper
  • enough cold water to cover the chicken
Directions:
1. Place all the ingredients in a large stock pot, bring to a boil then lower to a simmer for 45 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through. Carefully pull the chicken out of the pot and set it aside to cool – about 40 minutes. Once it’s cooled, shred – place pulled chicken in a container and place the carcass back into the stock pot.
Chicken Stock –
  • two chicken carcasses (* I had one in the freezer from this)
  • reserved cooking water
Directions:
1. Simmer the contents of the stock pot for at least three hours. Carefully strain the finished stock over a fine mesh strainer into a large container. Discard the bones and vegetables. Set the stock aside to cool. Skim as much fat off the top or place in the refrigerator for the fat to solidify. Store in air tight containers and place in the freezer.
Chicken Noodle Soup –
  • 2 quarts chicken stock (*more or less depending on how “soupy” you like it)
  • 2 cups shredded chicken
  • 4 cups total of chopped carrots, celery and onion
  • 2 TBSP olive oil
  • 2 cups egg noodles (*I used No Yolks)
  • lemon thyme
  • lemon zest
  • kosher salt and pepper
Directions –
1. Heat a large soup pot to medium and add olive oil. Once the oil is warmed, add all your diced veggies to the pan. Saute for 10 minutes or until vegetables are tender. Meanwhile, place a soup pot with the chicken stock to simmer and add the cooked vegetables and shredded chicken to the soup pot. Bring to boil, season to taste and add the egg noodles and peas. Cook until the egg noodles are tender, about 8 to 10 minutes. Taste again, season if needed – enjoy the soup with a crusty loaf of bread…yum!

Kid Friendly Dinner – Baked Chicken Strips

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This is a perfect meal for our busy Wednesday nights and the kids love foods like these, and I doubled the recipe so we would have plenty of leftovers. I used three chicken breasts that were 9 ounces each, which I pounded and cut into roughly 3 ounce strips. You could buy chicken tenders, but those are so expensive. The other day my buttermilk expired so I substituted by taking one cup of milk and adding one tablespoon of fresh lemon juice. It curdles and thickens really quickly – it’s pretty cool how it looks so much like the real thing. I’ll keep this in mind if I don’t feel like spending the extra money for the buttermilk later.

The kids loved these and my daughter even said she’d eat these for breakfast – I’m pretty sure she meant she’d eat the leftovers. Hubby M reminded me “Well, there are Corn Flakes on them.” 😉 The faux buttermilk tenderized the chicken so well we could cut the meat with a fork – no knife necessary! Next time I’ll season the crumbs and maybe try some other seasonings in the marinade. Hot sauce in the buttermilk would be a good addition, but Little Girl wouldn’t be too happy if I did that. Thanks for reading, enjoy!

Baked Chicken Strips – adapted from Simple Bites

  • 1 lb chicken tenders
  • 1/2 cup buttermilk (* I substituted 1 cup milk + 1 TBSP lemon juice)
  • salt & pepper
  • 1/2 tsp paprika
  • 1 cup corn flakes, crushed into fine crumbs
  • 1 cup panko bread crumbs
  • salt & pepper

Directions:

1. In a small bowl, mix buttermilk, salt, pepper and paprika. Add in fillets and marinate for at least 30 minutes.
2. Preheat oven to 375°F.
3. Mix corn flakes and panko together on a plate, season with salt & pepper.
4. Place one or two pieces of chicken at a time on plate, thoroughly coating each piece in crumbs.
5. For best results, bake on a greased metal cooling rack set atop a baking sheet. This allows the hot air to crisp all sides of the strips, instead of just one side. If you cannot get this set up, simply spray a baking sheet with baking spray and place strips directly on sheet.
6. Bake for 8-10 minutes or until thoroughly cooked. (*Mine were finished in 20 minutes because I didn’t use chicken tenders*)

Light Wheat Bread

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Quick Post: I’m always on the lookout for new sandwich breads and have experimented with several. I’m not searching for the “perfect” loaf, I just have fun trying new ones. This bread is slightly wheaty with a nice chewy crust and dense crumb. I used a different technique (business letter fold) to form this loaf and I think that’s why it’s so tall, but my husband appreciated that for his sandwich today. Thanks for reading, enjoy!

Light Wheat Bread – adapted from The Bread Baker’s Apprentice

  • 2 1/2 cups (11.25 oz) unbleached high-gluten or bread flour
  • 1 1/2 cups (6.75 oz.) white whole-wheat flour
  • 1 1/2 tablespoons (.75 oz.) raw sugar or honey
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons (.38 oz.) salt
  • 3 tablespoons (1 oz.) powdered milk
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons (.17 oz.) instant yeast
  • 2 tablespoons (1 oz.) unsalted butter, at room temperature
  • 1 1/4 cups (10 oz.) water, at room temperature

1. Stir together the high-gluten flour, whole-wheat flour, sugar (if using), salt, powdered milk, and yeast in a 4-quart mixing bowl (or in the bowl of an electric mixer). Add the shortening, honey (if using), and water. Stir (or mix on low speed with the paddle attachment) until the ingredients form a ball. If there is still flour in the bottom of the bowl, dribble in additional water. The dough should feel soft and supple. It is better for it to be a little too soft that to be too stiff and tough.

2. Sprinkle high-gluten or whole-wheat flour on the counter, and transfer the dough to the counter, and begin kneading (or mix on medium speed with the dough hook). Add more flour if needed to make a firm, supple dough that is slightly tacky but not sticky. Kneading should take about 10 minutes (6 minutes by machine). The dough should pass the windowpane test and registers 77 to 81 degrees F. Lightly oil a large bowl and transfer the dough to the bowl, rolling it around to coat it with oil. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap.

3. Ferment at room temperature for 1 1/2 to 2 hours, or until the dough doubles in size.

4. Remove the dough from the bowl and press it by hand into a rectangle about 3/4 inch thick, 6 inches wide, and 8 to 10 inches long. Form it into a loaf by working from the short side of the dough, rolling up the length of the dough one section at a time, pinching the crease with each rotation to strengthen the surface tension. It will spread wider as you roll it. Pinch the final seam closed with the back edge of your hand or with your thumbs. Place the loaf in a lightly oiled 8 1/2 by 4 1/2 inch bread pan; the ends of the loaf should touch the ends of the pan to ensure an even rise. Mist the top with spray oil and loosely cover with plastic wrap.

5. Proof at room temperature for approximately 60 to 90 minutes (as in, original recipe says 90 minutes, I walked into the kitchen at 60 and said “whoa!” as it had almost risen too much; clearly final rising times vary), or until the dough crests above the lip of the pan.

6. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F with the oven rack on the middle shelf.

7. Place the bread pan on a sheet pan and bake for 30 minutes. Rotate the pan 180 degrees for even baking and continue baking for 15 to 30 minutes, depending on the oven. The finished loaf should register 190 degrees F in the center, be golden brown on the top and the sides, and sound hollow when thumped on the bottom.

8. When the bread is finished baking, remove it immediately from the loaf pan and cool it on a rack for at least 1 hour, preferably 2 hours