Tag Archives: flour

Chocolate Chip Waffles

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I promised my kids that I would make waffles for breakfast before school…I was a slacker these past two weeks! My kids love anything with chocolate chips for breakfast, so these are perfect. This batch is huge, and now I have 60 quarters in the freezer for easy (ahem…lazy) mornings. Thanks for reading, enjoy!

Chocolate Chip Waffles – adapted from Add A Pinch

  • 2 cups whole wheat pastry flour
  • 2 cups all purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 3 tablespoons sugar (*I used vanilla sugar*)
  • 3 teaspoons baking soda
  • 1 1/2 cups chocolate chips
  • 4 cups buttermilk
  • 4 eggs
  • 1 stick butter, melted
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla

Directions –

  1. Whisk together flour, salt, sugar, and baking soda.
  2. Toss in chocolate chips and coat well with flour mixture.
  3. Mix together buttermilk, eggs, butter, and vanilla.
  4. Pour into dry mixture and stir together just until combined.
  5. Pour batter into waffle iron and cook to your iron’s instructions.
  6. Serve immediately with your favorite syrup.

Sky-High Buttermilk Biscuits

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Thanks to the time change this morning, I was able to get these on the table at a real “breakfast hour” 😉 I knew I wanted to make a batch of biscuits that was large enough to guarantee leftovers for freezing. I was able to make 15 large biscuits because I patted the dough out to about an inch in thickness for most of these. The new biscuit recipe did not disappoint! They are flaky, buttery and have a slight tang from the buttermilk – perfect in my opinion 🙂 Speaking of buttermilk, I haven’t bought it in over a month cause I’m a cheap-skate! I have been making it successfully by following this fool-proof recipe here. You can use any fat content of milk you like, which I appreciate. The fattier the milk, the thicker and creamier the buttermilk will be. Thanks for reading, enjoy!

Buttermilk Biscuits – adapted from Simply So Good

  • 4 cups all-purpose flour (500 grams)
  • 2 tablespoons baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon sugar
  • 2/3 cup cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
  • 1 1/2 cups buttermilk
  • 1/4 cup melted butter for brushing biscuits (optional)
Directions –
Preheat oven to 450 F (230 C).  Sift the flour with the baking powder, baking soda, salt and sugar in a large bowl.  cut in the chilled butter until the texture of coarse crumbs.  Stir in the buttermilk to form a soft dough.
Transfer the dough onto a floured surface.  Knead briefly and roll or pat to about 1 1/4 inch thick.  Cut into 3-inch rounds and arrange on a baking sheet that has been lightly greased or lined with parchment paper.  Bake for about 25 minutes or until golden.  Remove from oven and brush with melted butter.  Makes about 9 skyscraper tall biscuits.

Buttertop Bread

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I waited too long to blog about this one, so I don’t have much to tell about it 😉 Thanks for stopping by!

Buttertop Bread – adapted from King Arthur Flour

  • 3 cups King Arthur AP flour
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
  • 1/3 cup dry potato flakes
  • 2 tablespoons sugar
  • 2 1/2 teaspoons instant yeast
  • 1 large egg
  • 2 tablespoons soft or melted butter
  • 3/4 cup to 7/8 cup lukewarm milk

Directions –

1) Mix and knead all of the dough ingredients together until you’ve made a smooth, though somewhat sticky dough. If you’re uncertain about the amount of milk to use, start with the lesser amount; you can always add more as you go along.

2) Place the dough in a lightly greased bowl. Cover, and allow the dough to rise for about 90 minutes; it should become quite puffy, though it may not double in bulk.

3) Gently deflate the dough, and shape it into a 9″ log. Place it in a lightly greased- 9×5 inch loaf pan.

4) Using a sharp knife, cut the loaf vertically down the middle from one end of the pan to the other, almost but not quite to the bottom of the pan.

5) Cover the loaf with lightly greased plastic wrap (or a shower cap), and allow it to rise until its top has crowned about 1″ over the rim of the pan, about 45 to 60 minutes. Towards the end of the rising time, preheat the oven to 350°F.

6) Bake the bread for 35 to 40 minutes, until it’s golden brown. Tent it lightly with aluminum foil after about 15 minutes of baking; because of its somewhat higher sugar content, this bread tends to over-brown if not covered.

7) Remove the bread from the oven, and brush it with melted butter. Cool completely before slicing.

8) Store bread, tightly wrapped, for several days at room temperature; freeze for longer storage.

Ham and Cheese Rolls

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Quick Post: After I made the kids these pizza rolls, I knew I needed to make ham and cheese filled for their school lunches. These are quick, easy and the kids loved them! Thanks for reading, enjoy!

Ham and Cheese Rolls –

  • 1 lb. pizza dough
  • swiss cheese, sliced or shredded
  • cheddar cheese, sliced or shredded
  • sliced deli ham, chopped or torn

Directions –

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Grease a baking sheet with non stick cooking spray and set aside. Roll pizza dough into a 12×18 inch rectangle and cut into 4 strips width wise (so you’d end up with 4 pieces of dough that are 4 1/2 inches x 12 inches). Place the slices of ham on top of the dough and then with swiss and cheddar cheese.Roll up each piece of dough and place on prepared baking sheet seem side down. Press the open edges down to seal. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until tops are golden and bottoms are brown.

Whole Wheat Buttermilk Pancakes

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Quick Post: My girl asked nicely for chocolate chip pancakes 🙂 I have never tried any batter that wasn’t all AP flour, so I was a little worried these would become heavy. These were light, fluffy and slightly sweet. Thanks for reading, enjoy!

Whole Wheat Buttermilk Pancakes – adapted from Tracey’s Culinary Adventures

  • 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
  • 3/4 cup whole wheat pastry flour
  • 3 tablespoons sugar
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 1/2 cups buttermilk
  • 1 tablespoon canola oil
  • 2 eggs

Directions –

In a medium bowl, whisk both flours, the sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt together. In a second medium bowl, whisk the buttermilk with the oil, egg and egg white. Add the wet ingredients to the dry and whisk just until barely combined – the batter will still be lumpy, that’s fine.

Heat 1 teaspoon of oil in a 12-inch nonstick skillet set over medium heat. Once the oil starts shimmering, use paper towels to wipe the pan so only a thin, even coating of oil covers the bottom and sides. Use a 1/4 cup measure to portion the batter into the pan. Cook on the first side until the edges are set and bubbles form on the surface, about 2-3 minutes. Use a spatula to flip the pancakes and cook for 1-2 minutes on the second side, or until golden brown and cooked through. {If not serving immediately, transfer the pancakes to the wire rack in the oven.} Repeat with remaining batter, adding the rest of the oil to the pan if necessary.

Trail Mix Cookies

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Yummy, chewy, sweet, tart, crispy, thin, nutty…there is a lot going on in these cookies. They’re like a cookie version of a granola bar, which makes them a great after school treat for the kids. Thanks for reading, enjoy!

Trail Mix Cookies – adapted from Annie’s Eats

  • ¾ cup all-purpose flour
  • ½ tsp. sea salt
  • ½ tsp. baking soda
  • ¼ tsp. ground cinnamon
  • ½ cup (8 tbsp.) unsalted butter, at room temperature
  • ½ cup brown sugar, lightly packed
  • 6 tbsp. granulated sugar (*I used vanilla sugar*)
  • 1 large egg
  • 1 tsp. vanilla (*I used almond extract*)
  • 1¼ cup old-fashioned oats
  • ¼ cup golden raisins
  • ¼ cup dried cherries, chopped
  • ¼ cup coarsely chopped walnuts
  • 2 oz. bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
  • 3 tbsp. sunflower seeds

Directions –

1. Preheat the oven to 350˚ F.  Line baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats.  In a small bowl, combine the flour, salt, baking soda and cinnamon; whisk to blend, and set aside.  In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine the butter and sugars and beat on medium-high speed until light and smooth, about 1-2 minutes.  Blend in the egg.  Mix in the vanilla.  With the mixer on low speed, beat in the dry ingredients just until incorporated.  Stir in the oats until evenly combined.  Use a spatula to fold in the raisins, cherries, walnuts, chocolate and sunflower seeds, mixing just until evenly incorporated.

2. Scoop about 2 tablespoons of dough at a time onto the prepared baking sheets, spacing the cookies at least a couple of inches apart.  Bake, rotating the pans halfway through baking, until golden brown and just set, about 10-12 minutes total.  Let cool on the baking sheets about 10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.  Store in an airtight container.

Oat Waffle

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Quick Post: I love using oats whenever I can, and the kids don’t seem to mind! I made these at night, cooled them completely, bagged ’em, tagged ’em, and then stored them in the freezer. In the morning, preheat your oven to 350 degrees and bake these for 6 -8 minutes. It’s a quick, no-brainer (who wants to think in the morning) breakfast that my kids and I enjoy. Thanks for reading, enjoy!

Oat Waffle – adapted from Food Network

  • 5 1/2 ounces old fashioned rolled oats
  • 4 ounces all-purpose flour
  • 3 tablespoons sugar
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 3 large eggs, beaten
  • 2 ounces unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled
  • 16 ounces buttermilk at room temperature

Directions –

Heat a 10-inch saute pan over medium heat. Add the oats and cook, stirring occasionally, until toasted, about 3 minutes. Cool the oats in the pan for 2 to 3 minutes. Grind the toasted oats in a food processor until the consistency of whole-wheat flour, about 3 minutes.

Heat a waffle iron according to manufacturer’s directions.

Whisk together the toasted oat flour, all-purpose flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and baking soda in a medium bowl. Whisk the eggs and melted butter together in another bowl, then add the buttermilk. Add the wet ingredients to the dry and stir until combined. Rest the batter for 5 minutes. Ladle the recommended amount of waffle batter into the hot iron. Close the iron top and cook until the waffle is golden on both sides and is easily removed from the iron. Repeat with remaining batter. Serve immediately or keep warm in a preheated 200 degree F oven until ready to serve.

Rustic Italian Bread

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Lots of waiting with this recipe…hopefully it’s worth it!

It’s kind of my thing to go the extra mile when we have company – and 2012 seems to be the year of overnight guests! Nothing wrong with that, and it’s definitely a nice change from our normal routine. My SIL is coming into town and my plan is to make this bread to go along with spaghetti sauce that will cook while I am away, (slow cookers are a lifesaver in this kind of situation).

I loathe working with wet dough, but I have learned to use my rubber scraper to knead instead of both hands. In the end, the loaf was so big that it barely fit on my half sheet pan. Overall, this is obviously time consuming – but not too much work on your part. The finished product was flavorful (thanks to the overnight fermentation), with a crisp crust of an artisan type loaf. It served as a crunchy base for our all time favorite garlic bread and would be perfect for pressed sandwiches (I need to try one of those!) Thanks for reading, enjoy!

Rustic Italian Bread – adapted from  The America’s Test Kitchen Family Baking Book via Bless This Mess

For the sponge:

  • 2 cups bread flour
  • 1 cup warm water
  • 1/4 tsp instant yeast

For the dough:

  • 3-3 1/2 cups bread flour
  • 1 tsp instant yeast
  • 1 1/4 cups warm water
  • 2 tsp salt

Directions –

To make the sponge:
Mix the flour, water, and yeast together in a medium bowl until it resembles dough. Cover the top of the bowl with plastic wrap and let it sit at room temperature for 6 to 24 hours.

To make the dough:
Add 3 cups of the flour and yeast to the bowl of your stand mixer. With the dough hook attached, turn the mixer on to low and slowly add the water while the mixer is running. Let this mix for 2 minutes until the dough starts to come together. Lift the head of your stand mixer and place a piece of plastic wrap tightly over the bowl. Let the dough rest for 20 minutes.

After the 20 minute rest, remove the plastic wrap and add your sponge and salt. Mix on medium low speed for 8 minutes. After 4 minutes, if the dough is sticking to the side of the bowl add the last 1/2 cup of flour a little at a time until the dough stops sticking to the edges of the bowl but is still sticking to the bottom (you do want it to stick to the bottom). Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and form into a smooth round ball.

Place the dough in a large, lightly oiled bowl, and cover tightly with plastic wrap. Let the dough rise in a warm spot until doubled, about an hour.

After the dough has doubled, remove the plastic wrap. Using a large spatula gently fold the dough into itself by pulling the edge of the dough into the middle. Do this a few times all around the edge of the bowl. Cover the bowl and let the dough rise for 30 minutes..

Repeat the previous step after the 30 minutes are up and then let it rise for a second 30 minutes.

After the second 30 minutes of rising, it’s time to form the loaf. Remove the dough from the bowl and gently press it into a 10-inch square without tearing it. Fold each corner into the middle and then gently roll the dough into a tornado shape. Place the dough, seam down, on a rimless baking sheet (or one that is upside-down) that is lined with parchment paper. Gently tuck the dough into place on the parchment. You should end up with a long thin loaf that is 16 inches long. Lightly mist the dough with cooking oil and then loosely cover with plastic wrap. Let the dough rise in a warm place until doubled, 1 to 1 1/2 hours.

While the dough is rising, prep the oven and your baking stone. Preheat the oven to 500 degrees. Let the baking stone heat for 30 minutes (but not longer than an hour).

When the dough has doubled, score the top with a razor blade, diagonally and 1/2 inch deep and spray lightly with water. CAREFULLY slide the loaf and the parchment onto the hot baking stone in the oven and bake for 10 minutes.

After 10 minutes reduce the oven temperature to 400 degrees. Bake for 30 to 35 more minutes until the crust is a deep golden brown. Let the loaf cool on a wire rack until it is room temperature before serving (about 2 hours cooling time).

Pretzel Dogs

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These are seriously good! My sister made these for our 4th of July party this summer and they were a big hit with kids and adults alike. In an effort to redeem these nutritionally (every little bit helps), I used half white whole wheat and half all-purpose flour for these. Also, the hot dogs are uncured, grass-fed beef…yes, I am a food snob! 😉

This dough is so easy to work with and easily rolled, and shaped without that annoying snap-back of some other doughs I have worked with. Be careful when you add the baking soda to your pot of boiling water, as it will boil more aggressively. Use a slotted spoon to carefully add the dogs to the pot and, again watch for the crazy boiling water!  We’re going to experiment with these in the kid’s lunch for school tomorrow – here’s hoping for no soggy pretzel dogs! 😉

UPDATE: The kids took one each in their lunch yesterday, and they didn’t become soggy! It helps that I didn’t refrigerate the leftovers, and I ate some for lunch too and they still tasted great. I’m really happy with these, and no one could tell that they’re nearly half whole wheat! Thanks for reading, enjoy!

Pretzel Dogs – adapted from Fake Ginger

  • 1 tablespoon sugar
  • 1½ cups warm water
  • 2 teaspoons kosher salt
  • 1 package dry active yeast
  • 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour (312 grams)
  • 2 cups white whole wheat flour (240 grams)
  • 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled
  • 10 cups water
  • â…” cup baking soda
  • 1 large egg yolk, beaten with 1 tablespoon water
  • Pretzel salt (or kosher salt), for topping
  • 8 hot dogs, cut in half (*I used these*)

Directions:
Combine the warm water, sugar and kosher salt in the bowl of a stand mixer and sprinkle the yeast on top. Let the mixture sit for about 5 minutes, until the yeast is foamy and begins to smell of yeast.
Add the flour and butter to the yeast mixture. Attach the dough hook to the stand mixer and, on medium-low speed, combine the mixture until the dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl and appears shiny, roughly 4 to 5 minutes.
Spray a large bowl with non-stick spray (or lightly grease with vegetable oil) and place dough in greased bowl. Cover with plastic wrap. Place bowl in a warm area and let dough rise for about 1 hour, or until doubled in size.
Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper. Spray parchment paper with non-stick spray. Set aside.
In a large pot, bring the 10 cups of water and the baking soda to a roiling boil.
Place the dough on a greased surface, and divide into 16 equal pieces. Roll each piece into a long rope, roughly 12 inches long. Carefully wrap each piece around a half hot dog. Pinch the ends together to seal the dough.
Boil the shaped pretzels and pretzel dogs, one at a time, in the baking soda water for 30 seconds each. Using a slotted spatula, remove each pretzel dog from the water and place it on a drying rack to allow any extra baking soda mixture to drip off.
Place the boiled pretzel dogs back on a parchment lined baking sheets.
Brush with beaten egg yolk and sprinkle with pretzel or kosher salt.
Bake until golden brown, roughly 14 to 15 minutes. Transfer pretzel dogs to a cooling rack for a few minutes before serving. Serve with a variety of mustards.

Flour Tortillas

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Hallelujah! I found the best, most authentic tasting, not to mention easiest flour tortilla recipe out there. What makes it even more amazing is that the dough is very forgiving and really easy to roll out. Recipes that call for milk, baking powder or oil cannot come close to the awesomeness of shortening (or lard), sorry! I used this non- hydrogenated vegetable shortening instead of Crisco.

Last night I made chimichangas, which my family loved – but the star of the meal was definitely the tortillas. The batch I made didn’t last long – in fact, my son requested a wrap for his lunch using the last one 😉 I made another batch today that is half white whole wheat, half all-purpose flour in an attempt to redeem these a little. They are still as pliable and soft as the all white flour tortillas and just as tasty! Thanks for reading, enjoy! 🙂

Flour Tortillas – adapted from The Urban Spork

  • 2  3/4 cups all-purpose flour, plus a little extra for rolling the tortillas
  • 5 tablespoons vegetable shortening, lard or 2 1/2 tablespoons of each (for the most authentic version)
  • 3/4 teaspoon salt
  • 3/4 cup very warm tap water

Directions

Combine the flour and shortening in a large mixing bowl and work the shortening into the flour with your fingers until completely incorporated.  If this isn’t done thoroughly (until no particles of shortening remain visible), the tortillas will have an irregular texture.  Dissolve the salt in the water and pour about 2/3 cup over the dry ingredients and immediately work it in with a fork; the dough will be in large clumps.  If all the dry ingredients haven’t been dampened, add the rest of the liquid (plus a little more, if necessary).  Scoop the dough onto your work surface and knead until smooth.  It should be a medium-stiff consistency – not firm, but not quite as soft as most bread dough either.

Divide the dough into 12 portions and roll each into a ball.  Set them on a plate, cover with plastic wrap and let rest for at least 30 minutes – this makes the dough easier to roll.

Heat an ungreased griddle or heavy skillet over medium to medium-high heat.

Flatten a ball of dough, flour it, then roll forward and back across it; rotate a sixth of a turn and roll forward and back again; continue rotating and rolling until you reach a 7-inch circle, lightly flouring the tortilla and work surface from time to time.

Lay the tortilla on the hot griddle (you should hear a faint sizzle and see an almost immediate bubbling across the surface).  After 30 to 45 seconds, when there are browned splotches underneath, flip it over.  Bake 30 to 45 seconds more, until the other side is browned; don’t overbake the tortilla or it will become crisp.  Remove and wrap in a cloth napkin placed in a tortilla warmer.  Roll and griddle-bake the remaining tortillas in the same manner – stack them one on top of the other in the warmer.