Ham & Swiss Stromboli

Originally posted 4/22/2008


1 11oz. refrigerated french bread loaf
6 oz. thinly sliced deli ham
4-8 oz. swiss cheese (sliced or grated)
6 green onions, sliced (optional)

Unroll dough on greased baking sheet. Place ham over dough, then top with cheese and green onions. Roll up jelly-roll style starting with the long side. Pinch seams to seal and tuck ends under. Place seam side down on baking sheet. With a sharp knife, cut several ¼" deep slits in top of loaf. Bake @ 350˚ for 25-30min or until golden brown.

Whole Wheat Bread

My mixer can only do half of this recipe at a time.

6 C. warm water
1/4 C. oil
1/4 C. dough enhancer
1/2 C. gluten
1/2 C. honey
1 Tbl. salt
6 C. whole wheat flour
2 Tbl. yeast
Add ingredients in order listed. Mix and let sponge for 20 minutes, then add 6 more Cups whole wheat flour.
Knead 8-10 minutes. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes or until middle of loaf reaches 180-190 degrees. Makes 5 loaves- each 1 1/2 lb.

Version #2

I’ve been making bread at least once a week since Christmas and it has been turning out really well.

Same ingredients minus the dough enhancer. After you have finished kneading the dough, pour a little bit of oil on the counter and knead through a few times. Split the dough in four. Form loaves by gathering loose ends of dough together and rolling back and forth to form a smooth top. Place loaves in greased bread pans. Slice top of loaf diagonally 3 times (optional). Put loaves in the oven and set oven to 350˚. Bake for 35 minutes. Remove loaves from bread pans onto cloth and then brush butter over the top.

If you have never had a PB&J sandwich on homemade whole wheat bread, you are truly missing out. It is the BEST! Especially with homemade strawberry freezer jam.

FRENCH Bread

This is the best French Bread Recipe I have tried. 


French Bread
2 ¼ c. warm water
2 Tbsp sugar
1 Tbsp yeast
1 Tbsp salt
2 Tbsp oil
5 ½ -6 cups flour-stirred before measured

First dissolve sugar and yeast in the warm water. Let this proof—or sit for a few minutes until it bubbles. Then add salt, oil and 3 cups of flour and beat well (At this point I switch to my dough/kneading attachment on my Bosch mixer) Add in 2 1/2 -3 more cups of flour. The dough should clean off the sides of the bowl and not be too sticky. Knead for a few minutes. Leave the dough in the mixer to rest for 10 minutes and then stir it down (turn on your mixer for 10 seconds) and then allow to rest another 10 minutes. Repeat for a total of 5 times. Then turn dough onto a floured surface and knead it 2 or 3 times to coat with flour. Divide into 2 equal parts. Roll each part into a 9x13 rectangle. Roll dough up, starting from long edge of loaf to seal. Arrange seam side down on large baking sheet that’s been sprinkled with corn meal, allowing room for both loaves. Repeat with second part of dough. With a sharp knife, cut 3 gashes at an angle on the top of each. Cover lightly; allow to rise 30 minutes. Brush entire surface with egg wash (one egg beaten slightly with 1 Tbsp of water). If desired, sprinkle with sesame seads. Bake for 30 minutes at 375. Cool on racks
NOTE: For a crustier loaf, a pan of hot water may be set on bottom of oven while bread is baking.
Note: recipe from The Sisters Cafe

Soft Wrap Bread

Recipe for the bread. I filled these with chicken, spinach, and mushrooms & onion sauteed in olive oil.

3 to 3 1/4 cups (12 3/4 to 13 3/4 ounces) unbleached all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups (12 ounces) boiling water
1/4 cup (1 1/2 ounces) potato flour OR 1/2 cup (5/8 ounces) potato flakes
1 1/4 teaspoons salt
2 tablespoons (7/8 ounce) vegetable oil
1 teaspoon instant yeast*

Place 2 cups of the flour into a bowl or the bucket of a bread machine. Pour the boiling water over the flour, and stir till smooth. Cover the bowl or bucket and set the mixture aside for 30 minutes.

In a separate bowl, whisk together the potato flour (or flakes or buds) and 1 cup of the remaining flour with the salt, oil and yeast. Add this to the cooled flour/water mixture, stir, then knead for several minutes (by hand, mixer or bread machine) to form a soft dough.

Note: You can allow the dough to go through the entire kneading cycle(s) in the bread machine, but it’s not necessary; about a 5-minute knead in the machine, once it gets up to full kneading speed, is fine. The dough should form a ball, but will remain somewhat sticky (the dough is fairly stiff, so don’t be worried – just be careful not to overflour the dough). Add additional flour only if necessary; if kneading by hand, keep your hands and work surface lightly oiled. Let the dough rise, covered, for 1 hour (I let mine rise up to 2 hours).

Divide the dough into 8 pieces (each about the size of a handball, around 3 ounces), cover, and let rest for 15 to 30 minutes. Roll each piece into a 7- to 8-inch circle, and dry-fry them (fry without oil) on a griddle or frying pan over medium heat for about 1 minute per side (I cooked mine about 2-3 minutes per side and they didn’t dry out), until they’re puffed and flecked with brown spots. Adjust the heat if they seem to be cooking either too quickly, or too slowly; cooking too quickly means they may be raw in the center, while too slowly will dry them out. Transfer the cooked breads to a wire rack, stacking them to keep them soft. Serve immediately, or cool slightly before storing in a plastic bag.
*Makes about 8-9 breads
*This recipe works best with instant yeast because it dissolves during the kneading process, so you don’t have to knead liquid into the dough. If you really prefer to use active dry yeast, use only 1 cup boiling water for the initial dough, dissolve the yeast in 1/4 cup warm water, and add this mixture to the dough along with the potato flour mixture. It’ll be somewhat “slippery” at first, but will knead in and eventually become smooth.

Recipe from Mel's Kitchen Cafe

French Bread Rolls

I really loved the way these rolls turned out!
2 ¼ C warm water
2 T. sugar
1 Tbsp yeast
1 Tbsp salt
2 Tbsp oil
5 ½ -6 Cups flour-stirred before measured
Dissolve sugar and yeast in the warm water. Let this proof—or sit for a few minutes until it bubbles. Then add salt, oil and 3 cups of flour and beat well. Add in 2 1/2 -3 more cups of flour. The dough should clean off the sides of the bowl and not be too stick – but be careful not to add too much flour. Knead for a few minutes.
Leave the dough in the mixer to rest for 10 minutes and then stir it down (turn on your mixer for 10 seconds) and then allow to rest another 10 minutes. Repeat for a total of 5 times. Then turn dough onto a floured surface and divide into two equal parts. Roll each part into a 9×13 rectangle. Roll dough up, starting from long edge of loaf to seal. Arrange seam side down on large baking sheet that’s been sprinkled with corn meal, allowing room for both loaves. Repeat with second part of dough. With a sharp knife, cut 3 gashes at an angle on the top of each. Cover lightly; allow to rise 30 minutes. Brush entire surface with egg wash (one egg beaten slightly with 1 Tbsp of water). If desired, sprinkle with sesame seeds. Bake for 30 minutes at 375 degrees.
Recipe from Mel's Kitchen Cafe

homemade WHOLE wheat Tortillas

This is the best tortilla recipe I have used for whole wheat. The trick is getting them to look good! Recipe from Fashionably Foodie.

homemade tortillas

2 cups flour (whole wheat)
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 cup oil
2/3 cup HOT water

Grind wheat. Combine whole wheat flour, salt and baking powder in the bowl of a Kitchenaid.
Mix to combine. Add oil and hot water ( heat water in a tea kettle until almost boiling.) Mix to combine. If your dough comes together in a ball, you're all set.I f your dough is still stiff and not coming together, add water by the Tablespoonful until it does.
Get a dishtowel soaking wet and wring it out. Place dough in a ball under the wet towel and let it rest for 30 minutes.
After 30 minutes, divide dough into 8-10 balls and flatten like little discs. leave them under the dishtowel while you are rolling out the tortillas.
Heat a cast-iron or stainless skillet on high while you roll the tortillas. After you get going, you may need to lower the heat a bit. you can also use a griddle (electric pancake griddle,) but crank it to the max temperature setting.
Lightly dust your rolling surface with flour. Roll tortillas* into circles, starting from the center every time and rolling outwards, turning between rolls to get even circles. Dust more flour underneath or on tortillas as needed. Roll tortillas as thinly as you can, preferably as thin as paper.
Cook tortillas on both sides, watching carefully. You should get little brown spots if your pan is hot enough.
Immediately put the tortillas in a ziploc bag with the zipper part wide open, or in a tortilla warmer. This will keep them soft!

White Chicken Chili & Corny Cornbread

1 medium onion, chopped
1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and chopped* (optional)
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
3 cups chicken broth
2 (15.5 ounce) cans great northern beans, rinsed and drained
(you can start with dry beans- just give yourself enough soaking time. I ended up using a pressure cooker to cook the beans through)
2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley
1 tablespoon lime juice
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 cup cold water
2 cups shredded, cooked chicken

Directions
Cook chicken in crock pot (on low for 6 hours) with some chicken bouillon. In a large saucepan, cook onion, jalapeno if desired and garlic in oil until tender. Stir in broth, beans, parsley, lime juice and cumin; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add shredded chicken. Heat through and serve with cornbread.


Cornbread
½ cups Cornmeal
1-½ cup Flour
⅔ cups Sugar
1 Tablespoon Baking Powder
½ teaspoons Salt
⅓ cups Oil
3 Tablespoons Butter, Melted
2 whole Eggs Beaten
1-¼ cup Milk
1 can whole kernel corn (Drained!)

Mix dry ingredients, make a well and add oil, butter, eggs, corn and milk into the center. Stir until just mixed. Bake in an 8″ square pan at 350 degrees for 35 minutes.

Bread Braid

This recipe was just an experiment. It turned out beautifully!
I used the Never Fail Rolls recipe for this bread.
For the filling I used:
8 0z. softened cream cheese
1/2 C. powdered sugar
chopped pecans
Let dough rise once or twice. Roll dough out into a long rectangle. Use pizza cutter to slice into three strips. Fill each strip with filling and close the dough around it. Pinch edges to seal lengthwise and ends. Lay three filled strips next to each-other and braid them together. Leave straight or bring ends together for a wreath. Bake at 350˚ for approx. 25 minutes or until golden brown. Drizzle with icing (powdered sugar with milk until desired consistency.)

CINNAMON ROLLS!!!

This recipe comes from my mother-in-law. Her cinnamon rolls are famous- no kidding! But- I have learned that just because I follow the same recipe doesn't mean they turn out quite as incredible as hers. Last night I decided to make a batch and they turned out really good.... almost as good as Merlene's! Here is MY version of her cinnamon rolls.

Start by making this dough:
Never Fail Rolls
2 Tbl. Yeast
1 tsp. sugar
Dissolve in 1 Cup lukewarm water
6 Cups flour
1/2 C. Sugar
1/3 C. Canola Oil
1 Tbl. salt
3 Tbl. Powdered milk

Mix together, add yeast mixture after it has raised a few minutes. Add 1 1/2 Cups lukewarm water. Add flour until you can knead it. Knead 5 minutes, raise once or twice depending on time.

1 1/2 C. sugar

1/2 Cup cinnamon

1 C. butter

Mix sugar, and cinnamon together, and melt butter on stovetop. Roll dough into 18” x 27” rectangle. Spread dough with melted butter and sprinkle with the cinnamon/sugar mixture. Start rolling from the short end, and roll into a log. Cut cinnamon rolls with serrated knife about 1 ½” thick, put in pan that has been coated with butter.

Bake at 350 for 30 minutes.

Frosting:

4 c. powdered sugar

1/2 c. milk

1 tsp. vanilla or almond extract

1/4 c. butter

Calzones

This was just an experiment so I'm not sure if there is a better way to make these. I would love to have an actual recipe- but these turned out really well.

Make one half recipe of Never Fail Rolls. Use whole wheat flour for half of the flour. After dough has risen once or twice divide dough into 8 parts. Roll each ball into a 6" circle. Fill with 1/3 C. filling and add plenty of mozzarella cheese. Seal the edges and then press edge down with a fork. Bake at 400˚ for 12-15 min. I used some of the dough to make a little cheese pizza since the kids eat that better.

Filling:
Pizza Sauce (I used leftover spaghetti sauce)
sausage, pepperoni, bell peppers, olives, onions (you pick!)
Mozzarella cheese

Zucchini Bread

This recipe is from Joe's Mom. We grow a lot of zucchini every summer and freeze it grated for use throughout the year. The original recipe doesn't call for whole wheat flour- but I prefer it.

When preparing the zuchinni- be sure to remove the center & seeds.
3 eggs
1 C. oil
2 C. sugar
2 C. grated zucchini
3 C. Whole Wheat flour
3 tsp. vanilla
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking soda
3 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 C. chopped nuts (optional)
Beat eggs until light and foamy. Add oil, sugar, vanilla and zucchini. Lightly mix, add flour and rest of the ingredients. Add nuts. Pour into 2 bread pans or 4 mini bread pans. Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour (or about 40 minutes for mini loafs).

Never Fail Rolls

2 Tbl. Yeast

1 tsp. sugar
Dissolve in 1 Cup lukewarm water
6 Cups flour
1/2 C. Sugar
1/3 C. Canola Oil
1 Tbl. salt
3 Tbl. Powdered milk
Mix together, add yeast mixture after it has raised a few minutes. Add 1 1/2 Cups lukewarm water. Add flour until you can knead it. Knead 5 minutes, raise once or twice depending on time. Make rolls, breadsticks, or cinnamon rolls. Bake at 400˚ for 20 min.
note: I usually halve the recipe for my own family.

french bread stroganoff

I found this recipe on my friend Maggie’s blog. I happened to have French bread that needed to be used and so this was the perfect solution. It was really yummy. Even Dallin liked it.

1 lb hamburger (cooked & drained)
1 C sour cream
1 can cream of mushroom
1 loaf of French bread
shredded cheese

Slice bread lengthwise. Mix together beef, sour cream, and soup. Spoon over bread. Top with cheese. Bake at 350˚ until cheese is melted.