Our Fabulous Bites

This is based on a Curtis Stone recipe but with some adjustments.  We thought caramelized peaches was great with French toast.  You can use any French toast recipe and just add the caramelized peaches to the recipe of your choice, which is what I think I did.  I made it with frozen peaches once and it was still good, but I'll admit, it was better when I used delicious fresh peaches.  I like doing extra peaches and if we have leftovers, it is good with yogurt, granola, waffles.... Serves 4   Caramelized Peaches 1/2 cup sugar 4 peaches (about 1.25 pounds), pitted and cut into 8 slices 3 T unsalted butter French Toast 6 large eggs 4 1/2 inch slices of bread (brioche is good) 1/4 cup sugar 2 tsp ground cinnamon 2 T unsalted butter Optional: top with creme fraiche (we tried it once and it was good, but for us we think it is good enough without) DIRECTIONS To prepare the peaches: Combine the sugar and 1/4 cup water in a preferably heavy sauce pan over medium heat. ...

2 tablespoons dry active yeast 1/4 cup sugar 1 tablespoon salt 2 1/2 cup hot water 1/2 cup oil 7 cups flour (I prefer using some white whole wheat flour and some white flour rather than just one or the other) Mix together yeast, sugar, and salt.  Add water and oil; let sit for a few minutes too proof.  In a big bowl, combine above mixture and up to 7 cups bread flour.  (I sometimes need more than 7 cups). Knead until smooth on lightly flour surface.  Spray bowl with oil.  Set bread dough in bowl, flip over to coat all sides with oil.  Cover bowl.  Let rise for 30 minutes.  Divide and shape into 2 loaves; set in lightly sprayed bread pans.  Cover bread pans and let rise for another 30 minutes.  Place bread into a COLD oven, then set oven for 370 F.  Immediately start timer for 28 minutes. My family seems to like this bread for sandwiches, and mostly they like it fresh with melted butter. (The temp and time on this recipe ...

I've switched this recipe rather than the recipe I got while on the mission.  Note, I often use part whole wheat flour, however, it really is better with simple white flour 1 cup milk 1 cup flour 6 eggs 1/2 tsp salt dash of tabasco sauce (optional) 1 tsp vanilla (optional) Place 9x13 dish into oven and preheat to 425.  Blend all the ingredients.  When oven is heated, take out the hot dish and spray with cooking spray.  Pour batter into the pan and bake for about 15 minutes.  If it is flat, let it go a bit longer, it should puff up.  Though I notice that it puffs less the more whole wheat flour I use. We eat these with Nutella, or lemon and sugar, jam, powder sugar.... I have discovered I really like when I add sliced pears or peaches and bake them into the batter.

HONEY WHEAT BREAD ½ cup milk 1 ½ cup warm water 3 Tab. honey 5 – 6 cup flour (approx. 2 cup 2 tsp. salt         wheat flour and 3 – 4 cup white) 3 Tab. butter 1 Tab. yeast Dissolve yeast in warm water.  (Add a few drops of honey or 1 Tab. of sugar to help yeast work).  Scald milk; stir in honey, salt, and butter. Cool to lukewarm. Add milk mixture to yeast and stir in 4 ½ cup flour.  Mix well. Add remaining flour, ½ cup at a time. Knead 7 to 10 minutes until smooth and elastic. Dough may be slightly sticky.  Place in a greased bowl, turning to grease top. Cover and let rise in a warm place until double in size, about 1 hour. (I place in oven over a pan of hot water)  Punch down (for extra light bread, punch and let rise again until double in size then punch again). Rest for 15 minutes. Divide dough in half. Roll out on lightly oiled surface into an 8-inch wide rectangle*  Roll up l...

4 Loaf Bread Recipe 9 – 11 cups whole wheat flour 2 Tab. yeast ½ cup wheat gluten 4 cup hot water (not hotter than 110 ° ) 1/3 cup olive or grape seed oil 2/3 cup honey 2 Tab. dough enhancer 1 Tab. salt Place 6 cups flour, yeast, and wheat gluten in Bosch mixer.  Mix for 1 minute with the whisk attachment. Then add hot water and mix for 1 minute.  Remove whisk and replace with dough hook. Cover and let dough set for at least 10 minutes, or until it has risen close to the top.  Add olive oil, honey, dough enhancer and salt. Turn mixer on and add 3 – 5 cups flour, one cup at a time until the dough pulls away from the side and is not super sticky.  (It is definitely better to add too little flour than too much). Knead in mixer for 7 – 10 minutes. Preheat oven to 170° and grease 4 bread pans. (I use 5” x 9” pans). Lightly oil your hands and divide dough into 4 equal portions (I use a lightly oiled sharp knife to divide the dough).  Place i...

The girls and I just made these this morning, and I think this is the biscuit recipe we will stick with. Light, buttery, and flaky, plus extremely easy to make. I love that I can make them with the girls without much hassle. On thing with biscuits is you do NOT want to use a rolling pin, and work the dough much. Just gently pat, and create those many layers by folding and patting, repeat. Buttermilk Biscuits 2 cups flour, plus more for dusting 1/4 tsp baking soda 1 tbsp baking powder 1 tsp salt 6 tbsp butter, very cold 1 c buttermilk Preheat your oven to 450....why haven't they made a degrees symbol on a keyboard yet??? Combine dry ingredients in a food processor. Cut butter into cubes and cut into flour mixture. Pulse it a few times until it resembles course meal. Basically you want to feel little pea sized chunks of butter in the mixture. Add buttermilk and mix until just combined. If it appears dry, add some more buttermilk, you want it to be w...

I adapted this recipe from a cupcake recipe I found.  The strawberry flavor and color is faint, even so, these were pleasant.  Sometime in the future I want to experiment and try to enhance the strawberry flavor.  I think using strawberry yogurt might help up the strawberry power.  We used frozen strawberries for the puree which I love, because then you can make this any time of year, not just during the short fresh strawberry season. Update 9/10/15 -  I made these again adding a small container of strawberry activia yogurt.  It did increase the strawberry flavor nicely, but my muffins ended up a bit dense and too moist so I need to keep working on the proportions. Vanilla Strawberry Muffins INGREDIENTS 2/3 cup whole fresh or frozen strawberries, thawed  1 cup white flour 1/2 cup wheat flour 1 teaspoon baking powder 1/4 teaspoon coarse salt 1/4 cup milk, (I actually used coconut milk but the flavor didn't come through) 1 teaspoon pur...

I've posted this recipe before but I'm re-posting it with updates and my own picture. This recipe is great when you don't have a lot of time but really want some buns for some burgers and don't want to run to the store. I replaced regular yeast with bread machine yeast and it clearly improved the results.  You can still use active dry yeast, it just results in a slightly dense bun but not bad at all.  With the bread machine yeast, it rises faster (the point of this recipe is quick) and you get a really good bun. If you have more time, you can let the buns rise longer as well to get more air in there. The down side to these buns, they won't last well sitting on the counter.  Those buns from the grocery store stay soft for much longer but these buns were really dry 2 days after baking them.  So use them the day you bake or the next day. Makes 8 - 10 buns Ingredients : 2 Tablespoons Bread Machine Yeast (Active Dry Yeast will work) 1 Cup plus 2 Tablespo...

I found a similar recipe on-line, made a few changes and liked the results.  I think these have a fun look and nutella is always good right?  By the way, they don't taste like pumpkin.  Also, I often find pumpkin stuff over spiced for my taste.  If you don't, increase the spices by 1/4 tsp or more if you like.  You could also add nutmeg if you like. 2 cups flour (I did half wheat and half cake flour) 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger 1 teaspoon baking powder 1/2 teaspoon baking soda 1/2 teaspoon salt 2 tablespoons natural cocoa powder 1 – 15 oz can pure pumpkin puree (not pie filling) 1/2 cup vegetable oil 2 large eggs 1/2 T  pure vanilla 1/4 cup light brown sugar (I didn't pack it) 1/4 cup sugar  1/2 cup chocolate chips (optional) 12 heaping teaspoons Nutella for topping Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Line or spray a 12-cup muffin pan, set aside. (I actually ended up with 15 muffins) In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, ...

Oh my. I have never made tortillas before, but after these babies, I will NEVER buy flour tortillas again! Now someone send me a corn tortilla recipe and I will be set. These were kind of soft and chewy like Cafe Rio's. Great texture, delicious, and extremely simple to make. Go and make some now! Homemade Tortillas 2 1/2 cups flour 3/4 tsp kosher salt 1/2 tsp baking powder (i have no idea what this does, but hey, they turned out yummy) 1/4 cup plus 2 tbsp shortening 3/4 - 1 cup hot water In the bowl of a heavy duty mixer fitted with the dough hook, combine flour, salt, and baking powder. Add the shortening and combine until crumbly. With the mixer running, slowly add 3/4 cup hot water. Mix until the dough starts to come together, adding more water if necessary; the dough should be about the consistency of Play-Doh. Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. While the pan is heating, divide the dough in to 8-10 balls. Roll out as thin as pos...

Buttery Dinner Rolls 1 1/2 cups of milk 3/4 cup + 1 Tablespoon Sugar 1 egg 1 Tablespoon salt 2 Tablespoons yeast 2 cups of warm water about 9-10 cups of all purpose flour at least 1 cup of butter To start out: Scald milk, 3/4 c sugar, and 1/2 c butter in a microwave bowl, for about 2 minutes. We are going to add yeast to this hot mixture, but it will be too hot to just dump it straight in (it would kill it). To cool it down stir in 1-2 cups of flour, then add 1 egg and 1 Tablespoon of salt, and leave it to cool for a couple of minutes. Meanwhile, in a measuring cup dissolve 2 Tablespoons of yeast in 2 cups of warm water and 1 Tablespoon of sugar. Let it sit for a couple of minutes until it is bubbly. **Keep track of how much flour you are adding!!!** Make sure your milk mixture is just warm, and add the yeast mixture. Using a fork or wooden spoon, gradually stir in 9-10 cups of flour (counting the flour you have already added to cool it earlier). I ...

Josh and I just went to the Pizza Factory for the first time a month or so ago. And while the pizza was so-so, we really liked these bread sticks. So when I found a recipe on Pinterest I was excited to give it a try. Results: they were soooo delicious! A hit in the Bigger home.  Pizza Factory  Bread sticks 1 T. yeast 2 T. sugar 1 1/2 C. warm water 1 T. oil 1 tsp. salt 3 1/2 C. flour 3/4 C. melted butter - divided 3/8  tsp. granulated garlic 1/2 tsp. dried rosemary leaves 1/4 tsp. Season All 1 T. Parmesan cheese 12 inch wooden skewers/dowels  Mix the yeast, sugar and water and  let sit for a couple of minutes to dissolve  the yeast.  Add the oil, salt and flour and  knead by hand or with your mixer with a  dough hook for about 5 minutes. Cover and let rise until doubled. Divide dough into 8 equal parts,  about 4 oz. each if you want to use  a kitchen scale. Lightly flour your...

I forgot to take a photo of the bread I made last night, but it came out looking like the above photo and was delicious! We ate it quickly. Macaroni Grill Bread 1 T active dry yeast 1 T sugar 1 C warm water 2 1/2 C bread flour (I used all purpose) 1 t salt 1 T dried rosemary leaves 1 T olive oil 2 T butter, melted kosher salt Combine yeast, water, and sugar in a blender, and blend till frothy. Turn oven to 200 degrees (not for baking, for warming up). In a bowl, combine 2 cups flour, salt, 1/2 T rosemary. Pour yeast mixture into bowl, mix and knead. (I just poured the flour mixture into the mixing bowl to knead it, but in case you don't have a mixer ). Add the rest of the 1/2 cup of flour as needed until not too sticky to handle. Knead for 3 minutes or until smooth and elastic, and it forms a ball. Turn the oven off. In a large bowl, drizzle 1 T olive oil and swirl around. Coat the dough with olive oil well. Place a towel over the bowl and ...

When I came across this recipe at Our Best Bites, I was skeptical that these were truly the world's best rolls. So, I decided to make a batch to see for myself. And, I have to admit, they are probably the best rolls I have made. Dad gave them a try too, and agreed. They are very delicious. From here on out, I won't be using any other recipe than this one for dinner rolls. 2 cup whole milk (don't use 1% or skim) 1/2 cup + 1 Tbsp. sugar, divided 1/3 cup butter 2 tsp. salt 4 1/2 tsp. ( 2 pkg. active dry yeast) 2/3 cup warm water (105-115 degrees) 3 large eggs, beaten 8 - 9 cups all-purpose flour Combine milk, 1/2 c. sugar, butter, and salt in medium saucepan. Heat over medium heat until butter melts. Remove from heat; pour into a large mixing bowl (I used my Bosch mixer), and allow to cool to lukewarm. While the milk mixture is cooling, dissolve the yeast and 1 Tbsp. sugar in warm water. Let stand for 10 minutes. Add 3 cup flour to the milk mixture. Beat on low for 30 seconds...

I'm not a huge banana bread fan, but if I'm going to eat it, it has to have chocolate chips.  And lately Rees & I are really into making muffins, so I made banana bread, but in muffin form.  Also, I have tons of baby food.  So I decided to make the bread using baby food bananas, and it worked out great.  If you ever have too many jars of baby food, you can use those here.  Lastly, I used some wheat flour, and Jeff said he couldn't tell the difference from the last time I made these with all white flour. Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins 1/4 cup butter, softened 3/4 cup white sugar 1 egg 3 mashed bananas or 2 (4oz) jars of baby food bananas (I hear the blacker your banana, the better) 1 cup white flour 1/2 cup wheat flour 1 tsp baking soda 1/4 tsp salt 1 cup chocolate chips Either grease muffin tin or use paper liners for 12 muffins.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cream butter and sugar together.  Add egg and beat well.  Add mashed bananas. Mix flou...

I've heard brioche makes great french toast.  So I needed some for Jeff's birthday, however, I couldn't find brioche anywhere. I then started the search for a recipe, which I found some, but most called for things I don't have, like fresh yeast or time that I did not have.  Finally I found one that would work, and not only would it work, it would be kind of easy because it uses a bread maker! (original recipe found at group recipes here) Easy Brioche Loaf 1/2 cup milk 2 large eggs 2 Tbsp sugar 1 tsp kosher salt 1/2 cup unsalted butter (1 stick), softened 2 1/2 cup all-purpose flour 2 1/2 tsp active dry yeast Add all the ingredients into bread maker in order as listed above (yeast last).  Set on dough cycle.  (our cycle takes about 90 minutes) After dough cycle has completed, punch dough down.  Shape dough into a loaf and place in a non-stick 8 1/2 - 9 inch loaf pan.  Cover pan with a towel and let rise for about an hour.    Preheat oven ...

Sorry, no photo! It is delicious though. 6 slices Texas Toast 8 eggs 1 cup milk 2 1/2 cups half-n-half cream 2 teaspoons vanilla extract 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon 3/4 cup butter 1 1/3 cup brown sugar 3 Tab. corn syrup 1 cup chopped pecans (optional) Butter a 9x13 inch baking dish. Arrange the slices of bread in the bottom. In a medium bowl, beat together eggs, milk, cream, vanilla and cinnamon. Pour over bread slices, cover, and refrigerate overnight. The next morning, set out while oven is preheating to 35o degrees. Bake covered for 20 minutes. While baking, combine butter, brown sugar and corn syrup in a small saucepan, and heat until bubbling. Pour over bread and egg mixture and continue baking another 20 minutes uncovered. Sprinkle with chopped pecans and serve. Note: Next time I will use 12 slices of bread and make stacks of two just to make it thicker. I will also twice the cinnamon.

I decided to try a wheat pizza crust, not expecting to find it that great for the taste buds but good nutritionally. Anyhow, I think Jeff & I were both surprised by how much we enjoyed it. It had good flavor. It was heavier than a traditional crust but still good. We topped ours with a pesto marinara sauce, parmesan and mozzarella cheese, fresh tomatoes, onions & spinach. Notes: I made the following recipe using a mixer. Also, I tried to use a tad bit less white flour than it called for, so my dough was a bit sticky. I cut the second rise in half and put the dough in the fridge for I think about an hour, maybe longer. Then I took the dough out, and formed it into the shape I wanted for the crust. Chilling the dough made it more manageable, and the goal of less flour is hoping it makes a lighter result. It is a wheat crust so I wouldn't call it light, but it was less dense than I had expected. I then covered my crust with a towel and let it rise, I think for about an hour. ...

1 cup milk 1 cup warm water 2 Tbls butter 1 Tbls white sugar 1 1/2 tsp salt 5 1/2 cups bread flour 1 envelope yeast (about 2-1/2 tsp) 1 egg yok 1 Tbls water Combine the water and yeast, allow to proof for 5-10 minutes. Add all ingredients (except for egg yolk & 1 Tbls water) to mixer with dough hook attached, knead for 5 minutes. Place dough in greased bowl, turning to coat. Cover and let stand until doubled in size, about 1 hour. Punch down and divide into 12 portions. They should be a little larger than a golf ball. Make tight balls out of the odugh by pulling the dough tightly around and pinching at the bottom. Place on baking sheet. After the dough sits for a few minutes flatten each ball with the palm of your hand until it is 3-4 inches wide. Let rise until double in size, about 20 minutes. Preheat oven to 400 F. Mix egg yolk and 1 Tbls water and brush ont othe tops o fthe rolls. Position 2 oven racks so they are not too close to the top or bottom of the oven. Bake for 10 minu...

4 oz. small red potatoes, cut into 1/2 inch pieces (3/4 cup) 3/4 head green cabbage, sliced into 1/2 inch ribbons (2 cups) 1 Tbs. olive oil, plus more for brushing dough 1 sm onion, finely dices (1 cup) 4 cloves garlic, minced (4 tsp.) 1 1/2 tsp. dried oregano 1 15-oz. can chopped kalamata olives, chopped 2 tsp. red wine vinegar 3 hard boiled eggs, each cut into 8 slices 3 Tbs. parsley (fresh or not) 1 16-oz. pkg. prepared pizza dough 1. Bring large pot of salted water to a boil. Add potatoes, and cook till tender. Remove to plate and add cabbage to pot, cook till softened. Drain and set a side. 2. Heat oil in large skillet over medium heat. Add onion, and cook till soft. Add garlic and oregano, cook 1 min. Add tomatoes, simmer until most of the liquid has reduced. Add olives and vinegar, cook 3 more min. Remove from heat, and gently stir in eggs, parsley, potatoes, and cabbage; season with s&p as desired. Remove from heat, and cool. 3. Preheat oven to 425 coat baking sheet with co...