Zucchini, Goat Cheese and Herbs Savory Bread

Another one of Elvira’s delicious savory bread! This one I have made more than once, usually in the summer when the zucchini and herbs are plentiful. It is a nice dish for a quick weeknight meal, and you can even prepare ahead of time which makes it even better. Totally helpful to come home from soccer practice and have something delicious waiting for you, no?!!

Just as with the sun-dried tomatoes bread the combination of flavors here is delicious, plus tell me: what doesn’t taste good with goat cheese??? Goat cheese is one of my favorite cheeses and here it really shines with the herbs, totally delicious!

Easy and simple to make, so much so that I am even going to keep this post short so you can go ahead and make it yourself, I am sure it is going to be fast and so rewarding that just like us you will be making this over and over, for many summers to come!

Enjoy!

Ana

And, for my Brazilian friends, you can see the recipe in Portuguese over at Elvira's blog by clicking here!

Since we are back in school I also made some in fun shapes and froze to use in future lunchboxes! yum!

Zucchini, Goat Cheese and Herbs Savory Bread

(adapted from Elvira’s Bistro)

100 grams all purpose flour

100 grams whole wheat flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

3 eggs

50 grams grated parmesan cheese

50 ml extra virgin olive oil

150 ml milk

100 grams goat cheese, chopped or crumbled into chunks

3 tablespoons chopped herbs (I used basil, parsley and oregano)

1 zucchini, grated

Salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 350F. Grease and flour a loaf pan.

In a large bowl mix the flours, baking powder, a bit of salt (1/3 teaspoon) and pepper. Add the eggs, olive oil and the milk and mix together until you have a smooth batter. Add the grated zucchini, grated parmesan cheese, herbs and goat cheese and mix gently with a wooden spoon until all is incorporated.

Pour batter into prepared pan and bake at 350F for about 40 to 45 minutes until golden, or until a toothpick (or the tip of a knife) inserted in the center comes out clean. Let it cool for about 10 minutes in the pan before unmolding. Let it cool before serving.

Savory Feta, Basil and Sun-Dried Tomatoes Bread

When I saw this recipe posted on Elvira's blog I knew I had to try! I have made another savory bread she had (posting to come!) and we really liked. Since we love all the flavors on this one I knew just by looking at the recipe that it would be a winner, and I wasn't wrong.
I made it on the same day she posted and we all loved it here, an absolute success with thumbs up from the boys!
Since I could not contain myself I did change a couple of things here and there, but nothing that compromised the flavor.
It is a moist and very flavorful savory bread, very delicious! We had it as a light dinner, with a side of green salad with veggies you don't need much more.
Plus it is super easy and simple to make and you only dirt one bowl, which are good things during summer break when you don't want to spend much time in the kitchen.
Hope you guys enjoy it as much as we did!
I am posting the recipe the way I did. To see Elvira's original recipe, which is in Portuguese (bonus to my Brazilian friends!) click here: Cake de Feta, Tomates Secos e Manjericao.
Enjoy!
Ana

Savory Feta, Basil, and Sun-Dried Tomatoes Bread

75 grams whole wheat flour
75 grams all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
3 eggs
100ml extra virgin olive oil
150 ml milk
15 basil leaves, chopped
100 grams sun-dried tomatoes in oil, chopped
100 grams feta cheese (feel free to use more or less), crumbled or cut into cubes
Salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 350F, grease a loaf pan, set aside.
In a large bowl mix together the flours and baking powder. Add the eggs, milk, and oil and mix everything together with a wire whip until smooth. Add a bit of salt and pepper to flavor the batter - just be light on the salt as the feta cheese contributes a good amount of saltiness to the bread.
Add the chopped sun-dried tomatoes, basil, and feta cheese and mix them into the batter with a wooden spoon (or spatula).
Pour batter into prepared pan and bake at 350F for about 35 to 40 minutes, until golden.
Remove from oven, let cool for about 10 minutes in the pan before removing from the pan. Cool on a wire rack.

(We didn't let it cool completely before cutting as we were hungry and it was smelling so good. The bits of warm cheese inside the bread were amazingly delicious, the flavors of this bread pairs really well together!)

Upside Down Tomato Basil Bread

There you go, the title says it all, doesn't it?! I made this recipe the first time last year at the very end of the tomato season, we liked it so much that I could not wait to make it again.
With two vases full of bright green amazing fresh basil and the first tomatoes coming in my CSA box yesterday this bread was something I could not pass up.
The dough is super simple to make, just mix everything, let it rest, open and use - plus the dough is wonderful to work with, really lovely dough.
Filling and topping are also easy and quick to put together. It takes a bit of time to wait for the dough to rise so you need to keep that in mind, but other than that this is a bread that is not only pretty and tasty, but it is also fun to make and eat.
The process of making this bread is similar to that of making cinnamon rolls, so after it is baked you can grab individual little buns filled with basil and Parmesan cheese and topped with bright and fresh ripened tomatoes. Do I need to say more?!
The recipe I got from the blog Simmer Till Done and basically I followed the recipe as is! My only thing yesterday was that I didn't have enough cheese for both dough and filling, so I only used in the filling. It was pretty flavorful and cheesy that way, I didn't hear one single complain, only "yums" and "this bread is really good" (the husband is a carb lover, he even remembered this one from last year, big thumbs up!)
I will post here how I made it, but take a peek at Marilyn's post, the pictures she has from her bread are really nice! Here is her post: Upside Down Tomato Basil Bread
This is a great snack to use up basil and summer tomatoes!
Enjoy!
Ana

Can you see the layers of basil goodness in there?!














Upside Down Tomato and Basil Bread
(Adapted from the blog Simmer Till Done)

Dough
1 package (2 1/2 tsp) active dry yeast
1 cup plus 3 tablespoons warm water
4 tablespoons olive oil
3 cups unbleached all-purpose flour (I used half whole wheat, half white flour on my rolls)
1/2 cup shredded Parmesan cheese (optional)
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper

Filling
4 – 5 tablespoons chopped fresh basil
1 cup shredded (or grated) Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup olive oil
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper (I didn't measure it, just added to taste)

Tomato Topping
3 large or 4 small-medium tomatoes

To make dough: put yeast and warm water in a bowl, mix with a fork and let stand for about 5 minutes. Add olive oil, salt, pepper, cheese (if using) and mix well, add 2 cups of flour and mix well with a fork or wooden spoon, keep adding more flour until you can gather the dough with your hands. Add flour only until the dough forms into a nice smooth ball. Put the dough into a lightly oiled bowl, cover with plastic (or a towel) and let it rest for 1 hour, or until it doubles in size/volume.

For the filling mix all ingredients in a small bowl, set aside.

For the topping: remove seeds and coarsely chop the tomatoes, set them in a colander to remove any excess moisture as you prepare everything else.
I seasoned my tomatoes with salt and pepper before putting in the pan, but that is optional.

Preheat oven to 375 F, lightly oil a 10 inch round pan, cover the bottom of it with a round of parchment paper (makes it easier to remove the bread later on!) and lightly oil the paper itself.
Spread the tomatoes on the bottom of the pan and set aside.
On a floured surface, gently roll the dough into a rectangle of about 11 x 24 inches. Spread gently the basil and cheese filling on the surface of the dough. Roll the dough on the long edge as a log, make sure to roll it gently but tightly, as not to leave air bubbles. Cut the roll into 1 inch slices and place slices with the cut side down on the prepared pan with the tomatoes.
Put pan over a sheet pan (just in case of any drippings occur) and slide into the oven. Bake for about 30 to 35 minutes, or until the rolls look golden on top.
Cool on a wire rack for about 5 minutes, invert onto a big plate and serve!

Note: if you would like your tomatoes to caramelize you can slide the inverted bread into the oven with the broiler turned on for about 2 minutes - I skipped this step!
Also, you can let the dough rise a second time for about 20 minutes (while your oven preheats perhaps!) after placing the rolls in the pan, I also skipped this step as I didn't even realize it was in the recipe. It turned out great without this step, so I am not complaining about my little shortcut!

Cinnamon Deliciousness!

As he snacked on some dried fruit, Matheus asked if I could make some type of raisin bread for him. He really like raisins ans asks for it in all kids of muffins I make, his favorite being the banana bran ones.
Of course I could make a raisin bread, and there I go, the great mommy who loves to cook and bake in search of a raisin bread for my happy boy! And for this search I knew where I would easily find something that I would not only want to make but also to eat: my new Whole Grain Baking book by King Arthur.
And so, I found not a raisin bread per se, but one where the wrinkly dried fruits could be easily incorporated. And not that I want to brag about it, but my idea resulted in a very tasty bread!
I ended up making the Cinnamon Swirl Oatmeal Toasting Bread, which was actually a variation for another recipe called Honey-Oatmeal Sandwich Bread.
The variation with cinnamon turned up delicious, really good! The cinnamon-y swirl parts where divine, and the bread itself was so good that I am already planning on making it again, this time in its original form.
The bread came out really light in texture, not dense at all, which made me really happy, as I had read comments on this particular recipe about it being a little dense; but ours was perfect.
Another comment on this was that the bread was too sweet due to the honey in the dough, so in order to avoid that I used 2 tablespoons of brown sugar in place of the 1/4 cup of honey called for in the recipe, reducing the sugar and not letting the honey take over the desired cinnamon-raisin flavor. (The honey I have here is from my uncle's farm in Brazil, super natural and extremely good, whoever it is strong and do overpower other flavors, so this time I opted to left it out).
The recipe didn't call for it, but I sprinkled some raisins after spreading the cinnamon filling over the rolled out dough, since the initial intention was actually to make a raisin bread.
In the end, Matheus looooved the bread, proclaming it the best cinnamon raisin bread! He was not the only one who was found of the loaf and it ended up not lasting long, which again, makes me happy and allow myself to more adventures in bread baking in the very near future!
Here I post the recipe as I made, hope you all like and enjoy it too!
Ana

Cinnamon Swirl Oatmeal Bread - with raisins!
(Adapted from the Whole Grain Baking book by King Arthur)

1 1/4 cups boiling water
1 cup rolled oats
2 tablespoons butter
1 1/2 teaspoon salt (use less or omit entirely if using salted butter)
1/4 cup honey (I used 2 tablespoons brown sugar)
1 cup whole wheat flour
1 2/3 cups all purpose flour
1/4 cup dry milk
2 teaspoons instant yeast

Filing:
1 egg white
2/3 cups brown sugar
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 cup raisins (more or less as desired - can also be omitted)

Place boiling water, oats, butter, salt and honey in a bowl, stir and let cool to lukewarm.
Mix remaining ingredients with oat mixture and knead (using hand, or machine) until you get a soft smooth dough. Place dough in a clean greased bowl, cover and let it double in size (about one hour).
Deflate dough, transfer it to a work surface and roll it into a 8x24-inch rectangle (I didn't even measure, just made a rectangle the size I thought would fit my loaf pan!!).
Combine in a small bowl the ingredients for the filling, except the raisins.
Spread the filling over the rolled dough, then sprinkle the raisins on top. Roll the dough and as you go gently tuck in the edges to seal the filling. Seal the seam, and smooth the dough into a 9-inch log. Place it in a greased 9x5-inch loaf pan.
Cover the pan lightly with plastic wrap and let the dough rise one more time, until the dough has risen about 1-inch over the rim of the loaf pan.
Bake the bread at 350F for about 50 minutes, until golden brown or a thermometer inserted in the center registers 190F. (I actually measured mine and it was right on, 190F!!!!).
Cool bread completely before slicing.

And here a picture of the finished loaf, before slicing. It looked nice, but I like the sliced one with the cinnamon swirls a whole lot better!!

Strawberry Bread

We went strawberry picking this past weekend again and between the three of us and Matheus' excitement filling his own little basket we ended up with lots of the sweetest red little gems!
Our favorite way of eating them is of course simply by washing and devouring, one by one, two by two... oh my, they are so sweet, so fresh, so delicious, I even fell like I don't want to crush them in the blender or other appliance at all.
However, after a couple of days the strawberries do start to loose their shine a bit and there is when I get into the kitchen to make some goodies - The husband though goes into the pantry, grabs a can of sweetened condensed milk and pour it over his chopped fruit, making them even more decadent and sweet!
Talking about the husband, his favorite strawberry concoction, besides the condensed milk thing, is Strawberry Muffins, which I have posted here before and have made twice this past two weeks.
Yesterday though I decided to make another baked goody just to change things a little, and went with a Strawberry Bread that I had already tried before but not posted here.
So, here I am to share this one with you. Very simple, yet delicious; it came out so good that it didn't last 48 hours in our house this time. It was snack, breakfast, and even caused a little fight between "the boys" to see who was having the last bite, yes, I mean the last bite, which was full of strawberries and both of them wanted to eat, can you believe that?!!!
I adapted this recipe from one posted at the Cooking Light Bulletin Boards a couple years ago. I make it every strawberry season ever since, have given it to friends, and everyone seems to enjoy it a lot.
This time I didn't have any white sugar around so I made it with brown sugar and it came out even better, a little darker than I was expecting but so good that I might try doing it this way from now on! Oh, and I sprinkled mine with sliced almonds, which not only gave it a nice look but also a great crunch on top.
Enjoy!! But hey, no need to fight, the recipe can be easily doubled and freezes beautifully too! I am making another one tomorrow for us! hehehe!!
Ana

Strawberry Bread
(Adapted from CLBB, posted by Lillith)

1 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
2/3 cups sugar (can use brown sugar too)
2 eggs
1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon oil
1 cup fresh strawberries, chopped
1/2 cups nuts or almonds (optional) - I used chopped almonds this time but actually prefer walnuts for this one

In a bowl mis together, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and sugar. Add eggs and oil and mix well to combine. Fold in strawberries and nuts (is using) - the batter will be thick. Pour batter into a greased 9-inches loaf pan. Bake at 350F for about 50 minutes to 1 hour. Cool in the pan, then invert onto a rack and let it cool completely.
(resist the temptation and wait for it to cool a little bit before cutting... I know, it is hard, especially with the wonderful aroma of freshly baked good in the kitchen, but it will pay off, and the cake won't desintegrate!!)

Yummy Bread!

I definitely haven't posted enough this year, and I truly miss posting here, but things did go a little crazy this past few weeks around here and I barely had time to sit and plan my menus and figure out the recipes I wanted to try. Plus, since we are going for a few weeks we had to enter the mode "eat what is in the fridge before we leave" and our meals has been quick and simple, but tasty nonetheless!
And although I didn't post much, I just had to come here and give you all a Hello and a quick post before we leave tomorrow, because I know I won't be able to post anything in the next few days.
So, here comes a very simple and quick recipe, which I made not just because I had ham and cheese in the fridge, but also because it looked pretty and delicious at Valentina's blog, which got it originally from Silvia's blog Doce Casinha.
This is a recipe that comes from Silvia's mother in law, and let me tell you, the lady does have great taste! The dough was super easy to work with and after baked it turned into a nice light and fluffy bread, very pleasant to eat. Both my husband and my son loved it, I made half the recipe and got about 5 nice "rolls" filled with ham, cheese, a bit of oregano, and sun dried tomatoes, so be prepared because the whole recipe provides a nice yield.
I didn't know how to properly name the bread, I have so much in my little head going right now that I couldn't think of a way to describe this sort of filled and rolled bread in English, so I am sorry... any suggestion will be appreciated! I guess it is sort of a "Stromboli", right? (not really sure though)
Thank you both so much, Valentina's for pointing me to Silvia's nice blog, and of course thanks Silvia for sharing your great family recipe with us all!!
I used ham and cheese, but the combinations for fillings here are as varied as can be. I bet it would be also good with turkey and cheese, or even spinach and ricotta/some other cheese, yum! (I am planning to try different fillings when I came back from Brazil!)
You know a good recipe when it is very forgiving and let you adapt with the ingredients you have in your own "in-need-to-clean-fridge"!!
Enjoy, and see you all soon, from the sunny and "full of family" Terra Brasilis!!
Ana

Oh, and if you would like to take a peek, the original recipe is posted in Portuguese here.

Silvia's Mother In Law Bread

About 2 pounds all-purpose flour (more or less depending on your dough)
3 eggs
1 tablespoon sugar
1 cup oil
14 grams active dry yeast (2 packages)
2 cups warm water
Salt to taste

For the filling I used shredded mozzarella cheese, pieces of ham, and some sun dried tomatoes that I soaked in some warm water to plump up. I also sort of seasoned my filling with a little bit of salt, pepper, and dried oregano. But use your imagination, because there are definitely other combinations that would taste great here!

Dissolve the yeast in the warm water, add the sugar and let sit for about 5 minutes. Add oil, eggs and salt and mix well. Little by little add the flour until you get a nice workable dough that doesn't stick to your hands. Put dough into a clean bowl and let it rise until it doubles in volume (1 to 2 hours).
Open dough into a rectangle, sprinkle with your filling of choice and roll it like a cake roll. Brush top with egg wash and bake at 350 until golden on top.

Panettone

I bet the majority of my fellows Brazilians have come across a Panettone during Christmas time at least once in his/her lifetime. Panettone, a traditional kind of Italian Christmas Bread, is very popular not only around Europe but also very known and loved in Brazil.
We used to have it every single Christmas at my mother’s and grandmother’s houses, and there were always a few loaves around grandma’s house, as she would get them as presents from different friends and family members. And it didn't matter how many she got, we would polished them off before the school break was over; it was just delicious to eat Panettone for breakfast, afternoon tea, or with milk as a late night snack!
It seems that Panettone is now becoming more and more popular in the US, as it was hard to find it when I first got here, 7 years ago, and it was absurdly costly. Now we can find a variety of more affordable breads, not only in specialty Italian stores, but also in warehouses, and even some larger grocery stores (which may even have their own brand of it!)
This year, although we are not going to Brazil for Christmas, I wanted to keep the tradition and have some Panettone around. And since we were staying and celebrating with friends, why not then making some loaves and sharing with them, right?
So I did! I baked a few mini Panettone loaves and gave away to the teachers and closer friends, just to share with them a little of my Christmas traditions.
It is a long process to bake Panettone, since it has to rise a couple of times, but it sure was fun to make these little gems and I was totally proud of my bread by the end of the day. I have also made them last year, but this time used a different recipe and it came out just right; perfect and beautiful, with a great taste and texture!
Panettone has its own characteristic texture to it, and it is not the easiest thing to conquer the sort of flaky-full-of-little-tiny-bubbles-aerated inside it should have. But this year I did it, and it got me on a very happy Christmas mood!
And since my fellow bloggers and visitors are constantly present in my life, in each post and each comment, you are now more than my friends, so it is only fair to share here the recipe and spread my Christmas Joy and traditions with all of you.
I wish I could send each one of you a little loaf, and make your day a little more “Christmasy” and “Panettoney”, but you get the idea, and from the heart, my wishes are for all of you to have the best Christmas Ever, and a 2007 full of happiness and joy, and love, and recipes, and posts, and blogs, and friends, of course!!
Ana

Note: Panettone is traditionally made with raisins and dried/candied fruits, however, some companies also make another version of it called “Chocottone”, which is basically the Panettone dough studded with little chocolate morsels, this way getting on the heart of the chocolate lovers-raisins haters.
Deep inside I think it should actually be called “Chocolate Christmas Bread”, as Panettone for me is the real thing, the one with the fruits. But some do like chocolate (including myself!!!), and this has certainly become a success during Christmas time.
Since some of the friends are most fond of chocolate rather the raisins, I divided the dough and made a few of the loaves with chocolate chips (both dark, milk, and white chocolate), and let me tell you, it sure was a success! (And Matheus loooooved it!!)

Panettone
(Adaptation of a recipe by Alvaro Rodrigues)

Starter
30 grams active dry yeast (or 90 grams fresh cake yeast)
100 grams sugar
250 ml warm water
300 grams all-purpose flour
Mix all ingredients in a large bowl with a mixer until you get smooth dough. Cover and let it rise until doubled in volume (about 1 to 1 ½ hours)

Basic Dough
180 grams butter
150 grams sugar
5 egg yolks
1 whole egg
1/3-cup canola oil
100 ml orange juice (or 75 ml juice and 25 ml cognac or rum)
1 teaspoon salt (omit if using salted butter)
2 teaspoons grated orange zest
1 teaspoon grated lemon zest (optional, I did not use)
About 600 grams all-purpose flour

Options for filling
Panettone: 300 grams raisins and 300 grams dried/candied orange peels (or other candied fruits of choice). I like to soak mine in either warm orange juice or rum (But don’t forget to drain the excess liquid before adding the fruit to the batter)
Chocottone: 500 - 600 grams chocolate chips (dark, milk, white, or a combination of the three!)

Add first nine ingredients to the starter after it has risen. Beat with a mixer using the dough hook until everything is incorporated. Gradually add flour, beating with the hook, until you get a smooth and shiny dough, full of bubbles, and that doesn’t stick to the mixer anymore (sometimes you will use all the flour, sometimes less, so add it slowly and give the dough time to incorporate it after each addition. I first added 400 grams of the flour and then added the last 200 grams slowly until I got the smooth dough).
Put dough on a clean bowl, cover and let rise until doubled in volume, at least 2 hours.
After this rising, punch the dough and add your choice of filling, gently kneading the dough just until the fruits (or chocolate) get incorporated.
Divide dough into Panettone molds filling just until ½ of its height, cover and let rise one more time, until it doubles in volume or start to come out of the tops of the molds.
Bake the Panettone at 375 F until it is golden and brown on top.
I made mini loafs and they took about 25 minutes to bake. Keep an eye on them, but do not open the oven door before 20 minutes. They will be done when your kitchen start to get infused with the sweet bread aroma!

The recipe yields about 16 mini panettones or 2 medium ones.

Here is a picture of them rising inside the molds









And another pic, just after they came out of the oven. Cute!

Pumpkin Bread

I roasted another small pumpkin today and got about 6 cups of pumpkin puree from it. Yumm!
Matheus asked for pumpkin soup, which we happily had for lunch and used about 2 cups of puree. Another cup was used in the recipe below, and the rest are already in the freezer, although they won’t stay there too long, as we are definitely in a pumpkin mood and I already have plans for them!
The recipe I am posting today and so easy, but very yummy! I adapted a recipe for Pumpkin Bread and came out with this one. Simple ingredients, and it is basically the same recipe I use for banana bread, just using pumpkin in its place.
I still want to get it a little bit spicier, but it is just a matter of adjusting the amounts and maybe even adding something else in there the next time I make it. I will probably be making this recipe one more time soon, so if I get better results I will certainly report back!
You can add chocolate chips, dried fruits, and even nuts to this bread. Chocolate goes surprisingly well with the pumpkin flavors, and another great combination are dried cranberries and walnuts; I think they really add another dimension of flavors and textures to the finished product!
Today I actually baked my cake (yes, I do think it had a cake texture, and still don’t see this or the banana breads as being actual breads… they are really cake to me!) into some mini panettone molds that I recently got from the Internet. Aren’t they cute??
I bought them to make panettone for the holidays (for ourselves and to give out to the dearest friends!), and couldn’t wait longer to see how something baked in them would look like. And I have to say that I really liked the looks of the pumpkin bread in it, and the molds do have a certain “holidayish” feel, don’t they?!
Enjoy!
Ana

Pumpkin Bread

3/4-cup brown sugar
1-cup pumpkin puree
1/4 cup canola oil
1/4 cup plain yogurt
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1 egg
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
¾ cup whole-wheat flour
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
A pinch of ground cloves
1/2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
Cooking spray

Preheat oven to 350°.
In a bowl combine sugar, pumpkin, oil, yogurt, vanilla, and egg. Add flours, cinnamon baking soda, and salt to the bowl, and mix just until moist.
Pour batter into 1 greased loaf pan (8x4inches). Bake at 350° for 1 hour, or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Remove from pan after about 10 minutes and let cool on a wire rack.

Whole Wheat Rolls

Oh boy, I just made these this morning and could not wait to come here and post the recipe in the blog. Actually, first I have to thank my friend Karen for the recipe, as I got it at her blog, Kafka na Praia. THANK YOU SO MUCH KAREN!!
This recipe is great; the rolls were awesome, full of nutritious stuff and so delicious!! They had the best flavor from all the whole goodness in them, nutty and wholesome, plus they turned out very moist and when warm out of the oven and spread with butter… they were out of this world!! Definitely the best whole-wheat rolls I have made, or eaten!!
I have been buying some oat rolls from the bakery of a natural grocery store that I really like, but after today no more store bough oat rolls; these are by far superior and better tasting than those… Karen’s Whole Wheat Bread rocks!
It was super easy to make, and the dough was great to work with, no sticking here and there, and I didn’t even had to add much flour. I made half of the recipe and used about 2 ¼ cups of the extra flour needed (1extra cup whole wheat and 1 ¼ cups white), and it yielded 11 dinner-sized rolls. My dough didn’t rise much when resting, but the rolls were nice and fluffy when done, actually a lot lighter than one might expect when making whole wheat bread. Next time I may try adding a bit more yeast to see if it makes a difference, but the recipe is great just as is!
Also, the recipe states to bake for 40 minutes, but mine were done after 26 minutes in the oven at 375, and they even got a little over brown in the bottom. Depending on your oven, I would bake them at 350 and check around 30 minutes; they might be done by that time. (I adjusted the recipe bellow for 30 minutes baking time)
I followed Karen’s tip and added flax seeds, great idea; the seeds added not only flavor but made the bread look good also! Oh, and these smelled so good when baking… huuummm!
Thanks again Karen, these are truly delicious, I really loved them! And Matheus did too; he liked them ever before trying, saying he was going to have 2 for lunch! Hehe!! Of course, he ended up eating only one, leaving no crumbs behind!
Ana

Whole Wheat Bread
3 cups warm water
1 cup oil
3 eggs
1 tbsp salt
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup wheat bran
1 cup wheat germ
2 cups whole wheat flour
2 cups oats or oat flour
2 tsp active dry east
About 2 pounds all-purpose flour

Combine oil, eggs, salt and sugar. Add wheat bran, wheat germ and warm water. Stir well. Add east, whole-wheat flour and oats. Combine everything well and add the flour little by little until you are able to work with the dough. Knead for some minutes (the longer the better). Allow it to rise for about 1 to 2 hours. Divide the dough into three balls. Shape each of them and put in greased loaf pans. Leave them to rise for 1 to 2 hours. Bake at 350F for about 30 min.

Playing around with soy!

I only got around to try soy and its by-products after I married and moved to the US. Never actually had soy at home, my mom didn’t cook with it, but my culinary curiosity would not let me alone if I did not try the many different ingredients I came face to face here in the US.
Among the ton of different stuff I found at the American grocery stores there was soy, in various forms, from beans and curds, to milk and cheeses. Soy burgers and even soy crumbles were on my list to try. And little by little I went trough my list and actually got to appreciate most of the previously mentioned items.
I ended up really liking soy burgers, and even more the so delicious edamame, yummy, now that is something I really love now. I also enjoyed trying tofu, and have been experimenting with it a lot lately, and decided that vanilla flavored soymilk is also delicious as well! (I use it almost daily in my fruit smoothies and blended concoctions!)
Besides my adventurous taste buds, I also got to meet, although yet only virtually, some nice girls that also enjoy soy, and that actually had a lot more experience with it and contact with soy through out their life. Karen and Akemi were the ones that inspired me to get my hands on some soybeans and get to work with them at home!
So, after reading their posts, seeing their nice pictures, and drooling over their baked goods at their blogs, I went ahead and adventured myself in some soy experimentation this past week. And it was so worth it!
I had the beans for some time, having bought them thinking about cooking them myself, but they ended up being transformed into soymilk, and the residue that was left over from the milk production, called okara.
Homemade soymilk, Wow, even I can’t believe I made that myself yet. It came out good, and even thicker than the ones I buy at the store. Now, I won’t lie here, I do not really enjoy the soymilk “as is”, so to suit my tastes it does have to be sweetened, or flavored with cocoa (or nesquick), then I can call it good stuff!
With the milk I got a bonus: the okara; basically the processed soybeans that was leftover after being cooked for the milk making procedure. From what I found out, the okara is very nutritious, so I went ahead and followed the lead of my friends and tried out Akemi’s recipe for Okara Bread. And Oh Boy, now this was good!
I made little rolls with the recipe (just so that it would be easy to freeze), and they came out super moist and delicious, both my husband and my son loved the bread and we all came to a consensus declaring that this was one of the best recipe for rolls that I have made. It was just perfect warm out of the oven with a little butter, good, really good!
Here I am again sneaking soy into the boys, sneaking yes, because I never mentioned the okara being in the bread, of course!
I am not sure I will make soy milk again (just because I really like the one I get at the store!), although I will definitely look for the ready okara at Asian markets in order to make more bread and try out more recipes with it, but this was definitely worth trying, the whole process, very fulfilling to my culinary enrichment. Learning new things is always good to me, especially when there is some cooking involved!
So here I leave you with Karen’s recipe for soymilk and Akemi’s recipe for the okara Bread. Thank you guys, both for leading me out to such good food experience!
Ana

Karen’s Soy Milk
300 grams soybeans
About 3 liters water

Soak the beans in water overnight; they will soften and get swollen.
On the next day put 1 liter of water in a big pan and bring it to a boil.
While the water comes to the boil, process the soybeans in a blender, adding the water that it was soaked as necessary.
Add the processed soybean mixture to the boiling water and cook over medium-high heat, stirring frequently so that it does not stick to the bottom of the pan. When the mixture reaches the boil, turn of the heat and let it cool down in the pan. After cooled, strain the milk using either cheesecloth or a very fine sieve. The liquid is your Soymilk, and the residue left in the cloth (or sieve) is the okara.










Akemi’s Oakara Bread

For the sponge: In a large bowl combine together 10 grams dry yeast, 3 tablespoons sugar, and 1 cup warm water (100 to 110 F). Let stand for 15 minutes.

¼ cup oil
3 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon salt
2 cups okara
3 to 4 cups flour

Add oil, sugar, salt and okara to the sponge after it bloomed. Mix well together and then start adding flour to the mixture, ½ cup at a time, until you get a smooth dough that doesn’t stick to your hands (you may or may not need all the flour). Put the dough on a bowl, cover with plastic and let it rise until doubled in size, about 1 hour.
Shape dough into desired shape, place it on greased baking sheet and let it rise for 20 more minutes. Bake bread at 350F for 20 to 30 minutes, depending on size of your bread.
Note: I baked mine in muffin tins and it took 20 minutes total. Also, the recipe did not say anything, but I brushed my rolls with egg wash before baking.

Here is the "okara"

Pizza Dough

The boys love pizza here but, with a few exceptions of a couple of good pizza places, we much prefer our pizza being homemade. Plus, half of the fun of pizza is making it, right?! Yes, we enjoy the whole process at our home, making the dough, stretching it and then adding our favorite sauces and toppings, which Matheus especially likes when we make individual pizzas and he can make his own creations!
I love homemade pizza dough because I can roll it thin, bake in the pizza stone, and get nice and crispy crust on my pizza, which I mostly like topped with fresh mozzarella, tomatoes and basil, just like the one pictured above.
However, sometimes we get adventures and make some different pizzas, as is the case with the one in the photo below, made with caramelized onions and bits of goat cheese, one word to describe it: yum!
Pizza dough is pretty simple and easy to make, and the possibility of being made in advance and keep refrigerated (or even frozen for a few days) is just an added bonus.
And after I got the recipe for Whole-Wheat Pizza Dough from the Eating Well magazine, never went back to the plain white flour one. This dough has a nice balance of both flours, which keep the dough nice and stretchy and flavorful at the same time. We all like it here, and to tell the truth, nobody has noticed the difference since I started using this recipe, so it must be a good one!
The only thing I do differently is that I make the dough by hand, as I don’t own a food processor (yet!). But if you do, then go ahead and use it, after all, technology certainly makes life easier!
A nice and healthier alternative to the beloved cheesy snack! Enjoy!
Ana

Whole Wheat Pizza Dough (adapted from Eating Well)
3/4 cup whole-wheat flour
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 package quick-rising yeast (2 1/4 teaspoons), such as Fleischmann's RapidRise
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon sugar
1/2-2/3 cup hot water (120-130°F)
2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil

Combine whole-wheat flour, all-purpose flour, yeast, salt and sugar in a food processor; pulse to mix. Combine hot water and oil in a measuring cup. With the motor running, gradually pour in enough of the hot liquid until the mixture forms a sticky ball. The dough should be quite soft. If it seems dry, add 1 to 2 tablespoons warm water; if too sticky, add 1 to 2 tablespoons flour. Process until the dough forms a ball, then process for 1 minute to knead.
Transfer the dough to a lightly floured surface. Coat a sheet of plastic wrap with cooking spray and place it, sprayed-side down, over the dough. Let the dough rest for 10 to 20 minutes before rolling.
- To make ahead: The dough will keep, in a plastic bag coated with cooking spray, in the refrigerator for up to 2 days. Bring to room temperature before using.

Zucchini Bread

Keeping with the theme of quick breads, this weekend I made another one of my favorites, Zucchini Bread! Don’t let the presence of zucchini in the dough prevent you from making this bread/cake. You will not be able to tell the zucchini is there, and it lends so much moisture to the loaf, it is impressive how delicious this is!
We all enjoy this a lot at our home, sometimes it is even preferred over the beloved banana bread! (yes, once I made one of each and the zucchini bread didn’t survive until the next day…).
Try it and I am pretty sure you will like it too!! I like to make it the way it is, the two things I changed from the recipe I got from a friend was to reduce the sugar a little and use half whole-eat, half all-purpose flour (instead of all white). And I have also made it with ¼ cup oil and ¼ cup of either yogurt or applesauce (instead of the 1/2 cup oil) and it works super well, not altering much the texture of the bread.
It can be made into either normal or mini loaf pans, or how we like it best here, in muffin tins. This time I made in both, and believe it or not, the muffins got eaten and the loaf is still there… there is something about muffins that we really love around here!
Super easy, very delicious bread, perfect to eat in the afternoon or for breakfast with a nice glass of milk and a piece of fruit.
Enjoy!
Ana

Zucchini Bread
¾ cups all purpose flour
¾ cups whole-wheat flour
1 large egg
½ cup sugar
½ cup oil
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon cinnamon
½ teaspoon baking soda
¼ teaspoon baking powder
1 cup grated zucchini
¼ teaspoon salt
½ cup chopped walnuts (optional)

Mix together egg, sugar, oil and vanilla. Add rest of ingredients and mix until well incorporated.
Pour batter into a loaf pan (8x4”). Bake on a pre-heated oven at 350F for about 1 hour.
Notes: If made in mini loaf pans it will be done in about 40 minutes. For muffins, about 30 minutes
.

Cinnamon Rolls

Even though he had never tried it before, Matheus asked me to make Cinnamon Rolls. He saw it a couple weeks ago in a stand at a hockey game and simply got curious to know how they tasted. He asked if I could make some for him and so we did over the weekend. (Oh yes he helped, and we had lots of fun!! Not to mention a “flour-covered kitchen”! Hehe!!)
I chose a recipe that was easy to make and also very convenient, as we made it Friday night and let it rise in the fridge overnight. Saturday we woke up and just popped them into the oven, after 22 minutes the house smelled wonderful and we had a very yummy and comforting breakfast! Matheus simply loved the rolls!
It was definitely a nice way to start my birthday!
Ana

Overnight Cinnamon Rolls (adapted from allrecipes.com)
1 cup milk
1/3 cup butter
1 (.25 ounce) package active dry yeast
1/2 cup white sugar
1 cup whole wheat flour
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
3 eggs

Filling
3/4 cup brown sugar
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
1 tablespoon melted butter

Heat the milk in a small saucepan until it bubbles, remove from heat, add the butter and stir until melted; let cool until warm.
In a large mixing bowl, dissolve the yeast in the milk mixture. Add the sugar, the whole-wheat flour, 2 cups of the all-purpose flour, salt and eggs; stir well to combine. Add the remaining all-purpose flour, 1/2 cup at a time, stirring well after each addition. When the dough has pulled together, turn it out onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth and supple, about 8 minutes.
Lightly oil a large mixing, place the dough in the bowl and turn to coat with oil. Cover with a damp cloth and let rise in a warm place until doubled in volume, about 1 hour.
Deflate the dough and turn it out onto a lightly floured surface and roll into a 10x 14 inch rectangle. Lightly brush the dough with melted butter. In a small bowl combine the cinnamon and 3/4 cup brown sugar and sprinkle over the rectangle. Roll up the dough into a log and seal the seam.
Cut the dough into 12 equal pieces; place the pieces in a greased 9x13 inch baking pan, or 12 inch deep dish pizza pan. Cover with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator to rise overnight.
The next morning, preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Take the rolls out of the refrigerator and let stand at room temperature for 30 minutes.
Bake the rolls for 25 minutes or until golden, serve warm.

Brazilian or not, these are good!

Today I decided to make some sort of Brazilian savory treats (which I actually believe are not very Brazilian, but anyways…). Very popular in Brazil, Esfihas are sort of a snack that you can find in many places, but mostly at small cafes and eateries in the street. Traditionally these savory pastries are filled with a mixture of ground beef, onions, tomatoes and spices, but nowadays you can find them with different fillings, including chicken, ricotta cheese, and even a type of sausage called calabresa.
I was never very fond of these snacks back in my childhood because the beef version was never very appealing to me, however, a brilliant “esfiha guy” in Tiete had the idea of making them with chicken and then I started to get interested on them.
There are some Mediterranean versions of esfihas that are actually opened, but this version is closed in a triangular shape. The dough is very easy to work with, and not complicated at all to make. The trick here is how to shape them. I took some pictures during the process in an attempt to show how I made them, which is not difficult, but is hard to explain in writing!
First I roll the dough, cut it into circles, and then I put some filling in the middle and close it like a triangle, pressing two sides first and then closing with the third part… see, that is why I took pictures! It is hard to try explaining it, I don’t even know how to write the method!
You can make them as big or small as you want! For my son’s birthdays I used to make them small and would get around 70 from one batch. If you make them bigger, as I did today, you may get about 20.
These freeze beautifully, and are a great snack to have when that “craving for something salty” hits you. Just let them cool, put in a zip bag and stash in the freezer. Whe ready to eat a minute in the microwave will be enough to defrost and warm it up for you.
In the place we get them in Tiete, their chicken esfihas also have a little bit of “catupiry” inside, a type of delicious and creamy cheese that unfortunately I can’t find here. So, to make up for it I sometimes use either cream cheese or pieces of those laughing cow triangles (creamy Swiss cheese thing), and a little dab will do here, don’t put too much or they will explode and you will have opened esfihas.
When we first moved here to the US I wanted to find the perfect recipe for esfihas, and I quickly found it with this one! These are great, easy, simple, and the end result is very good. It is so similar to the real thing we find in Brazil that friends have told me to start a business with my esfihas. Well, maybe someday I will!
Until then I will keep experimenting here in my kitchen space and showing my lovely (and sometimes not so pretty) results with you!
I also made a desert today, but I will post it tomorrow, since we have not tried it yet… wait and see!

Ana

The shapping process...
Rolled dough into a circle, filling in the middle









Close the uper portion of the dough, starting to form a triangle...









Close the part that is left and voila, nice triangular esfiha!









Egg wash 'em and into the oven they go!

“Esfihas”
600 grams flour (or more, as needed)
28 g dry yeast (4 packages)
150 ml canola oil
300 ml warm milk
3 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon salt
3 eggs, separated

To prepare dough: in bowl dissolve yeast in warm milk, let stand 5 minutes. Add sugar, salt, oil and egg whites (reserve the yolks for later use) and mix well. Add 2 cups flour and mix, keep adding flour ½ cup at a time until dough is not too stick and get off your hands (there is no need to knead the dough for too long, just until it comes together and is nice and smooth). Put dough in a bowl coated with cooking spray and let it rise for an hour or until doubled in volume.
Roll dough, cut into circles and assemble the “esfihas” using your favorite filling. Put them seam side down into a baking sheet coated with cooking spray, brush with egg wash (slightly beat the yolks and a tablespoon of milk) and bake for about 18 minutes in a 375F pre-heated oven. (Baking time will depend on size of the “esfihas”).

Traditional meat filling:
500 grams ground beef
1 finely chopped onion
2 small tomatoes, finely chopped (let it sit over a colander to drain some of the liquid before using)
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
Salt and pepper to taste
Mix all ingredients together in a bowl. (this filling is used raw, but don’t worry, it will cook in the oven!)

My chicken filling: Actually I don’t have measurements… sorry!
First, poach some chicken (or use leftover rotisserie chicken) and shred it, reserve.
Then, in a skillet I sauté some onions and garlic; add about ½ cup tomato sauce (or pasta sauce), the shredded chicken, salt and pepper to taste and some seasonings (basil, oregano, parsley). Taste and adjust seasonings as you go. If the mixture seems too watery I add a tablespoon or two of flour just so that it thickens a bit.

Pretzels!

The recipe I am posting today is from the October issue of Cooking Light (my favorite issue this year so far!). Matheus loves those soft and yummy pretzels they sell in the Mall, so when I saw the recipe in the magazine I knew we would try it!
This recipe for Pretzels is very easy to make, the only extra thing here (that some recipes does not ask for) is that you need to quickly cook boil the pretzel in a solution of water and baking soda before you bake them.
The first time we made it I followed the recipe exactly and got great results, the pretzels were very nice and had that distinctive pretzel flavor, which I actually associate to the crispy ones we but at the grocery stores (as opposed to the soft ones at the mall). The second time we made it I decided to bake 2 of the pretzels without the water bath… well, let me tell you, if you are going to make the pretzels go ahead and do the extra step, it is well worth it! The pretzels without the bath came out dry and without much flavor.
Next time I am going to try making some of them sweet, with cinnamon sugar on top instead of the salt. I wanted to do this but Matheus was in charge of sprinkling the salt on top and did not let me the try the sugar variantion.
Another thing, the recipe says 12 pretzels, but they are a lot smaller than the ones from the mall (about half of it I would say...).
Very easy and fun to make, Matheus loved making long snakes with the dough, definitely a nice project to do with kids!
Enjoy!

Ana

Soft Pretzels
1 package dry yeast (about 2 1/4 teaspoons)
1 1/2 teaspoons sugar
1 cup warm water (100° to 110°)
3 1/4 cups all-purpose flour, divided (about 14 1/2 ounces)
1 teaspoon salt
Cooking spray
6 cups water
2 tablespoons baking soda
1 teaspoon cornmeal
1 teaspoon water
1 large egg
2 teaspoons kosher salt

Dissolve yeast and sugar in warm water in a large bowl, and let stand for 5 minutes.
Lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Add 3 cups flour and 1 teaspoon salt to yeast mixture; stir until a soft dough forms. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface; knead until smooth and elastic (about 8 minutes). Add enough of remaining flour, 1 tablespoon at a time, to prevent dough from sticking to hands (dough will feel slightly sticky).
Place dough in a large bowl coated with cooking spray, turning to coat top. Cover and let rise in a warm place (85°), free from drafts, 40 minutes or until doubled in size. (Gently press two fingers into dough. If indentation remains, the dough has risen enough.) Punch dough down; cover and let rest 5 minutes.
Preheat oven to 425°.
Divide dough into 12 equal portions. Working with one portion at a time (cover remaining dough to prevent drying), roll each portion into an 18-inch-long rope with tapered ends. Cross one end of rope over the other to form a circle, leaving about 4 inches at end of each rope. Twist the rope at the base of the circle. Fold the ends over the circle and into a traditional pretzel shape, pinching gently to seal. Place pretzels on a baking sheet lightly coated with cooking spray. Cover and let rise 10 minutes (pretzels will rise only slightly).
Combine 6 cups water and baking soda in a non-aluminum Dutch oven. Bring to a boil; reduce heat, and simmer. Gently lower 1 pretzel into simmering water mixture; cook 15 seconds. Turn pretzel with a slotted spatula; cook an additional 15 seconds. Transfer pretzel to a wire rack coated with cooking spray. Repeat procedure with remaining pretzels.
Place pretzels on a baking sheet sprinkled with cornmeal. Combine 1 teaspoon water and egg in a small bowl, stirring with a fork until smooth. Brush a thin layer of egg mixture over pretzels; sprinkle with kosher salt. Bake at 425° for 12 minutes or until pretzels are deep golden brown. Transfer to a wire rack to cool.
Yield: 12 servings
Cooking Light – October 2005