If you are like me, you like bread. No, let me rephrase. You
love bread. All bread in all its forms. And if you're like me, homemade breads ring your bell. Well, the only problem with that is that homemade bread takes a lot of work. Or it did, until this recipe came along! (If you want to see the original,
go here.)
Ingredients: 3 cups lukewarm water, 1-1/2 tablespoons granulated fast acting yeast (2 packets), 1-1/2 tablespoons kosher or other coarse salt, 6-1/2 cups unsifted, unbleached all purpose white flour
Directions:
Warm up the water to 100 degrees. Add yeast and salt to the water and put it in a 5 quart container that has a lid. Mix in the flour all at once. With a wooden spoon. It's done being mixed when everything is uniformly moist. The dough will be wet and loose and this should take like 90 seconds. Put the lid on the container but don't seal it. A tiny bit of air circulation will help the dough rise. Allow the mix to rise at room temperature until the dough begins to collapse, about 2 hours. If you let it rise longer it won't hurt the dough, so no worries. Then put the dough in the fridge for at least 3 hours or overnight. Put a piece of parchment paper down. Divide your dough into 1 pound pieces (about the size of a grapefruit). Your mix should make about 4 loaves. Gently stretch the surface of the dough around the bottom on all four sides, rotating the ball as you go. Put flour on your hands if it gets too sticky. The top of the dough should be smooth and tight. Put the dough on the parchment paper. Let the loaves rise for 30-40 minutes. Preheat a baking stone on the middle rack of the oven for at least 20 minutes at 450 degrees. Put a container on the bottom rack with water in it. This will help keep the dough moist and beautiful and amazing. (If you don't have a baking stone, you can use a baking sheet, but you will not get the crisp crust on the bottom. You will still have a great loaf of bread.) Dust the loaf with a little flour and slit the top of the loaves with a knife. This helps the loaves "bloom" in the oven. Bake at 450 F for about 30 - 35 minutes, depending on the size of your loaf. Make sure the crust is a deep golden brown. When you remove the loaf from the oven, you will hear it crackle for a while. In baking terms, this is called "sing" and it is exactly what you want. Allow the bread to cool for the best flavor and texture. It's tempting to eat it when it's warm, and that's fine, but the texture is better after the bread has cooled.
Store the remaining dough in the refrigerator in your lidded (with a hole punched in the top) container and use for up to 14 days. Every day your bread will improve in flavor. Cut off and shape more loaves as you need them. When your dough is gone, don't clean the container. Go ahead and mix another batch - the remaining bits of dough will contribute flavor to the next batch,
much like a sourdough starter does! Bread is best eaten the day it is baked. Leftover baked bread is best stored at room temperature, unwrapped. Simply place the cut side of the bread on plate or counter
. If your bread is gummy on the inside, try either increasing the amount of flour by 1/4 cup and/or increasing the baking time by 5-10 minutes.
Ingredients: 1 8 oz pkg softened cream cheese, 1 small container of sour cream, 1/2 c salsa (or to taste), 1 packet of taco seasoning, lettuce, cheese, tomato, olives
Are you rushing for your breadbox yet? (Yeah, I said breadbox. I own one, but I think, other than my grandma, I'm the only person on the planet to actually own a breadbox. Anyone wanna prove me wrong on that one?) You'll be on an all carb diet after you try this stuff.
Ingredients: 3 cups lukewarm water, 1-1/2 tablespoons granulated fast acting yeast (2 packets), 1-1/2 tablespoons kosher or other coarse salt, 6-1/2 cups unsifted, unbleached all purpose white flour
Directions: Warm up the water to 100 degrees. Add yeast and salt to the water and put it in a 5 quart container that has a lid. Mix in the flour all at once. With a wooden spoon. It's done being mixed when everything is uniformly moist. The dough will be wet and loose and this should take like 90 seconds. Put the lid on the container but don't seal it. A tiny bit of air circulation will help the dough rise. Allow the mix to rise at room temperature until the dough begins to collapse, about 2 hours. If you let it rise longer it won't hurt the dough, so no worries. Then put the dough in the fridge for at least 3 hours or overnight. Put a piece of parchment paper down. Divide your dough into 1 pound pieces (about the size of a grapefruit). Your mix should make about 4 loaves. Gently stretch the surface of the dough around the bottom on all four sides, rotating the ball as you go. Put flour on your hands if it gets too sticky. The top of the dough should be smooth and tight. Put the dough on the parchment paper. Let the loaves rise for 30-40 minutes. Preheat a baking stone on the middle rack of the oven for at least 20 minutes at 450 degrees. Put a container on the bottom rack with water in it. This will help keep the dough moist and beautiful and amazing. (If you don't have a baking stone, you can use a baking sheet, but you will not get the crisp crust on the bottom. You will still have a great loaf of bread.) Dust the loaf with a little flour and slit the top of the loaves with a knife. This helps the loaves "bloom" in the oven. Bake at 450 F for about 30 - 35 minutes, depending on the size of your loaf. Make sure the crust is a deep golden brown. When you remove the loaf from the oven, you will hear it crackle for a while. In baking terms, this is called "sing" and it is exactly what you want. Allow the bread to cool for the best flavor and texture. It's tempting to eat it when it's warm, and that's fine, but the texture is better after the bread has cooled. Store the remaining dough in the refrigerator in your lidded (with a hole punched in the top) container and use for up to 14 days. Every day your bread will improve in flavor. Cut off and shape more loaves as you need them. When your dough is gone, don't clean the container. Go ahead and mix another batch - the remaining bits of dough will contribute flavor to the next batch, much like a sourdough starter does! Bread is best eaten the day it is baked. Leftover baked bread is best stored at room temperature, unwrapped. Simply place the cut side of the bread on plate or counter. If your bread is gummy on the inside, try either increasing the amount of flour by 1/4 cup and/or increasing the baking time by 5-10 minutes.
Ingredients: boneless pork shoulder roast, about 2 1/2 to 3 pounds, 1 cup chopped onion, 1 bottle (12 ounces) barbecue sauce, your favorite, 3 to 4 tablespoons honey, or to taste, pickles, sandwich rolls
Ingredients: 1 3/4 cups graham cracker crumbs, 5 tablespoons melted butter, 3 (8 ounce) packages softened cream cheese, 1 cup sugar, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, 6 tablespoons key lime juice, 3 eggs, 2 tablespoons sour cream
Directions: Leave the cream cheese and eggs on the counter overnight to come to room temperature. Trust me, this is a key step. Room temp is essential.
Isn't it pretty? And I promise it tastes just as good as it looks.
Good Housekeeping's pizza crust recipe
For anyone who doesn't know how to do them, I'm going to tell you the easiest way to do them. Put some chocolate chips in a microwave safe bowl or cup. Nuke at 30 second intervals, stirring between each. When melted, dip your washed and dried berries. Place on wax paper to harden. It works best if the wax paper and whatever you line with the paper has been in the freezer - the cold will help it harden. If you want to drizzle with contrasting chocolate, just put some of the melted stuff in a Ziploc, snip the very corner, and drizzle away. Let harden, and enjoy!
I baked a plain 'ole cake. Then, I used granola bars to criss-cross the cake, as if it was a road. I iced both sides of the cake. and covered the left side with coconut. (I dyed it green by putting it in a Tupperware container with a bit of food coloring and shaking it.)
For the car, I took a Twinkie and cut a piece of the front to make it look like the front of a car. I did the same with a much smaller piece on the back. I dipped this in chocolate and put it in the freezer until it hardened.
I used icing for the windows and purple Froot Loops for the tires. I stuck it on the gravel road with icing and then iced a dotted line along the path.
