Bread – Check out the You Tube video by Jacques Pépin..amazing!

Could food really be this easy?

Pancakes with Wheat – Heather’s

1 C Flour
1 t Cream of Tartar*
½ t Baking Soda*
1 T White Sugar
½ t Salt
1 beaten Egg◘
1 C Milk
2 T Oil
1 T Cinnamon
1 t Buttermilk Powder (testing on 23 Dec 09)

1. Mix dry ingredients.
2. Mix we ingredients.
3. Mix dry and wet ingredients together. Add more milk if too thick.
4. Cook on stove over medium heat. Cook on West Bend Fryer at 350F.

Banana Pancakes
Prepare as above except omit cinnamon, reduce milk and add:
½ C Milk
1 Banana, mashed
¼ t Nutmeg

Apple Pancakes
Prepare as above except, reduce milk and add:
¾ C Milk
1 Apple (Gala), chopped

*Substitute for 2 t Baking Powder

◘ Substitute for 1 Egg:
1 ½ t Ener G Egg Replacer
2 T Water

Cooking Temperatures
G&G Electric Pan at 300F.
G&G Stove low.
West Bend Fryer 350F

White Buttermilk Bread with Julia Child

2 ½ t (teaspoon) Yeast – Instant
1 t Salt
3 C Flour
1 T Butter
3 T Dried Buttermilk
3 T Maple Syrup / Honey / Molasses (optional?)
1 C Room temperature water

· She used her hand to butter the pan.
· Once shaped, can rise overnight in the refrgerator in the pan, covered with a cloth.
· Takes about 20 minutes to 1 hour to rise in kitchen (I found it took much longer)
· When frozen, place in oven while cold and bake for 25? Minutes at 375F?
· When putting loaf in pan, butter pan with hands and then rub formed dough with butter from hands and then cover with cloth.
· Once formed, freeze in pan.
· Egg glaze: 1 egg missed with ½ C heavy Cream. Top rolls with egg glaze and sprinkle with herbs. If glaze is used, then bread rolls do not need to be covered with cloth. Rise for 20 minutes (much longer) until double.
· Use 1 inch width and 10 inch length dough and tie into knots and freeze on baking sheets and use glaze with poppy seeds (left off). (This worked great!)
· Make bread sticks by twisting and place on pan – glaze and sprinkle with sesame seeds and let rise 20 minutes until double (rise takes longer and I didn’t find benefit of glaze).

Source:

http://www.wonderhowto.com/how-to/video/how-to-make-white-buttermilk-bread-with-a-bread-machine-2257/

Anise Cookies

I just got this recipe from my cousin and am baking it for the first time since I first baked it so loooooong ago. This will be a good recipe to try with non-wheat flours.

* 3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) butter, softened
* 1 cup granulated sugar
* 1 egg
* 3/4 teaspoon McCormick® Pure Anise Extract , divided (I used 1/2 teaspoon extract – which I think is too much, will probably try 1/4 teaspoon next time
* 1/8 teaspoon salt
* 2 cups flour
* 1 1/2 cups confectioners’ sugar (optional)
* 2 tablespoons water (optional)

1. Beat butter and granulated sugar in large bowl with electric mixer on medium speed until light and fluffy. Add egg, 1/2 teaspoon of the extract and salt; beat until well blended. Gradually beat in flour. Divide dough in half. Wrap each half in wax paper to form a cylinder about 9-inches long and 1 1/2-inches in diameter. Refrigerate 1 hour.
2. Preheat oven to 350°F. Cut dough into 1/4-inch slices. Place 1 inch apart on ungreased baking sheets.
3. Bake 12 minutes or until edges are lightly browned. Cool on baking sheets 1 minute. Remove to wire racks; cool completely.
4. Mix confectioners’ sugar, water and remaining 1/4 teaspoon extract until smooth. Drizzle over cooled cookies. Let stand until glaze is set.

Duncan Hines Lemon Supreme Pound Cake

I know I usually don’t use mixes but my Grandma used to make Duncan Hines cakes mixes and I still love them today.

Cake
1 package Duncan Hines Lemon Cake Mix (515 g)
1 package (4 serving size) Vanilla or Lemon Instant Pudding Mix
4 eggs
1 cup water
1/3 cup oil

Glaze
1 cup icing sugar
1 tablespoon milk or lemon juice

1. Preheat oven to 350F. Grease and flour 10-inch (3 L) tube pan.

2. For cake, combine cake mix, pudding mix, eggs, water and oil in large bowl. Beat at low spead with an electric mixer until moistened. Beat at medium speed for 2 minutes. Pour into pan. Bake at 350F for 50-60 minutes or until toothpick inserted in centre comes out clean. Cool in pan 25 minutes. Invert onto serving plate. Cool completely.

3. For glaze, combine icing sugar and milk or lemon juice in small bowl. Stir until smooth. Drizzle over cake.

Duncan Hines German Chocolate Cake

I know I usually don’t use mixes but my Grandma used to make Duncan Hines cakes mixes and I still love them today.

Serves 12

Cake
1 package Duncan Hines Swiss Choocolate Cake Mix
3 eggs
1 1/4 cups water
1/2 cup oil
1/2 cup chopped pecans

Frosting
2/3 cup granulated sugar
2/3 cup evaporated milk
2 egg yolks
1/3 cup butter
1 1/3 cup flaked coconut
1 cup chopped pecans
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1. Preheat oven to 350F. Grease and flour 9×13″ pan.

2. For cake, prepare cake mix following package directions for basic recipe. Stir in 1/2 cup pecans. Pour into pan. Bake at 350F for 35 to 40 minutes or until toothpick inserted to centre comes out clean. Cool completely.

3. For frosting, combine sugar, evaporated milk, egg yolks and butter in medium saucepan. Cook and stir on medium heat until mixture comes to a boil. Remove from heat. Add coconut, 1 cup pecans and vanilla extract. Stir until thick. Spread on top of cake.

Cocaine, Spices, Hormones Found in Drinking Water

National Geographic article that has huge implications for freshwater throughout the world as well as all life forms.

Check out National Geographic’s Freshwater web site.

Peanut Butter Cookies

I’m still looking a for nut butter that doesn’t that hasn’t been exposed to peanuts. I don’t like to buy anything online and I haven’t found anything local yet. I’ll keep looking. Substituted oil for the butter and they looked good, I can’t try them because I’m the one with the peanut allergy. My kids ate them but they preferred them with butter.

½ C Butter (or ¼ cup + 2 tablespoons canola oil)
½ C Peanut Butter
1 ¼ C All-Purpose Flour
½ C Sugar
½ C Packed Brown Sugar or ¼ C Honey
1 Egg
½ t Baking Soda
¼ t Cream of Tartar*
1/8 t Baking Soda*
½ t Vanilla

* Substitute for ½ t Baking Powder

In a mixing bowl beat margarine and peanut butter with an electric mixer on medium to high speed for 30 seconds. Add ½ cup of the flour, the sugars, egg, baking soda, baking powder, and vanilla. Beat till till thoroughly combined. Beat in remaining flour. If necessary, cover and chill dough till easy to handle.

Shape dough into 1-inch balls. If desired, roll in additional sugar. Place 2 inches apart on an ungreased cookie sheet. Flatten by crisscrossing with the tines of a fork.

Bake in a 375F oven for 7 to 9 minutes or till bottoms are lightly browned. Let rest on cookie sheet until cool and then move to wire rack. If you move them too soon after baking, the cookies will fall apart. Makes about 36.

Purple Ice Cream Scoop: Bake for 14 minutes.

Cotton Candy * ingredients

Hmmm, I finally found a plastic bag at our local movie theatre that listed the ingredients. I can’t tell you if the ingredients are the same everywhere but this will give you an idea of what goes into making it.

Sugar (Sucrose)
Artificial Color
Artificial Flavors. It contains:

A) Blue #1 – Boo Blue
B) Red #40 – Silly Nilly
C) Red #3 – Jolly Berry, Cherry Berry
D) Red #40 & Yellow #6 – O-Jay
E) Blue #1 & Red #3 – Spookie Fruiti
F) Blue #1, Red #3 & Yellow #8 – Bubble Gum, Wacky Watermelon
G) Blue #1, Yellow #5 & Green #3 – Leapin’ Lime
H) yellow #5 – Pina Colada, Banana Bonanza
I) Yellow #5 & Blue #1 – Sassy Apple

* When using Gold Medal Ingredients

Flours, Everything You Needed To Know +More

Living Without article