Bread – Brenda Nolen

Sourdough Starter and Bread

April 7, 2020September 23, 2021 brendanolen

This all began when I read an article (which I can’t find any longer … I wish I could because it was fascinating) in which a chef stated that refrigerated old, neglected sourdough started was completely dead, so reviving it (bringing it to room temperature, then adding flour and water) was no better than starting from scratch.

So, I pulled out my 3+ year-old ignored-in-the-refrigerator starter and got busy. Then, I realized others may not have leftover starter, so I showed you how to make fresh sourdough starter, also.

Now, I had to show how to make bread! The problem was I obviously hadn’t made sourdough anything for over 3 years and it shows in the following video. I did (after failing miserably) end up making edible bread and now I need to make more! Hopefully my next loaves will be prettier. 🙂

I have this THIS POST with a ton of recipes but I just wanted to point you to King Arthur Flour. They have some fantastic recipes (and not just sourdough).

The recipe I used in this video is Extra Tangy Sourdough Bread from King Arthur Flour. I will include the ingredients below but for how to make it, please watch my video above (or go to their website).

I hope you learn to love playing with your food as much as I do!

Level 1, Levels 2 And Above, Recipe

Chortillas! (Cheese Tortillas)

January 30, 2020September 23, 2021 brendanolen

I adapted this from the Fat Head pizza crust recipe here: https://www.fathead-movie.com/index.php/2013/06/30/weekend-bonus-the-older-brothers-oldest-sons-faux-carb-pizza/.

Here we have two types of Chortillas:

one with mozzarella and yellow corn meal and
the second is cheddar cheese, Monterey jack cheese, and almond flour.

I had a lot of fun making these. The only special equipment you will need is parchment paper. Almond flour is available almost anywhere, which is truly amazing. When I started this website, it was so rare (and if you found anything, it was usually almond meal).
I hope you enjoy these! I am especially proud of these! As a bonus, I cut them up and baked them at 350 degrees F for about 10 minutes and made chips! They are sturdy enough to handle any salsa, guacamole, and MAYBE bean dip (not sure about that one).

Ingredients

1 1/2 cup mozzarella cheese, grated (or 1 1/2 cup sharp cheddar/jack blend, grated)
1 1/2 ounce cream cheese
1/4 cup yellow corn meal (or almond meal)
1 large egg

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Cut 12-24 pieces of parchment paper to roughly 5 inch squares. Place grated cheese and cream cheese in a microwave safe bowl.

Microwave 1 minute, stir, then microwave 1 minute. Let the cheese mixture cool slightly, then pour the corn meal over the top, followed by the egg. Carefully mix (it will slosh around) until it looks like a cohesive dough.

On a flat surface (not a tile countertop), drop dough by Tablespoons (or use a Tablespoon cookie scoop) on 1 piece of cut parchment paper. Place a second piece of parchment paper on top of batter and gently flatten with your fingers. Take a flat plate, pie pan, or board and gently press down to flatten the dough. Don’t use all of your strength! You don’t want the edges too thin.

Place the parchment paper dough package on a cookie sheet (you can try to gently peel off the top piece of parchment paper so you can reuse that but it’s not necessary) and keep going. Once your sheet is filled, place in pre-heated oven for roughly 9 minutes, until there are a few brown spots. Let cool and place in a Ziploc bag to store in the refrigerator.

To serve, just heat them on a pre-heated skillet, on medium heat, just until warm.

Nutrition information: For 1 Corn Chortilla: 71 Cal; 4 g Protein; 5 g Tot Fat; 3 g Carb; 0 g Fiber For 1 Cheddar Chortilla: 84 Cal; 4 g Protein; 7 g Tot Fat; 1 g Carb; 0 g Fiber

Bread, Food Storage, Recipe

Sprouted Grain Bread

January 24, 2020September 23, 2021 brendanolen

Since the sprouted grain flour is more like whole wheat flour (make sure you watch that video here: Sprouted Grain Flour), that’s the recipe I ended up using. I tried one written for all purposed flour and it did not work at all! This video is almost the entire process, including hand kneading, but in the description I included a link so you can fast forward past my kneading (and rambling).

Basic Whole Wheat Bread

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Notes

Basic Whole Wheat Bread
from NutriMill

Small Batch (2 loaves)

2 cups warm water
1/4 cup oil (vegetable or olive or whatever)
1/4 cup honey
2 t. salt
2 t. dough enhancer (optional and did not use)
2 t. vital wheat gluten (did not use)
5-6 cups whole wheat flour – milled medium
1 T. SAF instant yeast

Large Batch (6 loaves)

6 cups warm water
2/3 cup oil
2/3 cup honey
2 T. salt
2 T. dough enhancer (optional)
2 T. vital wheat gluten
14 – 18 cups whole wheat flour – milled medium
2 T. SAF instant yeast

By hand instructions:

In a large bowl, add the first 6 ingredients, about half of the flour, and the yeast. Mix for about one minute.

Optional step (I did this): for enhanced flavor and texture, allow the batter to sit for 15-30 minutes until it becomes bubbly.

Mix in the rest of the flour, a little at a time (about 1/2 cup at a time) until the dough pulls away from the sides and bottom of the bowl. You may not need all of the flour. On a lightly floured surface, place the dough and begin kneading in the rest of the flour until the dough is smooth and elastic. Divide the dough into equal portions. Shape into loaves and place in greased loaf pans. Cover and let rise until doubled (about 1 hour). Bake at 350 degrees F 30-40 minutes (or until the internal temperature reaches 190 degrees F).

Mixer instructions:

In BOSCH mixing bowl with dough hook and dough hook extender in place, add forst 6 ingredients, about half of the flour, and the yeast. Mix on speed 3 for about one minute.

Optional step (I did this): for enhanced flavor and texture, allow the batter to sit for 15-30 minutes until it becomes bubbly.

Increase to speed 2. Continue adding remaining flour, a little at a time, until dough pulls away from the sides and bottom of the bowl. You may no need all of the flour. Knead on speed 2 for 6-8 minutes, until dough is smooth and elastic. Lightly oil your hands and counter. Divide the dough into equal portions. Shape into loaves and place in greased loaf pans. Cover and let rise until doubled (about 1 hour). Bake at 350 degrees F 30-40 minutes (or until the internal temperature reaches 190 degrees F).

Food Storage, Recipe

Sprouted Grain Flour!

January 23, 2020September 23, 2021 brendanolen

So, I randomly decided to try my hand at sprouted grain flour. I went to the bulk bins at Winco and see what I could find. They didn’t really have as many whole grains as I wanted, so I bought some barley, red Winter wheat, white wheat, and some raw sunflower seeds. I am going to say this right now: do not try to sprout shelled raw sunflower seeds! They got slimy, stinky, and NEVER really dried out.

In a quart jar, I put one cup of each, put my sprouting lids on the jars, rinsed, then filled them with water and let them soak overnight. I then drained out the liquid, rinsed them, and stored them upside down. Rinse and drain twice per day until the grains are sprouted as much as you want them to be.

Here are the sprouting lids I am using:

[UPGRADED] Aozita 6 Pack Plastic Sprouting Lids for Wide Mouth Mason Jars – Sprouting Jar Strainer Lid for Canning Jars – Sprouting Screen for Broccoli, Alfalfa, etc. by Aozita

Then, to dry them, I put parchment paper onto rimmed baking sheets, spread the grains out, and put these baking sheets in the over with only the light on. That produced enough heat to ensure the air was warm and dry enough to dehydrate the grains. Then, for about 48 hours, I stirred the grains around. The ones toward the outside of the baking sheets dry faster. Once they were completely dry, I put them in jars.

I tried to grind them into flour with my food processor first but all the grains did was spin around, so I tried my blender. That did a pretty good job! I first pulsed the grains on the “crush ice” setting, then just blended them on the lowest setting for 5 minutes. I had to strain it because the blender didn’t grind all of the grains and I didn’t want it chunky. It was at this point that I killed my blender. I ran it for 10 minutes and it overheated so bad that it wouldn’t start again.

I went looking on Amazon and almost bought these:

Roots & Branches VKP1024 Deluxe Grain Mill, small, Silver by Amazon.com

Roots & Branches VKP1024-M2 Deluxe VKP1024 grain mill motor, small, black by BuyBoxer

BUT I ended up buying this one:

NutriMill Plus High-Speed Grain/Flour Mill by Nutrimill

I love this mill! I am so happy I went with this instead of a hand crank mill because I know how strenuous it can be to use my hand meat grinder. I can’t imagine how much more tiring it would be using a hand operated grain mill! I ran the grain through twice and BAM! I had really nice flour!

If you make too much flour, just store it in an air-tight container (if you won’t be using it again for a while, store it in the freezer). That’s it! We made flour! My next video is how to turn this into bread. 🙂

1972 Recipes, Appetizers, Breakfast, Dinner, Level 1, Levels 2 And Above, Lunch, Recipe

Diet Revolution Rolls

March 12, 2015September 23, 2021 brendanolen

Diet Revolution Rolls (aka Oopsie rolls or Cloud Bread)
There are tons of variations of this recipe out there (and I have tried quite a few, including substituting avocado for the cottage cheese) but this one is the best! These are not excessively moist, do not collapse to nothing (they do collapse when they cool but not nearly as bad as other recipes), and they have a great texture.
Makes 6 Rolls (2 rolls per serving)

3 eggs separated
1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
3 Tablespoons cottage cheese (NOT low-fat)
1 package Sugar Twin (or 1/4 teaspoon sweetener of choice)
Pam spray (optional)

Preheat oven to 300 degrees F. Spray Pam on Teflon cookie sheet (or use ungreased parchment paper).
Separate eggs very carefully (make sure that none of the yolk gets into the whites). Beat egg whites with cream of tartar until whites are stiff but not dry.
Blend yolks, cottage cheese and Sugar Twin together until thoroughly incorporated. Fold yolk mixture into beaten egg whites (be extremely careful not to break down the egg whites). Mix for no more than a minute.
Place the mixture carefully on the teflon cookie sheet (parchment paper), gently putting one Tablespoon full on top of another until each “roll” is about 2 inches high (or use 1/3 cup ice cream scoop). Repeat this until you have 6 piles. Rolls should resemble delicatessen rolls.
Place the cookie sheet in the oven and bake for about 1 hour. Let them cool before removing from the baking sheet (the will deflate a bit).
Do not slice to use for a sandwich (they are not thick enough).
One roll=one slice of bread
Per Roll: 39 Cal (56% from Fat, 38% from Protein, 6% from Carb); 4 g Protein; 2 g Tot Fat; 1 g Carb; 0 g Fiber; 0 g Sugar
Caraway Rolls

Mix 1 Tablespoon of caraway seed into yolk mixture.

Per Roll: 40 Cal (56% from Fat, 38% from Protein, 7% from Carb); 4 g Protein; 2 g Tot Fat; 1 g Carb; 0 g Fiber; 0 g Sugar
Onion Rolls

2 Tablespoons minced onion
1 Tablespoon butter

In a small frying pan on medium heat, sautee 2 Tablespoons Onion in 1 Tablespoon melted butter until they are almost brown. Let cool, then mix into yolk mixture.
Per Roll: 58 Cal (68% from Fat, 26% from Protein, 6% from Carb); 4 g Protein; 4 g Tot Fat; 1 g Carb; 0 g Fiber; 0 g Sugar
Serving examples:

Bread Crumbs

One entire batch of Diet Revolution Rolls (without sweetener or salt, if you plan on using either in the bread crumbs)

Put the six cooked (and cooled) rolls into a blender or food processor. Process until the rolls become fine crumbs. For drier crumbs, either let the rolls dry overnight before processing. Season according to your tastes/recipe and use in any recipe to replace traditional bread crumbs. When used as breading, this tastes like flour breading (not actual bread crumbs).
Total Grams: 3.1

Diet Revolution Bread

2 Tablespoons Soya Powder (if you have to buy this, here’s a non-affiliate link to what I bought: http://a.co/d/ggqvd01)
1 Tablespoon water

While making the Diet Revolution Rolls above, mix these ingredients in with the yolk/cottage cheese mixture. Let this sit for 15-20 minutes. This allows the soya powder to re-hydrate (and not become hard rocks in the bread). Proceed with the rest of the recipe above.
Originally from the Dr. Atkins’ Diet Revolution (1972), pages 225-227.

Dessert, Pumpkin, Recipe

Old-Fashioned Pumpkin Nut Loaf Bread

January 21, 2015September 22, 2021 brendanolen

I know this is a bit late (should have posted this around Thanksgiving when all the canned pumpkin was on sale) but this looks like the best Pumpkin Bread recipe out there (like on my mom’s friend used to make).

http://www.food.com/recipe/old-fashioned-pumpkin-nut-loaf-bread-184460

2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 (15 ounce) can pumpkin puree
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup fat-free evaporated milk
1 large egg 1 large egg white
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1/4 cup chopped nuts
Now, if you don’t have evaporated milk, here’s a substitute: To produce 1 cup of evaporated milk, simmer 2 1/4 cups of regular milk down until it becomes 1 cup. In many recipes, evaporated milk may also be replaced with a combination of whole milk and half-and-half. For 1 cup of evaporated milk, use 3/4 cup whole milk and 1/4 cup half-and-half. And: Mix 2/3 cup non-fat dry milk with 3/4 cup water.

Dinner, Recipe

Bread and Cheese “Meatballs”

January 10, 2015September 22, 2021 brendanolen

Wow! Meatballs without the meat and these actually sound (and look) good!

http://www.italianfoodforever.com/2013/06/bread-and-cheese-meatballs/

Ingredients:

Sauce:
3 Tablespoons Olive Oil
1 Small Onion, Peeled and Chopped
2 Garlic Cloves, Peeled and Minced
1 (26 Ounce Can Good Quality Chopped Tomatoes
1/4 Cup Chopped Fresh Basil
Sea Salt and Pepper
Red Hot Pepper Flakes (optional)

Bread And Cheese Balls:
8.5 Ounces Grated Hard Cheese (see note above)
7 Ounces Stale Bread, Crusts Removed
1 Garlic Clove, Peeled
5 Large Eggs
1/4 Cup Fresh Parsley Leaves
Pinch of Cracked Black Pepper
To Serve:
Grated Parmesan or Pecorino Cheese

Bread, Recipe

Navajo Fry Bread Sticks

December 29, 2010September 21, 2021 brendanolen

From the Phoenix Sun newspaper when I was living there in 1991:

Navajo Fry Bread Sticks

4 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 cup vegetable oil
Milk or water

Mix all ingredients, adding enough milk or water to moisten. Form into a dough, then pinch off pieces and roll into lengths. Bake 30 minutes at 375 degrees. These are light and soft, good with stew. Recipe also works for Navajo tortillas or fry bread. Fry bread may be topped with honey or confectioners’ sugar. Or layer with pintos, lettuce, tomatoes, onions, and green chilies for a Navajo taco.

Bread, Recipe

Ma’s Banana Nut Bread

December 28, 2010September 21, 2021 brendanolen

Ma’s Banana Nut Bread

My son requested this today. It’s the recipe my mom has been using forever. It’s from a set of Women’s Day cookbooks from the late 60’s? Anyway, thought you might enjoy (I’ve tried other recipes but still go back to this one).

Banana Nut Bread

Dry:

2 c. flour
1 t. baking soda
1/2 t. baking powder
1/2 t. salt
1/2 c. nuts

Wet:

1/2 c. oil
1 c. sugar
2 eggs
3 mashed (very ripe) bananas
3 T. milk
1/2 t. vanilla

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour 1 loaf pan. In a large bowl, mix the dry ingredients together. In a separate bowl, mix the wet ingredients. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and mix thoroughly. Pour into loaf pan. Bake for about 60 minutes (until a toothpick inserted comes out clean). Let cool for about 5 minutes then remove from pan. Try to let cool, though this never happens in my house.

I usually double the recipe because I actually have people give me bananas just to make them some of this bread.

Bread, Dip, French, Recipe, Roast Beef, Rolls

Bread Frenzy

September 2, 2008September 21, 2021 brendanolen

Well, it all started when one person (Tracy) posted some links. That’s all it took. Now, I am on a bread making binge!

Our all around favorite is Bretzel Rolls (made two batches just today). There is no corned beef or pastrami sandwich better than one on these rolls!

Bretzel Rolls

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Notes

http://theteacherlearnstocook.blogspot.com/2008/06/bretzel-rolls.html

(For step-by-step pictures, go to her page)

Bretzel Rolls (adapted from Recipezaar.com)
2 hours start to finish – Makes 8 sandwich size rolls

4 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons instant yeast (or 2 1/2 teaspoons active dry yeast which will need proofing)
1 1/3 cups warm water
2 tablespoons warm milk
2 tablespoons melted butter
1/3 cup light brown sugar
2 quarts of water
1/2 cup baking soda
kosher salt
spray oil (I really like this stuff, the high heat canola is great)

Mix the flour and yeast in the bowl of a standing mixer (or a large bowl)
Melt the butter and warm the milk
Combine the butter, milk, water, and brown sugar in a separate bowl and stir until the sugar is dissolved
Add the butter mixture to the flour and stir until all the flour is hydrated and you have a firm, pliable dough ball
Using the dough hook, knead the dough for 2 minutes, or if you’re kneading by hand, turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead for 2 minutes
Round the dough into a ball and cut it in half with a bench scraper or chef knife
Continue rounding and cutting 2 more times until you have 8 even dough balls
Arrange the balls on a lightly floured surface, cover with a damp cloth, and allow them to rest for 10 minutes
Pat the dough balls into rolls by slightly flattening them (you should have a semi-flat disc about3 to 4 inches in diameter)
Arrange the rolls on a lightly floured surface about 1 inch apart, cover them with lightly oiled plastic wrap, and allow them to rest for 30 minutes
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees, line one large 3/4 sheet pan, or two 1/2 sheets with parchment paper, spray the paper lightly with oil
In a large stockpot, bring the water to a rolling boil and add the baking soda (make sure the pot is deep enough that it doesn’t boil over when you add the baking soda, you may also want to add the baking soda slowly to lessen the chance of boil over)
Drop 2 rolls into the boiling water and boil for 30 seconds, turning once
Remove the rolls from the water with a slotted spoon, drain them, place them on the prepared sheet pans, and sprinkle lightly with salt
Once all the rolls have been boiled, bake on the upper and middle rack of the oven for 8 to 10 minutes, or until the rolls are nicely browned all over, shifting the pans from top to bottom and front to back halfway through cooking
Remove the rolls and transfer them to a wire rack
Serve warm or at room temperature

These I am making now because my husband came home from work wanting a French Dip sandwich and we did not think the Pretzel Rolls would be the same:

http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/French-Bread-Rolls-to-Die-For/Detail.aspx

French Bread Rolls to Die For

Submitted by: JOCATLIN

Rated: 5 out of 5 by 406 members
Prep Time: 20 Minutes
Ready In: 2 Hours 20 Minutes
Yields: 16 servings

“Simply delicious French bread rolls with a crisp crust and chewy texture.”

INGREDIENTS:

1 1/2 cups warm water (110 degrees F/45 degrees C)
1 tablespoon active dry yeast
2 tablespoons white sugar
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 teaspoon salt
4 cups bread flour

DIRECTIONS:

In a large bowl, stir together warm water, yeast, and sugar. Let stand until creamy, about 10 minutes.

To the yeast mixture, add the oil, salt, and 2 cups flour. Stir in the remaining flour, 1/2 cup at a time, until the dough has pulled away from the sides of the bowl. Turn out onto a lightly floured surface, and knead until smooth and elastic, about 8 minutes. Lightly oil a large bowl, place the dough in the bowl, and turn to coat. 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. Divide the dough into 16 equal pieces, and form into round balls. Place on lightly greased baking sheets at least 2 inches apart. Cover the rolls with a damp cloth, and let rise until doubled in volume, about 40 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).

Bake for 18 to 20 minutes in the preheated oven, or until golden brown.

With this Quick Au Jus:

http://sadieskitchen.blogspot.com/2008/07/au-jus-for-french-dip-sandwhiches.html

2 c water
1 TB beef bouillon granules
1/4 tsp pepper
1/4 ts crushed red pepper flakes
1/4 tsp garlic salt

In a large saucepan, combine the water, bouillon, pepper, garlic salt, and pepper flakes. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer uncovered for 15 – 20 minutes.

Though next time I will try making some from scratch.

HOMEMADE AU JUS

Makes about 3 cups (enough for 6 French dip sandwiches).

Note that the nutritional analysis for this recipe was done with 1/4 cup per serving. But you should actually serve 1/2 cup per person to make sure there’s enough to enrich every last bite of sandwich.

1/2 lb. beef stew meat or meaty beef scraps
1 tsp. salt, divided
1 tbsp. vegetable oil
1 c. finely diced onion
1 garlic clove, peeled and smashed
1 tsp. tomato paste
4 (14-oz.) cans lower-sodium beef broth (this was tested with Swanson brand)
1/2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
1 bay leaf

Directions
Season the stew meat with 1/4 teaspoon of salt.

Heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the stew meat and brown well on all sides. When the meat is well-browned, add the onion, reduce heat to low and cook until the onions are tender and beginning to caramelize around the edges, about 10 minutes.

Add the garlic clove and tomato paste and continue cooking for 5 minutes more. Add the beef broth, Worcestershire and bay leaf, cover and simmer for 20 minutes. Remove cover, increase heat to medium and simmer for another 25 minutes or until reduced to 3 cups.

Taste broth and add as much of the remaining salt as is necessary to give a deep salty-beefy flavor. Remove bay leaf and meat, and pour into cups. Serve with French Dip Sandwiches.

Nutrition information per cup serving:
Calories 22 Fat 1 g Sodium 250 mg
Carbohydrates 1 g Saturated fat 0 g Calcium 0 mg
Protein 1 g Dietary fiber 0 g