From the Kitchen

The Everyday Bread

This is a great bread recipe for everyday use. Great even for sandwiches. This recipe makes two large loafs. You can also add in any leftover oatmeal or any other flour you like, such as spelt or oat flour. Add some cinnamon/sugar/raisins for a nice breakfasty bread or Italian herbs/garlic powder for a yummy savory bread.

First Step: mix the following together in a plastic bowl using a wooden or plastic spoon. Let them mingle and get all foamy. If it's not foamy, you either have a bad packet of yeast or your water is too hot or not hot enough.
  • 1 packet yeast
  • 1/2 cup warm water
  • 3 tbsp. sugar
  • 3 tbsp. all purpose flour

Second step: in a large bowl, mix together yeast bowl with-
  •  approximately 3 cups of flour, adding a little at a time
  • 1 cup of water
  • 3 tbsp. of olive oil. You can also use coconut oil or grapeseed oil. Whatever you prefer. 
  • 1/2 tbsp. salt
  • whatever leftover stuff you have, if any.
You might need to adjust the quantity of water and flour. You'll use a lot of flour when you knead the bread.

3) Knead the bread until your arms are about to fall off, about 10 minutes.
Place in large oiled bowl, cover with a damp cloth (not a heavy material), and let it rise in a warm place (80 degrees or so) for 30-45 minutes. It should double in size.

4) Uncover your bready creation. Punch it! Knead it for another 10 minutes. Split it in half and form it to the bottom of two oiled 9x5x3 loaf pans. I use glass pans. Cover and let it rise in a warm place for another 30-45 minutes. It should double in size again.

5) Bake on 325 until it's golden brown. I actually don't know how long it takes exactly. Probably about 45 mins.

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Spinach Cresent Rolls 

in effort to make my midwife happy, I'm striving to eat more greens and protein. Here's a yummy way to do it (thank you allrecipes.com for the great idea) John loved these too!

Ingredients:
1/2 cup sliced almonds (I used whole almonds which I ground in my Magic Bullet)
1 (10 oz.) pkg. of frozen spinach, thawed and drained (I used a bag of fresh, finely chopped)
 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup finely chopped onion
2 teaspoons olive oil
dash of salt, pepper, garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon basil (freshly chopped or dry)
1 (8 oz.) pkg cresent rolls

First, finely chop or grind your almonds. You can use a food processor or a magic bullet if you've got one. I personally despise food processors. Saute your onion, spinach, olive oil, and herbs/spices. Mix in your finely ground/chopped almonds and your Parmesan cheese. Roll out the cresent rolls and separate them. One by one, spread the mixture onto the rolls. Roll the up like normal and place on greased/non-stick baking pan. Bake at 350 for 15-18 minutes or until golden brown. 

You could also make a spinach log if you take the cresent rolls and pinched the separations together. Spread the mixture over the sheet of cresent rolls, roll it up like a log, cut them in 1-2 inch slices. Place them on their side to bake. 


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Cranberry-Orange Muffins


Ingredients


  • 1 cup milk
  • 1/4 cup vegetable oil
  • 2 tablespoons grated orange zest
  • 1 egg
  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1 cup whole wheat flour
  • 1/3 cup sugar
  • 3 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup fresh or frozen cranberries, chopped
 Heat oven to 400^F. Line muffin pan with paper cups or spray with non-stick spray. Beat milk, oil, orange zest, and egg in large bowl. Stir in flours, sugar, baking powder, and salt until it is moistened. It will still be lumpy. Fold in cranberries. Pour into cups (they will be full). Sprinkle with additional sugar if you want or we made Orange Glaze with OJ and confectioners sugar. Not too much OJ or it will be too runny. Bake 20-25 minutes or until golden brown. Immediately remove them from the pan. Makes 12 muffins.


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Shrimp N Grits
A Roseman family favorite


Ingredients:
2 cups raw shrimp (I usually buy them unpeeled) (yes, Michael is a bad Jew)
2 servings cooked Grits
1 can of corn (drained)
2 or 3 slices of bacon, chopped (save the grease! you only live once...)
1/4 cup milk
1/2 cup cheddar cheese
dash of cayenne pepper, italian herbs, salt & pepper


First, cook your grits and boil yo' skrimps. Run them under cold water and commence to peel the skrimps. Set all this aside and get started cooking the bacon until they are crispy. Add the corn, milk, and seasonings. Let it cook for a minute or so, then add the grits, shrimp, and cheese. With spoon, stuff your face. :) 


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Roseman Summer Salad

I'll basically give you the ingredients... just mix em!
thinly diced cucumbers
diced tomatoes
manzanilla olives, halved
feta cheese
drizzle of olive oil and balsamic vinegar
fresh basil, minced
sea salt
freshly ground pepper
sprinkle of sugar

so easy and so yummy!

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Whole Wheat Zucchini Bread

I used a recipe I found on allrecipes.com and tweaked it to make it smaller and healthier. 

Ingredients 

  • 3 eggs, beaten
  • 3/4 cup agave nectar (or honey or brown sugar)
  • 1/4 cup canola oil
  • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 3 cups whole wheat flour
  • 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 2 cups grated zucchini
  • 1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Directions

  1. Preheat the oven to 350. My oven runs hot so I baked my bread on 300 
  2. Grease your loaf pan. This recipe makes either two small loafs or one big loaf, depending on the size of your loaf pan. 
  3. In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, agave nectar, oil and vanilla. Combine the whole wheat flour, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda and salt; stir into the wet ingredients until moistened. Gently stir in the zucchini and walnuts until evenly distributed. 
  4. Bake for 50 to 60 minutes in the preheated oven, or until a knife inserted into the middle comes out clean. Cool in the pan until cool enough to touch, then turn out onto a wire rack to cool completely. Wrap in plastic wrap or store in a plastic bag when cool.