Santa’s FAVORITE snack!

I’ve put off posting a blog about my favorite pastry of all time, because I keep telling you that baking is easy–that rules are meant to be broken. Please don’t look at this recipe and bail on me. Croissants aren’t what I would consider difficult, but they are time consuming and no matter how I tried to condense my instructions, the recipe seems to go on forever!

Believe me when I tell you that the time spent mixing, rolling, aging, and baking these rolls is totally worth it. Learn to make them, and you will be known as the person who bakes the most heavenly croissants!

Buttery, flaky, delicate, decadent…how could you resist?

There are more complicated recipes (I’ve tried them) but I think this recipe makes a very nice croissant with the least effort. For the best flavor, start them at least a day before you want to serve them. Two days is even better! When the dough is kept chilled for a day or two before baking, it acquires a better flavor. It also makes sense to get the hard work out of the way before your special meal, to leave you time for other things.

This is a fairly large recipe, making 28 jumbo croissants. The beauty of this is you can bake some now and freeze the rest for later. When you get to the final step of rolling up the pastries, pop some on a baking sheet and put them in the freezer. When they’re hard, move them to a freezer bag or airtight container. To use them, simply put them on a cookie sheet, cover lightly, and allow them to thaw and rise until doubled in size, (this can take a while – at least 6 hours) then bake. If you bring them out before you go to bed and leave them on the counter they should be ready to bake for breakfast!

Things I’ve learned about baking croissants:

• Each time you roll and fold the dough it gets harder to do. The dough gets a little tougher and more elastic. Don’t be afraid to use your hands to stretch and shape the dough a little.
• If your dough isn’t exactly 8-inches by 12-inches, the world won’t end. Get it as close as you can, but don’t lose any sleep over it!
• When you’ve rolled each piece into a crescent shape and are letting them rise, don’t keep them in a really warm spot. Room temperature is fine, but if your house is toasty, try to find a cooler spot or the butter might melt out of the pastry, which doesn’t make for a very pretty finished product.
• These rolls are best when freshly baked, so pig out on them immediately! They’re fine the next day (especially for turkey sandwiches!) but not quite as light and tender, so seize the moment. When I bake croissants with a turkey dinner, I try to time it so they can go in the oven when the turkey comes out, so they are hot and crispy. Sometimes I even manage to do this!
• A good way to serve them the next day is to split them toast them lightly under a broiler. Do NOT get distracted. Stand right there by the oven and watch them closely. Otherwise, you will end up with this:
  

  Yeah. You really don’t want to do this to your beautiful creations!

Here’s the printable recipe. Look below for lots of helpful photos.

Slice the butter lengthwise in 4 equal pieces.

Put the 4 slices of butter together snugly.

Roll the butter a little to make a 4″x6-1/2″ rectangle.

Peel off the plastic wrap (in this case, I used the butter wrapper)

Put the butter in the middle and fold the right side over.

Put another rectangle of butter on top, and fold left over right.

Cutting out triangles. No, they don’t have to be perfect. (Press the half pieces together or just make little croissants!)

Formed and ready to rise.

Brush on the egg wash. You can use a pastry brush, but I prefer a paper towel. It’s more gentle.

Bake ’em and just TRY to wait until they cool down a bit.

Since my budget doesn’t allow me a quick jaunt to Paris, where I’m certain the pastry is far superior to anything I can make, I’ll just make some super-strong coffee, nibble on a warm croissant, close my eyes, and dream.

And by the way, I happen to know that THIS is what Santa prefers:

Croissants – absolutely worth the effort!

Anadama bread…warm, fragrant, and irresistible.

The Rowdy Baker strike has been settled at last, so I got to play in the kitchen today. Do you know what the final straw was? We ran out of bread. Out.Of.Bread. Since we live out in the country and a gallon of gas costs…well…about the same as a loaf of store-bought bread, both sides (stubborn husband and obstinate wife) entered into discussions and compromised.

Thank goodness, because I honestly don’t think I could have gone much longer without flinging flour.

Today I dusted off my recipe file and made Anadama bread – probably my very favorite bread to bake. Cornmeal and molasses give it a gorgeous color and complex flavor, perfect for sandwiches and toast. My recipe makes four loaves, because if I’m going to go to the trouble of baking bread, I like to make a big batch and put some in the freezer. If you don’t have room in your freezer, you can easily cut the recipe in half.

Freshly ground cornmeal.

I grow my own flour corn and grind it as I need it. (Stop rolling your eyes; I just happen to love doing stuff like that.) The corn is multi-colored, so my loaves don’t have the beautiful coppery color that comes with using traditional cornmeal, but yours will. Just do yourself a favor, please, and buy organic cornmeal. GMO corn is scary stuff.

Grab your apron and give this recipe a try!

Knead that dough!

Let ‘er rise…

Shape the loaves

Put it in the pan

Bake that bread!

Soften up the butter, because you’re going to want to try a slice of this while it’s still warm. And when it’s cooled off. And toasted. Oooh, and for grilled cheese and french toast! You can figure out the rest – I can’t talk with my mouth full.

Cheesy Bread Sticks!

If you ask my son Dean “He Who Shall Not Be Named In Print”, there are only two reasons to visit his mama: croissants and bread sticks. I am way too lazy to make a batch of croissants right now, but I would be happy to pass along my recipe for bread sticks.  Since I have a batch of tomato sauce bubbling on the stove at this moment (the last of the season), it sounds like a pasta and bread stick night to me!

Crispy cheese puts these bread sticks over the top.

I have to be honest here – this isn’t a difficult recipe, but it does take some time. Start it early in the day, because it has to rise twice, and you don’t want to rush it. Actually, if you have time to let it rise slowly in a cool space, the finished product will be even more flavorful.

I’m all about texture, so my favorite bread stick is crunchy, salty, and has little bits of almost-burned cheese clinging to it. If you prefer soft pizza-take-out style bread sticks (excuse me while I make an ugly “I’m going to barf” face,) you can use the same recipe with just a slight variation in technique. This recipe makes about 36 bread sticks, so if that’s more than you need, here are a few options:

1. You can make them all and stuff yourself silly.
2. You can use just half of the dough for bread sticks and roll the other half into a big ball, let it rise, cut an “X” in the top, and bake it as a crispy loaf of French bread.
3. You can form all of the dough into bread sticks, and then freeze half of the unbaked sticks for another day. (When you’re ready to use them, place them on a cookie sheet, cover them with a towel, and allow them to thaw completely and rise a little before preheating your oven.)

Cutting the strips of dough.

Twisting dough for crunchy bread sticks.

Dipped in marinara sauce or garlic butter (or just eaten plain) these cheesy sticks will disappear quickly. Put a couple of them at each place setting in a flute glass, to show them off. If you do end up with leftovers, a quick warm-up in the oven or microwave will bring out their flavor.

Enjoy!

Buttermilk biscuits

My husband was whining for biscuits and gravy. To be specific, he actually wanted sausage gravy with lots of chunks of meat in it, and biscuits. Before I hear from all the states below the Mason-Dixon line about what should go into this glorious, fattening, sinful dish, remember that this is a baking blog and the subject is:

BISCUITS, Y’ALL!

Biscuits should be fluffy, flavorful, and fresh. (Yes, I love alliteration.) Oh, and large! Burly, not dainty. There are as many opinions about what makes a perfect biscuit as there are people who bake them, from: “I prefer my biscuits to pop out of a can”, to: “I only use leaf lard and whole organic buttermilk.”

If you’ve read my other blogs, you know that I don’t always follow the rules when it comes to baking. I’m going to backpedal just a bit here, and say that if you want light, tender biscuits, your results will be better if you conform just this once. If I can, you can! Use very cold ingredients, don’t over-mix, and try to cut the biscuits out with surgical precision.

Would you like to know what not to do? Don’t accidentally use 4 teaspoons of baking soda instead of baking powder. The first time my son-in-law came for dinner I proudly served biscuits. Very pretty biscuits. One by one I watched each person take a bite and then return the biscuit to their plate with a pained look on their face. When I tried one for myself I quickly realized my mistake. We probably looked like a support group for hydrophobia sufferers. He has never let me forget those poor biscuits.

My experiments with fats in biscuit recipes have included bear fat, lard, butter, and shortening. They all worked well, though I didn’t get as much “loft” with the butter. Since many people have an irrational dislike of lard, and you might not find bear fat on the shelf at the grocery store, (I rendered it myself. Seriously! Gross and stinky, but the end product is a beautiful white “lard”) you will probably decide to use shortening, butter, or a combination of the two. As much as I hate to use “vegetable” shortening, I’ll admit it makes flaky biscuits and pie crusts. And face it, we’re not going to pass these babies off as healthy, any way you look at it!

If you insist on having biscuits that are perfectly smooth and uniform (bless your heart), by all means get out your rolling pin, but I prefer to handle the dough as little as possible, patting the dough into the desired thickness. This makes a more rustic looking biscuit, but  I’ll choose texture over appearance any day. Remember: a light hand makes a light biscuit!

I really, really suggest you buy a biscuit cutter if you don’t already have one. Drinking glasses are a nuisance; they suck your dough up and you have to pry it back out, which is very traumatic for the biscuit dough. If you must use glassware, use something thin, like a wine glass or crystal goblet. Whatever you use, the most important thing to remember is to press the cutter down and lift it up. Don’t twist, or you’ll make it harder for the dough to rise.

Biscuits never taste as good the next day, even if you reheat them. The recipe I’m going to share with you makes twelve jumbo biscuits, so if you don’t need that many, put some uncooked biscuits into a heavy zipper bag and pop them in the freezer. You can bake them without thawing if you’re in a rush – just give them a few extra minutes.

Hopefully I haven’t scared you off. Hello? Hello? Please come back, it’s not that complicated! Try this recipe once and you’ll be hooked, and never buy those nasty rolls in a can again. You will add five years to your life by not waiting in suspense for the “POP!”  I read recently (and don’t remember where…so much for giving proper credit) that opening up a can of dough is the adult equivalent of a kid’s jack-in-the-box toy. Cut back on the adrenalin rush by making your own biscuits!

BUTTERMILK BISCUITS

3 cups all-purpose flour (a good quality flour is best, like “King Arthur” brand)
1 tablespoon sugar
4 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup shortening, chilled!
1 cup buttermilk
1/4 cup milk
1 egg

Heat the oven to 450 degrees F.
In a large bowl, stir together the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Add the shortening and cut it into the flour mixture with a pastry cutter. (You can also use 2 knives or even your finger tips. Just dip them into ice water before blending so you don’t melt the shortening.) So many recipes say it should look like “coarse meal.” Since I don’t know what they’re talking about, I just cut it in until you don’t see any chunks of shortening bigger than a pea. Good enough.

Cutting the shortening into the flour mixture.

In a small bowl, whisk together the buttermilk, milk, and egg. Pour it onto the flour mixture and stir until it’s consistently moist, with no big pockets of flour.
Drop the dough into the center of a heavily floured board or counter. Flour your hands and turn the dough over a couple of times to cover with flour. With your hands, gently press the dough to a 3/4 inch thickness.
Flour your biscuit cutter. Press down, then pull straight up. Repeat, cutting the rounds as close together as possible.

Cutting out biscuits.

With a spatula, move them, almost touching, onto an ungreased cookie sheet. Don’t re-roll the leftover dough. Just bake the scraps. Calories don’t count if they’re just scraps!
Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until the tops are a rich golden brown.

Serve ’em hot with butter, honey, fresh jam, or…

SAUSAGE GRAVY

1 pound bulk breakfast sausage
3-4 tablespoons flour
2 cups half and half
Pepper to taste
1 cup milk (if needed)
Brown the sausage on medium heat, crumbling it as you stir. Add 3 tablespoons of the flour and cook for a minute. If you can still see grease, add the other tablespoon of flour. Lower heat to medium low and stir for 2-3 minutes to cook the flour. Slowly add the half and half, stirring constantly. Add the pepper and cook gently on low for at least 30 minutes. If it starts to get too thick, add milk a little at a time.

Sausage gravy – heavy on the sausage!

Multi-grain bread, warm from the oven.

Why are so many people terrified of working with yeast? If your yeast is fresh and your water is a warm, it’s a slam dunk! I made three lovely loaves of multi-grain bread today, and the house smells like heaven. One loaf is almost gone, which doesn’t sound like a big deal until you understand that there are only two of us living here. I just want to make it clear (ahem) that I only ate one piece. ‘Nuff said.

The following recipe is actually very easy. The only time-consuming part is preparing the whole grains. I used four different grains: spelt, wheat, rye, and oat. If you bite into any one of those, you’ll see why you have to soak and cook grains before using them in a bread recipe, unless you like a whole lot of crunch. It’s not difficult – you just have to plan ahead.

If your grocery store has a bulk food section, or carries specialty flours and grains (like Bob’s Red Mill) in small packages, that’s perfect. Otherwise, make a trip to the closest natural foods market and pick up a variety. Keep any unused grains in the refrigerator. (I mix mine all together and put them in a zipper storage bag to take up less space.)

The amazing selection of bulk foods at Meyers Falls Market, in Kettle Falls, WA.

Making bread is like making cookies; there’s a lot of room for improvisation! If you want to use just one grain, that’s fine. If you want to skip the nuts and seeds, no problem. I added a handful of chia seeds to my dough at the last minute, because I’m really trying to use them in everything right now. I ordered three pounds, and that’s a lot of chia seeds! They tasted and looked wonderful in the bread.

If you don’t have quite enough yeast, use what you have. It will just take a little longer to rise, which is actually a good thing. The longer it takes for bread to rise, the more flavorful it is. Sometimes I put mine out in our fruit room (kind of like a root cellar – nice and cool) all night and bake it in the morning.

The only thing I’ve done that has made the bread inedible – to me, at least – is to forget the salt. You can cut back on it if you like, but some salt is necessary. One of the reasons I make our bread is because of the enormous amounts of sodium in store-bought bread. Check out the label on the bread you have right now. Pretty scary, isn’t it? Excessive salt is often used to disguise the fact that their bread has no flavor! I’m not even going to go into all the chemicals you’ll see on most bread labels, or the fact that they may be using GMO products. I’ll save that for a future rant.

Flavor, texture, and using wholesome ingredients are all good reasons to make your own bread, but one of the most important reasons to me is cost. Occasionally I’ll get lazy and pick up a loaf of bread at the store, but am always shell shocked. A good organic bread can run $5.00 or more. I figured that the bread I made today cost a little over a dollar per loaf; you can’t beat that!

So, without further ado, here is my Multi-Grain Bread recipe.

CHEWY MULTI-GRAIN BREAD
(Recipe makes 2 large loaves or 3 small ones)

1 cup mixed whole grain (I use oat groats, spelt kernels, rye berries, and wheat berries)
4 cups water
1 tablespoon molasses
1 teaspoon sugar
4 teaspoons (or 2 packets) active dry yeast
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 cups whole wheat flour
½ cup chopped seeds and nuts of choice (pumpkin, sunflower, walnuts, pecans, etc.)
1 tablespoon salt
5 cups all-purpose flour

In a medium pot, bring grains and water to a boil. Turn off the heat and let it sit for 1 hour. Bring the grain back to a boil, turn down to low, and simmer for 20-30 minutes, or until very tender. If your whole grains aren’t very fresh, it could take longer – up to an hour or more.

Saving the liquid from the cooked grains.

Drain the grains, reserving the liquid. You’ll need 2 ½ cups. If you don’t have enough, add water to make up the difference. If you have a stand mixer, this is the time to use it! Attach your dough hook. If you’re doing this by hand, get out a heavy wooden spoon. Pour the liquid into a large bowl.

Add the molasses and sugar. Cool the liquid to 100-115 F. If you don’t have a thermometer, it should feel warm to the touch, but not hot.

Add the yeast and stir to mix. Leave it alone for 5 minutes. It should look a little foamy. (If not, the yeast may not be fresh. Hopefully you have a backup package or two.)

Add the oil, the wheat flour, and the grains, and mix on medium speed for 2 minutes (or if you’re doing it the hard way, beat with your wooden spoon until your arms ache.)

Add the seeds and nuts and the salt. On low speed, gradually add the all-purpose flour. It will be a thick dough, but should still feel a little sticky.

Knead for 5 minutes with a stand mixer and dough hook, or 8 minutes by hand.

Dough is mixed and ready to rise in the mixing bowl.

Here’s where “They” always say to put the dough into a greased bowl. I hate to do dishes and see no reason to dirty another bowl, so I just leave it where it is and cover it. I’ve never noticed a difference. Let it rise until double – approximately 45 minutes to 1 hour.

If you are using bread pans, grease three of them generously. Separate your dough into thirds. On lightly floured surface, form it into loaves. I simply put each piece of dough down, flatten it down a little, and roll it into a log shape very snugly. Pinch the ends and place it in one of the bread pans. If you’re making round or oval loaves, shake some cornmeal onto cookie sheets, shape the loaves, and set them on the cornmeal. Make sure there is some cornmeal surrounding the dough, because it will spread a little bit.

Dough ready to rise.

Cover the dough with a clean dishtowel and let it rise until almost doubled – about 45 minutes.

Heat the oven to 400 F. If you want a crispy crust, put a pan of water on the bottom rack of the oven now. By the time the bread is ready to go into the oven, it will be nice and steamy, which gives bread a nice crunch.

Bake for approximately 30-35 minutes. This will vary a little, depending on the size of your loaves. Look for a loaf that is a rich brown on top, with sides that aren’t anemic when you turn them out of the pan. Remove from the oven, take out of the pans, and cool on a rack. Don’t cool bread in the pans or the sides will be soggy.

Brush with butter if desired. Admire. Take pictures. Cut off a heel, slather it with butter, and eat it before anyone else can!