Whole Wheat Molasses Oatmeal Bread

"A loaf of bread, a jug of wine, and thou." 
~Omar Khayyam

It was a bread baking kind of Sunday. The weekend had a crazy start. And with a climbing comp and a birthday party all taken care of, it was time to bake. 

But what kind of bread to make?

I asked the Chickabiddy.

"Whole wheat," she answered. There had been food at the comp - very good food - but the bread had been the spongy white stuff and she was craving whole wheat.

I had been thinking of making my soon-to-be famous molasses oat bread. In fact, I had gotten a request for the recipe just recently. But why not make some soon-to-be-famous whole wheat molasses oat bread? I'm not afraid to experiment in the kitchen and half the time I make up recipes anyway - I'm just not very good at remembering to write them down afterwards! The results were fabulous. The whole wheat adds an extra level of wholesomeness and the molasses adds a kiss of sweet that makes this bread perfect with just a pat of butter.

As is my way, I mill my own whole wheat flour, but store-bought whole wheat will work just fine for this delicious recipe.

Whole Wheat Molasses Oatmeal Bread

2 cups whole wheat flour

3¾ to 4¼ cups all purpose flour

2 packages active dry yeast

1¾ cups water

1 cup quick-cooking rolled oats

1/2 cup light molasses

1/3 cup butter

1 Tbs salt

2 eggs

Quick-cooking rolled oats

1 beaten egg white

1 Tbs water

In a large mixing bowl combine the whole wheat flour and the yeast. Set aside.

In a saucepan heat the 1¾ cups water, the 1 cup rolled oats, light molasses, butter and salt until just warm (115°F to 120°F) and the butter is just melted.

Add this to the whole wheat flour and yeast mixture.

Add the two eggs. Beat at a low speed for two minutes, scraping the sides of the bowl constantly.

Beat at high speed for three minutes.

Stir in as much of the all-purpose white flour as you can mix in with a spoon. If you have a Kitchen-Aid, put on the dough hook and let it knead the dough for about five minutes, adding enough of the remaining flour to make a soft dough that is smooth and elastic.

(If you do not have a Kitchen-Aid, turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead in enough of the remaining flour to make a soft dough that is smooth and elastic - about five minutes.)

Shape the dough into a ball. Place the dough ball into a lightly greased bowl, turn once to coat all sides of the dough.

Cover. Let rise in a warm place until doubled in bulk - about 1½ hours.

Punch down the dough and turn it out onto a lightly floured surface. Divide the dough in half. Cover and let rest about 10 minutes. Grease two 9x5x3-inch loaf pans. Shape the dough into loaves and place them into the prepared pans.

Cover and let rise until nearly doubled - about 45 to 60 minutes. Brush loaves with a mixture of egg whites and 1 Tbs of water. Sprinkle the tops lightly with additional rolled oats.

Bake in a 375°F oven for 40 to 45 minutes until the loaves are a rich golden brown and sound hollow when tapped with your knuckles. Remove from the pans and let cool on a wire rack.

Enjoy!

Eggs en Cocotte (with Mushrooms and Spinach)

"All happiness depends on a leisurely breakfast."

~John Gunther

egg en cocotte n /g -ɛn -kəʊˈkɒt kə/ egg cooked individually in a small ramekin

(Ramekin? It is just a small dish used for baking and serving. You'll need four of them for this recipe.)

I like making breakfast. There's a certain edge to morning hunger that seems to make people more appreciative and creates an atmosphere conducive to vocalized praise. And to me, the "mmmmmms" and "ahhhhhs" are the real reward of being a cook.

Eggs en Cocotte are perfect because they sound like fancy French cuisine but are actually very simple to make.

In its simplest form, an 'egg en cocotte' is just an egg baked with either butter or cream in a diminutive casserole dish, with the whites set and the yolk soft.

But the variations of what you can do with that base are endless. This iteration was inspired by a post on Google+'s amazing Social Skillet and for it I raided the garden and supplemented that with some mushrooms. The results were spectacular.

Eggs en Cocotte (with Mushrooms and Spinach)
6 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 small sweet onion, finely chopped
1 red bell pepper, chopped
4 leaves (straws) chives, chopped
10 mushrooms, chopped
6 cups raw baby spinach
1 Tbs olive oil
1 Tbs unsalted butter
5-8 basil leaves, shredded
4 large eggs
salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Coat the ramekins with oil or butter and set aside.

In a large pan, melt the butter and oil over medium heat. Cook the garlic, onion, pepper, and mushrooms until tender.

Add the baby spinach and chives and cook until soft. Season sparingly with salt and pepper.

Now fill the four ramekins with equal portions of this delicious veggie mix. Make a well in the middle, with the bottom covered, for the eggs.

Carefully break an egg into each of the prepared ramekins. Season with salt and pepper and top with the basil.

Place the ramekins in a baking pan (an 8-inch by 11-inch "brownie pan" works very well) and pour enough boiling water into the pan to come halfway up the sides of the ramekins.

Bake the eggs for about 15 minutes for soft, runny eggs, or about 18 minutes for more set eggs. The eggs do continue to cook in the ramekins even after you remove them from the oven.

Makes 4 servings.

Honey Whole Wheat Bread

"A loaf of bread," the Walrus said, "is what we chiefly need: Pepper and vinegar besides are very good indeed."
~Lewis Carroll, The Walrus and the Carpenter

The Chickabiddy has started school again. And school means packing lunches. And one thing the Chickabiddy loves is sandwiches. Especially peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. This is not uncommon. According to the Great Food Almanac, the average American student will have consumed approximately 1,500 peanut butter and jelly sandwiches upon graduation from high school. That's a lot of PB&J!

As I have stated before and will state again and again, I love baking bread! There is something magical and therapeutic in the process. So each weekend I bake bread so that we have it for the following week for packed lunches or with dinner or just as a snack.

The varieties of breads one can make are pretty endless. From white breads and brown breads, whole grain breads, unleavened and leavened breads, sourdough breads and flatbreads. One of my favorite breads to make is Honey Whole Wheat. It has the whole wheat nutrition, but as it also uses white flour it is lighter and easier to make than 100% whole wheat bread.

I mill my own whole wheat because whole wheat and graham flours contain the oil-rich germ of the wheat kernel and this means that, while it is great nutrition, overflowing with vitamins B and E as well as unsaturated fat and protein, it is easily spoiled and therefor has a short shelf life.

For this reason it is hard to stock-up on whole wheat flours. They just do not last that long. But the un-milled grain will last 30 years or more. I have several five gallon, airtight stainless steel containers filled with grain.

Red Wheat Berries

Freshly milled wheat

Of course, you do not have to mill your own wheat. Buying whole wheat flour in small quantities - either enough for your baking project or keeping it refrigerated or in the freezer - is an excellent option if you do not want or cannot mill your own.

Either way, once you have eaten freshly baked bread prepared from whole grains, you won't want any other kind.

Honey Whole Wheat Bread
3 cups stone-ground whole wheat flour1/3 cup honey
1/4 cup lard
1 Tbs salt
2  packages active dry yeast
2 1/4 cups very warm water (120°F to 130°F)
3 to 4 cups all-purpose flour

Mix the whole wheat flour, honey, lard, salt and yeast in large bowl. Add the warm water. Beat this mixture with an electric mixer on low speed for about one minute, scraping the bowl frequently. Beat on medium speed for one minute, scraping the bowl frequently.

Stir in enough all-purpose flour, one cup at a time, to make dough easy to handle. You want it to to be just slightly tacky so that it clings to your hand if you press against it but does not stick to it and leave you dough-covered.

Turn your dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead it about 10 minutes or until it becomes smooth and elastic.

How do you know when bread is sufficiently kneaded? The dough will lose its tackiness and become smooth and springy. As it is almost impossible to over-knead bread, it is better to knead too much than not enough.

Place the dough in a greased bowl and turn the dough around to cover all sides. Lightly cover and let it rise in a warm place for 40 to 60 minutes or until the dough is about double in bulk.

The dough is ready if you poke it with you finger and the indentation remains.

Grease the bottoms and sides of two loaf pans. Nine-inch by 5-inch or 8 1/2-inch by 4 1/2-inch pans work perfectly.

Punch down the dough and divide it in half.

Form a loaf with each half of the dough and place them in the pans.

Sprinkle the loaves lightly with whole wheat flour.

Cover and let them rise in a warm place for 35 to 50 minutes or until about double in size.

Before you preheat your oven, move the oven rack to a low position so that the tops of pans will be in center of the oven. Preheat the oven to 375°F.

Bake the loaves for 40 to 45 minutes or until they are a deep golden brown and sound hollow when tapped.

Remove the loaves from the pans to a wire rack and let them cool about 10 to 15 minutes before slicing (this is the hardest part as the smell will be driving you wild).

And remember, it is as Robert Browning said, "If thou tastest a crust of bread, thou tastest all the stars and all the heavens."

Bacon Wrapped Eggs

“Yes, I’ll have a non-fat, decaf latte, please. Oh, what the hell? Look, make it a full-fat mocha with extra whipped cream. What the hell, put a slice of bacon on it!”
~Dr. Frasier Crane, Frasier

 
There is something about the smell of bacon and eggs in the morning, whether you are at home, on vacation at a hotel or even camping, that rings the hunger-bell in most people like no other breakfast fare.

Adding a little flair to your bacon and eggs is easy and makes for a wondrous presentation of an old favourite.

This isn't so much a recipe as a general guide. Aside from the bacon and the eggs, the other ingredients are up to you. I used cheddar cheese, green onions, chives and basil from the garden for this iteration, but you can use goat cheese or Feta or provolone, garlic or marjoram or thyme. Use whatever herbs you have growing in your garden or sitting in your cupboard. Use your favourite cheese.

Bacon Wrapped Eggs
Eggs
Bacon
Cheddar cheese
Green Onion
Basil
Chives
Salt and pepper to taste

Preheat your oven to 400°.

Cook the bacon on medium heat.

You'll want it to be browned but not crispy. Set it aside on paper towels to drain.

If you are using fresh herbs, chop them finely.

Grease a muffin pan - I used half of a 12-muffin pan for the six Bacon Wrapped Eggs I made.

Break some of the bacon into pieces to line the bottom of each muffin cup. Take a whole strip of bacon and curl it, making a circle, to line the inside edge of the muffin cup.

When the cups are all lined with bacon, break an egg into each.

Season with the salt and pepper.

Spinkle with the cheese.

And top with the chopped green onion, chives and basil (or herbs of your choice).

Bake in the oven for about 10 - 15 minutes until the eggs are set.

Serve with pan-fried potatoes and ENJOY!