Homemade Brown Bread

We were running low on bread recently and I didn't have a trip to the grocery store planned for a few days - so I decided to make some homemade bread.  It had been awhile anyways.....a long overdue treat.

I had just spotted this recipe in a Taste of Home cookbook from 1999 and it made me think of my friend Jenny.
See, Jenny was our neighbor across the street for 3 years in VA and quickly became a dear friend, as well as Corban's piano teacher.  Our kids loved to play together and we spent many a summer evening standing outside chatting in the driveway while occasionally chasing our toddlers and watching the older children ride bikes up and down the sidewalk.  Jenny is a great bread baker and there were several times that she would drop by with a freshly baked loaf, just because.  How's that for a good neighbor??? :)

Anyways, one of the breads she made had oatmeal in it.....and I really loved it.  I had never baked a bread with oats in it before and it was just so delicious.  I totally need to get that recipe from her.
When I read this one, I thought maybe it was similar to what she had made....so I couldn't wait to try it.

What's interesting is that while the bread has a cup of oats in it, after they're soaked in boiling water for awhile and mixed into the dough, you really don't even notice them in the finished loaves.  The addition of both molasses and brown sugar make this a lightly sweet bread that tastes amazing just plain, without butter.

I think it's not exactly like Jenny's bread, but I have a feeling her family would love it as much as mine did. I wish I could take her a loaf.  (of course, now that I'm in Arkansas and her family has just moved to Germany, that would be exceptionally difficult).

Homemade Brown Bread
Yield: 2 loaves

1-1/2 cups boiling water
1 cup old fashioned oats
2 Tbsp. butter
2 tsp. salt
1 Tbsp. bulk yeast (or a 1/4 ounce package active dry yeast)
3/4 cup warm water (110° - 115°)
1/2 tsp. sugar
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup molasses
4-3/4 to 5-1/4 cups flour (I used 3 cups white whole wheat and 2-1/4 cups all purpose)
Melted butter

In a medium bowl, combine boiling water, oats, butter, and salt.  Cool to 110-115°.
In a mixing bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water.  Sprinkle with sugar. Add oat mixture, brown sugar, molasses, and 3 cups of flour; mix well. Add enough remaining flour to form a soft dough.
Turn onto a floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic, about 6-8 minutes. Place in a greased bowl and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1 hour.
Punch dough down. Divide in half and shape into two loaves.  Place in greased 9-in x 5-in x 3-in loaf pans.  Cover and let rise until doubled, about 30-45 minutes.  Bake at 350° for 25-30 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from pans to cool on wire racks. Brush with melted butter.

Source: Adapted slightly from Taste of Home 1999 Annual Recipes

Jalapeno Popper Dip - SRC

Y'all have undoubtedly guessed by now that I have a major sweet tooth.  Like, it takes up my whole head sweet tooth.  It's a real problem.  

But if there were ever an appetizer that would tempt me to indulge in it instead of having dessert, this is it.
Well, in all seriousness, it's hard for anything to compete with a dish that features 3 (!!) kinds of cheese, bacon, butter, and the scrumptious flavor (but not much heat) of jalapenos.

"I just want to dive into that dip!" exclaimed my friend after she sampled it.
I wanted to join her.
And our husbands did too.
The kids didn't go crazy for it, but that was really okay, because the four adults who were there managed to eat at least half of it during the Super Bowl (which none of us were watching).

And you know what?  While the dip was really best with corn chips, it was also totally awesome on some leftover steamed broccoli the next day.  Which made me feel like I was really making healthy choices. Clearly I have issues. 

So many thanks to Heather, who blogs at Join Us, Pull Up a Chair, my Secret Recipe Club assignment for this month. She has lots of delicious sounding recipes like Sausage Stuffed Zucchini (can't wait for summer to try that one!) and Apple Glazed Pork Tenderloin.  I'm also planning on making her Roasted Cauliflower and Cheddar Soup this week, which sounds ridiculously yummy and might even get my children to eat cauliflower without complaints!

But this dip....ohhhhhhh, this dip.  I'm still drooling over the thought of it a week later and am looking for the next excuse to make it.  Preferably a gathering where there are people to share it with, but not so many people that I don't get my fair share.  :)

Jalapeno Popper Dip

Note: Use care when handling jalapenos - the seeds and membranes can cause some serious burning issues on your fingers.  Speaking from experience here. I usually hold the cut jalapenos with my hand inside the plastic bag from the store - since I don't have food-safe gloves on hand.

2 packages (8 oz each) cream cheese, room temperature
3/4 cup light mayonnaise
8 pieces of bacon, cooked and chopped (I used turkey bacon)
6 jalapenos, stemmed, seeded, and diced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 tsp. cumin
1-1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese

Topping:
1 cup panko bread crumbs
1 cup shredded parmesan cheese
1/4 cup (4 Tbsp) butter, melted

Preheat oven to 375°.  In a medium bowl, mix together all ingredients (except for the topping ingredients). Pour into a greased 2 quart baking dish.

In a separate bowl, combine the topping ingredients with a fork and sprinkle over the cream cheese mixture.

Bake for 25-30 minutes or until top is golden brown.  Let rest 5 minutes before serving.  Serve with crackers, chips, or vegetables.

Source: adapted slightly from Join Us, Pull Up a Chair

An InLinkz Link-up

Quick-Takes from 2013

1. Getting settled in our new house took longer than we thought.  We got off to a rough start with the entire family falling prey to the flu within the first two weeks of January.  Gaining momentum after that was.....difficult. I still have stacks of photos that haven't been hung and empty walls begging for some sort of decoration.  We did get the school room painted - which I love - but the rest of the house is still beige.

2.  We have faced various difficulties with our home.  Including but not limited to:

• A brown recluse infestation.  No kidding.  We identified the first one in May and proceeded to catch at least 80+ on sticky traps through out the summer.  Oh. My. Gracious.  Can you even imagine the spider paranoia I have now?  We've also found a few black widows outside the house....but somehow those just aren't as scary to me.  Up-sides - our kids are pros at identifying the two most dangerous spiders in our country, and we haven't seen any new ones in months.  Here's hoping that never happens again. 
• Termites.  Thankfully the damage was minor.  And the house was under contract with an exterminator.  
• Water damage to the foundation.  Found near where the termites were. Should have been discovered by the home inspector before purchase.  It wasn't. Thankfully, the termite company repaired all the damage because of the termites.
• AC issues.  Twice. 
• Water leaks in the house - one due to poorly routed pipes in the attic, others due to poorly done roof. (which was just replaced two years ago due to minor hail damage).  
• Sinking portion of driveway and retaining wall.  Hasn't been fixed yet. 
• Upstairs Heater went out.  Twice. On the coldest week of the year, with wind-chills around -10°.

3. We got hens!  Six cute fluffy Rhode Island Red chicks, who rapidly grew into the sweetest hens ever.  And they're awesome layers.....they started laying at just 17 weeks old and we get an egg a day from each of them. That's right, I haven't bought eggs since June.

Grant loves the chicks....and they love him.  Even now. 

Our cute little hen house and run - while still under construction -  under our deck. 

4. I started drinking coffee.  It began as an occasional mocha when I was really tired.  Now it's becoming part of the morning routine.  We use an Aeropress and love it. Actually, that's probably why I started the habit in the first place.  It's just so easy to make 1 cup of coffee at at time, whenever you want. 

5. I ran my first 5K in May, with my sister Anna. Then I stopped running for awhile, injured both knees when I tried to start back up, and haven't run any more.  I'd love to run another 5K this spring, though.  I'm just having a hard time motivating myself to go running in the cold.  We've had wicked cold temps the past few weeks.  

It was snowing.  In May.  My lips have never been so cold. 

6. I gained 10 lbs. this year. I'm crediting that to stopping nursing, stopping running, and eating a lot.  Particularly sweets when I'm depressed. Or tired.  Or bored.  Or lonely. And I've been at least one of those pretty much constantly. 

I'm determined to get back into regular exercise and control my eating more.  

7. My mom battled and conquered breast cancer. I'm so proud of her.  And thankful that God has carried her through this trial victoriously. I'm also so thankful that we are here near her and Dad and could be some help and support for them.  

8. Grant and I spent 3 days building this.  In July. Wow, was that hot.  But totally worth it....the kids love it.

9. We got a used boat and spent a lot of time at the lake.  The kids learned to tube....and Grant learned to water-ski.  I *started* learning how to drive a boat.  Oh, and my first time tubing, with my younger sister Anna and a boat load of her friends, I almost lost my swim skirt.  I seriously had to let go of the tube while going 30 mph to grab it as the water pressure rapidly pulled it to my knees. That was.....funny.  

I wear one-pieces for tubing now. 

Annika and Corban

10. Grant and I got to take our first weekend trip without kids....EVER!  Much thanks to my parents for babysitting!  We stayed at a lovely bed and breakfast in Branson and enjoyed peaceful dinners out, shopping, Silver Dollar City, the Branson Belle Showboat, and ziplining.  

On the Showboat

11. I've made tons of new recipes, many of which haven't made it to the blog. Time just slips away from me and there usually seems to be more important things to do than sit down and write out a recipe and edit photos.  Assuming I even took photos.  But I still love blogging and I plan to continue posting the recipes we love as much as I can.

Here are a few of the recipes I've made in the past month.  Hopefully I'll get them posted sometime! :) 

Thanks for reading and coming to visit - I truly appreciate all of my readers and friends and love hearing from you!  Hoping for a wonderful New Year for each and every one!  

Best Desserts of 2013

I'm joining up with SnoWhite today in her Countdown to 2013 - Best Desserts.  

As you probably already know, desserts are my favorite food category.  Both to make and to eat. And I've made some really terrific ones this year.

So here we go, in no particular order:

Chocolate Molten Lava Cakes

Surprisingly easy and fast to throw together, yet so elegant and scrumptious, especially with a dollop of fresh whipped cream.  

Dark Chocolate Salted Caramel Layer Cake

My birthday cake - simply fantastic.  I might just have to have a repeat next year. 

Brownies with Browned Butter Frosting

The ones Grant declared his FAVORITE brownies ever.  

Snickers Peanut Butter Pie

Fudge pie, peanut butter nougat, caramel, peanuts, chocolate drizzle, and chopped snickers. 

My 6 year old still talks about this pie (that I made in March) and begs me to make it again.  It was truly fabulous.  

Turtle Brownies

Because you can never go wrong with brownies stuffed with caramel, chocolate chips, and pecans.  Yum!

Strawberry Dream Cake

With strawberries in the cake and the frosting, and nary a drop of food coloring in sight, it's a perfectly delightful spring or summer cake.  And I have to add that the cream cheese frosting tastes almost like rich strawberry ice cream. It's amazing. 

Soft and Chewy Double Chocolate M&M Cookies

Quite possibly the best chocolate cookie I've ever had.  

Chocolate Chip Chocolate Cheesecake Bites

Chocolate crust, chocolate cheesecake, and a cookie dough topping.  All in a little bite-sized piece. 

Perfect. 

Chocolate Velvet Dessert

It's like having a chocolate truffle, in a slice.  Rich and completely decadent.  And worth every calorie. 

Pineapple Pie

If you've never tried pineapple pie, you just have to do it.  It's awesome.  One of my dad's very favorites. 

Triangle Delights - 

Think Hello-Dolly Bars mixed with Toffee and S'mores.  Yeah.  Utterly delicious.   

Triangle Delights - SRC

Need another recipe for a cookie exchange, party, potluck, to give away to friends or neighbors, or just for dessert tonight?  Wow, Christmas season is just so busy, right???

Look no further.  This one will blow your socks off.
And it's ridiculously simple, which makes it even better.

For my Secret Recipe Club assignment this month, I had the pleasure of browsing through Adventures in All Things Food,, where Andrea has tons of great recipes, three adorable children, and a huge, beautiful farm. Oh, and she also has a craft section and does frequent give-aways.  Awesome!

While I was tempted by many recipes, including her Challah Bread and this amazing Chocolate Espresso Bundt Cake, I just couldn't resist trying a cookie which Andrea said was one of her favorites from childhood.
What do you get when you combine graham crackers and a simple sauce of butter and brown sugar with a hint of cinnamon and vanilla with coconut, almonds, and chocolate chips????

A pan of pure deliciousness, that's what. 

I took a big plate of these luscious goodies to our homeschool co-op Christmas party, and they were devoured in minutes.  Frankly, I was disappointed.  Even though I had saved several at home, I was hoping to have a few left over.  I just could not get enough of them.

They're like a combination of Hello Dolly Bars and Toffee, both of which are huge favorites of mine.  I altered the recipe only slightly, adding a half cup more marshmallows because I thought it just didn't look like enough.

These are going into the *BEST* and *MUST MAKE* categories for me.  Thanks so much, Andrea!

Triangle Delights

2 sleeves of graham crackers (all may not be used)
3 1/2 cups mini marshmallows
1 cup butter
1 cup brown sugar
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 cup shredded coconut
1 cup sliced or chopped almonds
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350°.

Line a rimmed cookie sheet or jelly-roll pan with parchment paper, then place graham crackers in a single layer on the bottom of the pan. Cover with marshmallows.

In a medium saucepan over medium heat, combine butter, brown sugar, and cinnamon and stir until butter is melted and sugar is completely dissolved. Remove from heat and add vanilla.

Pour the hot mixture over the marshmallows, then top with coconut, almonds, and chocolate chips.
Bake for 12-15 minutes, or until top is golden brown.

Allow the pan to cool, then use the parchment paper as handles to remove the cookies from the pan to a cutting board.  Slice into 3 inch squares, then into triangles.  A pizza cutter works great for this!


Source: Adapted slightly from Adventures in All Things Food

Cinnamon Almond Coconut Granola

Are you ready for Thanksgiving yet?  Got the menu all planned out, groceries purchased, and just counting down the minutes till you can stick that turkey in the oven???

Not me.

I'm still trying to plan the last kiddo birthday party of the year, which takes place this weekend.  On Monday, I'll start planning Thanksgiving stuff.

Okay, maybe I'll start planning a little earlier.  I still have to coordinate with my mom and other family members on who is making what, though.....so I can't really do too much planning yet.  I CAN tell you that I'm pretty darn sure I'll be making a Pumpkin Cheesecake for dessert - and maybe a Pumpkin Roll Cake for good measure.
Because you can never have too much pumpkin and cream cheese.

Amen.

Oh, and I can't forget, no Thanksgiving would be complete without some variation on pecan pie - I like this Caramel Pecan pie , but the traditional version works too.  Just as long as there's plenty of homemade sweetened whipped cream.  Mmmmm.  Can you tell my favorite part of the Thanksgiving feast is dessert?  

You can't tell me you're surprised.

In the mean time, there's a few meals between now and then, and one of my favorite breakfasts is granola.
 
I've been making this version for several months now and just can't seem to get tired of it.  I know there are lots fancier granolas out there, but this is simple and consistently good.  So good that my 2 year old is known to sneak the container out of the pantry and hide under the dining table, stuffing it into her face (and scattering it on the floor) as fast as she can before she gets caught.

But what's not to like?  There's coconut, chopped almonds, cinnamon, and vanilla accompanying the oats.
You can always add raisins or craisins or other goodies at the table if you like.  I usually just eat mine as is, with whole milk, of course.

Major bonus - it smells incredible while it's baking.  

Cinnamon Granola

8 cups old fashioned oats
1 cup flaked coconut
1 cup chopped almonds
1/2 cup coconut oil (I use expeller pressed, organic virgin would be great too)
1/2 cup brown sugar      
1/4 cup water
1/4 cup honey
1 T. cinnamon
2 tsp. vanilla
1 1/2 tsp. salt

Preheat oven to 300°.
Combine oats, coconut, and almonds in a large bowl.
In a medium saucepan over medium heat, combine coconut oil, brown sugar, water, honey, and cinnamon and bring to a boil.  Remove from heat and add vanilla and salt.  Pour over oat mixture and stir well to evenly coat.
Spread on 2 large rimmed baking sheets and bake for 10 minutes.  Remove from oven and stir, and rotate pans so the one from the bottom shelf is on the top and vice versa.  Bake for 10 more minutes, or until desired crispiness.

Creamy Au Gratin Potatoes - SRC

If you're looking for a special potato dish for Thanksgiving, Christmas, your birthday, or next Thursday, I've got a winner for you.

Although they take awhile to bake, these potatoes are simple to put together and are definitely worth planning ahead for. They're tender and hearty, enhanced with thinly sliced onions, and drenched with creamy cheese sauce. A potato-lover's dream come true.
 
Although my mom would occasionally make a similar dish called scalloped potatoes when I was growing up, I can't remember ever making them myself.  But when I saw these on my Secret Recipe Club assignment for the month, Cheese Curd in Paradise, I knew I had to make them.  I need more scrumptious side dishes in my repertoire.

Ashley blogs from Wisconsin (hence the "cheese curd" in her blog title), a state that I have never visited but would love to see someday (in the summer, thank you very much).  Any place known for their cheese has to be amazing, right?  I can't imagine my life without cheese.  

She has lots of great recipes, from Pizza Muffins to Pumpkin Truffles, that I'm looking forward to trying - but I am beyond happy to have these potatoes in my life.  While they are a bit on the decadent side, I'll definitely bring out this recipe for special occasions and dinners.  Everyone in my family absolutely loved them.


Creamy Au Gratin Potatoes
Source: Adapted slightly from Cheese Curd In Paradise

6 large russet potatoes, sliced into very thin slices
1/2 large onion, sliced into rings
4 Tbsp. butter
4 Tbsp. all-purpose flour
2 1/2 cups milk
2 cups shredded sharp Cheddar cheese (best if you grate your own!) 
Salt and pepper to taste
Dash paprika

Preheat oven to 400°.
Layer half of the potatoes into bottom of a buttered 13 x 9" pan. Sprinkle lightly with salt and pepper.Top with onion slices, and add the remaining potatoes. Sprinkle again lightly with salt and pepper.  (I like to use Kosher salt.)
In a medium saucepan, melt butter over medium heat.  Mix in the flour and stir constantly with a whisk for one minute.  Slowly stir in milk.  Cook until the mixture has thickened.  Stir in cheddar cheese and continue stirring until melted.  Season cheese sauce with salt and pepper to taste, and add a dash of paprika if desired.  Pour over potatoes and cover the dish with foil.
Bake for 1 1/2 hours.  Remove foil and cook for a few more minutes to slightly brown the top if desired.