Garlic Parmesan Pull-Apart Bread

I've been slightly thrown out of my groove for the past week and a half (I blame the oh so cute, mommy please cuddle me, sick kid) and I haven't been doing much creative cooking (besides the Meyer Lemon Meringue Pie the other night).  So, I've decided to share an oldie but goodie!  This Garlic Parmesan Pull-Apart Bread looks impressive and works excellent as a take along for any get together or potluck.  I've made this recipe several times and it doesn't usually hang around very long . The kids seem to enjoy it just as much as the adults. Although it does take some time to prepare, most of these ingredients you probably already have in your kitchen! I like to serve this bread with a batch of "Perfect Pizza Sauce". (I've posted a recipe for that as well.)

INGREDIENTS:

2tsp. active dry yeast
1 1/3C warm water (110 degrees)
2 TBSP olive oil
2 tsp. salt
3 1/2 C all purpose flour
1/ 4 C melted butter
1 TBSP dried parsley flakes
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1/4 C freshly grated Parmesan cheese

DIRECTIONS:

In a large mixing bowl, stir together the yeast and the water.  Allow it to sit for 5 minutes until the yeast foamy.  Mix in the olive oil, salt, and flour.  On a lightly floured surface, knead the dough until the dough is elastic, 7-10 minutes.  (If you don't want a great arm work out, a stand mixer with a dough hook can be used, knead for 5-6 minutes.)  Transfer the dough to a lightly oiled bowl and cover with a clean kitchen towel.  Allow the dough to rise for 1 1/2 to 2 hours.

Just before your dough is done with the rising process, prepare your butter sauce.  In a small bowl, combine the melted butter, parsley flakes, and minced garlic.  Set aside.

When the dough is finished rising, punch the dough down.  Tear dough off into small pieces (roughly the size of a medium spoon).  Coat each piece in the butter mixture and place in the bottom of a bundt pan.  Repeat this process until you have one layer of dough balls.  Sprinkle with 1/3 of the Parmesan cheese.  Continue layering the dough balls and cheese until you have three layers.

Cover the pan with a clean towel and allow to sit until the dough has doubled in size, 20-30 minutes.

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.  Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until the bread is golden brown.  Serve hot with a side of marinara or pizza sauce.  ENJOY!

Lemon Bluberry Yogurt Loaf

I have a hard time feeding my family donuts that come from a box, but I have no problem what-so-ever baking a decedent loaf of Lemon Blueberry Yogurt Bread and feeding it to them for breakfast.  I know, it doesn't completely make sense to me either.  I think it may have something to do with me knowing exactly what's going into the bread and not having to wonder if there are any hydrogenated rapeseed (whatever that is) or any Monosaturatedaslkdfjalkdiecvmoinweon involved.  Those things scare me.  Don't get me wrong, we eat some of that junk too...It just feels like a let down when it happens.


So two Sundays ago, I had this crazy burst of energy.  I woke up early and got started on this bread.  The rest of the family eventually rolled themselves out of bed and everyone got ready for church. (So we could get our praise on.)  The bread was finished just in time to eat for breakfast, which we did.  And then we even arrived to church ON TIME. (Which unfortunately rarely happens!)  It was the weirdest best Sunday morning ever!

INGREDIENTS:

For the Loaf:

1.5C + 1 TBSP all-purpose flour, divided
2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. kosher salt
1 C plain Greek yogurt
1 C sugar
3 eggs
2 tsp.  lemon zest
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1/2 C veggie oil
1.5 C blueberries, fresh or frozen, thawed and rinsed

 For the Lemon Syrup:

 1/3 C fresh lemon juice
1/3 C sugar

 For the Lemon Glaze:

 1 C powdered sugar, sifted
  3 TBSP fresh lemon juice


DIRECTIONS:

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour the bottom and sides of a 9 x 5-inch loaf pans.
In a medium bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder and salt; set aside.
In a large bowl, whisk together the yogurt, sugar, eggs, lemon zest, vanilla and oil.  Then whisk the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients. In a separate bowl, mix the blueberries with the remaining TBSP of flour, and fold them very gently into the batter.
Pour the batter into the loaf pan and bake 50 to 55 minutes, or until a toothpick test shows it is completely done in the center. Allow the pan to cool for 10 minutes before removing the loaf to a wire rack on top of a baking sheet.

 While the loaf is cooling, prepare the lemon syrup. In a small saucepan stir together the lemon juice and sugar over medium heat until the sugar is completely dissolved. Once dissolved, continue to cook for another 3 minutes. Remove from the heat; set aside.

 Use a toothpick to poke holes in the tops and sides of the warm loaf. Brush the entire loaf with the lemon syrup. Let the syrup soak into the loaf and brush again. Let the loaf cool completely.

 To make the lemon glaze, whisk together the powdered sugar and 3 TBSP of the lemon juice in a small bowl. The mixture should be thick but pourable. Add up to another TBSP of lemon juice if the mixture is too thick. Pour the lemon glaze over the top of the loaf and let it allow it to drip down the sides. Let the lemon glaze harden for about 15 minutes before serving. ENJOY!


Recipe adapted from: Sweetpeaskitchen.com

Cheesy Jalapeno Cornbread

I had planned to make cornbread to go with last nights dinner and after pondering about it most of the day (because you know 75% of my thoughts that occur during a day revolve around food! I'm serious.) I decided I wanted to try a different recipe.  I hadn't had a chance to search for one and as I started pulling out ingredients from my cupboards I had a light bulb above my head kinda moment.  Cheese and jalapenos!!! Who doesn't LOVE cheese and jalapenos?!?!  Thankfully I had a jar of jalapenos in my pantry (high five for a well stocked pantry!) and half a block of cheese in the fridge (and a booty bump for that one!!) So here is what I came up with...

INGREDIENTS:
I C milk
1/4 C melted butter
1 large egg
1 1/4 C cornmeal
1 C all-purpose flour
1/2 C sugar
1 TBSP baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 C jarred jalapenos divided (juices drained)
1/2 C cheese divided (I used Monterrey jack because its what I had, but if I had options I would've went with cheddar or even pepper jack)

DIRECTIONS:
Pre heat your oven to 400 degrees.  Grease a 8x8x2 in square pan.  Beat milk, butter and egg in a large bowl.  Stir in the remaining ingredients.  If desired, reserve a few jalapenos and a small palmful of cheese for topping. ( If topping the cornbread do so before baking.)    Bake 20 to 25 minutes or until golden and a tooth pick comes out clean.  In my opinion this tastes best when served at room temperature, although its pretty tasty warm too!

Sweet Amish White Bread

I've made this recipe several times now and the loaf never hangs around for long.  The sweetness of the bread is subtle, but is enough to curve a sweet tooth craving.  (Especially if you add nutella!! MMmmmm!)  If you don't own a bread maker or kitchen aid, no worries.  This can be done completely by hand!

INGREDIENTS:
1 C warm water (110-115 degrees)
1/3 C white sugar
2 1/4 tsp active dry yeast
3/4 tsp salt
2 TBSP veg or olive oil
3 C bread flour

DIRECTIONS:
In a large bowl, dissolve the sugar in warm water and then stir in the yeast.  Allow to proof until yeast resembles a creamy foam.  About 10 minutes.  Mix salt and oil into the yeast.  Mix in flour one cup at a time.  Knead dough on a lightly floured surface until smooth.  Place in a well oiled bowl, and turn dough to coat.  Cover with a damp cloth.  Allow to rise until doubled in bulk, about 1 hour.  Punch dough down.  Knead for a few minutes.  Shape dough into a loaf and place into a well oiled 9X5 in loaf pan.  Allow to rise for 30 minutes, or until dough has risen 1 inch about the pan.  Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.

Grandmother's Buttermilk Cornbread

This recipe got EXCELLENT reviews so its no wonder that it was a winner at dinner time!!!  Some things are just worth the extra time and effort, and this my friends, is one of them! And besides...none of those nasty preservatives that you'd be eating with Krustez boxed cornbread. :)

INGREDIENTS
1/2 C butter
2/3 C white sugar
2 eggs
1 C buttermilk
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 C cornmeal
1 C all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp salt

DIRECTIONS
1.) preheat oven to 375 degrees F.  Grease an 8 in square pan.
2.) Melt butter in large skillet.  Remove from heat and stir in sugar.  Quickly add eggs and beat until well blended.  Combine buttermilk with baking soda and stir into mixture in pan.  Stir in cornmeal, flour, and salt until well blended and few lumps remain.  Pour batter into prepared pan.
3.) Bake in preheated oven for 30-40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

SWEET BUTTER SPREAD
This is one of my own kitchen creations that came out fantastic!
4 Tbsp butter; softened
1 tbsp honey
1/2 tsp cinnamon
Stir all ingredients together well. :)