Cinnamon Apple Bread

(This photograph was not taken by a professional. A professional would have taken the little sticker off the apple.)

This is an adapted recipe from The King Arthur Flour 200th Anniversary Cookbook. It can be made with apples or raisins. It's really wonderful either way. Makes three loaves.

Fruit: 1 cup finely diced apples or raisins plumped in milk.

Proofing the Yeast in a Sponge:
2 Tablespoons or packets active dry yeast
1/2 cup warm water
1 teaspoon sugar
1/2 cup flour

The Sponge

To make the sponge, dissolve sugar in warm water and add yeast. When yeast begins to froth, add the 1/2 cup of flour and mix well. Cover and set aside.

The Dough:

1 1/2 cups milk, scalded
1/2 cup butter (1 stick)
1/4 cup honey
1/4 cup brown sugar
2 teaspoons salt
1 Tablespoon cinnamon
3 eggs, beaten
2 cups whole wheat flour
5-6 cups white flour

In a medium saucepan scald the milk. Turn off heat just as it begins to boil and add the stick of butter. Stir until it melts. Add honey and brown sugar, salt, and cinnamon. Stir and let cool to lukewarm. Add the beaten eggs, the sponge, and the whole wheat flour. Stir in remaining flour one cup at a time stopping when the dough comes away from the sides of the bowl. Turn out onto a floured surface and knead, adding only enough flour to keep the dough from sticking. Knead until springy--about ten minutes. Let the dough rest as you wash out the bowl and grease the bottom. Place dough back in bowl, turning once so that the top is greased. Let it rise in a warm draft-free place until doubled in size (about an hour).

Roll-Up:
8 Tablespoons brown sugar
2 Tablespoons cinnamon
Plenty of melted butter
Apples or raisins (well drained)

Mix cinnamon and brown sugar. Cut the dough into thirds. Roll each into an eight by fourteen inch rectangle. Brush liberally with melted butter and spread the sugar evenly over top. Add one third of the apples to each. Roll tightly and pinch the ends to close. Place each, seam-side down, in a well greased loaf pan. Brush the tops with more melted butter. Let rise in a warm draft free place until doubled in size (45 minutes).

15 minutes before baking, preheat oven to 375 degrees. (Take loaves out if you let them rise in the oven) Sprinkle the tops with cinnamon. Bake 45 minutes. Let cool on a wire rack.

Enjoy!

Favorite Corn Bread

1 1/2 cups flour
11/2 cups fine ground cornmeal
3 Tbs. brown sugar
1 Tbs. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
1 cup milk
1 cup sour cream
1/3 cup corn oil
1 egg beaten

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Butter a 9 inch pan, round or square.

Sift flour cornmeal brown sugar, baking powder, and salt together. Combine milk, corn oil, and beaten egg in a medium sized mixing bowl. Mix wet ingredients into dry just to combine. Fold in sour cream. Pour into buttered pan and bake until a toothpick inserted into the center comes clean. About 35-40 minutes.

Serving suggestions: Serve warm for dinner with plenty of butter, salad and soup. Use for snacks with applesauce. Let it dry out overnight and use for cornbread stuffing. Add more brown sugar to the recipe, sprinkle with nutmeg and serve with whipped cream.

Lenten Pretzels

(from A Continual Feast by Evelyn Birge Vitz) H.T: Danielle Bean

1 Tablespoon honey or sugar
1 1/2 cups warm water
1 envelope or 1 Tbs. active dry yeast
1 teaspoon salt
4 cups flour
Coarse salt or herbs or poppy seeds
1 egg beaten with 1 Tbs. water

Dissolve the honey in the water; sprinkle in the yeast. When the yeast is active, add 1 tsp salt and the first cup of flour. Stir well and blend in the remaining flour. Knead the dough till smooth.

Cut the dough into pieces. Roll them into ropes and twist into pretzels shapes. Place the pretzels on lightly greased cookie sheets and brush them with the beaten egg and sprinkle with salt or herbs. Makes about eight pretzels. Bake at 425 degrees F for 12 to 15 minutes or until golden brown.

We loved these with the honey sweetener and sprinkled with sage.

Focaccia

The bread that is almost a pizza.
(In fact, I made half the dough into a pizza for the boys)

When accompanied by this substantial side dish, even lighter soups or salads can be served as a meal.

For the dough:

1 3/4 cups warm water
1 Tbs. sugar
1 packet or tablespoon dry yeast
5 cups flour
1/4 olive oil
1 Tbs. salt

Dissolve the sugar in the warm water. Add yeast. When the yeast is active, add your first cup of flour. Stir well. Add oil and salt and mix. Add remaining flour one cup at a time until the dough holds together. Turn dough out on a lightly floured surface and knead until springy adding just enough flour to keep the dough from sticking to the counter or you. Let dough rest while you wash out the bowl. Grease the bottom of the washed bowl and put dough in, turning once so that the top is greased. Let rise in a warm, draft free place for 30-40 minutes.

Meanwhile, set out the toppings...

1-2 teaspoons fresh rosemary leaves cut up into small pieces
1 Tbs. minced red onion
1 clove garlic minced
2 plum tomatoes sliced very thin
Generous amounts of fresh grated Parmesan
Cracked pepper to taste

Cut the dough in half and roll, toss and stretch it like a pizza dough. Lay each half on a pizza stone or lightly greased pan. Press dough into desired shape and make indentations one inch apart throughout the dough to create pockets to catch and the flavorings you put on top. Brush with olive oil and sprinkle the rosemary over each. Add the onion and garlic. Top with the tomatoes and cover liberally with Parmesan. Add pepper over all to taste.

Place focaccia in a cold oven and set the temperature to 450 degrees. Bake 25-30 minutes or until the edges are a golden brown and the cheese has that wonderful baked look.

Hearty Vegetable Soup

Here's a simple soup that is great for Lent or for dieting. It is high in fiber, essential nutrients and vitamins. It is also very filling and flavorful, but low in calories and contains almost no fat. I make it in a large quantity and keep it in the fridge for lunches.

12 cups of water
4Tbsp. Chicken flavored Better Than Bouillon
3-4 oz. tomato paste
11/2 tsp. dried oregano
fresh cracked pepper to taste

2 leeks
1 clove garlic, minced
1 lb. green beans
1 (10 oz) package frozen Lima beans
1 lb baby carrots
2 medium sized zucchini
2 large, firm tomatoes (or three plum tomatoes)
Olive oil in a spray pump.

For broth, bring the 12 cups of water to a boil in a large saucepan and add the Better Than Bouillon. Add 3-4 oz. of tomato paste depending how tomato-y you like your broth. Add the spices and let simmer while you prepare the vegetables.

Spray a fry pan lightly with olive oil and cook the carrots over medium heat until the begin to soften. Toss them in the simmering broth. Rinse and cut the green beans and toss them in, too.

Slice the leeks and cook them over medium heat with the garlic until they soften and turn transparent. Set aside. Cook the sliced zucchini in the same pan until it, too, softens and browns slightly. Dice the tomato and transfer to a new platter, leaving behind any juices or seeds.

When the carrots and beans are al dente, add the Leeks, zucchini, and tomato. Add the frozen Lima beans. When these last are heated through, the soup is done.