French Peasant Bread

I have used dozens of french bread recipes and loved them all.  Some recipes take more than a day to make, others are a little more complicated.  Then I found this recipe and fell in love with it's name, French Peasant Bread.  Not only is it yummy, it is way EASY to make.  With five kids, I want easy easy easy.

French Peasant Bread

From the Recipe Shoebox The ingredients: 1 Tbs. dry, quick rising yeast 2 cups warm water (110-115 degrees) 1 Tbs. sugar 1 tsp. salt 4 cups all-purpose flour ( I used half whole wheat and half white flour) olive oil (for greasing the pan) corn meal (for pan) 1/4 cup butter, melted -Place yeast, water, sugar, and salt in warm bowl and stir until dissolved.   -Add flour and stir until blended, but do NOT knead.   -Cover and let rise one hour or until double in size.   -Flour hands, remove dough from the bowl and place in 2 roughly equal  rounds on an oiled cookie sheet sprinkled with corn meal.   -Let rise an additional hour.   -Brush the tops and sides of the rounds with melted butter and bake at  425 degrees for 10 minutes.   -Reduce oven temperature to 375 degrees and cook an additional 15 minutes,  or until golden brown.   -Remove from oven and brush tops and sides of rounds again with melted butter.   -Serve warm.   -Enjoy!

Pumpkin Cookies

Looking for a quick autumn treat for that last minute party, cub scout meeting, school function, or for any reason at all?  Try this yummy 3 ingredient recipe.

Ingredients:

-1 (29 oz) canned pumpkin

-2 Spice Cake Mix boxes 

( add dry - NO eggs, oil or water at all)

-1 bag of chocolate chips

That's it!

Mix in a large bowl.

Use a cookie scooper and place on cookie sheets.

Bake at 350 degrees for 12 minutes.

Watch them get gobbled up!

Better the next day.

Canning Applesauce

The first bite of an autumn apple picked from a nearby orchard is delish!

mmmmmm

Each year we roll up our sleeves to preserve this yummy-ness for the winter months.

6th Annual Apple Adventure

Canning applesauce has become one of our family traditions.  

It is the only canning I consider fun!

My kids really enjoy it and are expert applesauce makers now.

We couldn't have done it without this awesome ancient Victorio Strainer.

I remember using this exact one as a child making applesauce with my siblings.

Good memories.

This is what it looks like all set up.

It will mush the apples and remove the seeds and peels at the same time.

Here is our assembly line...

1.  prep apples

(take out of boxes)

2.  wash with warm water and a teeny bit of soap

3.  rinse in sink full of water with 1/2 cup of vinegar

4.  cut apples into fourths

5.  keep them face down to make picking up much easier

(no need to peel or core)

6.  fill up pots with apples- add a cup or two of water and steam

(the house smells heavenly)

7.  enlist in helpers (the waiting list is always full)

8.  put the cooked apples in the white bowl and strain away

The applesauce comes out one side and all the other stuff comes out the other end.

9.  taste testers

10.  can bottles in the garage in double batches

Check out the different colors of sauce using three apple varieties we mixed.

mmmmm

7 people + 8 hours = 83 qts of applesauce

AMAZING!

(thanks to the 2 canners)

Because I'm lazy I don't believe in re-inventing the wheel... here's a great site that gives step by step instructions on the canning part, Make it Do.

What's just as nummy as applesauce?  

Canned peaches!

Instructions on canning peaches with Make it Do.

Happy Halloween

We celebrate the spookiest night of the year with our traditional Halloween dinner.

Dinner in a pumpkin.

Click here for the recipe.

What's a pumpkin dinner without spider bread?

Yum!

Mama Spider with all of her baby spiders.

Where's daddy spider you ask?

I ate him.

Happy Halloween!

Homemade Cinnabon Rolls

SUNDAY:  Creating T-I-M-E!

Time to make my hubby his favorite treat!  

Soft warm homemade cinnamon rolls - mmmm.

Drooling yet?

Here's the recipe from allrecipe.com

Homemade Cinnabon Rolls

INGREDIENTS

Dough

• 1 cup warm milk (110 degrees F/45 degrees C)
• 2 and 1/2 tsp yeast
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 1/3 cup melted butter 
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 eggs
•  4 1/2 cups flour  (I use half wheat flour and half white flour)

Combine warm milk, yeast and sugar in bowl (mixer) and let proof 10 - 15 minutes.

Mix in butter, salt, eggs and flour and mix for 6 minutes.  If using wheat flour - mix for 8 - 9 minutes.  Let rise. After the dough has doubled in size turn it out onto a Pam sprayed surface, cover and let rest for 10 minutes.

In a small bowl make sugar mixture - combine ingredients: 

• 1 cup brown sugar, packed
• 2 1/2 tablespoons ground cinnamon
• 1/3 cup butter, softened

Roll dough into a 16x21 inch rectangle.  Spread butter mixture evenly on dough. 

Roll up dough length wise and cut into 12 rolls (use dental floss for a clean cut). Place rolls in a lightly greased 9x13 inch baking pan. Cover and let rise until nearly doubled, about 30 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

Bake rolls in preheated oven until golden brown, about 15 - 18 minutes. While rolls are baking, beat together cream cheese frosting: 

• 1 (3 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
• 1/4 cup butter, softened
• 1 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/8 teaspoon salt

Spread frosting on rolls while warm and serve - yum!

Enjoy!

 

Click 'Home' and take a peek at my other creations.


Lining up to:
Crazy Daisy @ Tuesday Tastes Party

Recipes Galore!

THURSDAY:  Yeah!  Another Creation!

Organizing my recipes into ONE book!

How many dishes do we really make from our mighty collection of recipe books anyways?

This is my nutty recipe collection.  

I can't tell you how many recipe books and magazines I've squandered.

I really only use 1-2  recipes from each publication.

This is what my stash does to me.

It gives me gray hair! 

I need a binder to hold all my true and tried recipes.

One book to be right at my finger tips.

Used tabs to categorize my dishes.

Bought pocket sheet protectors off the Internet. 

The 4 pocket page holds 4x5 cards.

The 3 pocket page holds 4x6 cards.

Awesome daughter made me some personalized recipe cards off the computer.

Transfered my favorite recipes on the cards and slipped them into the pockets.

Printed recipes from favorite sites and slid them into large sheet protectors.

Allrecipes has tons of recipes.

Our Best Bites is another yummy site.

I just found The Girl Who Ate Everything with great recipes too.

About every 6 months I add new recipes to my binder.

Now when I cook and bake I ONLY refer to ONE book.

Triumph!

No more gray hair!

Click 'Home' and take a peek at my other creations.

Linking up to:
We're Organized Wed @ Organize and Decorate Everything
Strut Your Stuff @ Somewhat Simple

Vanilla Ice Cream

TUESDAY:  A Tasty Creation!

A month ago I entered a give-away at  Finding Joy In My Kitchen and won!

I won this Cuisinart Ice Cream Maker!

Thank you!

I was so excited and so were my kiddies! 

Check out SnoWhite's blog - it's full of yummy tried and true recipes.

It only took four ingredients to make yummy vanilla ice cream.

This little machine will make ice cream, frozen yogurt, sorbet and slushies in 20 - 30 minutes.

Summer is made!

The top looking in.

The kids all died and went to heaven!

It was reported the BEST vanilla ice cream ever!

I was also reported #1 Mom on Monday night!

I think I'll make Oreo cookie ice cream next - mmmmm.

Homemade Vanilla Ice Cream

1 cup milk, well chilled

3/4 cup sugar

2 cups half and half cream

1 - 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

The recipe does call for whole milk and heavy cream.  I used what I had and it turned out nummy!

-Whisk milk and sugar together in a bowl to dissolve sugar.  

-Stir in cream and vanilla.  

-Pour mixture into machine and turn on.  

-Let mix for 25 - 30 minutes.

THAT'S IT!

Enjoy!

 Click 'Home' and take a peek at my other creations.