Cherry-Pecan Bread

This is a bread of the fruit cake variety. It's a quick bread and only has cherries and pecans in it. I wanted to try something different, and this bread is it! My husband feels it's a little dry, but I love the crust! It feels full of caramelized sugar. I think it could have more cherries, but I haven't experimented with that just yet. I'm not sure where I found this recipe anymore, but I found many online that are very similar.

1 4-ounce bottle maraschino cherries (juice reserved)

1 egg, room temperature

1 cup sugar

2 tablespoons butter, melted

1/4 cup each orange juice and water

2 cups all-purpose flour

3 teaspoons baking powder

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

1 cup chopped pecans

1 medium (8"-x-4") loaf pan, greased or Teflon

Preheat the oven to 350°.

Pour off the cherry juice and reserve. There should be 1/4 cup. With a sharp knife, quarter the cherries.

In a mixing or mixer bowl beat the egg, add the cherries, and stir in the sugar and melted butter with a large wooden spoon or spatula. Pour in the cherry and orange juices and water.

On a length of wax paper, sift or stir together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Add these to the liquid, a spoonful at a time, and blend together thoroughly. Add the chopped nuts, and stir in.

Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Push into the corners and level with a spoon or spatula.

Bake until the crust is well browned (and perhaps cracked open) about an hour. When a wooden toothpick inserted in the loaf comes out clean and dry, the loaf is done.

Remove the bread from the oven. Let rest in the pan for 10 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool.

This loaf is better seasoned for a day or so before slicing. Wrap with foil or plastic wrap.

Pain Rapide au Chocolat (Quick Chocolate Bread)

 I love chocolate bread. Love it!! So when I found this recipe in Bernard Clayton's bread book, I had to try it!

4 ounces unsweetened chocolate

1/2 cup (I stick) butter

4 eggs

2/3 cup honey

2 cups fresh or instant mashed potatoes

1/2 cup brandy, rum, or orange juice

2 teaspoons each vanilla extract and grated orange zest

21/4 cups all-purpose flour

4 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

1 large (9"-x-5") or 2 small (7"-x-3") loaf pans, greased orTeflon, lined down one side and up the other with greased wax or parchment paper

Preheat the oven to 350°.

In a double boiler melt the chocolate and butter. Set aside for the moment.

In a medium bowl beat the eggs until they are thick and light­colored. Fold in the honey, mashed potatoes, brandy, rum, or orange juice, vanilla extract, and orange zest. Stir in the chocolate-butter mixture.

In a separate bowl mix together the flour, baking powder, and salt.

Stir 2 cups into the chocolate mixture. The mixture should be a heavy batter. If thin, add the remaining 1/4 cup flour. Stir gently just until moistened.

Pour or spoon the batter into the prepared panes). Push the batter into the corners and smooth the loaves with a rubber spatula.

Place the loaves on the middle shelf of the oven and bake for 1 hour. Test the loaves for doneness with a toothpick, metal skewer, or cake testing pin. If the probe comes out clean and dry, the loaves are done.

Place the pans on a metal rack to cool for 10 minutes before turning the pans on their sides and tugging on the paper to pull the loaves out.

Stuffed Buns

These Asian-inspired but highly-westernized buns were something my college roommate made me a million years ago, and they are still simply delicious. They are as labor-intensive as their Chinese counterpart (包子 baozi). If you do make these delicious buns and then watch episode of the TV show Firefly where Saffron (or as we like to call her in my house, Yo-Saf-Brig) makes Mal a single bao, you're like to get really irritated at the unlikeliness of such an act! Anyway, I don't where my roommate got this recipe but it is definitely worth the work especially if you love mushrooms!! 

Dough

1 pkg yeast

1 cup warm water

1 tbsp sugar

2 tbsp vegetable oil

1 tsp salt

2 3/4 cups flour

Filling

1/4 lb mushrooms

1 onion

1 clove garlic

1 tsp ginger

1/2 cup cashews

1 can bamboo shoots

2 scallions

3 tbsp soy sauce

1 tbsp  dry sherry

1 tsp sugar

1/4 cup water

2 tbsp flour

BUNS:

In a large bowl, dissolve yeast in the warm water; blend in sugar, oil, and salt.  Let stand until bubbly (about 15 minutes).  Add flour and mix until dough holds together.  Place dough on a lightly floured board and knead until smooth and elastic (about 8 to 10 minutes).  Turn dough over in a greased bowl; cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled (about 1 hour).

FILLING:

Chop the mushrooms, onion, cashews, bamboo shoots, and scallions.  Mince the galric and ginger. In a bowl combine the soy sauce, sherry, sugar, water, and flour.  Heat the oil in a wok over high heat.  Add the mushrooms, onion, garlic, and ginger and stir-fry for 3 minutes.  Add bamboo shoots, cashews, and green onions and cook for 2 minutes.  Pour in soy mixture and cook, stirring, until sauce bubbles and thickens.  Stir in 1-teaspoon sesame oil.  Remove pan from heat; cool and set aside.

Turn dough out onto a lightly floured board and knead for 1 minute.  Cut dough into 12 equal pieces.

Roll each piece into a round about 4½ inches in diameter.  Press outside edge of round to make it slightly thinner than the rest of the dough.  Place about 2 tablespoons filling in center of each round.  Pull edges of dough up around filling and twist to seal.

Place buns about 2 inches apart on a greased cookie sheet.  Cover and let rise in a warm place until puffy and light (about 30 minutes).  Melt butter; brush over tops.  Bake in a 350° oven until bottoms of buns turn golden brown (about 15 minutes).

Pumpernickel Cheese Hearts

I love stuffed buns. This one is delicious. Pumpernickel is a strong flavor that I think is totally balanced by the sharp cheddar. This recipe is from David Simmons. We just watched the Desolation of Smaug, and I feel this would be a wonderful bun for a hobbit on an adventure!

3 cups water

3/4 cup white or yellow cornmeal

2 teaspoons salt

1 tablespoon each sugar, shortening, and caraway seeds

2 packages dry yeast

1/4 cup instant potato flakes

2 cups rye flour

21/2 cups whole-wheat flour, approximately

White flour, for dusting

1 10-ounce block sharp Cheddar cheese

1 egg, beaten, mixed with 1 teaspoon water

2 tablespoons caraway seeds (optional)

1 baking sheet, Teflon, greased, or covered with parchment paper

In a saucepan stir water into the cornmeal and cook over low heat. Stir constantly, until thick and smooth. Add the salt, sugar, shortening, and 1 tablespoon caraway seeds. Let stand until the mixture is warm (110°) to the touch.

Sprinkle the yeast and potato flakes into the warm mixture and blend in. Stir in the rye flour. This can be done with the mixer flat beater as well as by hand.

Add sufficient whole-wheat flour to form a ball. It will be sticky at the beginning. Let it stand for 5 minutes, until the flours have fully absorbed the moisture.

Turn out onto a work surface that is liberally sprinkled with white flour. It will be helpful to use a spatula or wide putty knife to turn the dough and, at the same time, to keep the work surface scraped clean. The dough will become somewhat elastic and smooth. It will never achieve the elasticity of white dough. Knead for 10 minutes. Add sprinkles of white flour to control stickiness.

Place the dough in a greased bowl, cover tightly with plastic wrap, and put aside at room temperature until the dough has risen to twice its original size, about 11/2 hours.

While the dough is rising, cut the cheese into l1/2”-x- l1/2”-x-l” chunks. I usually buy a stick or block of cheese wrapped in foil, about the size of a stick of butter, and divide it equally into 8 pieces. Set aside.

Punch down the dough and divide it into 8 pieces. Round each into a ball, and let rest for 5 minutes to relax the dough.

With your palm, flatten each ball of dough into a 6" round. Place a block of cheese in the center; draw up the edges to completely envelop the cheese. Pinch and press the edges tightly together. Place on the baking sheet with the seam under.

Place the baking sheet in a warm place, cover with wax or parchment paper, and leave until the rolls have doubled in bulk and are puffy to touch, about 45 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 3750 about 20 minutes before baking.

Uncover the rolls and brush each with the egg-water wash. Sprinkle with caraway seeds, if desired.

Bake on the middle shelf of the oven for 45 minutes until the rolls are browned and test done when tapped on the bottom with a forefinger. They will be crusty and hard.

Remove from the oven and allow the rolls (and cheese) to cool before serving.

Delicious as a snack in itself.

Down East Pumpkin Bread

It's autumn, and I wanted something with pumpkin. A little search of the Internet, and I found this recipe by Laurie Bennett. I never had this when I was living in New England, but it definitely called back my childhood on the New England seacoast! 

1 (15 ounce) can pumpkin puree

4 eggs

1 cup vegetable oil

2/3 cup water

3 cups white sugar

3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking soda

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/2 teaspoon ground cloves

1/4 teaspoon ground ginger

Preheat oven to 350° F. Grease and flour 2 medium loaf pans.

In a large bowl, mix together pumpkin puree, eggs, oil, water and sugar until well blended. 

In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves and ginger. 

Stir the dry ingredients into the pumpkin mixture until just blended. Pour into the prepared pans.

Bake for about 50 minutes in the preheated oven. Loaves are done when toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.