Not Afraid to Braid

What’s one thing that intimidates you in the kitchen?

For me, it has always been bread.

The yeast, the exact measurements, the sifting, the kneading, the rolling, and the waiting—it would be so much easier to just buy a loaf of bread, right?

But then there’s the wonderful aroma that fills my kitchen and the accomplishment that comes with each successful slice. So I would say that I will mingle with bread making the least I can, and when I do, I usually turn to my bread machine which is a quick fix!

However, lately, I decided it’s time to dive into the world of bread making head on—as in making not just your average loaf, and making not one, but two different braided loaves. With fingers crossed, I waited for both loaves to rise—check. Then watched as it slowly browned in the oven—check. Let it cool and then cut it into even slices—check. Taste? Check! Appearance? Check! Success? Double check!

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“Bread is the king of the table and all else is merely the court that surrounds the king. The countries are the soup, the meat, the vegetables, the salad but bread is king.”
Louis Bromfield, American novelist

Chocolate Braids

Serves: 16

Ingredients:

2 packages (1/4 ounce each) active dry yeast

1/2 cup warm water (110° to 115°)

1/3 cup honey, divided

6 tablespoons butter, softened

1 egg

1/2 cup baking cocoa

1/2 teaspoon salt

2-1/2 to 3 cups bread flour

CREAM CHEESE FILLING:

4 ounces cream cheese, softened

1/4 cup sugar

1/4 cup all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

TOPPING:

1/4 cup all-purpose flour

1/4 cup sugar

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

2 tablespoons cold butter

1/4 cup chopped macadamia nuts

ICING:

1-1/2 cups confectioners' sugar

1 tablespoon baking cocoa

1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

3 to 4 tablespoons milk

Directions:

In a large bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water. Add 2 teaspoons honey; let stand for 5 minutes. Add the butter, egg, cocoa, salt, 1-1/2 cups bread flour and remaining honey. Beat for 2 minutes or until smooth. Stir in enough remaining bread flour to form a soft dough.

Turn onto a floured surface; knead until smooth and elastic, about 6-8 minutes. Place in a greased bowl, turning once to grease top. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1 hour.

Punch dough down; divide in half. On a lightly floured surface, roll one portion into a 12-in. x 7-in. rectangle.

In a small bowl, beat filling ingredients until smooth. Spread half of the filling over dough to within 1 in. of edges. Roll up jelly-roll style, starting with a long side; pinch seams to seal.

Place seam side down on a large greased baking sheet. With a sharp knife, cut roll in half lengthwise, leaving one end intact. Carefully turn cut sides up. Loosely twist strips around each other, keeping cut side up. Pinch ends to seal. Repeat with remaining dough and filling. Cover and let rise in a warm place for 30 minutes.

For topping, combine the flour, sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl; cut in butter until crumbly. Add nuts. Sprinkle over loaves.

Bake at 350° for 30-35 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from pans to wire racks to cool. Combine icing ingredients; drizzle over loaves.

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Frosted Caramel Nut Braid

Serves: 10

Ingredients:

1 (.25 ounce) package active dry yeast

1/4 cup warm water (105 degrees to 115 degrees)

1 cup warm milk (110 to 115 degrees F)

2 eggs

1/4 cup sugar

1/4 cup butter or margarine, softened

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

4 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

CARAMEL FILLING:

1 cup chopped pecans

2/3 cup packed brown sugar

1/3 cup butter or margarine, softened

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

FROSTING:

1/3 cup butter or margarine, softened

2 cups confectioners' sugar

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

3 teaspoons water

1/4 cup chopped pecans

Directions:

• In a mixing bowl, dissolve yeast in water. Add milk, eggs, sugar, butter, salt and 2 cups four; beat until smooth. Add enough remaining flour to form a soft but sticky dough. Do not knead. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1-1/2 hours. Beat 25 strokes with a spoon; turn onto a well-floured surface.
• Roll into a 16-in. x 12-in. rectangle. Combine filling ingredients with a fork; spread evenly over the dough. Cut dough lengthwise into three strips. Roll up jelly-roll style, beginning at a long end; pinch edges and ends to seal. Place three rolls diagonally, seam side down, on a foil-lined 15-in. x 10-in. x 1-in. baking pan. Braid ropes together gently (do not stretch); seal ends. Cover and let rise until doubled, about 1 hour.

• Bake at 350 degrees F for 25-30 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from pan and cool slightly on wire rack.
• For frosting, heat butter in a saucepan over low heat until golden brown; cool slightly. Stir in sugar and vanilla. Stir in enough water to make a spreadable consistency. Frost top of braid; immediately sprinkle with pecans.

Gourmet Goodies

 

Good Monday morning all.

How did the weekend go? Lots of candy, costumes and all things spooky? I did the norm—shopping, baking, cooking, cleaning, and actually got around to playing my Wii for awhile. Did you notice something missing there? No homework! Yes, it was a dream, and I savored the fact that I didn’t have to crack the books for once.

So I know everyone is probably tired of hearing/seeing candy after Halloween, but you must give these sweet treats a chance! They are not typical candy, but something I like to call gourmet goodies. I recently was so lucky as to have a chance to sample the divine Amella Caramels. Here’s a bit about the company:

  Our team at Artisan Cocoa has created an exciting and new taste sensation for you to enjoy.  Amellas are an all-natural buttery caramel made using pure cocoa butter, real fruits, nuts, and vegetables all hand dipped in the finest chocolate.

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They make 3 amazing flavors of caramels:

• Carrot Cake
• Passion Fruit
• Black Forest

If the names don’t have you salivating, the pictures will!

My Chew Review

Carrot Cake

If you’ve been reading my blog for awhile, you know I am a die-hard carrot cake fan—but in cake form. In caramel form, I wasn’t so sure. It sounded amazing, but how could they capture that carrot cake taste and place it in a caramel form with an equal great taste experience? Apparently I don’t have to worry about it because the folks at Amella Caramels figured it out for me! I was in love at first bite! It was actually a really crazy experience, because you bite into it thinking your going to get a fluffy cake texture, but instead it’s a smooth and chewier texture, but still has that carrot cake taste—I was amazed! Not only is this flavor delicious, it also has a great visual appeal with a dark carrot hue, bits of roasted pecans, and the “icing” is a tasty layer of white chocolate. My favorite of the three!

Black Forest

Check out the details in these caramels! You can definitely tell they are handmade with tender loving care. I am a huge cherry fan, and love that this caramel is 70% dark chocolate. You better believe it makes for a rich and satisfying chocolate experience. Although the chocolate flavor is present, it doesn’t overwhelm the rest of the cherry and vanilla flavors, it balances out perfectly. I also really like the addition of the dark chocolate sprinkles as well. Second favorite!

Passion Fruit

Who would have thought that a fruit flavor and a caramel flavor together would meld into another one-of-a-kind caramel experience? I sure didn’t until biting into the Passion Fruit caramel. The slight tart taste of the passion fruit somehow highlights the creamy caramel deliciousness. It’s hard to explain—it’s one of those things you need to taste for yourself! This is good, however it would be one that I would eat occasionally—not everyday more often like the Carrot Cake flavor.

Overall thoughts:

Amella Caramels are to die for! If you’ve never experienced the delight of trying cocoa butter caramels, don’t hold off too much longer! I have a feeling I am going to be slightly disappointed when eating everyday caramels now, just because these take it up a notch…or five! =)

Another noted thing I like about the caramels is how they’re packaged—it makes the whole experience a little more fun!

Plus the nutritionals for these caramels aren’t half bad meaning you can eat more of them. Check those out here.

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Amella Caramels would also make a fantastic gift for the upcoming holiday season. I am hoping Santa would possibly leave some under my tree.

Thanks again to the wonderful caramel creators at Amella Caramels for the awesome opportunity to spread the word!

Feels Like Fall Friday

Colorful leaves, mild weather, shorter days, and of course all that great fall food. The fall season is easily my favorite time of year—with the exception of what comes next—winter.

I came across this great website called Sustainable Table which allows you to select your state and month to see what you can expect to see in season in your grocery store.

Here’s some of my favorites in season here:

• Cucumbers
• Eggplant
• Fennel
• Lettuce
• Mushrooms
• Onions
• Peppers
• Plums
• Potatoes
• Raspberries
• Squash
• Strawberries
• Sweet corn
• Tomatoes
• Zucchini

What favorites are in season where you are?

Today I thought would be the perfect day to kick off my annual fall baking. This recipe is fast and easy—it is based on a mix, which I usually prefer from scratch, but I’ve had this mix sitting around and I just wanted to use it. Enjoy!

Caramel Apple Bars

Yields: 36 Bars

Ingredients:

• 1/2 C cold butter
• 1 pouch(1lb 15 oz) oatmeal cookie mix
• 1 egg
• 1 C finely chopped peeled apple
• 3/4 C caramel topping
• 1/4 c all-purpose flour
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon

Directions

• Heat oven to 350 F. Spray bottom of 13 x 9 inch pan with cooking spray.
• In large bowl, cut butter into cookie mix using fork or pastry blender. Stir in egg and cinnamon. Mix until mixture becomes crumbly.

 

• Reserve 1 1/2 c cup cookie mixture. Press remaining cookie mixture into the bottom of the pan. Bake 15 mins. Sprinkle apple over crust. In small bowl, mix caramel topping and flour, drizzle over apples. Sprinkle reserved cookie mixture over apples.

• Bake 20-25 minutes or until golden brown. Cool completely. Cut bars into 9 rows by 4 rows.

Come back for a weekend slurp smack down!

The Girl Scout Pledge

  I thought for sure by the middle of May, we would be mowing the grass, unpacking shorts, etc., but this morning when I woke up I realized mother nature is way too unpredictable, and I am becoming less and less fond of her! There was a sprinkling of none other than SNOW on the ground & it is still flaking down during mid-morning. What a way to start a “supposed to be spring” day right? Good thing tomorrow is supposed to be warmer, so these unwanted flakes will be gone before long! But, there’s always an up-side to everything, and when the weather isn’t the best, it gives me an excuse to bake. =) When I heard that my mom or dad didn’t get a visit from the Girl Scouts this year, I was shocked, and I know they were secretly disappointed that there’s no cookies! So, I decided to play Superwoman and try my hand at making some homemade Girl Scout cookies. Of course their favorite are the Samoas, which looked and sounded hard/complicated to make, but hey you never know unless you try—and boy am I glad(and my mom&dad)that I tried! You can get the recipe here. I did make a change though—I omitted dipping each bottom of the bar in chocolate, because there was plenty of chocolate already on top. The recipe called for 10 oz of chocolate, I used just 1/2 C of semi-sweet chips and the chocolate flavor was just right! So check out my step-by-step picture tutorial that you can pair with the recipe, since it didn’t already have one =)