Easy French Bread

Easy French Bread 


This is from Michael's Aunt Lisa, and I've made it at least three times already. The title is honest! It really is easy! And delicious. Mmmm, my favorite french bread ever (and I've tried the genuine stuff, too).

Easy French Bread

2 1/2 cups warm water
2 TBS yeast

Put yeast in warm water in a LARGE bowl and let proof for about 5-10 minutes (it will probably only take 10 minutes if the yeast came straight from the freezer). The original recipe requests that you avoid stirring the yeast...but I can't resist! I always end up stirring it at the end of the ten minutes.

2 TBS sugar
1 TBS salt
2 TBS oil
6 cups flour

Add the sugar, salt and oil to the yeast water and mix. Add the flour cup by cup, mixing thoroughly. After 10 minutes, punch down the dough. Punch it down every ten minutes for an hour.

I like to make tally marks on a paper nearby and keep a kitchen timer handy. I don't have a kitchenaid or really anything comparable, so I do this perhaps a bit primitively... all I really need after mixing in the flour is a spatula, which I use both to scrape the sides of the bowl and punch down the dough throughout the hour.

Around the 4th or 5th punching, preheat the oven for 400* and grease a cookie sheet. I like using a stick of butter to grease it.
When the hour is up, spread just a little bit of oil on the countertop.

TIP: The reason I use oil instead of more flour is it keep the bread from becoming too dry. I also prefer its efficiency for keeping my hands from getting sticky.

Split the dough in two and shape into loaves.
NOTE: this recipe doesn't require any kneading. The punching took care of that. The punching also makes this a really dense bread, so it's very moist (dense is good).
Place on cookie sheet and brush with either milk or melted butter (I prefer butter). Sprinkle with sesame seeds if desired. Slit tops.
Bake for 30 minutes.


Also makes amazing french toast for breakfast the next morning, delicious garlic bread as a side for spaghetti, and even pretty decent grilled cheese sandwiches.

For cheat garlic bread, butter slices and sprinkle with Garlic Salt. If the bread isn't fresh from the oven, place the prepared slices on a cookie sheet in an oven either set on Broil or about 350* for only a minute or two. Sometimes I even leave the oven door open so I can better monitor the bread--it doesn't take long to toast it!

*when doing sticky/messy recipes, I tie my wedding ring to my apron strings. I've even written notes on those recipes to remind myself to do this--and especially to put it back on once I'm finished!*

This dough doesn't have to rise the full hour to be successful.

Homemade Macaroni and Cheese

Homemade Macaroni and Cheese

(Optional) Bake: 350* for 20 to 25 minutes

2 cups uncooked elbow macaroni (7 oz.)

1/4 cup butter

1/4 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp pepper

1/4 tsp ground mustard

1/4 tsp Worcestershire sauce (can do without if necessary)

2 cups milk

2 cups shredded or cubed Cheddar cheese (8 oz.)

If baking, heat oven to 350*. Liz likes to leave the dish creamy and saves herself the baking time. It's good both ways; I prefer it baked just because it feels like proof that it's homemade (and it's how my mom always made it).

Cook macaroni as directed on package. While macaroni is cooking, melt butter in 3-quart saucepan over low heat. Stir in flour, salt, pepper, mustard and Worcestershire sauce. Those first 4 ingredients are your basic white sauce. Cook over medium low heat, stirring constantly, until mixture is smooth and bubbly; remove from heat.

Stir in milk. Heat to boiling, stirring constantly. Boil and stir 1 minute.

Stir in cheese. Cook, stirring occasionally, until cheese is melted.

Drain macaroni. Gently stir macaroni into cheese sauce. Pour into non-greased 2-quart casserole dish. Here's where you'd stop if you prefer it creamy.

Bake uncovered 20 to 25 minutes.

Easily doubled; pour drained noodles into serving dish, then pour cheese sauce over noodles and stir gently.

Deluxe version: add different varieties of cheese, such as velveeta, either as a blend with the original or in place of the original. Same with noodles! Try other kinds, either blended with or replacing original noodles.

Nice topped with sprinkling of pepper and sliced tomatoes.

Orange Julius

Orange Julius

1/2 can frozen orange juice concentrate (6 of the 12 oz.)
12 ice cubes (about one tray)
1 cup water
1 cup milk
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla

Dump ice cubes into blender first.
Thaw the can of orange juice a little under hot water to loosen the juice. Scoop half the juice into the blender.
Follow with remaining ingredients, blend until well mixed. Serve immediately (although...we've kept some in the fridge when we can't manage to finish it, and it's actually still very delicious--just kind of shake it to mix it up again).

Crumb Top Coffee Cake

Crumb Top Coffee Cake

Bake: 30 minutes @ 375*

TOPPING - I doubled the topping; there really wasn't enough for my taste otherwise, but if this is too much for you, cut it in half!

1 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup sifted all-purpose flour (always sift before measuring)

1/2 cup butter, room temperature (not melted!!!)

2 tsp cinnamon

CAKE

1 1/2 cups sifted all-purpose flour

2 1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

~

1 egg, beaten

3/4 cup sugar

1/3 cup melted butter

1/2 cup milk

1 tsp vanilla extract

In small mixing bowl, combine topping ingredients. Blend with fork until crumbly (I like to use my pastry blender). Set aside.

Sift baking powder and salt with 1 1/2 cups sifted flour into a bowl. I skip the extra sifting and just blend the sifted flour with the baking powder and salt, but only because I'm perhaps a bit lazy. I don't always even sift the flour to start with. In other words, it works when you don't, but there's a reason it's part of the recipe!

In a medium bowl, beat together beaten egg and 3/4 cup sugar and 1/3 cup melted butter. Add milk and vanilla. Stir in flour mixture and mix well.

Pour batter into a greased and floured 8- or 9-inch layer-cake pan. Or a 2-quart square pan, don't worry if you don't have the "right" pan.

Sprinkle topping crumb mixture evenly over batter.

Bake at 375* for 25 to 30 minutes, or until cake tests done. Partially cool in pan on wire rack. Cut cake while still warm.

French Toast

French Toast

2 eggs, beaten

1/2 cup milk

1 TBS sugar

1 tsp vanilla

1/4 tsp ground cinnamon (optional)

1/8 tsp ground nutmeg (optional)

about 4 slices of bread --try this with my french bread recipe, it's heavenly!

butter

In a shallow mixing bowl (I know this is very dorky and ghetto, but I use a bread pan because it is the perfect shape for my french bread slices), beat together eggs, milk, sugar, vanilla, and if desired, cinnamon and nutmeg. Dip bread into egg mixture, letting it soak about 10 seconds on each side (this is important!). If using regular white bread, a little dip for each side will suffice.

In a skillet or on a griddle melt about 1 TBS butter over medium heat. Add bread slices and cook for 2 to 3 minutes on each side or until golden brown.

Serve warm with syrup or powdered sugar...or fruit...or jam...etc. :)

I keep a little whisk handy to remix everything between bread dippings because the ingredients tend to part a little bit.

This made something like 6 to 8 slices for us. The recipe is easily doubled.

Crepes

Crepes

2 eggs, beaten

1.5 cups milk

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 TBS cooking oil

1/4 tsp salt

1. In a medium mixing bowl combine eggs, milk, flour, oil and salt; beat until combined.

2. Heat a lightly greased 6-inch skillet (medium heat works great); remove from heat. Spoon in 2 TBS batter; lift and tilt skillet to spread batter. Return to heat; brown on one side only. (Or cook on a crepe maker.) Invert the crepe onto a paper towel. Repeat with remaining batter, greasing skillet occasionally.

Make-ahead directions: Prepare as above. Layer cooled crepes with sheets of waxed paper in an airtight container; freeze up to 4 months. Thaw at room temperature for 1 hours before using.

Banana Sheet Cake

Banana Sheet Cake
(For the HALVED recipe, click here)
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 cup sour cream OR plain yogurt
1 cup butter (or 1/2 cup butter and 1/2 cup margarine)
2 eggs
1 1/2 cup mashed bananas (about 3 medium)
2 tsp vanilla
1 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
2 cups flour

Preheat oven to 375

°

. Grease 10x15 baking sheet.
Combine all ingredients in a large bowl and spread onto baking sheet.
Bake 25 minutes or until golden.

OPTIONAL ICING:
Melt 1/2 cup butter on stove top. Remove from heat and add:
2 cups powdered sugar
1 tsp vanilla
3 TBS milk
Stir until smooth and spread on warm cake.

Boiled Eggs

Just in case you wondered! I learned a lot, myself, when I decided to find out the exact "recipe" to do this.

1. Fresher eggs are harder to peel because the membranes are still very attached to the shell. I've read that it helps to use eggs that have been in the fridge about a week already.
2. Place eggs in saucepan large enough to hold them in single layer. Add cold water to cover eggs by 1 inch. Heat over high heat just to boiling. REMOVE from burner. Cover pan. (This prevents the eggs from overcooking and developing the green coloration around the yolk--which I've learned is caused by a reaction of sulfur in the egg white and iron in the yolk!).
3. Let eggs stand in hot water about 15 minutes for large eggs (12 minutes for medium eggs; 18 minutes for extra large).
4. Drain immediately and serve warm. OR, cool completely under cold running water or in bowl of ice water, then refrigerate.
5. TO PEEL: (easiest while eggs are cold or under cold water because the cold helps the egg to contract inside the shell) Either roll the egg on the countertop with your palm (or between both hands) until the shell is completely crackled. Then peel open the large end and slide the egg out. OR, whack the eggs with the convex side of a spoon until it's completely crackled. Then peel open the large end and coax the spoon inside. Slide the spoon around the egg until the egg is detached from the shell. Slip crackled shell off egg. 
6. Mom always wrote the date on the shells of hard boiled eggs if she planned to keep them in the fridge. Store the eggs in their carton up to a week if they're unpeeled. You should eat eggs the same day you peel them.