Baking bread, french style March 28, 2009

Hey, how are you?

Yesterday I baked some bread. I love this recipe, it is easy, and the bread is really really good!

So, if you want the recipe, just keep reading!

FRENCH BREAD

You will need:

- 1 1/2 tbsp dry active yeast
- 1/2 cup warm water
- 1/2 tsp sugar
- 2 cups warm water
- 1 tbsp salt
- 1/2 cup oil (olive or vegetable)
- 6 cups flour

How to:

Ok, if you are a first timer in making your bread, don’t be afraid! All you need to do is make sure your yeast is active. For that, when you put the yeast in warm water, it has to “bubble” a little bit (or a lot).

Then you have to make sure that you are using warm water. I don’t know the temperature, what I do is let the warm water running and when I can’t stand my finger because it is too hot, then I fill my measurement cup with the water. Does that make sense to you? Anyway it works for me!

So, you will begin by mixing the sugar, the yeast and the 1/2 cup warm water. Set it aside.

Take a big bowl, and put the salt, the oil and the 2 cups warm water. Then add 3 cups of flour. Mix well. I do everything by hand but if you want to use a processor it is fine.

So, now take a look at your yeast. Is it bubbling? Is it creamy? Fine, you can add it to the bowl.

Mix, mix well. Add the rest of the flour and keep mixing.

This dough is sticky, so don’t panic, that’s OK. When you can have a big ball of dough which stays together, take a clean bowl (big cause it will rise), put the dough in it, cover with a clean cloth and let it rise for an hour.

It will double size. Take the dough, put it in a floured counter top or cutting board. Flour your hands, be generous, it is still sticky!

Preheat your oven at 400F.

Now comes the nice part, knead the dough, you have to pull out the air. How I do it? Make like a flat square pushing down hard, then fold it in half and half and repeat. Knead the dough rolling it, making a ball, flatten it, and again a ball. Add flour to your work surface to avoid sticking.

Take a big cookie sheet, put some flour on it. Now you can shape your bread. You can cut it into 2 or 3 loaves. Make a flat rectangle with your dough, and then roll it, like a snake. Repeat with each loaf. Put them on the cookie sheet.

With a wet knife, make some cuts on the top to help rising while baking.

Let them “rest” for 15 minutes. Bake your bread for 30 minutes at 400 F. If you want a nice color, after 10 minutes baking, brush the top with a beaten egg.

That’s it! A little time consuming but isn’t it smelling good? When you will be used to it, you will do this recipe in the blink of an eye!

I found this nice website if you want more recipes, they also have a forum where you can find helpful tips! THE FRESH LOAF.

I hope you liked this recipe and you will give it a try!

Leave your comments!

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Crepes: my childhood recipe March 24, 2009

Today, I want to share one of the most appreciated, easy, versatile and yummy of all my recipes!

Crepes! They are like pancakes but thinner, and we love them.

I like to eat them filled with fresh fruit and chocolate or cream, with just some marmalade or sugar, or in fancy dessert like crepe cake.

We also love them salty, with ham, mushrooms, eggs, oregano and more…

They are a big part of my childhood, I remember my grandma used to do them for us after school. I like to do them for my family often, especially for a Sunday dinner. I do a batch of salty and then some sweet. They are always a hit!

So don’t be afraid by crepes, give it a try and experiment with them! Here is my recipe:

CREPES

You will need:

- 1 1/2 cup all purpose flour
- 3 large eggs
- 1 tbsp sugar (or salt)
- 1/4 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1 1/2 cup milk
- 1/2 cup water

How to:

In a large bowl mix the flour, the baking powder, baking soda and sugar. Make a hole in the center and add the eggs. Beat well. Then add the milk a bit a time, mixing well to incorporate it. Then add the water mixing well.

For french style crepes, add some brandy and 1 tsp orange flavor (eau de fleur d’oranger).

You will need a nice non stick skillet. Heat it, grease it a little bit (I use coconut oil) and pour about 1/4 cup of this dough, moving the skillet to allow dough to expand. When the dough is done (about 2 minutes), take the crepe and flip it to cook the other side (about 1 minute).

You have to know that the first crepe is ALWAYS not good, I don’t know why but that’s the way it is. The second is much better!

At the beginning, you will have to try several times, until you find the right amount of grease, heat, dough, and time. The experience is key to make good crepes, that’s why grandma’s crepes are always the best!

I hope you will enjoy this recipe as much as I do! Have a nice day…

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Menu planning, how it can help you and your budget March 23, 2009

Hey, I hope you all had a terrific week end!

Today I want to share with you some tips to build menu planning and shopping lists. If you are not an adept of menu planning yet, you will see all the many advantages to do it.

I do my menu planning each Monday morning. To do that efficiently, I use my recipes, sometimes also the adds from grocery stores to see what is “special price” this week, and those charts:

You can download them for free in a PDF file HERE.

Menu planning is great for several reasons. First you will feel better avoiding the daily question ” what is for dinner tonight?” by printing your menu planning and putting it on your fridge or some place where everyone can see it.

You can preparing stuff by advance and so save a lot of time. You can prepare your shopping list at the same time and so save money by buying just what you need and eating just and all what you bought.

If you want to go further, you can prepare menu planning monthly, and set a a cooking/baking day. You will save a lot of time doing that. You can prepare a lot of meals and freeze them, so you then just have to heat them for dinner!

Menu planning is also very good to keep you well with a diet. Writing down your menus, you can see exactly what you eat, calculate calories, and “oblige” you to eat what you previously planned. No more “I don’t have anything prepared for tonight, let’s order a pizza”…

Well, I think you will have some idea about what is menu planning and how it can help you greatly in your daily life.

I hope this post was useful!

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Easy and quick pizza dough! March 16, 2009

Today I will share with you my favorite pizza recipe! Yummy!

I love pizza! My husband too! And, it is a mystery, our daughter doesn’t like pizza!

Anyway, every person who tasted my pizza loved it (except my daughter!).

I especially like this recipe because it is so easy, and quick. You don’t have to wait for the dough to rise, and the ingredients for the topping are simple and fresh for a great result!

It is the perfect recipe for unscheduled visits. So, I hope you will like it as much as we do!

EASY AND QUICK PIZZA

You will need:

For the dough:
- 3 cup all purpose flour
- 1 cup warm water
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp sugar
- 2 tsp active dry yeast
2 tbsp olive oil

For the topping:
- ham
- tomato sauce
- grated mozzarella cheese

How to:

So, first you will dissolve the yeast in the water. It has to be warm! Let it set for awhile. In a big bowl put the flour, the salt and the sugar. Mix well.

Then, add the water to the flour. You have to mix very well until it is soft. Then add the olive oil. You will knead the dough for about 10 minutes very well. You will notice it becomes easier.

Let the dough set for 10 minutes in the bowl, covered. Meanwhile you can prepare the topping grating the cheese and cutting the ham in thin pieces.

I like to add some fresh mushrooms, if you do so, prepare them now by cleaning and slicing them.

Put the dough on your counter top or any flat surface. Put some flour so it doesn’t stick. Knead the dough a bit more for 4-5 minutes, then flat the dough and shape it however you want.

Put it on a cookie sheet or a pizza stone, add the tomato sauce, the ham, mushrooms and top with the cheese. You can add some Italian seasoning, or as we do, some oregano.

Bake it immediately for 15 minutes at 375F or until the cheese is melted and the dough is done.

You are done! Enjoy!

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What to do with a ton of lemons?? March 4, 2009

I recently received one huge bag of lemons from a friend, and another huge bag of lemons from our neighbors, and another one from another friend…

This makes A LOT of lemons!! What should I do with them??

I will tell you! I am doing those days all kind of lemony stuff!

First I did lemonade, of course, and sorbet, and cookies, and pies, and marmalade, and candied lemon peels, …

If you are turning insane wondering what you will do with a huge amount of lemons, then keep reading!

Here are all my recipes !

First what I recommend is to do some (a lot!) of lemon juice, pure, that you will keep in jars in your freezer. It will be very practical when you want to do lemonade, or sorbet, to have it ready!

So, my first recipe is

• LEMONADE:

You will take one cup lemon juice and one cup sugar. Put it in a bottle and fill with water. You can add sugar if you think it is too lemony.

• LEMON SORBET

It is basically the same than the lemonade. You have to warm one cup water, add one cup sugar stirring until dissolved. Let it cool.

Then pour it in your ice cream maker and add the lemon juice. Let it mix 15 minutes or until you can see it is done.

Pour it in a container that you will place in the freezer, let it set 30 minutes. Enjoy!

You can double or triple (or more!) this recipe. If you don’t have an ice cream maker, just mix well the sugar-water with the lemon juice and put it in a container in the freezer for 15 minutes, then stir it a little bit, put it again 30 minutes and that’s it!

• LEMON MARMALADE

You will need:

10 lemons
4 Cup water
4 Cup sugar

How to:

Remove the yellow part of the peel with a vegetable peeler, cut it in very thin strips. If you don’t like the strips in your marmalade, then you can rape the yellow skin (like in the picture).Keep it in a bowl.

Cut off all the white membrane and skin.

Cut the peeled lemons crosswise in small slices.

Put the yellow peel, the sliced fruit in the water. Cover and refrigerate for 4 hours.

Heat the mixture to a boil. Reduce to low. Cover and simmer until peel and fruit are soft. It takes approximately one hour.

Let it cool and set for 30 minutes. Then heat it again to a boil, reduce the heat, it has to boil very gently during approximately one hour.

You have to take the temperature with a candy thermometer. It has to go to 220 F. Then, stir well during 15 minutes.

That’s it! You have to sterilize your jars, pour the marmalade and let them set 2 days before eating.

• LEMON COOKIES

You will need:

3 cups all purpose flour
1 cup butter
1 cup sugar
2 tsp baking powder
1 egg
2 tbsp lemon zest (raped)
1 tbsp lemon juice

How to:

In a bowl cream the sugar with the softened butter and the egg. Add the lemon juice and zest. Mix until well incorporated.

Add the flour/baking powder.

Mix well, when it is well incorporated and you have a creamy texture, form the cookies and place them on a cookie sheet. Bake them at 375F for 15 minutes or until they are gold/brown.

Let them cool before remove them and eat them!

Those cookies are a perfect treat with tea!

You will find my LEMON TART recipe HERE

• LEMON POUND CAKE

You will need:

2 3/4 cups all purpose flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
3 sticks butter (1 1/2 cup)
2 cups sugar
6 eggs
1 cup milk
1 tbsp lemon zest
1/2 cup lemon juice

How to:

Mix together the flour, the baking powder and the salt.

In another bowl, cream the butter and the sugar. Add the eggs one by one, mixing well. Then add the milk and the flour.

Finally add the lemon juice and zest.

Bake the cake at 350 F for about 25 minutes. When your knife comes out of the cake clean, it means it is ready!:)

• LEMON BARS

You will need:

1 1/3 cup all purpose flour
5 tbsp brown sugar
8 tbsp butter
4 eggs
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/2 cup sugar
3/4 cup lemon juice
2 tsp lemon zest

How to:

Using your food processor, mix flour and brown sugar until well incorporated. Cut the butter, cold, in small cubes. Add it to the flour/sugar, mix well until butter is reduced to tiny pieces and dough appears lumpy.

Sprinkle this crust in a big baking pan. Use a spatula to press down to obtain a packed surface. Bake it at 350F until brown (20 minutes).

While the crust is baking, mix in a bowl the eggs, the vanilla extract and the sugar. Add the lemon juice and zest.

When the crust is done, immediately pour the lemon mixture on top of it. It has to be hot when you do this!

Bake it about 30 minutes. Let it cool completely before cutting. This makes approximately 20 to 24 bars.

• CANDIED LEMON PEELS

I love these! It just takes a little bit of time but it is well worth it! They make a wonderful treat to give away to family and friends. The recipe is the same for orange or grapefruit peels, just use 4 of them.

You need 6 lemons. Wash them. Cut them in 4. Delicately take the peel off. Cut it in long thin slices.

Put some water in a big pan with the peels, bring it to a good boil. When it starts boiling take the peels off the water and rinse them with cold water.

Through the water away and using new, clean water, repeat this operation 4 times. It will take off the bad taste from the peels.

When you are done put the peels on a clean cloth and let them dry for about 10 minutes. Then measure them and put them in a big pan with the same amount of sugar and water (if you have 1 cup peels, then add 1 cup sugar and 1 cup water).

Heat them very gently on low and let them candy until all the water is evaporated.

Let them cool and dry them overnight (12 hours). You can serve them with some melted dark chocolate. They are to dye for!!

That’s it! This post was VERY LEMONY, I hope you like it!

Tell me if you have more lemon recipes you would like to share!

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Chinese dumplings recipe February 23, 2009

Today I will post my recipe for chinese dumplings!

I really love them, it is a little bit of work for the dough, but it is well worth it!

They are so yummy!

So, here we go for the recipe:

CHINESE PORK DUMPLINGS

You will need:

For the dough:
- 5 cups all purpose flour
- 1 cup or 1 1/4 cup water

For the filling:

- 1 cabbage
- 1 chinese cabbage
- some green onions
- 1 carrot
- 1 pound ground pork
- some mushrooms (optional)
- 3 tablespoon soy sauce
- 2 teaspoon sesame oil
- 2 tablespoon chinese black vinegar

How to:

So, the first thing to do is the dough. You just mix the flour with the water, and the hard part: you have to knead the dough during approximately 20 minutes.
It will be hard on the beginning but then you will feel how the dough becomes soft and easier to knead.
Once it is done, put it in the fridge while you do the filling.

Now you will chop the cabbages, boil water and put them in. When the water boils again, take them out. You have to take off as much liquid as you can from the greens. I use a cloth and “squeeze” them with it.

Then put them in a bowl. Add the ground pork in the bowl.

Now chop the green onions, the mushrooms and the carrot and add them to the bowl.

Add the seasonings and a pinch of salt. Mix it well by hand.

You have your filling!

Now take your dough. Cut the dough in 4 pieces. While you work with one, let the others covered to avoid drying. So take a piece, roll it as a snake and cut it by half, these halves by half, and so on until you have 16 small pieces.

Roll each piece into a flat circle, the dough should be thinner on the edges. Fill your dumpling, with approximately a tablespoon. You can close them by half, or as a small “purse” style.

You will find your personal way, and will do it better the second time!

That’s it, with this recipe you should have approximately 60 dumplings, they freeze very well, so you can froze half if it is too much for your needs.

You can fry them in a pan, steam them or boil them. That is up to you! I do boil them, and they turn out perfect.

If you don’t like pork, you can use shrimps, or you can also do them vegetarian adding some spinach, broccoli etc…

I hope you will enjoy this recipe as much as I do!

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Easy yummy very french lemon tart (tarte au citron) February 19, 2009

Hello y’all! I hope you are having a nice week!

Here I am on my baking days, I am having a batch of muffins in the oven right now.

But the recipe I will post now is the one I did yesterday.

This is definitely my favorite dessert EVER !

I was talking to my friend yesterday, she was telling me how much she loves french food, but it is so complicated, expensive, fancy… for her.

I don’t know why people have this image of french food!

You know, there is a lot of “poor” people in France and they actually eat!

French food is about tradition, local good products, nothing to do with those fancy-super-expensive-big-plate-small-food restaurants!

Anyway, I would like to share with you my favorite recipe! It is easy, cheap, quickly done, and so yummy!!

TARTE AU CITRON MERINGUEE

You will need:

For the crust:

- 2 1/2 cup all purpose flour
- 1 cup butter
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp sugar
- 6 tsp ice water

For the filling:

- 2 lemons
- 4 egg yolks
- 1/2 cup white sugar

For the meringue:

- 4 egg whites
- 1/2 cup sugar

How to:

For the crust, you mix with your fingertips the flour with the butter, then add salt, sugar, and water. Mix it a little bit and form a ball.
Let it set for an hour, then roll it and place it in a pie pan.
Bake it in the oven 10 minutes at 350 F.

Then, you will have to take the zest of 1 lemon, just the yellow part, not the white. Mince it well in very small, thin pieces.
Squeeze the 2 lemons and keep the juice in a bowl.
In another bowl, put the sugar, add the egg yolks (keep the whites for the meringue!!)
Mix well until it turns white and creamy.
Add the juice, mix well to incorporate it, then add the zest and do the same.

Now you can pour the lemon mixture in the pie crust. Put it in the oven at 375 F for approximately 25 minutes.

Your pie is done!

But since we have the egg whites and it is a french recipe, OK, we can add the fancy part!

Whip up the egg whites until firm (it may take 5 to 10 minutes), when it is done, progressively add the sugar and whip 5 more minutes. They have to be shiny and firm.

When the pie is done, put it out the oven and pour or put nicely the meringue on top. Gently! Then put it back in the oven for 5 minutes or until the meringue is brown.

You have to let this pie cool completely before cutting or eating.

I recommend putting it in the fridge for an hour before eating, so the lemon filling will become thicker (when it is hot it is liquid).

It is also very good the next day, I like to do it Saturday night to eat it as a dessert for Sunday lunch.

Did you like it? Leave me a comment to know how it turned out for you!

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Valentines treats, kids, bubbles and more! February 17, 2009

Hi there,

What have you been up for Valentine’s day? Here we didn’t do anything special, I am afraid that we just don’t celebrate this day, in Europe it is not that important.

So, as we were free from any obligation, we decided to babysit our friend’s daughter Amber. She is a sweet 4 year old, like mine, and we had so much fun!

She is also allergic to wheat, so I found a recipe for her without wheat and we have been making coconut macaroons!

The girls had fun and they both loved the final product!

So, here is the picture of my brunette with her blond girlfriend, and here is the recipe!

Coconut and cornflakes macaroons

You will need:

- 3 egg whites

- 1 1/2 cup coconut flakes (sweetened)

- 1 1/2 cup frosted cornflakes

- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract (optional)

How to:

You will have to blend the coconut and cornflakes together. If you have kids who want to help, give them some cornflakes to “scratch” .

Then you have to whip the egg whites. When it is done, add the vanilla extract and then mix the egg whites with the coconut/cornflakes.

With your hands do small balls to make the cookies. Place them on a cookie sheet and bake them for 15-20 minutes at 300F.

You are done! They are so easy to do, yet yummy! And wheat free if you are interested by that!

For more tasty stuff, go check FOREVER WHEREVER,Kim has many great recipes including a chicken noodle soup today!

So this was Saturday night, on Sunday morning I did some pretzels, they were sooo good! If you want the recipe, check HEAVENLY HOMEMAKERS. I made them with all purpose flour and white sugar (I didn’t have honey).

They turned out great!

Then we went to Church, we had good time and we spent the afternoon bubbling!! Yes, this is the new passion of my daughter, she is crazy about making bubbles!

My mother bought her THIS, and it is a hit! Cecilia can spend hours playing with that in the backyard.

I made some research for our homeschooling, you know if we can have fun and education! … So I will share with you some interesting links about bubbles!

You will find a nice story you can read to your kids HERE, Cecilia loved it!

And I found this great resource for homeschooling, a whole lesson about bubbles and recipe to make your own “bubble mix” . Go check it HERE!

For older kids, you should have a look at BUBBLE.ORG, very interesting stuff.

So, that’s it for today!

How did you spend your week end? Leave me a comment!

Chocolate chocolaty cake for blue days! February 10, 2009

Hi there!

I was having a bit trouble finding a nice recipe for this tuesday, but I found it!

Last week I was sick, and those days I am feeling a bit blue, so what a better remedy than a wonderful chocolate cake!!

Here we go for a decadent one!

CHOCOLATE CAKE:

You will need:

- 1 cup dark chocolate

- 1/2 cup butter

- 1/2 cup sugar

- 1/2 cup flour

- 3 eggs, separated

How to:

Ok, this is, as you can see in the ingredients, a very easy recipe, almost ridiculous! but it is soooo good!

So, first melt the chocolate with the butter. Then, add the sugar, the yolks (one by one), and the flour.

Mix well together to have a nice creamy texture. Then you have to whip up the egg whites. When it is done, add them slowly and carefully (do not mix too much).

Poor this in a cake plate and put it in the oven for about 20 minutes at 300F. The cake has to stay fluffy, don’t overbake it.

That’s it! Easy huh?! I am a coconut addict, so I like to add some coconut flakes in it, or/and to decorate the cake! yumm

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“Brioche tressee” ! January 29, 2009

Hello, here I am to post another french recipe, it is brioche, I don’t know how to translate that.

For those who don’t know, it is like a bread, but very light and fluffy. It is so delicious, makes a wonderful breakfast and you can personalize this recipe very easily.

Some example: add raisins, dry cranberries, chocolate chips, vanilla or orange extract, etc…

Here is my recipe:

BRIOCHE TRESSEE

You will need:

- 2 1/4 cup all purpose flour

- 1 cup milk

- 1 egg

- 1 stick butter

- 2 1/2 tablespoon dry active yeast

- 1/2 cup sugar

- 1 teaspoon salt

How to:

Well, this is an easy recipe, but you have to respect the steps. So, first you will have to warm the milk a little bit and dissolve the yeast into it stirring well.

In a bowl, mix the sugar and the egg. In another bowl put the flour and the salt. Do like a hole in the flour and pour the egg-sugar, mix well by hand (I tried several times with a mixer but it doesn’t work!).

Now you pour the milk-yeast. It is very important that the yeast is well dissolved in the milk.

Mix everything together, I know, it is very sticky but don’t add much more flour. Mix until you have a nice ball, then you add the butter (softened but not melted). Mix more with your hand but not too much, just til the butter is well incorporated to the dough.

Now you have to put the dough in a warm place (I put it in the oven with the light on), covered with a cloth. You have to let it at least 2 hours. It will double volume.

Then you have to “work” the dough a little bit, cut into 3 pieces and roll them. Then you will have to form a plait (tresse in french). If you don’t feel like doing that, you can just let it as one loaf, it is just esthetically nicer.

Put the dough in a baking plate like the one in the picture:

You have now to let it covered in a warm place about 2 hours, or until it double volume again.

When it is done, you can put an egg with a pencil on top of it and a little sugar, and then bake it at 340 F for about 30 minutes, or until it has a nice gold color.

That’s it! You can also prepare it on the evening and let the dough overnight on your counter top.

Then you just have to bake it on the morning to have a wonderful breakfast!

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