Flax Muffins Recipe

Want to add more omega-3 fatty acids to your diet? Need a bran boost for fiber? Step away from the fish counter and the cereal section, brothers and sisters. Head over to the baking aisle for some flax seed meal, instead.

Flax, both seeds and oil, are great sources of fiber and alpha-linolenic acid, the plant version of omega-3. In fact, it contains 150% more fiber than oatmeal, and 500% more omega-3 than the next highest plant based sources, canola and walnut. With all health benefits, you’d think it would takes like a box of cardboard. Instead, flax has a wonderful nutty flavor.

Flax meal, oil, or whole seeds, can be added to a wide variety of baked goods, cereals, or fruit smoothies.. One of my favorite things to do with flax meal  is to make tasty whole-grain muffins. Who said you can’t have your whole-grains and enjoy them, too?

This recipe is chock full of tasty stuff that just happens to be good for you. For sweetness and moisture we add brown sugar, carrots, apples, and raisins (optional). For increased nuttiness and texture you can add chopped nuts or sunflower seeds. The addition of oat flour adds even more robust flavor. In spite of all of this, these muffins won’t weigh your gut down. They’re actually quite light.

Equipment needed
Measuring cups and spoons
Muffin pans
Paper baking cups
Mixing bowls
Large spoon
Whisk
Cooking spray

Ingredients
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
3/4 cup flaxseed meal
3/4 cup oatmeal or oat flour
1 cup brown sugar
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 /2 cups shredded carrots
2 apples, peeled and finely chopped
1/2 cup raisins (optional)
1 cup chopped pecans, walnuts, or sunflower seeds
3/4 cup milk
2 eggs, beaten
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Lightly grease muffin tins with cooking spray, or line with paper baking cups and set aside. Grind the oatmeal to a fine powder in a spice grinder, or use oat flour.

In a large mixing bowl, mix together the different flours, flaxseed meal, oat flour, brown sugard, baking soda, baking powder, salt and cinnamon. Stir in the apples, carrots, raisins (if using) and chopped nuts or seeds. Set aside.

In a separate bowl, beat together the eggs, milk, and vanilla. Pour the liquid ingredients into the dry ingredients and stir until all is well moistened. Do not over mix!

Fill muffin cups 3/4 full with the batter and bake for 15 – 20 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool in the pan for 5 minutes. Remove from the pan and transfer to cooling racks to completely cool.

Makes approximately 15 muffins.

I like to eat them with jam or cream cheese.

How to Make Garlic Croutons

I used to think of croutons and just dried bread squares. Let's face it. That's what they are. Most of the time the croutons I’d get in restaurants were okay, but once in a while I’d come across things that would be best used in slingshots to kill small rodents. Yes, they were that hard. Freshly made, however, croutons can be a revelation, adding a wonderful crunch and additional flavor to green salads and are a must for a good Caesar salad.

Croutons are simple to make at home. The results are well worth it, too. Certainly they’re better than the flavorless cubed formations you normally find in the supermarket. Baguettes are the classic choice for making croutons, but almost any type of bread will do. I like using homemade wheat bread. Leftover stale bread works great, too.

Equipment needed
Cutting board
Chef’s knife
Garlic press (optional)
Serrated slicing knife
Whisk
Mixing bowls
Rubber spatula (optional)
Rimmed baking sheet

Ingredients
2 large cloves garlic
1/2 loaf of sliced bread
3 Tbl olive oil
1/4 tsp salt

Directions
Adjust an oven rack to the middle position and preheat the oven to 350 °F.

Peel and mince the garlic cloves using a garlic press of chef’s knife. Using a serrated slicing knife, cut the bread slices into 1/2-inch thick strips, then cut each strip into 1/2-inch cubes. You should end up with about 4 cups of bread cubes.

Whisk the olive oil, minced garlic, and salt together in a large mixing bowl. Add the bread cubes and toss with your hands or a rubber spatula until completely coated. Spread the bread evenly onto a rimmed baking sheet. Bake on the center rack until golden brown, about 20 minutes. Allow the croutons to cool before serving.

Makes 4 cups of croutons.


Once made, croutons can be stored in an airtight container for up to a week, although I prefer eating them the day they are made.

Banana Bread, Not Too Sweet

It doesn't happen very often around my house, but once in a while the bananas get a bit ripe before they get eaten. Very ripe bananas are perfect for making banana bread, though. In fact, they're the key to making a moist and flavorful banana bread.

I stole this recipe from the folks at America's Test Kitchen. It was included in an America's Test Kitchen edition of Let's Get Cooking for the Nintendo DS. (I'll give you a full review of that, later.) I don't know if it's the best banana bread I've ever had, but it does have wonderful banana flavor and wasn't overly sweet, like some banana bread can be. I did modify the directions slighlty, based on my own experience and kitchen. Although America's Test Kitchen won't tell you this, it actually tastes better the second day.

This banana bread recipe uses walnuts, but they're optional. You can substitute pecans if you'd like, or simply do without the nuts.

Kitchen Equipment Needed
Mixing bowlsSaucepan
Skillett
Cutting board

Kitchen knife
Measuring cups and spoons

Loaf panWhisk
Rubber spatula

Ingredients
3 very ripe bananas
6 tablespoons butter
2 large eggs
1 1/4 cup walnuts (optional)
Cooking spray
2 cups all purpose flour
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup plain yogurt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

Mash the bananas into paste with a fork. 3 bananas will make about 1 1/2 cups. Melt the butter in a small saucepan. Set aside to cool. Beat the eggs in small bowl; set aside.

Toast the walnuts in a dry skillet over medium heat until toasty and fragrant, about 4 minutes. Remove them from the pan and let them cool a bit. Lightly chop.

Generously spray the loaf pan with the cooking spray.

Whisk the flour, sugar, baking soda and salt together in a large bowl. Whisk the mashed bananas, melted butter, eggs, yoghurt and vanilla together in a separate bowl. Gently fold the banana mixture into the flour mixture until just combined. Fold in the nuts, if using. Do not over mix! The batter should be fairly thick and chunky.

Scrape the batter into the prepared loaf pan with the rubber spatula and smooth the top. Bake on the lower middle oven rack for about 50 - 55 minutes, or until a toothpick can be inserted in the center and come out with just a few crumbs attached.

Remove from the oven and let cool in the pan for 10 minutes. Remove to a wire cooling rack and let it cool completely before serving, about 1 hour.

Makes about 10 slices.

Note: If you don't have 3 very ripe bananas at the same time, freeze them until you do. Frozen bananas, once thawed, work great for this recipe.

Yes, it's my fault the photo is so blurry. Sorry. If you think this one's bad, and it is, you should have seen the other ones. Yeesh.

Bread Maker Pizza Dough Recipe

This is my favorite pizza dough recipe, ever! It's light and tasty, strong enough to hold up to lots of toppings, but with a tender crumb. It's easy to make, too, because it starts life in the bread machine. It does use quite a bit of yeast, so don't be surprised by the ingredients list. It's not a typo.

Ingredients
1 cup water
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoon sugar
3/4 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons oil
1 tablespoon dry yeast

Directions
Add the ingredients to your bread maker in the order recommended by the manufacturer. Set the machine to the Dough cycle and let it run. When done, shape the dough into an 18” round pizza pan or pizza stone and let it rest for ten minutes before adding your favorite toppings. You can also use a sheet cake pan, if you don't have a pizza pan. If the dough is too stiff or springy when shaping, let it rest for a few minutes.

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit. Cook the pizza on the middle oven rack for ten minutes, and then check for bubbles. If you see any large bubbles, pop them. Continue cooking for another 5 to 10 minutes until the crust is golden.

Makes enough dough for one 18” pizza, or 6 individual pizzas.

Christmas Traditions – Aebleskivers

If you're a long-time reader, you may remember that my family spent a generation in Denmark. One of the family recipes that came across the Atlantic when they immigrated to America was for aebleskivers.

Aebleskivers are a cross between a pancake and a popover and are cooked on the stove in a special pan with round wells where the batter is poured and turned as it cooks, giving them their distinctive shape. Most aebleskiver pans are cast iron. There are two varieties available, one for gas stoves and one for electric stoves. The electric stove variety either have a flat bottom or a ring surrounding the wells to better distribute the heat and avoid “hot spots” on the bottom each pocket.

In Denmark, aebleskivers are commonly served before Christmas. In North America, there are several festivals throughout the year that celebrate the aebleskiver and Danish culture.

My mother never made aebleskivers that I remember. Her grandmother made them all the time and became quite famous for them, however. Over the last couple of years my own family has resurrected the old family recipe and the traditions that go with it. I don't use my great-grandmother's old recipe, though. It's a bit too heavy on the eggs. This is another recipe I found in my grandmother's recipe collections, that I like much better, with just a bit of modification to make it easier.

Equipment needed:
Aebleskiver pan
Measuring cups and spoons
Mixing bowls
Hand mixer or whisk
Chopsticks, spoons, or skewers to help turn the aeblesivers while cooking

Ingredients
3 large Eggs, separated
1 cup Milk, or Half and Half
1 cup All-Purpose Flour
3 teaspoons Baking Powder
1 teaspoon Baking Soda
1/4 teaspoon Salt
butter, as needed
powdered sugar as needed for dusting

Directions
Separate the egg yolks and whites. In a small bowl, beat the yolks until smooth. Mix in the milk and set aside.

In a large bowl, beat the egg whites with a hand mixer until stiff peaks form. Set aside.

In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Add the egg yolk mixture and thoroughly mix together. Gently fold in the egg whites.

Heat an aebleskiver pan over medium heat and melt 1/4 teaspoon butter in each well. Pour 1 to 2 tablespoons batter into each well. Begin turning over gradually using a teaspoon or skewer, as soon as the aelbelskivers begin to brown. Keep turning until nicely browned and cooked on all sides (you won't need to turn them over more than once or twice).

Remove from the pan and serve hot, sprinkled with powdered sugar. They are also good with jam or syrup.

You can also stuff these with small chunks of apple, a scant teaspoon of applesauce, bits of ham, cheese, green onion, or whatever suits your fancy. Just drop them into the batter after you put it into the wells, but before turning.


Photo credit: WikiCommons

How to Cook Crepes

Crepes are amazingly versatile, very thin, pancakes. Although the word “crepe” comes from France, many cultures throughout the world have their own variations.

Not only cultures have their own variations, but different people, as well. Some people pronounce it “krape,” as in “grape.” Others pronounce it “krep,” as step. I suspect the former is the English pronunciation and the latter, the French. Most English chef's I watch on TV pronounce it “krape,” and dictionary.com reports it that way, too.

Different people have different batter variations, and even different levels of browning allowed. Some say it should be brown on one side, some say it should be brown on both sides, some more brown on one side than the other, and some say there should be no browning at all. My personal preference is brown on one side and, if it gets a little color on the other side, so be it. I'm not a purist when it comes to these things, but I do like a bit of caramelization when I can get it.

Speaking of not being a purist, crepes can be filled, folded, rolled or otherwise mangled, an infinite number of ways. I've filled them with cream cheese, fruit, sauteed vegetables, meat, eggs, and even peanut butter. They make a great dessert just sprinkled with powdered sugar.

The first time I ever tried crepes was when I was a young boy. My older brother had come back from a mission to Arizona/New Mexico, and made us an alcohol-free version of crepe Suzette. I still don't know how he lit the sugar cubes on fire. I don't remember seeing any liquor anywhere, bur I could be wrong.

I didn't have crepes again until I was an adult, and started making them myself. I'm no expert, and I don't make them very often. Recently, though, I made dinner crepes, filled with leftover ham and vegetables, for my oldest daughter's birthday. She's studying French in school and I like encouraging her, even it's with food.

This recipe is just one of dozens of batter variations I've found and tried. Most people think of two kinds of crepes, savory and dessert. Honestly, a basic crepe recipe can be used for either one. The only difference, here, is that I don't always add the sugar unless I'm making a dessert crepe.

Equipment needed
Measuring cups and spoons
Sieve
Mixing bowls
Whisk
Frying pan or specialized Crepe pan.
Ladle
Plastic wrap

Ingredients
1 cup all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons to 1/4 cup sugar (depending on how sweet you want it)
pinch of salt
2 eggs
1 cup milk
2 tablespoons butter

Directions
Put the flour in the sieve and sift it into a mixing bowl. Add a pinch of salt, and the sugar to the bowl, and whisk together.

Break the eggs into another bowl and beat until scrambled. Add the milk and whisk together. Add the egg mixture to the flour mixture and whisk until smooth.

In a small pan, melt the butter over medium heat until it quits foaming and starts to turn light brown. Be careful! The difference between lightly browned butter and burned butter can be as little as a few seconds. Remove the pan from the heat and quickly mix the melted butter into the batter.

Cover the batter with plastic wrap and let it stand on the counter for one hour. If you want to wait longer, put it in the refrigerator, and then let it come to room temperature before cooking.

I'm not exactly sure why crepe batter needs to rest, but I suspect it has something to do with limiting gluten formation. Maybe one of you gentle readers can tell us.

As for the rest, I leave you the following video. It shows how to cook the crepe in a crepe pan. There are all kinds of specialized pans available if you really want to check them out. I just use my skillet. It works just fine.

I've recently started using a technique I learned from Jacques Pépin's Complete Techniques. It requires one extra step, and seemed a bit odd to me at first, but it ensures that you're get a very thin crepe, regardless of the size of your pan. I'll have to share it with you, someday.






Photo by Wong Mei Teng

French Country-Style Sourdough Bread

Otherwise known as “Pain de Campagne,” this classic French, country-style loaf is a perfect example of what a rustic, sourdough bread should be. It's tangy flavor, dense and springy texture and chewy crust make it a great accompaniment to almost any meal. I think it's great all by itself, with a glass of milk or herbal tea. The addition of rye flour gives it an extra boost to the flavor, although you can substitute whole wheat flour, if you'd like.

The French traditionally proof this dough in a basket to help the dough retain it's shape before they bake it. I don't have a basket so I proof mine in a large mixing bowl, about 8 to 10 inches in diameter. Either way, line the basket/bowl with a dish cloth, dusted with flour before you put the dough in.

Equipment Needed
Mixing bowls
Wooden spoon (plastic is fine)
8" basket for proofing (optional)
2 dish towels
Baking sheet
Cooling rack

Ingredients
1 cup simple sourdough starter
1 teaspoon dry yeast
3/4 cups water
1/3 cup rye flour
2 1/4 cups unbleached flour
1 1/2 teaspoon salt
Extra flour for dusting

Directions
Make sure you have enough sourdough starter on hand. If you refrigerate it, like I do, remove it from the refrigerator and allow it to come to room temperature, while you read the rest of the ingredients.
Remove 1 cup of starter for this recipe. Don't forget to replenish your remaining starter.

Sprinkle the yeast into the water in a small bowl. Let it sit for 5 minutes, and then stir to dissolve. Mix the rye flour, one cup of the unbleached flour, and the salt in a large mixing bowl, making a well in the center.

Pour the sourdough starter and dissolved yeast into to the flour. Using a wooden spoon, mix in the flour from the sides of the well. Add the remaining flour, a little bit at a time, until you form a soft sticky dough. You may not need all the flour.

Lightly flour a clean counter top or other flat work surface. Turn the dough out onto the surface and knead until smooth and elastic – about 10 minutes.

Put the dough into a clean, lightly oiled, mixing bowl and cover with a dish towel. Let the dough rise for 2 hours. Punch down the dough and let it rest for 10 minutes.

Prepare a basket or clean mixing bowl by lining it with lightly floured dished towel. Shape the dough into a round loaf and place in the bowl for proofing. Cover with a clean dish towel and let it rise until double in size, about 1 1/2 hours.

If you want to, you can proof the dough on a lightly floured baking sheet. It will spread out a little more than if you were to proof it in a basket, but it's perfectly acceptable. Doing this will avoid the extra step of getting the dough out of the basket.

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit (220 degrees Celsius)

Remove the top dish towel and dust the top of the loaf with additional flour. Place a baking sheet, upside down, over the basket, centering it over the dough. Gently invert the whole thing. Remove the basket and floured dish towel, revealing the loaf. Dust with additional flour if desired, although you probably won't need to. Cut three or four parallel slashes, approximately 1/4 inch deep, across the dough and three or four at right angles to create a crosshatch pattern in the dough.

Place the dough and pan in the preheated oven and bake for about 1 hour, until golden brown and hollow sounding when tapped underneath. Cool on a wire rack.

I like this bread broken apart instead of sliced, served with soups or fruit jam.

“Old Dough” Sourdough Starter

During the California goldrush, pospectors would carry a mixture of flour and water in a packet strapped to their waists. The heat of their bodies fermented the mixture, creating a natural leaven, and giving them the nickname “sour bellies.”

To follow up from the simple sourdough starter recipe I gave you last time, let me show you how to make an "old dough" starter. I learned to use it with certain sourdough bread recipes, like San Francisco sourdough bread, along with the simple starter.

Equipment Needed
2 large glass mixing bowls
wooden spoon (plastic is fine)
waxed paper
aluminum foil

Ingredients
1/2 teaspoon dry yeast
4 tablespoons room temperature water
3/4 cup unbleached all-purpose flour plus extra for dusting
cooking oil

Directions
Add the water the large glass bowl. Sprinkle in the yeast and leave for 5 minutes. Stir with a wooden spoon to dissolve. Add the flour and mix to from a soft, sticky, dough.

Flour a cutting board or area of the counter top. Turn out the dough on the floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic, about 10 minutes.

Oil a clean bowl. Put the dough into the bowl and turn to coat with the oil. Cover with with a dish towel and let rise for about 3 hours. Punch down the dough and divide it into two equal pieces. Tear one piece of dough into small pieces, and mix into the dough of your next loaf of sourdough bread, when you add the rest of the simple starter required by the recipe. Wrap the remaining piece loosely in plastic wrap, and then aluminum foil, allowing room for expansion, and set aside for future use.

“Old dough” can be prepared in advance and frozen or refrigerated. To use frozen dough, let it thaw in the refrigerator overnight, and then rest at room temperature for at least two hours before using.

To replenish “old dough,” pinch off a racket-ball sized piece of dough from the sourdough bread you're making before shaping and proofing the loaf. Wrap and refrigerate as above.

How to Make a Simple Sourdough Starter

Sourdough starters offer an alternative method of preparing yeast for mixing in bread dough. It's also a way to keep yeast cultures alive, when refrigeration isn't an option.

Yes, I've seen sourdough starter available in some specialty markets, but why pay for it? In it's most basic form, it's a mixture of bread flour and water. Fresh bread flour naturally contain a variety of yeasts and bacteria, including the important lactobacillus sanfranciscensis bacteria.

I'm not making this up. Lactobacillus sanfranciscensis was first discovered as one of the main bacteria in sourdough bread, and then named after the city it was discovered in: San Francisco.

Yeast and lactobacillus grow symbiotically within the mixture, breaking down the gluten and acting as both a leavening and flavoring agent. The mixture is left to ferment anywhere from a few hours, to a few days.

Rye flour was a common ingredient in norther Europe during the middle ages. Bread's made with 100% Rye flour, it turns out, doesn't respond well to traditional bakers yeast, being too low in gluten. This makes sourdough starters the preferred method to leaven rye bread.

Breads made with starter require a bit more planning, if you don't have any starter already on hand. The two most common ways to make a sourdough starter today start with bakers yeast: a simple sour-dough starter, and the “old dough” method. Here's the more common, simple starter.

Simple Sourdough Starter

This liquid starter can be used to make a French poolish starter, fermenting only two hours before using, or an Italian biga starter, fermenting at least 36 hours. A poolish starter gives less of a yeasty or “sour flavor”, but still retains some of the “chewiness” associated with sourdough.

Equipment needed
wooden spoon (plastic is fine)
wide mouth 1 quart glass jar

Ingredients
2 teaspoons dry yeast
1 1/4 cup water
1 3/4 cup unbleached flour
pinch of sugar (optional)

Directions
Do not use metal utensils with this. I'm not sure why, but somehow the metal interferes with the bacteria and yeast.

Place the water in a large glass jar. Sprinkle in the yeast, and let it sit for 5 minutes to activate. Stir to dissolve. Stir in the flour and sugar, if your using it, with a wooden or plastic spoon. Cover the jar with a dish towel (do not seal!) and leave it in a safe place on the counter, away from direct sunlight, for up to five days before refrigerating. You can put a lid on the starter, but never seal it tightly. The culture needs air to live.

Stir the mixture twice a day. It will become bubbly and smell pleasantly sour.

Maintaining the Starter

After removing the amount of starter required by recipe, replenish with an equal amount of flour and water. For example, if you used 1 cup of starter, replace it with 1/2 cup of water and 3/4 cup of flour (this makes about 1 cup when mixed). This lets you keep the cultures alive and lets the mixture continue to ferment for the next time you make sourdough bread. Let the jar ferment on the counter for at least 12 hours, or overnight, before returning to the refrigerator.

If you aren't going to use your starter at least once every other week, you need to feed it. Remove half the starter and replace with and equal amount of flour and water, just like replenishing your starter.

Sometimes the starter will separate, and the liquid portion turn various colors. This is called a “hooch” and is perfectly normal. You can stir it back in, or drain it off if the starter is looking a bit too watery.

Many sourdough aficionados don't refrigerate the dough. They also make sourdough bread at least once a week. I don't make it as often so, I've learned to refrigerate mine. I had some starter that I believe “went bad” on me after two weeks on the counter. It quit smelling pleasantly sour, and just smelled ... off. I decided not to take chances and threw it out. Now I refrigerate.

Sourdough starter can also be made with whole wheat flour for 100% whole wheat sourdough bread.

Next time, I'll show you how to make sourdough starter using the “old dough” method.

Do you know of any great sourdough resources on the web? Feel free to share them in the comments.