Dill Batter Bread

I found this gem of a recipe in the instruction booklet for my KitchenAid. So, the instructions are tailored for a KitchenAid. I'm sure that you could make this without the KitchenAid - it might be a little more difficult but it could be done. I had high hopes for this bread and they were met. It's a simple recipe and definitely worth the trip to the store for the few random ingredients.

Ingredients:
2 packages active dry yeast
1/2 cup warm water (105-115 degrees)
4 tablespoons honey, divided
2 cups large curd cottage cheese
2 tablespoons grated fresh onion
4 tablespoons butter, softened
3 tablespoons dill seed
3 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
2 eggs
1 cup whole wheat flour
3-31/2 cups all-purpose flour

First, warm up your mixer bowl. If it's sunny outside, stick your bowl next to window in the sun and it will warm up in a few minutes. The warmed bowl just helps the yeast along. Dissolve yeast in warm water in the warmed mixer bowl. Add 1 tablespoon honey and let stand for five minutes.

Add cottage cheese, remaining 3 tablespoons honey, onion, butter, dill seed, salt and baking soda. Using the flat beater (not the dough hook) turn to Stir Speed and mix for about 30 seconds. Add eggs. Continuing on Stir Speed, mix about 15 seconds. It is pretty wet and looks like this:

Add whole wheat flour and 2 cups of all-purpose flour. Turn to Speed 3 and mix about 2 minutes, or until combined. Continuing on Speed 2, add remaining 1 1/2 cups of flour, a litle at a time and mix until dough forms a stiff batter (scrape bowl as necessary). Continuing on Speed 2, mix about 2 minutes longer. Dough will be rather sticky and look like this:


Cover. Let rise in a warm place for 1 hour or until doubled in bulk. Usually the warmest place in my house is next to the furnace in my laundry room but I got lucky with a sunny afternoon (albeit snowy).


Don't be alarmed if it doesn't look like your typical bread dough - it is very sticky. Stir down the dough and spoon into two well-greased baking pans or casserole dishes (1 1/2 to 2 quarts). Notice, I've used both because well, I'm poor and it's all I've got.


Cover. Let rise in warm place for an additional 45 minutes or until doubled in bulk. Bake at 350 degrees for 40 to 50 minutes. My bread was done in 30 minutes but I haven't yet purchased an oven thermometer as Casey recommends and I'm sure that the temperature in my oven is off.

Remove bread from pans immediately and cool on wire racks.


If you can, serve warm because let me just tell you - it's fantastic. Conversation with my husband after eating the warm dill batter bread is as follows:

Brandon: Oh, man, this is good.
Anna: Thanks.
Brandon: No, it's really good.
Anna: Thanks.
Brandon: I mean it. This is so good.
Anna: Thanks
(repeated every two minutes for thirty minutes)

The end of an era

R.I.P.

Anna's Baking Stone

2003-2008

Tonight, I heard a loud crash coming from within my oven. I opened it to find my bread spread across a large crevasse that was once my solid baking stone. Woe is me. I feel like a bad parent. Could I have done something to save him?

Chocolate Cake

This is from Martha's Baking Handbook. Martha would like you to believe that it is a grand feat to produce a cake from scratch, but I'm here to let you know that this cake can be made from scratch in less than ten minutes using only one bowl and less than 4 utensils. Yep. That's right.



For a full how and why on cake visit my blog over here.

Cake Ingredients:

DRY
2.5 cups flour
1.25 cups Dutch Process cocoa powder (I prefer Hershey's Special Dark, in grocery stores)
2.5 cups sugar
2.5 t. baking soda
1.25 t. baking powder
1.25 t. salt
WET
2 large eggs plus one egg yolk
1.25 cups milk (2% or whole if possible)
.5 cup plus 2 T. vegetable oil
1.25 t. vanilla
1.25 cups hot water

Put all the dry stuff in the bowl of an electric mixer. Mix on low with paddle attachment until combined. Put all the wet stuff in the bowl. Mix on low for three minutes until smooth, scraping sides of bowl as needed. (EASY RIGHT?)




Pour into prepared 9" cake pans (video on proper pan preparation found here). Oven should be preheated to 350 degrees. Bake about 45 minutes, rotate halfway through. Cakes are done when toothpick comes out clean. Cool on wire rack for 30 minutes, take cakes out, peel off parchment and allow to cool completely.



You can frost these with any frosting you like, but it goes best with Martha's Swiss Meringue Buttercream. It's a little trickier than the cake but so worth it you'll hate yourself if you don't try it.

Swiss Meringue Buttercream:

4 egg whites
1 cup sugar
8 oz. melted chocolate (bittersweet, try Ghirardelli 60% cacao chocolate chips)
3 sticks unsalted butter cut into tablespoons @ room temperature

Place bowl of an electric mixer with whites and sugar over a pan of simmering water. Whisk constantly until sugar dissolves and mixture reaches 160 degrees.



Attach bowl to mixer fitted with whisk attachment and beat on high until it holds stiff peaks ( a few minutes). Continue to beat another 6 minutes until it is fluffy and cooled.
Switch to the paddle attachment. On medium low speed add the butter a few tablespoons at a time and beat in well before adding more.



Continue until all butter is added and then beat on high for 3 to 5 minutes. Add cooled melted chocolate and stir on low for two minutes.



Now you can keep it simple and leave it as two layers. Or you can get fancy and make it four layers. Use only a small amount of frosting between layers so it doesn't slide all over the place. (And make sure it's cooled, or you'll have a nasty melty mess on your hands.)






Frost cooled cake, place in fridge (covered) until frosting is set. Cut, serve, eat. (If there is any left keep it covered in the fridge)

Key Lime Tart

Key limes can be a little tricky to find, but worth it when you do. Try Trader Joe's or Wild Oats, they generally come about a dozen to a bag. This is an easy recipe if you have the right tools. A Microplane Zester will make it really easy to zest 8 tiny key limes. A good juicer isn't a must, but incredibly handy. Mine is the same kind my grandma has used since the day she got married almost 60 years ago. I have yet to find one that works better. I got it on eBay for $12. Search "vintage Wearever juicer" and you should be able to find one if you're in the market.
This recipe is from Martha Stewart's Baking Handbook, except I didn't make my own graham crackers for the crust, I have a life.

Crust:

1 sleeve graham crackers.
3 tablespoons melted butter.

Preheat oven to 350. Process graham crackers in food processor until finely ground. Add melted butter and process until well mixed. Press moist crumbs into a 9" springform lined with parchment paper and greased up the sides. (9" pie plate can also be used) Place pan in freezer to harden while you prepare the filling.

Filling:

4 egg yolks
2 -3 teaspoons fresh grated key lime zest (about 8 key limes)
1/2 cup fresh squeezed key lime juice
1 14 oz. can sweetened condensed milk
dash salt

Beat egg yolks for 4 minutes until lightened and fluffy. Add rest of ingredients and beat on low to combine. Pour into crust and bake for 10 minutes, or until set in center. Allow to cool, cover with plastic wrap and chill for two hours to overnight. Serve with whipped cream garnish if desired.












It's not the most beautiful thing ever but it is tasty and stinking EASY.