I love bread! If given the choice between cake and bread, I will choose bread every time. And this time of year it’s especially a treat. Nothing is better than a steaming bowl of soup or chili and some fresh, warm bread. And the heat of the oven, and scent of baking bread, will warm you all over. Some of these recipes are quick and some take a little more time, but they are all very easy and pretty much foolproof. So warm up your kitchen, and enjoy.
Note: You can use different size loaf pans than mentioned; you will just need to adjust baking times. Bake longer if you use a larger pan, and lessen time if using smaller pans. Either way, watch carefully and test for doneness.
■4 ½ cups all-purpose flour
■1 tbsp + 1 tsp baking powder
■1 tsp baking soda
■2 tsp salt
■8 ounces (2 cups) grated provolone
⅔ cup sundried tomatoes packed in oil, chopped, and oil reserved
■½ cup chopped parsley
■1 tbsp dried basil, crumbled
■4 eggs
■¾ cup vegetable oil
■2 tsp sugar
■2 ½ cups buttermilk
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease 3 loaf pans (8×4). Whisk together flour, baking powder, soda, and salt. Stir in provolone, tomatoes, parsley and basil. In another bowl whisk together eggs, vegetable oil, sugar, and 4 tbsp oil reserved from tomatoes. Mix in buttermilk. Add to dry ingredients and stir just until combined. Divide among pans. Bake for about 50 minutes, until tester comes out clean. Place pans on a rack and cool for 5 minutes. Remove bread to rack and cool completely.
This is a simple, basic bread that is just meant to be dunked in soup. But it’s also terrific slathered with butter, or dipped in flavored olive oil, or plain olive oil sprinkled with bread dipping mix from Monadnock Oil and Vinegar.
■3 cups all-purpose flour
■1 ½ tsp salt
■½ tsp instant yeast
■1 ½ cups room temperature water
In a large mixing bowl, whisk the flour, salt and yeast together until combined. Stir in the water until a thick dough forms. If it needs more water to combine, add one tablespoon at a time. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let it rest at room temperature for 12-18 hours. Overnight is ideal. When you are ready to bake, preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Place a 6 quart Dutch oven (preferably enamel coated or cast iron, but any heavy pan that can be heated to 450 degrees) in the oven for 30 minutes to heat. The dough should be big and puffy with little bubbles in it.
Scrape the dough onto a well-floured surface. Gently shape it into a ball with flour on the outside. Place on a sheet of parchment paper and cover with plastic wrap. Let sit while the pan heats up. Remove the plastic wrap. Lift the dough and parchment into the pan so that the paper lines the bottom of the pan. Be careful, the pan is very hot. Bake covered for 30 minutes. Remove the cover and bake an additional 10-15 minutes until crust is golden brown and crispy. Remove from pan and cool on a rack.
One of my favorite meals is black bean soup and corn muffins. Make a pot or pickup carryout from Harlow’s, and stir up these hearty muffins.
■1 box Jiffy corn muffin mix
■2 cups frozen corn, thawed
■4 ounces (1 cup) shredded pepper jack cheese
■½ cup chopped fresh cilantro (use fresh basil if you have cilantro reaction)
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a muffin tin. Prepare the mix according to package directions. Stir in the corn, cheese, and herbs just until blended. Let rest a couple of minutes. Place mixture in muffin tins. Bake for 30 minutes or until golden. Yield is approximately 8 muffins, depending on the size of the tin cups.
When you do want something sweet, this is a good one. A perfect afternoon snack with a cup of tea. Using fresh ginger packs a flavor punch, but you can use ground. It’s good as is, but you can sprinkle the top with powdered sugar, add an orange juice and powdered sugar glaze, or top a slice with applesauce mixed with a little cinnamon.
■1 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
■½ tsp ground cinnamon
■¼ tsp ground allspice
■¼ tsp ground cloves
■¼ tsp ground nutmeg
■¼ tsp baking soda
■¼ tsp salt
■½ cup mild molasses
⅓ cup milk
⅓ cup sugar
■¼ cup butter, melted
■1 tbsp ginger puree or grated fresh gingerroot (or 3/4 tsp ground ginger)
■1 large egg
Heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour 2 mini (5 ¾ x 3-inch) loaf pans. Combine flour, cinnamon, allspice, cloves, nutmeg, baking soda and salt in bowl. Combine molasses, milk, 1/3 cup sugar, butter, ginger and egg in bowl; beat until well mixed. Add flour mixture; beat at low speed, scraping bowl occasionally, until well mixed. Pour batter into prepared pans. Bake 28-33 minutes or until toothpick inserted into center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes; remove from pans. Cool completely.