Honey Wheat Bread

My friend posted the recipe on facebook. She got it from recipezaar. The chef who gets the credit is Karen. The recipe is #32607. She calls it Wholesome Homemade Honey Whole Wheat Bread - but it can't be whole wheat as it uses white flour as well. So...for my blog purposes I am changing the name because I can. This makes a light "wheat" bread. I thought the molasses might be overpowering - but the overall flavor of the bread is yummy!

Honey Wheat Bread

3 TBSP yeast

4 cups hot water

2 TBSP gluten

1/4 cup molasses

1/2 cup honey

2 tsp salt

3 cups whole wheat flour

Combine these ingredients in mixer. Cover and let rest for 45 minutes. This is called "sponging." You want to do this for wheat bread recipes that you make. After the sponging is done...

Add:

1/2 cup butter or margarine, softened

3 more cups whole wheat flour

4 cups white flour, more may be needed

Knead until smooth and elastic. I left my dough a bit on the sticky side as I didn't want to add too much white flour. Place in a greased bowl and turn once. Let rise about 40 minutes or until double. The dough wasn't sticky when it was time to shape into loaves.

Shape dough into 4 loaf pans. Make sure your bread pans are greased. Let rise another 30 minutes. Bake at 375 degrees for 35-40 minutes.

Rustic Bread

I love bread. A lot. When I come across a great bread recipe - I like to pass it on to you guys. This recipe was one I chose from the September 2009 Aussie/NZ recipe swap at recipezaar.com. The chef who submitted this recipe is Sage from Ontario, Canada. She uses a bread machine. I do not own one so will post how I did the recipe.

This recipe starts off using Biga (pronounced bee-gah) - an Italain starter. Something similar to sourdough in that it sits overnight.

Rustic Bread

Mix in a glass or plastic bowl:

1 cup warm water

1 tsp yeast

1/2 cup white flour

1/2 cup whole wheat flour

Combine with wooden spoon until smooth. The mixture will be bubbly. Cover with a cloth and let stand overnight.

Next day (remember to give yourself several hours for the dough's first rising)

Combine:

Biga

1 1/4 cups warm water

2 TBSP honey

2 TBSP butter, softened

1 cup whole wheat flour

2 tsp sugar

1 TBSP salt

2 TBSP gluten

2 tsp yeast

I use my bosche to mix well. I let it sit for about 40 minutes. Then I added:

1 additional cup whole wheat flour

2-3 cups white flour - enough to make a soft, non-sticky dough

Place dough in a greased bowl and let rise about 3 hours. It will take that long. Knead for a bit then shape into 2 long loaves. Cover and let rise 45 minutes. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Score the loaves and dust with white flour if desired. Bake at 400 degrees for 10 minutes then reduce heat to 350 degrees and bake an additional 30-35 minutes. Bread is done when tapping on the top yields a hollow sound.

My most favorite in the whole world hot cereal

My most favorite in the whole world hot cereal consists of three things. Cracked wheat, regular oats and walnuts. That's it!
You need:
1/4 cup cracked wheat
1/4 cup regular oats
1 1/2 cups water
1/2 tsp salt
handful of chopped walnuts

Add all ingredients in medium saucepan. Over medium heat - stirring frequently - bring to a boil. You will know when it is done when it is nice and thick. About 20 minutes. I like to add a bit of butter to my bowl of hot cereal along with some sugar and milk or half and half.