Breads and Breakfast Baking
Apricot Oatmeal Scones (photo by Susan)
1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
1 cup old-fashioned rolled oats
1/2 cup whole wheat pastry flour
1/2 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
1 1/4 tsp. baking powder
1/2 plus 1/8 tsp. baking soda
1/2 plus 1/8 tsp. salt
1/2 cup minced dried apricots
10 tbsp. cold butter, cut into bits
1/3 cup low-fat buttermilk
Preheat the oven to 400. Butter a baking sheet or use a Silpat or parchment paper.
Place all of the dry ingredients and the apricots in a large bowl and mix well to combine. Using a pastry blender or your fingers (my preferred method) cut in the butter until it is evenly distributed in tiny pieces.
Add the buttermilk and mix until the dough just comes together in a ball. Pat out onto a floured surface into a circle 6 inches in diameter and 1 1/2 inches thick. Cut into 8 triangles and place on baking sheet. Sprinkle the top with a little coarse sugar and bake for 15-20 minutes or until lightly browned and firm. Remove to a cooling rack.
Recipe from “The Earth Bound Cookbook” by Myra Goodman
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Photo by Susan, not Ted
Crumb-Topped Apple-Bacon Muffins
6 strips bacon, cooked until crisp and crumbled, 2 tbsp. bacon fat reserved (If you cook your bacon in the microwave, see note on butter, below.)
2 cups whole-wheat pastry flour (Or use unbleached white flour; regular whole wheat flour is not recommended – the muffins will be heavy.)
1 tbsp. baking powder
2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. salt
1 large egg
1/2 cup lightly packed brown sugar
1 1/4 cups milk (I used reduced-fat because it’s what I had)
2 tbsp. butter, melted (4 tbsp. if not using bacon fat)
1 large tart apple, peeled, cored and chopped
Oat and Brown Sugar Crumb Topping (recipe follows)
Butter 12-15 muffin cups. Preheat oven to 400.
Combine the flour, baking powder, salt and cinnamon in a large bowl. Whisk the egg with the sugar and add milk.
Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and pour in all the wet ingredients, including the butter/bacon fat.
Stir until almost blended, then fold in apple and bacon.
Fill muffin cups to nearly full, then cover each muffin with an equal amount of the crumb topping (use it all). Bake for 22-25 minutes until lightly browned. Let cool in pan for 5 minutes before taking out.
Oat and Brown Sugar Crumb Topping
1/2 cup whole wheat pastry flour (see note on flour in above recipe)
1/3 cup old-fashioned oatmeal
1/3 cup packed light brown sugar
1 tsp. cinnamon
pinch of salt
1/2 stick (1/4 cup) cold butter, cut into small pieces
Mix all ingredients except butter in a small bowl. Add butter pieces and mix with your hands until you have uniform crumbs.
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Dr. Weil's Banana Bread
Dr. Andrew Weil’s Banana Bread (with a few tweaks from the Spoon)
3 ripe bananas, mashed
1/2 cup organic honey
3 tbsp. canola oil (I used blended oil, 75% canola, 25% extra-virgin olive – it’s our basic cooking oil)
1/2 tsp. vanilla
1 1/2 cups whole wheat pastry flour (We actually had this in the cupboard, but you could use regular whole wheat flour, the bread will just be heavier)
1 1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. sea salt
3/4 cup chopped nuts (I used pecans, but walnuts are good too)
1 tbsp. flax seeds
Preheat oven to 350 and grease a loaf pan. Combine bananas, honey, oil and vanilla, mix well. Combine dry ingredients, add these to the banana mixture and mix until just combined. Stir in the nuts. (Do all this mixing by hand; the texture won’t be right if you use an electric mixer – plus it’s more satisfying to use a wooden spoon, don’t you think?) Scrape batter into the prepared pan and sprinkle the top with flax seeds. Bake for 45-50 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. Let cool in the pan for at least 1/2 before removing the loaf. Dr. Weil would suggest that you enjoy this bread with green tea!
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Serves 2 hungry people
Preheat oven to 400
1 tsp. fresh lemon juice
1 tart apple, grated
2 large eggs, separated
2 tbsp. sugar
3 tbsp. milk
3 tbsp. whole wheat flour
1/4 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. cinnamon
pinch salt
2 tbsp. butter
2 tsp. lemon juice
1 tbsp. powdered sugar
In a small bowl, sprinkle the 1 tsp. lemon juice over the grated apple and stir to combine. Set aside.
Beat the egg yolks until light in color (I just do this with a whisk, saving the mixer for the egg whites), then whisk in milk, flour, baking powder, cinnamon and salt. Stir in the grated apple.
Melt the butter in a 10-inch, cast-iron skillet, tilting to coat the sides.
Whip the egg whites until foamy, then add the sugar and continue to beat until soft peaks form. Fold into the egg yolk mixture.
Pour and spread the batter into the skillet and bake for 15 minutes, until puffed and light brown.
Sprinkle with 2 tsp. lemon juice and sprinkle with confectioners sugar. Return to the oven for 5 minutes or so until glazed.
Cut into wedges to serve.
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Makes 2 loaves
1 1/2 cup cranberries, coarsely chopped
1/3 cup sugar
finely grated zest of one orange
2 cups unbleached flour
1/2 cup yellow cornmeal, preferably stone-ground
1 teas. baking soda
1/2 teas. salt
1/2 teas. ground nutmeg
5 tbls. cold, unsalted butter cut into bits
1/2 cup sour cream, yogurt or buttermilk (I used sour cream, but I love this flexibility!)
1/2 cup milk
a little extra milk and sugar for the top
Combine the cranberries, orange zest and sugar in a small bowl and set aside for 15 mins. Preheat the oven to 400 and lightly grease a baking sheet. (I used a Silpat.)
Mix the flour, cornmeal, baking soda, salt and nutmeg in a medium bowl. Add the butter and cut it in until it is broken into fine pieces. (I always use my fingers for this.) Combine the sour cream and milk, then make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and add the liquid all at once. Stir until the dough starts to come together, then stir in the cranberry mixture. When you have a cohesive ball of dough, turn it out onto a floured surface and divide in half. (Work the dough as little as possible, however, or the bread will not be as tender and flaky.)
Briefly knead each half of the dough into a ball, then place on the baking sheet, allowing ample space between them. Brush the tops of the balls with a little milk and sprinkle them with several big pinches of sugar. Bake for 40-45 mins, until the tops are a rich golden brown. Cool completely on a wire rack before slicing.
