Simplicity and the Bread

Potato Sourdough Bread

           

INGREDIENTS:

     

Starter (first time):

1 cup 1½ cup lukewarm water

½ cup ¾ cup sugar

½ package 1 package (2-1/4 teaspoons) dry yeast

3 tsp 3 level Tbsp instant potato flakes

     

Starter Feeder (subsequent times):

1 cup warm water

¾ cup ½ cup sugar

3 tsp 2 Tbsp 3 Tbsp instant potato flakes

     

Bread:

6 cups all-purpose whole-wheat bread flour

1 Tbsp 1 tsp salt

½ cup 1/3 cup sugar

1/2 cup corn oil

1¼ cups 1½ cups warm water

1 cup starter (see notes below)

     

PREPARATION:

     

First Time Starter Directions:
Dissolve yeast in warm water. Add sugar and potato flakes. Mix well.

Mix water, sugar, yeast, and potato flakes. (Right! Who cares if the yeast is dissolved!)

Let stand loosely covered with paper towel and rubber band for 8 hours one day two days 1 week.

Refrigerate 3 days in jar with holes punched in the top. (Some recipes omit this step)

Remove from refrigerator and feed with starter feeder (below) (above).

If you get starter from someone else, you can omit this step.

OR

In a glass bowl, mix 1/3 cup warm water, 1/4 cup sugar and 1 tablespoon instant potato flakes.

Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and poke several holes in it with a toothpick.

Put the bowl close to the light in the oven, then put a pot holder or dishtowel in the oven door to keep it cracked, and light on.

I also turned the oven on warm for about 10-15 seconds.

"Feed" your starter again that evening, making sure you stir for about a minute or so to "catch" the wild yeasts that are in the air.

Feed your starter (mix ingredients first, then add to starter) twice a day for about 3 or 4 days. When you notice a sweet smell in your house, it should be bubbly and ready to use.

Feed Starter:
Combine water, sugar, and potato flakes.

Mix well. Add to starter and stir well.

Let stand out of refrigerator on counter 8-12 hours all day 1 day 2 days. It will be very bubbly.

Refrigerate 3 to 5 days. Make bread. You are ready to make bread.

OR

Keep the starter in the refrigerator and feed again in 3 to 7 days, this time using the whole amount of "food":

3/4 cup sugar, 1 cup of warm water, 3 tablespoons of potato flakes. I let the starter warm up on the counter for a couple hours before I feed it. Let it sit in the oven again with the light on and potholder in the door all day. In the evening, it should be really foamy and bubbly.

     

Using Starter:
Remove 1 cup of the starter for dough.

Return the rest to the refrigerator. Pour one cup back into container and refrigerate. Discard any other starter.
Keep feeding every 3 to 5 days once a week (whether or not you bake bread). Leave in refrigerator until ready to use.

Either discard or give away 1 cup every 3 to 5 days.

     

Make Bread:
In large bowl, add salt, sugar, oil, water, and flour to starter (some recipes stir in flour last). Mix well. Make a stiff dough.

Knead on a floured surface for 5 to 10 minutes. Knead in mixer for 4 minutes with dough hook.

Rub edge of bowl with oil. (No kneading mentioned.) Put dough into a separate greased bowl. Brush surface with additional oil. Turn dough over so that all sides are oiled.

Cover bowl lightly with a wet dishtowel wax paper foil and let it rise in a warm place overnight or all day (about 12 hours). Do not refrigerate. I heat a cup of water in my microwave, then with the microwave off, I put the dough in there with the steamy water. Works especially well in the winter when it might be hard to find a warm place for the dough to rise.

OR

I stir it real well and then put the bread ingredients together: In a LARGE glass bowl (you will need two), warm 1 1/2 cups water in microwave, add 1/4 cup of sugar, 1/2 cup of oil (any kind), 1 teaspoon of salt and 1 cup of starter. Mix with a wooden spoon and then add 6 cups of bread flour one cup at a time. With just a little more sprinkling of flour, you should be able to get it to form a ball. Turn dough into another large glass bowl that has been oiled (1-2 T.). Put the bowl you mixed it in over the top to create a dome.

Adjust your oven racks so it will fit in oven. Let dough rise overnight with the oven light on. – I put it on a jelly roll pan just in case it spilled over -- it didn't, but in the morning, it did rise above where the two bowls joined. (The mixing bowl is now real easy to clean!!)

     

Punch down. Knead lightly on a floured surface to get any air bubbles out. Divide into 3 parts and knead every part on a floured board a few times (8-10 times for each part). Shape dough into 3 loaves.           

Place in greased (cooking spray) loaf pans. Snip with scissors through middle. Brush with oil. Brush with melted margarine.

Let rise, covered loosely with wax paper, 4 to 5 to 6 to 8 to 10 hours or until doubled in bulk. All day is okay. Dough rises very slowly.

OR

Punch down the dough and knead a little. Divide the dough into three parts, kneading each 8-10 times on a lightly floured surface (jelly roll pan). Shape into loaves and put into three greased (I oiled) glass loaf pans. Let rise several hours - depending on the weather, all day sometimes. Mine took 3 hours.

     

Cover with wax paper. Bake at 350 degrees for 20 to 25 to 30 to 45 minutes. After the first 20 minutes cover with foil to prevent over browning, then 15 to 20 minutes more.

Remove and place on wire rack to cool. While hot, brush again with melted margarine butter for soft crust.

Wrap well and store or refrigerate. This bread will freeze.  Eat!

~End Quote (too many to count...none of this is my own)

Helen's Bourbon Balls

Ingredients:

• 1 package of Nabisco Nilla Wafers (3 cups)

• 1 pkg of Domino 10x confectioners sugar (3 cups)

• 3/4 lb whole pecans (3 cups) crushed in a blender

• 6 oz Bourbon (I have used Maker's Mark the last several years but Helen had always used a cheaper brand such as Yellowstone)

• 2 oz white Karo syrup

• Additional amount of powdered sugar for the rolling process plus wax paper

Instructions:

• Fill an 8 oz measuring cup to 6 oz mark with bourbon, and then add the 2 oz of Karo syrup to the 8oz mark. Carefully stir until the syrup is dissolved.

• Give John the spoon to lick.

• Use a large Ziplock bag and place about a third of the wafers in it (don't eat more than two). Using a rolling pin, crush them until they are crumbs. (If you use the processor on both the pecans and the wafers, you will have a smooth pasty bourbon ball, tastes good but isn't like Helen's.)

• Pour wafers into a large bowl and repeat the process until all wafers are crushed. Pour in the crushed pecans and sugar and mix.

• Make a well in the center and pour in the bourbon/Karo mixture.

• Give Helen the measuring cup for her to lick.

• Slowly stir all ingredients until it is stiff and moist.

• Using whatever method you can, spoon out about 3/4 of a teaspoon and roll it into a ball using wax paper and the additional powdered sugar. If the mixture becomes dry, just stir it up and it remoistens itself.

• Refrigerate made balls for the bourbon to "age" with the other ingredients properly.

Information:

• The recipe makes approximately 120½ bourbon balls. I think. We sampled the ingredients and the finished product while we made them -- hence the "approximately" bit.

• Helen & John were my maternal grandparents. They were an impressive pair, and I miss them.

• Recipes sometimes lose their essence from generation to generation. This one did not! I am grateful, indeed.

• I used the exact brands mentioned in the recipe. Substitute at your own risk.
• Special thanks to Liz for getting the bourbon balls to say, "Cheese!" (top photo)

• In the photograph below John was singing "Let Me Call You Sweetheart" to Helen. Sweet, don't you think? I think my mom took this shot on their back patio.

~End Quote

First you boil an egg . . .

Did you know one egg contains six grams of high-quality protein, all nine essential amino acids, and just five grams of fat? -- And only 1.5 of that is saturated fat. It's true!

~ allrecipes.com

Delicious Egg Salad for Sandwiches

Ingredients

• 8 eggs

• 1/2 cup mayonnaise

• 1 teaspoon prepared yellow mustard

• 1/4 cup chopped green onion

• salt and pepper to taste

• 1/4 teaspoon paprika

Directions

1. Place egg in a saucepan and cover with cold water. Bring water to a boil and immediately remove from heat. Cover and let eggs stand in hot water for 10 to 12 minutes. Remove from hot water, cool, peel and chop.

2. Place the chopped eggs in a bowl, and stir in the mayonnaise, mustard and green onion. Season with salt, pepper and paprika. Stir and serve on your favorite bread or crackers.

Jen's Heavenly Egg Salad

Ingredients

• 6 eggs

• 1/4 cup mayonnaise

• 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard

• 1/2 teaspoon prepared yellow mustard

• 1/2 lemon, juiced

• 1/4 cup chopped green onions

• salt and pepper to taste

Directions

1. Place egg in a saucepan and cover with cold water. Bring water to a boil and immediately remove from heat. Cover and let eggs stand in hot water for 10 to 12 minutes. Remove from hot water, cool and peel. For faster cooling, place the eggs in an ice bath before peeling.

2. In a medium bowl, stir together the mayonnaise, Dijon mustard, yellow mustard, lemon juice and green onions. Chop the eggs into big chunks and mix gently with the dressing. Season with salt and pepper.

Egg Salad I

Ingredients

• 8 eggs

• 1 tablespoon mayonnaise

• 2 tablespoons prepared Dijon-style mustard

• 1 teaspoon dried dill weed

• 1 teaspoon paprika

• 1/2 red onion, minced

• salt and pepper to taste

Directions

1. Place eggs in a saucepan and cover with cold water. Bring water to a boil; cover, remove from heat, and let eggs stand in hot water for 10 to 12 minutes. Remove from hot water, cool, peel and chop.

2. In a large bowl, combine the egg, mayonnaise, mustard, dill, paprika, onion and salt and pepper. Mash well with a fork or wooden spoon.

3. Serve on bread as a sandwich or over crisp lettuce as a salad.

Egg Salad III

Ingredients

• 8 eggs

• 1/2 cup mayonnaise

• 1 teaspoon ground black pepper

• 1/4 teaspoon paprika

• 2 tablespoons chopped pimento-stuffed green olives

Directions

1. Place eggs in a medium saucepan with enough cold water to cover, and bring to a boil. Cover saucepan, remove from heat, and let eggs stand in hot water for 10 to 12 minutes. Remove from hot water, cool, peel, and chop.

2. In a large bowl, mix eggs, mayonnaise, pepper, and paprika. Mash with a potato masher or fork until smooth. Gently stir in the olives. Refrigerate until serving.

Awesome Egg Salad with a Kick

Ingredients

• 12 hard-cooked eggs, peeled and chopped

• 1/2 cup light mayonnaise

• 1/2 cup low-fat sour cream

• 1/4 teaspoon paprika

• 3 tablespoons Dijon mustard

• 2 tablespoons prepared horseradish

• 2 tablespoons chopped red onion

• 1/4 cup real bacon bits (or not)

• salt and pepper to taste

Directions

In a medium bowl, stir together the eggs, mayonnaise, sour cream, paprika, mustard, horseradish, red onion and bacon bits. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve immediately, or refrigerate until serving.

Footnotes

Making hard-cooked eggs - Place eggs in a saucepan and cover with cold water. Bring water to a boil and immediately remove from heat. Cover and let eggs stand in hot water for 10 to 12 minutes. Remove from hot water, cool under cold running water, peel and chop.

Smoked Salmon and Egg Salad

Ingredients

• 12 eggs

• 2 stalks celery, chopped

• 1 red onion, chopped

• 5 ounces diced smoked salmon

• 1 cup mayonnaise

• 3 tablespoons chopped fresh dill

• salt and pepper to taste

Directions

1. Place eggs in a saucepan and cover with cold water. Bring water to a boil; cover, remove from heat, and let eggs stand in hot water for 10 to 12 minutes. Remove from hot water, cool, peel and chop.

2. In a medium bowl, combine eggs, celery, onion, smoked salmon and mayonnaise. Season with dill, salt and pepper. Refrigerate at least 2 hours to allow flavors to combine.

Notes:

1. All recipes are shamelessly ripped from allrecipes.com.

2. The image is also ripped without credit from the web.

3. Why doesn't the first ingredient of the recipe simply read, "12 boiled eggs" . . .? Just wonderin'.

4. I have tried none of these recipes. The last one is on my "soon" list.

5. If you wondered about "Egg Salad II" . . . don't.

~ End Quote

Don't You Know? You Can't Mow! It Might Snow!

• I enjoy mowing the lawn, it relaxes me. It gets me outdoors, it's good exercise, the freshly cut grass smells great, and the engine is loud enough that I'm sure no one else can hear my thoughts - or intrude upon them. ~Astrid Alauda

• I always thought a yard was three feet, then I started mowing the lawn. ~C.E. Cowman

• I am thankful for a lawn that needs mowing, windows that need cleaning and gutters that need fixing because it means I have a home.... I am thankful for the piles of laundry and ironing because it means my loved ones are nearby. ~Nancie J. Carmody

~End Quote