Holy Cow, I Made Bread!

A few weeks ago I went to a dinner party. I brought along a hostess gift, a loaf of pugliese bread. A couple of days later, the hostess came up to me and said, "That bread was so good!" I could tell she thought I made it. I felt a little guilty. I confessed that the bread was store bought. But this little encounter got me thinking, "Why don't I try to make some sort of italian bread?"

So I did. And I must tell you, ladies, it was empowering. I felt like Tom Hanks in the movie "Castaway" when he builds a fire. "I...have made fire. I! I! Have made fire." Only this was over a couple of loaves of italian.

And the best part? It was EASY!

The Ingredients:

3 cups unbleached flour
1 tablespoon light brown sugar
1 1/3 cups warm water (110 degrees F/45 degrees C)
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil
1 (.25 ounce) package active dry yeast
1 egg
1 tablespoon water
2 tablespoons cornmeal

The Steps:

1. Combine brown sugar, water, salt, olive oil and yeast in a bowl. Let sit for ten minutes to get kinda fluffy.

2. Begin incorporating your flour. I transferred my yeast mixture to my mixer and, using the dough hook attachment, began mixing the flour in that way. I used all the flour and then some, mixing until the dough pulled away from the sides of the bowl. It mixed for about 10 minutes or so while I added the flour.

3. When dough forms a ball, place in an oiled bowl and let rise for about 60 minutes, or until double.

Before rising.

After rising.

4. When dough has doubled, turn out onto floured surface and form into two loaves. Place loaves on a pizza stone or baking sheet sprinkled with cornmeal. Cover with clean, damp tea towel and let rise in a warm place for 45 minutes or until doubled. Sometime during that hour, preheat your oven to 375 degrees.

5. When loaves have doubled in size (I think mine could have risen a little while longer), combine beaten egg and water. Make a quick slash in the top of your loaves with a sharp knife, then baste with the egg and water mixture. *For a crispier crust, spritz loaves lightly with water about 3 times during baking.*

6. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes and, voila, my dears, you have made yourself some mighty fine italian bread. And that's nothing to shake a stick at.

Enjoy!

Curry Chicken Pot Pie

I love to watch "Good Eats" with Alton Brown on the Food Network. One day he made this curry chicken pot pie that I just had to try. I think it's just really stinkin' good and perfect for this fall weather! Oh, and don't be scared off by the curry. It just adds a little hint of flavor.

You don't have to do this, but I enjoyed using cookie cutters to make shapes in the crust.

Ingredients
4 cups frozen vegetable mix, peas, carrots
1 to 2 tablespoons canola oil
3 tablespoons butter
1 cup chopped onion
1 cup chopped celery
1 1/2 cups low sodium chicken broth
1/2 cup milk
3 tablespoons flour
1 teaspoon curry powder
2 tablespoons dried parsley
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon fresh ground pepper
2 cups cubed cooked chicken
1 package puff pastry
Directions
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
Toss frozen vegetables with canola oil and spread evenly onto a sheet pan. Place into oven and cook until golden brown.
In a saute pan heat 1 tablespoon of butter and sweat the onion and celery. In another saucepan, heat the broth and milk. Add 2 more tablespoons of butter to the celery mix and cook out the water. Add the flour and curry and cook for 1 to 2 minutes. Whisk in the hot milk mixture and cook until thickened. Add the parsley, salt and pepper. Toss the browned vegetables and the chicken. Pour into a shallow baking pan, or a large terra cotta pot base, lined with foil, and top with 6 to 8 circles of puff pastry. Place into the oven and cook until puff pastry has browned and the mixture is hot and bubbly, about 25 minutes

Bus Stop White Chili

This is country star Martina McBride's recipe for a white bean/chicken chili which she submitted for the cook book "Around the Opry Table" by Kay West. It is an excellent and easy recipe and a nice departure from traditional chilis (not that there's anything wrong with those!). I get wonderful reviews every time I make this. I hope that you enjoy it as well.

Bus Stop White Chili

3-4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (when in a pinch, I have used Kirkland canned chicken, though I prefer fresh)

Two 14.5 oz cans chicken broth

1 1/2 tsp. white pepper (I've used black when I didn't have white on hand)

1 tsp. garlic powder

3 tbsp. vegetable oil

Two 15 oz. cans great northern beans

Two 4.5 oz. cans chopped green chilies

One 10.5 oz. can cream of chicken soup

3 tbsp. (or less) jalapeno pepper juice (I buy the canned peppers in the Mexican food section and use the juice from those)

2 tbsp. minced fresh cilantro

1 tsp. salt

Put chicken in glass baking dish, pour in 1 can chicken broth, cover with tinfoil and bake at 350 for an hour. Remove chicken and reserve broth. Cut chicken into small pieces and season with white pepper and garlic powder. Saute chicken in oil in stockpot for 2-3 minutes. Add reserved broth and remaining ingredients and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer 30 minutes.

To serve, cut 6-8 flour tortillas into 1/4 inch strips. Place in serving bowls. Ladle chili on top. Garnish with sour cream and grated mozzarella cheese if desired.

Enjoy!

Well Hi There

I am pretty excited to be a part of this awesome blog, and to gather some great new recipes from you all. My name is Abby, I am married, and my husband and I are expecting our first baby in January.

As for cooking, I find it relaxing. You could call me a 'slow cooker' though because I do love to take my time in the kitchen. I love baking, canning, and most recently, learning how to prepare authentic Mexican food. Last night a hispanic friend of mine taught me how to make Chile Rellenos and my heavens, if it wasn't one of the best meals I've ever had. I also recently hosted a mac n' cheese recipe contest on my personal blog, and two recipes tied for first, so I hope to share those with you soon.

However, I must be honest with you and tell you that I've never been successful at baking banana bread. I have tried it several times, and every time it is a disaster. Does anyone else have a baking crutch?

Take care and happy cooking!

Abby