Oatmeal Bread

     This is the oatmeal bread that my mom used to bake for us when I was young. I remember having it with warm freshly made applesauce on top. Yum. The bread is a nice moist loaf, perfect for sandwiches and toast and has just a hint of sweetness from the molasses. This is another recipe from the "Woman's Home Companion" Cookbook.

 

"A Woman's Home Companion" Oatmeal Bread

(makes 2 one pound loaves)

1 1/2 cups boiling water

2 tsp. salt

1 TBS. butter

1 cup old fashioned oats

3/4 cup lukewarm water

2 1/4 tsp. yeast

1/4 cup molasses

1/4 cup brown sugar

~ 5 cups flour

     In a large bowl mix together boiling water, salt and butter. Then stir in oats and let sit until lukewarm. Meanwhile dissolve the yeast in the lukewarm water and then stir in the brown sugar, molasses and 1 cup of the flour. Stir this mixture into the oats and then stir in the rest of the flour until it makes a stiff dough. Turn out onto a floured board and knead for ~10 minutes, adding a little more flour if necessary. The dough should now be soft and elastic. 

     Place in a greased warm bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Place the bowl in a warm place and let rise until doubled in bulk (about 2 hours). Then turn the dough out onto the board and divide into two equal parts; form into balls, cover closely with plastic wrap and let sit for 10 minutes. Then form into loaves and place in greased loaf pans. Cover and let rise for about 1 hour or until doubled in size.

    

     Bake in a 400 degree oven for 35 to 40 minutes until golden brown and the loaves sound hollow when tapped on the bottom. Gently lift the loaf out of the pan to test this. Remover bread from oven and rub the top of the loaves with the end of a stick of butter. This adds a nice little salty flavor to the bread and keeps the top crust soft.

 

Enjoy-

yours in baking-

p

Zucchini Brownies

    I promised a recipe for zucchini brownies about ten days ago and here it is! Believe it or not, after all of my concerns about zucchini taking over my backyard, I have had a rather poor crop this summer. I even had to purchase! zucchini to make this recipe. (At least it was locally grown.) This recipe makes an entire sheet pan so plan on sharing! This is an especially good recipe to bring to a potluck both because it makes a large batch and because it is fun to show your friends another way to bake with zucchini that is not just zucchini bread!

   This recipe was adapted from the cookbook " Creme de Colorado" and was referred to as "Chocolate Zucchini Sheetcake" in that cookbook. However, I consider them a moist brownie.

Zucchini Brownies

1 1/2 cups light brown sugar

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup butter, softened

1/2 cup oil

3 eggs

2 tsp. vanilla

1/2 cup milk with 1/2 tsp. vinegar added

2 1/2 cups flour

3/4 tsp. allspice

1 tsp. cinnamon

1/2 tsp. salt

2 tsp. baking soda

5 TBS. unsweetened cocoa powder

4 cups firmly packed grated zucchini(You may be tempted to use more but please don't! The brownies are already very moist.)

1 cup chocolate chips(I prefer to use mini chips if I have them, but regular chocolate chips are also fine.)

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Spray a sheet pan with cooking spray and then dust generously with either flour or unsweetened cocoa powder.

In a large bowl, mix together the sugars, butter, oil, eggs, vanilla and milk. In a separate bowl mix together all dry ingredients and then stir into the creamed mixture. Stir in the zucchini and then spread in your prepared pan. Sprinkle evenly with the chocolate chips and bake about 40 minutes or until the top springs bake when you touch it.

You can dress up these brownies with a dusting of powdered sugar and a dollop of sweetened whipped cream and this becomes a dessert for a nice dinner.

Because these brownies are so moist, they easily keep for a few days if you cover them with plastic wrap.

Enjoy!

yours in baking-

p

Choco-chip Banana Muffins

       In the summer it seems that it is always difficult to "keep up" with bananas. I like them when they are just ripe, with only a few brown spots. For some reason, I just don't care for them as much when they get softer and are really super sweet. So during the summer, it seems I usually have a couple of bananas on hand that need to be "re-purposed". Fruit smoothies are always an excellent choice, but I also love these muffins. They are moist and will keep for a few days (if they aren't eaten first)!

 Choco-Chip Banana Muffins

* 1/2 cup butter, softened

* 1 cup light brown sugar

* 2 eggs, lightly beaten

* 2 cups flour

* 1/2 tsp. salt

* 1/2 tsp. baking powder

* 1/2 tsp. cinnamon

* 2 cups mashed bananas(about 2 large or 3 medium bananas)

* 1/2 cups chopped nuts (optional)

* 2/3 cups chocolate chips

In a medium bowl, cream the butter and sugar together until well blended. Mix in the beaten eggs. Mix all dry ingredients together and then stir into the butter and egg mixture. Then stir in the mashed bananas until thoroughly incorporated and add chocolate chips and the nuts if you decide to include them.

        Divide the batter evenly in a 12 cup greased muffin tin. I like to use fun papers to line the muffin cups. I always like to find a way to use colorful things and it makes the clean-up even easier! The muffin cups will be quite full, but don't worry. These muffins do not rise as high as some muffins and cupcakes so they will not overflow! 

       I then mix one tablespoon of sugar with 1/2 tsp. of cinnamon in a small dish and then sprinkle generously over the tops of the muffin batter. It makes them smell divine while they are cooking and it makes a nice little flavor boost when you bite into the muffin.

       Bake in a 350 degree oven for 28-35 minutes. I used only 2 large bananas today and they did not seem as banana-y(nice word!) so I only baked them 28 minutes. You can tell they are done if you touch the top of one of the muffins and it springs back.

Cool on a wire rack for 5-10 minutes. Sit down with a cup of coffee or juice and enjoy.

yours in baking-

p