French Bread

Finally a bread success! My husband really enjoyed this bread and even commented that we need to have it often. Next time, I think I will even try baking it in a bread pan so that there is a better crust to inside ratio. The recipe below makes two loaves. I halved it and made one loaf since it was just the two of us eating. We barely even ate half of the loaf with supper.

French Bread
Source: Better Homes and Gardens
Ingredients:
5 1/2 to 6c all purpose flour
2 packages active dry yeast
1 1/2 tsp salt
1c warm water
cornmeal
1 egg white, slightly beaten
1tbs water

Directions:I am large mixing bowl (I used my Kitchen Aid stand mixer) stir together 2c flour, the yeast, and salt. Add the warm water. Beat on low to medium speed for 30 seconds. Beat on high speed for 3 minutes. Stir in as much of the flour mixture as you can.

Turn dough out on lightly floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic (8 to 10 minutes... I did this with my dough hook). Shape dough into a ball and place in a lightly greased bowl, turning once to coat. Cover and let stand in a warm place until double in size.

Punch dough down. Turn out onto a lightly floured surface. Divide in half and cover to let rest for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, lightly grease a baking sheet and sprinkle with cornmeal.

Roll each portion into a 15x10in rectangle. Roll up, seal well, and pinch ends. Place seam side down on baking sheet.

In a small bowl mix together egg white and water. Brush some on top of loaves. Retain the remaining mixture. Let loaves rise until nearly double in size, about 45 minutes.

Preheat oven to 375. Using a sharp knife, make 4 diagonal cuts about 1/4in deep across the top of each loaf. Bake for 20 minutes. Brush again with egg white mixture. Continue baking 15 to 20 minutes until bread sound hollow when lightly tapped. Immediately remove bread from baking sheet to wire rack.

Green Beans

This is just a little twist on our regular method of cooking frozen green beans. My husband, while not a fan of frozen green beans (something about texture), did comment that he liked the addition of the onion and garlic. I thought they were really good and also loved the added flavor from the onion and garlic.

Green Beans
Ingredients:
16oz frozen green beans
1/2 large onion, chopped
1-2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 tbs olive oil
1c water

Directions:
Heat oil in saucepan. Add onion and garlic. Cook until translucent. Add green beans and water. Cook until water has evaporated or green beans are tender.

Stuffed Chicken Parmesan

This was actually fairly easy to throw together and is pretty healthy. I'm not a huge fan of chicken parmesean so I thought it was just ok, but my husband enjoyed it. If you like chicken parmesean, you will probably enjoy this dish.

Stuffed Chicken Parmesan

Source: Betty Crocker

Ingredients:

6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

10oz frozen, cut spinach, thawed and drained

2oz cream cheese, softened

1/4c shredded parmesean cheese

1/2tsp dried basil

1 clove garlic, finely chopped

1/4c egg product (I omitted since I usually coat chicken without egg)

12 crushed wheat crackers (I used breadcrumbs)

2tsp dried basil

1/2tsp pepper

1c pasta sauce

1/2c shredded mozzarella cheese

Directions:

Heat oven to 375. Spray baking dish with cooking spray. Between pieces of plastic wrap, gently pound chicken to 1/4in thick.

Mix spinach, cream cheese, parmesan cheese, 1/2tsp basil, and garlic. Spread about 1tbs mixture on each chicken breast. Roll up tightly and secure with toothpicks.

Place egg product in shallow bowl. In another shallow bowl, mix cracker/bread crumbs, remaining basil, and pepper. Dip each chicken breast in egg mixture and then coat with crumb mixture. Place seam side down in baking dish.

Bake uncovered for 20 minutes. Pour pasta sauce over chicken and sprinkle with mozzarella cheese. Bake 10 to 15 more minutes until chicken is done.

Blueberry Banana Oat Bread

I made this bread for my friend's visit this weekend. We polished it off in two days it was so good. I thought it tasted just like a good blueberry muffin with a hint of banana taste. This recipe is definitely a keeper since it was very easy to throw together.

Blueberry Banana Oat Bread
Source: Betty Crocker
Ingredients:
2 3/4c Bisquick mix
2/3c sugar
1/3c quick-cooking oats (I used old fashioned because it was all I had and they worked great)
1c mashed very ripe bananas (2 medium) (I never mash them before adding, I just do it while mixing)
1/4c milk
2 eggs
1c fresh or frozen (thawed and drained) blueberries

Directions:
Heat oven to 375. Grease bottom only of 9x5-inch loaf pan with shortening or cooking spray.

In large bowl, stir Bisquick mix, sugar, oats, bananas, milk and eggs until moistened; beat vigorously 30 seconds. Gently stir in blueberries. Pour into pan.

Bake 45 to 60 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes. Loosen loaf from sides of pan; remove from pan and place top side up on cooling rack. Cool completely, about 2 hours, before slicing.

Need a quick, easy, healthy breakfast?

Try this. Mix together two eggs, a bit of shredded cheese, and some chopped veggies (I used pepper rings I had leftover from a homemade pizza) in a microwave safe bowl. Make sure the bowl is larger than its contents. Microwave about two minutes until eggs are set. There you go, a quick, easy, healthy breakfast that you can have on the go!

Homemade Pizza

Yum! This was really good and is such a versatile dish made up of things we almost always have on hand. I think we will be making more homemade pizzas in the future. Next time, I am going to play with some spices and/or cheeses in the crust to give it a little something more. The recipe I used for the crust can be found here.

Homemade Pizza
Source: Betty Crocker
Ingredients:

For the crust:
1 1/3c flour
1tsp baking powder
1/2tsp salt
1/2c milk
2tbs olive oil

For the sauce:
6oz tomato paste
8oz tomato sauce (more or less depending on how much sauce you like)
1-2 cloves of garlic, minced
Italian seasoning to taste

1 1/2c shredded cheese of your choice (we used and Italian blend)
Toppings (We used sausage crumbles on my husband's side and a bell pepper, onion, and tomato on my side)

Directions:
Heat oven to 400.

In medium bowl combine flour, baking powder, and salt. Stir in milk and olive oil until a soft dough forms. On lightly floured surface, knead dough ten time. Shape into a ball and cover with bowl for 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, combine sauce ingredients. Set aside.

Place dough on an ungreased cookie sheet. Flatten slightly and roll out to a 12in circle. Bake 8 minutes.

Spread sauce over crust, top with your choice of topping and cheese. Bake and additional 15 to 20 minutes until crust is light golden brown and cheese begins to brown.