Momma's Potato Sourdough Starter

Growing up my Momma made the BEST cinnamon rolls and dinner rolls. I can remember her baking in our galley kitchen and every surface was covered in jelly roll pans lined with dozens of cinnamon rolls rising. And oh man, when she would put them into the oven to bake? The smell of cinnamon and sugar was like a calling from heaven. The whole house became warmer and cozier somehow with that smell coming from the kitchen. There is something about home made bread, of any kind that just makes a house feel like a home!

So today, I'm going to share with you my Momma's potato sourdough starter. It can be used for any type of sourdough bread. The two I'll be featuring this month are Cinnamon Rolls and Cheesy Dinner Rolls. But today we'll just cover the basics of the starter.


The starter I am going to show you how to make is super easy and very versatile.

Sourdough Starter
Ingredients:
(These are estimations, you may need a little more, or a little less)
1 tsp dry yeast
1 1/3 c sugar
6 Tbs instant potato flakes*
2 c warm water (NOT from the tap. Use filtered water, otherwise you might kill the yeast.)
1/2 tsp salt

*This go around I used dehydrated potato pearls from food storage and because they are pre salted I skipped adding the salt.

Combine all the ingredients in a glass bowl and mix well. Do not use a metal bowl or spatula. It will leave a taste in the starter that is most unpleasant.

Let the starter stand for 1 to 3 days in a warm draft-free place (I used my oven turned off), covered with cling film with a small edge turned back so it can breathe. Remember yeast is a living thing and needs air to breath and grow.

The surface should get bubbly, stir it every once in awhile so that the yeast continues to "eat" all the ingredients and grow.

There are a few options from here for how you can proceed.

Option 1:
If you don't need rolls or the dough the same day you made the starter than you can refrigerate and let the mixture rest, stir and feed it every 5-7 days. As the starter matures over time, a clear to light yellow liquid may form on top, just stir it in.

To Feed Starter do the following:
Add -
2/3 c sugar
3 Tbs potato flakes
1 c warm water
1/4 tsp salt (depending on potato flakes used)

Mix well and let it stand at room temperature for 8-10 hours. It should be very bubbly. Then remove one cup to make bread with and return the rest to the refrigerator.

Option 2:
If you want to use the starter to bake the same day it is possible. You will have to let the yeast grow and become bubbly, stirring occasionally just as before. When you are ready to make your bread pull your starter out and in a large bowl combine the following:

1/3 c sugar
1 Tbs salt
1 c starter
1/3 c corn oil
1 1/2 c warm water
6 c bread flour
1 tsp (heaping) yeast

This will make your dough which you can then either bake as a load, or turn into dinner rolls or cinnamon rolls like I did.

Stay tuned for how to turn this starter into the most amazing cinnamon rolls and cheesy dinner rolls! 

Creamy Parmesan Spread

Hello friends and fellow cooks! Today we are focusing on my all time favorite spread. It is creamy, tangy, and can be used in so many delicious ways! My creamy parmesan spread is great plain, on a sandwich, or as a salad dressing. This is a true dump recipe. I've given measurements below, but they aren't necessary. This is more about taste and texture. So make sure you sample it lots to get it just right!

Creamy Parmesan Spread
Prep time: 10 min

Ingredients:
1/2 Cup mayo
1/4 Cup grated parmesan cheese (parmesan reggiano is the best!)
2 tbs greek yogurt*
2 tbs milk
2 cloves garlic, minced finely
1 tsp minced fresh parsley
1/2 tsp lemon juice

This recipe is all about taste. It's got a sharp flavor to it from the Parmesan and the garlic. To get the garlic minced really finely I use a micro plane grater. It works great. I also do the cheese the same way. 

Mix everything together in a bowl. Once mixed taste it to see how the favors are melding. If you feel like it's too thin add a little more yogurt or cheese. I usually end up adding more cheese cause I like it to be chunky and I add more garlic because it's my favorite! 

This is about the consistency of mine. 

My favorite way to enjoy this spread is on a plain baguette. It's so good and highly addicting. You've been warned! 

Happy eating!

English Muffin Bread with Cinnamon Honey Butter

One of my favorite breakfast breads is English Muffin Bread. It's so good toasted and slathered in fresh made Cinnamon Honey Butter. Today I am going to show you how to make both! And then you will never be able to settle for store bought English muffins again!

This English Muffin bread doesn't require a lot of fancy baking skills. You literally dump everything into a bowl, mix it up, let it rise, and then bake it. My type of bread! On more than one occasion I have given this bread to friends and neighbors and they always rave about how good it is.

Start by figuring out how many loaves of bread you want to make. I always end up making a large batch of this bread because I am usually giving some away, but i'll give you the measurements for 2 loaves below.

English Muffin Bread

Makes: 2 loaves
Prep time: 1 hr 15 min
Cook time: 40 minutes, or until golden

Ingredients:
2 3/4 C warm water*
1 1/2 package rapid rise yeast
1 Tbsp salt
5 1/2 cups Flour

* Don't use hot water as it will kill the yeast! Remember yeast is alive, we need it to grow so that our bread rises.

Start by taking all of your ingredients and dumping them into your mixing bowl. You can do this by hand, but it is much easier if you have a KitchenAid or some type of mixer and use your dough hook attachment. If you don't have a stand mixer of some type, use a large bowl and a lightly oil'd spoon or lightly oiled hands to help keep the dough from sticking after you start mixing it together.

Mix everything until the ingredients are incorporated, it won't take too much mixing, just make sure all the flour is wet and the yeast is not clumped up together.

Dump out the dough into 2 greased loaf pans. Or you could do several mini loaf pans, or even a muffin tin. Whatever you prefer. I've baked this bread in everything from a cake pan, a muffin tin, and a traditional loaf pan and it always turns out.

 

Let the bread rise for 1 hour. keep it somewhere out of a breeze or slightly warmer to  help the yeast along. Let your oven preheat to 350 F.

Bake the loaves for about 30 minutes. They should be firm on top and have pulled away from the sides. At this point I pull them out and baste them with a little melted butter so that they are even more golden on top. Cook them for about 10 more minutes once you put the butter on top.

Once done let the bread cool for 10-15 minutes and then turn them out of the pans onto a cooling rack so the sides and bottom don't get soggy.

This bread is amazing if you eat it right away, but it also makes great toast throughout the week. I usually enjoy mine with my husbands homemade cinnamon honey butter.

To make the cinnamon honey butter take 1 stick of butter at room temperature and whisk it in your mixer until it is whipped. It is so important that you use room temperature butter. If you use melted butter the honey doesn't incorporate as good. And if the butter is frozen or refrigerated it will be too hard and break your whisk.

Once the butter is whipped (forming peaks) add honey and ground cinnamon to taste. You could also add a splash of vanilla depending on your preference. Whip all together until incorporated and make sure to taste it plenty along the way to see if you need more of anything. Store in an air tight container in your fridge.

I hope you guys enjoy.

Happy Baking!

Breads and Spreads

This month on the blog I am going to be sharing my favorite breads and spreads. As this is the month of love what better way to show you care than to give someone special a loaf of warm goodness?

A lot of times baking bread can seem like a daunting task for an unexperienced baker. But with a few cardinal rules you will realize that baking your own bread is easy and not nearly as scary as some might think! I learned a lot about baking from my Mom growing up. She baked everything from sourdough cinnamon rolls, to baguettes, to pizza dough, to fancy wedding cakes for friends.

When I got to college I decided I wanted one of my minors to be Culinary Arts and one of my favorite classes I took was Baking. If you are ever looking for a great book, full of every type of bread recipe you could ever want to know I suggest Wayne Gisslen's Professional Baking book. I have the 5th edition, and it is like the bible of baking.

Bread is a really versatile tool in so many ways in the kitchen. You can turn stale bread into bread pudding, eat it plain, with butter, or make it the star of your meal.

Most all breads have the same basic chemical makeup: flour, salt, sugar, yeast, water.

One of the great things about bread is that you can add so many different ingredients to completely transform your dough into something new. From nuts, to fruit, to coca powder and peanut butter. Bread is one of the most versatile foods you can learn to make. There are literally endless possibilities.

Spreads are similar, I like to just dump in what sounds good based on the type of bread I'm eating, or even what time of day I'm eating it! From frosting, to flavored butter, to garlic and cheese, there is a spread for every bread.

I hope you enjoy this months recipes, they are some of my favorite!

Happy Eating!

Baked Mozzarella Sticks

One of my favorite appetizers since childhood has been Mozzarella sticks. That cheesy ooey gooeyness mixed with the crispy outside is so delightful! My favorite is when they are piping hot and the cheese juice just runs everywhere! 

Lots of brands make frozen versions of these amazing appetizers. But none of them are as good as fresh made at a restaurant.

I want to share with you my version of homemade Mozzarella sticks! They are so easy and great for kids to help make too. There are no measurements to this recipe. Just do as much of the ingredients as you want or need.  

Baked Mozzarella Sticks

Prep time - 15 minutes

Cook time - until golden and melty 

Ingredients:

Flour

Milk

Egg(s)

Breadcrumbs

Seasonings (Italian or Herbs du Province)

Mozzerella string cheese sticks

In three separate bowls put your flour, bread crumbs and seasoning, and milk and eggs. Slice your string cheese sticks in half then dunk as follows:

Make sure that on steps #2 & #3 that you coat the cheese completely in the flour and egg/milk mixture, this helps protect the cheese from oozing out during baking. If you are having trouble getting the flour or eggs to stick you can double dunk steps #2 and #3. Essentially doing two layers of each, flour then egg mixture, then more flour, then more egg mixture. It makes the coating a little thicker but if you are worried about your cheese melting out this will help create more of a barrier. 

Line them up on a baking sheet (I use foil to make clean up easier) and bake for approximately 20 minutes at 350 F. Or until golden and gooey. If you want a faster baking time you can bake at 400 F. However I suggest freezing them for a half hour prior so that the cheese doesn't run out anywhere. The lower temperature seems to keep them from melting too fast while the egg cooks. 

Serve with your favorite marinara or dipping sauce. These are so easy I was able to do most of it one handed while my 5 month old was teething! Make more than you think you need though because they are so delicious they will be gone before you know it!

Stay tuned for what's coming up next month! I am pretty excited about February's theme. I'll be announcing it on Feb 1 on the blog. 

Happy Eating! 

Seven Layer Bean Dip

Greetings from South Florida! I’m here at home spending some time with my family and doing some work for next months posts.

Today’s recipe is so quick and easy and requires hardly any measurements! This is a true dump cook recipe! One of the greatest things about this recipe is that you can customize every layer to your own personal tastes.

Remember, in dump cooking there is no right or wrong. Just delicious and divine! 

Seven Layer Dip

Prep time: 15 minutes

Cook time: 20 minutes

My suggested list of ingredients is as follows: 

Lettuce

Refried beans (I use dehydrated) 

Guacamole 

Sour cream

Salsa (I use Herdez canned salsa)

Black olives

Green onions

Shredded cheddar cheese

Pepperochini or sliced jalapeño 

You can use any variation of these ingredients. For today’s recipe I just used what was on hand in my Mom’s pantry.

I personally use dehydrated refried beans (they are so good!) to make the base layer of my dip. In order to rehydrate them I start by taking the salsa and drain it into a measuring cup. I used a 7oz can of Herdez salsa and got ¼ cup liquid from my can.

When using dehydrated refired beans the ratio of liquid to beans is 1 to 1. So if you want to use 1 cup of beans, you need 1 cup of liquids. I wanted to use ¾ cup beans, so I added ½ cup of water to the liquid from my salsa so I had ¾ cups of liquid.

Once you know your liquid/bean ratio, you can dump the salsa and liquid into a small pot. I like to add in taco seasonings to the liquid to give it even more flavor. You could go as simple as a taco-seasoning packet (only use enough to add a little flavor, maybe 1/4 to 1/2 the packet) but I like to just use a custom blend of whatever sounds good at the moment. Minced garlic, onion powder, oregano, ground cumin, would all be excellent choices.

Once you’ve added your flavor oomph, bring it all to a boil and add in your beans. Turn the heat off and stir it just to make sure all the beans are coated in the liquid so they can soften. Let it stand for about 10-15 minutes.

You can also just use canned refried beans, but the dehydrated are so much better!

Once the bean layer has cooled a little bit you can turn it into the bottom of your serving dish. I like to use a glass bowl so you can see all the delicious layers.

Next I added the guacamole, sour cream and then cheese. I topped mine with shredded lettuce, pickled jalapeno, and green onions. After the bean layer goes down you can really do anything you want in any order. But I recommend doing all your heavier items first like the sour cream and guacamole, and then adding all the other stuff on top.

Serve with your favorite corn chips. 

Hope you guys enjoy todays installment of appetizers. Happy Eating! 

Buffalo Chicken Dip

Today's recipe is Buffalo Chicken Dip. This is my favorite game day appetizer. I make it every year for the Super Bowl, it's so good and I rarely have leftovers. My Mom and I started making this years ago and we just haven't stopped. 

Perfectly served with celery sticks or your favorite crackers. My personal favorite are Carrs Crackers. 

Buffalo Chicken Dip

Ingredients: 

2 cups diced or shredded cooked chicken (get a rotisserie chicken if you want to cheat!)
1/4 cup Frank's Red Hot Sauce
1 cup Helman's mayo (plain greek yogurt if you want to be figure friendly)
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
2 tablespoons finely chopped green onions
1 tsp lemon juice
1/4 cup crumbled blue cheese (or enough to cover the top)

Preheat oven to 375 F. Shred your chicken and then toss with the hot sauce (a fast and easy way to shreds your chicken is in a food processor). I like to do a mix of both hand shredded chicken and food processor chicken. It adds more texture to the dish.

While I prep the rest of my ingredients I like to go ahead and add the hot sauce to the chicken so it can soak in and almost marinate the chicken. 

Stir in remaining ingredients except blue cheese. Pour into a 1 1/2 quart shallow casserole dish, then sprinkle with blue cheese. 

Bake uncovered 20 minutes or until bubbling, serve hot with celery, chips, or crackers. 

I don't have a picture of this dip yet. Which is crazy because I've made it so many times. We even served it at my wedding reception! But I'll add one in soon. The Mr. and I are on a 6 day "shred" as we ramp up our home fitness program. But I'll be making it for the Super Bowl and will add a picture in then.   

Pictures are up. We made this for the Super Bowl party we went to yesterday. So yummy!