Love love pecan season. First up is a big batch of Spiced Candied Pecans. Great snacking but more often added to richen recipes. They’re the main ingredient in these deliciously rich scones. Make a great coffee or tea accompaniment. We like them with soup too.
Inspired by King Arthur Baking Company.
Whips up easily! Few ingredients … you have in your pantry. I woke up this morning craving homemade biscuits but wanted to try something that could be a standalone breakfast. Not that this biscuit in smaller form isn’t the perfect appetizer. I love the cheese and green chilies combination, but I found this quick recipe by Sargento that combines cheese and butter. Oh, and black pepper too. Rich, flakey and delicious!
With the right tools this whips up so fast you’ll be making bread every week. Yes, it’s really true … in less than an hour. The texture of the bread is perfect. And taste?! Slightly sweet with the moistness you want in a bread. There are no disappointments here. You’ll need a bread pot and the Emile Henry product doesn’t disappoint. I actually used my electric mixer with a bread hook … Something I almost never do when making bread. With this recipe I believe you can’t go without it for the best and easiest results.
Let’s get started with this easy bread recipe with the help of the Emile Henry people.
With a bread hook mixer this recipe speeds along. Prep time, 15 minutes and bake for 45. Amazing! The secret is this baking pot. No, I’m not advertising. It just is. 
Add this to your baking essentials if you’re into homemade yeast bread in no time. I haven’t shopped other brands but bet they’re out there. If you are home bound this can be ordered on line with Amazon too. (burgundy or charcoal) Need ingredients? You can’t go wrong with King Arthur.
Get ingredients and pot ready. Recipe coming next!
Thanksgiving dinner Turkey and Stuffing has been on my menu for decades. Over time I’ve tried many different roasting methods and stuffing recipes. The meal has always turned out well but most compliments come with these following recipes. First, buy the best turkey … quality does make a difference. Fresh is preferred. It need not be processed with injections or other treatments … prefer it not be, actually. Using the popup, if present, to check doneness is up to you but I suggest a meat thermometer for true accuracy. What is the biggest complaint about roasted turkey? The breast meat is too dry. This is why I love Martha Stewart’s butter/wine roasting method. I cut the corners a bit but the result is moist and tender. As for the stuffing, I’ve often made my own bread cubes using whatever bread I might have saved in the freezer over several months … you know, the crust no one wants, end pieces, leftover corn bread … always quality breads, no crackers. (When my mother-in-law, an admitted poor cook, made her turkey stuffing with saltines … I don’t know what I expected, yes I do! … but it turned out well. I’m still amazed to this day but then I was very hungry and appreciative. We did a lot of fasting that trip.)
When my daughter became a vegetarian (progressed to vegan) I knew I had to find a different dressing recipe, one cooked separately from the turkey that maintained a great taste. I tried Rachel Ray’s Cranberry Pecan Dressing recipe … converting it to vegetarian and later to vegan. It worked beautifully baked separately, and stuffed loosely into the turkey cavities as well. There are some short cuts I take today when preparing Thanksgiving I wouldn’t have taken years ago. I will never give up homemade pie crusts … these often take a pie from good to amazingly delicious. So, what have I given up? Making the bread cubes. I now find myself buying William Sonoma’s … Even pre-seasoned. Yep, WS brand does make a difference.
Now, let’s jump into these recipes. Great recipes for the beginner as well as experienced!
It’s Pumpkin Season!
Braised Short Ribs Cheesecake Quick Bread Pasta Sauce Cupcakes
French Toast Panettone Sandies
Mini Pumpkins Popcorn Balls Torte Spice Cake Cookies
Family often sends me recipes to try and this is one. Just the idea of sourdough without the mess of a sourdough starter is a major plus. I had to try this. Although, I must say I found the Platinum Instant Sourdough Yeast a bit pricey and not too available. Was it worth it? Actually, the answer is an easy YES. The flavor is amazing. Use your favorite infused olive oil and dot the top with tomatoes, rosemary or whatever. This recipe was found in Bake From Scratch. The magazine does have a website if you wish to check it out. I did make one major change to the recipe, no mixer. The dough is sticky but can be handled easily with a handheld dough hook and a little kneading. Just made sense to me. Enjoy!
When you have a love affair with food like I do it’s not unusual to gain a few unwanted pounds. Yep, I’m cutting back but that doesn’t mean I go without chocolate, or a sweet treat made with butter. You might already know oatmeal not only provides great nutritional value but suppresses your appetite. I’ve made so many delicious oatmeal recipes but was looking for something new for breakfast. (Yes, I eat oatmeal bars and cookies for breakfast.) Muffins are good and I came upon a recipe by Epicurious. I liked the butter and buttermilk ingredients, and knew this was going to be a rich tasting muffin. But I wanted chocolate! I made some changes and call this a version of the original recipe. Thank you Epicurious.
Moist with little oil. The fresh applesauce does the trick. If you love spices and pecans you’ll love this.
My delicious experience with Magnolia Table next. This was a near disaster … WARNING: Use of a flared 9 by 5 inch loaf pan may cause baking overflow. Yep, my glaze is more like a frosting (I added a bit of butter. shh). I was gifted Magnolia Table and have really enjoyed trying the recipes. I have to admit it’s just plain delicious to flip through the pages. I love the Joanna Gaines style.
Others have tried this recipe and posted. We all agree it’s amazingly delicious. I have included a few posts so you can see others’ outcome, (the second includes the full recipe), here & here. The bread does tend to have a slight indentation on top when baked. My overflow experience … I knew better. When I filled the bread pan I could tell the batter was too much for the size. I did hold back but apparently not enough. And the glaze included in the recipe, I opted out. Just wanted something a little more like frosting.