So, I’ve Been Baking

Not doing a lot of blogging lately, but definitely baking. I don’t exactly know why either — having the oven on as the temperature outside rises isn’t necessarily the most logical thing. Anyway, lets start with the bread.

I made my first ever batch of whole wheat bread and it was amazing. So amazing in fact, that I forgot to take a picture of the finished loaves. I used this recipe and boy, was it good.  I didn’t exactly have the right ingredients so instead of white bread flour, I used a combination of regular all purpose flour and white whole wheat flour (the King Arthur kind) for the first part and some whole wheat bread flour from the local food co-op for the second part.  It worked just fine — the bread was light but held together well.  I think foodies would say it had a nice crumb.   I was able to slice it for sandwiches for the kids, which is what really mattered to me!

Next up, booby bars.  I have to credit Sarah with the name — I made some of these granola bars for her because they had several ingredients that my midwife had recommended as milk production boosters back when I was nursing Eleanor.  The basic recipe I followed is here, but really I added so much stuff that I figured I should probably just share my version here:

2 cup Oats
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 cup whole wheat flour (again, I used King Arthur’s white whole wheat)
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 to 1/2 tsp ginger
1/4 tsp cloves
1/2 cup unsweetened coconut
1/2 cup peanuts
1/2 cup soy nuts
1/2 cup sunflower seeds
1/4 cup ground flax
1/4 cup sesame seeds
1 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup honey
1/2 cup peanut butter
1/2 cup molasses

Add anything else you like. Add more honey/peanut butter/molasses to make it stickier if it is too dry. Mix all the ingredients and press into a greased pan. I like them thick so I use a 9 x 9 or two loaf pans. The more ingredients you add the bigger pan you will need (obviously). Bake at 325 for 20 minutes or until edges are browned. once cooked, I like to cut the bars before it cools and then they sort of break apart when you take them out.

And, finally, some Rhubarb & Strawberry Hand Pies a la Angry Chicken. Here is her post/recipe. I found the crust on her cheat sheet to be a bit dry so I tried a second time and added a bit more water (maybe twice as much). The second crust came out better but I put it on a regular pie, which I don’t have picture of. Instead I have a picture of my little pie volcanoes, complete with rock-hard lava flow. Ok, so they are not beautiful, but they tasted good, at least the non-hardened lava parts. I could have rolled the crust a bit thinner as well — maybe next time.