Gluten-Free Whole Grain Olive Bread

Crusty, fragrant gluten-free olive bread, warm from the oven.

Giving up bread is hard. Bread is basic. Almost a need. Like air. Like breathing. It is both routine and celebratory. Prosaic and divine. A simple, torn-off hunk of good bread embodies a deep sense of nourishment, for body and soul. The bewitching mix of a handful of flour, some yeast, some salt, some water.



Stir. Knead. Rest. Bake.



And as if by magic, this warm and fragrant alchemical creation called bread appears. And all is right with the world.



When I think of our honeymoon in Italy (sixteen years ago, now, Darling) I think of the color of the evening sky above the cypress. A shot of burnished gold that shimmered with the faintest veil of pink and lemon. I think about the shopkeepers sweeping their doorsteps each morning, nodding their Buon giorno! as we walked to fetch a New York Times and a cappuccino not served in a paper cup. There was love, yes. And wine. And olives.



And there was bread.





Continue reading

Whole Grain Gluten-Free Bread

Whole grain gluten-free deliciousness.

Just when you think you have it all figured out, life snakes you a curve ball and rattles your position. Just a little a bit. Just enough to make sure you're still awake, still paying attention. Because what is life about if not change? Change is the only constant. Change is our true companion.



Nothing stays the same.



Especially persnickety celiac tummies. I know this from readers. I know this from gluten-free bloggers. I know this from personal experience. We start at A, oblivious. We skip and stumble to D. We settle in. We think G or J is pretty cool. Then Q throws us into a tizzy.



We discover gluten is an enemy. Then maybe milk. Or mustard. Or kidney beans. You name it. Fill in the blank. Most of us with celiac disease end up with a few additional culprits on our Need to Avoid List. Maybe not right away. But over time, many of us will have to fine tune our repertoire of ingredients.



If we want to stay healthy.



If we want to grow stronger, not fatter.



If we want to feel trim, not bloated.



Which brings me to bread. (What celiac conversation doesn't lead to bread, I ask you?)





Continue reading

Beer Bread, 4 ways

 

You might as well know...I like beer.  I come from a family of beer drinkers.  "I come from a family of neurosurgeons" might sound more impressive, but there ya go.



Even though I'd never had a beer until I was 21 *cough*, I'd gotten a little taste from my mom's famous beer bread.  It couldn't be simpler to make (FOUR INGREDIENTS), no kneading, no rising....just stir, bake, done.



Since my sister and her family were coming over for Easter, we decided to do a little "beer bread sampling."  Four beer breads, made with 4 different New Belgium beers.





Our breads were:

1. Mom's Classic, made with Fat Tire,


2. Gruyere & Rosemary, made with Blue Paddle,


3. Orange Nutmeg, made with Mothership Wit, 


4. and Cinnamon Chocolate Chip, made with 1554

Now, this was a tough, tough assignment.  Eat bread and drink beer. But we survived...and one bread came out the winner...



Gruyere & Rosemary was hands-down everyone's favorite.  And it IS delicious....especially served warm, with butter running down the sides.



I have to tell you though, I really loved the sweet versions.  (You're shocked, right?)

 

The orange nutmeg bread had these little flecks of orange zest throughout and the sweet orange glaze on the top? Oh so yummy.  And smells SO good!



Let's talk cinnamon chocolate chip bread, shall we? It's is calling my name right now.  This bread was so decadent at room temperature with its little pockets of bittersweet chocolate chips, but toasted? With butter? For breakfast?  Yes please, I'll have another.



And I can't forget the original....mom's classic beer bread.  Seriously, try it.  Warm bread, straight from the oven in one hour?  Try it with dinner tonight. You'll be glad you did.



Mom's Classic Beer Bread



3 c. self-rising flour

3 TBSP sugar

12 ounces room temperature beer

melted butter



Preheat oven to 350.  Grease a 9x 5" loaf pan with shortening.



Stir together the flour and sugar.  Add the beer and stir until combined.



Spoon into prepared loaf pan,  and bake 1 hour.  Remove immediately from pan and place on a cooling rack over a cookie sheet.  Pour melted butter on top of the bread, letting it drip down the sides.  Enjoy!





variations:

• Gruyere-Rosemary: use a beer such as New Belgium's Blue Paddle Pilsner-Lager.  Stir in 1 cup shredded Gruyere cheese and 1 TBSP fresh rosemary to the basic dough.  Brush the top with melted butter after removing from the pan.


• Orange Nutmeg: use a wheat beer, such as Mothership Wit. Zest a large orange and add the zest and 1/4 tsp. freshly grated nutmeg to the basic dough.  While the bread bakes, juice half of the orange.  Whisk with some powdered sugar to make a glaze.  Remove cooked bread from the pan, poke several holes in the top with a toothpick.  Pour the glaze over the bread, allowing it to drip down the sides.


• Cinnamon Chocolate Chip: use a dark beer such as 1554.  Substitute brown sugar for the granulated.  Stir in 3/4 c. bittersweet chocolate chips (Ghiradelli) and 1/2 tsp cinnamon to the basic dough.  Sprinkle the dough with cinnamon-sugar before baking.  Rub the top of the bread with butter after removing from the pan, if desired.

As part of the Foodbuzz Tastemaker Program, I received a stipend to purchase New Belgium beer and ingredients. Thanks, FoodBuzz!

Bread : it's what's for dinner . . . Works for Me Wednesday

It occurs to me that I should be a marathon runner, not because I love to exercise, but because I am in a constant state of carbo-loading.

You guys....I LOVE bread.

Exhibit A: my "usual" at Panera.

 

French Onion Soup in a bread bowl with a side of baguette

Or as Mr. E called it this afternoon....

"Bread with a side of soup."

I admit it, I am smitten with bread...and Panera. And I LOVE than they give you the bread that was scooped out for the soup.  That chunk of bread is like a little piece of heaven. (Please tell me there is bread in heaven.)





Speaking of bread (and I can't believe I've never shared this recipe before)...this is the ULTIMATE white bread for sandwiches, toast, snacking (?). :) If you love bread like I do, I BEG you to make it.



{My pictures aren't great, but the bread....oh, it's incredible!  It's carbo-load time!}



White Bread 101 

{barely modified from The King Arthur Flour Baker's Companion }



3 c. all-purpose flour (you can subs. WHITE whole wheat flour here)

2 tsp instant yeast

1 & 1/2 tsp kosher salt

3 TBSP sugar

4 TBSP softened butter

1/4 c. dry milk

1/3 c. potato flakes

1 & 1/8 c. lukewarm water



Combine all ingredients together.  Dump onto a lightly floured surface and knead until you have a smooth dough...about 10 minutes.  Add more flour as needed, but add sparingly as more flour equals a heavier, drier loaf.



Transfer to a lightly oiled bowl; cover with oiled plastic wrap and let rise for 1 hour.



Transfer to a lightly greased work surface and shape into an 8" log.  Place in a lightly greased 8.5" x 4.5" loaf pan.  Cover loosely with the oiled plastic wrap and let rise about 1 hour....or until the dough has risen 1 inch over the rim.



Preheat oven to 350.  Uncover and bake the bread for 35-40 minutes, or until an instant thermometer reads 190 degrees. (Tent with foil during the last 10-15 minutes of baking if it is browning too quickly.)



Remove bread from the pan and place on a wire cooling rack.  After 15 minutes, brush with butter.  Cool completely before slicing.

Makes a mean grilled cheese or PB & J sandwich! 

{This post about my love for "bread with a side of soup" is sponsored by Panera. My obsession with carbs, my love of French Onion soup and my extra 15 pounds are mine and mine alone.}

Gluten-Free Dinner Rolls

Fresh baked gluten-free dinner rolls- warm and tender.

We've been slurping lots of soup this Spring while the temperatures hover well below my chilly bones preference of 72 degrees. I hate to complain about 52 degrees, but, honestly. I'm shivering like a kitten in a Steve Martin movie. This is L.A. not New Hampshire. Where is my sunshine and technicolor blue sky?



Hiding its good humor behind wrinkled duvets of fuzzy gray clouds, that's where.



So we make gluten-free soup.



But the soup needs a companion. Our potage is lonely. And so I play matchmaker. I've been inviting gluten-free roll recipes to come and play. I've been flirting with their quirks and grainy idiosyncrasies, trying to be a good host. Coaxing their prickly little batters into behaving. As in, taste GOOD. And I've had some almost there success. But nothing to brag about. Nothing blog worthy.



Until today. These rolls are a balance of whole grain flavor and softness. Just crusty enough. These were tender and lovely warm from the oven. Not gummy. Not heavy. Not too grainy.



Just right.







Continue reading

An Ode to Bread . . .

There was a young girl from Dallas,

...wait, that's a limerick, not an ode.....

I'm not quite sure how to write an ode, but I will tell you, bread is special to me.



{This is Panera's Tomato Basil bread.}



I grew up smelling bread dough rise for my mom's famous cinnamon rolls.  There was beer bread, warm from the oven and slathered in butter.  Bread was always a part of our lives.



My Bread Story:  Well, I was dating this guy.  And one day (15 years ago today, to be exact, right about this time of day...it's 4:30pm here), he called and asked if I wanted to go to Happy Hour.  Of course, I said!



He picked me up, and drove not to a restaurant, or to a bar, but to a park.  A beautiful park.  From the back seat, he produced a loaf of bread and a bottle of champagne.  We sat on a wooden park bench, sipped champange and tore off chunks of bread.



And then, I SCREAMED!  There was something big and BLACK in the bread.  He was calm, removed the black "thing" from the bread...it was a box.  He knelt down on one knee and proposed.



{When you're dating someone with an engineering degree, I guess it shouldn't come as a shock that he carves out the perfect size cubbyhole in a loaf of bread for a ring box. And then puts the whole thing back together perfectly.}

So, the rest is history.  It may explain why, as I watched this Panera "Ode to Bread" video, I got teary-eyed.  Watch it and tell me, does it make you teary, too?

Just ONE of the reasons I LOVE Panera, is that their freshly made, always delicious loaves of bread are ready and waiting for me in the store when I don't have the time....or am feeling too lazy....to make my own.



Treat yourself to one.....or better yet, have your honey pick a loaf for you.  You never know what might be hiding in there! ;)

{Do YOU have a bread story?}

I'd love to for you to share it here...or with Panera on their Facebook page.

(This is a sponsored post by Panera Bread, but my opinions, words and proposal story are all my own.)

Babies, Bread & Beautiful Bloggers. . .

Babies:

My *little* sister just had her 3rd baby last month.  Her 3rd boy.  A beautiful, healthy, chunky little boy named Leo. ♥



{So, she now has a 4 year-old, a one-year-old, a newborn and a good case of sleep-deprivation. ;)}



Bread:

It's always been my philosophy that new mothers need a little sugar high to make it through the day.....or at least until naptime. 



Enter Poppy Seed Bread that makes TWO loaves and is perfect to freeze and drop off to a new mommy.



The bread is oh-so-moist....I'm no expert, but it might have something to do with the 1+ cups of oil in the recipe.

 

It is SO good just sliced and served plain for breakfast, or a snack, or for dessert.  It's a multi-tasker.



Beautiful Bloggers:

You may know that we lost my mom to cancer over 10 years ago.  Kiddo was 1 and I feel so lucky that he had her in his life, even if it was only for a year.



Mom made the quilt for kiddo's bed....and she started a small quilt for him to have to carry around.  But she got too sick to finish it.



I'm not good with a needle and thread.  So, this little quilt was in a bag that I've carried from house to house to house.  And a couple months before baby Leo was born, I found it!



Here's what it looked like (the top was put together, batting and back attached with pins and bits of thread.):



On a whim, I tweeted something like, "Anyone interested in finishing a baby quilt in exchange for cookies.....or cash?"  



I'm not kidding, 5 seconds later, sweet Robyn from Earthbound Chronicles offered to finish it.....FOR THE COOKIES!!!  I think I offered her a few chances to back out....or to take the cash instead.  She wouldn't even let me pay her for shipping.



Here's how the quilt looks now:

 

Absolutely gorgeous!!!  And take a gander at this adorable, darling, perfect trim that Robyn added...



 

{Oh, I love it!}

So, now baby Leo has a little piece of something his Gigi made.....with a BIG dash of love from a sweet blogger we've never even met.



{Y'all....I never expected blogging to bring me to tears, but it does. What I love the most about blogging & tweeting is what I never expected.....meeting the most amazing, creative, generous souls on earth.}



Thank you SO MUCH, Robyn.  {I still think you should have taken the cash.} ;)



Poppy Seed Bread

{adapted from Mary Engelbreit's Fan Fare}



1 & 1/2 cups milk

3 eggs

1 & 1/2 tsp. pure vanilla extract

1 & 1/2 tsp. pure almond extract

1 cup + 2 TBSP vegetable oil

2 & 1/2 cup sugar

3 cups unbleached, all-purpose flour

1 & 1/2 tsp. baking powder

1 & 1/2 tsp. coarse salt

1 & 1/2 TBSP poppy seeds



Preheat oven to 350.  Grease sides and bottoms of two 9x5" loaf pans.



In a large bowl on low speed, beat together the milk, eggs, vanilla, extracts and oil.



Add in the sugar, flour, baking powder and salt.  Beat for 2 minutes.  Stir in the poppy seeds.



Divide the batter between the two loaf pans and bake 50-60 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean.



Cool in wire racks in the pans 10 minutes, then remove from pans and let cool completely.



To freeze, wrap cooled loaf in heavy-duty foil.  Thaw at room temperature several hours or overnight.

It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year . . .

...or it will be in 3 days.  Are you ready?  Are you ready for PUMPKIN season?

My sister has a laugh at my expense every year because once September 1st rolls around, it is all-pumpkin-all-the-time around here.  It becomes a slight obsession.



{PS....Starbucks, I'll be at your door Wednesday morning....hoping those Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins are in the bakery case.  And if they're not, be prepared for some tears.}

I want you to be prepared, so here is a little pumpkin bread recipe for you. 



Pumpkin Bread

{Just slightly modified from my girl, Paula Deen 's The Lady & Sons Savannah Country Cookbook}



3 and 1/3 c. flour

2 tsp. baking soda

1 and 1/2 tsp. coarse salt

1 tsp. ground cinnamon

1 tsp. freshly ground nutmeg

3 c. sugar

1 c. vegetable oil

4 eggs

1 (15 oz) can pumpkin

2/3 c. water

1/4 c. pumpkin seed kernels



Preheat oven to 350.  Grease and flour 2 loaf pans.



Combine flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg.  Set aside.

{If you're wondering about what whole nutmeg looks like, this is it.  There are fancy nutmeg graters, but I just use my small handheld grater with the tiny holes.}



Beat the sugar and oil together until combined.  Beat in the eggs and mix, scraping down sides of bowl as needed.  Add pumpkin and blend.  Add the water and blend completely.



Slowly add the flour mixture and beat on low until combined.  Pour into loaf pans.

Roughly chop the pumpkin seed kernels, I like to leave some whole, and sprinkle on top of batter. (I got these in the bulk section of my grocery store.)



Bake for 1 hour, or more, until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.  Cool in the pans on a cooling rack for 15 minutes.  Remove from pans and let cool completely.

Want more pumpkin?  Here are some goodies from last year...

1. Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Bars

2. Pumpkin Whoopie Pies

3. Pumpkin Cream Cheese

Happy Pumpkin Season, Everyone!!!