Focaccia Pugliese

Before my husband was my husband he wooed me with food, specifically with his baking. One of the first things he made was focaccia. I was madly in love, and not just with my boyfriend. The bread was so fluffy and moist, the crust was the perfect amount of crispy and chewy, and the toppings burst with flavor. I had focaccia before that day, I'm sure of it, but I was shocked that he made it by himself and from scratch; that was the day I knew I truly loved focaccia.

Since our young days as a couple we've made this dozens of times, and I'm still amazed that it's made with potatoes—who knew?! The recipe below makes one thick and poofy focaccia that's lighter than it looks thanks to the velvety olive oil and creamy potatoes. (Keep this in mind when you have Thanksgiving leftovers!) 

Our staple toppings are usually a smattering of pesto, sun-dried tomatoes, olives, rosemary, and Parmesan cheese. But sometimes we get creative and add mushrooms, onions, bell peppers, or other veggies we have on hand. I also suggest using a good extra-virgin olive oil—a little bit goes long way, so bust out your good stuff!

Oh, one other note: this is addicting. Consider yourself warned! 

Focaccia

by The Tale of Two Kitchens

Ingredients:
1 cup room-temperature mashed potatoes (we use instant potatoes if we don't have "real" potatoes on hand)
1 1/2 tsp active dry yeast
1/4 cup water, warm
1 cup water, room temperature 
3-4 Tbs extra-virgin olive oil, divided
3 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
2 tsp salt
1/4-1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
sprigs of rosemary 

Optional Toppings:
2-3 Tbs pesto
12-15 olives (green and/or black) cut in half
1/2 oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes, drained and chopped  
2-3 mushrooms, sliced or chopped
1/2 onion, sliced or chopped
1 bell pepper, sliced or chopped 

Directions:
In medium-sized bowl whisk yeast into warm water and let stand until creamy, about 10 minutes. Stir in remaining water (room temperature) and 1 tablespoon of oil. Combine mashed potatoes (room temperature—if it's hot it'll kill the yeast), flour, and salt into yeast mixture and stir for about 3 minutes. Continue stirring until it gets too difficult, then mix with your hands. Knead until dough is velvety, elastic and slightly sticky. Place dough on a clean, lightly floured workplace and continue kneading until dough is no longer sticky (add a more flour a little bit at a time if necessary). Drizzle 1/2 tablespoon of oil in empty bowl, then place dough back in bowl. Flip dough to get it covered in oil; cover bowl with plastic wrap or a towel and let rise until doubled (about 2 hours). 

Preheat oven to 400F.

Spread dough onto a well-oiled cookie sheet (9x13"). Cover with towel and let double (about 1 hour). Once doubled, press your fingertips into dough to create "dimples." Spread pesto evenly across the top, scatter on your toppings (except sun-dried tomatoes*), and sprinkle cheese and rosemary. Drizzle remaining olive oil, making sure to cover edges and corners. 

Bake for ~20 minutes, adding sun-dried tomatoes just as focaccia is golden brown.

Chocolate Lover's Cake Brownies

We've been in a brownie frenzy over here lately. To be honest, it's because the boxed brownie mixes were on sale at the store and I picked up way more than we'll ever need. They're just so convenient and let's face it, they taste pretty fantastic.

But the other day I was in a mood to bake, so I used a recipe I've had my eye on and got my bake on. Once I started mixing everything together I was a little surprised at how liquidy the batter was, so I decided to forego adding nuts to the mix (I love pecans or walnuts in my brownies). That turned out to be a good decision, since these were great all on their own.

The end result produced a definite cake-like brownie that was light and fluffy, moist, and had a smooth chocolate flavor. I added cinnamon to the recipe and I loved tasting a hint of spice with each bite. I'd like to try making these a bit healthier in the future, because I had a really hard time not eating the entire batch; I sent them all (minus one or two) with my husband to work. He said they were gone within a couple hours.

Chocolate Lover's Cake Brownies

slightly adapted from Kikkoman

Ingredients:
1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour 
1 teaspoon baking powder 
1/4 teaspoon baking soda 
1/4 teaspoon salt 
1-1/4 cups granulated sugar 
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa

1 teaspoon cinnamon 

2/3 cup vegetable oil 

2 eggs 
1-1/2  teaspoon vanilla extract 
3/4 cup Pearl Chocolate 
Organic Soymilk 
Powdered sugar (optional)

Directions:
Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt in small bowl. Mix together granulated sugar, cocoa, cinnamon, and 1/3 cup boiling water in large mixing bowl with wooden spoon. Add oil, eggs and vanilla; beat lightly until just combined. Alternately add flour mixture and soymilk, beating after each addition.


Pour batter into nonstick 15 x 10-inch jelly roll baking pan.Bake in preheated 350°F oven 18 minutes, or until wooden toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Cool completely on wire rack. Dust with powdered sugar, if desired.

*These brownies are part of a giveaway sponsored by Kikkoman on Jessica Lynn Writes

Banana Blueberry Bread

Banana bread was one of the first things I made when I got married (around the same time that I really got interested in cooking) and I failed at it...big time. Everyone told me how simple it was to make banana bread, but for some reason I couldn't get the hang of it. It either tasted like cardboard, was soggy in the middle, or would completely collapse when I took it out of the oven. 

Luckily, I didn't give up; I kept trying new recipes and finally got the hang of it. This recipe is finally a keeper. I've made it several times, tweaking things here and there, and I love it. Not only that, but when my husband's grandma was here a few months ago she said she liked it! It's always good when grandma likes your food! This banana bread is moist and packed with velvety flavors, making it creamy and decadent, which says a lot for something simple like a banana bread. The very best part about this is how easy it is to make—it hasn't failed me yet.

I recently made a loaf and took it with us on a road trip (hence the on-the-go picture), and it made for a great snack or a quick breakfast. I added blueberries, because I had some in the fridge, but you could add chocolate chips or pecans instead!

Banana Blueberry Bread

adapted from Chez Us

Ingredients

½ cups butter
3 ounces cream cheese (by weight)
1 cup brown sugar
3 pieces ripe bananas
1 egg
¼ cups sour cream
1-½ cup flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon cinnamon
½ teaspoons salt
1 cup blueberries or chocolate chips (optional)
1 cup pecans (optional)

Directions 
Heat oven to 350. Lightly grease a loaf pan. Cream butter, cream cheese and sugar until light and fluffy. Add bananas, egg and sour cream; mix until smooth. Add dry ingredients. Stir in blueberries or chocolate chips. Pour into prepared loaf pan. Bake for 60 – 75 minutes, until golden and not doughy in the middle.

French Bread

We enjoy this recipe so often that my husband recited the ingredients and directions with his eyes closed and both hands tied behind his back. Okay, I'm kidding about that last part, but we do eat this bread all. the. time., and he really did give me the recipe off the top of his head.

If you're in the mood for a crunchy and slightly chewy crust with a soft center, then this is for you. This French bread has a hint of whole wheat in it, which gives it a nice hearty flavor without being too dense. There's nothing fancy-schmancy about it, but it's the perfect accompaniment to just about any meal. My husband often doubles the recipe and freezes the dough so we can have homemade bread for dinner whenever we're in the mood for it, but it's also easy enough for him to make a batch for dinner right when he gets home from work.

Trust me when I say this bread is just plain good.

{Whole Wheat} French Bread

makes two loaves

Ingredients:
1 Tbs salt
1 Tbs sugar
2 Tbs butter, room temperature (butter substitute is fine)
envelope of active-dry yeast
2 1/4 cups hot water (hot, around 114 degrees; not scalding)
2 cups whole wheat flour
3 1/2 cups AP flour (increase up to one cup)
drizzle, olive oil

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400-degrees.

In a large bowl or stand mixer bowl, combine salt, sugar, yeast, and butter. Add water; mix. Pour in two cups of water; mix in two cups of flour. (At this point, it will look like cake batter.) If using a stand mixer, attach dough hook. Slowly add the last three cups of flour. Mix on high for a few minutes; until dough is slightly sticky. If dough is too sticky, add additional flour until it's just slightly sticky.

Sprinkle working area with flour and knead dough for a couple minutes. Form into a ball. (You can also freeze it at this point: divide ball into two and tightly wrap each with saran wrap.) Lightly coat dough with oil and place in a large bowl. Cover bowl with saran wrap and place in a warm location for twenty minutes. (If frozen, let thaw and continue on from here.)

Take the dough, punch it down, and knead it to get air bubbles out. Divide dough in half. Knead and roll each half into a long log, about 18" long. Repeat with other half. Place dough on loaf pan. Take your sharpest knife and cut three diaganol slits across dough about 1/2" deep. Bake for 25-35 minutes or until golden brown.

Chewy Molasses Cookies

It's baking season, and this year I desire to bake more than ever! Be prepared to see ALOT of sugary sweets coming out of this kitchen! Starting with one of my favorite Martha Stewart holiday treats, chewy molasses cookies! These cookies are rich but not too sweet and delicously chewy!!

Ingredients:

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 cups sugar

3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter (room temperature)

1 egg

1/4 cup molasses

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine flour, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt, set aside. Put 1/2 cup sugar in a small bowl and set aside.

Beat butter and 1 cup of sugar until combined. Add egg and then molasses until combined. Reduce speed to low, slowly mix in dry ingredients, until a dough forms.

Roll dough into balls, about the size of a Tablespoon. Roll balls in sugar.

Place balls about 3 inches apart. Bake until edges of cookies are just firm, about 10 minutes. If their overbaked they get very crispy.

Happy Baking!