Category: Breads

Zucchini Bread

3 eggs, well beaten
3/4 cup oil
2 cups sugar
2 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teas. baking powder
1 teas. salt
2 cups grated zucchini, unpeeled
1/2 cups chopped nuts
3 teas. cinnamon
3 teas. vanilla

Beat together eggs, oil and sugar. Add and beat in flour, soda, baking powder, and salt. Add and stir in zucchini, nuts cinnamon, and vanilla. Bake in a greased and floured tube or bundt pan at 350 for 45 to 60 mins. Or you can use a bread pan, but it may take longer. it’s done when you insert a knife and it comes out clean.

Basic White Bread

(makes 2 – 9×5 loaves)

2 cups warm water (110 degreesF/45 degrees C)
2/3 cup white granulated sugar
1 1/2 tablespoons active dry yeast
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/4 cup vegetable oil
6 cups bread flour

In a large bowl, dissolve the sugar in warm water, and then stir in yeast. Allow to proof until yeast resembles a creamy foam.

Mix salt and oil into the yeast. Mix in flour one cup at a time. Knead dough on a lightly floured surface until smooth. Place in a well oiled bowl, and turn dough to coat. Cover with a damp cloth. Allow to rise until doubled in bulk, about 1 hour.

Punch dough down. Knead for a few minutes, and divide in half. Shape into loaves, and place into two well oiled 9×5 inch loaf pans. Allow to rise for 30 minutes, or until dough has risen 1 inch above pans.

Bake at 350 degrees F (175 C) for 30 minutes.

Hawaiian (Portugese) Sweet Bread

2 tablespoons dry yeast (2 packages)
1/4 cup warm water, lukewarm
7 cups bread flour
1 teaspoon salt
5 eggs
1 cup warm milk
6 tablespoons melted butter
1-1/4 cup sugar

Combine the yeast, water and a pinch of sugar. Set aside to rise. Sift the flour and salt together in a bowl and set aside.

Beat 4 eggs in a small bowl and set aside.

Combine the warm milk and butter in a large bowl. Beat in the sugar. Add the yeast, then the beaten eggs and stir until well blended. Add six cups of flour, one cup at a time, mixing as each cup is added. When the dough is well mixed it should be soft and wet.
Place dough on a flat surface and knead for 10 minutes, adding the remaining cup of flour as the dough and surface become sticky. Be careful to knead the dough in a consistent manner.

Place the dough into a greased bowl and cover with a towel. Let dough rise rise in a cool spot until it has doubled in bulk. This should take at least three hours.

Preheat oven to 350º. Push the dough down and knead lightly. Divide dough into four equal parts and form each into a round shape. Place each loaf on a greased baking sheet and allow to rise again until double in size. Beat the remaining egg and gently baste the loaves.

Bake for about 30-45 minutes until golden brown.

Cranberry Bread

2 cups flour
1 cup sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 cup orange juice
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 tablespoon grated orange peel (zest)
1 egg, well beaten
1 1/2 cups Fresh or Frozen Cranberries, coarsely chopped
1/2 cup chopped nuts (optional)

Preheat oven to 350F degrees. Grease a 9×5 inch loaf pan.

Mix together flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and baking soda in a medium mixing bowl. Stir in orange juice, oil, orange peel, and egg. Mix until well blended. Stir in cranberries and nuts.

Spread evenly in loaf pan. Bake for 55 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool on rack for 15 minutes.

Remove from pan; cool completely. Makes 1 loaf. (Recipe from back of Ocean Spray Cranberry package.)

Banana Bread

1 3/4 cup sifted all purpose flour
2 teasp. double acting baking powder
1/4 teasp. baking soda
1/2 teasp. salt
1/3 cup soft shortening
2/3 cup granulated sugar
2 eggs, unbeaten
1 cup mashed ripe bananas (2 or 3)

Start heating oven to 350 degrees, and grease a 9X5X3 inch loaf pan. Sift flour, baking powder, soda, and salt. With electric mixer at medium speed, or with spoon, thoroughly mix shortening with sugar, then with eggs, until very light and fluffy, about four minutes altogether. Then, at slow speed, beat in flour mixture alternately with bananas just until smooth; turn into pan. Bake 50 minutes, or until cake tester, inserted in center, comes out clean. Cool in pan ten minutes, then remove. Cool overnight before slicing.

Bagels

4 1/2 cups flour
2 packages active dry yeast (approx 4 1/2 teaspoons)
1 1/2 cups warm water (110-115 F)
3 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon salt
1 tablespoon sugar

In a large bowl mix 1-1/2 cups of flour with the yeast. Combine warm water, the 3 tablespoons sugar, and salt and then pour it over the flour mixture. Beat the mixture at low speed of electric mixer 1/2 minute, scraping the bowl as you go. Beat 3 minutes at high speed. Stir in remaining flour – as much as you can mix in with a spoon.

Turn out the dough onto a lightly floured surface. Knead in enough of the remaining flour to make a reasonably stiff dough that is smooth and stretchy, about 7 minutes. Cover the dough and let it rest about 10 minutes. Cut into 12 portions; form each portion into a smooth ball. Push a hole in the center of each ball and pull gently to make a 1 to 1/2-2 inch hole. Place it on a greased baking sheet. Cover them and let them rise for about 20 minutes.

Broil 5 inches from heat 3 to 4 minutes, turning once (tops should not brown).

Heat 1 gallon of water and 1 tablespoon of sugar to boiling; reduce heat. Boil 4 or 5 bagels at a time for 7 minutes, turning once; drain. Place on a greased baking sheet. Bake in a 375 F oven for 25 to 30 minutes. Makes 12.

Sesame seed bagels: brush with beaten egg and sprinkle seeds on before final baking.

Applesauce Nut Bread

1 1/2 cups sifted flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/3 cup shortening
3 eggs
1 cup raw oats
1/2 cup raisins
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. nutneg
1/2 cup brown sugar (packed)
1 cup applesauce
1 cup chopped nuts

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease 9X5X3 inch pan. Sift flour with baking powder, soda, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg on sheet of waxed paper; set aside. In large bowl with portable electric mixer or wooden spoon, beat shortening with sugar and eggs until light and fluffy. Beat in applesauce, then beat in flour mixture until well combined. Stir in oats, nuts and raisins; mix well.

Spread batter evenly in pan. Bake 55 min or until done. Let cool in pan on wire rack for ten minutes. Run spatula around sides of pan to loosen, turn out on wire rack. Let cool. Wrap and refrigerate overnight before slicing.

Amish Friendship Bread

Do NOT use a metal spoon!
Do NOT refrigerate!

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Starter

If you’ve already got a ‘starter’ batch, you can skip this part (between the lines), which is only if you want to start your own from nothing.

1 (.25 ounce) package active dry yeast
1/4 cup warm water (110 degrees F/45 degrees C)
3 cups all-purpose flour, divided
3 cups white sugar, divided
3 cups milk

In a small bowl, dissolve yeast in water. Let stand 10 minutes. In a 2 quart container glass, plastic or ceramic container, combine 1 cup flour and 1 cup sugar. Mix thoroughly or flour will get lumpy when milk is added. Slowly stir in 1 cup milk and dissolved yeast mixture. Cover loosely and let stand until bubbly. Consider this day 1 of the 10 day cycle. Leave loosely covered at room temperature.

On days 2 thru 4; stir starter with a wooden spoon. Day 5; stir in 1 cup flour, 1 cup sugar and 1 cup milk. Days 6 thru 9; stir only.

Day 10; stir in 1 cup flour, 1 cup sugar and 1 cup milk. Remove 1 cup to make your first bread, give 2 cups to friends along with this recipe, and your favorite Amish Bread recipe. Store the remaining 1 cup starter in a container in the refrigerator, or begin the 10 day process over again (beginning with Day 2).

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If you already have Amish Bread starter, use the instructions below.

Day 1- Do nothing.

Day 2,3,4 – Stir with wooden spoon.

Day 5 – Place in a larger container with top and add: 1 cup sugar, 1 cup flour, 1 cup milk – Stir with wooden spoon.

Day 6,7,8,9 – Stir with wooden spoon.

Day 10 – Do same as Day 5 (add ingredients) then separate into four (4), 1 cup portions. Give three (3) away to friends with these instructions.

To remaining batch add:
2/3 cup oil
1 cup sugar
3 eggs
1 tsp. cinammon
1 tsp. vanilla
1 1/4 tsp. baking powder
2 cups flour
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt

Pour into two (2) greased and sugared loaf pans and bake at 350 degrees for about 45 minutes.

To make a differnt version: (all measures approximate)

This will take longer to bake. Add:
2 large carrots
1/2 cup raisins
1 cup chopped walnuts
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
1/2 cup coconut

About a month ago I signed up to get notices from King Arthur Flour, as I had found some interesting products and recipes the few times I’d poked around there. A few days ago, they shared their Easy Pumpkin Bread recipe. Since it was almost Halloween, and we had a can of pumpkin in the pantry, I was good to go!

It WAS an easy recipe. I did make 2 loaves, as the recipe indicated, after considering cutting the recipe in half. I decided on the 2-loaf version mostly because it uses the whole can of pumpkin, and who was going to remember they had a tiny plastic container of pumpkin in the fridge? No one in our household – it would have ended up in the back behind all the seltzers, and one day in February we’d pull it out and ask each other, “What IS this?” And so… 2 loaves. (Not that having TWO loaves of delicious pumpkin bread to eat is a heartache – LOL – the other one went into the freezer.)

The recipe was simple, basically mixing everything together. And I had one dark, nonstick bread pan and a glass bread pan, and the nonstick pan was done at least ten minutes before the glass one because it was dark – I took it out of the oven at that time and let the other one finish baking. (So if you have the same issue – keep an eye on that.) It’s really moist and tasty! Here’s a slice:

And here’s the recipe from King Arthur Flour:

Easy Pumpkin Bread Recipe

1 cup vegetable oil
2 2/3 cups granulated sugar
4 large eggs
2 cups (or one 15-ounce can) pumpkin (not pumpkin pie filling)
2/3 cup water
3 1/3 cups unbleached all-purpose Flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon nutmeg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup chopped walnuts or pecans, optional
1 1/2 cups chocolate chips, optional
coarse white sugar for sprinkling on top, optional

1) Preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly grease two 8 1/2″ x 4 1/2″ loaf pans (if you’re making the plain version of the bread); two 9″ x 5″ loaf pans (if you’re adding chocolate chips and nuts); or one of each, if you’re making one plain loaf, and one loaf with chips and nuts.

2) In a large bowl, beat together the oil, sugar, eggs, pumpkin, and water.

3) Add the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, nutmeg, and vanilla, stirring to combine.

4) Mix in the chips and nuts, if you’re using them. To make one loaf with chips/nuts, one loaf without, divide the batter in half. Leave one half plain, and add 3/4 cup chips and 1/2 cup nuts to the other half.

5) Spoon the batter into the prepared pans. Sprinkle the tops of the loaves with coarse sparkling sugar, if desired.

6) Bake the bread for 60 to 80 minutes, or until a cake tester or toothpick inserted in the center of the loaf comes out clean; and that same tester inserted about 1/2″ into the top of the loaf doesn’t encounter any totally unbaked batter.

7) Remove the bread from the oven, and cool it on a rack. When it’s completely cool, wrap it well in plastic wrap, and store it overnight before serving.

Yield: 2 loaves.