Whole Grain Raisin Bread

What could be better than homemade bread, especially on a cold day? The smell alone conjures good memories and warm feelings. After making this recipe several times, I think I've finally tweaked the ingredients and amounts to produce the perfect loaf of bread. Most people tend to prefer white raisin bread, so this is a healthier twist on familiar comfort food. I've used some specialty flours that you may not have on hand, so I'm providing substitution options just in case. The time involved in this recipe is well worth the final product!


Ingredients
1 1/4 cup raisins
1/4 cup oats
1/2 T yeast
1 T honey
3/4 cup warm water
1 egg
1/3 cup dry milk 
1 t salt
1 t cinnamon
1 cup whole wheat flour
1/6 cup tapioca flour (or wheat)
1/2 cup spelt flour (or wheat or white)
1 1/2 cup white flour
2 T wheat germ (may omit)

Directions
1. Put raisins in a small sauce pan, cover with water, and simmer for about 15 minutes. Stir every now and then (this helps plump up the raisins). When draining raisins, reserve 1/4 cup of the water and add to the oats.
2.  Add the yeast and honey to the warm water and let sit for at least 5 minutes.
3.  In the bowl of a stand mixer, add the egg, dry milk, salt, cinnamon, wheat germ,yeast mixture, and wheat, tapioca, and spelt flours. Using the paddle attachment, mix for about 3 minutes.
4.  Add about half of the raisins and mix until just combined. Add white flour in increments while mixer is running. (You may need a little more or less than what I did depending on the humidity - the dough should be firm but sticky.)
5.  Replace the paddle attachment with the dough hook. Add the remainder of the raisins. Using the dough hook, "knead" the bread for about 6 minutes.
6.  Spray a bowl with non-stick cooking spray. Place dough in bowl and turn to cover dough in spray. Cover with a clean dish towel and let rise in a warm place for about an hour.
7.  Punch dough down and place into a 9 x 5 loaf pan (I use glass) sprayed with non-stick spray. Cover and let rise another 40 minutes.
8.  Bake bread at 350 for 40-45 minutes.

This bread tastes great fresh or will keep well for months in the freezer!

Nutrition (for 1 slice, based on 20 slices per loaf)
Calories: 116
Total Fat:  .7g
Carbs:  25g
Fiber: 2g
Sugar: 6.5g
Protein: 3.2g

 Eat healthy and homemade!

Spelt Tortillas - Simple!

Homemade Spelt Tortillas

  Tonight's venture was to try making tortillas from scratch - success! This recipe was super easy and turned out really well with extras for the freezer.

Ingredients

2 cups of spelt flour

1 tsp salt

1.5 tsp baking soda

1 T olive oil

.75 cup of hot water

Directions

Combine all ingredients in a bowl and mix well.  Cover bowl and put in a warm place for about 20 minutes. After 20 minutes, separate the dough into 8 or 16 pieces depending on the size of tortillas you want. I separated the dough into 12 pieces to have some large (~7") and some small (~5").  Let set for another 20 minutes.

Roll the dough out very thin (I didn't need any extra flour - the dough didn't stick to the rolling pin or the cutting board).  Heat a skillet on medium and place tortilla into the pan (no cooking spray necessary).  The tortilla will begin to bubble - flip it and heat it for an additional 30-60 seconds.  Place tortillas on a plate, separated by damp paper towels to preserve the softness.  

They were fantastic fresh; I put my leftovers in the freezer (minus the paper towels) for another time!

Nutrition (per 1 tortilla when you make 8 from the dough)

Calories: 135

Fat: 2.8g

Carbs: 22g

Fiber: 4g

Protein: 4g

Stay healthy!

Whole Grain Banana Muffins

Whole Grain Banana Muffins

  What better to do on a cold, overcast day than to bake some healthy, comfort food? Today's project: hearty, healthy, whole grain banana muffins! I spent some time scouring the web for recipes and combined ideas and ingredients from several to come up with my own recipe.  Here's the recipe!

Wet Ingredients

1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce

2 ripe bananas

1 large egg white

1 t vanilla extract

1/4 cup organic sucanat

1/2 T maple or table syrup (next time I make these, I think I will eliminate this but it depends on your preference for sweetness)

1 1/2 T sour cream

Dry Ingredients

1 cup whole wheat flour

1/2 cup spelt flour

1/2 cup rolled oats

1 t baking soda

1/2 t baking powder

1/2 T ground flax

1/2 t pumpkin pie spice

(Next time, I'll add some extra ginger and cinnamon)

Topping

1/4 cup rolled oats

1 T organic sucanat

1-2 T chopped walnuts

thinly sliced bananas

Directions

Pre-heat oven to 350; spray a muffin pan with non-stick cooking spray (do not use wrappers).  Combine all wet ingredients until well-blended; combine dry ingredients in a separate bowl.  Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients and stir until moistened. Fill muffin pan about 2/3 full (makes about 12 muffins).  Combine topping ingredients (except bananas) in a small bowl & sprinkle over top of each muffin.  Add a few pieces of thinly sliced bananas on top.  Bake for about 22-25 minutes.

If you like, you can add extra walnuts to the batter; you could also try adding chocolate chips, coconut, or carob chips.

Nutrition

Calories: 134

Fat: 1.5g

Carbs: 30.6g

Fiber: 3.3g

Protein: 3.2

Stay healthy!

Whole Wheat Spinach Pasta from Scratch

Whole Wheat Spinach Pasta 

  Making homemade pasta with a pasta machine is something we've always talked about doing but never done. Well, today the talking stopped and the pasta making began! We've been successful at making homemade whole wheat gnocchi and pierogies, so we decided to try flavored pasta.  The taste ended up being delicious  though the noodles weren't exactly picture perfect. Next time, I'm going to sub in other flours like spelt or tapioca. 

Ingredients

.25 cup all-purpose flour

1.5 cups 100% stone ground whole wheat flour (like Bob's Red Mill organic)

2 eggs

1.5 t olive oil

5 oz. fresh, organic spinach

Directions

Start with 1 cup whole wheat flour and .25 cup all-purpose. Make a well on a clean, dry surface (I used a cutting board). Chop rinsed and drained spinach in a food processor with olive oil until finely minced.

Place chopped spinach and 2 eggs into the well.  Using a fork, scramble the eggs with the spinach, slowly incorporating the flour from the sides.  

The mixture will be crumbly at first; now's the time to add in the extra .5 cup of wheat flour. You may need more or less depending on the weather, moisture in your spinach, etc. I ended up having to add close to .75 cup.

After the flour is incorporated as best as you can with a fork, use your hands to knead the dough. It should be slightly tacky.  When you start to put it through the pasta machine, you'll be able to tell whether or not you need to add more flour.

Add your fresh pasta to boiling water for about 4-5 minutes and enjoy!

Nutrition (a rough estimate based on 4 servings from the dough):

Calories: 228

Fat: 5 g

Carbs: 37 g

Fiber: 6 g

Protein: 10 g

Toss with veggies, lean meat, & olive oil or your favorite red sauce! 

Stay healthy!