Tag: Baking

War Cake
Recipes

War Cake

Sarah

I had never had this recipe until I met my husband and his mother shared it with me. It was a Great Depression Era/WWII bread recipe. In their family they call it Aunt Hulda’s Yum Yum Bread, and it’s baked in bread pans. I was trying to make it sugar-free, because frankly, while it is good, it’s full of sugar. And I need less sugar when I have sweet treats, not more. Especially this time of year!

My first take on it this morning was a flop (I have made it multiple times successfully with sugar in the past years). Partly is the all-purpose flour I am using right scoops rather heavy. I was lazy and didn’t weigh it out instead. So the bread turned out very dense. And dry. Oh well. Lesson learned, eh?

So I was looking up the recipe online and seeing all the names it goes under – one of which is “Poor Man’s Cake”. And I saw an older version of it, but baked in a 9×13″ pan for less time. So I decided to try the recipe again, but to bake it as a cake.

And it turned out perfectly.

So the War Cake/Poor Man’s Cake/Yum Yum Bread recipe lives on as sugar-free now. (Btw, what makes it a Great Depression Era/WWII cake? It has no eggs, no butter and no milk – for when those things were tightly controlled and hard to get.)

PS: As a bonus? This cake is plant-based/vegan.

War Cake

Ingredients:

  • 2 cups water
  • 2 cups powdered Sucralose (Splenda)
  • 12-ounces (2 cups) raisins
  • 2 Tbsp shortening
  • 3 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 3 cups all-purpose flour (360 grams weighed)
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 1 tsp fine sea salt

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350° and lightly oil/spray a 9×13″ glass baking pan.

In a saucepan add the water, Sucralose, raisins, shortening and cinnamon. Bring to a boil and simmer for 5 minutes, lowering heat to just maintain the simmer.

Take off the heat and let cool down a bit.

Meanwhile add the flour, baking soda and salt to a large mixing bowl. Add in the cooled raisin mixture. Stir until well mixed. Scrape into the prepared pan and smooth out as good as you can (it’s a stiff batter).

Bake for 30 minutes.

Let cool on a rack before slicing. Store leftovers tightly covered.

~Sarah

Sugar-Free Lemon Blueberry Scones (Pantry Staple Recipe)
Recipes

Sugar-Free Lemon Blueberry Scones (Pantry Staple Recipe)

Sarah

Think how nice it would be to have a mason jar of scone mix ready to use—all you do is add cool water, knead, cut, and bake. You don’t need to have fresh butter or milk on hand; it’s all from your pantry and can be kept long-term in the pantry as well. The scones use both freeze-dried butter powder and sour cream powder.

Sugar-Free Lemon Blueberry Scones

Ingredients:

  • 2½ cups all-purpose flour (plus more for kneading)
  • ½ cup sugar substitute (used Splenda, but any 1:1 can be used) (use granulated sugar if you prefer)
  • ½ cup butter powder
  • 1/3 cup sour cream powder
  • 1 Tbsp baking powder
  • ½ tsp baking soda
  • ½ tsp fine sea salt
  • 3 packets True Lemon
  • ¾ cup dried blueberries (3 ounces or so) (Can substitute chocolate chips, dried cranberries, raisins, etc)

Directions:

If storing long-term, add all the ingredients, from flour to True Lemon, to a mason jar. Pack the blueberries in a snack bag, then add them to the top. Seal tightly.

Otherwise, preheat oven to 425°, line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Add all ingredients into a mixing bowl and stir in 1½ cups cool water. Stir till blended.

Sprinkle more flour onto a work surface, scrape dough onto it. Using a bench scraper, fold over the dough, adding more flour as needed, repeating the folding of the dough, till it is no longer wet/sticky.

Pat out to about a 9″ circle.

Cut into 8 wedges.

Lift each wedge with the bench scraper and place on the baking sheet, so the sides do not touch each other.

Bake for about 18 to 20 minutes, or until lightly golden brown on top.

Let rest for a few minutes to cool. Serve warm, split in half, with butter spread on.

Makes 8 scones.

~Sarah

Zucchini Cheese Bread
Recipes

Zucchini Cheese Bread

Sarah

It’s mid-September and the summer squashes are still coming in strong.

A savory zucchini bread is a great change from the typical zucchini quick bread, that is sweet. Once you try this you might never want a sweet version again. It’s rich, slices great and is so much better than biscuits with a bowl of hot soup.

And it uses three ingredients straight from the garden, including fresh green onions and eggs from our chickens.

Zucchini Cheese Bread

Ingredients:

  • 1½ cups zucchini, shredded (do not squeeze)
  • ¼ cup green onion, white and light green parts, thinly sliced and chopped
  • 2 large eggs, whisked
  • ¾ cup sour cream
  • ¼ cup (half a stick) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
  • 1½ cups grated cheddar cheese (6 ounces)
  • 2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1½ tsp baking powder
  • ½ tsp baking soda
  • ½ tsp fine sea salt

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350°. Liberally oil a 9×5″ bread pan.

In a large mixing bowl stir the zucchini, green onions, eggs, sour cream and butter together.

Stir in the cheese.

Add in the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Add to the wet ingredients, stir until just mixed.

Scrape the batter into the prepared pan.

Bake for 60 to 65 minutes, until golden on top and a butter knife in the center comes out clean.

Let cool for 15 minutes, loosed on the sides, turn over on a cooling rack until the bread drops out. Let cool before flipping over. (Do not force the bread out or flip too early, as the bread is fragile when hot. It firms up fully once cooled.)

Store in a bread bag once cooled.

Makes 1 loaf.

Notes:

Do not squeeze the zucchini. The wetness is needed in the batter. Use smaller zucchini for best taste/moisture. The bigger bat size ones tend to be drier and more seedy.

~Sarah

Greek Yogurt Banana Bread
Recipes

Greek Yogurt Banana Bread

Sarah

Banana bread is a great way to have a sweet treat but remove the sugar easily from it and let me have something…and not feel guilty for a hot second. With 2 substitutions, you can have it sugar-free easily.

Greek Yogurt Banana Bread

Ingredients:

  • 1 stick (½ cup) unsalted butter, softened
  • 1 cup granulated sugar or 1:1 sugar substitute
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
  • 1 cup mashed ripe bananas (about 3 to 4)
  • ¼ cup full fat greek yogurt
  • 1½ cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • ¼ tsp fine sea salt
  • 1 cup semi-sweet or dark chocolate chips, sugar-free if desired

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350°, liberally oil a 9×5″ bread pan.

In a stand mixer bowl, cream the butter and sugar together, until smooth. Add in the eggs, 1 at a time, until mixed in. Add in vanilla, bananas and yogurt, beating in smooth.

Add in the flour, baking soda, and salt, beat smooth.

Add the chocolate chips, beat in.

Scrape into the prepared pan, bake for 60 minutes, or until a butter knife inserted in the center comes out clean. Let cool on a rack for 10 minutes, then loosen the bread and turn out. Let cool fully before slicing.

Store wrapped once it is cooled to keep fresh.

Makes 1 loaf.

~Sarah

No Sugar Blueberry Biscuits
Recipes

No Sugar Blueberry Biscuits

Sarah

A quick and easy to pull together biscuit, a great desert option if you wanted to have blueberry shortcake for example. Or as a breakfast accompaniment. Not overly sweet, just the right amount.

No Sugar Blueberry Biscuits

Ingredients:

Directions:

Preheat oven to to 450°.

Stir flour, sweetener, baking powder, sea salt, cinnamon, and blueberries together in a large mixing bowl.

Add butter, and quickly work the dices in with your fingers until crumbly.

Stir in the milk and lemon extract, stir into a wet dough.

Flour a work surface generously with more flour. Knock dough out and knead gently, adding flour until you can pat the dough out into a rectangle. Cut into 6 sections, place on a baking sheet.

Bake for 10 to 12 minutes, until golden on top.

If desired, brush with a bit of melted butter on top as soon as they come out of the oven.

Delicious split and served with low sugar homemade blueberry jam……

Makes 6 biscuits.

~Sarah