Tag: Baking

Soft Double Ginger Cookies
Recipes

Soft Double Ginger Cookies

Sarah

I’ve been baking this cookie recipe for over 20 years now. I found it not long after Kirk and I got together when I found out how much he loves ginger.

The cookies are easy to make and store well on the counter for a couple of days. Soft in texture, and a great taste combo of molasses and ginger.

Soft Double Ginger Cookies

Ingredients:

  • 2¼ cups all-purpose flour
  • 2 tsp ground ginger
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • ¾ tsp ground cinnamon
  • ½ tsp ground cloves
  • ¼ tsp fine sea salt
  • ¾ cu unsalted butter, softened
  • 1 cup granulated sugar
  • 1 large egg
  • 1 Tbsp water
  • ¼ cup molasses
  • ¼ cup candied ginger, diced
  • 2 Tbsp granulated sugar

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350°.

Whisk the flour through salt in a bowl and set aside.

Add the butter to a stand mixer bowl and beat until smooth. Add the sugar and beat until light and fluffy, scraping the bowl as needed with a spatula.

Add the egg and beat it smooth. Then add the water and molasses, beating them in and scraping the bowl.

Add the dry ingredients to the molasses mixture, beating on low and then medium until the dough forms. Add the candied ginger.

Using a 1 Tablespoon disher, make balls and roll them in the remaining 2 tablespoons of sugar. Place the cookies 2 inches apart on an ungreased cookie sheet and flatten slightly.

Bake for 10 minutes in the preheated oven (they may need up to 2 extra minutes, tops should look set).

Allow cookies to cool on a baking sheet for 5 minutes before removing them to a wire rack to cool completely. Store in an airtight container.

Makes roughly 2 dozen cookies (28 for this batch).

Another Day, Another Loaf of Bread
Recipes

Another Day, Another Loaf of Bread

Sarah

As I opened up a pantry door yesterday, I realized I was opening the last 1-pound bag of yeast I had bought before the pandemic years. It sunk in just how much bread I bake. In 2020, as the news was ramping up about issues in China, I panic-bought a lot of yeast on a prepper run to the restaurant supply store on the mainland. Which, wasn’t a a bad thing. Within weeks you couldn’t find yeast anywhere to buy. But I had it hidden away, and I got to work (for the record, I did share yeast with others, just quietly).

In theory, a one-pound bag should contain 44 Tablespoons, or 132 teaspoons, of yeast, so on average, I use 2 teaspoons worth per loaf I make, which is 66 loaves. Sounds like a lot at first. Then, realize that you bake bread 5-6 times a week. And suddenly, that isn’t so much yeast. That is just over 2 months’ worth of bread-making. A one-pound bag of active dry yeast on Amazon is in the $9’ish range. I usually pick it up at a restaurant supply store for around $8.49, where I can also buy flour in 25 to 50-pound bags to really save money.

I have often thought that one of the best things I can do is bake bread for our family. A loaf of bread at a grocery store costs $3 to $10. I won’t buy the $3 loaves. They are stale and made of low-grade ingredients. But to buy $6 a loaf of bread every two days? It’s not worth the money; the bread rarely tastes fresh. It’s already days old when you buy it, and bread shouldn’t stay “fresh” for another week. That isn’t normal. It’s food science.

Cost Break Down:

As I mentioned, a one-pound bag of yeast costs $8.49, and each loaf using 2 teaspoons costs 13 cents to make. 13 cents!

I buy all-purpose flour in 25-pound bags for $15.99, or 63 cents a pound. On average, my daily bread machine recipe uses around 18.5 ounces of flour, so I can produce 21-22 loaves per 25-pound bag. I spend about $1.20 on flour per loaf.

Less than $1.35 per loaf. For me, that is worth it. Of course, any other ingredients raise the price, but sea salt is minimal. Water is essentially free for us. Only if I add oil or butter does it go up in price. But again, not by much as we try to always buy in bulk.

It saves me money. It is always fresh. It has no preservatives.

As I opened that final bag, I knew it had been money well spent. Yeast stays good as long as it is sealed and stored in good condition. Once opened, I keep the jar in the refrigerator. For the long term, I seal and freeze, using a mason jar to keep it airtight.

Today, the loaves are different. It was a rainy day, so why not do work with my hands? Last night I did the prep for them loaves before bed.

I tried out a new recipe I had seen. While it was great bread and easy to make, I wouldn’t call it “artisan bread” as it was labeled. Instead, call it no-knead or overnight bread. The loaves are soft and tasty. Just a few minutes of work, and the rest is hands-off time.

No-Knead Bread

Ingredients:

  • 510 grams of all-purpose flour
  • 1 Tbsp granulated sugar
  • 1½ tsp fine sea salt
  • 2¼ tsp dry active yeast (1 packet)
  • 1¼ cups water (120°)
  • 1 Tbsp olive oil

Directions:

Add most of the flour, sugar, salt, and yeast into a mixing bowl.

Stir in the water and oil and mix with a wooden spoon until a dough forms. Add the remaining flour, stirring well, until the flour is beaten in and the dough pulls away from the bowl’s side. The dough should be shaggy-looking but not overly sticky. If needed, work a little more flour in.

Cover tightly with plastic wrap and put in the refrigerator overnight (but no longer than 24 hours).

Lightly oil a large baking sheet. Place on a heating pad set to medium or high (depending on how cold your home is).

Flour your hands, and divide the dough in half.

Gently stretch the dough in your hands, making a ball by wrapping it to the bottom. Gently pinch the bottom to seal.

Place each ball on the baking sheet about 5″ apart.

Lightly oil a piece of plastic wrap and cover loosely.

Let rise for 1½ hours.

Near the end, preheat the oven to 375°.

Boil a kettle full of water. Place an 8″x 8″ glass baking pan on the lower rack of the oven and fill it ¾ of the way with hot water.

Take off the plastic wrap, use a serrated knife, and gently slash a tic-tac-toe design on the top of each loaf.

Bake for 20 minutes or until golden brown on top.

Remove and transfer to a cooling rack immediately.

Makes 2 loaves.

~Sarah

Bread Machine Dinner Rolls
Recipes

Bread Machine Dinner Rolls

Sarah

Do you want soft dinner rolls with only a few minutes of hands-on time? This dinner roll recipe will quickly make them, and the only real work is shaping the dough into balls.

The recipe is designed to work in a Zojirushi bread machine; if using a different brand, follow its directions. The Zojirushi prewarms the ingredients; for other machines, you will want the water to be 110-120°.

Bread Machine Dinner Rolls

Ingredients:

  • 1 cup water
  • 2 Tbsp softened unsalted butter, sliced up
  • 1 egg, room temperaturee
  • ¼ cup granulated sugar
  • 1 tsp fine sea salt
  • 400 grams all-purpose flour
  • 1 Tbsp bread machine/rapid-rise/quick-rise yeast

Directions:

Add ingredients in the order listed to the bread machine pan.

Set for dough cycle (our machine takes 1 hr 50 minutes). As it starts to knead, check on it to see how the dough looks; it should be smooth and elastic. If it looks too wet, add in a bit more flour.

Lightly flour a work surface. Remove dough from the pan and let rest, covered with plastic wrap, for 10 minutes.

Lightly oil a large-rimmed baking sheet.

Using a bench scraper, divide the dough into 14 sections. Gently shape each piece into a ball and set it on the baking pan.

Cover with plastic wrap and let rise for 40 minutes. In cooler houses, using a prewarmed heating pad set on medium will ensure a good rise.

Preheat oven to 375° in the last 10 minutes of rise.

Place rolls in the oven and bake for 15 minutes or until golden on top.

Let cool on a rack.

Makes about 14 rolls.

Note:

While I didn’t do it, you can brush the tops with melted butter immediately after taking them out of the oven for a softer roll. One Tablespoon is plenty.

~Sarah

Daily White Bread
Recipes

Daily White Bread

Sarah

This recipe reminds me of my childhood, baking bread with my Mom. She often made bread from scratch when we were young before life got complicated. All by hand, no stand mixer as a helper. She had me to help knead.

It’s not a complicated recipe. It uses regular ingredients. And it is fast. No, having to let it sit for 24 hours in the refrigerator; this is a recipe where you can be rewarded with warm bread in under 3 hours, most of that being hands-off. It’s a soft loaf, a fine crumb. Moist. The perfect bread for soft butter spread on it.

The recipe makes two loaves: one for eating and one for slicing up and freezing, for days when you don’t have the energy to bake a loaf but still want homemade bread.

Daily White Bread

Ingredients:

  • 720 grams of all-purpose flour + more for kneading
  • 3 Tbsp granulated sugar
  • 2 tsp fine sea salt
  • 4½ tsp dry active yeast (2 packages)
  • 2 cups warm water (120°)
  • ¼ cup olive or avocado oil
  • 1 Tbsp unsalted butter, melted

Directions:

Add 240 grams of flour, sugar, salt, and yeast in a stand mixer bowl.

Add in the water and oil, and let mix on low, then on medium for 3 minutes.

Put the dough hook on and add 360 grams of flour. Beat it in until smooth.

Lightly flour a work surface. Scrape out the dough and knead by hand for 5 minutes, adding more flour as needed. The dough should be smooth and elastic.

Lightly oil a large mixing bowl. Add the dough and flip it over to coat. Cover with lightly oiled plastic wrap.

Let rise in a warm place for an hour or until it doubles. In cooler homes or in winter, placing the bowl on a heating pad helps with the rise.

Lightly oil 2 9″x5″ bread pans.

Gently punch down the dough and divide it into two halves.

Lightly flour a work surface and roll each half into a 16″x8″ rectangle. Roll dough up tightly, on the 8″ side. Press the ends with your thumbs after each turn and picnh gently the bottom seam of the loaf.

Place each loaf into a prepared pan.

Cover with lightly oiled plastic wrap, and let rise for 30 to 35 minutes or until the dough is about an inch above the pan edge.

Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 375°.

Bake bread for 40 to 50 minutes, golden brown. (Ours took 50 minutes)

Knock bread out onto a cooling rack; brush melted butter on top of loaves.

Let cool for an hour before slicing.

Bread can be sliced and then frozen for having bread on hand.

Makes 2 loaves.

~Sarah

Chocolate Buttercream Sandwich Cookies
Recipes

Chocolate Buttercream Sandwich Cookies

Sarah

Years ago, I made these cookies, but our youngest was still allergic to eggs at the time. He can eat eggs now, and when I want to make cookies, we enjoy having our hens’ eggs in them. These are hand-sized filled cookies filled with homemade buttercream. Think of them like a huge handcrafted Oreo, and imagine how great they will taste. They are sweet, though, so they are a treat in moderation.

Chocolate Buttercream Sandwich Cookies

Ingredients:

Cookies –

  • 150 grams all-purpose flour
  • ¾ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • ¼ tsp baking powder
  • 1½ cups granulated sugar
  • 10 Tbsp unsalted butter, room temperature
  • 1 large egg

Buttercream Frosting –

  • ¼ cup unsalted butter, room temperature
  • ¼ cup shortening
  • 2 cups powdered sugar
  • 2 tsp pure vanilla extract
  • Milk, as needed (used 4 tsp)

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350° and line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.

In a stand mixer, beat the sugar and butter till fluffy; add the egg and beat till smooth.

In a small mixing bowl, whisk the dry ingredients together. With the mixer on low, add the dry ingredients slowly, until thoroughly mixed, turning up the speed on the mixer as needed. Scrape as needed. The dough will be firm.

Using a 1 Tablespoon disher, scoop out balls. Drop 12 at a time on the prepared baking sheets and gently flatten each cookie with your palm.

Bake for 10 minutes. The cookies will still appear a bit wet but will harden up upon cooling. Let sit for 5 minutes, transfer to a cooking rack gently, using a metal spatula.

Let cool fully,

Frosting:

Whip the butter and shortening until light and fluffy in a stand mixer bowl. Add the powdered sugar and beat on low. When fully incorporated, beat in the vanilla and enough milk to be spreadable.

To finish:

Spread the frosting on half of the cookies. Press a second cookie on top to spread the frosting between the two cookies. Let the cookies sit to harden. Store covered.

Makes approximately 13 finished cookie sandwiches. (Made 27 cookies)

~Sarah