Braided Blueberry/Raspberry Bread

So I made this YUMMY sweet bread, and I thought I'd share the recipe. The first time I made it I used blueberries just like the recipe, but at the bottom it said you can change them for raspberries, it was really good.

Blueberry Cream Cheese Braid

Makes 2 braids

Sponge
1 tablespoon instant yeast
1 tablespoon sugar
1 1/2 cup warm milk
2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour

Dough
2 eggs
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/3 cup sugar
2 1/2-3 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter

Blueberry Filling
2 cups blueberries
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup cornstarch
2 tablespoons lemon juice

Egg Glaze
1 egg
1 tablespoon milk

Cream Cheese Filling
3/4 cup cream cheese
2 tablespoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 tablespoon egg glaze

For the sponge: mix the sugar, yeast, and flour together in bowl. Pour in the warm milk. Beat until smooth, then cover with plastic wrap and set aside for 1/2 hour.

Add the eggs, salt, sugar, and one cup of the flour to the sponge. Beat until smooth. Then add the butter in small chunks and beat well. Add the remaining flour a handful at a time and mix in until a soft but kneadable dough is achieved and the butter thoroughly incorporated.

Knead the dough by hand or with a mixer until it is smooth and satiny, about 5 minutes.

Place the dough in a greased bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and let rise and room temperature until doubled in size, 1 1/2 to 2 hours. Deflate the dough, recover the bowl, and refrigerate overnight.

The next day, make the fillings before shaping the loaves.

Blueberry Filling: combine all of the ingredients in a small saucepan and bring to a boil over medium heat while stirring constantly. Reduce heat and simmer for 5 minutes, then remove from heat and let cool.
Egg Glaze: combine the egg and milk in a bowl and beat until combined.
Cream Cheese Filling: combine all the ingredients in a bowl and mix until combined

Once your filling has cooled off, take the dough out of the refrigerator and gently deflate it. Divide it into two pieces. Use a rolling pin to shape each piece into a thin (1 cm.) rectangle.

Spread your fillings in the center of the dough. At an angle, slice the sides of the dough into tabs approximately 1 inch wide. Alternating from side to side, fold the pieces in over the filling. When possible, gentle press on the tabs to seal the folds. After it has been fully folded, glaze the braid with egg wash. Cover loosely with plastic (I place the entire baking pan in a clean kitchen garbage bag). Set aside to rise until doubled in size, approximately 45 minutes. While it is rising, preheat the oven to 350. Just before placing the braid in the oven, glaze it again with any remaining egg wash. Bake on the center rack of the oven for approximately 35 to 40 minutes, rotating it once after 20 minutes so that it bakes evenly. Remove it from the oven and allow it to cool for at least half an hour before slicing.

Alternate: use a raspberry filling and sprinkle a streusal on top instead of using egg wash

Recipes

I have been gathering several of my favorite recipes for a Ward Cookbook the Relief Society is putting together. I thought I would share them with you. Some of you may already have them, because I got them from you ;-). But in random order....

No Bake Cookies
2 C. Sugar 3 C. quick Oats
6 T. Margarine ½ C. Peanut Butter
1 t. vanilla ¼ C. cocoa
½ c. milk

Melt Margarine, sugar, milk, and vanilla in saucepan. Bring to a boil. Boil for one minute. Add oats, peanut butter, and cocoa. Mix well. Spoon on to waxed paper to cool.

Navajo Tacos- Meat Sauce
1 lbs of ground beef 1 can Kidney beans
1 c. catsup 1 t. Cumin
1 t. oregano ½ t Thyme
½ t. garlic salt ½ t. pepper
Salt to taste 1-2 bay leaves

Brown ground beef, drain, reserving some liquid. Simmer all ingredients in a large pot. Serve over fry bread. Top with Salsa, cheese, sour cream, etc. Can also be used in Taco salad.

Meatballs with Grape Chili sauce
1 jar of chili sauce
1 jar of grape jelly
2-3 lbs of precooked meatballs

Mix chili sauce and grape jelly, pour over meatballs in crock pot or casserole dish. Heat through. Great as an appetizer/finger food or served over rice as a main course.


20 Minute Stew
1 T. Oil 1 lb sirloin, cut in 1 inch cubes 1 T. Worcestershire sauce
1 can Tomato soup 1 can French onion soup 24 oz bag frozen vegetables

Brown Beef in oil until brown and crispy. Add remaining ingredients, cook 15 minutes.


Creamy Enchiladas
3-4 chicken breasts, cooked and shredded or diced
2 cans cream of chicken soup 1 soup can of milk 1 can of nacho cheese soup
½ to ¾ c sour cream 1 lg can of diced green chiles 10-12 flour tortillas

Mix Soups, milk, sour cream in a large bowl, reserve ½ c. sauce and set aside. Add chicken and chiles to remaining sauce to create the filling. Add a couple of spoons of filling in each tortilla and roll up placing tortillas tightly next to each other in pan until filled. Spread reserved sauce over filled tortillas, can also top with shredded cheese if desired. Bake 375, 30 minutes. Optional, garnish with tomatoes or salsa, sour cream, olives. Variation: can be made with ground beef and cream of mushroom soup for beefy enchiladas.

Mom’s Cheese Soup
1 C. Butter 1 C. Flour 1 Qt Cold Milk ½ box of velveeta, cubed
Desired proportions of Potatoes, carrots, celery, onion, peeled and diced.
1 bag of frozen mixed vegetables Salt and Pepper to taste.

Boil diced potatoes, carrots, celery, onion in separate pan, reserve cooking water. In separate pan, Melt butter, stir in flour, mix well. Heat over medium heat, stir in cold milk-stir constantly, do not burn. Cook until thick, melt velveeta in white sauce. Add vegetables to cheese sauce and gradually add reserved stock until desired consistency. Salt and Pepper to taste.


Fresh Strawberry Ice Cream
3 C. Fresh strawberries, sliced 4 T. Lemon juice 1 ½ C. Sugar, divided
1 ¼ C. Whole Milk 2 ¾ C. Heavy Cream 1 ½ t. Vanilla Extract

Combine Strawberries and lemon juice and ½ c sugar, allow to macerate for 2 hours. Strain Berries, reserving juices. Mash or puree half the berries. In a Medium Mixing bowl, use hand mixer on low speed to combine the milk and remaining sugar until dissolved, 1-2 min. Stir in Heavy Cream, strawberry juice, mashed strawberries and vanilla. Put into freezer bowl of ice cream maker and churn 20-25 min, 5 minutes before done add reserved sliced berries.



Chocolate Bundt Cake (Sisters Cafe)
1 Box of Devils Food cake (dry) 1 4-serving box size of instant chocolate pudding (dry)
4 large eggs 1 c. sour cream ½ c. warm water
½ c. oil 1 ½ c. semi sweet chocolate chips

Place all ingredients except choc. Chips in a large mixing bowl and blend 2-3 min. Stir in Choc. Chips, Pour into prepared Bundt Pan, Bake 45-50 min @ 350. Cool 20 minutes-invert onto serving platter.

Frosting:
8 TB Butter, 4 TB cocoa powder, 1/3 C. Evap. Milk (or 2%), 4 C. sifted powdered sugar

Melt butter in med. Saucepan over low heat, whisk in cocoa and milk, bring just to boil, stirring constantly, remove from heat, stir in powdered sugar. Pour warm frosting over warm cake.

Alfredo Sauce

1 Qt Heavy Cream 1 c. butter 4 T. cream cheese
1 1/3 c. parmesan 2 t. garlic Powder (johnny’s seasoning)
Salt and Pepper to taste

In Saucepan melt cream, butter, and cream cheese on med-low heat-simmer until melted. Add Parmesan, garlic powder, salt and pepper to taste. Simmer 20-30 min on low heat. Serve over Fettucine or any pasta. Yummy with Chicken or Shrimp on top.

Invincible Salad Dressing (Petersons Kitchen)
¾ - 1C Oil 1-2 TB Catsup 3 TB Liquid Aminos or soy sauce
½ t. nutmeg 2-4 TB Cider Vinegar ½ t. dry mustard
1 cut garlic clove 1 t. Italian herbs

Add all ingredients together in jar and shake until well combined. Great over raw vegetable salad.

Poppy Seed Viniagrette
1 C. Oil ½ C. red wine vinegar ½ c. sugar 1 t. salt
2-3 T red onion 1 T. Green onion 1 T. Poppy Seed ½ t. dry mustard

Blend all ingredients in blender, store in refrigerator until ready to serve. Awesome over fresh spinach salad.

Smoky Grilled Cheese Sandwich

Last weekend I had planned to make BLT's with some leftover bacon, but then realized I was out of tomatoes. I was in a hurry and looking for something quick and I came up with what Doug calls my "GREATEST CONCOCTION YET." Of course he hasn't tried my Hawaiian Fajitas yet, but I did agree this one was pretty good. We still have some Raw Hickory Cheddar Cheese from our last trip to Utah and I thought a grilled cheese sandwich would be quick. I layered the smoked cheese on a slice of wheat bread, crumbled the bacon over it and topped it with more bread, buttered the outside slices as you would for grilled cheese, then grilled it on my panini press. Serve it with some yummy Sweet Baby Rays barbecue sauce as a dip. Don't skip this step.

Next time I am going to spread barbecue sauce on the inside layer of bread and grill it with the bacon and cheese. Its a good sandwich with just the smoky cheese and bacon, but the barbecue sauce finishes it perfectly. Its that good. Your men will love you for it.

Ingredients:
Bread sliced for sandwiches

Butter

Hickory smoked cheddar cheese

Bacon slices, cooked and crumbled

Barbecue Sauce

Quinoa and Black Beans

So, When I had Brit at the hospital, they had this "southwestern side dish with blackbeans" that I ordered with  my meal once.  Turns out it was Quinoa and Blackbeans and it just hit the spot, so I ordered it as often as I could and have been craving it for a while now.  I finally got to the store and bought some Quinoa ( the smith's by us didn't sell it, which is wierd, because Quinoa is a pretty common item) anyway, we made this the other night, even SHELDON was licking the pot...the recipe says it makes enough for 10, but it was exactly enough for our family.  Luke and Marshal loved it too.  ALSO, just in case you didn't know, Quinoa is a perfect protien, SO it's really good for you.  ENJOY!

The Recipe:

1 tsp Olive oil

1 onion, chopped

3 cloves garlic, pressed or peeled and chopped

3/4 cup uncooked Quinoa

1 1/2 cups chicken stock

1 tsp. ground Cumin

1/4 tsp. Cayenne pepper

sea salt and fresh cracked pepper to taste :)

1 cup frozen corn kernals

2(15 oz.) cans black beans, rinsed and drained ( we think one can is just right, if you really love the beans put in two)

1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro ( awesome, but still REALLY good without it)

Directions: 

heat the oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat.  Stir in the onion and garlic, and saute until lightly browned.  Mix quinoa into the saucepan then cover with chicken stock.  Season with Cumin, cayenne pepper, salt and pepper.  Bring mixture to a boil.  Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 20 minutes. 

Stir corn into the saucepan and continue to simmer about 5 minutes.  Mix in the black beans and cilantro.  Use as a side or your meal

* I'll be adding Quinoa to my food storage :)



My Food Storage List

This is my Food Storage List that I keep with my in my purse. It tells me what I have and what I need. I just estimated for 10 people what we would need and then I adjusted it over the years to what we use. (G is gallon, C is case, B is box, Q is quart, L is Large etc) If I buy something I mark it down. Every now and then I go to my storage room and update what we have used and then reprint my paper. I put only items on my list that we use all the time and that I can store. I love it! Feel free to make it your own. I have done this for years and now my storage room looks like this:

Super Quick and Super Easy Cheesecake

The other day down at the Flat I fixed this for Sunday dinner and it wasn't one of my best but it was still quite yummy and I thought I would share it :)

Crust=
1 & 1/2 pkgs of crushed Graham Crackers
3TB of sugar
1/3 cup butter (melted)
Mix together and press into the bottom of a 9X13 pan and bake @ 350 for 10 minutes

Cheescake=
1/2 pint sour cream
8 oz. cream cheese
1/2 c. sugar
12 oz coolwhip
1/2 tsp. vanilla

cream the sour cream and cream cheese together then add the rest of the ingredients.
Spread onto the baked crust and chill over night in the fridge (or you can flash freeze it if you're in a hurry)
Then top with your choice of fruit and sauce and ENJOY!