Warm Bread with Gooey Pockets of Cheese

Tonight I made soup for dinner, and as the time got closer to when I'd need to start prep work, I realized I needed to come up with something to serve alongside. Garlic-Cheese Biscuits popped into my mind first, and they're certainly easy and fast (and delicious), but the thought of warm, crusty, cheesy bread took over and I knew I'd better get started if I wanted to eat warm bread for dinner and not late tonight. I looked up soem recipes, and King Arthur's version really sounded tasty. As I read furthur, however, I found that it needed to rest overnight, with a preferment, so that was out. Needing a quick, whole grain variety, I did some experimenting and came up with this loaf!

Whole Grain Cheese Loaf

If you prefer the flavor and texture of all white flour to whole grains, use a total of 4 1/2 cups bread flour instead of the amounts called for below. I used 7 grain bread flour instead of whole wheat this time.

1 tbsp instant yeast*

2 cups warm milk

2 tsp sugar

2 tbsp butter, melted

3/4 tsp salt

1 tsp garlic powder, optional

1 tbsp dried parsley, crumbled

2 1/2 cups whole wheat or 7 grain flour

2 cups bread flour

6 oz cheese, cubed (Fontina, Gruyere, or Sharp Cheddar)

2 oz cheese, shredded

Combine the yeast, flours, garlic powder, parsley, salt, and sugar in a large bowl. Add the milk and butter, and stir until combined. Turn onto a floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic. If using a mixer, use dough hook and combine on speed 2, letting it knead the mixture until it's smooth and elastic.

Pat the dough into a rough triangle and sprinkle with the cheese cubes and shreds. Roll it up, and form it into a ball. Grease a 1 1/2 quart casserole. Place the dough in the pan and score it with a sharp knife so that some cheese shows through, in an "X."

Cover and let rise one hour. Near the end of the bread's rise, preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

Bake 50-60 minutes.

Let stand 30 minutes before cutting; serve warm.

Aloo Palak (Isn't that fun to say?!)

The following recipe is a favorite of mine. It's healthy, filling, and makes a wonderful lunch to look forward to the next day, getting even more flavorful as it sits overnight. No picture, though. Well, if I were to post a picture you probably wouldn't be willing to try this dish, and that would just be sad. Aloo Palak (Indian potatoes and spinach) is fantastic tasting, but it's a little funky on the eyes. Pureed spinach with chunks of potatoes aren't that appealing to look at, but the combination (with lots of aromatic spices) makes for a delicious side to an Indian-themed dinner.

I have made Aloo Palak several times, but it's been a while and my son didn't remember it. His first thought (as a 7 year old) was "ewww," but upon actually taking a bite he declared it fantastic and told his little sister she had to try it because it was a "treat." Enjoy!

Aloo Palak

10 oz frozen spinach
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tbsp minced fresh ginger
1 onion, chopped
1-2 green chilies, chopped (I use roasted Anaheim peppers because they're mild, but use what you prefer, to increase the heat factor if you don't have picky little kids to feed)
4 medium sized red or yukon gold potatoes, peeled and cubed
1 tsp turmeric
2 tbsp butter or ghee
1 1/2 tsp cumin
1 tsp garam masala
1/2 tsp coriander
salt, to taste

Place the cubed potatoes in a saucepan and cover with cool water. Add the turmeric and a pinch of salt. Cover and cook until tender, about 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, cook the spinach with the garlic, ginger, onion, and chilies about 5 minutes, stirring often. Transfer to a food processor and puree.

Heat the butter over medium heat and add the cumin, garam masala, and coriander. Stir about 30 seconds, or until fragrant. Add a pinch of salt and stir in the spinach puree. Drain the potatoes, saving 1/2-1 cup of the cooking liquid. Add the drained potatoes and stir to coat, adding some of the cooking liquid if necessary, to thin the puree. Serve.

Makes 4-6 servings.

Birthday Central!

Tomorrow is my son's seventh birthday party. His actual birthday isn't until the 10th, but it's working out that he's getting several days of celebrating instead of just one. Birthday parties rarely work on Mondays, especially when it's the championship game for the Oregon Ducks, so we had to move the festivities to Saturday. We're just having some family over tomorrow afternoon, and three of his friends. After cake and presents I'll take the four kids to see a movie before dropping them back at their homes.

To make Monday special, I was going to take my son on a Mommy Date to a fancy restaurant he's been wanting to try, but it turns out that it's closed that evening! So he gets to go tonight instead, since I'll be tied up on other evenings. My husband is hoping to meet him for lunch at school, and to make his actual birthday a little more special I'll surprise his class with a treat that afternoon as well. He's getting pretty spoiled this year with all the adjustments!

My kids plan their birthday themes all year, right after the current party has wrapped up. Cakes are always their first thought, and after figuring out what kind of cake they'd like to have, then the rest of the party can be planned. (My daughter is thinking about a Hello Kitty theme in September....) My son actually came up with the coin box cake idea for his Mario party.

I knew it had to be a perfect square, and to achieve that shape, I had to make it four layers...two recipes! That's a lot of cake! He asked for chocolate with cherry filling, so I raided the last of the freezer's local cherries and made an easy, thick filling. French buttercream gave the crumbcoat and a base for the homemade marshmallow fondant. I covered the cake board with brown fondant and scored it to look like bricks. For a "coin," I made rice crispy treat and formed it in a 6-inch cake pan. It then got covered with buttercream also, and fondant to make it more uniform. The marshmallow treat is sturdy and can hold upright well, unlike a delicate cake. I skewered it with dowels to hold it in place.

A few days ago I played with some gumpaste to see if I could make a Mario figure, as the only ones I've been able to locate were on Amazon.com for $18! Of course, with the time I put into making my own figure, that probably would've been worth it! After Mario was formed, I made bricks, stars, and a few mushrooms, per my son's requests.

I had some difficulty with the square shape and positioning the fondant, so the corners aren't as good as they could probably be. It's fun to work with the stuff, however, and every time I learn a little more about how to make the next cake even better!

Dinner in less than an hour, from scratch!

Tonight I combined two recipes, added something else that sounded good, and came up with a fabulous dinner! I thought about taking a picture, but when the food's hot, the kids are squirming, and there's too much chaos to stop and search for a camera...well, I decided to eat instead! While I won't go so far to say that this recipe is healthy (because "healthy" is relative, depending on one's own definition for his or her current diet), I will say that it's wholesome, filling, and full of nutritious ingredients. You may omit the cream if you're watching your waistline, but I think it adds fabulous dimension, flavor, and texture to the pasta.

Homemade Fettuccine with Wild Mushrooms and Sun-Dried Tomatoes
Fresh refrigerated pasta may be substituted for homemade if time is an issue. I found the bag of frozen mushrooms in the freezer of our grocery store's natural foods section, but if I'd had access to an assortment of fresh wild mushrooms I would've used those! The dried tomatoes I used were from last summer's garden, so they're brittle and needed to soak in hot water for a few minutes. If using store-bought ones, they will probably not need a soak, as they're usually pliable and soft.

For the pasta, combine in a large bowl:
2 cups white whole wheat flour
2 eggs

Whisk together using a fork, and then slowly drizzle in cool water while kneading until it forms a dry, but cohesive mass. Turn onto a floured countertop and knead until smooth and elastic. Wrap or cover and let rest.

Bring a large pot of water to a boil.

For the sauce:
1/4 cup chopped hazelnuts
1/2 tbsp butter
4 garlic cloves, minced
1/4 cup sundried tomatoes (crumbled if brittle and briefly soaked, or roughly chopped if already soft)
10 oz mixed wild mushrooms (thawed and drained if frozen), sliced
1/4 cup white wine
1/4 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
1/2 cup cream
salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
sage
parsley

Heat the butter over medium-high heat until melted. Add the hazelnut pieces and stir until lightly browned. Transfer to a bowl and set aside.

Add the mushrooms and garlic to the hot pan and saute for about 5 minutes. Add the wine, and cook until it's almost evaporated. Stir in the cream, a pinch or two of dried sage, a little parsley, and salt and pepper, to taste. Reduce the cream by half, then stir in the cheese. Cover and keep warm. (If not using the cream, just set the mushroom mixture aside until needed and top the pasta with parmesan just before serving instead of mixing it in.)

Roll the pasta out and cut it into fettuccine (I used a thickness of 5 on my pasta machine). Boil the fettuccine about 3 minutes, or until al dente. Drain and toss with the sauce.

Serve immediately, topped with the toasted hazelnuts, a grating of fresh pepper, and more parmesan, if desired.

Serves 4.