Gingerbread Loaf Recipe

I got this recipe in January and tried it out right away. We are sort of getting into the old ruts but I decided that I was going to try this one as soon as I saw it so I printed it out right away.  I added it to my weekend to do list and I actually got it done.  Of course I totally didn't post any of the pictures to share with you.  Now I am inside and trying to get caught up on all of the things on my to do list and I decided that even though the weather is getting warmer, it is about time that I shared this amazing gingerbread and it made me want to make it again.  Check out the original recipe here.

I got out all of the ingredients that we needed which are all pantry staple ingredients for us.

I measured to put the molasses in the bowl.

I put the molasses and the butter in the bowl. 

I added hot water which melted down the butter.

It was super easy to mix together after everything melted.

I got the butter fully melted and it was so fragrant and nicely thinned out so it wouldn't be so sticky to pour into the dry ingredients.

 

I mixed the dry ingredients in the mixing bowl.  Of course I used the one on the mixer but then looked back and realized that I totally didn't need a mixer for this recipe because the liquid ingredients were all smooth so this was easy to mix together.

Since I already had it in the blender, I figured that I would use it.  I added the liquid ingredients to the dry ingredients and mixed.

It mixed up to look like a bread already and smelled even more amazing.

I put it in the greased bread pan ready to bake.

Did I mention how great it smelled?  I might have cut into it before I actually took a picture.  Oops!!  It turned out really dark brown and made the house smell amazing.

The best part is that I really wanted to have gingerbread and this was wonderful rich option.

My husband said that he kept looking at it and thinking that it was chocolate cake so he wasn't as excited about it because it obviously didn't taste like chocolate cake.  It tasted like yummy gingerbread and I can't wait to make it again.

Classic Gingerbread Loaf 

Ingredients 2/3 Cup Boiling Water 2/3 Cup Molasses 1/4 Cup Unsalted Butter 1 Large Egg 1 1/2 Cups All Purpose Flour 1/2 Tsp Salt 2 Tsp Ground Ginger 1 Tsp Ground Cinnamon 1/4 Tsp Ground Cloves 1 Tsp Baking Soda

Instructions : 

Preheat oven to 350° and grease loaf pan.  Combine wet ingredients in one bowl, add molasses and butter. Add boiling water and stir until butter melts and all is combined. Put boiling water in measuring cup used to add molasses to clean the cup and get every last drop of molasses. Allow to cool while combining dry ingredients.  Combine dry ingredients in another bowl, combine flour, salt, ginger, cinnamon, cloves, and baking soda. Whisk until combined. 

When bowl of wet ingredients is cool to the touch, whisk in egg. Pour wet ingredients into bowl of dry ingredients. Stir to make batter.  Pour batter into greased pan. Bake for 35 minutes or until toothpick inserted in middle comes out dry.

Cheesy Bacon Ranch Bread

I gathered together all my ingredients and no recipe in order to make this special bread on vacation that I had seen on pinterest.  I had the idea when I got the bread on sale and with a coupon so I froze a few loaves but funny thing is that I didn't have a recipe but I figured that I would make it up when it was time.

I found a recipe online and it was all of the things that I had so I started the process.  First step is cutting the bread in both directions.  It is really easy with a good knife so I brought my bread knife from home with me on vacation.  You have to go through the bread but not all the way to the bottom.

I started with the grated cheese in each section which I opened with fingers.  The bagged cheese made it really easy to dump it in and push it down into the cracks.  After doing it one direction, the other side is super easy.

Then I added the bacon bits into the cracks which opened the bread even more then before.

I melted a stick of butter in the microwave and then mixed in the ranch seasoning.  The ranch is about half of the package so if you get a package you can make two loaves.

I poured the butter on top of the bread and baked but I only had a little bit of little aluminum foil so it was a little complicated to cover well.  It got a little more brown on the edges but it was soft an amazing inside.

We really enjoyed it and made it the next night too when my mom found a round sourdough bread at the farmers market while we were on vacation.  I might have mastered it but now out of bacon so made two more without it and they weren't nearly as tasty but still yummy!!  It might be the new family favorite recipe!!!

Cheesy Bacon Ranch Bread

Ingredients

• 1 round loaf of sourdough bread or similar
• 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
• 1 cup chopped cooked bacon
• 1/2 cup butter melted
• 1 tbsp dry ranch dressing mix

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350F degrees.
2. Using a sharp bread knife, cut the bread going in both directions but don't cut all the way through the bottom.
3. Place shredded cheese in between the slices in the bread and pack it in here.
4. Add in bacon to taste.
5. Put the bread in a container with sides like a square or round baking dish
6. Melt stick of butter in microwave and add 1 tbsp dry ranch mix. Mix until combined and pour the butter mixture over top of the bread.
7. Cover the container in aluminum foil to seal.
8. Bake at 350F degrees for 15 minutes.
9. Unwrap from the foil and bake for another 10 minutes (or until the cheese is melted and the top is browned). Eat immediately and enjoy!!!

Homemade Bread Machine Bagels

I have had bagels on my list for a long time of things that I should make and still don't.  I am from New York and I have always liked a good bagel but sometimes in the South, there are bagel shaped things that just taste like bread but don't have the great bite to the outside.  I have been intimidated by making them thinking that I wouldn't be able to get good bite at home. 

I found a recipe to try that used the bread machine here so I added it to my to do list for this week.  I set aside a day that had the least other things to do because I thought it would be labor intensive.  I put the ingredients in the bread machine and watched a movie...really not labor intensive!  I got the dough out to rest while I picked up my son at school.  I came home and was talking to a friend in the kitchen while tossing and turning in the water and buttering and sticking in the oven.  I swear it was the easiest recipe without too much actual work involved.

I am now wondering what took so long!!  They are amazing and easy!!

I put the warm water and sugar and salt in the bread machine although it just looks like water because they dissolved quickly.

I was out of bread flour so I used my regular flour and vital wheat gluten instead.  I added the rest of the ingredients and put it on the dough cycle in the bread machine.  It did a pretty good job of mixing and not sticking to the side but I did scrape the sides just in case after it was mostly mixed.

When the dough cycle was done, it was a small amount of dough that was done so I was a little worried.

I put it on a floured cutting board and separated the dough into 8 rounds.

I pushed a hole in the middle of each of the dough balls so that they looked like a bagel. Not all of them were pretty.

I had to stretch the hole a little bigger because I was afraid that it was going to expand when resting.

I boiled 3 quarts of water with 3 tbsp of sugar and put in four at a time.  I flipped at about 30 seconds and then took them out with the metal spider strainer.

I put the bagels on the cornmeal coated baking sheet.

I did the second batch exactly the same way and put them all on the same baking sheet.

I brushed with melted butter and at the last minute decided to stop two of the bagels with cinnamon and sugar because everything is better with cinnamon and sugar.  Also, this one was pretty ugly so it covered it up.

I baked them for 20 minutes until golden brown.  They were evenly cooked.

The inside of the bagel was nice and airy.  It was soft with a nice bite around the outside.

I enjoyed one hot out of the oven and later split one toasted with butter for my husband and strawberry cream cheese for me.  They were all really good and I am excited by my newest recipe!!

There were a few left that we will get to enjoy them for the coming day but they were super amazing the night that I made them and I will totally make them again soon!!

Homemade Bread Machine Bagels

Ingredients

• 1 cup Warm Water
• 1½ teaspoon Salt
• 2 Tablespoons White Sugar
• 3 cups Bread Flour (or Regular Flour and 3 tsp Vital Wheat Gluten)
• 2¼ teaspoons Active Dry Yeast
• 3 quarts Boiling Water
• 3 Tablespoons White Sugar
• 1 Tablespoon Cornmeal
• 2 Tablespoons Melted Butter
• Your Choice Of Toppings- I used cinnamon and sugar

Preparation

1. Place water, salt, sugar, flour and yeast in the bread machine pan in the order recommended by the manufacturer. Select Dough setting.

2. When cycle is complete, let dough rest on a lightly floured surface.

3. Cut dough into 8 equal pieces, and roll each piece into a small ball. Flatten balls. Poke a hole in the middle of each with your finger. Twirl the dough on your finger or thumb to enlarge the hole, and to even out the dough around the hole. Cover bagels with a clean cloth, and let rest for 10 minutes. 

4. Meanwhile, in a large pot, bring 3 quarts of water to a boil. Stir in 3 tablespoons of sugar.

5. Sprinkle an ungreased baking sheet with cornmeal. Carefully transfer bagels to boiling water. Boil for 1 minute, turning halfway through. Drain with wire strainer or rest on towel. Arrange boiled bagels on the baking sheet. brush tops with butter, and sprinkle with your choice of toppings.

6. Bake in a preheated 375 degree F oven for 20 to 25 minutes, until well browned.

On A Mission of Homemade Jiffy Corn Bread

My husband prefers Jiffy Corn Bread to any homemade bread that I have ever made.  I went to the internet to find a copycat recipe that he would like and I think that I succeeded. I found this one and this one and mixed a few different things.  There was another recipe that I found to make a big batch so if I get to that point, I might try it (you can find it here if you are interested)

I mixed the dry ingredients in a bowl. I was trying to think about the ratio or some of the other recipes that I use and I think that this one might have more flour which is what changes the recipe so much from the other homemade ones.

There is both salt and baking powder in the recipe.  It uses a bunch of baking powder so I was grateful that I got a huge container of baking powder from my mom for Christmas.  I was sure that I was going to be using it a lot!

I mixed all the dry ingredients together and it was pretty smooth.  This is the recipe that will be put in the jar for future recipes so that I have all the dry ingredients ready to make just like it would be with a box mix.  My pantry has my most frequently used recipes and corn bread is a quick and easy one to add to any meal.

This recipe calls for two tablespoons or melted butter or oil to mix into the dry ingredients.  You could do this before or after putting it in the jar but it seems like it would last longer if it was done after so that nothing spoiled or had to be kept in the fridge.

 After mixing the butter into the dry ingredients, I thought that it looked a lot like the standard box mix with some small chunks but mostly plain and ready to mix up.

I measured the milk and mixed in the egg in the measuring cup.

I used a butter wrapper to grease the container.  There is always a little bit of butter left on them and it is like using wax paper which I don't have.  It is super cheap and easy to store and use for later use.

I spread the dough into the 6 x 6 baker and baked at 400 for 15-20 minutes.  It was a little under cooked when I took it out so I put it back in and it was quick to finish baking.

It cooked up okay but the top was a little lumpy and not exactly like the Jiffy look to the corn bread but it tasted great.  We ate it quickly but the leftovers the next day were a little dry so I decided to make another batch with a little more milk which worked great.

I think that this is our new go to recipe with a little more milk because it is super tasty and just like the Jiffy cornbread but homemade from scratch.  I am super excited to find a recipe that my husband will like as much as the store bought mix.  It was one of the only things that I still bought the mix for because it was one of his special treats.  Now we can have it all the time.  I have the two mixes in the cupboard and I have already made it twice!! YUM!  I hope that you make some for yourself.

Copycat Jiffy Cornbread Mix

Ingredients

• 2/3 cup flour
• 1/2 cup yellow cornmeal
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 2 tablespoons melted butter or vegetable oil
• 2/3 cup milk
• 1 egg

Mix dry ingredients and store in airtight jar or use immediately.

Add 2 tablespoons vegetable oil or melted butter, 1/3 cup milk and 1 egg. Mix well.

Spread in greased 6 x 6 baker or spoon into 6 lined muffin tins and bake for 15-20 minutes. If tops start to brown, cover loosely with aluminum foil to stop browning.  Let cool for a little bit before eating.

**Note in order to make it the same as Jiffy, I had to add a lot more milk and it turned out way better the next time!!!