Rosemary Focaccia Recipe

This recipe is adapted from a book we recently got as a gift, and are LOVING, called The Art Of Simple Food. The focaccia is easy to make and filled the house with a delicious smell of fresh rosemary.




Ingredients
2 tsp dry yeast
1/2 c lukewarm water
pinch of sugar
3 1/2 c unbleached white flour
1/4 c rye flour
2 T chopped fresh rosemary
1 tsp salt
3/4 c cold water
olive oil
coarse sea salt

Instructions
Stir together yeast & warm water. Add a pinch of sugar. Add 1/4 c white flour & 1/4 c rye flour. Let mixture sit until bubbly for about 30 minutes.

In a seperate bowl, mix 3 1/4 c white flour, rosemary, and salt. Add to bubbly yeast mixture. Add cold water and 1/4 c olive oil. Mix thouroughly by hand or in an electric stand mixer. If mixing by hand, do so on a lightly floured surface for about 5 minutes until dough is soft and elastic. If it is sticky add a small amount of flour (not too much, it should remain very soft). If using a mixture, use the dough hook and knead for 5 minutes until the dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl.

Put the dough in a large bowl and cover with a damp cloth to let rise in a warm place for about 2 hours. It should double in size. We let it rise in a warm oven that we had warmed on the lowest setting and then turned off before putting in the dough.

Once the dough has risen, gently remove it from the bowl and flatten it on a well oiled sheet pan (10" x 15") by gently pressing down from the center out towards the edges. If the dough resists or springs back, let it rest for 10 minutes and then continue shaping. Do not deflate or smash the dough. If you have a pizza peel you can simply flaten the dough on a floured surface instead of a sheet pan and use it to move to the oven.

This is a pizza peel for those who don't already have one:

Next, put dimples in the dough with your fingers. Like this:

Drizzle the dough with olive oil (about 2 T). Cover dough with damp cloth and allow it to rise again for 2 hours, until it is double in size.

While the dough is rising, preheat the oven to 450 (just make sure the dough is not in there!) If you have one, place a pizza stone on the lower rack and let it heat for 30 minutes.

Before baking the bread, sprinkle the dough with 1 tsp coarse sea salt. Put the baking pan or just the dough directly on the pizza stone. Bake focaccia 20-25 minutes until golden and crisp. Remove bread from pan and cool on a wire cooling rack. Best if eaten warm from the oven.

Popovers

Tim just introduced me to the joys of popovers this year. Can't believe I've lived this long without eating them! The only catch is that you have to buy a special popover pan for this recipe. Buy one, you will not regret it.


Ingredients
2 eggs
1 c milk
1 T melted butter
1 c flour
1/4 tsp salt

Instructions
Pre-heat oven to 450 degrees, spray popover pan with pam (spray generously).

This is what a popover pan looks like. . . although these popovers look like they were over mixed!

Beat 2 eggs until light. Add remaining ingredients. Beat until blended for 30 seconds with an electric beater. Batter should look like heavy cream - do not over beat it or the popovers won't "pop" properly. Similar to the ones in the pan above!

Pour batter into pan so that each cup is 1/3 full. Bake 20 minutes at 450. Reduce heat to 350 and bake 20 more minutes. They will be brown and crusty when done.

Best eaten straight from the oven with butter and honey.

Other recipes you may like:
buttermilk biscuits
cinnamon coffee cake

Cinnamon Coffee Cake Recipe

Another breakfast recipe from King Arthur Flour. I swear we don't work for them...
This cake has a crunchy cinnamon topping that you'll want to lick off your plate. But I think my favorite part was the filling. I want to try making it with double the filling and half the topping next time.


Ingredients
Streusel topping
1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt (if you use unsalted butter)
1 1/2 cups flour
1 T ground cinnamon
6 T melted butter

Filling
1 cup brown sugar, light or dark
1 1/2 tablespoons cinnamon
1 teaspoon unsweetened cocoa powder

Cake
3/4 cup salted butter
1 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
1/3 cup brown sugar
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
3 eggs
3/4 c plain yogurt
1 1/4 c milk
3 3/4 c flour

Instructions
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly grease a 9" x 13" pan

Make the struesel topping first by mixing together the sugar, salt, flour, and cinnamon. Add the melted butter, stir until combined - it will look crumbly. Save for later.

In a seperate bowl, make the cake filling by mixing together the brown sugar, cinnamon, and cocoa powder.

In a third larger bowl, make the cake. Beat together the butter, salt, sugars, baking powder, and vanilla until well combined and smooth. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after you add each one.

In a separate bowl (you'll be doing a lot of dishes later), whisk together the yogurt and milk till well combined. Add the flour to the large bowl with butter mixture, and alternate with the milk/yogurt mixture, beating gently to combine.

Spread half the batter into the greased pan, spreading evenly and to the edge. Sprinkle the filling on top of this layer of batter. Then spread the remaining batter on top of the filling. Use a butter knife to gently swirl the filling into the batter. Don't combine filling and batter completely - just swirl the filling through the batter. Sprinkle the bowl of struesel topping over the batter in the pan. Bake the cake 50-60 minutes until golden brown around the edges and a toothpick comes out clean. Let it cool about 20 minutes before serving from the pan.

Spicy Breakfast Potatoes - Oven Roasted Potatoes

Just made these spicy breakfast potatoes for brunch yesterday, and they were a big hit. You could eat them for any meal really.

Ingredients
2 yukon gold potatoes
olive oil
black pepper
chili powder
garlic powder
Pam cooking spray
Flat leaf parsley
Salt

Instructions
Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees. Spray baking sheet with Pam.

Wash the potatoes and cut them into cubes. Soak cubed potatoes in a bowl of cold water for 5 minutes. Drain and sprinkle with pepper, chili powder, and garlic powder. Spread out potatoes on baking sheet & spray with Pam. Put them in the oven for 10 minutes, flip potatoes or shuffle them around on the pan, and cook for 10 more minutes until crispy on the outside, soft on the inside. Chop up some parsely & sprinkle cooked potatoes with a drizzle of olive oil, salt, and parsely.

We don't have a picture because they were eaten too quickly!

Other recipes you may like:
blueberry pancake recipe
potato and leek soup

Blueberry Pancakes

I'm really into brunch food at the moment - why not try brunch for dinner tonight? These pancakes are light and delicious. I found the recipe on King Arthur Flour, my go-to spot for any breakfast food recipe. Use fresh or frozen blueberries.

Ingredients
2 large eggs
1 1/4 cups (10 ounces) milk
2 teaspoons vanilla extract, optional
3 tablespoons (1 1/2 ounces) melted butter or vegetable oil (1 1/4ounces)
1 1/2 cups (6 1/4 ounces) King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
3/4 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 tablespoons (7/8 ounce) sugar
3/4 cup (3 ounces) blueberries, fresh or frozen

Instructions
Beat the eggs, milk, and vanilla until light and foamy, about 3 minutes at high speed with a hand mixer. Stir in the melted butter or oil. The key is to use an electric mixer instead of doing it by hand! Add the flour, salt, baking powder, and sugar, stirring just to combine, there will be a few lumps still. Set the batter aside to rest while you're heating your pan.

Heat a large frying pan over medium-low to medium heat. Spray with Pam. The pan is hot enough when a drop of water evaporates immediately on contact.

Drop the pancake batter by 1/4 cupfuls onto the hot pan and sprinkle 1 tablespoon blueberries on each pancake. Cook until they’re golden brown on the bottom, about 2 minutes. Flip them over, and cook till the other side is golden, 2 to 2 1/2 minutes.

Serve the pancakes immediately or transfer them to a platter, cover, and keep warm in a 200°F oven.

Other recipes you may like:
French toast
chocolate chunk oatmeal cookies

View all breakfast recipes

World's Best French Toast

We made this french toast for Easter brunch and thought we died and went to heaven! But seriously, this is undoubtedly the best french toast I've ever had. It wasn't mushy or eggy like other recipes we've tried. The key is keeping toast in the oven until it is ready to serve. Eat it with syrup or powdered sugar and sliced fruit. The only thing we were missing was some crispy bacon.


Ingredients
6 to 8 slices challah bread, sliced 1 inch thick
3 large eggs
3/4 cup 2% milk
pinch of salt
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
2 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons rum
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 T butter
1 T vegetable oil

Instructions
Pre-heat the oven to 400 degrees. Get out a baking sheet and set aside.

Put the butter & vegetable oil in a large frying pan and turn on medium heat. Let the butter melt while you prepare the other ingredients.

In a small bowl, whisk all remaining ingredients together until smooth (not foamy). Pour the batter into a shallow dish or cake pan large enough for 2 slices of bread.

Put 2 pieces of bread in the batter and let them soak for 30 seconds per side. Place the bread on the frying pan and cook toast for 2 minutes per side. The bread should be golden brown, not dark. Put the bread on the baking sheet & into the pre-heated oven. Cook the remaining slices of bread in the same way, and remove all pieces from oven once ready to serve.

The bread will get a tiny bit more brown in the oven, so be aware of this as you are frying it up.

Dig in! Don't worry, you'll be forgiven for enjoying this sinful dish.

Rosemary and Parmesan Buttermilk Biscuits

So.Good.


Ingredients
2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour (10 ounces)
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon sugar
3/4 teaspoon table salt
3/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese (1 1/2 ounces)
1/2 teaspoon chopped fresh rosemary
1 cup buttermilk (cold)
8 tablespoons unsalted butter , melted and cooled slightly (about 5 minutes), plus 2 tablespoons melted butter for brushing biscuits

Instructions
1. Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 475 degrees. Whisk flour, baking powder, baking soda, sugar, salt, Parmesan, and rosemary in large bowl. Combine buttermilk and 8 tablespoons melted butter in medium bowl, stirring until butter forms small clumps (see photo below).

2. Add buttermilk mixture to dry ingredients and stir with rubber spatula until just incorporated and batter pulls away from sides of bowl. Using greased 1/4-cup dry measure, scoop level amount of batter and drop onto parchment-lined rimmed baking sheet (biscuits should measure about 2 1/4 inches in diameter and 1 1/4 inches high - there will be about 12). Repeat with remaining batter, spacing biscuits about 1 1/2 inches apart. Bake until tops are golden brown and crisp, 12 to 14 minutes.

3. Brush biscuit tops with remaining 2 tablespoons melted butter. Transfer to wire rack and let cool 5 minutes before serving.

4. Have a heart attack