creature comforts.

after about three months here on the island, i feel a little homesick at times. especially since my last birthday, i really miss my family and especially my twin sister. it's wierd what you take for granted and how things change. back when i was in san diego, i bitterly missed my fiance and now things are the opposite. i've always been a little bit strong, though, so i've been keeping myself busy with hobbies and cooking. granola was my favorite snack back home and iit still is now. unfortunately, things here are a little bit more pricey so i've made do with making stuff homemade. granola was no exception.

Cranberry Maple Granola
(adapted from Bon Appetit)

3/4 cup dark brown sugar
1/2 cup pure maple syrup
1 egg white
1 tbsp vanilla extract
1 tbsp ground cinnamon
3 cups old-fashioned or quick cooking oats
1/4 cup ground flax seeds
1/2 cup flaked coconut
1 cup dried cranberries

Position rack in bottom third of oven and preheat to 325°F. Generously coat heavy large rimmed baking sheet with nonstick spray. Stir together sugar and syrup. Whisk in egg whites, extracts, and spice. Add oats, flax seeds, and coconut; toss well.

Spread mixture in even layer on prepared baking sheet. Bake 35 minutes. Using metal spatula, turn granola over (bottom will be brown). Bake 10 minutes. Cool granola completely in pan. Sprinkle in cranberries then store in airtight container.

portable granola.

I love granola. seriously, I do. I like them plain, with nuts, with fruit, on yogurt, in bread...you name it, I like 'em with, it, on it, and made from it. I remember a few years back, I went out on a granola binge and for days on end granola would be the only thing that people would see me eating. I had six or seven boxes at any given time and they would all be gone in a couple of weeks. that's not even including the bars i kept everywhere. yeah..it was bad.

but for all that granola loving that I did, I never once made my own granola or granola bar. which is weird, considering it's relatively easy to make. so I decided to make some bars. I decided on this recipe since the pictures looked so damn good. I love them chewy granolas! I made some substitutions based on what i had on hand and the resulting granola bars weren't as chewy as i'd hoped. but! they were good none the less and came out having a strong peanut-butter taste. next time, i'm gonna follow the recipe and see what they're supposed to taste like. :) here's the original recipe:

Thick and Chewy Granola Breakfast Bars
(from Smells Like Home)

1 2/3 cups oats (quick-cooking or old fashioned)
1/2 to 3/4 cup granulated sugar (use more for a sweetness akin to most purchased bars; use less for a mildly sweet bar; omit altogether if your add-ins are super sweet)
1/3 cup oat flour (or 1/3 cup oats, processed till finely ground in a food processor or blender)
2 tbsp finely ground flax seed (optional)
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
2 to 3 cups dried fruits, nuts, chocolate, coconut, seeds, etc. (total of 10 to 15 ounces)
1/3 cup peanut butter or another nut butter (optional but recommended)
1 tsp vanilla extract
6 tbsp melted butter
1/4 cup honey or maple syrup
2 tablespoons corn syrup (light or Lyle’s Golden)

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line the bottom of an 8-inch square pan with parchment paper leaving the ends of the paper to hang up and over the two opposite sides of the pan. Lightly grease the paper and the exposed sides of the pan.

2. In a large bowl, stir the oats, sugar (if using), oat flour, flax, salt, cinnamon, and your dry add-ins together. In a separate medium bowl, whisk the peanut butter, vanilla, butter, honey/maple syrup, and corn syrup together until will combined and smooth. Immediately pour the wet mixture over the dry ingredients and with a rubber spatula, mix everything together until the oats are well-coated and sort of crumbly.

3. Transfer the granola mixture to the pan, pressing it down firmly and evenly into the pan. Make sure the granola is tucked into the corners and sits tightly up against the sides of the pan – this will help when cutting them. Bake for 30 to 40 minutes, until the top is nicely browned. Cool the pan on a wire rack for 20 minutes then transfer the uncut bars on the parchment paper from the pan to the rack to cool completely. Once they’ve cooled, transfer them to the fridge to set up well before cutting. Cut into 2-inch square pieces.

EDIT: found another good recipe that's somewhat similar to this one but a little less peanut buttery. tried this recipe and it was killer! gotta make more...!

bountiful bread.

i've been on a bread shtick lately and i've been pinning bread like a mad woman for all the interesting breads that i could find and wanted to try. a really big interest, it seems, is the no-knead bread variety. i really like how easy it is and the results are fairly tasty. I'm a huge fan of artisan bread but buying it can get a little pricey. It's nice to be able to just whip up a batch and bake it the next day.

so, with that being said, the boyfriend and i are moving out of our apartment in a couple of months and i'm finding that i have to get rid of some miscellaneous pantry items i've hoarded for a "rainy day". dried fruit, random flours, oatmeal, nuts, and spices galore...it's almost kind of random except they've been collected for specific recipes on my to-do list. but now that i won't have the luxury of taking my time to make them, i'm finding that using the stuff in my pantry to make bread is actually a more attractive idea than tossing/giving away my ingredients. and no-knead bread is a perfect base for tossing things together and crossing my fingers that they'll be a good combination! for this experiment, i went on a whim and used buttermilk powder, flaxseed meal, and oats for a "grainy" kind of bread. here's the recipe:

 
No-Knead Buttermilk Flax Oat Bread

2 cups warm water plus more if needed
2 1/4 cups bread flour
1 cup flaxseed meal flour
2 tbls powdered buttermilk
1/3 to 1/2 cup old fashioned oats
2 tsp salt
1 (1/4 oz.) packet or 2 1/2 tsp granulated yeast
cornmeal for dusting

mix all dry ingredients together then add the warm water to make a wet dough. if dry, add water until you get a shaggy dough. let rise for about 2-5 hours minimum or leave on a warm area, covered, overnight. to bake, take the dough and make a ball. on a parchment paper, scatter the cornmeal and place the rounded dough on it then let rest. preheat the oven to 450 degrees with your dutch oven and lid inside for about 20 minutes. once hot, take your dough with the parchment paper and carefully place it in the dutch oven and bake, covered, for thirty minutes. remove lid and bake an additional 15 minutes or until golden brown. let cool 15 minutes before serving.

makes one loaf.

the verdict? it's definitely softer than my previous no-knead breads that i've made. it's still got that tangy-ness that's typical with this type of bread and it doesn't really taste all that different...well, maybe not so sour. there isn't a lot of openness to the crumb and after baking it didn't really expand like i though it was going to. maybe i just didn't let it rise enough (i baked it at the minimum rise time) or maybe it's the flaxseed meal? whatever it is, it is awesome re-toasted with some butter. i'd consider this a success! :)

scones part deux: taste it and make it!

on my way to work in the mornings, i always pass by peet's coffee and teas. i've never actually stopped at this particular franchise as i'm more of the local mom and pop coffee shop kind of gal. this morning tho was different. and glad i was when i did because i found the most tastiest scone i've ever had: the multigrain scone.

i don't know why this was such a revelation to me as i've always been a fan of multigrain anything. i guess i just never had it in a scone form. after i inhaled the last of the crumbs from the bottom of the bag, i thought: man! i want some more of that! *ding!* wait, i can make that!!

well the idea was born and off the internets i searched. First was finding out what was in the scone. I did come across the ingredients list and here's what it listed:

Multigrain Scone:
Enriched Unbleached Wheat Flour, Butter, Sugar, Water, Cream, Dates, Coconut, Lemon Peel, Flax Seed, Cracked Wheat, Oats, Rye Meal, Yellow Polenta, Rolled Barley, Millet, Rice Bran, Wheat Germ, Sunflower Seeds, Rolled Rye, Milk, Baking Powder, Salt, Artificial Color.

Afterwards, searched and rifled through a bunch of recipes and settled on this one since it sounded like it would have right texture i was looking for.

wow, was this recipe awesome! it was the perfect base for the scone. i added 3/4 cup of shredded coconut and it was pretty damn close to what i had at peet's coffee and tea.
things i would do differently:

- i would definitely add more coconut flakes, cranberries, and probably add another type of nut into the mix. also, some vanilla extract. it's missing something but i can't quite put my taste buds on it. cornmeal maybe? gotta buy another scone and dissect it more thoroughly.

-my scone was slightly burned so definitely less cooking time and closer to what the recipe called for. about 20 minutes tops.

-handle the dough less and maybe just round balls? i wanted a more bakery scone look rather than the ones i did. we'll see.

-i did the oat flour route and instead of grinding it to a fine meal, i'd probably grind it coarsely instead to help with the consistency.

-this was lightly sweet. while i'm all for less sugary intake, i really enjoyed the balance of sweet and nutty that the peet's scone had. next time, i'll add a full cup of sugar and see what that tastes like.

all in all, this was a very satisfying experiment (better than the fist attempt i did) and was surprised at how easy it all was. and this try actually produced an actual scone-like, erm, scone? lol. with that being said, next stop: maybe make my own corned beef?? :O

Mixed Flour Buttermilk Scones with Cranberries and Almonds
(from Seven Spoons)

For the scones
2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup whole wheat flour or oat flour, see note
¼ cup flaxseed meal
½ cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
Finely grated zest from one lemon
¾ cup (1 ½ sticks) unsalted butter, chilled and cut into small dice
1 cup dried sweetened cranberries, see note
3/4 cup flaked almonds, toasted and then chopped
1 cup well-shaken buttermilk, plus more if needed
3/4 cup sweetened shredded coconut

For glaze (optional)
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
1 tablespoon lemon juice

To make the glaze, stir together the sugar and lemon juice in a small bowl. Set aside.
Preheat oven to 400°F (200°C). Use parchment paper to line a standard baking sheet and set aside.

In the bowl of a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, combine the flours, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt and lemon zest. On the machine's lowest setting, cut in the chilled butter until the mixture resembles course meal. The butter should be in small pieces approximately the size of peas. Mix in the cranberries and almonds.

With the machine still on low, slowly pour the buttermilk into the flour and butter mixture in a thin stream, stirring until just combined. Use only as much buttermilk as needed to bring the dough together - don’t worry if you don’t use it all, or if you need to add a tablespoon or more. Small bits of butter should still be visible, but almost all the flour should be incorporated. (skipped this and did mine by hand. i coarsley grated the butter into the dry ingredients, adding the coconut as well, and followed the rest as directed. :D)

Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Working quickly, gently knead the dough, folding and pressing gently until it just holds together. Divide the dough into two, and shape each ball of dough into a 6-inch round about 1-inch thick. Cut each round into six wedges, and place on the prepared baking sheet.

Bake scones in the preheated oven for about 12 minutes, then carefully pull them out and brush the top of each lightly with the glaze, if using. Return the scones to the oven and continue to bake until the the tops are lightly golden and the cut sides look flaky and dry, around 5-8 minutes more. When fully cooked, the scones should feel light for their size and sound almost hollow when tapped underneath.

Cool on a wire rack for at least 5 minutes. Best served warm the day they are made, but can be toasted or rewarmed in a low oven. Store in an airtight container at room temperature.
Makes 12 medium scones.

Author's Notes:
• In lieu of whole wheat flour, toasted oat flour also works quite well. To make your own, spread 3/4 cup of rolled oats on a baking sheet and bake in a 375°F oven until lightly golden, stirring occassionaly, around 7 minutes. Allow to cool, then grind in a food processor into fine meal.

• Our dried cranberries were markedly less sweet than the raisin-like ones sold in many grocery stores. Using the latter style might warrant reducing the granulated sugar to a 1/3 cup.