Some newly discovered, awesome recipes

First is a Honey Whole Wheat Bread recipe.  I love wheat bread (for the health benefits, and the taste) but hate the stuff they sell at most stores.  Great Harvest Bread Co. has some amazing bread, but it's expensive and a 30 minute drive, so that kind of eliminates that option most of the time.  Several months ago, I decided I could make a decent loaf of bread, I just needed to find a good recipe.  I found this one, and have made it at least once a month.  It makes 2 loafs, so I just freeze one till I need it.

1 packet active dry, yeast

2 cups warm water

1/3 cup honey or molasses

2 tablespoons soft shortening

2 teaspoons salt

5 1/2 to 6 cups whole wheat flour

In a mixing bowl place in order given all ingredients except flour.  Add flour gradually to make a stiff dough.  Knead on well-floured surface until smooth and satiny, 8-10 minutes.  Place in a greased bowl.  Cover; let rise in warm place until doubled, 1 1/2 to 2 hours.

Divide in half; shape into balls.  Cover with bowl; let rest 15 minutes.  Shape into loaves.  Place in well-greased 9 x 5 or 8 x 4 inch pans.  Cover; let rise until light and doubled, about 1 hour.

Bake at 375*F for 30-35 minutes, or until deep golden brown.

That's the official recipe I found on the back of a bag of whole wheat flour.  But I'm going to add a few tips and tricks I've learned over time.

What's the right temp for warm water?  My mom told me that usually the perfect temp is baby bottle temp or if you are letting the water run from the faucet, when the water just starts to feel not cold.

Add less flour than you think you need, especially in wheat bread (I think I actually only add about 4 1/2 to 5 cups of flour).  Knead for a long time.  The dough should have some elasticity if you stretch a small section between your fingers.

I use my Kitchen Aid stand mixer to knead the bread.  I mix all the ingredients with the paddle attachment, then once it's just come together, switch to the dough hook.  Let it run for 10-15 minutes.  My Kitchen Aid is a low end, cheaper model, so it's not as heavy duty and kind of bounces all over the counter during the kneading process.  I make sure to stick close by and usually hold the mixer in place to prevent it from bouncing right off the counter.

Second is Green Chile-Chicken Stew.  I think the recipe originally came from Cooking Light Magazine, but I found it on the Internet.

8 cups chicken broth

1/2 teaspoon black pepper

2 pounds skinned chicken breast

2 bay leaves

4 cups (1/2 inch) cubed red potato

1 1/2 cups chopped onion (1 large)

1/2 cup thinly sliced carrot

2 teaspoons minced fresh cilantro

2 teaspoons paprika

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

1/4 teaspoon ground cumin

3 (4.5 oz) cans chopped green chile's

1 (14.5 oz) can diced tomatoes, undrained

1 (10 oz) can diced tomatoes and green chile's, undrained

1/2 cup evaporated fat-free milk

cheese

1. Cut meat into bite-size pieces.  Combine first four ingredients in a dutch oven.  Bring to a boil; cook for 10 minutes.  Discard bay leaves.  Skim off any floating fat from the top.

2. Add potato and next 9 ingredients to the broth.  Bring to a boil; reduce heat, and simmer 50 minutes or until potato is done.

3.  Remove from heat; stir in milk.  Ladle into individual bowls, and sprinkle with cheese.

I've fallen in love with this recipe.  It's got a little spice, but the milk and cheese cool it down just enough.  It also reheats nicely, so I'll make a batch, then eat the left overs all week.  And the best part, it is incredibly low in calories.  For one serving (1 2/3 cups) 120 calories.  Awesome!

Third, is Reese's Chewy Chocolate Cookies.  Just when I had you thinking that I was some sort of health nut, I'm going to throw in some yummy chocolate cookies.

2 cups all purpose flour

3/4 cup cocoa

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 1/4 cups butter, softened

2 cups sugar

2 eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 2/3 cups (10 oz pkg) Reese's peanut butter chips

1. Heat oven to 350*

2. Stir together flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt.  Beat butter and sugar in large bowl with mixer until fluffy.  Add eggs and vanilla; beat well.  Gradually add flour mixture, beating well.  Stir in peanut butter chips.

3.  Drop by rounded teaspoons onto ungreased cookie sheet.  Bake 8 to 9 minutes.  (Do not over bake; cookies will be soft.  They will puff while baking and flatten while cooling.)  Cool slightly; remove from cookies sheet to wire rack.  Cool completely.

I made these one night for a dessert.  They were so yummy!  In order to not allow myself to eat the entire batch of cookies in a matter of days, the cookies that didn't get eaten that night, I sent with Cam to work the next day.  (That's my trick, eat a few, then give the rest to the hard working firefighters.)  Unfortunately, I could not get those cookies out of my mind.  For a couple of weeks, I CRAVED another one of the cookies.  I eventually broke down and made another batch.  This time, however, instead of giving them away, I froze the majority of the cookies, and just set out a few at a time to thaw when I wanted.  That was such a better idea!