Happy Friday everybody! 

I went back to the zesty well from 4 years ago and decided to share a classic “impress yourself recipe”.

Homemade bread made easy.

The smell. The flavor. Melted butter.

Today’s post (like the rest of the week) is dedicated to super easy to prepare food that tastes great.  I was talking to my great friend yesterday and I asked him what I should make and post about for Thursday.  He said “Zesty, why don’t you make a killer loaf of homemade whole wheat bread that is super simple to make”.  I said “JT, that is an awesome idea!”  So here I am, getting ready to share with you a quick and easy version of whole wheat homemade bread.

This is a great and versatile recipe that is open for variations and additives of your favorite flavors.

Ingredients

• 2 Tsp. honey
• 2 2/3 Cup lukewarm water
• 4 Tsp. dry yeast
• 3 Tbsp. Molasses
• 5 Cups whole wheat flour
• 1/2 Tsp. salt
• 1/4 Cup wheat germ
• 1 Tbsp. Oatmeal (optional)

Method

1. Preheat oven to 400 Degrees F.
2. Stir 2 teaspoons honey into 2/3 cup lukewarm water.



3. Sprinkle yeast over the mixture. Set aside for 10 minutes.
4. Combine 3 tablespoons molasses with 2/3 cup warm water and combine with yeast mixture.
5. Stir into flour. Add salt, wheat germ and 1 1/3 cups warm water. Dough will be sticky.



6. Pour dough into a non-stick loaf pan.



7. Smooth top with wet spatula.



8. Sprinkle Oatmeal over top of loaf, if desired.



9. Allow to raise to top of pan.
10. Bake at 400 degrees for 30 to 40 minutes.
11. Cool 10 minutes on a rack, then turn out of pan.
12. Cool before slicing.
13. ENJOY!

Zesty Tip: When working with Yeast – it is very important that the yeast is still active (therefore not expired) so be sure to check your labels.  Also make sure to dissolve all the yeast in the liquid before adding dry ingredients.

Wow, I must say I really do love homemade bread and it really does not get any easier than this recipe.  As well, look at the ingredients… so healthy and natural - it really is that simple.  Give this loaf a try and let me know how you do.  Would you suggest any ingredient substitutions or additions?

Have yourself a great Friday!

Take care

zesty

Download my Free Recipe Book: Simply Zesty

Happy Monday!

Last night Zesty Junior approached me and asked if we could make a special dessert.  Of course I said sure buddy tell me what you are thinking.  Well Dad, remember those butterscotch chips I found in the pantry?  I was thinking we could make a cookie using those because nobody has ever done that before.  Sounds good, I said – let’s get at it.

Before getting right into the batter, I took a spin around the blogsphere for some interesting butterscotch chip cookie recipes.  I came up with a few but none that really blew my mind.  The I stopped over at The Pioneer Woman to see what she had in the cookie department.  Needless to say this was my last stop on the tour.  I stumbled onto her Monster Cookie and fell in love.  I altered it quite a bit from some of the add-ons as I didnt have them on hand and of course we had to use the main star ” butterscotch chips”  but other than that followed her recipe to a “T”.  As they were baking in the oven the whole gang was wondering when they would be ready.

The smell was amazing.  After about 11 minutes I removed them from the oven and let them rest for a minute and then moved them to a cooling rack.  Let’s be honest here….. they did not sit on the cooling rack for more than a minute.  We tossed some on a plate poured 4 glasses of milk and devoured the cookies.  Consensus in the room were 4 thumbs up!  I tested 4 cookies just to make sure they were all good..

Ingredients

• 2 sticks (1/2 Pound) Butter (salted) Softened
• 1/2 Cup White Sugar
• 1-1/2 Cup Brown Sugar, Packed
• 2 Large Eggs
• 1 Tbsp.Vanilla Extract
• 1-1/2 Cup All-purpose Flour
• 1/2 Tsp. Baking Soda
• 1 Tsp. Baking Powder
• 2 Tsp. Kosher Salt
• 1-1/2 Cup Oats (either Quick Or Regular)
• 1/2 Cup Smarties
• 1/2 Cup Butterscotch chips
• 3/4 Cups Chocolate Chips (milk Or Semi-sweet)
• 2-1/4 Cups Rice Krispies

Method

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
2. Cream butter with sugars until fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add vanilla and beat.
3. Combine flour, baking soda, baking powder, and kosher salt. Add to mixing bowl and mix till combined.
4. After that, add in remaining ingredients in whatever quantity you prefer. The chocolate butterscotch additions can be added to your liking.
5. Add Rice Krispies at the very end, mixing until just combined. Do not overmix!
6. Use a spoon to drop balls of dough onto a cookie sheet. Bake until golden brown, then allow to cool on a rack.

Zesty Tip: Don’t overcook this fellas.  One batch I left in a little longer and they crisp up on the bottom pretty quickly.  Unless you like a crunchy cookie – watch out  for these in the oven.  I would go 11 minutes tops.

Alright, well I am a bit behind schedule today.  I have a tonne of things to wrap up before I leave for California tomorrow.  I will see you on Wednesday from sunny Anaheim with another update.  Have a great start to the week and keep smiling.

Take care

zesty

Download my Free Recipe Book: Simply Zesty

Happy Monday to you!  Did you watch the Scotties Tournament of Hearts Curling Final last night?  It was a great game for sure and came right down to the very end.  Leading up to the game we had both Saturday and Sunday breakfasts.  On Saturday morning, I whipped up a batch of Oatmeal flax pancakes that were so goooooooooooood.  I could not wait for Sunday morning to arrive so we could eat them again.  See we didn’t finish all the batter on Saturday so I just wrapped it up and covered it in the fridge for yesterday.  DELICIOUS!

Pancakes are so simple yet very powerful.  You can do traditional white pancakes with butter and syrup, you could try a whole wheat version, you could whip up a potato pancake or you could try these.

All of the above are good but these oat flax pancakes with a hint of maple syrup will honestly make you smile… I promise.

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups rolled oats
• 2 Cups milk or soy milk
• 1 Cup Whole wheat flour
• 2 Tbsp. ground flax seed
• 1 Tbsp. Agave syrup
• 1 Tbsp. Baking Powder
• 1 Tsp. salt
• 1/2 Tsp. cinnamon
• 1 1/2 Tsp. Vanilla extract
• 2 Tbsp. Plain Yogurt
• 1/3 Cup Chocolate chips ( optional )

Method

1. In a large bowl, blend together oats and milk and let stand 5 minutes.
2. In a medium bowl, stir together whole wheat flour, baking powder, flax, salt and cinnamon.
3. To the oat mixture, add the yogurt, agave syrup, chocolate chips and the large bowl of dry ingredients.
4. To make pancakes, use approximately ¼ cup batter per pancake. Cook over medium-high heat on a grill or lightly-oiled frying pan.
5. Serve with maple syrup.
6. ENJOY!
   
   

Zesty Tip: While it’s still hot, spread each pancake with natural peanut butter and let it melt and get oozy. Top with sliced bananas and a drizzle of real maple syrup.

OK another week is about to start so keep your chin up (or down if you are walking so you don’t trip) and have a great day.  I am getting some products in the mail this week to give a try so I should be back Wednesday with some fun information on what the mailman delivered to Zesty.  Enjoy the pancakes if you have time to make them for supper and if not try them when you can.

Take care

zesty

Download my Free Recipe Book: Simply Zesty