Good Bread Recipe

[Soobee]

Would you post your chocolate snack cake recipe?

[Kenwyn]

Originally Posted by Jennifer Eloff

Word of caution: Bread is bread, right? Please don't overdo. I don't want to blamed for any weight gain.

This is the "butter" I use all the time (love it!)

HEALTHY BUTTER
This is a clever way to make butter healthier and higher in monounsaturated fats. The taste is just like butter, plus it spreads easily straight from the refrigerator.

1 lb butter (2 sticks), softened
1 1/2 cups light-tasting olive oil* (see Helpful Hints below)

In blender, process butter and olive oil until soft, creamy and smooth. Turn out (using a soft spatula) into plastic container with lid and refrigerate until set.

Yield: 3 cups, 1 tsp per serving, 42.5 calories, 0.0 g pro, 4.8 g fat, 0.0 g carbs!

I do this all the time with my homemade butter. I mix equal amounts of butter and extra light olive oil. The flavor of butter with the health benefits of olive oil. And it's spreadable right from the fridge. I've also found that the olive oil acts as a preservative and it does keep for a long time in the frig.
With butter cheaper than the healthy margarines these days I think this is a very worthwhile alternative.

[Charski]

Originally Posted by Kenwyn

I do this all the time with my homemade butter. I mix equal amounts of butter and extra light olive oil. The flavor of butter with the health benefits of olive oil. And it's spreadable right from the fridge. I've also found that the olive oil acts as a preservative and it does keep for a long time in the frig.
With butter cheaper than the healthy margarines these days I think this is a very worthwhile alternative.

If you add a couple cloves of peeled, crushed garlic to the processor when making this, you get the BEST garlic butter to put on steaks, chops, veggies - it's wonderful!

[Kenwyn]

Good idea Charski! I'll have to try that with part of my next batch.

[Jennifer Eloff]

I guess many people use this idea. It's great!

Charski, what a neat idea!

[retroworx]

Originally Posted by enelkay

If it's as good when I make it the next couple of times I'll be sure you get the recipe -- I'll e-mail it to you.

Yes! Could you share the protein-based bread and cake recipes with all of us here?

[Pam]

Originally Posted by Jennifer Eloff

Word of caution: Bread is bread, right? Please don't overdo. I don't want to blamed for any weight gain.

This is the "butter" I use all the time (love it!)

HEALTHY BUTTER
This is a clever way to make butter healthier and higher in monounsaturated fats. The taste is just like butter, plus it spreads easily straight from the refrigerator.

1 lb butter (2 sticks), softened
1 1/2 cups light-tasting olive oil* (see Helpful Hints below)

In blender, process butter and olive oil until soft, creamy and smooth. Turn out (using a soft spatula) into plastic container with lid and refrigerate until set.

Yield: 3 cups, 1 tsp per serving, 42.5 calories, 0.0 g pro, 4.8 g fat, 0.0 g carbs

*Helpful Hints: I usually double this recipe as it lasts long in the refrigerator. Choose an olive oil that has no perceptible taste (the green one (extra virgin) is stronger tasting), so that it doesn't overpower the taste of the butter. If per chance the olive oil overpowers the butter taste, then use that Healthy Butter for frying and cooking. Now here is the thing: It really depends on your butter, however, the brand that I use now requires 2 sticks of butter and only one cup (250 mL) of olive oil. A little bit of trial and error will find your perfect Healthy Butter Recipe! My family will not do without it!

Hi Jennifer.....LOVE all your recipes! I was getting ready to make this and noticed..... "1 lb butter (2 sticks), softened".......I thought 2 sticks equaled 1/2 lb. So, do I make the recipe as stated?

[Jennifer Eloff]

Hi Pam - thanks for your kind words and for catching my mistake! That should read 4 sticks of butter (I guess I must have copied the recipe from my blog where I made the error).

Nowadays I use 4 sticks of butter and 2 cups of olive oil. YMMV - depending on the butter you use.

Thanks again for finding this error. Sorry, folks, for any inconvenience caused. :blush:

[mac24312]

I didnt even see the mistake and I always use 4 sticks...I will try it with the cup of Olive Oil next time I make it.

HUGS!

[Pam]

Originally Posted by Jennifer Eloff

Hi Pam - thanks for your kind words and for catching my mistake! That should read 4 sticks of butter (I guess I must have copied the recipe from my blog where I made the error).

Nowadays I use 4 sticks of butter and 2 cups of olive oil. YMMV - depending on the butter you use.

Thanks again for finding this error. Sorry, folks, for any inconvenience caused. :blush:

Thanks, Jen! I'll be adding crushed garlic to mine.

[Bissonnettemi]

[QUOTE=Jennifer Eloff;11539969[I]How does one clean a coffee grinder?[/I] ]

Hi Jennifer, I clean mine with none other than... a piece of bread, whirled around and discarded. Then it's pretty easy to rid the grinder of any little bread crumbs. I keep one CG for grinding spices, another for grinding coffee.

[vli1127]

sub

[missymagoo12]

well i got all my ingredents to make the bread- i now need the time to make it now. i will try to make it this weekend. sue

[Jennifer Eloff]

Thanks, Bisonnetemmi for your method of cleaning a coffee grinder. Obviously, no one seems to use water at all - not even a wet cloth? No wonder I did mine in.

Pam, Charski's idea is great for the butter. I need to try that myself sometime.

I made the 2 oven loaves with oat flour and with this option (as opposed to the whole wheat pastry flour version), less water is definitely required. Use 1/3 cup less. Forget the tin foil. Don't open the oven at all between rising and switching the oven on to 350 deg. F. These loaves have a tendency to sink. Still tasty. The other day I made the oat flour version and used 1 cup water, 1 1/4 cups vital wheat gluten, the oat flour options (oat bran and oat flour), 2 tbsp olive oil and 3/4 cup grated cheese. The loaves were very tasty, although did not rise as high as the w/w pastry flour version - and when I removed the foil, they sank a bit - so, that is why I say, skip the foil and keep the oven door closed. Hope this helps if you are reading, Sue. Baking can be so finicky and such an art form at times. I love it, but I need to lose some weight gained over the holidays, so I'm going to produce less baking and more regular food for my blog in the next little while. I do have a minute bread (and another minute toast!), I should post here shortly. Maybe people would like that in a pinch when time is a factor and there is nothing exciting to eat at breakfast time?

[mac24312]

YES!!! Please do when you have time...I am also going to cut back on my LC baking some too even thou I LOVE it SO much!!


Have a Blessed Sunday Jennifer!

HUGS
Christina

[Jennifer Eloff]

LOL Yes, I understand - baking can be more fun than cooking - but, then, I have this incurable sweet tooth!

Will post the recipe for the quickie egg, bacon and cheese sandwich soon.

[libbysmom]

I made the bread yesterday. It was very good especially hot with melted butter. The only thing I didn't like was the slightly spongy texture. Here is what I did:

2 loaves kneaded in the bread machine and then put in two pans. My bread machine does not have a pizza cycle so I used the dough cycle and when I checked on it after an hour, it had risen, but there was still an hour to go in the dough cycle. I removed it, divided it and let it rise again in the oven. I used the whole wheat pastry flour/wheat bran combo and got 40 slices out of two loaves.

Did I let it rise too much and that resulted in the spongy texture? Or is it spongy because of the vital wheat protein? If it is because of the VWP, can I reduce that by a 1/4 to 1/3 cup and repalce VWP with the pastry flour or flax or bran?

Jenn,
Thanks for all the recipes in your cookbooks. My next task is your bisquix mix and the "red lobster" biscuits. I ran out of time yesterday. I am pretty sure that if I toast the bread, I won't notice the spongy texture, but I would love a good ole sandwhich with "real" bread!

Thanks!
Leigh

[Bissonnettemi]

Originally Posted by libbysmom

I made the bread yesterday. It was very good especially hot with melted butter. The only thing I didn't like was the slightly spongy texture. Here is what I did:
Did I let it rise too much and that resulted in the spongy texture? Or is it spongy because of the vital wheat protein? If it is because of the VWP, can I reduce that by a 1/4 to 1/3 cup and repalce VWP with the pastry flour or flax or bran?

I read that LC bread should only rise once, so I pull mine out of bread machine after I have timed the kneading (14 minutes), separate the dough then, let it (first and only) rise in the pan I will bake it in...and depending on whether it's rolls I'm baking or bread, adjust the time accordingly...then bake.

I am far from being an expert when it comes to bread, but this is what I have been doing since Christmas, when my neighbor placed me in charge of bringing the bread for our Christmas dinner.

[enelkay]

Originally Posted by retroworx

Yes! Could you share the protein-based bread and cake recipes with all of us here?

I just got back om Monday after eight days away, and have been trying to catch up on laundry, shopping, etc., and also had three medical appointments. So I haven't even thought about working further on the bread recipe. And I won't post it (or give it to anyone) until I'm sure it's reliably at least as good-tasting as the first loaf was. I'd still also like to get it to rise a little more than it did the first time I made it, so I'm going to be trying some changes.

But here are the snack cake recipes I've been working on, and that we enjoy.

Recently instead of making them as cakes I've been making them as sweet muffins, and we like them even better that way. I've also been experimenting with different flavors. More about that at the bottom of this post.

Sour Cream Snack Cake
Makes 8 servings @ 5 g. carbs and 5 g. protein each

1 c. vanilla whey protein powder
1/4 c. golden flaxseed meal
2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1/3 c. Splenda
2 tsp. cinnamon
1 egg
1/2 c. vegetable oil
1/4 c. water
1/2 c. sour cream
1/4 c. chopped walnuts

Combine whey protein powder, flaxseed meal, baking powder, baking soda, splenda and cinnamon in a bowl. Mix together with a whisk. Mix egg, oil, water and sour cream in a bowl, then stir in dry ingredients. Pour into a greased 8-inch baking pan and tap on counter a few times to settle bubbles. Sprinkle nuts on top. Bake at 350 degrees for 18 to 20 minutes. Test with toothpick. Do not overbake or it will be dry.

Or divide batter into well-greased muffin pans, being careful to fill them no more than 1/2 full. Bake at 350 degrees for 15 to 18 minutes. Test with toothpick. Do not overbake or they will be dry. I use silicone muffin pans and leave them in the pans until they're cool, then remove. They tend to stick when using even non-stick muffin tins. I haven't tried using paper liners.

Original recipe from "Baking Low-Carb" by Diana Lee, with my own modifications

==========

Chocolate Sour Cream Snack Cake

1 c. chocolate whey protein powder
1/4 c. dark flaxseed meal
2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
2 Tbsp. Splenda or 4 to 6 drops of Capella Super Sweet *
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 egg
1/2 c. vegetable oil
1/4 c. Monin O'Free Chocolate Syrup *
1/2 c. sour cream
1/4 c. slivered almonds

Combine whey protein powder, flaxseed meal, baking powder, baking soda, splenda and cinnamon in a bowl. Mix together with a whisk. Mix egg, oil, chocolate syrup and sour cream in a bowl, then stir in dry ingredients. Pour into a greased 8-inch baking pan and tap on counter a few times to settle bubbles. Sprinkle nuts on top. Bake at 350 degrees for 18 to 20 minutes. Test with toothpick. Do not overbake or it will be dry.

Or divide batter into well-greased muffin pans, being careful to fill them no more than 1/2 full. Bake at 350 degrees for 15 to 18 minutes. Test with toothpick. Do not overbake or they will be dry. I use silicone muffin pans and leave them in the pans until they're cool, then remove. They tend to stick when using even non-stick muffin tins. I haven't tried using paper liners.

* Any sugar-free chocolate syrup can be used in this recipe, but I prefer Monin O'Free to DaVinci or Torano because of its thicker texture and stronger chocolate flavor.

* Capella Super Sweet is a liquid form of sucralose, which is the same as Splenda. Using it or another form of heat-stable liquid sweetener eliminates the almost 6 grams of carbs in the granulated Splenda without affecting the taste or texture of the finished product.

Recently I've been adding 2 Tbsp. of Hershey's Special Dark Cocoa to the dry ingredients. This adds 6 grams of carbs, but 4 of them are fiber. And it makes for a very rich chocolate flavor.

This is my own recipe, very loosely based on one from "Baking Low-Carb" by Diana Lee, published in 1999 by Morris Press.

==========

Notes: I've used the Sour Cream Snack Cake recipe for making many different flavors. Some of the best have been:

Peach: Using only one tsp. cinnamon instead of two, and one Tbsp. of Splenda instead of 1/3 cup in the dry ingredients, then adding about 1/3 cup fresh peach cut up into very tiny pieces and using 1/4 cup of DaVinci Sugar-free Peach Syrup instead of the 1/4 cup of water.

Blueberry: Using only one tsp. cinnamon instead of two, and one Tbsp. of Splenda instead of 1/3 cup in the dry ingredients, and using 1/4 cup of DaVinci Sugar-free Blueberry Syrup instead of the 1/4 cup of water, then sprinkling about 1/4 cup of blueberries over the top of the cake and poking them down slightly before baking. Or, if making muffins, drop about 4 or 5 blueberries on the top of each muffin and poke thm down slightly before baking.

Banana: Using only one tsp. cinnamon instead of two, and one Tbsp. of Splenda instead of 1/3 cup in the dry ingredients, and using 1/4 cup of DaVinci Sugar-free Banana Syrup instead of the 1/4 cup of water. Also adding 1 Tbsp. of poppy seeds to the dry ingredients.

Apple: This was the very best I've made, but unfortunately I used DaVinci Sugar-free Green Apple Syrup that I've had for at least four years, and I've now found that they don't make it any more. What I did, though, was cut up a piece of jicama into about 1/4 cup of very tiny pieces -- almost shreds, put it in a very small glass bowl and mix them with about 1/2 tsp. of apple pie spice, then cover them with DaVinci Sugar-free Green Apple Syrup and microwave until the jicama was softened. I then followed the exact procedure I used for the peach flavor except that I added 1 tsp. of apple pie spice to the dry ingredients along with the cinnamon, and used Green Apple Syrup and the jicama instead of the Peach Syrup and peaches.

The flavors I've done so far have turned out so well that I'm going to play with others -- blackberry, strawberry, caramel, and whatever else comes to mind.

[mac24312]

Originally Posted by libbysmom

I made the bread yesterday. It was very good especially hot with melted butter. The only thing I didn't like was the slightly spongy texture. Here is what I did:

2 loaves kneaded in the bread machine and then put in two pans. My bread machine does not have a pizza cycle so I used the dough cycle and when I checked on it after an hour, it had risen, but there was still an hour to go in the dough cycle. I removed it, divided it and let it rise again in the oven. I used the whole wheat pastry flour/wheat bran combo and got 40 slices out of two loaves.

Did I let it rise too much and that resulted in the spongy texture? Or is it spongy because of the vital wheat protein? If it is because of the VWP, can I reduce that by a 1/4 to 1/3 cup and repalce VWP with the pastry flour or flax or bran?


Jenn,
Thanks for all the recipes in your cookbooks. My next task is your bisquix mix and the "red lobster" biscuits. I ran out of time yesterday. I am pretty sure that if I toast the bread, I won't notice the spongy texture, but I would love a good ole sandwhich with "real" bread!

Thanks!
Leigh

Yes...it did rise too much...what I do for 2 loaves and just let it kneed one time...Dont let it rise in the machine...and then put in your 2 pans and let rise only 1 time in the oven for 1 1/2 hours... the 2nd rise is what caused it to be spongy. I do not think the VWG can be replaced in Jennifer's recipe because it the main ingredient that make the bread gluten..so the bread can rise. I LOVE my first loaves I did..they DO taste like real bread Hope that helped..

HUGS
Christina

[libbysmom]

Thanks Christina. I will only let them knead in the machine this weekend when I make these again. I'll see how that does.

[BikerAng]

I made a second batch using whole wheat pastry flour and oat flour and the loaves turned out wonderfully. I ended up cutting 1 and 1/2 loaves into bread cubes for stuffing or bread pudding because this recipe really makes a lot of bread and I'm just not really into toast or sandwiches anymore. I did make 4 hamburger buns also and they turned out fantastic. This bread wasn't spongy at all, it tastes just like regular whole wheat bread to me.

[libbysmom]

I am defintely going to try the bread again this weekend and only have 1 rise!

[mac24312]

Bumping this to keep it going!!

HUGS!

[vli1127]

I wish I had a bread machine.

[libbysmom]

I made the bread again this weekend and took it out of the breadmachine before it started to rise. It made the two most beautiful loaves of good tasting bread! Thanks Jennifer for the recipe and Christina for the bread making advice. This is well worth buying a bread machine for! Next I am making buns!

[mac24312]

That is great!! Ok..you can teach me how to make buns and rolls..LOL

Nice to have great LC Bread without using Carblose or Carbquick...LOL

HUGS
Christina

[BikerAng]

I like that there is no soy in this bread, and it just tastes so good.

Christina - I used the mini Wilton pans (I think muffin top pans would work too) to make the buns. I just made the 2 loaf bread recipe and pinched off dough and weighed each one out so they were the same size (I think 1 oz, maybe 2). The dough is really supple so it's easy to pull the dough smooth on top (then pinch it underneath - hope that makes sense) and place in greased pan. I just let them rise the same amount of time as the bread and baked them for 20 mins. Perfect buns. You probably don't even need to use any pans, free form would work I'm sure, but I just wanted them to be all uniform.

[mac24312]

Thanks..I will try that..I have the Wilton mini pans...I think the next time I make this..(thinking next week when I have time) I am going to make Buns out of one of the loaves or Rolls either one...

TY Angie!
HUGS!

[Bissonnettemi]

I like to divide my dough in half and then quarters, take each quarter and divide that in half and then in in half again. I made 16 of the most beautiful buns yesterday. placed 3 X 5 on a 13 X 17 pan, and the extra 1 in a star silicone pan. I roll them in oil & melted butter as I work though them.

Blessings,
M