A busy Easter week

What a week! Know the feeling of trying to race a treadmill? That was last week at our house! I wasn't around the computer much. If it wasn't for scheduled posts, it would have been rather quiet on this blog. While the week was busy and I fell into bed exhausted every night, it was a good memorable week.

Since our children are getting older, I was hoping to do better at remembering Easter this year. But half way through the week, I was vigorously crossing things off the list. There just wasn't going to be enough time, or energy, to do everything I had planned. And there may be another year, Lord willing.

Personally, my Easter celebrationbegan on Wednesday evening when I participated in the Bible study at the woman's detention center. I love these ladies and studying the Word with them. Discussing our Saviour's sacrifice for us did a lot to prepare my heart for Easter.
Ed suggested having a little Passover with our children on Thursday. We had recently read about the Passover in our family devotions and thought they would enjoy making it more "real". I did a little research on the web and came up with an informal passover meal. I made some traditional Jewish recipes of unleavened bread, haroset and matzo ball soup. We splurged by purchasing some lamb. Our goal was not to replicate the traditional Jewish sedar, as I understand lamb is not served because Jews are awaiting the rebuilding of the temple. As we ate our meal, Ed reviewed the Passover story and read from Scripture about the Last Supper. The children were attentive and on Sunday, when our church held communion, they seemed to understand a little better what we were doing.

What really blows my mind, is that our children are old enough to discuss things like Christ's death and resurrection. Sure, they don't really understand everything but they are learning. This weekend we celebrated two birthdays and our oldest is now six years old. It seems like the last years have been full of diapers, nighttime feedings and meeting physical needs. Now all of a sudden, we seem to have stepped into a new phase. Exciting - and scary! There is so much more I have to learn about mothering these precious children.
Saturday we took the children to the zoo. We haven't been to a zoo for several years and they were excited. We went into the city on the Metro which was possibly the highlight! The weather was perfect for an outing but all the walking was exhausting! I think I'm a little out of shape from the winter. I have some muscles that are complaining!

When we arrived home, Ed wondered if I wanted to plant garden. Our garden has been too wet and we had not planted anything yet. I was thrilled when he tilled up the garden and helped me plant the peas. The children were ecstatic to dig in the dirt. My dear husband gave four filthy children bathes while I finished up the garden work.

This was one of those times that I was grateful for Sunday. Sometimes I wonder how we would survive without a day of rest! But adding to the physical refreshment is the joy in the victory in our risen Lord. I love my husband, children, working and playing together in the little place we call home, but it is Jesus Christ that truly makes life worth living!

May His name be praised!

Artisan Breads Every Day - 100% Whole Wheat Sandwich Bread

Another recipe review from Artisan Breads Every Day by Peter Reinhart.

Since we love whole grains, I was especially eager to try this recipe for 100% whole wheat sandwich bread. On the other hand, I wasn't sure it could beat the recipe I usually bake for our daily bread.

We really enjoyed this bread. It made two very large loaves. The flavor was superb. I thought the bread was a little heavier then my usual recipe - then again, I've only made this recipe once and I'm sure it would get better with a little practice.

I replaced 1/4 cup of whole wheat flour with vital gluten. Maybe this was too much. I should have followed Peter's recommendation of also increasing the water.

The conclusion - a recipe with a lot of potential. I wish it were slightly less dense but the flavor was worth making again.

Resurrection Cookies

Easter is one holiday that seems to creep up on me unawares. I really hope to do more this year, but since this is already Wednesday, I'm not sure if it will happen. There is so many neat ideas on the web. I just need to start making plans earlier!

Last year, a friend shared this recipe for resurrection cookies. I didn't get a chance to make them, but maybe this year. I'll share it just in case you want to make these with your children.

1 cup whole pecans
1 teaspoon vinegar
3 egg whites
a pinch salt
1 cup sugar
a zipper baggy
1 wooden spoon
scotch tape
Bible

Instructions:
These are to be made the evening before Easter. Preheat oven to 300F. (this is very important --- don't wait until you are half done with the recipe).
Place pecans in zipper baggy and let children beat them with the wooden spoon to break into small pieces. Explain that after Jesus was arrested. He was beaten by the Roman soldiers. Read: John 19:1-3

Let each child smell the vinegar. Put 1 teaspoon vinegar into mixing bowl. Explain that when Jesus was thirsty on the cross He was given vinegar
to drink. Read: John 19:28-30

Add egg whites to vinegar. Eggs represent life. Explain that Jesus gave His life to give us life. Read: John 10:10&11

Sprinkle a little salt into each child's hand. Let them taste it and brush the rest into the bowl. Explain that this represents the salty tears shed by Jesus' followers, and the bitterness of our own sin. Read: Luke 23:27

So far the ingredients are not very appetizing. Add 1 cup sugar. Explain that the sweetest part of the story is that Jesus died because He loves us. He wants us to know and belong to Him. Read: Psalm 34:8 and John 3:16

Beat with a mixer on high speed for 12 to 15 minutes until stiff peaks are formed. Explain that the color white represents the purity in God's eyes of those whose sins have been cleansed by Jesus. Read: Isaiah 1:18 and John 3:1-3

Fold in broken nuts. Drop by teaspoon onto waxed paper covered cookie sheet. Explain that each mound represents the rocky tomb where Jesus' body was laid. Read: Matthew 27:57-60

Put the cookie sheet in the oven, close the door and turn the oven OFF.

Give each child a piece of tape and seal the oven door. Explain that Jesus' tomb was sealed. Read: Matthew 27:65-66

GO TO BED!

Explain that they may feel sad to leave the cookies in the oven overnight. Jesus' followers were in despair when the tomb was sealed. Read: John 16:20&22

On Resurrection Sunday (Easter) morning, open the oven and give everyone a cookie. Notice the cracked surface and take a bite. The cookies are hollow! On the first Easter Jesus' followers were amazed to find the tomb open and empty. Read: Matthew 28:1-9

Artisan Breads Every Day - Pizza Dough

Working through Peter Reinhart's bread book one recipe at a time!

I think it would be accurate to say that Peter Reinhart knows something about good pizza. He has written a whole book on the subject.

His latest book contains four pizza dough recipes, Neo-Neopolitan, Sourdough, 50% Whole Grain, and 100% Whole Grain.

I have tried all of them, and each one is terrific. They all utilize the cold overnight fermentation to develop the flavors. Since we love pizza, I mixed up several batches of dough and froze in freezer bags. As long as I remembered to pull out a bag of dough the day before, we enjoyed some wonderful for pizza with very little preparation.
The Neo-Neopolitian dough was the easiest to work with. It was very stretchy with lots of good gluten development. I am not good at pizza tossing but even I could get a good stretch with this dough.

The Sourdough pizza version was our favorite for flavor. I replaced 2 cups of white flour with whole wheat and added 1 T of vital gluten. It had a good stretch though not quite as good as the Neo-Neopolitian.

The 50% Whole Grain was delicious. A little harder to stretch but I think the addition of a little vital gluten could help.
We like to eat whole grains so the 100% Whole Grain pizza dough really interested me. This pizza dough was the softest. I was able to smooch it into the pan but it would have been impossible to toss. We really liked the flavor of this dough. It did not have the bitter flavor that some whole grain doughs have.

All these doughs were baked at the highest heat my oven could give, 550 degrees. The edges puffed up dramatically but the dough was quite thin in the middle. Since my husband prefers a thicker crust. I experimented with using more dough and not rolling as thin. Some of my attempts were underdone in the middle. My best results were with rolling it on a silicone mat and adding toppings. I preheated my oven and pan then placed the silicone mat with the assembled pizza on the pan. This yielded a pizza that was cooked to the center but still with a slightly thicker crust that my husband prefers.
Only one problem with these pizza dough recipes. Once you learn to make a really great pizza dough, most other pizza you eat will seem sadly lacking. On a recent visit to a good pizza shop in our area, my husband's opinion was that the topping were good but their dough had no flavor. Have you seen the ad stating "no one eats pizza for the crust"? Make one of these recipes and you will be fighting over the crust!

Sourdough Crackers

Since I've been experimenting with sourdough recently, I've had my eyes open for sourdough recipes. I didn't expect to find a sourdough cracker but this has become my favorite homemade cracker so far!

I found this novel recipe over at Kitchen Stewardship. It is a great way to use up any sourdough starter that you want to discard. The flavor of these crackers is wonderful. They remind me of goldfish, even though they contain no cheese! I'm glad these things are good for you because I can't keep from eating them!

The dough is soft and tender and I found it a little hard to roll out. When I baked the crackers, I found I was trying to roll them too thin. The thicker pieces puffed up into little pillows for an irresistible crunch! So don't sweat it if you don't think you have them rolled thin enough.

Sourdough Crackers

1 cup “discarded” sourdough starter
1/4 cup softened butter
1 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 tsp sea salt

In a large bowl, combine the sourdough and butter and mix thoroughly. Mix the salt in with 1/4 cup flour and add to the sourdough mixture. Knead it all together in the bowl, adding as much flour as necessary to make a stiff dough. Cover the dough with plastic wrap or put a lid on the bowl to prevent it from drying out. Leave the dough at room temperature overnight.
Seven or more hours later, preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Divide the dough in four portions. Roll it out on a nonstick baking mat or parchment paper using a rolling pin, until it is very thin.
Garnish if desired. (I like a little garlic powder.)

Transfer to your baking sheet. Cut the dough vertically and horizontally into quadrangles with a pizza cutter. Bake for 15-20 minutes or until just golden brown.

Mmmm. Good!

Graham Crackers

What is it with children and graham crackers? My children can't get enough of them. I had no idea graham crackers were so easy to make until I tried a recipe from the Heavenly Homemaker. These were easy to make though the dough was soft and hard to transfer to the baking sheet. For best results, roll on a sheet of parchment paper so that the crackers can be just slid, paper and all, to the pan.

Whole Wheat Honey Graham Crackers

2 ¼ cups whole wheat flour
½ cup sugar
1 t. baking powder
½ t. baking soda
½ t. salt
¼ t. cinnamon
4 T. honey
¼ c. water
1 t. vanilla
1 stick butter, melted

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
In a mixing bowl, stir together the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon.
Add the liquids: honey, water, vanilla and melted butter.
Stir well until a nice ball of dough is formed.

Cut two pieces of Parchment paper the size of the cookie sheet. Lay one piece of parchment paper on the cookie sheet. Place the ball of dough on the parchment paper. Lay the other piece of parchment paper on top of the ball of dough. Squish dough down a little with your fist. Use the rolling pin to roll the dough between the pieces of parchment paper. Roll until the dough covers the whole cookie sheet. Remove the top piece of parchment paper.

Cut dough into 2 inch squares, or cut shapes with cookie cutters, being sure to separate the shapes from the surrounding dough a little. (I was too lazy for this step and they swelled up together and I just cut them after baking.)

Bake in oven for 18 minutes. Turn oven off, but leave crackers in the oven to get crisp. Remove from oven after 30 minutes to one hour. Break graham crackers apart. Store in a air tight container.

Artisan Breads Every Day - Buttery Crackers

Yet another recipe review from Peter Reinhart's Artisan Breads Every Day.

I love the seed crackers, but these buttery crackers are my husband's favorite! The children gobbled them up, too. The dough mixed up very quickly and was easy to roll out. These crackers are so fast, you could bake up a batch while your soup heats up.

This recipe calls for all-purpose and cake flour. I replaced the cake flour with whole wheat with good results.

What to try them? I'll share the recipe!

Flaky, Buttery Crackers

1 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup cake flour (I used whole wheat flour)
1 tsp salt
1 T sugar
3/4 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp garlic powder
10 T melted butter
1 egg
6 T cold milk
egg wash (optional)

Combine all ingredients. Mix for one minute with mixer or spoon. Dough should form a firm ball and shouldn't be sticky. Transfer dough to work surface and knead for about 30 seconds.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Divide dough and roll on well floured counter. Prick holes on surface of dough with fork. Cut crackers with pizza cutter or small biscuit cutter. Bake for 18-20 minutes or until dry and crisp. If baking more then one pan of crackers, rotate pans every 5-8 minutes.