Nutritious and Delicious Whole Wheat Dinner Rolls in Under an Hour!

                                                                   

Fresh from the oven, the 3 balls of dough in each cup have formed a cloverleaf shape.

 

We are big fans of Red Star Yeast, and we are proud to include samples of their platinum instant yeast with every EZ DOH shipment. So, when we saw the recipe on their website for "45 Minute Herbed Wheat Cloverleaf Rolls" https://redstaryeast.com/recipes/45-minute-herbed-wheat-cloverleaf-rolls/, we figured we'd see if we could make a similar recipe using our EZ DOH. We are happy to report that the recipe below turned out great. We even substituted unsweetened macadamia milk into the recipe instead of regular milk, to encourage folks who can't tolerate cow's milk to try similar substitutions in other recipes.

INGREDIENTS:

2 and 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
2 packages Red Star Platinum Superior Baking Yeast
1/2 TSP salt
1 and 1/2 TSP of Frontier Co-op Italian Seasoning (use more if you like your herbs!)
1 cup Unsweetened Macadamia Milk (warmed to 125 degrees)
1/4 cup warm tap water
1/4 cup raw honey
1 medium egg (room temperature)
1 cup All-Purpose Flour
4 TBSP butter (melted and cooled)

DIRECTIONS:

We placed the whole wheat, yeast, salt, and Italian Seasoning right into the EZ DOH container, and mixed thoroughly with a whisk.
We used a whisk to mix the wet ingredients together in a bowl (milk, water, honey, and egg).
We then added the wet ingredients right into the EZ DOH container and started hand-cranking for 2 minutes. This produced a well-mixed and loose dough.
We added in the cup of All-Purpose flour and the butter, and then thoroughly worked this mixture with 3 solid minutes of hand-cranking.
Now comes the messier part. Sprinkle some flour on a clean counter, and dump the dough out and give it a gentle kneading, adding more flour as needed to keep the dough from sticking too much to your hands. Then cut your ball of dough into 12 equal (roughly) pieces. Then cut those pieces into 3 pieces and roll them into little balls (36 balls).
Get a 12 cup muffin tin and grease it to prevent sticking. Place 3 little balls of dough into each cup of the muffin tin, and then put them in a warm place for 15-20 minutes to rest (and RISE).
Pre-heat your oven to 400 degrees, and then bake your rolls for 10-12 minutes when they should be golden brown (and measure 190 degrees on the inside).
                                                                             

These whole wheat rolls have excellent texture!

Nutritious and Delicious Whole Wheat Dinner Rolls in Under an Hour!

Thanksgiving: Make 'Parker House' Dinner Rolls and Sandwich Rolls at the Same Time

                                                  Original Parker House Hotel in Boston                   

The recipes for "Parker House" dinner rolls date back to at least the 1870's, when the original recipe was first printed in the April, 1874 edition of the New Hampshire Sentinel. The most popular story of the real origin of these much-admired rolls is that the baker at the Boston Parker House Hotel threw a batch of unfinished rolls into the oven after an altercation with a guest. Somehow, these rolls came out of the oven with a crisp, buttery shell and a light and fluffy texture inside. And, they appeared to have the shape of a folded 'pocketbook'. The rest is baking history.

Research tells us that the original Parker House Hotel opened its doors on October 8, 1855. Guests included Charles Dickens in 1867-1868, along with many other famous people. In addition to the Parker House rolls, the hotel/restaurant also developed the Boston Cream Pie. Here's a link to the history of the Parker House Hotel, which is still in operation on the same site today (rebuilt in 1927).
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Omni_Parker_House

GETTING BACK TO THANKSGIVING ROLLS, we wanted to make dinner rolls and sandwich rolls (for 'after dinner' sandwiches) from the same batch of dough using a recipe that's close to the original one. Here's our recipe for making a small batch (12 dinner rolls and 5 sandwich rolls), and of course you can easily double this recipe as long as your EZ DOH mixer has the stainless steel dough hook that can easily handle large batches.

INGREDIENTS:

3/4 cup of milk
1/4 cup warm water
1/2 package of dry yeast (NOTE: one package of Red Star contains 1/4 ounce which is 2 and 1/4 TSP
1/2 stick of unsalted butter (4 ounces).
1/4 cup sugar
2 small eggs, lightly beaten
3/4 TSP salt
3 cups all-purpose unbleached flour

DIRECTIONS:

*Bring milk to a simmer in a small saucepan. Remove from heat, cut the butter into small pieces and stir them into the milk along with the sugar and then let it cool down.
*Dissolve yeast into warm water and stir until some foam bubbles appear.
*Place 1 and 1/2 cups of the flour into your EZ DOH container and add in the salt and stir to mix. Add in the milk mixture, the beaten eggs, and the water/yeast mixture and mix until smooth. Then slowly add in the the rest of the flour and slowly turn the crank and work the dough thoroughly for about 5 minutes. You'll develop a smooth dough with good stretch qualities, which helps form the desired texture.

Remove the mixing attachment, cover the container and let the dough rise in a warm place for about an hour (or until it doubles in size). If you prefer a more 'hands-on' experience, remove the dough from the container and place on a lightly floured surface and hand knead for a minute. Rinse the container, apply some olive oil to the bottom and sides, and then place your dough ball back in to let it rise (again, covered and in a warm spot).

After the dough has doubled in size, punch it down and form your rolls. We made 12 dinner rolls that each weighed 1 and 1/4 ounces, and five sandwich rolls that weighed 2 and 1/2 ounces. Place them on a greased cooking sheet, cover lightly with plastic wrap, and let them again rise until they double in size. True Parker House rolls get flattened and then folded over (for that pocketbook appearance).
You can flatten them with your hand and use a dull knife to form a slightly off-centered crease, and then fold them over and place the shorter side down before placing on greased sheet and letting them rise.

They should about double in size in less than an hour. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees and bake for 15-20 minutes when they should be golden brown and the centers should measure 190 degrees. You can remove the smaller ones a few minutes before the larger ones, but we removed all of ours after 20 minutes and they were all brown on the outside and had great texture on the inside. Place them on a cooling rack for a few minutes and they're ready to serve.
                                                                   

Thanksgiving: Make 'Parker House' Dinner Rolls and Sandwich Rolls at the Same Time

HEALTHY DOG BISCUITS THE EZ WAY

                                                                           

According to the latest statistics, there are about 90,000,000 pet dogs in the USA! Dog food is a huge business, but beware of the ingredients in your pet's dog biscuits because many are filled with chemicals and ingredients designed to keep those biscuits edible for a LONG time. Here are the label ingredients from 3 popular brands:

Ingredients: Beef, Meat By-Products, Soy Grits, Sugar, Liver, Salt, Propylene Glycol, Garlic Powder, Caramel Color, Natural Smoke Flavor, Potassium Sorbate (Used As A Preservative), Sodium Nitrite (For Color Retention), Red 40, BHA (Used As A Preservative), Onion Extract.  

Ingredients: Chicken, Corn Syrup, Soy Flour, Wheat Flour, Corn Starch, Water, Propylene Glycol, Animal Fat (BHA Used As A Preservative), Animal Digest, Calcium Sulfate, Soy Protein Concentrate, Sugar, Beef, Potassium Chloride, Salt, Phosphoric Acid, Titanium Dioxide, Sorbic Acid (Used As A Preservative), Red 40 Lake, Garlic Powder, Natural Smoke Flavor, Iron Oxide, BHA (Used As A Preservative), Citric Acid (Used As A Preservative). 

Ingredients: Wheat Flour, Beef Tallow Preserved with Mixed-Tocopherols, Wheat Gluten, Lecithin, Chicken By-Product Meal, Animal Digest (Source of Liver Flavor), Lamb Meal, Oat Fiber, Mono and Dicalcium Phosphate, Calcium Carbonate, Garlic Powder, Red 40, Yellow 5, Blue 1, Yellow 6. I-5051

As a healthy alternative, you can have family fun making your own dog biscuits using your own ingredients. There are many recipes available that are tailored to help address specific health issues (overweight, diabetes, joint pain, anxiety, etc....). Here are a few SIMPLE recipes with known, healthy ingredients which you can easily modify as needed to best suit the needs of your pet.

                                                             

BASIC DOG BISCUITS:

INGREDIENTS: 

2 cups of unbleached all-purpose flour  (or whole wheat flour)

1/2 cup of peanut butter

2 eggs

1/2 cup of water (add more as needed to form your dough)

We mixed the ingredients in our EZ DOH mixer for about 3 minutes to achieve a nice ball of dough. We used a rolling pin to roll out the dough to about 1/4" thickness, and then cut the dough into various shapes (if you don't have any cookie molds, just use a drinking glass or pizza cutter). Keep re-rolling the 'leftover' dough from the cut-outs so there is no waste. We made 40 biscuits from this recipe.

Place your biscuits on a greased cookie sheet and bake at 350 degrees F for 25-30 minutes, or until the biscuits are golden brown.

Even with no preservatives, these will keep fresh and crisp for at least a week (store them in a cookie jar or paper bag).

SIMPLEST DOG BISCUITS EVER:

INGREDIENTS:

2 cups whole wheat flour

2 jars of baby food (4 ounce jars/container). The possibilities are endless.

1/4 cup water (add more as needed depending upon the baby food)

Mix the ingredients in your EZ DOH (or another mixer), adding water as needed to get the right dough consistency. We used the blueberry/banana baby food, but nearly all baby foods have only healthy ingredients clearly listed on their labels. Again, we rolled the dough out to a 1/4" thickness and then cut it onto various shapes using cookie cutters, and repeated the process to use up all the dough. 

We baked them for 25-30 minutes at 350 degrees F. When they turn brown and are crispy, take them out and let them cool down.

NOTES: Few if any baby foods contain onions, grapes, or raisins (which are not good for dogs!!) It's always a good idea to double-check. Consult with your vet or do your own research to determine what ingredients are best for your pet.

HEALTHY DOG BISCUITS THE EZ WAY

Serious Bread Baking

A number of EZ DOH bakers have told us that they regularly use their EZ DOH mixer to make sourdough bread. Judging by the large amount of pictures of sourdough loaves on Pinterest and Instagram, there are LOTS of people who enjoy the challenge of making their own sourdough loaves using their own natural 'starters'. Here's our sourdough bread picture, courtesy of one of our customers from the bread basket of Canada (Saskatchewan).

It is believed that a type of sourdough bread was being made by the Egyptians, using a natural 'starter' or 'wild yeast', as early as 1500 BC. You could say this type of bread has withstood the test of time, as it appears to be gaining popularity due to various health benefits associated with sourdough bread.

In addition to providing essential elements such as selenium, thiamine, manganese, niacin, and iron, sour dough bread is often easier to digest for many people (when made with a starter rather than using baker's yeast).

There are hundreds of different recipes and articles that discuss 'natural starters' and the benefits sourdough bread in great detail. One thing is for certain, using an EZ DOH mixer makes the entire process of making sourdough bread easier and neater.
                                             

Serious Bread Baking

EZ DOH's recipe for a fun molding dough is child's play!

                                                                       

                                These are all the ingredients you'll need (plus water)


There are many 'recipes' for making a molding dough that children and people of all ability levels can use to be creative and make shapes with by using their own hands. This recipe, using our EZ DOH hand-crank mixer, enables children to easily and neatly make the dough themselves (which can also be a fun learning process).

In this electronic age, it's nice for young people to have an opportunity to make something with their own hands, and enjoy the feeling of creating shapes using their fingers and imaginations.

Our recipe calls for simple ingredients, but you can find many other recipes (both edible and inedible) that use similar (but different) ingredients, and different ways to mix the ingredients.

INGREDIENTS:

2 and 3/4 cups of all-purpose flour
1 package of jello (3 ounce package). We used lime but any flavors/colors will work!
2 TBSP salt
2 TBSP  of cream of tartar powder
2 TBSP of cooking oil (we used canola)
1 cup of hot water (roughly 150 degrees)

DIRECTIONS:

To keep things neat, we did everything in our EZ DOH hand-crank mixer (older models with the plastic dough hook may struggle with this heavy dough). Start the process by putting one cup of flour in the mixing container, along with the other dry ingredients (jello, salt, tartar) and the oil. Give it a few turns with the crank and then add in the water and start mixing. It will only take a minute (with a little help from a rubber scraper) to blend everything. Then start adding in the remaining flour (about 1/2 cup at a time) and keep cranking to get a good blend (about 1 minute of cranking every time you add some flour). Of course, the cranking will get more difficult as you proceed, so at the end an adult may need to do the final cranking. Here's how it will look when you're done.

                               This recipe provides plenty of forming dough!

As an alternative to making your own dough, there's another 'made in the USA' product that's called Eco-Dough https://ecokidsusa.com/ that you may want to check out. Eco-Dough is also sold at
https://anytownusa.com/pages/search-results-page?q=eco+dough, which only sells products made in the USA (like EZ DOH).

No matter how you go about making or acquiring your molding dough, the main thing is to make something creative and have fun. After you're done playing, keep your dough in a plastic bag so it doesn't dry out (if it does dry out, you can restore it by adding a little water and working it into the dough).
                                                       
                                                           

                              These may not be fancy, but you can recognize them!

EZ DOH's recipe for a fun molding dough is child's play!

Yeast Pancakes and Waffles for Breakfast

                                                               


                                                                       

                                     Yes, we do make real maple syrup here in Ohio!

The USA produces over 4,000,000 gallons of REAL MAPLE SYRUP annually, with Vermont, New York and Maine leading the nation. Our neighbors in Canada produce even more, and Canada usually produces close to 70% of all the REAL MAPLE SYRUP produced in the world.

To help make certain this pure and natural product is fully enjoyed, we're featuring a yeasty twist on traditional pancake and waffle recipes. As a bonus, these recipes can be made and refrigerated the night before, so all you need to do is heat up your skillet, griddle, or waffle maker and start cooking while your coffee is brewing (and bacon sure goes well with both pancakes and waffles).

Yeast Pancakes Ingredients

2 Cups All-Purpose Flour
1 package Red Star Active Dry Yeast (2 and 1/4 TSP, 1/4 ounce, 7 grams)
1/4 Cup Water
1 and 1/4 cup whole milk
2 Large Eggs
1/4 Cup Melted Butter
2 TBSP Sugar
1 TSP Baking Soda
1/2 TSP Salt

                                                                   

                                                               


Directions:

Combine 1 cup of flour with the yeast in your EZ DOH container and mix well with a whisk. Combine the milk and water and heat to about 125 degrees. Add this heated liquid to the flour/yeast and mix well with either a whisk or the EZ DOH mixing attachment. Then cover this mixture and let it rise for one hour in a warm spot.

While this batter is rising, beat the 2 eggs and melt the butter. Let the butter cool down and then mix these 2 ingredients together.

Combine the remaining one cup of flour with the sugar, baking soda, and salt.

After the batter has risen, stir it down and add all the other ingredients and mix them thoroughly using the mixing attachment. Since this is a batter, there's little resistance (compared to any bread dough) so this can be a safe and fun job for young children and people of any ability level.

After a thorough mixing the batter should be smooth. You could certainly go right ahead and make your pancakes now, or as mentioned above refrigerate the batter until the following morning. This recipe should yield 16 pancakes (4 inches in diameter).

                                                                       

Note: If you refrigerate the batter overnight, you'll need to add a little milk or water to get the right consistency to the batter. Add blueberries or vanilla or whatever you like to the batter, but don't forget to have butter and maple syrup available for toppings.

Yeast Waffles

Since we enclose a sample of Red Star yeast with our EZ DOH mixers and feature their yeast in most of our recipes (and since they have some great pictures of their waffles!), here's a link to their recipe:
https://redstaryeast.com/recipes/crispy-yeast-waffles/ . Their website is a great resource for understanding yeast, and they have many wonderful recipes and tips (and pictures like this one).

                                                             

Yeast Pancakes and Waffles for Breakfast

Blueberry Rolls with Lemon Glaze

This recipe calls for using frozen blueberries (it is still winter, at least here in Ohio), so you don't need to wait until summer to enjoy this recipe.

INGREDIENTS FOR ROLLS:

2 and 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
3 TBSP granulated sugar
1 TSP salt
1 package Red Star dry yeast (this is 7 grams or 2 and 1/4 TSP)
1/2 cup warm water
1/4 cup whole milk
2 and 1/2 TBSP softened butter
1 egg

INGREDIENTS FOR FILLING:

1 and 1/2 cup frozen (not thawed) blueberries
1/4 cup granulated sugar
2 TSP cornstarch
2 TBSP softened butter


INGREDIENTS FOR LEMON GLAZE:

1 TBSP fresh lemon juice
1 cup powdered sugar
1 and 1/2 TBSP whole milk
1/2 TBSP softened butter

INSTRUCTIONS:

Make the filling first. Combine the frozen blueberries, sugar and cornstarch in a bowl. Gently toss and let them sit while you prepare the dough (you'll use the 2 TBSP of softened butter later).

To make the dough, place the yeast in the EZ DOH container and add the warm water and milk. Stir to dissolve the yeast and let that sit for 2 minutes. Add all the rest of the dough ingredients into the container and hand-crank (best to alternatively crank in both directions) for 3-5 minutes. Remove the dough from the container (easiest way is to first remove the entire crank assembly, wiping the dough off the dough hook as you do so). Spray or coat the interior of the container with cooking oil, and put the dough back in the container to let it rise. It's best to cover the container and place it in a warm place to encourage the dough to rise (should take about an hour to double in size).

After the dough has risen, roll the dough out on a smooth surface lightly coated with flour. Roll into a large rectangle about 12 x 17 inches in size.

Now, spread those 2 TBSP of softened butter evenly onto the rolled-out dough. Then, gently spread the blueberry filling over the dough, and then roll everything up in a 'jelly roll fashion'. Now, cut your dough into 9 or 12  even-sized pieces and place these pieces into a greased 9 x 9 inch baking pan (or something close to that size). This now needs to rise again to roughly double in size, which will take about an hour. If you prefer, let it rise slowly over-night in the refrigerator, and then let it finish rising at room temperature (or warmer) for an hour or so before baking.

Bake at 375 degrees for about 23-27 minutes, or until they are golden brown. While this is baking, mix your glaze ingredients, stirring thoroughly to mix in the butter. When the rolls are done and have cooled enough, apply the glaze and enjoy your 'winter' blueberry rolls.

Blueberry Rolls with Lemon Glaze

Crusty Spelt Bread

I obtained permission from Cathy Warner at www.breadexperience.com to re-post this recipe for making crusty spelt bread with an EZ DOH mixer because it was so interesting and informative. Better yet, her website has plenty of other recipes and insights about making bread. Here's her post:

                                         
                                                     February 4, 2014 by: Cathy

                                               CRUSTY SPELT BREAD

This Crusty Spelt Bread, baked in a loaf pan, utilizes an overnight sponge to help develop the gluten structure and enhance the flavor. I’ve used this method a few times; each time with a different type of flour.  For this experiment, I used a mixture of white and whole grain Spelt.

Using an overnight sponge helps with gluten development.  This is particularly useful when working with ancient grains because they generally have a weaker gluten structure. Allowing the final dough to ferment for a longer period of time also aids with gluten development.

Due to the weaker protein structure, doughs made with spelt also benefit from a shorter mix.  It’s generally better to mix them by hand or utilize a shorter mix on first speed in a stand mixer.  Due to these characteristics, I felt this would be a good dough to test in the EZ DOH unit.

This bread can be baked in a regular loaf pan or as a freeform artisan loaf.  I tried it both ways (see photo below).  The loaf on the left is made with white and whole grain Spelt.  The loaf on the right is made completely with whole grain Spelt and baked on a baking stone using steam.

This post documents the process for making Spelt bread in a loaf pan. If you want to learn how to bake the hearth-style loaf, refer to the Einkorn Bread made with an Overnight Sponge post.  Just substitute Spelt for the Einkorn flour.

Crusty Spelt Bread

The dough for this bread was mixed in an EZ DOH manual bread dough mixer, but it could just as easily be mixed in a stand mixer or by hand using a Danish Dough Whisk. Just keep in mind that spelt benefits from a shorter mixing time.

Makes: 1 Loaf

Adapted from: Bread Science by Emily Buehler

Ingredients:

Sponge:

• 187 g (1 2/3 cups) white Spelt flour
• 140 g (2/3 cup) water (50 to 55 degrees F.)
• 1/8 tsp. instant yeast

Final Dough:

• 210g (~1 3/4 cups) whole grain Spelt flour (plus more for sprinkling)
• 327g Sponge (all of it)
• 140g (2/3 cup) water (60 to 65 degrees F.)
• 1/2 tsp. instant yeast
• 2 tsp. salt

Directions:

Mixing the Sponge:

Mix the sponge 12 to 15 hours before you plan to make the dough. If the temperature is cooler in the house, then use warmer water, if it is warmer in the house, then use cooler water. Final temperature should be about 65 degrees F.

I mixed the sponge in the EZ DOH unit and let it rest in the unit overnight.

After the overnight rest, I added about half the water to break up the sponge. I mixed the sponge and the water for a minute or so, then I added the dry ingredients and starting mixing while I gradually added the rest of the water. I mixed until all of the dry ingredients were incorporated into the dough. Then I removed the handle assembly and kneaded the dough just a bit (in the bucket) with my hands.

Cover with plastic wrap or a kitchen towel and let the dough bulk ferment for 2 hours total. After 1 hour, fold and turn the dough in the bowl or take it out and perform a fold on the counter or work surface.

Place the dough back in the bucket, cover again, and let it bulk ferment for another hour.

After the 2nd hour, shape the dough into a loaf. Place the loaf seam side down in an 8 1/2” x 4 1/2”  loaf pan. I used a glass loaf pan.

I scored the loaf before the final proof so it wouldn’t deflate the dough. This is recommended for weaker doughs.  It also gives the scores more definition after baking.

Let the loaf proof for an hour.  It probably won’t double in size during the proof, but the oven spring should be very good.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until a wooden skewer inserted in the middle comes out clean.  The crust should be brown and crusty.

Remove the loaf to a wire rack to cool completely before slicing and serving.

The EZ DOH bread maker lives up to its name.  It’s really easy to use.  I like it although I have found that it does require a bit of hands on kneading.  If you’re making breads by hand, this shouldn’t be an issue because you want to get your hands on the dough to make sure it’s developing properly.

The EZ DOH is a useful tool for mixing no knead breads and for making breads that require a longer fermentation time to develop the gluten.

Happy Baking!

Cathy

Crusty Spelt Bread

Homemade Croutons

                                                                                      Guest Post by:  Katy Rost in Virginia
Homemade Croutons

                                                                     

Imagine if you will a salad with your favorite toppings, dressed with your favorite dressing. The only improvement you could make would be to throw in a handful of crunchy, perfectly-flavored croutons.

Now, do not wrinkle your foodie nose at that idea! I am not referring to the dry and dusty cubes they put on your salad at the restaurant - things made long ago in a factory and delivered by the food service company in a plastic bag - they are not fit to carry the same name as the delightful croutons we’re about to make.

If you have leftover bread - perhaps stale; perhaps from the last recipe you made using your EZ DOH mixer - some good olive oil, a couple of seasonings, and a toaster oven, you have croutons.

The bonus: they toast while you make your salad and take ingredients you have on hand. Nothing could be easier or tastier.

Ingredients

Leftover bread, cubed to the size you feel like eating

¼ cup (or thereabouts) extra virgin olive oil

Plain or seasoned salt

Flavorings: granulated garlic, herb blends, etc.

Directions

This isn’t a precise recipe. Making croutons is a process - the French have a verb for it! So you can vary the type of bread, the type of oil (butter for extra-rich croutons on top of a soup would be lovely), and the type of seasonings.

Cube the bread and place in a single layer on a toaster oven sheet. Drizzle liberally with olive oil and toss a bit to coat.

Season with salt and whatever other flavors you’d like. My go-to, lightning-fast salad crouton recipe is seasoned salt and granulated garlic.

                                                                           

Homemade Croutons