carrot oatmeal chia muffins

I love bran muffins, but was super excited to try these this recipe that uses chia seeds (my new obsession) and Greek yogurt!

Yield: 12 muffins
130 calories per muffin
Active time 5 minutes
Total time: 25 minutes

ingredients

1¼ cups all-purpose flour

1 cup old-fashioned rolled oats

4 large carrots, shredded

1 cup Greek yogurt

1/2 cup packed dark-brown sugar

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/2 teaspoon ground cloves

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup chia seeds

preparation

1. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees.

2. Line your muffin tin with liners

3. In your stand mixer bowl, add all the ingredients, stirring with the paddle attachment until well blended, about 3 minutes.

4. Using a 1/4 cup measuring cup, fill each well with batter. The batter is thick, so you may need to use a spoon to scoop the batter out and top it off.

5. Bake until a toothpick inserted in center of a muffin comes out clean, 20 minutes.

Original recipe found here.

wild rice bread

I'm a fan of hearty grains like spelt, quinoa, bulgar, and farro. But having grown up in the Midwest, wild rice will always hold a special place in my heart.

Yield: 2 large loaves
1,625 calories per loaf
Active time: 20 minutes
Total time: 7 hours

ingredients

1/2 cup sourdough starter

1¼ cup lukewarm water
2 tablespoons agave nectar 
1 cup wheat flour
2 teaspoons garlic salt

4 cups high gluten flour

2 cups cooked wild rice

2 ounces blue cheese

2 teaspoons yeast 

preparation
1. Mix together the sourdough starter, lukewarm water, agave nectar, wheat flour, and yeast in a glass bowl.

2. Mix until very smooth, cover with plastic wrap, and let sit until very bubbly, about 2 hours.

3. Add the sponge, high gluten flour, and salt to your stand mixer bowl.

4. With the dough hook attached, knead stiff dough begins to form, about 5 minutes. 

5. Knead in the wild rice and cheese until incorporated, about 2 minutes. I like to buy larger blocks of cheese, cut them into ounce servings, and freeze them. Working with frozen cheese is much easier because it doesn't fall apart as quickly and can better handle being kneaded.

6. Shape the dough into a ball, place the dough in a lightly greased bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and set aside to rise until doubled in size, about 2 hours.

7. Turn the dough out onto your counter top, divide in half, shape into loaves, place in a parchment or silpat lined loaf pan, cover with plastic wrap, and allow to rise until very puffy, about 1 hour. 

8. Bake at 425 degrees for 15 minutes and then turn your oven down to 375 degrees, continuing to bake until golden brown, about 25 minutes.

Original recipe found here.

blueberry cake

As blueberry season winds to a close, the nuttiness of this delectable cake is a perfect way to transition to autumn.

Yield: One 9 inch cake
185 calories per slice, if cut into 12 slices
Active time: 5 minutes
Total time: 50 minutes

ingredients

1 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 stick unsalted butter, at room temperature

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 teaspoon almond extract

1 egg

1/2 cup rice milk

2 cups blueberries

1 ounce almonds, crushed (see step 1 of “no knead almond bread” for tips on crushing whole almonds)

preparation

1. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees and line a 9-inch round cake pan with parchment paper.

2. Cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy.

3. Add the egg and which until well incorporated.

4. Add in the all the remaining ingredients, except for the blueberries, and beat until smooth, about 1 minute.  

5. Add in the blueberries and stir just to incorporate, about 30 seconds.

6. Pour the mixture into the cake pan and bake until golden brown and a wooden toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean, about 45 minutes. 

7. Cool for 10 minutes and then turn out onto a wire rack to cool. See step 12 of “coconut chocolate chip monkey bread” for tips on turning out a cake.

Original recipe found here.

sesame bread

Yield: 1 loaf
2,250 calories per loaf
Active time: 20 minutes
Total time: Overnight proof required, about 21 hours

ingredients

the poolish

1 cup lukewarm water 
2 cups all-purpose flour 
1/4 teaspoon yeast


the dough 
1/2 cup lukewarm water 
2½ cups all-purpose flour 
2 teaspoons yeast 
2 teaspoons salt 
1/4 cup sesame seeds

preparation

the day before:

1. Combine all of the poolish ingredients, kneading to form a cohesive dough.

2. Cover with plastic wrap and set aside to rest at room temperature for 12 to 16 hours.

 the day of:

3. In a 2 cup Pyrex measuring cup, combine the lukewarm water, yeast, and a pinch of sugar. Set aside for 10 minutes.

4. In your stand mixer bowl, combine the polish and remaining dough ingredients.

5. Pour in the yeast mixture and “stir”, with the dough hook attached, until a shaggy dough forms.

6. Increase the stand mixer speed to 2 and knead until a smooth and cohesive dough forms, about 5 minutes.

7. Shape the dough into a ball, place in a bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and set aside to rise until doubled in bulk, about 2 hours.

8. Turn the dough out onto your counter top and shape into a loaf, place in a parchment lined pan, cover with plastic wrap, and set aside to double in bulk, about 2 hours.

9. With about 30 minutes left in the final proof, preheat your oven to 425 degrees.

10. Brush the loaf with an egg wash, sprinkle with sesame seeds, and bake until golden brown, about 35 minutes. 

Original recipe found here.