Dilly Bread

Start yeast with 3/4 cup warm water, 2 Tblsp yeast, 1 Tblsp honey
Heat in separate pan:  6 Tblsp butter, then add the following and heat to lukewarm
      3 cups cottage cheese
      6 Tblsp. honey
      2 Tblsp minced onions
      2 Tblsp. dill weed
      3 eggs
      2 tsp. salt
      3/4 tsp. soda
Pour this into yeast mixture.
Add 6 3/4 cups flour (dough will be very sticky).
Knead in bowl 1-2 minutes.
Let rise 1 hour or until double in bulk.
Punch down and put into greased pans.  Rise 1/2 hour.
Bake at 350 degrees for 35-40 minutes.
3 regular loaves or 7 small

French Bread

This is a super easy french bread recipe. It comes out very moist with a crispy crust.

Ingredients

3 cups bread flour
1 Tbsp yeast
1 tsp salt
1 cup warm water
1 egg white
1 Tbsp cold water

Direction

In mixing bowl, combine 1 cup flour and yeast. Stir in 1 cup warm water. Let stand 5 minutes until yeast is activated. Add salt and 1 additional cup flour. Mix until dough is formd. Add additional flour if necessary.

Turn dough onto floured surface. Knead 10 minutes. Brush dough with oil and place in bowl. Cover and let dough rise until doubled in size.

Punch dough down and turn onto floured surface. Cover and let rest for 10 moinutes. Roll dough into large rectangle. Roll up, starting from long side. Taper ends and seal edges with water.

Grease baking sheet. Place loaf, seam side down, onto baking sheet. Lightly beat egg white with 1 Tbsp cold water and brush over dough loaf. Cover. Let rise until doubled in size.

Make several diagonal cuts about 1/2 inch deep across top of each loaf. Bake in preheated 375 degree oven for 20 minutes. Brush again with egg white. Loosely cover with foil (to prevent over browning). Bake 15-20 minutes longer Remove from baking sheet and cool on wire rack.

Naan

This is a great flatbread recipe that goes well with curry or cut into wedges and dipped in hummus.

2 ½ cups bread flour
¼ cup whole wheat flour
1 pkg (2 ¼ teaspoons) yeast
2 teaspoons sugar
1 ½ teaspoons salt
1 cup water, room temperature
¼ cup plain yogurt
1 tablespoon olive oil

1. Combine the flours, yeast, sugar, and salt in standing mixer and mix with paddle attachment until blended. Add the water, yogurt, and olive oil and mix until a shaggy dough forms.

2. Switch to dough hook and knead on medium speed until smooth, about 8 minutes. Add additional bread flour as needed for the dough to clear the sides of the bowl but stick to the very bottom.

3. Shape dough into a large ball, transfer to a lightly oiled bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Allow to rise until double, 45 minutes to 1 hour. (At this point, the dough can be punched down, wrapped tightly in plastic wrap, and refrigerated for up to 2 days.)

4. Take dough out and divide into 8 equal portions, roll into balls and let rest for 10 minutes.

5. Roll each ball out into a 6-inch circle using a rolling pin.

6. Heat a 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat until hot. One at a time, lift the dough and gently stretch about 1 inch larger, then lay it in the skillet. Cook until small bubbles appear on the surface, flip and continue to cook until the bottom is speckled and deep golden brown in spots.

7. Optional: brush cooked bread with butter and sprinkle with kosher or sea salt.

Pita Bread

After being spoiled with fresh pita bread every day in Israel, I thought I'd try my hand at making it myself. Turns out it is super easy and works pretty well. You start by following mom's basic bread recipe but I cut it in half to make it a little easier to work with (and I usually cook with olive oil).

Ingredients
1 1/4 c. Lukewarm water
1 Tbsp. Active dry yeast (or 1 packet)
3 c. Flour (I've tried it with partial wheat and partial ryle. Both were delish.)
2 Tbsp. Honey
1 tsp. Sea salt
2 Tbsp. Olive oil

Mix it all up and beat for a few minutes until dough is thoroughly kneaded but still soft. Rub dough ball with oil and leave in bowl to rise until double in size (about 30 minutes).

Preheat oven to 450. Move rack to lowest position and remove other racks. You also need to preheat your cooking surface. Use a cooking stone or a large pizza pan.

Turn dough onto floured surface. Knead 15 or 20 turns. Roll into roap and divide into 8 to 10 pieces. Roll pieces into balls and let them sit for 15 minutes.

Roll balls into flat rounds about 1/4 inch thick (you know, pita-looking). Place on cooking surface and bake for 2-3 minutes. (I can usually only fit 3 or 4 on the pan at a time.) Pieces will puff up after you put them in the oven. I remove them at the first sign of a brown spot. If left in too long they turn crispy.

Set them on a baking rack and let cool slightly, then store in plastic bag to retain moisture.

Artisan Bread in 5 Minutes a Day

Okay girls. Anyone want to try this out? I heard these people on Wisconsin Public Radio this morning. You spend time making the master dough... flour, yeast, salt, water. It is a very wet dough; you let it rise for 2 hrs, then you can refrigerate it for up to 2 weeks. You just pull off enough for a loaf whenever you want it; shape it and let it rise for 20 min. or so and bake. They have a lot of variations for artisan breads. I see they have Naan. I'm still thinking it's easier to just bake 4 loaves of bread and freeze the bread, but perhaps the "artisan" breads with different herbs is appealing. Here's a website with the basic information:
http://www.motherearthnews.com/Real-Food/Artisan-Bread-In-Five-Minutes-A-Day.aspx
If you try it out, post your comments. Dad really likes artisan breads, so he may give this a try. Here's the basic recipe. It's pretty much my bread recipe sans the honey and oil. I'd use 1/2 whole wheat flour and 1/2 bread flour:

The Master Recipe: Boule

(Artisan Free-Form Loaf)

Makes 4 1-pound loaves

3 cups lukewarm water
1 1⁄2 tbsp granulated yeast (1 1⁄2 packets)
1 1⁄2 tbsp coarse kosher or sea salt
6 1⁄2 cups unsifted, unbleached, all-purpose white flour