Complain Less. Bake More.
It is New Year’s resolution time.
Usually I resolve to not make resolutions.
I know that any resolution that calls for me to eat less and exercise more is going to end in failure on my part. Unless exercise more means bending over to pick up toys off of the floor rather than kicking them into a corner. And if eating less means only eating the things I really like, I can do that!
But, as I learned this past weekend when I made cookies (from a mix) with the youngest three kids, baking is a bonding experience. The little ones love to run their fingers through the flour, and to play with the rolling pin and to give the sugar cookie men belly buttons. They enjoyed shaping their very own little pieces of cookie dough (and eating it too). At that moment I new that I needed to spend more time baking.
However, I have this silly mindset about baking. I think I hate it. I think it is too messy and takes too much time. I think I am bad at it.
The truth is, I bake just fine. It IS too messy. Sometimes it takes a long time (I love homemade bread that takes hours to rise.) No one in the family complains about the results when I bake. I must be pretty OK.
The truth is, I’m always trying to slash our budget one way or another. The truth is, 8 people can eat a lot of store bought baked goods. I need to bake more.
I’m going to combine my love of blogging with my lack of baking love and combine them. You guys need to keep me accountable! I need to bake at least one new thing a week. I have a few baking goals as well.
- I want to learn to bake a passable San Francisco style sourdough (Anyone have any leads?)
- I want to learn to make some pretty dinner rolls.
- I want to make really good cinnamon rolls.
- I want to learn to make some pretty holiday breads.
Today I made some Navy Bean soup to make good use of the ham bone from our Second Christmas dinner. I decided that I wanted fresh bread to go with it. Of course, in classic Dakotapam form I decided that I wanted fresh bread at 4pm. Dinner is at 5. So I turned to my trusty recipe file and decided on a loaf of Beer Bread. Quick, easy, cheap, and the Rev. (hopefully) won’t miss one of his beers.
Ingredients
- 3 cups all purpose flour
- 3 T. granulated sugar
- 1 T. baking powder
- 1 tsp. salt
- 1 can of beer
Instructions
- Combine all of the dry ingredients.
- Stir in the beer.
- Pour into a greased loaf pan.
- Bake at 375 degrees for 35 minutes.
- Prepare for your house to smell amazing!
I love to cook and bake equally. I hit up allrecipes.com for many new recipes.
I’ll email you our yummy cinnamon roll recipe we make for Christmas morning.
You know my resolution. Losing 20 lbs, running a 1/2 marathon, working out 5 days a week…
I LOVE to bake! I’ve got several simple and kid friendly recipes (since both of my kids love to help) that I will e-mail your way!
Bread, rolls, cookies, scones, YUMMY! I don’t think I have bought store bread in at least three years.
Brandi and Emily…pass those recipes along! I have tons of cookbooks, but I prefer recipes that my friends have actually had success with!
Dakotapam recently posted..When I Grow Up. . .
Twitter: dakotapam
Beer bread! Of course! That sounds good. The new year for me means resuming the diet, haha. I want to be outdoors more, and generally do more things that we all enjoy as a family.
Shannon, I want to get outside more as well. I have good intentions, but. . .
Dakotapam recently posted..Fan of the Week: Marie of Adventures in Craziness
Twitter: dakotapam
What a great pic! Something about baking just shouts warm, cozy domesticity, doesn’t it? Pioneer Woman’s cinnamon rolls have quickly become our new yrs day tradition. they are amazing, perfect – i make the dough the night before, store in fridge, then bake in the morning. And to feed your bustling family, I’d suggest doubling it.
http://rhubarbandvenison.blogspot.com/2011/01/pio…
Thanks Beth! Of course! PW! I can feel my waistline expanding already.
Dakotapam recently posted..When I Grow Up. . .
Twitter: dakotapam
AWESOME goal! I want to bake more. It’s messy but reaping the bonding rewards are a big bonus. The best cinnamon rolls are Pioneer Woman’s recipe. They take time but are WELL WORTH it and you’ll be a hero. I make the recipe which is a huge batch and freeze unbaked rolls to have on hand. Happy New Year Pam! We’ll meet soon.
Katie recently posted..Farm Girl Friday: A Caring Cattleman & 2 Cowgirls
Twitter: katpinke
I think I’ll be Baking those cinnamon rolls very soon.
I really would love my kids to have memories of standing in our kitchen and smelling warm, comforting smells. Plus, I really do like to know what is in my food!
Enjoy your last few days of vacation before the new job. Congrats again!
Dakotapam recently posted..When I Grow Up. . .
Twitter: dakotapam
Love love love the piggies in (I think) Lizzie’s hair (sorry if I got her wrong). My friend Heidi makes ahmazing sour dough bread. Not sure if she’s blogged about it, but she has a great blog: http://breadandotherprovisions.blogspot.com/ I’ll try and make a point to connect you two.
Yes, that is Lizzie!
Thanks for the tip…off to blog hop!
Dakotapam recently posted..Fan of the Week: Marie of Adventures in Craziness
Twitter: dakotapam
I love baking and my most favorite cake is my specialty, the chocolate cake!
That beer bread sounds delicious! I love that it is dairy free. I use the book Healthy Artisan Bread in 5 Minutes to make our homemade bread. Just spend a few minutes making a big batch and then store in the refrigerator. It takes me about 15 minutes of prep time to make enough bread to last us a week or so.
I had looked at that, do you need a lot of extra equipment? Can I get away without the peel?
Dakotapam recently posted..When I Grow Up. . .
Twitter: dakotapam
Some of the breads require the baking stone, but I don’t have one, so I don’t make those recipes.
We make a whole wheat bread from the book, and the only special thing we have to do is preheat the oven and put a pan filled with water on the bottom rack of the oven. Let it warm for 5 minutes, and then put the bread in a loaf pan on the top rack. It bakes for 45 minutes and turns out great.
Ok, I really need to try that book then! Thanks for the rec!
Dakotapam recently posted..Why I Now Like Tights
Twitter: dakotapam
Hi Pam!
I too am a pastor’s wife, mom of six kids, including twin newborn girls. They are 4 months, and wow, has the whole twin experience completely rocked my world!!! Anyway, just wanted to introduce myself and say hi! (Oh, and we have friends from seminary who moved to Bismarck last summer!)
I second the Pioneer Woman’s cinnamon rolls—they are the best ever! I love that you can mix up the dough and refrigerate it for a day or two. That’s what I did when I had time to mix it up two days before Christmas, and we had fresh cinnamon rolls Christmas morning. I like the Healthy Artisan Bread in 5 min. a day as well. I’ve not tried 100% whole wheat, but the one that is mostly whole wheat. It’s very good. I do have a baking stone, but no peel so I use parchment paper, and it works great. I do know that some people use regular baking pans too. I also make a really good bread from leftover oatmeal or other grains. You basically blend oatmeal, oil, & whole wheat flour, let it ferment overnight and then combine that with more flour, knead, let rise, put in pans & rise again. It’s a great way to use up leftover oatmeal & it’s very good. Lately, though I’ve been using a bread machine that a friend gave us–we eat a lot of bread, and it’s been great for this season of my life.
Sara! Thanks for introducing yourself! The twin journey is so fun…exhausting some days, some day entertaining, but always a blessing! I have my first loaf of no knead dough ready to put in the oven right now…I’ll definitely let everyone know how it turns out. Click up on the contact me link up top and let me know who your sem friends are…I think I know who they are, and if so, I can pass on a bunch of twin girl things…they are sitting waiting for another set of twin girls to enjoy them!
Dakotapam recently posted..We Cut the (Cable) Cord
Twitter: dakotapam
i tried that beer bread and it was really good. thanks for posting!
marty recently posted..Make Your Home Unique
I want to bake a lot!!
Good San Francisco sour dough bread is truly more of an art than a science.
Lots of people say that the secret is to harvest wild yeast from the air to create the starter. Hopefully, the yeasts and bacteria thus cultivated would be the right ones to make a good loaf!
Good luck!
Brovar recently posted..Free Bike LIghts in San Francisco
Twitter: colloidalcopper