Domestic Day Update: Recipes!

Per the millions of requests I received for the recipes from Domestic Day, here they are...and they are all super delish.  In fact, I'm eating a sampling of the first recipe right now.  Yumo.

Healthified Oatmeal Peanut Butter Breakfast Cookies

1/2	cup mashed banana (about 1 large)
1/2	cup chunky natural peanut butter (unsalted and unsweetened)
1/2	cup honey
1	teaspoon vanilla
1	cup rolled oats
1/2	cup Gold Medal® whole wheat flour
1/4	cup nonfat dry milk powder
2	teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/4	teaspoon baking soda
1	cup dried cranberries or raisins

	Preheat oven to 350°F. Lightly coat two cookie sheets with cooking spray; set aside. In a large bowl, stir together banana, peanut butter, honey, and vanilla. In a small bowl, combine oats, flour, milk powder, cinnamon, and baking soda. Stir the oat mixture into the banana mixture until combined. Stir in dried cranberries.
	Using a ¼-cup measure, drop mounds of dough 3 inches apart on prepared cookie sheets. With a thin metal or small plastic spatula dipped in water, flatten and spread each mound of dough to a 2¾-inch round, about ½ inch thick.
	Bake, one sheet at a time, for 14 to 16 minutes or until browned. Transfer to wire racks to cool completely. Store in an airtight container or resealable plastic bag for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 2 months; thaw before serving. Verdict:  the best after school snack.  Just enough sweet to satisfy and enough protein to rid me of my afternoon headache.  Perf. Whole Wheat Pizza Crust Ingredients: 1 teaspoon white sugar 1 1/2 cups warm water (110 degrees F /45 degrees C) 1 tablespoon active dry yeast 1 tablespoon olive oil 1 teaspoon salt 2 cups whole wheat flour 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour Directions: 1. In a large bowl, dissolve sugar in warm water. Sprinkle yeast over the top, and let stand for about 10 minutes, until foamy. 2. Stir the olive oil and salt into the yeast mixture, then mix in the whole wheat flour and 1 cup of the all-purpose flour until dough starts to come together. Tip dough out onto a surface floured with the remaining all-purpose flour, and knead until all of the flour has been absorbed, and the ball of dough becomes smooth, about 10 minutes. Place dough in an oiled bowl, and turn to coat the surface. Cover loosely with a towel, and let stand in a warm place until doubled in size, about 1 hour. 3. When the dough is doubled, tip the dough out onto a lightly floured surface, and divide into 2 pieces for 2 thin crust, or leave whole to make one thick crust. Form into a tight ball. Let rise for about 45 minutes, until doubled. 4. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C). Roll a ball of dough with a rolling pin until it will not stretch any further. Then, drape it over both of your fists, and gently pull the edges outward, while rotating the crust. When the circle has reached the desired size, place on a well oiled pizza pan. Top pizza with your favorite toppings, such as sauce, cheese, meats, or vegetables. 5. Bake for 16 to 20 minutes (depending on thickness) in the preheated oven, until the crust is crisp and golden at the edges, and cheese is melted on the top. Verdict:  we froze these, and we have not tried them yet.  I imagine they're better fresh than frozen, but I never say no to a solid freezer meal option.  Whole Wheat Challah (Cheri prefaced this in her e-mail with "hahahahahahahaha" because it was such a disaster.  We haven't dove into our stash of it yet...) 4 cups whole wheat flour 1 t. salt 2 1/4 t. active dry yeast 2 T. vital wheat gluten 1/2 c. honey 1/2 c. olive oil 1 c. warm water 2 eggs 1/4 c. raisins, to taste (optional - we optioned not) In a large bowl, stir together the flour, salt, yeast, and vital wheat gluten until well mixed. In another bowl, stir together the honey, olive oil, water, eggs, and raisins. Pour the liquid mixture into the flour mixture, and stir until it forms a dough. Turn the dough out onto a floured surface, and knead until smooth and elastic, about 10 minutes. Form the dough into a round shape. Lightly oil a bowl, place the dough in the bowl, and turn the dough over a few times to oil the surface. Cover the bowl with a cloth, and let rise in a warm, draft-free place until doubled, about 1 hour. Punch down the dough, knead it a few times to remove some of the bubbles, and cut it into 2 equal-sized pieces. Set 1 piece of dough aside under a cloth to prevent drying out while you shape or braid the first loaf as desired. Working on a floured surface, roll the small dough pieces into ropes about the thickness of your thumb and about 12 inches long. Ropes should be fatter in the middle and thinner at the ends. Pinch 3 ropes together at the top and braid them. Starting with the strand to the right, move it to the left over the middle strand (that strand becomes the new middle strand.) Take the strand farthest to the left, and move it over the new middle strand. Continue braiding, alternating sides each time, until the loaf is braided, and pinch the ends together and fold them underneath for a neat look. Repeat for the other loaf, place the braided loaves on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 30 minutes. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Bake in the preheated oven until golden brown, about 30 minutes. Serve warm for best flavor. Verdict:  I dunno. Whole Wheat Bread - Mama Joye's adaptation:  2 Cups warm water 1/2 cup brown sugar OR 1/4 cup honey 1/4 cup oil 1 egg 1 Tbsp Lecithin granules 2 1/2 tsp salt 1 1/2 Tbsp instant yeast 2 TBSP dough enhancer 2 TBSP gluton 4-5 cups whole wheat flour (white whole wheat is preferred - but we mixed regular and white whole wheat) Mix together first 9 ingredients along with 1 cup flour. Beat ingredients together well for 2-3 minutes. Add additional flour until dough comes cleanly away from the bowl. Place dough into a greased bowl and cover. Allow to rise until doubled. Divide dough in half and roll out into a rectangle and roll up. Place seam side down in bread pan. Cover with a clean cloth and let rise until "light." Bake at 350 for 24 minutes. Remove from pan, brush top with butter and let cool before storing. Makes 2 loaves. Verdict:  Um, so good that we may have eaten an entire loaf in a few days.  Embarrassing?  No.  Bloated?  Perhaps.  TMI?  Never. Oatmeal Bread - Also by Joye Combine in large bowl:  1 cup oatmeal 1/2 cup wheat flour 1/2 cup brown sugar 2 tsp salt 2 TBSP shortening Pour 2 cups boiling water over the aforementioned ingredients. Let set until cooled to luke warm. Pour into mixer bowl and add:  1 TBSP instant yeast 1 TBSP dough enhancer 1 TBSP gluton Beat in 4-5 cups of flour until dough leaves sides of the bowl clean. Place dough into a greased bowl and cover. Allow to rise until doubled. Divide dough in half and roll out into a rectangle and roll up. Place seam side down in bread pan. Cover with a clean cloth and let rise until "light." Bake at 350 for 24 minutes. Optional: brush dough with shortening and sprinkle with oatmeal before baking. Makes 2 loaves. Verdict:  Um, also super yum.  And since there's oatmeal inside, you can feel good about eating an entire loaf at once.  Not speaking from experience... We also made oatmeal/peanut butter/chocolate chip cookies, but I figured you already had a recipe for that.  If you didn't or if you're in need of a newer, more pizzazzier recipe, holler. Enjoy!  And let me know how much you love it all! PS:  Because every blog post is better with a picture school tale, I leave you with this one... My freshies were being just that (freshman like, that is) on Wednesday, and I couldn't take it anymore.  Sooooooo, I stopped what I was doing and said, "Listen here.  You know how in first grade, whenever the teacher says something, every student must make a comment?  Like, 'Children, today we're going to do math with apples.' 'Oh, oh!  My mom makes applesauce sometimes!' 'Oh, oh!  Apples sometimes make me toot.' Etc.  Well, that's how I feel right now.  It is not necessary for you to comment on everything I say.  So, please. keep your comments to yourself unless they apply.  Okay, let's get back to work."  And the strangest thing is, it was mildly effective!  Note to self:  while comparing teenagers to children may occasionally be inappropriate and quasi-humiliating, it actually works.  Do not do every day, but once every two weeks is okay.   Have a happy weekend, gang.  More tales to come...