Whole Wheat Lite Oatmeal Bread

I make this recipe in my bread machine, using the dough cycle to do all the kneading. After the first rise, I remove the dough from the bread machine and either form it into rolls or place in loaf pans and let the dough rise a second time before baking. Bake at 350 for about 40 minutes.

The first time I tried this recipe I didn't have any vital wheat gluten but I went ahead and made it anyway; the bread barely rose at all. Don't skip this ingredient.

1 to 1 1/4c water (or milk, or veg stock, soymilk, any liquid you want)
1 1/2t salt (I use iodized sea salt)
1 1/2T sweetener (sugar, honey, corn syrup, molasses, whatever you want)
1 1/2T applesauce
1T gluten (or King Arthur's Bread Machine Boost)
1c oatmeal (quick cooking, regular, steel cut or any other grain--I use
it uncooked)
2 1/2c bread flour (I use 2 cups unbleached flour and 1/2 cup whole wheat flour)
2t yeast

You'll get best results with lots of machines loading this way--liquid,
dry ingredients, then flour, then yeast. Remember to never let the
yeast and salt touch in your abm for best rising results.

Peasant Bread

This breads texture is a cross between focaccia and English muffin bread. It's wonderful toasted and is so easy to make because it requires no kneading.

2¾ hours 15 min prep
2 loaves
1 (2 1/4 teaspoon) package active dry yeast
2 cups warm water, divided
4 cups all purpose flour
2 teaspoons salt
1 tablespoon sugar
1 tablespoon butter, melted
Your choice of topping
poppy seed or garlic bread seasoning or parmesan cheese or cinnamon sugar mixture
Dissolve yeast in 1 cup warm water.
In a large bowl, combine flour, salt and sugar.
Add the yeast mixture and remaining 1 cup of warm water; stir until combined.
Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled. (About 1 hour).
Stir dough down.
Divide in half.
Place each half in a greased 1 quart round casserole or ovenproof bowl.
Brush tops with melted butter and sprinkle with topping.
Let rise in a warm place until doubled; about 45 minutes.
Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes or until top is golden brown.
Remove from pans to cool.

Cream of Turkey & Wild Rice Soup

The family didn't mind leftover turkey when I used it to create this creamy, filling soup. Right after we finished our Christmas dinner I boiled the turkey carcass to make stock, and refrigerated it for 12 hours in order to easily skim off the fat.

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
2 cups sliced mushrooms (about 4 ounces)
3/4 cup chopped celery
3/4 cup chopped carrots
1/4 cup chopped shallots (I used onions)
1/4 cup all-purpose flour (I used whole wheat)
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
4 cups reduced-sodium chicken broth (or homemade stock)
1 cup quick-cooking or instant wild rice (see Ingredient Note)
3 cups shredded cooked turkey or chicken (12 ounces; see Tip)
1/2 cup reduced-fat sour cream
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

1. Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add mushrooms, celery, carrots and shallots and cook, stirring, until softened, about 5 minutes. Add flour, salt and pepper and cook, stirring, for 2 minutes more.

2. Add broth and bring to a boil, scraping up any browned bits. Add rice and reduce heat to a simmer. Cover and cook until the rice is tender, 5 to 7 minutes. Stir in turkey (or chicken), sour cream and parsley and cook until heated through, about 2 minutes more.

TIP: Ingredient note: Quick-cooking or instant wild rice has been parboiled to reduce the cooking time. Conventional wild rice takes 40 to 50 minutes to cook. Be sure to check the cooking directions when selecting your rice—some brands labeled “quick” take about 30 minutes to cook. If you can’t find the quick-cooking variety, just add cooked conventional wild rice along with the turkey at the end of Step 2.