White Milk Bread or Rolls

Recipe #5 was from Apples for Jam, one of the most gorgeous cookbooks ever. It's a cookbook categorized by color! How amazing is that? So there's a section with all red foods, all yellow foods, all green foods, etc. So fun to look through. These white milk rolls were pretty easy to make and delivered good flavor. I still have a texture issue with homemade bread. It seems most of them turn out heavy and dense. I think the issue is bread flour. Something about higher protein levels in bread flour? I don't know. I'm no bread making expert, that's for sure. That being said, there's nothing better than homemade bread, fresh from the oven, slathered with butter. Except for enjoying said bread without your children knowing about it.

White Milk Bread

from Apples for Jam

1 1/4 cups warm milk

1 package (1/4 oz) active dry yeast

1 tsp honey

3 2/3 cups bread flour

1/2 tsp salt

1 egg, lightly beaten

3 tbs butter, melted

Put the milk, yeast, and honey in a small bowl, and stir until honey melts. Leave it for about 10 minutes, or until it begins to froth a bit. Put the flour and 1/2 tsp in a larger bowl. Add the yeast mixture, the egg, and butter, and mix well. Knead for about 10 minutes by hand. Cover the bowl with a cloth and leave in a warm, draft-free place to rise for 1 1/2 to 2 hours, or until it has puffed up well.

Lightly grease a 12 by 4 in loaf pan (if making a loaf) or a cookie sheet (if making rolls). Punch down the dough to flatten it and shape it into a loaf to fit the pan (or cut into equal sized portions for rolls). Cover with a cloth and leave in warm place to rise another 45-60 minutes, until puffed up again.

Preheat oven to 375. Bake for about 25 minutes, until the top is firm and crusty and sounds hollow when tapped. Remove from oven and let cool slightly.

Roasted Tomato Soup

Recipe #4 was Tyler Florence's Roasted Tomato Soup from his book Stirring the Pot. I'm a big fan of Tyler Florence. My husband can't stand him- thinks he's too full of himself. I think having kids has mellowed Tyler, for sure. I like his food a lot, and his cookbooks are gorgeous. The soup was delicious, alongside a grown up grilled cheese. I cut the boys' sandwiches into strips and they dipped them in the soup. Then I copied them. Delicious.

Roasted Tomato Soup

adapted from Tyler Florence

2 1/2 pounds fresh tomatoes (mix of fresh heirlooms, cherry, vine and plum tomatoes)

6 cloves garlic, peeled

2 small yellow onions, sliced

1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 quart chicken stock

2 bay leaves (I didn't have these)

4 tablespoons butter

1/2 cup chopped fresh basil leaves, optional (I didn't have these either, but used about 1/2 tsp of dried)

3/4 cup heavy cream, optional
Preheat oven to 450˚F.

Wash, core and cut the tomatoes into halves. Spread the tomatoes, garlic cloves and onions onto a baking tray. Drizzle with ½ cup of olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Roast for 20-30 minutes or until caramelized.

Remove roasted tomatoes, garlic and onion from the oven and transfer to a large stock pot. Pour in any liquid from the roasting pan, ¾ of the chicken stock, bay leaves and butter. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 15-20 minutes or until liquid has reduced by1/3.

Wash and dry basil leaves and add to the pot. Puree the soup using an immersion stick blender until smooth. (Or use your blender, working in batches and being very careful not to let the lid pop off and hot soup burn you!) Return soup to low heat, add cream and adjust consistency with remaining chicken stock if necessary. Season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper.

Vinegar Glossed Chicken

New recipe #1 was a smashing success. My pickiest of eaters had NOTHING but good things to say. He cleaned his plate (including the carrots!!!!) and thanked me for the delicious chicken. Both he and the husband said to add this one to our regular line-up. N's exact words were, "Mom, will you make this chicken every single day?"

Success might not be a strong enough word...

The recipe is from Mad Hungry, a cookbook I bought for myself with some Christmas money a couple of years ago. The author works for Martha Stewart and has a show of her own now. She's the mom of 3 boys and knows her stuff. I read and reread her book often.

Vinegar Glossed Chicken

adapted from Mad Hungry- by Lucinda Scala-Quinn

(I made some changes to use what I had on-hand, which is almost always boneless skinless chicken breasts, not chicken on the bone...)

1 cup best-quality red-wine vinegar (I used about 1/3 cup)

2 to 3 garlic cloves, minced (about 2 tablespoons) (I used 1 big clove)

3 sprigs of fresh rosemary (about 1 tablespoon minced) (I used 1)

5 1/2 pounds bone-in chicken pieces (each part should be cut in half) (I used 3 boneless skinless breasts)

Coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper

Extra-virgin olive oil

3/4 cup chicken broth, plus more as needed (I used about 1/2 cup, but added more to the pan because I over-reduced the sauce)

At least 15 minutes and up to 2 hours before cooking, combine the vinegar, garlic, and rosemary to marinate.

Thoroughly season the chicken pieces with salt and pepper. Heat a 14-inch skillet (or two smaller skillets) over high heat and swirl in enough olive oil to coat the bottom of the skillet. Place the chicken in the skillet, skin side down. Don't crowd the chicken; leave space around each piece. Work in batches if necessary. You should hear an immediate sizzle when the chicken pieces hit the pan. Don't move them; it takes a couple of minutes to sear the chicken so it doesn't stick. Brown all sides; this will take 10 minutes per batch. Regulate the heat so it stays high but does not burn the chicken.

Place all the browned chicken back in the skillet.

Add the chicken broth and scrape up any brown bits from the bottom of the pan. Lower the heat, simmer, and reduce for 15 to 20 minutes. Increase the heat to high and pour in the vinegar mixture. Swirl the pan and stir around as the vinegar evaporates to form a simmering glaze, 8 to 10 minutes.

Serve immediately or refrigerate, and reheat with some extra broth.