Galette Bretonne (Buckwheat Crepes)

Galette de Sarrasin with Homemade Preserve

Our family grew up making and eating many galettes with a variation of different flours. Galettes were a staple food. Eating these for dinner was not uncommon. Crepes tend to have a sweeter taste. Galettes ask for buckwheat flour and usually include other foods other than fruit. We always opted to include jams, peanut butter and yes just plain brown sugar. That was the extent of our sweet foods in our house. Zachary and Leah love eating these. We take advantage of making these during the Days of Unleavened Bread. We still make them using a frying pan, just like my mamie and grandmaman made them years ago. They originate from Brittany, France where my mother grew up.  It takes a bit of work ensuring the liquid gets spread as evenly as possible throughout the pan but it is well worth the work.
There are a variety of recipes out there. I've some that use only one egg and no sweetener.  Here is the recipe that we use.

Galettes bretonne au Sarrasin (Buckwheat crepes)

Ingredients

• 2-3 eggs
• ¾ cups sugar(honey will work as well, may want to add less)
• ¾ cup buckwheat flour* (I’ve added up to 1 cup)
• 2 to 3 cups whole wheat or spelt flour (can use white organic flour) rice flour does not work
• 2 to 3 cups of milk or water
• Buckwheat flour is also known as blé noir (black wheat) or farine de sarrasin (buckwheat)

 Directions

• Mix first two ingredients together. Add buckwheat flour and other flour alternative with milk or water. Simply placing everything in a blender and blending will work as well. Consistency should be like cream,  runny.

(There are nice crepe makers that sure make the job look easy but we don’t own one. We just use what pans we have.)

• Heat up your frying pan to medium heat. Add some butter or a bit of oil and ensure that it is spread throughout your frying pan. I use a cast iron pan and it works great. Test the heat by dropping a few drops of the galette liquid into the pan and if it seems to cook quickly, then your pan is ready.

• Add about 1/4 to 1/3 cup of batter to the pan.  As soon as you've added the batter, quickly tilt your pan to ensure the batter is swirled all around in the pan in a circular motion as best you can.  I've done this for many years, and I don't always make them perfect.  It doesn't matter, we love them anyway and eat them all.  
• Cast iron retains heat, we usually flip the galette to the other side within 30 seconds.  It may take longer depending on the heat and pan you are using.  Leave for around another 30 seconds to 1 minute.  Place your galette into a holding plate and prepare your pan to make another one.  Depending on how the pan looks you may not need to add more butter or oil.  
•  

• What you add in them is up to you, you can add cut up fruit, make your own fruit jam, nut butters or adding some veggies like spinach with some cheese. Make up your own recipe. We like to roll ours and eat them with our hands.

Did you know that buckwheat is not a grain but a fruit seed.  It is actually related to the rhubarb and sorrel. 

Its name is supposedly derived from the Dutch word bockweit, which means "beech wheat," reflecting buckwheat's beechnut-like shape and its wheat-like characteristics. Buckwheat flowers are very fragrant and are attractive to bees that use them to produce a special, strongly flavored, dark honey.  For information, please visit WHFoods

If you've tried these before or do try this recipe, come back to visit and leave us a comment.

Bon Appétit 

blessings ~ Carmen

This recipe was shared with
Simply Sugar & Gluten Free

Basic Whole Wheat Bread Baking ~ Mixer and Hand Instructions

A while ago, someone requested one of my bread recipes. It is always a pleasure to share recipes that have been a blessing to our family. For those who are new to bread making, I am including directions how I have been making bread and hope it will bless someone.


This recipe that I'm sharing is a recipe from Bosch which I've been using since I purchased the Bosch mixer. Prior to the purchase of the Bosch mixer, I made all breads by hand. This recipe can also be made using stand alone mixer to start and possibly transferring the dough part way to finish off the kneading or making this bread by hand only from start to finish. Most recipes I have made always required double risings before baking. This recipe only requires one rising.

The recipe is as follows:

Almond Nut Butter Balls

Leah recently made these delicious Almond Butter Balls using the Almond Nut Butter recipe here which was previously posted.  The Almond Butter Balls is adapted from Healthy Snacks To Go Ebook put out by Katie Kimball of Kitchen Stewardship.  We purchased a copy earlier this year and have really enjoyed her easy recipes.  They do make great healthy snacks.  We found the recipes easy to alter toward our food choices if need be.  

The Almond Butter Balls calls for only a few ingredients such as, 

• Almond Butter
• maple syrup
• coconut chips
• cocoa powder (can be replaced by carob powder).  

 It can easily be called a raw recipe if using raw nut butter and it does not need to be baked in the oven. I can guarantee, these butter balls, won't stay around long.

If you are looking to try similar recipes, I would encourage you to have a look at both Ebooks Healthy Snacks to Go and Kitchen Stewardship in the Big Woods.  If you are looking for quick healthy snacks to make, one or both of these books might be right for you and your family at a very affordable price.

Healthy Snacks to Go ~ Over 30 recipes to get you on your way with real food, fast (44 pages)

Kitchen Stewardship in the Big Woods ~ A Family Camping Handbook with Real Food Options (48 pages)

Yes, the bread on the cutting board is home made Challah!

Here is another snack recipe which Leah made called Cocoa Health Bars.  Click here for more on this recipe.

Leah is learning to be one of Yahweh's servants and loves to bake.  We attended Sukkot in Lake City Florida with our fellow brothers and  sisters at Kol Hamashiach last week.  Leah along with her cousins Sonja and Mia were blessed to be able to help in the kitchen throughout the week.   

“Disclosure: We are an affiliate of Kitchen Stewardship’s eBooks, which means we'll earn a small commission from any sales made through these links. If you're interested in purchasing one or both of these books, we do appreciate if you would support our family business.  Please note that we do prepare and eat power bars.  Yes the power bars are great tasting!  

A side note: I've corresponded with Katie from Kitchen Stewardship recently.  She has a heart for our Savior Messiah and a heart to help fellow bloggers.  She has been a blessing to me.

If you've tried other recipes from Katie Kimball's ebooks, i'd love to hear which recipes were a big hit with your family. 

This post was shared with:
Tuesday Twister of GNOWFLINS
Hearth 'n Soul of A Moderate Life

Coconut Macaroons

Leah, our daughter, Keeper of the Home Apprentice loves baking and loves making macaroons; they are so quick and easy to make, with just a few ingredients and a little bit of time, that is all it takes. Take a look, if you like your food with coconut, you’ll love these as they incorporate unsweetened organic coconut flakes which we purchase from Tropical Traditions.


Tropical Traditions Coconut Flakes Facts
Tropical Traditions 100% natural Shredded Coconut, Coconut Flakes, and Coconut Chips are made from organic dried coconuts in the Philippines that are grown with no fertilizers or pesticides. This premium dried coconut contains no additives or preservatives, and is not sweetened. Their dried coconut products are not treated with sulfites to keep them white. Coconut meat contains fiber which aids in digestion .

Coconut Macaroons

¾ cup organic sugar or sucanat (we use less)

2 ½ cups unsweetened shredded coconut

2 egg whites (the egg yolks were put to good use)

1 tsp pure vanilla extract

Pinch of salt

Directions

• Preheat the oven to 325 F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
• Mix together with your hands if or a wooden spoon if you prefer organic sugar, coconut, egg whites, vanilla and salt.
• Dampen hands with cold water. Use 1 ½ TBSP to form mounds, and place on prepared baking sheet. Space the mounds about 1 inch apart.
• Bake the macaroons until they are golden brown. This may take about 15-17 minutes. Rotate halfway through.
• Let them cool on a wire rack. We just let them be on the parchment paper.
• These can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature up to 3 days. Ours never last more than a day. We make them so rarely.

 This recipe is taken from Martha Stewart Cookies .  This is not a book we use often as we don't make a habit of eating baked sweets.  One day when time allows, we'd love to try more of these recipes and alter the sweeet content to a healthier choice.

If you are new to Tropical Traditions, and are interested in ordering, please consider using our User Id 2470694 on your first order.  You will recieve your own free copy of "Virgin Coconut Oil" book.  Feel free to visit Tropical Traditions Customer Service  if you need help placing your first order and to receive your free copy of Virgin Coconut.
 


If you've made Macaroons before, would you care to share if you've used another sweetener like honey?

No-Cook Coconut Cream Applesauce

I recently prepared a wonderful light desert using Tropical Traditions' Organic Coconut Cream Concentrate.  We made a No-Cook Coconut Cream Applesauce found at Tropical Traditions Free Recipes.  It was a nice and light complement a after a dinner meal, easy to prepare with no baking.  Something so easy, a young child could prepare. We have adjusted the recipe to fit our family of 4.  This would make a great morning meal too!

No-Cook Coconut Cream Applesauce

Serves 4

4 organic apples
2 tablespoon or more coconut cream concentrate, warmed slightly if necessary
few drops lemon juice (optional)
handful of raisins (optional)
Pumpkin spice (optional) 

 Directions

• Peel apples if they are not organic.
• Using a grater, coarsely grate the apples 
• Mix in coconut cream concentrate until well blended.
• add pumpkin spice if desired.
• Add lemon juice if desired.

Have you made a similar apple sauce before?  If so, how was it prepared differently?  I would love to hear more suggestions.

Challah

Photo from Sonja Langford

We've been baking challah for quite some time now. The children look forward to it every Shabbat, and they can't seem to get enough. Baking challah every week is a choice we make because we enjoy eating this bread. I've prepared this bread in a few ways and I'd like to share with you the basic recipe which I use.


This recipe I've been following is from Peter Reinhart's book, The Bread Baker's Apprentice (wonderful recipes). Its a simple recipe which uses much less flour than other Challah recipes I've seen.

Ingredients

4 cups unbleached bread flour

2 TBSP granulated sugar (we use honey)

1 tsp salt

1 1/3 tsp instant yeast (we use regular yeast)

2 TBSP oil

3 large egg yolks, slightly beaten

¾ cup plus 2 TBSP to 1 1/3 cups water, at room temperature

1egg white, whisked until frothy, for egg wash

Sesame or poppy seeds for garnish

Directions

• Stir together the flour, sugar, salt, and yeast (because we don’t use the instant yeast, I usually proof my yeast with the water first, and once its ready then I add the dry ingredients)

• Using another bowl, whisk together the oil, eggs and yolks and ¾ cup plus 2 TBSP water. Poor the egg mixture into the flour mixture and mix with a spoon or low speed with paddle attachment in mixer until the ingredients gather and form into a ball. You can add the extra water if need.

• Sprinkle flour on the counter and place the dough on the counter. Knead for about ten minutes (or mix at medium-low speed for about 6 minutes with the dough hook), sprinkle more flour if you need to make the dough more soft and supple but not sticky dough.

• Oil a large bowl, form the dough into a ball and place it into the bowl. Make sure to roll the ball around to coat it with the oil. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap. (we’ve also used a dishcloth in the past). Let ferment for one hour at room temperature.)

• Remove the dough from the bowl and knead for about 2 minutes. Re-form it into a ball and return the ball to the bowl. Cover with plastic wrap or whatever you are using and let ferment for another hour. It should be at least 1 ½ times its original size.

• Remove dough from the bowl and divide it into 6 pieces for 2 loaves. Form each piece into a ball and cover them with a towel and let them rest for ten minutes. (I’ve been omitting this step, and my bread always turns out.)

• Roll out the pieces into strands, each the same length, thicker in the middle and slightly tapered toward the ends. Braid them using the 3-braid method. Line a sheet pan with baking parchment and transfer the loaves to the pan. Brush the loaves with the egg wash. Mist the loaves with spray oil and cover loosely with plastic wrap or place the pan in a food-grade plastic bag.  Here's a short video for 3 braid instructions.

 

• Proof at room temperature for 60 to 75 minutes or until the dough has grown to 1 ½ times its original size.

• Preheat the oven to 350 F with the oven rack on middle shelf. Brush again with egg wash and sprinkle sesame seeds on top.”

• Bake for 20 minutes. Rotate the pan 190 degrees and continue baking for 20 to 45 minutes depending on the size of the loaf. The bread should be a golden brown.

• When done, you can transfer the bread to a rack and let cool for at least one hour before slicing or serving.

*I found that by sprinkling sesame seeds after I’ve braided the bread to let rise and then gently brushing the egg white on to the bread , it is helps the sesame seeds to actually stay on.


Do you have a favorite challah recipe?  

Lavash Crackers

 Have you ever had the desire to make your own crackers? It’s a great complement to any dips and crackers are great all year round. Since we've decided to no longer purchase crackers from the store and make our own at home, we didn't have to search far for a good recipe.  This recipe I’m sharing is very simple to make and won’t take much of your time or effort. I’ve owned the Peter Reinhart’s Bread Baker’s Apprentice cookbook for quite some time now and have had much fun trying out his bread recipes. We really enjoy making his Lavash Crackers. The recipe which I would like to share has been altered to fit our family’s to our own taste.

Lavash crakckers also known as Armenian flatbread also has Iranian roots and is now eaten through the Middle East and around the world It is similar to the many other Middle Eastern and North African flatbreads known by different names, such as mankoush or mannaesh (Lebanese) barbari (Iranian), khoubiz or khobz (Arabian), aiysh (Egyptian), kesret and mella (Tunisian), pide or pita (Turkish), and pideh (Armenian).  The main difference between these brads is either how thick or thin the dough is rolled out or the type of oven in which they are baked (or on which they are baked, as many many of these breads are cooked on stones or red hot pans with convex surface). quoted from Lavash Crackers of The Bread Baker's Apprentice Cookbook.

Lavash Crackers ~ Armenian Style

1 ½ cups fresh milled soft wheat berry flour

½ tsp salt

½ instant yeast (I used 1 tsp regular yeast)

1 tbsp honey

1 tbsp oil

1/3 – ½ cup water at room temperature

Some sesame seeds (We added)

Some flax seeds (We added)

Sprinkled cayenne pepper once dough was rolled out (We added)

(We normally double the recipe.)

Directions:

1. If you are using the instant yeast, stir flour, salt, yeast, honey, oil and just enough water to bring everything together into a ball. You may not need not need the full ½ cup water. (skip to No. 2. For further directions)

Directions for Regular yeast

If regular yeast, proof yeast by adding ½ tsp honey and mix in room temperature water. Make sure to dilute honey before sprinkling yeast in water. You can mix the yeast in the water if you wish or just let it sit on top of water. Let the water and yeast sit for at least 5 minutes.

Once the yeast has been activated, poor yeast mixture in mixing bowl along with salt, honey, oil and start mixing. Slowly add flour and let the mixer do its job. Today we added sesame seeds and flax seeds. If you find your mixer is straining, please remove dough and knead the dough on a floured surface.

2. Transfer the dough in an oiled bowl and let ferment at room temperature for 90 minutes or until the dough doubles in size. (oops, I forgot to do that and they still turned out great).

3. Preheat the oven to 350 F.

4. Oil the surface where you’ll be rolling out the dough. I usually try to shape the dough into a rectangular shape to fit my cookie sheet before rolling it out. Directions say you can roll it out into paper-thin sheets which we don’t do. Today, we actually rolled out the dough directly onto a parchment paper sized to the cookie sheet.

We then sprinkled cayenne pepper on the top of the dough and then Leah precut the crackers using a pie pastry wheel Directions say you can mist the top of the dough with water and add a covering of seeds or spices on the dough.

Suggestions for seeds or spices:

• Poppy seeds
• Sesame seeds
• Paprika
• Cumin seeds
• Caraway seeds
• Kosher or pretzel salt

5. Place the cookie sheet on the middle tray and Bake for 15 to 20 minutes or until the crackers begin to brown evenly on the top. I have to let my crackers make longer since mine are not very thin.

6. Remove the pan from the oven and let cool, about 10 minutes. Once cooled, you can snap the crackers apart or break pieces off if you did not precut the crackers.


Have you tried making your own crackers before?  If so what is your favorite recipe?  If you've posted it, please be sure to share your link and kindly link back to this post.  

Enjoy, Blessings!

Cocoa Health Bars

This Power Bar  recipe which was drastically adapted by Leah was amazingly good. So good they were powered down in no time. So quick and easy with no baking, how convenient! If you have a chance, try  making them

This ebook Healthy Snacks to Go which includes 30 recipes is available for a low cost.  Katie Kimball from Kitchen Stewardship strives to educate towards a healthier living teaching to take one step at a time.

Ingredients

1 - 1½ cup whole almonds

aprox. 1 cup pitted dates

1/3 cup coconut oil (we used grape seed oil)

1/3 - ½ cup organic cocoa powder

(about 4-5 heaping tablespoons; less if you don't like the “dark chocolate” taste)

¾ - 1 cup raisins

aprox. 2-3 tablespoons of freshly ground flax seed

Instructions

• Grind almonds in a food processor until coarse crumbs (tiny chunks).

• Add the dates, raisins, grape seed oil, and cocoa powder. You may not need as much oil as is listed, so pour in only part of it, then remove the food processor from the base to feel if the mixture is sticky enough.

• Press into a 9x9 inch pan (a glass pie pan might work also). Place parchment paper over and press onto it very firmly.

• Place into the refrigerator for about 3 hours. Cut and enjoy!

Have you made power bars before?  Care to share your favorite recipe?  Just post the link in the comment section.

Drastically adapted by Leah  “Power Bars (reverse engineered Larabars)” the “German Chocolate” variation from Katie Kimball's Healthy Snacks to Go.

“Disclosure: We are an affiliate of Kitchen Stewardship’s eBooks, which means we'll earn a small commission from any sales made through these links. If you're interested in purchasing one or both of these books, we do appreciate if you would support our family business.  Please note that we do prepare and eat power bars.  Yes the power bars are great tasting!  



Blessings in Messiah,

This recipe is shared on:

Tuesday Twister at GNOWFLINS 
Real Food Wednesday  at Kelly the Kitchen Kop
Pennywise Platter at The Nourishing Gourmet  
Fight Back Friday at Real Food Renegade

Zucchini Muffins Expanded

What a scrumptious muffin recipe! Our soon to be 14 year old daughter, "Keeper of the Home Apprentice in our Kitchen" (click to read post) is like her mom, she loves to experiment and change out or add new ingredients to her baking and cooking. Here we have an amazingly moist Zucchini Chocolate Chip Muffin recipe and as Leah states it’s expanded with the yummy fillings and toppings!

Leah typed up the recipe for me. What a great helper and servant of the LORD she is. She baked this batch and they were gone in days with much self control.


Ingredients
2 cups sprouted whole wheat flour (or more)
2 tsp baking soda
¼ tsp baking powder
3 tsp cinnamon (or more)
1 tsp salt approximately (or more)
½ cup olive oil
½ cup water
1 ½ – 2 cups zucchini, grated (unpeeled)
3 eggs
2/3 cup raw honey

Fillings/Toppings
½ - ¾ cup blackberries
½ - ¾ cup dried cranberries
½ - ¾ cup blueberries
¼ - ½ cup cut strawberries
¾ – 1 cup chocolate chips (or less)
nuts and raisins (optional)

Directions
• Grease muffin tins enough to make 18-24 muffins (I made 12 medium sized and 12 miniature muffins). You can use muffin tin liners instead of greasing the tins. Grease pie pans for a special cake/loaf.

• Mix in bowl, flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, salt.

• Beat eggs and blend in zucchini, oil, water, and honey (or just put them into the mixing bowl)

• If you beat the wet ingredients first, add them to the dry ingredients.

• Add fruit and nuts.

• Scoop into prepared pans and top with extra fruit/nuts/chocolate chips if desired.

• Bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 20 minutes or until fork comes out moist, but cooked. :~)

Give it a try and let Leah know how they turn out

May you be blessed 

This recipe is also shared at:
- GNOWFLINS ~ Tuesday Twister 
- KellytheKitchenKop ~ Real Food Wednesday
- The Nourishing Gourmet ~ PennywisePlatter Thursday  
- Food Renegade ~ Fight Back Fridays