Homemade Crackers

Troublesome, and time consuming they may be, but oh-so rewarding!

The Recipe  ~ from Two peas and Their Pod

Homemade Wheat Thins 

Recipe from King Arthur Whole Grain Baking Cookbook

1 1/4 cups whole wheat flour
1 1/2 tablespoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt, plus extra for topping
1/4 teaspoon paprika
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/4 cup water (you might need to add a little more)
1/4 teaspoon vanilla

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.  Line two baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats. Set aside.

2. Add the flour, sugar, salt and paprika to a medium bowl and whisk to combine.  Cut the butter into small pieces and add it to the bowl.  Using a pastry blender, mix the butter into the dry ingredients thoroughly.  Combine the water and vanilla in a small measuring cup or bowl.  Add to the butter/flour mixture and mix until a smooth dough forms. If the dough is still dry, add a little more water.

3. Divide the dough into 4 pieces.  Work with one piece at a time, keeping the others covered with a towel so they don’t dry out.  Lightly flour your work surface and rolling pin and roll the dough into a large rectangle.  Lift the dough and turn it as you roll to ensure it’s not sticking.  You want to roll the dough as thin as possible, try to make sure it’s 1/16-inch thick at most.  If you want all of your crackers to be perfect, trim the edges of the dough so you have a rectangle with even sides.  Use a pizza cutter to cut the rectangle into squares about 1 to 1 1/2 inches wide.

4. Transfer the dough squares to the prepared baking sheets. You can place them close together because they will not spread.  Sprinkle the squares lightly with salt.  Repeat the rolling and cutting process with the remaining 3 pieces of dough.  Save all of your scraps under the towel to keep the dough from drying out; reroll them all at once to create a final batch of crackers.

5. Bake the crackers, one sheet at a time, until crisp and browned, about 5-10 minutes.  Check the crackers at 5 minutes, and if some of the thinner ones are browning too quickly, remove them from the oven.  The crackers can burn quickly so you want to keep a close eye on them.  Remove crackers from oven and place on a wire rack to cool.  Store the crackers in an airtight container.

 I must warn you that the recipe really doesn't make too many, in other words it is terribly easy for four people to eat the whole batch in one afternoon!  Plan accordingly.

Today we'll make...

...Pizza Pockets!

You'll need :

3 1/2 cups of flour

1 t salt

2 sticks melted butter

1 cup yogurt

Stir these together.

1 1/2 cups tomato sauce

1/2 t garlic powder

1 1/2 t oregano

1 1/2 t basil

Simmer together on the stove for a few minutes. 

You can use your choice of filling ingredients - ground beef, pepperoni, olives, cheese, etc.

I used *fresh* ground beef.  It was our first time using the meat grinder and it was a success!  A little different than store bought though.  I really only ground my own to use up some stew beef we had in the freezer - my whole family is sick of soup!

Now, roll out small 2-3 in balls of dough into a circle, top with sauce and other toppings, fold and seal.

Bake @ 400 degrees for about 15-20 minutes. 

This is another Heavenly Homemakers recipe!

Honey Whole Wheat Bagels

Ever since our dear mother came home from the grocery store with strawberry cream cheese, I 've been dying to make bagels.  I used a recipe from Heavenly Homemakers.

So I set out yesterday with my ever-present personal sous chef, Melissa Anne.  (who just turned 4, by the way!)

Here she is kneading bagel dough.

  

While I did this...

...it appears that my companion had tired of her culinary duties!

(*cough* it was time to clean up *cough*)

First you broil, then boil, then bake!

Meanwhile Melissa Anne took her dog, Doggy, and her cat, Kitty for a little walk.  

With a towel on her head. 

Ahh, the finished product.  Please enjoy toasted, with strawberry cream cheese!

Honey Whole Wheat Bagels
4  to 4 1/2  cups whole wheat flour (I use freshly ground flour from hard white wheat)
1 pkg yeast (2 1/4 t.)
1 1/2 cups warm water (if you put your finger in and it hurts, it’s too hot and will kill your yeast)
3 T. honey + 1 T. honey
1 t. sea salt
Stir together 2 cups of the flour, the salt and the yeast.  Add in the warm water and 3 T. honey.  Gradually add in the remaining flour.

Dump it out and knead the flour in until the dough is smooth and elastic. 
Cover the dough and let it take a nap for about 10 minutes. Divide the dough into twelve equal parts.

Set a timer for 20 minutes.  Begin shaping each piece of dough into a nice ball.  Stick your finger in the middle of the ball and pull it apart to create about a 2 inch hole.   

Lay it onto a buttered cookie sheet or baking stone.
Continue until all the bagels are formed.  Let them sit until your timer goes off.

After your 20 minute timer goes off, turn the broiler on in your oven.
Broil your bagels for 2 minutes on each side.

Meanwhile…bring a big pot of water to a boil.  Stir in the remaining 1 T. honey.

Put 4-6 bagels into the water, turn down the heat and
simmer for seven minutes, turning the bagels over once during that time.

Continue to boil your bagels until they are all done.
Let them drain on a towel.

Bake at 375 ° for 25-30 minutes or until the tops are golden brown.