Sourdough Croissants

I just can't seem to stop baking things with my sourdough starter to my family's delight (read this if you would like to get a starter of your own going). I got it in my mind somehow that it would be fun to try to make sourdough croissants. However, either I could not really find the kind of recipe I was looking for, something more traditional, or I couldn't find a recipe with complete instructions or a full set of ingredients. So I set off on a mission to develop a complete sourdough croissant recipe, which includes step-by-step instructions. I researched several recipes for information to develop this recipe including this one by the Sourdough Companion, which gave me the starting point for some of the ingredient amounts.

I have learned a lot about my starter and baking breads in general through the development of this recipe - it has been an interesting and challenging journey to say the least! This is not a quick throw it together recipe. There will need to be a little planning involved as you prepare and care for your dough on and off during a 2-day period. The entire process includes lots of waiting and then more waiting and then some kneading (three of my least favorite things), but the end result is so worth it.

Awesome Rice Pudding

Years ago, I used to get rice pudding from this little Lebanese restaurant in town called N&J's. I loved it so much that I would buy several containers and keep them in the refrigerator at home for easy snacks. When I moved back here, the restaurant was still there but they sadly no longer sold their rice pudding.

Ever since, I have been trying to find a way to make a delicious, super creamy, mildly sweet rice pudding recipe at home. I have lots of leftover rice, and I want to make something really great with it. Everything I have tried in the past comes out a bit dried out or has a strange flavor, or something is wrong with it. Well, I am beyond happy to report that I have found a delicious rice pudding recipe and I am going to share it with you all. This does not taste like the Lebanese version I used to get as it is not a Lebanese rice pudding, but I think I will use it as a starting point for a Lebanese version.

Sourdough Pretzels

We just love this easy and quick recipe for sourdough pretzels that helps use up excess starter.

Sourdough Bierocks and Empanadas

My friend, LeAnn, shared a wonderful bierock recipe with me. The ingredients are very simple and the end result is so delicious. I did substitute my own recipe for the dough since I am trying to ensure all my grains are prepared to maximize their nutritional benefit. I was worried the substitution might change the taste overall, but it did not. In fact, this dough is really wonderful and very close in taste to my friend's original recipe.

 

It was so good that I started filling it with all kinds of yummy stuff. So, you'll find the recipes below for Bierocks and also for Bacon Cheeseburger Empanadas and a *bonus* for Breakfast Empanadas in the Comments. I am sure you will also come up with lots of delicious fillings for this wonderful dough - please leave your ideas in the comments.

Leftover Cranberry Sauce Muffins

We always have leftover cranberry sauce, which I think is amazing in these muffins.

Maple Caramel Pecans

Those of you real food blogging "old timers" may remember a website called Real Food Freaks, which was an awesome resource for recipes and healthy living. The authors have since moved on and the blog/ website is no longer active (unfortunately)!

My absolute favorite recipe from Real Food Freaks was a snack that involved pecans in a maple syrup caramel sauce, but the recipe was lost forever (ok, maybe I'm being a little dramatic) when the site was deactivated.

My recipe below was developed to try to capture the taste of the original recipe by Real Food Freaks. I hope you enjoy!

Caramel Sauce

You can use this sauce for so many things--drizzle on pancakes or waffles or use as a dipping sauce for apples or other fruit. Try it in these AMAZING cooking bars from Taylor Made It Paleo - Triple Layer Cookie Bars with Chocolate Caramel Topping - or drizzle over popcorn for an easy and quick snack.

Yellow Squash-Zucchini Fritters

As you can tell, I am definitely on a squash/ zucchini recipe "kick" since I have so much to use up from my CSA box. We have made these fritters several times now and they are husband and kid approved. 

Grape Jelly (No Added Pectin)

My husband planted a purple grape vine the year before we were married and we harvested a ton of grapes this year. It was a lot of work, but really great to get all these delicious grapes from our own yard. I believe it is a Concord grape vine, but not positive about that. The plant yields small, round, dark purple grapes with one or two seeds. The grapes themselves are sweet although the skins are a bit tart.

Seven Layer Dip

My husband loves this dip, which we make at least once a year for the Super Bowl. But, it is so easy and so good, I think I will start making it more often.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Treats

If you are looking for a quick and easy snack, look no further. These little treats are super fast to make and will satisfy any "snack" craving.

Applesauce Bars with Raisins and Frosting

Ahhh.... you saw that title and thought I lost my mind, didn't you? Frosting? I mean seriously, how the heck can I post a recipe with frosting?? Hm...... Well, you'll just have to read on to see.......

I adapted this recipe from Semi Homemade Mom's Raisin Applesauce Bars and Caramel Frosting. I hope you'll go check out her blog - lots of great recipes!

 

Test Kitchen: Sesame Honey Candy

I think that one of my husband's greatest difficulties on a real food diet is that he feels like he cannot satisfy his sweet tooth. He is often looking for a sweet snack and this treat satisfies that craving in a wonderful, nutritious way!

Warm Cinnamon Apples

We used this filling for Apple Cinnamon Stuffed Crepes, made with Sweet Crepes, but it could easily be a sweet treat on its own or part of another dessert.

Crepes (Sweet)

This is a simple recipe for Sweet Crepes that you can use in dessert recipes, etc. We used ours in a sweet breakfast - Apple Cinnamon Crepes. They were delicious! In fact, I think I enjoyed the sweet version more than the savory crepes. 

 

Fruit Pizza

I had a craving for fruit pizza and decided to try to make one that would be nutritious and still taste good. This worked out really well - it is a fun and delicious treat.

 

 

Zucchini Bread

Don't let all the ingredients below fool you - this is an easy and really delicious zucchini bread recipe you won't want to miss!

 

Frozen Banana Nut Snacks

I don't know about your house, but in my house, husband and boy spend lots of time looking for snacks in the evenings and weekends. It is much easier to fight this battle with nutritious snacks on hand. I am happy to point them to these frozen treats, which are very easy to make and very tasty as well. We always have a bag in our freezer. If you make them small enough, they are bite-sized and quite handy even without toothpicks.

 

Cranberry Sauce Muffins

I love making cranberry sauce every year, but mostly its just to make leftover cranberry sauce muffins like the ones below or these.

 

Almond - Maple Sugar Cookies

We love fall and especially October. The little one was out of school so I decided to try to make a more nutritious version of "sugar" cookies that we could decorate this weekend.

1/2 cup butter softened - try to use only organic butter from grass-fed cows
1/2 cup honey, try to find local sources
2 tbsp maple sugar
1 pasture egg
1/4 tsp sea salt
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 1/2 cups almond flour, try this
2 cups spelt flour, try this

How To:
1. Get Started: Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Make Dough: Cream the butter, honey, and maple sugar together with a hand mixer in a medium sized bowl. Add egg, salt, cinnamon, and baking soda and mix well. Add the flours and mix well.

3. Roll Dough: With about a handful of dough at a time, roll the dough out to about 1/4 inch thickness. Sprinkle spelt flour on your work surface and the rolling pin to help keep the dough from sticking.

4. Cut and Bake: Use your favorite cookie cutters to cut shapes in the dough and transfer to a parchment or foil lined cookie sheet. The dough is very delicate so be very careful with it when transferring from surface to cookie sheet.

Bake 8-10 minutes. Let cool.

Comments: I cannot tell you how many cookies these make, but the picture below shows all the cookies (except a small moon shape that we ate pre-picture) from one batch. They worked out really well for decorating as you can see. Considering that we made a more nutritious option with regard to the cookies, we are totally going junk-food as far as decorating with the standard sugar candies from the store, but that was the only option I could find locally. If you are lucky enough to have a more healthful option - wonderful! Also, you could try India Tree (pre-order or purchase locally if you can).

We used a cream cheese frosting (honey and mascarpone cheese or honey and cream cheese), which was very easy to make. You could also try yogurt-cream cheese-maple sugar frosting or a buttercream. These little cookies were very good and you could probably sprinkle with cinnamon and a little maple sugar right when they come out of the oven and have a nice treat, instead of decorating. Or add chopped almonds or another kind of nut to the dough.... Yum! these are really great!

 

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This post was shared with Tasteful Tuesdays, Snacktime Saturday, Show & Share Wednesday.