Crusty, Fool-Proof Baguettes In 30 Minutes Flat

Quick & crusty baguettes in 30 minutes flat. Say that five times fast. How many of you thought you’d ever be able to say that at all, let alone believe it? This recipe is like the best (not anymore!) kept secret on the planet. It’s so easy, it’s been called fool proof. It’s perfect for beginner bakers and as an easy introduction to from-scratch bread making. Plus, it only uses five (yes, 5) everyday ingredients you probably already have in stock.

Soft and flaky on the inside, crisp and crusty on the outside. They’re perfect for tearing into and chewing alongside your favorite pasta, your favorite cheese, your favorite soup, or for something as simple as slapping on a slab of your favorite butter. These baguettes are perfect. And they can be made last minute. Goodbye pre-planning and hours of rise time. I won’t miss tip-toeing around the house or trying to time nap time so heavy foot steps and little running feet wouldn’t make my dough fall, that’s for sure!

This recipe makes two loaves, and we love to enjoy one fresh out of the oven with our favorite spices in a little olive oil for a quick and easy appetizer to tide us over while our main meal cooks.

Crusty, Fool Proof Baguettes In Under 30 Minutes Flat

2 cups very warm water
1 packet yeast, or 2 1/4 tsp dry active yeast
2 tbsp sugar
1 1/2 tsp salt
3-4 cups of flour

Directions

 1. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. In a large bowl, whisk together the warm water, yeast, and sugar. Set the bowl on top of your preheating oven for ten minutes. Stir in the salt and add the flour a half-cup at a time, until the dough becomes soft, but not sticky. Knead the dough until elastic.

2. Cut the dough into four even pieces. Roll each of them into four long, thin ropes. Twist together two of the ropes to form one loaf. Twist the other two ropes together to form a second loaf. Transfer both onto a large baking sheet lined with parchment paper.

3. You can now bake the loaf right away (if you’re in a hurry), or allow it to rise for an additional 15-30 minutes on top of your warm oven.

4. Fill a large bowl with 3-4 cups of ice. Open your hot oven and place the baking sheet with the baguettes inside, then toss the ice cubes on the bottom of the oven and quickly shut the door. Do NOT open your oven for 15 minutes (the steam for the ice is what creates the crunchy outer crust). Bake until golden brown, about 15-18 minutes.

5. Serve warm with butter or with a dipping sauce of your favorite seasoned olive oil.

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Savory White Cheddar Short Bread

Love short bread? Or more specifically shortbread cookies? That same basic sweet recipe you’re used to is easy to alter into a savory version by swapping out the sugar and subbing in some savory spices and quality cheese.

This version is simple to make, and makes an elegant presentation for any party table (the Holidays are right around the corner-wink,wink). Plus, they make an awesome upgrade from the more traditional, but often basic party staple: the cracker. Who doesn’t want to impress their guests, and keep it deliciously simple??

Savory White Cheddar Short Bread

2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 cup (2 sticks) salted butter, chilled and cut into small pieces
2 cups shredded sharp white cheddar cheese
1/2 cup milk
1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce

parchment paper

Directions

1. Add the flour and pepper to a food processor fitted with the mixing attachmeant and pulse Until they’re evenly mixed. Next, throw in the cold, cut butter, and pulse until the butter is ‘cut in’ and the mixture resembles coarse meal (this should only take 8-10 seconds).
   2. Add cheese to the flour and pulse until they’re evenly incorporated, and then transfer the flour mixture into a separate, large bowl.
   3. Stir the milk and Worcestershire sauce into the flour mixture, mixing until evenly incorporated and ‘dough’ has formed.
   4. Transfer the dough to a clean workspace, such as a counter top, and shape it into two 1″ round logs, and wrap each ‘log’ in parchment paper. Refrigerate the logs until firm, or at the least for 1 hour.
   5. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Remove the chilled dough from refrigerator, and use a sharp serrated knife to cut each one into 1/4″ thick slices. Space the slices about an inch apart from each other on the parchment paper.
   6. Bake at 350 degrees until golden, about 12 minutes, rotating the baking sheets between the shelves halfway through baking.
   7. Remove the pans from the oven and let rest approximately two minutes before transferring the shortbread to wire cooling racks. Repeat with the remaining dough.

recipe adapted from Martha Stewart

Pumpkin & Olive Oil Dinner Rolls

It only took me 29 years to figure out my problem. And a debilitating one it was! From September – December, every year, it’s the season of Pumpkin everything. And I didn’t like pumpkin. Survival was a struggle. It was real, ya’ll. So good thing this year, I was able to self-diagnose and resolve my issue. It’s not with pumpkin. I actually like pumpkin (well, in certain recipes). My issue is with pumpkin ‘spice’. Which actually makes me feel kind of dumb, because it’s well documented that I abhor cinnamon, and a lot of other nutty flavors, like nutmeg and allspice, so it is only logical that I would loathe pumpkin ‘spice’.

Now that I’ve gotten that all squared away, I’ve been going a little pumpkin crazy, well with pumpkin purée, not the pie filling, well because the ‘spice’. And these soft and savory rolls are by far my favorite thing I’ve discovered yet. The pumpkin adds extra vitamins and fiber, without altering the doughy, yeasty bread taste in anyway. So basically, they’re more healthy than regular rolls, and they taste amazing, and because they have pumpkin in them they’re pretty much mandatory at Thanksgiving and any other Autumn activity.

Pumpkin & Olive Oil Dinner Rolls

1 3/4 tsp active dry yeast
1 1/2 tbsp granulated sugar
1/4 cup milk
2 1/2 tbsp olive oil, plus extra for greasing/brushing
1 tsp salt
1 egg
1/3 cup, plus 1 tbsp, pumpkin puree
2 cups, plus 1 tbsp, all-purpose flour

Directions

1. In the bowl of a stand mixer, use the dough hook attachment to mix all of the ingredients listed together, at a medium speed, until evenly incorporated and everything pulls together into an elastic, slightly sticky dough ball.
   2. Use the extra olive oil to grease the inside of a large bowl. Use your still oiled hands, and then pick up the dough and transfer to the prepared bowl, turning it over just until all sides are coated with the older be oil too. Cover the bowl, we use plastic wrap or a dish towel, and let the dough rise in a warm place until it has sufficiently risen (but not necessarily doubled in size), about an hour to an hour and 15 minutes. Grease a work surface, such as a clean, clear kitchen counter, with olive oil and then turn out the dough onto the prepared surface. Knead the dough For about a minute and then pull it apart into roughly 8 equally-sized pieces, gently rounding out each into a ball again.
   3. Grease a 9″ round cake pan with olive oil and place all 8 rolls in the pan with equal spacing between. We got seven in an outer circle with the eighth in the middle. Cover and let the dough rise again for 30 – 45 minutes, or until the rolls have expanded to cover the surface of the pan and are touching each other and the sides of the pan.
   4. Bake the rolls at 350 degrees for 20 minutes. Remove the pan from the oven, and carefully form a loose aluminum foil tent over it and bake for another 5 minutes. Remove the bread from the oven and brush the tops of the rolls with some additional olive oil. Let the rolls rest and cool for five minutes , and then gently run a butter knife around the edges to loosen the rolls before removing them individually.

recipe adapted from My Sequined Life

Black Pepper & Parmesan Beer Bread

Do you ever see something and you immediately know you’ve just gotta have it? And I’m not talking about that bracelet you saw in the Tiffany’s catalog, or even that friggin’ genius no-leak (seriously, we’ve tried everything testing it out, for your sake of course!) sippy cup combo pack on Amazon.

I’m talking about food, or rather a picture of food. Whether it’s one you spotted in a magazine, on the Google/Pinterst, or even a mental image your formed when skimming over a new recipe. An image of something you just have to have. Stat. Something you want for breakfast, lunch, and dinner?

Nobody? Aww, come on ! Don’t be shy, you know it’s happened to you too. At least here you’re in good, non-judgey foodie company 😉

 

That was pretty much me at my desk, ogling this bread on my computer screen. Pretty sure one of the sons had to help pick my jaw up off the floor for me. I mean, we’re no strangers to the wide world of beer bread, but this? It was evolutionary. And I could just picture the flavor  blending and melting into my mouth with each buttered bite.

Just a heads-up, this recipe yields one loaf. You may want to opt for a double batch, ya know, if you live with anyone who has even the slightest fondness for bread, and carbs. Wars were waged over this loaf. You’d have thought I’d baked a brick of gold or something.

Black Pepper Parmesan Beer Bread

3 1/4 cups all purpose flour
2 1/2 tbsp granulated sugar
1 tbsp baking powder
1 1/2 tsp salt
14 oz of your favorite beer, you can opt for a nice flavorful one or stick with something more generic like a Coors Light (there are no right or wrongs here)
1/2 cup butter, divided and melted
3/4 cup shredded parmesan cheese
1 1/2 -2 tbsp freshly cracked black pepper

Directions

1. Place flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt in a mixing bowl and use a fork to evenly stir together.
2. Create a small well in the center of the flour mixture and add in the beer (pour slowly), 1/4 cup of the melted butter, cheese, and black pepper. Stir them all until the dough just comes together. Do not over mix! (small flour pockets can be gently stirred away; one or two remaining flour pockets are okay).
3. Transfer the batter into a prepared (lightly greased) loaf pan. Pour the other quarter cup of melted butter over top the batter and bake at 375 degrees for about 1 hour to 1 hour and 10 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean when inserted into the center of the loaf.
4. Remove the bread from the oven and let rest for about 5 minutes. Carefully remove the loaf from the pan to a wire rack and allow it to cool until just warm to the touch (about 1 hour and 30 minutes), before slicing.
5. Slice and serve as is, or with generous pats of butter (just sayin!)

recipe adapted from Spoon Fork Bacon

New to the wonderful (and easy) world of bread made with beer? Check out these other favorites:

Cheesy Bacon Jalapeño Popper Beer Bread

Bacon Cheddar Beer Bread

Sous Chef Sunday: Copy Cat Little Caesar’s Crazy Bread

Little Caesar’s $5 hot and ready pizzas have saved my butt at dinner time on more than one occasion. Still I think it’s safe to say that they’re crazy bread is pretty much always the star of their show.

Soft and slightly chewy, brushed with garlic butter and sprinkled with a heavy-handed amount of Parmesan cheese. They’re pretty much the best version of a bread stick. Arguably, ever.

I’ve never been good at the whole delayed gratification thing, and even though the closest Little Caesar’s to us is only about 10 miles away, when a craving hits that’s just too far. And that’s one of the reasons I love this make-at-home copycat version so much.

Craving satisfied 🙂

For big and little people alike.

Copy Cat Little Caesar’s Crazy Bread

1 can of refrigerated pizza dough, or one batch of Easy Homemade Pizza Dough
2 tbsp butter, melted
1/2 tsp garlic salt
1/8-1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Directions

1. Roll out your pizza dough onto a clean surface, into a roughly rectangular shape (doesn’t have to be perfect or exact).
2. Cut dough in half lengthwise, and then cut 8 strips vertically (making 16 small bread sticks). Place each strip onto a lightly greased baking sheet. Bake at 450 degrees for 6-8 minutes or until golden brown.
3. While the bread sticks are baking, melt the butter and stir in the garlic salt. Remove the cooked bread sticks from the oven and brush on the garlic butter mixture. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and serve warm with marinara sauce for dipping.

Stuffed Cheesy Pull-Apart Bread with Spinach & Feta

You know those times when you’re sitting there editing your photos and you just know that they didn’t do your food justice? Well, maybe not, depending on how many of you blog, post an obscene amount of food photos of everything you eat on Instagram, or (long shot) use them to make professional-ish family recipe albums. Just me??

Try as I may, I can never seem to get that money shot of this pull-apart bread that just screams to my readers, ‘oh my gawd, run to your kitchen and make this NOW.’ Which is a real shame. It’s that good. But I (in the effort of full disclosure) won’t let that hold me back a single second longer from sharing this mouth-watering recipe with you.

Inspired by Domino’s stuffed cheesy bread, except with noticeably less cheese. It was on purpose, I promise! It’s not nearly as rich as the original, and it may have less cheese stringing for miles and miles, but it delivers the same flavors, flawlessly. And with less calories.

Hey, sometimes that’s important.

Fresh spinach leaves, feta cheese, and freshly minced garlic are sandwiched between buttery, flaky layers of bread with a crispy mozzarella crust on top. Get ready to have your taste buds rocked.

Stuffed Cheesy Bread with Spinach & Feta

Bread Dough:

1/2 cups water
2/3 cups buttermilk
1/4 cup butter
1/2 cup sugar
1 tbs salt
2 1/4 tsp instant yeast, or regular yeast, proofed
3-4 cups all purpose flour

For the filling:

3-4 tbs butter, softened
2-3 large hand fulls of fresh baby spinach
1/2-3/4 cup feta cheese crumbles
one bulb of garlic diced
1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

Directions

1. In a small sauce pan add water, buttermilk, butter, sugar and salt and heat until the butter has just melted. Remove from heat and allow the mixture to cool to room temperature.
2. Once the liquids have cooled add them to the mixing bowl of your electric mixer. Using the dough hook on medium speed mix in yeast and flour one cup at a time. Stop adding flour once the dough has come together and is only lightly sticky.
3. Turn the mixing up to high speed and mix for about 2-3 minutes or until the dough is elastic.
4. Turn the dough out into a buttered bowl. Cover with a dish towel and set it someplace warm to rise for about one hour, or until the dough has doubled in size.
5. Once dough has risen, on a lightly floured surface roll dough out until it is 1/4-1/2 an inch thick. Using a sharp knife cut dough into 3×3 squares.
6. Using your hands stretch each square out so it’s about 1/4 inch thick. Spread each square with butter, spread with some minced garlic, feta cheese and then place 2-4 spinach leaves on the top.
7. In a buttered bread pan, place each square in sandwiching the filling with each layer. It gets a little messy but that is ok. Squeeze each square in the pan.
8. Cover and allow to rise for an additional 30-40 minutes or until the dough has risen about 1 inch above the top of your bread pan.
9. Bake at 350 on the middle rack of your oven for 15-20 minutes, sprinkle top with mozzarella cheese. Return to oven and bake for another 15 minutes or until the bread has browned on top and when you flick the top it sounds hollow.

recipe adapted from Bakeaholic Mama

Cinnamon Swirl Quick Bread

This recipe bakes up into an incredibly moist bread, that lives up to its  easily thrown together name, with a yummy swirl of cinnamon tucked inside. The crumb topping? Yes, sir!! A drizzle of glaze? Oh my!!

But still, even with all that, for me, it’s still none too sweet ( I know, I know some of you are wondering if there ever could be such a thing) and therefor goes hand in hand with my morning cup of coffee. Talk about the best part of waking up! Which I will will totally be pairing with my spiffy Nikon camera lens coffee mug that the hubs surprised me with 🙂

Ain’t she spiffy?!

Ok, back to today’s recipe… I love quick breads. They’re easily one of my favorite things, and ways, to bake. Why, you’re probably wondering? Because just like the name implies, they’re quick and easy, there’s no proofing or yeast of any kind involved, and no portioning batter out into cupcake liners and/ or special pans. All of which can get a bit messy. Plus, they’re easy to double so you can put the extra loaf in your freezer (if it makes it that far!).

But we don’t stop there. This dense, delicious loaf is perfect for sharing. Sharing is caring, right? So make a loaf, and make another to spare. You’re sure to bring an unexpected bit of ‘sweet’ to someone’s day.

Cinnamon Swirl Quick Bread

 

 2 cups flour
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 1/2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda
1/2 cup vegetable or canola oil
1 cup sour cream
3 eggs, beaten
2 tsp vanilla extract

For the Cinnamon Swirl:
2/3 cup sugar
1 tbsp cinnamon

For  Crumble Topping:
1/2 cup flour
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup butter, softened
1 tsp cinnamon

For Glaze:
2/3 cup powdered sugar
1 1/2 tbsp water

Directions

1. In a large mixing bowl, mix together the dry ingredients: flour, granulated sugar, brown sugar, baking powder, and baking soda.
2. Add the oil and mix until small lumps begin to form. Add the sour cream, eggs, and vanilla. Mix JUST UNTIL batter forms (do not over mix). The batter will be lumpy, and that’s okay.
3. Mix together the 2/3 cup sugar and 1 tbsp cinnamon.
4. Pour and spread 1/3 of the batter into the prepared loaf pan (Line a 9x5x3 loaf pan with foil and lightly grease) . Sprinkle 1/2 of the cinnamon sugar mixture over top.
5. Pour and spread 1/3 of the batter over the cinnamon sugar layer. Sprinkle the remaining cinnamon sugar over top.
6. Pour and spread the remaining batter over the layer of cinnamon sugar. Set aside to prepare crumble topping.

For crumble topping:
1. Mix together the flour and sugar in a medium mixing bowl. Cut in the butter until a crumble forms (I like to use my fingers about halfway through the “cutting”).
2. Sprinkle the crumble over top of the bread batter.

Bake:
Bake at 350 degrees for 60-70 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the loaf comes out clean.

For the glaze:
Use a fork to whisk together the water and the powdered sugar until thick glaze forms. Drizzle over the freshly baked bread

recipe adapted from Something Swanky

Cheddar Ranch Bread

Everybody here goes absolutely ga-ga for the combination of bacon, ranch, and cheese. They really love our snack supper nights because they usually incorporate some combo of those flavors, like in our cheddar, bacon ranch pull apart bread. But this mama doesn’t always have time for all that, even though it is totally drool-worthy. So on those busy nights, I opt to forgo the frying of bacon and instead make a variation that’s a spin-off of those favorite flavors, and our good old fashioned garlic bread. This updated version makes a perfect addition to almost any of our favorite pasta dishes. Add in a salad and we’ve got a quick meal to make any hungry-body happy and dinner that’s ready in a snap.

Cheddar Ranch Bread

 1 full-size loaf of Italian bread (sourdough would also work well)
½ c. butter (softened), or butter spread
2 tbsp. buttermilk Ranch seasoning mix
½ c. shredded cheddar cheese
freshly chopped or dried dill, optional

Directions

1. Stir together spread and Ranch seasoning until smooth.
2. Using a serrated knife, carefully cut the bread in half lengthwise, and spread the seasoned butter out evenly over both cut sides. Sprinkle the cheese over the buttered bread, and sprinkle a little fresh or dried dill over the top if desired.
3. Bake at 350 degrees for approximately 10 minutes, or until the cheese is melted and the edges are starting to brown. Serve immediately.

recipe adapted from The Weary Chef

English Muffins

I grew up eating English muffins all the time. For breakfast, for a quick after school snack. Shoot, I can’t tell you how many times my Grandma made us English muffin pizzas for lunch. Now, here we are years later, I can’t even begin to tell you how many times I’ve made them for the sons for lunches.

Morning, noon, or night the sons love an English muffin. They love them for breakfast in our freezer breakfast sandwiches. The love them smothered with jelly. They love them toasted with BLT fixins for lunch. I could even serve them English muffin pizzas for dinner, and they’d be perfectly content. The possibilities go on and on. English muffins are a beautiful blank canvas to top with whatever you are feeling that day.

 

This recipe couldn’t get any easier and is perfect for any baker, regardless of their experience level. I also love that this recipe doesn’t have me suffer through long rise times, and before I know it I can be opening one of these, hot off the griddle, with a fork and digging in. While their insides aren’t filled with all the signature fissures of a store-bought English muffin, their texture is still craggy enough to trap and hold plenty of butter and jam — which is the point, after all.

English Muffins

3 2/3 cups flour, plus more for kneading
1 envelope active dry yeast (or instant yeast)
1 tsp salt
1 tsp sugar
1 cup lukewarm water
2/3 cup plain yogurt, Greek or regular
fine cornmeal
oil

Directions

1. Whisk together flour, yeast, salt, and sugar. Add water and yogurt, and mix into a soft dough. Knead the dough for 10 minutes, until smooth, adding more flour if it gets sticky. Let dough rest for 5 minutes.
2. Roll dough out to a thickness of about ¾ inch. Cut out 12 circles with a 3 inch round cutter. Sprinkle a baking sheet with semolina, and cover each side of muffins with it. Cover with a damp towel and let rise in a warm place for about an hour, until almost doubled in size.
3. Heat a flat griddle pan until hot and brush with oil. Add the muffins and reduce heat to medium. Cook for 12 minutes, six minutes on each side, until firm and golden brown. Turn only once. Serve with butter and jam.

Christmas Tree Pull Apart Bread

Are you like me? Are you filled with Christmas spirit all month long? Do you try to bring a Christmasy something into each day and/or meal for your family? Well, if you don’t I highly recommend it. If you do, you can probably vouch for how a little bit here or there, magically gets everyone in the Christmas mood. It’s like magic, and as a Mom, it’s a beautiful thing to behold. There’s no question we all love bread in th is family, and I try to have some sort of option (if it’s appropriate) with our dinners. Knowing I’m trying to slip a little holiday cheer into pretty much anything and everything right now, I figured why make dinner rolls or a plain loaf of bread, if I can put a pull-apart Christmas tree on the table?

 

At the grocery store, I had seen a tree-shaped cake pan, and I thought it would be pretty cool for baking bread. Then I thought about it some more and figured that I could make a free-form tree shape instead. Making and then using cheese-filled dough balls, the sons and I created a Christmas tree shape with our loose interpretation of a star on top. We needed some green and used some dried parsley flakes for that, but if you’re feeling more traditional sprinkle some rosemary on top. Rosemary’s much more Christmas tree like in texture anyway. I figured at least a few of our seems would leak filling during baking, but wasn’t overly concerned. The sons decided that it worked perfectly because our tree had snow on it too!

Christmas Tree Pull Apart Bread

 

1 can (13.8 oz) refrigerated pizza crust, or pizza dough
4 oz cream cheese
1 cup shredded mozzarella
2 tablespoons butter
1/4-1/2 tsp garlic powder
2-3 tbsp dried parsley or fresh rosemary
1 cup warmed marinara sauce for dipping

Directions

1. Lay out, or roll out depending on if you’re using refrigerated pizza crust or actual dough, pizza dough onto a cutting board and stretch to a 10 x 15 inch size. Use a pizza cutter to cut the dough into 28 equal squares. In a bowl, combine cream cheese and shredded cheese, stirring until evenly combined.
2. Add roughly one tablespoon of the cheese to each dough square. Seal the seems and then gently roll the dough in your hand to form a ball. Place the dough balls on a cookie sheet in a Christmas tree shape as shown in the picture above. Bake at 400 degrees for 15 – 17 minutes, or until golden brown on top.
3. In a small pot, melt the butter and stir in the garlic powder. After removing the pull-apart bread from the oven, brush the top with butter and sprinkle with your herbs. Serve pull apart with warm marinara sauce for dipping.