Sourdough Pizza Crust

Ham, Cheese & Mushroom Pizza

Every recipe that I post is my way of organizing myself. It allows me to remove one piece of paper from a very large file cabinet full of recipes that I have collected over the years. This sourdough pizza recipe is one of those papers that I hunt down about once or twice a month to use my sourdough starter. Now that it is part of my cyber recipe collection. No more hunting, at least for this recipe.

My husband and BFF claim that this sour-dough makes the best pizza crust and I have to agree. It’s light and crispy, yet it maintains a good bite and chew.

Banana Bread

9 X 5 Loaf Pan

Everyone has their favorite banana bread recipe and this is mine. I started making them as mini muffins when my children were little. They fit perfectly into their little hands and made for a nice snack. Since then I have made them into countless loaves and muffins.

Easy Pizza Dough 2017

Easy Pizza Dough 2017

Pizza is an easy meal once you have the dough ready. This simple recipe is foolproof and versatile. Make the dough when you have time, then put it in the fridge to chill out for up to 4 days. 

Honey Wheat Sourdough Bread, Rolls or Burger Buns

Honey Wheat Sourdough Bread

Pinch yourself and follow your nose– because that whiff you just caught of fresh bread baking isn’t coming from your neighbors, that satisfying aroma is actually in your kitchen. That’s just one of the rewards that come when you make your own bread.

Plain and Simple Sourdough Bread or Rolls

You have spent the last 5 days feeding and doting on your new born sourdough starter.  Speaking kind words of encouragement, softly whispering “please bubble” to it as you take an occasional peek.  The self-doubt surfaces after reading the comments of other peoples disasters.  You start questioning your ability to conquer this simple – flour and water concoction. And then… it works!

Sourdough Starter

Sourdough Starter - 21 days old and bursting with a variety of bubbles.

Though I have consumed many sourdough breads in my life I have not had the privilege of making a truly memorable sourdough until now.

About 20 years ago I was given a cup of sourdough starter that had a wonderful family lineage and I felt privileged to have it. I knew nothing about what to do with it except for the fact that I needed to feed it once a week.

If I did that simple task, I would be rewarded with the aroma of fresh sourdough breads sliding in and out of my oven impressing my family and friends.

Well... that's not what happened. What started out as an amazing opportunity, quickly turned out to be an EPIC FAIL!

Trader Joe's Mini Croissants

Trader Joe’s does it again!  You know how the picture on the box always looks better than what you get inside?  Well, after these are proofed and baked.  They look exactly like the picture!

Bread in a Can?

My friend Dave asked me if I have ever had bread in a can.  My response was, No, and that I had never heard of it.  I laughed at the thought and never considered investigating it myself.  The next thing I knew, I had a box of canned bread sitting at my front door.  Thanks Dave, new things keep life interesting.

Banh Mi - Vietnamese Sandwich

There are two main ingredients that make your home spun banh mi taste authentic. First is the bread. The bread itself needs to have a light and airy center with a light flaky crust that is extremely crispy. So when you bite into it, the crust shatters, scattering crumbs below. A look alike soft chewy sub roll won’t cut it, and that’s why I have never attempted to make them at home until now. The second is the pickled carrot and daikon mixture that is flavored with simple sweet vinegar.

Fresh Corn Tortillas

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After getting back from Mexico I decided to try my hand at making corn tortillas.  I have purchased many corn tortillas in my life, however, this will be my first attempt at making them.

Easy Pita Bread

2017 Easy Pita Bread (small batch) makes 8

scroll to the bottom of this post.

I have baked pita in a hot oven lined with a pizza stone and on an outdoor bbq.  Both methods worked well.  But today neither were options. 

I should have realized this before I mixed the dough, but I had already whipped up a batch of hummus and thought… I should make up a batch of pita bread to go along with it.

Sweet Bread Rolls

When I was making the Hawaiian Sweet Bread I pinched off some dough to make 6 rolls.  Because my oven is so small I had to put them in the fridge until the sweet bread had finished baking and freed up my oven.  I took them straight from my fridge and place them in a 350 degree oven for 28 minutes.  They turned out beautifully.  Another lesson learned…  GET THE RECIPE!!!

Hawaiian Sweet Bread

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The bread baking bug has got me and I can’t shake the feeling. It’s probably due to the arrival of fall which seems to have come on so suddenly. With the weather changing and the temperature dropping so quickly, what better way to heat up the house than by turning on your oven and filling the house with the unmistakable aroma of fresh baked bread? The smell alone is worth the effort.

Feather Rolls for Dave

Today I received a disheartened email from my friend Dave who had a disaster story about his attempt with my feather roll recipe. The first thing that came to my mind was that I wished I lived closer to him so I could pop in and give him a quick personal tutoring on baking these rolls.

That wasn’t possible. So I pulled up my blog on feather rolls to reference and to make sure the measurements were correct. Then I armed my husband with the camera thinking that a picture is worth a thousand words and started mixing and measuring.

Feather Roll Update

The experiment continues…

Feather Rolls

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I’m not sure where this recipe originated.  I got it years ago from my friend Karen.  Maybe this little note on it will refresh someone’s memory, “A Sunday dinner standby during the ‘30’s, these no-knead pan rolls made with mashed potatoes are as light as feathers.  If you know the original source please share it with me.

Buttermilk Cornbread

My daughter Cecily spent a year in Italy and I was fortunate enough to visit her and be hosted by her Italian family who cooked me amazing home cooked meals, an experience that I will never forget.

You are probably wondering “What does this have to do with cornbread?”

Jack's Special Biscuits

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My dad Jack has made these biscuits every morning for most of his adult life. At his restaurant appropriately named “Jack’s”, which is located in the Aina Haina Shopping Center in Hawaii. He asked me to shrink the recipe to a dozen biscuits, so home cooks could attempt it. Well, here is my best shot.