Homemade Pumpkin Bread

There is not one person I know that does not love this bread. It is like a vacation in your mouth. The bread is super moist and yummy. My husband really likes it when I add 1 1/2 cups of mini chocolate chips for an extra special treat. This recipe makes 2 loaves.  This recipe is adapted from Family Fun Magazine.

2 cups canned pumpkin
3 cups sugar
1 cup water
1 cup vegetable oil
4 eggs
3 1/3 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon of nutmeg

Heat oven to 350 degrees.  Grease 2 loaf pans and dust with flour lightly.

In large bowl, add pumpkin, sugar, water, vegetable oil & eggs and beat until well mixed.  In another bowl, add all the remaining dry ingredients and combine well. Slowly add dry ingredients to pumpkin mixture, beating until smooth.

Divide the batter between the 2 pans, and bake for 60-70 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean.

Cool in pans for 10-15 minutes before removing. To remove, invert pan on rack and tap bottom of pans.

This is great with cream cheese or butter spread on slices, or just plain!!!

Iced Ginger Coffee

After a long day of work in the summer time, I appreciate a lovely glass of iced ginger coffee!  If you have not tried it; it's a must!  This is super easy to make, plus it is delicious.  Grab a glass, and make some now!

Iced Ginger Coffee Recipe

Makes 2 servings

16 oz. brewed coffee, divided

1/4 cup vanilla soy milk, divided (or half and half )

4 tsps. ginger syrup, divided

2 cups ice, divided

2 glasses

To make iced ginger coffee:  Into each glass, add 2 tsp of ginger syrup (you can add more to your taste) then add 8 oz. of coffee.  Gently stir and add ice.  Top each with 1/8 cup vanilla soy milk (or half and half) and add a tall spoon, gently stir and enjoy! 

Note: You can buy ginger syrup, or make your own ginger syrup. To make ginger syrup: 1/4 cup ginger root sliced into coins. (Increase ginger to 1/2 cup for a spicier flavor and keep as is for a milder flavor).  Place in a saucepan with 2 cups water and 1 cup sugar. Slowly bring to a boil and let simmer for about 20 minutes. Remove ginger and discard.  Let syrup cool, then place in a jar with a tight fitting lid. Keep refrigerated.

Bakery Style Sticky Buns

I've searched a long time for a really good recipe for these luscious mouth watering buns, and I have had a few recipes here and there that were good, however, these buns are DECADENT! This recipe is adapted from "Oprah magazine", and I must admit these taste identical to what I used to get at a local bakery back in South Jersey that we used to frequent! Thanks to Oprah for such a "sweet" recipe. I like to make these with half pan topped with nuts and the other half raisins. ENJOY!!!

Bakery Style Sticky Buns Dough Recipe

Makes 15 rolls
1/4 cup warm water (105° to 115°)
1 (1/4-ounce) package active dry yeast
1/3 cup sugar
3/4 cup milk
4 Tbsp. unsalted butter, plus more for greasing
3 large egg yolks
1 Tbsp. finely grated orange zest (optional)
1 1/4 teaspoon. salt
4 to 4 1/4 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting

Filling:
1/2 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
1 Tbsp. ground cinnamon
4 Tbsp. unsalted butter

Topping:
3/4 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
4 Tbsp. unsalted butter
3 Tbsp. honey
1 Tbsp. light corn syrup
1 1/2 cups (6 ounces) coarsely chopped pecans (optional)

1 1/2 cups raisins (optional)

To make the dough. In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine warm water, yeast and 1 tsp. sugar. Stir to dissolve and let sit until foamy, about 5 minutes. Add milk, butter, remaining sugar, egg yolks, orange zest, salt and 3 cups flour. Mix on low speed until blended. Switch to a dough hook and then, again on low speed, slowly incorporate the remaining 1 cup of flour. Increase speed to medium, kneading dough until smooth and slightly sticky (adding a little more flour if too wet), 3 to 5 minutes. Shape the dough into a ball and place in a large, buttered bowl. Turn dough over in bowl to coat with the butter from the bowl. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap. Let rise in a warm place until doubled in volume, about 1 hour (or 2 hours if not in an entirely warm place). After the dough has risen, punch down. Turn out onto a lightly floured cutting board and let sit 20 minutes.

Make the filling. Combine brown sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl. Melt butter; keep separate.

Roll dough out into a 12" x 18" rectangle. Brush with melted butter and sprinkle with cinnamon-sugar mixture. Starting with the long side, roll dough into a cylinder. Place seam side down on a flat surface and cut crosswise into 15 slices.

Make the topping. In a 1-quart saucepan, combine brown sugar, butter, honey and corn syrup over low heat; stir until sugar and butter are melted. Pour mixture into a greased 9" x 13" pan and sprinkle pecans on top (if using).

Place dough slices, flat side down, on top of prepared topping. Crowd them so they touch. Cover with plastic wrap, leaving room for the buns to rise, and refrigerate overnight.

Remove the rolls from the refrigerator and let stand at room temperature while the oven pre-heats. Preheat oven to 375°. Bake buns until golden, 30 to 35 minutes. Remove pan from oven and immediately carefully invert onto a serving tray or baking dish. Let buns cool slightly and serve warm.

Homemade Pizza - "Neopolitan Style"

I grew up in the suburbs of Philadelphia, home of South Philly, where you could get some of the best Italian food I've ever had. A few years back when my husband and I moved our family from South Jersey to Rural Idaho, I must confess my biggest complaint is I MISS PIZZA.

No one seems to understand what a true pizza is out here. Did I mention that we live in a town that only has 2 pizza places, and neither is anything close to what I consider "real" pizza. Don't get me wrong they are not the worst pizza in the world, just renditioned a great deal different then what I've grown accustomed to since I was a kid.

So in lieu of my "quest" for the perfect pizza that I once knew, I have developed a recipe that is close to what I've been seeking, and it fits the bill when we want our beloved pizza. Plan ahead when using this recipe, as it has to be kept in the fridge for a minimum of 12 hours, preferably 16 to 18 is best. Don't skimp out with the slow rise in the fridge it does something to the dough that makes the crust perfect. Here's the recipe.

Homemade Pizza Dough Recipe

Makes 1- 16 inch pizza

Serves 4-6
1 teaspoon of active dry yeast
1/4 cup very warm water
1 cup cool water
1 teaspoon kosher salt
3 cups bread flour
Olive oil

Pizza Sauce and Topping
1 8 ounce can tomato sauce
1 cup whole tomatoes, chopped ( be sure they well drained and squeezed by hand)
1/4 cup olive oil
Salt, pepper and garlic powder to taste
Handful of fresh basil leaves
4 cups of part skim mozzarella cheese

Toppings of your choice: (optional)

Black olives

Sliced fully cooked italian sausage

Pepperoni

In a large bowl, gently combine warm water with yeast. Let sit for about five minutes. With a wooden spoon, stir in salt and cold water then add flour 1 cup at a time until the dough is stiff enough to knead. Knead dough until smooth and elastic, about 10 minutes. Form into a ball. Using olive oil to lightly grease, have a resealable storage bag or bowl with tight fitting lid ready and place dough ball in the greased bowl or storage bag. Turn dough ball to lightly coat with oil and then cover with lid to keep air out, or seal bag tightly. Let rise in the refrigerator for a minimum of 12 hours and a maximum of 18 hours.

This dough will be delicate and stretch very easily. About 1/2 hour before making your pizzas, take dough out of the fridge and preheat the oven to 500 degrees F. If using pizza stone, place it in the oven now, it needs to heat up for at least 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, hand stretch or pat the dough with floured hands forming a circle (you can decide if you want your crust thick or thin at this time) and place in a lightly greased 14 - 16 inch pizza pan, or if using a pizza stone, stretch dough into circle onto piece of parchment paper. Let round dough set out for about 10 10 15 minutes and prepare pizza sauce.

Now, get your pizza sauce ready by adding sauce, tomatoes, olive oil, seasonings and basil together, stir well. Place sauce on pizza crust, then add cheese over top. Top with toppings of your choice.

Bake for 8 to 15 minutes or until cheese is bubbly and crust is golden, and bottom of crust when lifted, is deep golden brown. (You should be able to lift up the crust with your hand when checking it in the oven, be careful not to burn yourself, though. The crust should lift up easily when it is ready, but the color is the best indicator of when it is done, you don't want a mushy pizza).

If using a pizza stone, carefully lift parchment with dough circle on it and transfer the entire sheet with pizza on it to the pizza stone and bake for 10-15 minutes until done using above indicators. ENJOY!!!

Zucchini Bread

It's a good thing that this recipe makes 2 loaves, because my husband can eat one loaf by himself. This recipe is my own concoction inspired by my Italian neighbor Connie Antonucci, who was like a Grandma to me. Connie gave me my first taste of her delicious zucchini bread as a kid, where she lived across the street from me for 18 years in the suburbs of Philly, where I grew up. Connie and her husband Benny grew a wonderful garden every summer and when the bounty of zucchini rolled in, Connie would start baking!  She sure knew how to get a kid to eat vegetables. This bread is so good and moist. I always think of her whenever I make this and it brings back so many great memories. 

Zucchini Bread Recipe
3 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking soda

3 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon baking powder

3 eggs

2 cups sugar

3 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 cup vegetable oil

3 cups grated zucchini

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a bowl add flour, salt, soda, cinnamon, baking powder together then stir with a fork till well blended and set aside.

Beat sugar and oil, then add eggs and vanilla and mix well. Add dry ingredients, stir well to combine. Add shredded zucchini, and stir well again to combine the mixture. Pour into 2 greased and lightly floured loaf pans.Bake at 350 degrees F for 45 -55 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out dry.

Homemade Lasagna

I LOVE Lasagna and so does my family. It is so good, all of that cheese seductively oozing through the thin layers of pasta and homemade tomato sauce, OMG, it is just so delicious!!

If you have never made Homemade Lasagna before, do not fret, it is much, much easier than you think, and you don't need a whole day to make it either. You don't even have to cook the noodles, or even buy special "no cook" noodles. Just buy plain old lasagna noodles. Just give yourself, at least 2 hours before you plan to serve, so that you can make and properly cook it, and most importantly let the flavors marinate together. That is why leftover lasagna is so spectacular the next day because it was enabled to meld the flavors overnight.

Well, here we go, let's get making our Lasagna.

Homemade Cheese Lasagna Recipe

Feeds 6-8

1 - package of lasagna noodles (uncooked)

2- 16 oz containers part skim ricotta

2 cups mozzarella cheese (shredded)
1 cup parmesan cheese (grated)
2 eggs (beaten slightly)
2 tablespoon parsley (divided)
Salt and pepper to taste
5 cups of tomato sauce ( I use homemade, but you can use your favorite type)

In a large bowl, add the ricotta cheese, 1 cup of mozzarella, 1/2 cup Parmesan, the eggs, 1 tablespoon parsley & salt & pepper, mix well. Set aside the remaining mozzarella ,Parmesan cheese & parsley.

Lightly grease a 13x9x2 pan with a little vegetable or olive oil, then add 1/2 cup of tomato sauce to the pan and spread it evenly in the bottom of the pan. Then take 3 whole uncooked lasagna noodles & put them over the sauce in a single layer starting from the middle of the pan. (Please note that the noodles will cook and expand during cooking, so they will not touch the edges of the pan at this time - this is normal).

Now, take about 1/3 of the cheese mixture and top the layer of noodles. Cover the cheese layer thoroughly with about 1 1/2 cups of tomato sauce. Repeat the layers 2 more times starting with the noodles, then cheese, then sauce. For the final layer, just add noodles over the sauce, then add the remaining tomato sauce to cover the noodles well.

Cover with foil tightly and bake at 350 degrees F for 1 1/2 hours. Then remove from oven and top with the remaining mozzarella and Parmesan cheeses , place back into oven uncovered for about 10 minutes. Remove and top with remaining parsley.Let sit for about 10 minutes before serving.

Serve with a nice green salad and garlic bread for a delightful dinner. You can also add meat to the sauce, if you'd like; but my family prefers cheese lasagna, and they like me to make homemade meatballs or Italian sausage on the side.

I hope you enjoy making and eating this lasagna. Mangia!!

Welcome to My New Blog

Hello, my name is Michele, welcome to my new blog: Michele Cooks! I am a former personal chef, I love to cook and do alot of it, as my family and friends appreciate a great meal. I hope you will follow my blog to find great recipes that are family friendly, entertainment worthy and easy on the budget as well! Thanks for stopping by and come back often to see what is cooking!