Strawberry Bread

Strawberry Bread

Parmesan Rosemary Breadsticks

This is a nice little appetizer to put with an antipasto platter or a nice little side dish to put with soup or salad. It's very easy and quick since it uses refrigerated breadstick dough and develops a nice flavor from the rosemary and Parmesan.


I got this recipe at a cooking class I attended a few years ago so I have no way to cite this or give credit for this recipe. Just know that it's not mine but I use it a lot!

Parmesan Rosemary Breadsticks
from unknown source
Makes about 24 breadsticks

1 package Pillsbury breadstick dough (12 breadsticks)
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 tablespoon fresh rosemary, minced
Olive oil
Kosher salt

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a two heavy baking sheets with nonstick foil, parchment paper, or cooking spray.

Combine the grated cheese and rosemary on a large, shallow plate. Set aside.

Lay the breadsticks out on a work surface and cut each in half lengthwise, to make 24 long strips. Lightly brush olive oil over the strips; place strips in cheese mixture and turn to coat both sides. Then roll the strips with your palms on the work surface or between your hands to incorporate the cheese mixture into the dough. Place on prepared baking sheet. Repeat with all strips (12 on each baking sheet).

Bake 12-15 minutes or until golden. Serve immediately. If you need to make these ahead, prepare through placing them on the baking sheet and store in the refrigerator. Bring to room temperature before baking.

Irish Tea Bread

This is a delicious little quick bread from my good friend Rita. Best served warm with butter, it's a hearty bread that goes well with tea (obviously) or coffee. It is simple to make and freezes well, so make some for a leisurely weekend breakfast. :)


Irish Tea Bread
from Rita
Makes 1 loaf

1 1/2 cups buttermilk
1 1/2 cup raisins
6 tablespoons butter, melted
1 large egg
2/3 cup sugar
3 cups flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
raw/turbinado sugar, to sprinkle

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Grease and flour an 8 x 4 or 9 x 5 loaf pan.

Place raisins in a small bowl, cover with boiling water, let sit about 5 minutes. Drain and pat dry.

In a large bowl, whisk together buttermilk, softened raisins, melted butter, and egg. In a medium bowl, whisk together sugar, flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.

Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, mix just until combined. Pour into prepared loaf pan. Sprinkle raw sugar over top.

Bake for 50-60 minutes, until toothpick stuck into center comes out clean.

Lemon Poppy Seed Cake

Hello everyone! I am back from the beach and ready to start cooking and blogging again!

I love cakes and breads with sour cream in them - it just makes the baked good so moist and delicious. I made this loaf cake last summer (pre-blog, which is why I don't have any citation, if this is yours, let me know!) and LOVED it. So when I was deciding on breakfast/snacks to make for the beach, this came to mind.

You may want to double the recipe for two loaves and stick one in the freezer for later - it's that good!

Lemon Poppy Seed Cake

from unknown source

Makes one loaf

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

12 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature

1 cup sugar

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest

2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice (about one lemon)

1 tablespoon poppy seeds

2 eggs, room temperature

1/2 cup sour cream, room temperature

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Lightly grease a loaf pan, dust with flour.

In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, and salt until blended. In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat together the butter, sugar, vanilla, lemon zest, lemon juice, and poppy seeds until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition until just blended. Sprinkle half of the flour mixture over the egg mixture and stir until both are just incorporated. Stir in the sour cream, then sprinkle with the remaining flour and stir until evenly distributed.

Pour the batter into the prepared pan and smooth out the top. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 65-70 minutes. Keep an eye on the cake near the end of baking and cover loosely with foil if necessary to prevent over-browning. Transfer to a wire rack and let cool for 15 minutes.

Run a knife around the inside of the pan, invert the cake onto the rack and lift off the pan. Continue cooling – serve warm or at room temperature.

Zucchini Bread

My mom has been making this bread for as long as I can remember. Some people may turn up their noses at zucchini being in a sweet quick bread, but it really adds a nice flavor and you can't really taste it as "zucchini". See, it's not even green ;)

When I make this I leave one loaf out for us to snack on and freeze the other loaf so that we can enjoy it again! I like to eat this warmed up with a little butter or cream cheese on it.


Zucchini Bread
from Jo's Kitchen
Makes 2 loaves


3 eggs
1 cup oil (vegetable or canola)
2 cups sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 cups raw, peeled, grated zucchini (2 small zucchini)
3 cups flour
1 teaspoon salt
3 teaspoons cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda


Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour two 8 x 4 loaf pans. (9 x 5 pans are fine too, your loaves will just be a little shorter.)


Beat eggs in a large bowl with electric mixer until foamy. Add oil, sugar, and vanilla. Beat in zucchini.


Whisk together flour, salt, baking soda, baking powder, and cinnamon. Add into zucchini mixture and beat on low until combined.


Divide batter evenly between prepared pans. Bake for one hour or until toothpick inserted in center of loaf comes out clean. Run a butter knife around the edge of the loaves, cool for 15 minutes. Turn out onto a wire rack to cool completely.

Blueberry Coconut Yogurt Bread

I love making bread or cakes with yogurt - it makes the cake so moist without using too much fat. The original recipe popped out at me on my Google reader, and then I changed it up a little bit because I had some extra coconut I wanted to use. I am very happy with the result - a delicious bread with blueberry, coconut, and a hint of lemon - perfect for a summer breakfast!

Blueberry Coconut Yogurt Cake

adapted from Closet Cooking
Makes one loaf

1 1/2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

zest of one lemon (about 1 tablespoon)

6 ounces plain yogurt

1 cup sugar

3 large eggs
1/4 cup vegetable oil

1/2 teaspoon coconut extract

1 cup blueberries

1/2 cup shredded coconut

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Coat a 9x5 loaf pan with cooking spray (I use one with flour in it for baking).

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the lemon zest, yogurt, sugar, eggs, oil, and coconut extract.

Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and pour the wet ingredients into the large bowl. Mix gently with a spatula until just combined. Mix in the blueberries and shredded coconut.

Pour the batter into prepared loaf pan. Bake for 50-60 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Garlic Knots (and Pizza Dough)

So I'm thinking I would probably win the award for "Ugliest Garlic Knots", if there was one. While I was folding the dough into the knots, I couldn't do the first knot tight enough and was left with a loose shape that doesn't really look like anything. But after I baked them, they came out a little better. Just look at them before the second rise though:

Laughable, right? I must say though, I have never made pizza dough before (always spent the money on store-bought) but after making this pizza dough, I will never go back! It was so easy to make and easy to work with that it would be silly not to try it again! You can certainly cut down on the fat content in these little guys by using less butter; but I don't recommend it. Enjoy the delicious butter and garlic combo and just go for an extra-long run tomorrow ;)

Garlic Knots

from Good Things Catered

Makes 8 knots

1 recipe basic pizza dough (recipe below)

1/2 cup butter

5 garlic cloves, minced or crushed

salt

After you let the pizza dough recipe complete it's rise, roll out on a floured surface into large rectangle, 1/2 inch thick.

Using pizza cutter or sharp knife, cut into measured out eight 1-inch wide strips. Take each strip and tie into a basic knot. Take end that is underneath and fold it over and into the middle. Take end that is over top and fold it under.

Place knot onto parchment lined baking sheet. Repeat with all knots. Sprinkle generously with salt, cover with wax paper and kitchen towel and let rise until doubled in size, about 1 hour.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

In small saucepan over medium low heat, combine butter and garlic. Stir until butter mixture is completely melted. Using pastry brush, generously brush the tops of the dough with the butter mixture.

Place in oven to bake until turning golden brown, about 12-15 minutes. Remove from oven, brush with remaining butter mixture and serve.

Basic Pizza Dough

from Good Things Catered

Makes 1 crust

1 tablespoon active dry yeast

3/4 c. plus 2 tablespoons lukewarm water (105-115 degrees F)

2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon olive oil

Combine yeast and water in small bowl and let stand until slightly foamy (about 10 minutes).

Combine flour and salt in large bowl and form into a mound. Make a well in the center and add the yeast mixture.

Using a fork and stirring in a circular motion, gradually pull the flour into the yeast mixture. Continue stirring until a dough forms.

Lightly flour a work surface with some additional flour and transfer the dough to it. Using the heel of your hand, knead the dough until it is smooth and elastic, about 10 minutes. Form the dough into a ball.

Brush a large bowl with the olive oil and place the dough in it. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise at room temperature until doubled in size, 1 to 2 hours.

Turn the dough out onto a surface dusted with the remaining flour. Punch down the dough and, using your hand, begin to press it out gently into the desired shape.

Herb Focaccia

I have long had a fear of making yeast breads - something about making sure the water is the right temperature combined with letting the dough rise just freaks me out - it's too exact. But I can say with certainty that this bread helped me to get over that fear. It is the perfect "introduction to yeast"; with an end result of a delicious, herb-topped bread.

The original recipe says to divide into 6 equal portions, but since I needed 8, it was really no problem to just make the individual loaves a little smaller. Just make sure that if you divide this into smaller portions, that you start off with a shorter baking time. I always leave out the olives since Chuck doesn't like them; but I could imagine that they would add a nice, salty flavor to the already delicious bread.

Herb Focaccia
from The Sisters' Cafe
Makes 6 individual loaves

2 packages active dry yeast (or 2 Tb)
1/4 teaspoon sugar
1 cup warm water (105-115 degrees)
3 cups flour
1/4 cup finely chopped onion
1/4 cup chopped olives
3 tablespoons olive or canola oil
1 teaspoon salt

Herb Glaze
1 egg, beaten
1 tablespoon chopped fresh or 1/2 teaspoon dried rosemary or basil
1 tablespoon chopped fresh or 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme

Mix yeast, sugar and water in small bowl; let stand for 5 minutes.

Blend remaining ingredients except herb glaze in large bowl of electric mixer; stir in yeast mixture to form a soft dough. Knead for 5 minutes (this is easiest with the Kitchen Aid with dough hook but you can also knead by hand) until smooth and elastic.

Place dough in greased bowl; cover and let rise in warm place 1 hour. Grease baking sheet.

Punch dough down and divide evenly into 6 pieces. Shape each piece into 5-inch circle; place on baking sheet. Cover and let rise 20 minutes.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Brush tops of each bread with herb glaze and sprinkle lightly with Kosher salt. Bake 15-18 minutes until golden brown.

Lemon Yogurt Cake

This cake is great for brunch because it's a nice light lemon flavor and made with yogurt so you can feel a little better about eating it before noon. :) The lemon cake base is enhanced with a lemon syrup glaze and then again with a lemon juice and powdered sugar glaze.

When you put the cake to cool on a wire rack, put it on a baking sheet with wax paper or foil underneath it. That way when you pour both glazes over it, the excess will fall on the wax paper and you have an easy clean-up.

There are no pictures of the preparation because I was so busy getting everything else ready for brunch. But here is a pic of the table!

Lemon Yogurt Cake
from Ina Garten
Makes one loaf

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup plain whole-milk yogurt
1 1/3 cups sugar, divided
3 extra-large eggs
2 teaspoons grated lemon zest (2 lemons)
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/3 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
For the glaze:nocoupons
1 cup confectioners' sugar
2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease an 8 1/2 by 4 1/4 by 2 1/2-inch loaf pan. Line the bottom with parchment paper. Grease and flour the pan.

Sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt into 1 bowl. In another bowl, whisk together the yogurt, 1 cup sugar, the eggs, lemon zest, and vanilla. Slowly whisk the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients.

With a rubber spatula, fold the vegetable oil into the batter, making sure it's all incorporated. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for about 50 minutes, or until a cake tester placed in the center of the loaf comes out clean.

Meanwhile, cook the 1/3 cup lemon juice and remaining 1/3 cup sugar in a small pan until the sugar dissolves and the mixture is clear. Set aside.

When the cake is done, allow it to cool in the pan for 10 minutes. Carefully place on a baking rack over a sheet pan. While the cake is still warm, pour the lemon-sugar mixture over the cake and allow it to soak in. Cool.

For the glaze, combine the confectioners' sugar and lemon juice and pour over the cake.

Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Bread

I know, I know, more pumpkin...but I had one last can hanging out in my pantry, and while browsing Cate's blog I saw this recipe so I decided to make one last thing! I have never made any other pumpkin bread besides my regular one, so I was excited to try a different version, especially since it included chocolate chips!

This recipe only uses 1 cup of pumpkin, but I doubled everything to use the whole can and ended up with two loaves. I brought one to Brooke for hosting the get-together, and Chuck and I are hoarding the other one because we love it so much!

The only change I made was to bring the pumpkin pie spice down to 1 teaspoon per loaf. I needed to bake it a few minutes longer than it called for - just keep testing it until the toothpick comes out clean!

Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Bread

from Fresh from Cate's Kitchen

Makes one loaf

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon pumpkin pie spice (I used 1 teaspoon)
1/3 cup milk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
6 tablespoons butter, softened
1 cup white sugar
1/3 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
1 cup canned pumpkin
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Preheat the oven to 350 F. Grease a 9 x 5 loaf pan.

Sift together flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and pumpkin pie spice.

In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat the butter with the sugars until fluffy. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, then mix in the pumpkin.

Stir together the milk and vanilla in a small bowl. Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture in three parts, alternating with milk.

Fold in the chocolate chips, then pour into the loaf pan and bake for about 5o minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Banana Bread

Stop searching right now for your go-to banana bread recipe; because this is it. It's so good even Katie blogged about it and gave it rave reviews! My mom has been making this bread for as long as I can remember and I started making it with her years ago. With three bananas in one loaf and the extra special ingredient of sour cream added in there; this bread is super-moist and extremely delicious.

Make sure you use OVER-ripe bananas. I'm talking like no more yellow skin there, just brown. They will be much easier to mash up and add to the flavor of the bread. (I just slice the bananas into a bowl and mash them with a fork.) I have also made this into three mini-loaves, which bake for about a half an hour. Enjoy!

Banana Bread
from Jo's kitchen
Makes one loaf

1/2 cup shortening
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
3 medium bananas, mashed
3 tablespoons sour cream
1 tablespoon lemon juice
2 cups flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Cream the shortening and sugar in a large bowl, either with an electric mixer or using a handheld mixer.

Beat in eggs; then bananas, sour cream, and lemon juice.

Whisk together flour, baking powder, salt, and baking soda. Add to banana mixture and stir until just incorporated.

Pour into greased and floured 9x5x3 loaf pan. Bake for 60 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean.

Easy Cheesy Beer Bread

When I was trying to think of an quick side dish to my beef stew that didn't involve popping open a can of crescent rolls, Katie suggested her beer bread. She said it would come together in under 10 minutes and she was right! There is nothing easier than mixing these few ingredients and popping it in the oven for about an hour.

If you don't have whole wheat flour, just use another cup of all-purpose and please, please, do NOT use light beer. ::shudder:: This is a very dense bread, so perfect for sopping up stews or soups, or eat it by itself - and don't forget the butter!

Easy Cheesy Beer Bread

from Good Things Catered

Makes one loaf

2 cups all purpose flour

1 cup whole wheat flour

1/3 cup packed brown sugar

4 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1 cup shredded sharp cheddar

12 ounce bottle of lager or stout

2 tablespoons butter, melted

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease and flour loaf pan.

In large bowl, combine flours, sugar, baking powder, salt, and garlic powder. Whisk to combine well.

Add cheese and whisk to combine. Slowly add beer to dry ingredients and stir lightly until combined. Knead dough lightly until it just comes together.

Place into prepared loaf pan and pour melted butter over top. Place in oven to bake for 55-60 minutes, or until toothpick inserted into center of loaf comes out clean.

Fall Harvest Bread

This bread is SO good. I made it several times last fall/winter and whenever someone tried it for the first time they loved it as much as I did. I make it exactly the way Katie has it on her blog, and it fills my house with a fantastic baking aroma.

Despite the fact that it only has 1/4 cup of oil in it, this bread is very moist because of the pumpkin and applesauce. So that leads me to believe it's fairly healthy for as well (so eat a lot!).

This bread only cooks for 55 minutes in my oven so check it after 50 minutes or so depending on your oven. Also, I would save peeling and cutting the apple until right before you add it to the batter so it doesn't brown.

Fall Harvest Bread
from Good Things Catered
Makes 1 loaf

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup light brown sugar
1/2 can (or 7.5 ounces) canned pumpkin
2 large eggs
1/4 cup oil
1/4 cup applesauce
1/4 cup apple juice
1 small apple (I like granny smith) peeled, cored, and diced

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray 9x5 loaf pan (or can sub muffin pan or double recipe for cake/bundt pan) with Pam with flour for baking -- or grease and flour.

Combine flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, baking soda, and salt in bowl. Combine sugar, pumpkin, eggs, oil, applesauce, and juice in large bowl. Mix until just blended.

Add pumpkin mixture to flour mixture and stir until just moistened. Fold in apples. Spoon batter into prepared pan (it will be all lumpy - don't worry).

Bake for 60-70 minutes or until wooden pick inserted into center comes out clean.

Corn Bread with Green Onions and Parmesan Cheese

You can serve all sorts of things with chili. I used to serve mine over rice, but with my 6-Hour Chili I have really found that corn bread is the perfect side dish. This particular corn bread adds the flavors of green onions and a hint of Parmesan cheese in addition to the creaminess of buttermilk.

Since I make this with my half-recipe of chili, I halve this as well, with PLENTY of leftovers. All the ingredients are easily halved and you can make it in a 1 1/2 quart (8x8) baking dish, with the same baking time.

Corn Bread with Green Onions and Parmesan Cheese

from Epicurious

Makes 10 servings

6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) unsalted butter

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

1 3/4 cups chopped green onions
2 cups yellow cornmeal

1 cup unbleached all purpose flour

1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese (about 3 ounces)

1/3 cup sugar

4 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

3/4 teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper

1 1/2 cups buttermilk

2 large eggs

Preheat oven to 400°F. Spray 13x9x2-inch metal baking pan with nonstick spray.

Melt butter with oil in heavy medium skillet over medium heat. Add green onions; sauté 3 minutes. Cool.

Whisk cornmeal, flour, cheese, sugar, baking powder, salt, and pepper in large bowl to blend.

Whisk buttermilk and eggs in medium bowl to blend. Add buttermilk mixture and green onion mixture to dry ingredients; stir until just blended (do not overmix). Transfer batter to pan.

Bake bread until tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 20 minutes. (Can be prepared 1 day ahead. Cool. Cover with foil and store at room temperature. Rewarm uncovered in 350°F oven 10 minutes.) Serve warm.

Brethren Cheese Bread

Recipe #2 from the tailgate also comes from Mollie, my go-to gal this weekend for yummy recipes. This bread came together in no time at all and filled the house with delicious baking smells. It is moist enough on it's own because of the cheese, but a little butter never hurt either, right?

You can actually see the melted cheese in the finished product, and that's always a good thing! I must warn you that the dill taste is strong though, so if you don't like the flavor of dill, try substituting with another herb you enjoy. If you do that, mix up the type of cheese, too. Like rosemary with asiago, or chives with white cheddar, or basil with mozzarella.

Brethren Cheese Bread
from Reading, 'Riting, and Recipes
Makes 1 loaf

2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 tablespoon sugar
½ teaspoon salt
¼ cup cold butter or margarine, cut into pieces
1 cup grated, sharp cheddar cheese
1 ½ tablespoons dried dill weed
1 tablespoon grated onion (or 1 teaspoon dehydrated minced onion)
¾ cup milk
1 egg, slightly beaten

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease well a 9x5x3” loaf pan.

Mix dry ingredients in a bowl and cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs.

A pastry blender is your best friend for this task.

Stir in cheese, onion and dill weed; mix well. Combine milk and beaten egg; pour into flour mixture and stir just to moisten. Turn into prepared pan.

Bake 40-45 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean. Let cool in pan 10 minutes and turn out onto wire rack to cool.

Pumpkin Bread

Now that school has started, there is really no need for me to keep wishing that summer hang on a little longer. So despite the 90 degree temperatures we had here last week, I decided to make some pumpkin bread to help usher in some fall weather!

To do this I turned to my favorite "basics" cookbook, Better Homes and Gardens . This bread is so easy to make, and makes two loaves out of one can of pumpkin, with lots of spicy pumpkin flavor. And of course it uses the twin fall dessert spices: cinnamon and nutmeg.

I have also made this recipe into muffins. It makes three dozen regular size muffins, and they take about a third of the baking time it takes your oven to make the bread. Now just imagine the leaves turning colors...

Pumpkin Bread

Better Homes and Gardens

Makes 2 loaves

3 cups sugar
1 cup cooking oil (vegetable or canola)
4 eggs
3 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon ground nutmeg

2/3 cup water

1 15-ounce can pumpkin

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Grease the bottom and 1/2 inch up sides of two 9x5x3-inch, three 8x4x2-inch, or four 7-1/2x3 1/2-x2-inch loaf pans; set aside. In a very large mixing bowl beat sugar and oil with an electric mixer on medium speed. Add eggs and beat well; set aside.

In a large bowl, combine flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Add flour mixture and water alternately to sugar mixture, beating on low speed after each addition just until combined. Beat in pumpkin. Spoon batter into prepared pans.

Bake for 55 to 65 minutes or until a wooden toothpick inserted near centers comes out clean. Cool in pans on wire racks for 10 minutes. Remove from pans. Cool completely on wire racks. Wrap and store overnight before slicing.

Olive, Rosemary, and Onion Focaccia

There are several things you are going to learn about me as we become friends here on this blog. And that includes the fact that I have a list of "scared-to-make" foods. Things included on this list are large cuts of meat, anything to do with phyllo dough (one bad experience is enough to turn me away for life), and BREAD.

The bread item had remained unchallenged until about a two months ago when I attempted some herbed focaccia rolls, with good results. And then I saw this post over at ...A cookie a day and decided I would give focaccia yet another shot (complete with her advice to caramelize the onions). I made it last weekend, brought some over to my parents' house, and my mom and my sister both loved it!

So as we head back over to my parents' house for Sunday dinner this week; I will be bringing it again. Make sure to press the toppings into the bread before baking; as my first attempt had olives and rosemary leaves raining down on the plate when taking a bite. A nice, creamy Asiago cheese spread complements this well.

Olive, Rosemary, and Onion Focaccia
Epicurious

a 1/4-ounce package (2 1/2 teaspoons) active dry yeast
1 teaspoon sugar
4 1/2 to 5 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/4 teaspoons salt
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 teaspoons finely chopped fresh rosemary leaves plus whole rosemary leaves
1/4 cup minced onion, caramelized*
1/2 pound Kalamata, Niçoise, or green Greek olives or a combination, pitted and cut into slivers (about 1 cup)
1 1/2 teaspoons coarse salt, or to taste

*To caramelize onions, I heat a small amount of oil in a skillet and add the chopped onion. Cook for 30-35 minutes, while stirring regularly; until the onion starts to brown and become very soft.

In the large bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the dough hook stir together the yeast, the sugar, and 1 3/4 cups lukewarm water and proof the yeast mixture for 5 minutes, or until it is foamy. Stir in 4 1/2 cups of the flour, the salt, and 2 tablespoons of the oil and knead the dough, scraping down the dough hook occasionally and adding as much of the remaining 1/2 cup flour as necessary to form a soft, slightly sticky dough, for 3 minutes.

Transfer the dough to a lightly oiled bowl, turn it to coat it with the oil, and let it rise, covered, in a warm place for 1 hour, or until it is double in bulk. Knead in the chopped rosemary, press the dough with lightly oiled hands into a well-oiled 15 1/2- by 10 1/2-inch jelly-roll pan, (mine was rather "free-form", making a rough 9x16 rectangle on a large cookie sheet) and let it rise, covered loosely, for 30 minutes. The dough may be made 8 hours in advance and kept covered and chilled.

Dimple the dough with your fingertips, making 1/4-inch-deep indentations, brush it with the remaining 1 tablespoon oil, and top it with the onion, the olives, the salt, and the whole rosemary leaves. Bake the focaccia in the bottom third of a preheated 400°F. oven for 35 to 45 minutes, or until it is golden and cooked through. Transfer the focaccia to a rack, let it cool for 10 minutes, and serve it, cut into squares, warm or at room temperature.

Waiting to go in the oven...

...and cooling off after!