Maudy's Cooking Journal!

Swamped with school works, I looked for dessert recipe that's quick and easy. After flipping through recipe books, I found a simple yet sounds great recipe from a cookbook that my friend gave us on our wedding celebration. I made this bread on a busy Saturday, in between cleaning my house and preparing for a field survey for my assignment. That was the main intend, to have something to munch for hubby & I on my survey trip. This bread is really easy and delicious. I want to thanks my friend, Ruthie for this great book.

Dutch Apple Bread
Adapted from More-with-Less

Ingredients:
1/2 c margarine
3/4 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
2 cup flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
1/3 c. milk
1 apples (I use Granny Smith), cubed
1/3 c. chopped walnut (I added hazelnut)

Preheat oven to 350'F
Combine flour, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
Cream margarine and sugar. Add eggs and vanilla. Beat until creamy and pale.
Add dry ingredients alternately with milk.
Fold in apple and nuts. Bake in lightly greased pan 9" x 5" for about an hour.

Our friend's family was so kind for mom, sist and I when I was still in elementary school. We didn't have a driver at that time. Dad took us to school in the morning, then they gave us ride home almost everyday. Their house was close to ours, but ours is farther from our school. On the way home, my friend's dad often stopped by at Gelael, an international grocery market (at that time) that sold pricey imported stuffs. Their target audience was foreigners that live in my city. My family barely shopped at that store, so the stuffs there looked "weird yet cool" for me at that time. We usually waited in the car while the dad went in the store. One day, he brought us a baguette. My sissy and I called it "roti pentung". It was like a joke for us at that time to have a tough long bread that's not so edible. We were wondering how to eat that bread. We tried hard to like that bread, then grandma took care the rest. Ummm...I mean she must toss it away Now, I would be super excited if I could make my french bread that crusty.

Easy French Bread
Adapted from Mennonite Cookbook
Ingredients:
2 pkg dry yeast (about 14 gr)
2 Tbs sugar
2 tsp salt
2 Tbs oil
2 cup warm water
2 cup whole wheat flour
3-4 cup all-purpose flour

Dissolve yeast in 1/2 warm water. Combine the rest of ingredients until smooth and elastic. Let rise until doubled. Punch down and let rise for 15 minutes. Divide the dough in half. On floured place, roll the dough into rectangle. Roll up. Place loaves on greased pan and score the dough diagonally. Let rise for 30-45 minutes of until doubled. Brush with egg wash (1 egg yolk and 2 Tbs milk). Bake at 400'F for 20 minutes.