Roasted Beet Bread

If you like bread then you will love this recipe. I guarantee it. I promise I take my bread very seriously and would never lie about a thing like that.

It is hard to describe the flavor of this bread without actually trying it. The color is beautiful and the texture is remarkable as well.

If you are new to yeast bread baking, do not be afraid to give this a try. You won’t regret it. It is one of my new favorites.

Plus, it’s pink so it’s pretty.

Plus, it looks really cool so everyone will ask you about it and think you are awesome.

Go HERE for step-by-step instructions. The Cooking Bread.com site has great photo instructions so you know what things are supposed be looking like along the way.

Roasted Beet Bread

 Ingredients

 Night Before 

1/4 tsp instant yeast

1 cup flour

1 cup hot water (From tap is hot enough)

 Day of:

1 cup roasted beet puree

1/2 cup whole wheat flour

3/4 tsp instant yeast

1/4 cup hot water (from tap if hot enough)

1 Tbsp fresh chopped thyme

1 tsp salt

2 - 3 cups flour

.

Directions

The night before combine all the "Night Before" ingredients together and mix with a wooden spoon. Cover with plastic wrap and allow to sit on the counter for 12 to 16 hours. (Put in a bowl that will allow room to rise)

After the "Night Before" ingredients have sat, pour it into a large bowl. Add in the pureed beets, whole wheat, instant yeast, and hot water. Mix with a wooden spoon till smooth. Allow to sit for 10 minutes uncovered.

Now, add in the fresh thyme and salt; mix till smooth. Start to add in the flour a half a cup at a time. Once it becomes too hard to mix in the bowl pour out onto a flat surface and knead for 10 minutes. This will be a sticky dough, so be careful not to add to much flour. Add just enough flour to stop the dough from really sticking to your fingers when kneading.

After kneading add a little olive oil to a bowl. Place dough into the bowl and turn over a few times to very lightly coat all sides. Cover with plastic wrap.

Allow to rise for 1 1/2 hours or till double in bulk.

After the dough has risen, pour out onto a lightly floured, flat surface. Cut in half and shape into desired shape. Place the shaped dough onto a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper sprinkled with cornmeal. Spray the tops with cooking spray and cover with plastic wrap for 1 hour or till double in bulk.

 Before the final rising.

Ready to go in the oven ;)

Preheat oven to 400.

After they have risen again, sprinkle a little whole wheat flour on top and slash an x on top of each loaf. Place into preheated 400 degree oven with a cast iron pan to create steam.

(You can create some steam by placing a cast iron pan on the bottom of the oven the same time that you turn on the oven. Once you place the loaves into the oven pour about a cup of boiling water into the hot pan and close the door.)

Bake for 30 -35 minutes or till when tapped on the bottom of the loaf it sounds hollow.

So pretty!

 I made this originally for Valentine’s Day because of the color. It went really well with all of the other Valentine’s-y food Sue and I had made for dinner.

I took this another step and made it into garlic toast (slathered it with garlic butter and then toasted in the oven until the butter melted and crust was crispy) which just about killed me because it was soooooooo incredibly scrumptious I couldn’t stop eating it.

Seriously.

Look at the garlic toast goodness. How can you resist that?

I tried to make myself feel better by telling myself it was totally healthy because it had beets in it.

What? Beets are healthy.

Oh, here is how you get the beet puree if you need some help with that:

Start with some beets. I did a bunch because I also used some to make the Roasted Beet Hummus as well. Give them a quick scrub under running water to get rid of the cooties.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Place them on a large square of tinfoil. If you like, you can throw in some finely chopped garlic for good measure. (I did, it tastes even better)

Tent tinfoil over beets and pinch seam to seal. Set tinfoil packet directly on middle rack in oven. If you are worried about spillage then place a cookie sheet on the bottom rack.

Roast beets for 40 - 70 minutes or until smooth when pricked with a fork. Let them cool and then peel them and cut them into smaller chunks.

Place beet chunks (and any of the roasted garlic bits if you used them) into a food processor and process until smooth.

Sue and I disagreed on how to roast the beets. I, of course, was right about the method and Sue was wrong and a really poor loser.

Okay.

I may be stretching the truth a bit.

As it turns out, Sue was right but I think I have been complimenting Sue and being a little too nice to her lately so I didn't want to admit she was right...AGAIN....

So, for the purpose of this story:

I was right and Sue was a big jerk face.

If you end up with extra puree you can always throw any leftover beet puree into soups or casseroles to up the nutritional value.

UPDATE: I made the beet bread into buns -

And then made them into paninis using our Steak and Bacon Cheddar Balls as filling.

It. Was. Awesome.

Just sayin'

 

UPDATE #2:

 

 

I made this incredible Roasted Beet Bread, Feta, Turkey, Roasted Beet Slider for a blogger challenge. It was so good. Thought I would share the photo because it just looked so darned pretty!

Roasted Beet Hummus

Once again my dying digitial camera disappoints with the color. It is a really cool color that just isn't true to this photo :(

This recipe is perfect for Valentine’s Day.

Or Christmas.

Or any weekday ending in “Y”.

This isn’t tradition hummus, obviously, but you will still know it is hummus. The beets add a sweetness that is really interesting yet not too beet-y. Sue and I chose to leave out the tahini paste that hummus often calls for but you can certainly add it in if you prefer. It will definitely affect the taste.

(The original recipe over at the Beantown Baker called for ½ cup of tahini or sesame paste.)

Roasted Beet Hummus

.

Ingredients

1-2 medium beets

1 can of chickpeas, drained and rinsed

1 Tbsp olive oil

1 small onion, chopped finely

2 cloves chopped garlic

2 tsp cumin

1/4 cup fresh lemon juice

1/4 cup olive oil

2 cloves of garlic, minced

.

 Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Wash beets and place them on a large square of tinfoil. Gently tent tinfoil over beets and pinch to form a tight seal. Place on rack in oven and cook in oven for 40 – 70 minutes, until smooth when poked with a fork. (If you are worried about leakage then place on a cookie sheet before placing in oven.)

Remove from the oven and allow to cool, then peel and cut into small chunks.

In a small frying pan, heat the tablespoon of olive oil. Add the onion and the 2 cloves of chopped garlic and sauté until soft, about 4 minutes.

Whisk together the lemon juice and olive oil in a small bowl.

In a food processor, chop the beets, onions & garlic, and chickpeas together until smooth. Add the cumin, and process again. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl, then replace the lid. While the blades are running, slowly add the lemon juice and olive oil mixture until the hummus is at your desired consistency. Stir in the remaining 2 cloves of minced garlic.

.

Ooooh....pretty puree!

This is fantastic served with soft-yet-chewy multigrain baguettes, or pitas, or even fresh veggies. As we made it for Valentine’s Day (Um…yeah...it’s PINK), Sue and I made heart shaped chips by simply using a heart shaped cookie cutter on red tortillas then toasting in the oven for a minute or two to crisp up.

We got mixed reviews when we served this. The kids thought it was a little weird – they liked the aftertaste but not-so-much the first taste. The ladies at work thought it was delicious – they appreciated the difference the beets made plus how garlic-y it was.

Sue and I agreed that, while it was quite tasty, it definitely wasn’t something we would make a lot. Regular hummus is still our favorite but that might just be it is because it is what we are used to. We definitely will make this for times requiring something pink – it doesn’t get much more pink than this – and for times requiring something a little unusual.

This is definitely a dish that will get people talking.

Beary Cute Taco Tarts

Have you ever seen the Hungry Happenings blog? It is an incredibly creative blog that Sue and I keep stealing ideas from. I really don't know how this woman (who is crazy talented) comes up with all of her ideas.

These Beary Cute Taco Tarts were inspired by her Teddy Bear Taco Tart. I hope you go check out her blog. You won't believe some of the things there.

Anyways, Sue and I made this cute couple for our Valentine's dinner a few days ago. You would not believe how easy these actually are.

Looks intimidating to make, yes? It's not....at all.

I am not going to attempt to write out the how-to on this delectable dish when you can GO HERE for the full step-by-step instructions (with photos far superior to ours!).

The kids will love how cute these look and how tasty they are. What's not to love about cheese, flaky pastry, and taco seasoned meat?

We changed the Hungry Happenings recipe a little by making a girl and boy bear by simply adding a tie on the boy and a little bow on the girl. We just cut these out of cheese and painted them with food coloring. The eyes and nose are olives, the hearts - red pepper, and the rest of the bear decorations - cheese cut outs.

I apologize for the poor quality of the photos. The one camera we have that still works is ancient and is slowly dying as well. I think you get the main idea though. They are so cute. Cute enough that when it came time to cut and serve them for dinner we felt a little guilty cutting off their heads.

Well, I didn't feel too guilty. I like to bite the heads off gummy bears.

Sue may have cried a little though.

There you have it. A fairly quick and easy dinner to put together for Valentine's Day. You could actually use the puff pastry to make tarts for any holiday. Shape it as a shamrock for St. Patrick's Day, an egg for Easter, etc. It would make a fun meal for dinner just to surprise the kids too.

One of the things that was nice about this was Sue and I were able to prepare the pastry shell the day before and then all we had to do was put it together when we were ready to serve it.

We layered the cheese into the empty shell and then broiled it for long enough to melt the cheese and warm the tart. We then filled it with the hot taco meat. (Which Sue had prepared earlier in the day and then simply microwaved to reheat)

If you want the step-by-step for this then please go to Hungry Happenings. Beth, the blog author, has layed it out in a simple and straight forward fashion.Tell her Jo and Sue sent you :) 

Hey, if Sue and I can do it then anyone can do it! 

Valentine's Food Ideas 2012

Today's blog is about Valentine's Day food. Sue and I had a great dinner on the weekend and made some very cute and very tasty Valentine's dishes. I also went through our past blogs and thought I would post some of the pictures (and links) I thought might work for Valentine's Day.

The first photo (above) is of our Conversation Heart Cheesecakes. Sue made these ones from a no-bake cheesecake but, if you click HERE you can visit the Hungry Happenings blog for a fantastic baked cheescake and full instructions. Photo below is of more Conversation Heart Cheesecakes.

Below is a photo of our Beary Cute Taco Tart. Again, this was inspired by Beth over at Hungry Happenings. The woman is a genius! Seriously. Sue and I have made a few of her dishes and they always turn out great. She provides really clear step-by-step instructions. Click the link HERE to her blog and check out her amazing work. I will be devoting a full blog to this tart shortly but just wanted to post a quick sneak peek photo here. (Update: Click HERE to see our full blog)

Okay...the photo below is supposed to be a heart shaped mini meatloaf. As you can see it lost most of its shape during the cooking process. Just use your imagination. :)

I loved making the sweet potato and potato hearts below. They were so easy. I just used a cookie cutter to cut the potatos and then roasted them. Voila! A perfect Valentine's side dish.

Potato hearts and meatloaf hearts. See how cute they look. Really simple and yet so tasty!

Below is Roasted Beet Hummus with heart shaped tortilla chips. I found the recipe for the Roasted Beet Hummus HERE. The Beantown Baker is another blog that is full of some really cool recipes. Each year she hosts a Pink Challenge to raise awareness for breast cancer. Her blog has a million pink recipes that would be great for Valentine's Day. Check it out! Stay tuned for our blog about this interesting and very pretty Humus recipe coming soon. :) (Update: Click HERE for full blog.)

Here is another pic of the beet hummus. It's one of those dishes that will start a conversation at the dinner table.

This garnish was Sue's creation. It was sooooooo easy and really looks good on a plate. It's just the ends of a weiner and a bit of cheese and strand of raw spaghetti. So cute!

This next photo below was probably my favorite new dish for Valentine's Day. It is Roasted Beet Bread Garlic Bread. I got the idea from HERE. I could have eaten the entire loaf. Seriously. It's addicting. I will be doing a separate blog about this very soon. I'm sad that my photos don't show the amazing color that well. It looked really pretty. You can pop over to Cooking Bread to see their great how-to instructions. (If you like trying new things with yeast bread then definitely go see the Cooking Bread blog. They have the coolest recipes) (Update: Click HERE for more pics and full blog)

My mom wanted me to make her something to take the Senior's Center for Valentine's Day. I figured some Berry Scones with Berry Honey Butter would do the trick. I adjusted one of my scone recipes to include berry puree and then whipped up some berry butter (Yes, I will be doing a separate blog about this one too.) It turned out very pretty and purplish. I think if I had only used strawberries it would have turned out pink instead of purple BUT mixed berries was what I had so that's what I went with. (Update: click HERE for full recipe and blog) 

I will be doing a separate blog for the next photo as well. Strawberry Coconut Candy. It's so pretty, and girly, and tasty, and cute, and...well...the list goes on for quite some time. I will save it for the Strawberry Coconut Candy blog coming soon. It is a recipe that is near and dear to Sue and I.
(Update: click HERE for full blog)

The next square is a Strawberry Lemonaid Square that I found on Pinterest and thought sounded interesting. It is very tart and refreshing. I got the idea from KandKtestkitchen.blogspot.com. It was very different and would make a good addition to a plate of squares. (Clear HERE for full blog)

Next up is the Beet Cake Sue and I made a while back for Thanksgiving Dessert. It is like a carrot cake but pink. Click HERE to see our blog about that and to get the recipe. Cute for Valentine's Day dessert.

Here is our Raspberry Cheesecake Donut Cake. Why a donut cake? I thought it looked like a Simpson-style donut. Again, this would make a cute (and tasty) Valentine's dessert. See our blog about it HERE for how-to and the recipe.

One of my favorite ice creams of all times. Blackberry Ice Cream. Our dad's recipe is the best in the world. It's true. See HERE for the best recipe EVER. You can't beat the color of this! (Once again my photo does not do it justice!)

I just recently discovered the joys of Pavlova. Delicious and, as it turns out, very Valentine's-y when served with a berry compote. I blogged about it HERE if you want the recipe.

Here is a photo of Sue's Valentine's dinner table. She made those pretty paper flowers. I thought you might be having a Valentine's food overload. Catch your breath...enjoy Sue's crafty flowers... then carry on. :)

Okay...we aren't back to food yet. Sue made these cool, puffy flowers to hang as well. How crafty is she? The answer would be - VERY. She is a girl of many talents.

Now, back to some deliciousness. These are one of our mom's favorites. Neapolitan Squares. Want the recipe? GO HERE. You won't regret it.

Oooooh...back to ice cream. How many pinky colored ice creams are there? A lot. This one is Blood Orange Ice Cream. It tastes like a creamsicle / Orange Julius. So good. And easy!. Check it out !

I almost forgot about these little devils. Devilled Eggs, that is. Sue dyed them in beet juice and was also able to shape some into hearts using a technique she saw on Pinterest. If you haven't been to Pinterest you should check it out. It's addicting. Plus, it makes you look like a genius if you steal the ideas from there!

This torte I made some time ago for an office get together. It looks really pretty and would be a great dessert to take to a Valentine's gathering. See our blog HERE for the recipe.

I still can't believe Sue isn't fond of crumbles/crisps. They are my favorite. Well, one of my favorites. they just go so well with ice cream or whipped cream and are so warm and gooey and good. This one (Rhubarb & Strawberry) is unbelieveably tasty. Don't believe me? Check this out.

What? More ice cream? Yes....I know it is February and ice cream is a little chilly. It's hard not to count it for Valentine's Day though because it is soooooo pretty. Here is where you can find the recipe for our Plum Ice Cream. It's really, really easy!

Well, that is all the Valentine's food ideas Sue and I have for now. Valentine's Day is one of my favorite holidays. I know some people are anti-Valentine's day, and that's okay.

I love the thought of having a day devoted to love.

Especially if it gives me a chance to experiment with new dishes.

:)

 

Be sure to stop by Hungry Little Girl and The Mandatory Mooch and Kitchen Fun With My 3 Sons for some great links!

Zucchini Cheese Wedges

Just a quick blog today!

Sue and I are having a Valentine's dinner party tomorrow so I have a bazillion things to prep still.

I love Valentine's day. I know everyone says it isn't a true holiday and it's created to make money for the retailers.

Harumph I say to those people.

I think any day devoted to love is a great day. I know it's specifically targeting romantic love but we celebrate it as a day of showing love to everyone.

Anyway, this blog isn't about Valentine's Day. I will rant more about that in another blog :)

This particular blog is about the yummy photo of the zucchini chips that you see above.

Only 3 ingredients and you are on your way to low carb, cheesy heaven.

Zucchini Cheese Wedges

Ingredients

1 large zucchini

2 eggs

2 cups shredded cheese
(We used a pre-shredded blend from Kraft, I believe it was the "Tex-Mex" blend)
 1 Tbsp ground flax seed

Sprinkle of seasoning salt (if desired)

Directions.

Preheat oven to 450. Line 2 cookie sheets with parchment paper. Draw 6 - 8 inch circles on the parchment paper and then flip paper over.

Cut ends from zucchini. Shred. Mix with egg, cheese, and flax until well combined.

Pat mixture firmly and evenly into the 6 circles.

Before the cooking begins.

Bake at 450 for about 12 minutes. Loosen and gently flip the circles over. Bake for another 5 - 10 minutes - until cheese is nice and crispy.  (Hint - I rotated the cookie sheets from front to back and then top to bottom every 5 minutes to ensure even cooking.)

The first side is done. Just need to flip over and crisp up the other side.

Remove from oven and sprinkle lightly with seasoning salt (if using) then cut each circle into 6 wedges.

Let cool completely on wire racks for 6 - 8 hours. You want them to air dry for a bit.

Let them completely cool and air dry before storing them.

To store - keep loosely in a bag or plastic container in the fridge. Best used within a week of preparation.

Note - after the wedges have dried completely you can place them in a plastic container and toss with popcorn seasoning to achieve different flavors.

I brought these to the office for everyone to try and they were a hit. You don't taste the zucchini at all, it's mostly just the crispy cheese that you taste. I can live with that.

I didn't season mine with anything but the sprinkle of seasoning salt but it would be interesting to try them tossed with the popcorn seasoning.

Oh, we also cut our circles into 8 wedges instead of just 6. We liked them a bit smaller.

I would have to say the only challenging thing about this recipe is flipping the circles over halfway through cooking. I tend to panic with things like that - that's why I haven't attempted crepes - but Sue is the flipper master so she did it no problem. A hint for you - if you loosen it from the parchment paper with your flipper and it feels like it is separating then just put it back in the oven for another minute or two and then try again. It should hold together quite well to be able to flip.

And, a last note, according to my calculations the nutritional info for approximately 1/3-ish of the recipe (so, 2 circles) is - 150 calories, 1 carb, 1 fibre, 10.5 protein, 13 fat.
Don't quote me on that - it will depend on the cheese you use, the size of your zucchini, etc.... Over all though it is a great low carb, high protein, mid-calorie snack.

Super Food Salad

Ever have one of those food moments where as you are eating you are thinking to yourself, "This is the best thing I've ever eaten."

I had one of those moments while eating this salad.

I was a little shocked because I didn't have big expectations for this salad. I mean, it sounded good but I am not really a salad eater and if it sounds like it is supposed to be healthy then I automatically lower my taste expectations.

Sad, but true.

Anways, this salad is now one of my new favorites.

It is amazing! The combinations of tastes and textures just fit so well together. I have to say, I do prefer it without the pomegranate seeds, but that's just me. 

Mine, without the pomegranates :)

Super Food Salad

Adapted from Iowa Girl Eats

Ingredients

Lemon Vinaigrette

1 large lemon, juiced (need 1/4 cup juice)

2 garlic cloves, minced

1/4 tsp sugar (or other sweetener - agave, stevia, etc...)

salt & pepper

6 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil

Salad Ingredients

2 cups shrimp

1 - 2 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 cup dry quinoa

1/3 cup purple onion, finely chopped

1 avocado, peeled, seeded, and chopped

 1 cup canned black beans, rinsed and drained

1 cup canned corn

1/2 cup pomegranate arils (if using)

salt & pepper
 

Directions

First, cook your shrimp in a nonstick pan sprayed with cooking spray with the minced garlic.

Mmmmm...garlic shrimp!

When done, set aside to cool.

Cook quinoa according to package directions. Set aside to cool.

For the Lemon Vinaigrette: place all ingredients in a jar with a tight fitting lid and shake to combine. (You could also whisk together in a small bowl) This can sit in the fridge, covered, until ready to use.

 In a large bowl, combine cooled quinoa, purple onion, avocado, beans, pomegranate (if using), corn, and salt and pepper. Toss half of the cooked shrimp into the salad.

Pour about 1/2 of the Lemon Vinaigrette over the salad and gently stir to combine. Sprinkle with remaining shrimp. You can add a bit more dressing to suit your tastes if you prefer.

Serve cold or at room temp.

I am not 100% sure why this is called a "super food" salad. I'm assuming it is because it contains so many really nutrient rich ingredients.  

Totally good for you...and totally delicious.

Who would have thought that was possible?

I may slowly be changing my opinion about eating more vegetables and healthier food.

A few more dishes like this one and I will be definitely be on board the veggie train!

Oh...quick note....this serves 5 generously and, from what I can figure out using Fitday, it breaks down to approximately: 430 calories, 17 gr of fat, 50 gr carbs, and 25 gr of protein per serving using half of the dressing.  Don't quote me on that but I think it's pretty close.

Check out Blissful and Domestic and Carole's Chatter for some great links!