CHRISTMAS YEAST BAKING – DEC 16/16

Every year when I start to bake for Christmas I try to remove a few less healthy ingredients and add ones that are healthier. We try to eat healthy, but as well I love to serve my company healthy.

Yesterday I decided to do yeast baking. Our grand kids love cinnamon buns and kuchen, so I got out my EAT MORE WHOLE GRAINS cookbook and started with one of my favorite dough recipes; FRUIT FILLED BUNS on page 55. We enjoy these buns because they are not too sweet and the fruit makes them nice and moist. They are great as a dessert, as a compliment to breakfast, brunch or just as a snack with coffee or tea. I can take out as many as I need at a time, nuk them in the micro-wave a few seconds and they are like freshly baked.

Besides being a healthier choice, I find that a recipe of yeast dough will result in way more food than a cake or other dainties, so my time yesterday was well spent.

This year I decided to use half freshly milled spelt flour and half unbleached in this recipe. I used honey instead of sugar in the dough. I still used some sugar in the crumbs, but less.

FRUIT FILLED BUNS

3 cups lukewarm water
1/2 cup kefir (or plain yogurt)
1 cup oil ( or half butter and half coconut oil)
4 eggs
2/3 cup melted honey
1 teaspoon sea salt
4 tablespoons fast rising yeast
6 cups freshly milled spelt flour
6 cups unbleached flour

Put water, kefir, oil, eggs, honey, salt and spelt flour into a large bowl. Mix with beaters. As it continue to mix, sprinkle on the yeast. Add the unbleached flour gradually as it kneads with a dough hook* or by hand. Knead well. Let rise until double in size, roll out the dough on a floured board and cut out 2 inch circles with a glass. Space these on cookie sheets, cover with a towel to keep warm or place the trays into the oven that has been turned on for a few minutes; just to take out the chill, then turned off. When circles are double in size, press in the middle of each with a clean 1 inch lid to flatten that one inch space. Place a tablespoon of fruit filling in the hole. Top with a spoon of crumbs. When they are all filled they are ready to bake at 350 degrees for 15 – 20 minutes or until nicely browned.

*SAVE TIME WITH A KNEADING MACHINE
If you are mixing your dough in a Bosch or other kneading machine, you can save time. After adding the unbleached flour, knead with the Bosch for 9 minutes. The gluten is now developed so there is no need to let the dough rise to double. You are ready to roll out and cut the circles and proceed as above.

It will depend how large your circles are, but I made 60 buns from this dough recipe. I mixed 3 cups of thawed apple pie filling with 3 cups of frozen blueberries for the filling for these 60 buns.

CRUMBS
1/3 cup butter
1 1/2 cups unbleached flour (or spelt)
1/2 cup sugar
2 tablespoons milk or water
Mix with your fingers until crumbled.

HONEY BOTTOM CINNAMON BUNS – December 16, 2015

I used the FRUIT FILLED BUNS dough recipe on page 55 of EAT MORE WHOLE GRAINS to make these cinnamon buns and they are really a hit. The trick to soft cinnamon buns is to be sure to let them rise really well before baking.
I made a special gooey syrup for the bottom by mixing honey and coconut oil. Last Christmas everyone loved the brown sugar syrup I put at the bottom of the pan, but I now wanted a healthier substitute.
These buns are very yummy and I feel good about the healthier changes I have made. Honey is sweet, but it is full of nutrition so it is a better choice.

Washing up the pans was not as much fun, but I soaked them first so it didn’t take long.

3 cups lukewarm water
1/2 cup kefir (or plain yogurt)
1 cup oil ( or half butter and half coconut oil)
4 eggs
2/3 cup melted honey
1 teaspoon sea salt
4 tablespoons fast rising yeast
6 cups freshly milled spelt flour
6 cups unbleached flour

Put water, kefir, oil, eggs, honey, salt and spelt flour into a large bowl. Mix with beaters. As it continues to mix, sprinkle on the yeast. Add the unbleached flour gradually as it kneads with a dough hook* or by hand. Knead well. Let rise until double in size, roll out the dough on a floured board & spread with melted honey and cinnamon. Roll up beginning at a long side. Pinch the dough together when it is rolled up. Place a piece of dental floss or heavy thread under the roll where you want to cut; about 1 1 /2 inches wide. Bring both ends together & cross over above the roll. Pull quickly to cut each roll. Place these on the syrup in buttered baking pans. Place pans in a warm spot to let rise to double. Bake in 350 ° F oven for 15 – 20 minutes or until lightly browned.

Remove the buns from the pans a.s.a.p. so they do not stick to the bottom of the pan and the syrup stays on the buns.

* SAVE TIME WITH A KNEADING MACHINE
If you are mixing your dough in a Bosch or other kneading machine, you can save time. After adding the unbleached flour, knead with a Bosch for 9 minutes. The gluten is now developed so there is no need to let the dough rise to double. You are now ready to proceed as above to shape and bake.

DELICIOUS SYRUP
Mix 1 cup melted honey with 1 cup coconut oil. The thicker coconut oil will melt slightly from the honey allowing one to spread this mixture into the bottom of the buttered pans that have at least 1 inch sides.

For many more great yeast baking recipes found in this cookbook using different kinds of seeds, grains & flours, go to www.winnieswinningways.ca EAT MORE WHOLE GRAINS cookbook also explains how to mix the dough or batter by hand and then as well how to mix with a kneading machine such as a Bosch.

We will be hosting a family Christmas Eve supper for 25 and a party of 45 guests at New Years. I hope to post the great healthy yet delicious waffle recipe I will be serving at the party. I am already baking & freezing the waffles; then thawing & warming them in the waffle irons. They will be just as tasty as freshly made. This makes the party fun & easy to host on that day.

Merry Christmas and a Healthy and Blessed New Year! Winnie