Healthy Bread in Five Minutes A Day & Whole Grain Challah with Cranberries and Orange Zest AND a New Coffee Cake for the Holidays!

Today I got to make challah for Hanukkah! It wasn't a regular challah loaf, but a unique one for two reasons-- 1st, it's made from the technique taught in the book Healthy Bread in Five Minutes a Day, and 2nd it has some special additions to the regular challah loaf as you can glean from the title- Whole Grain Challah with Cranberries and Orange Zest. This is the second bonus recipe for the Google group HBinFive. It has been a delightful dough to work with. You can go here to see the original recipe by Jeff Hertzberg and Zoë François. I made some modifications after reading several emails from the HBinFive Google group. I only used white whole wheat flour, replaced wheat bran flakes for wheat germ and increased the salt and vital wheat gluten to rounded portions ( I do live at a high altitude). I loved how this bread has turned out!

Challah is no ordinary bread, and I knew that I needed to treat it with a measure of respect. I was happy to see this explanation on

Kosher Foods For Body and Soul:

The dough is made with an especially large number of eggs, and sweetened with honey. The dough is traditionally cut into three rope-shaped pieces and then braided together before baking. An egg wash is applied to the dough to give a golden color after being baked. Poppy or sesame seeds are sprinkled on the bread before baking; the seeds represent manna that God gave to the Israelites to eat while they wandered in the desert.

After making my challah, I took my finished loaf to my neighbors for a picture with their beautiful menorah. They explained to me the Hebrew letters running down the middle represent the Ten Commandments - I love that. Getting the right picture took longer than it should have, I have the most gracious neighbors!

Next recipe: Cranberry Orange Coffee Cake filled with an Almond Cranberry Relish

Same dough, Whole Grain Challah with Cranberries and Orange Zest, just put together in a different manor for a different audience. This is something you could serve at breakfast or brunch- it's both sweet and tart with a great crunch. I used a simple technique of rolling the dough as you would for making cinnamon rolls, then changed it up a bit. Check out the pictures to see how it is made.

click to enlarge

This dough, Whole Grain Challah with Cranberries and Orange Zest will become a standard at my house during the holidays. It works like magic, try some and let me know how it goes at your house.

You may also like my version PUMMPKIN PIE BRIOCHE AND EBELSKIVERS

And don't forget to get online and get your self or someone you love one

of the best gifts for the kitchen,

Artisan Bread in Five Minutes A Day & Healthy Bread in Five Minutes A Day!

Pumpkin Pie Brioche and Ebelskivers, Healthy Bread in Five Minutes A Day

I am a member of the Healthy Bread in Five Minutes a Day google group, and the first bonus assignment was to make this fabulous seasonal brioche- the deadline has passed, but I decided to go ahead and make it anyway and I'm glad I did. You may want to make this delicious bread for your table as well, Pumpkin Pie Brioche.

The Pumpkin Pie Brioche recipe was available on the Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day web site, but has now be removed. You can access it from Michelle's blog {Big Black Dog} who has permission from the authors of HBinFive, Jeff Hertzberg and Zoe Francois. The changes I made in the original recipe were made because I live at a high altitude. I took the suggestions that were made in the book -- they worked beautifully. Here are the changes: 1 tablespoon and 1 teaspoon yeast, 1 rounded tablespoon kosher salt, and 2 rounded tablespoons vital wheat gluten.

The dough has a wonderful consistency and I found it easy to work with. I absolutely had to make a brioche, which will find it's self turned into french toast in the morning, but decided that pumpkin ebelskivers would be just the thing to best use this flavorful dough and they worked like a charm.

Christmas brunch at my house finds me making ebelskivers, it's been a tradition as long as any of my children can remember. These delicate puff pancakes can be quite delicious but unfortunately a bit of a time eater as well. This Pumpkin Pie Brioche dough worked out famously to cut down in the time area because I was able to make the pinch balls and set them out to rise and then cook them up quickly. I may have to think about mixing this into my menu this year. It is a winner recipe served with nutmeg syrup and orange butter.

When I make ebelskivers I use a cast iron pan. I love cast iron. It cooks these cute little pancakes evenly and perfectly light brown. I put the cast iron in a hot oven for about 15 minutes before I'm ready to cook to get the pan nice and hot. Once it's hot, place it on the stove top on a low setting. Put a little canola oil in the bottom of each round cup and place one of the risen pinched balls carefully into each hole. Watch them attentively until you get an idea of how quickly they will cook. You need to have a tool to turn with, I've used everything from a bamboo skewer to tongs. This year I have a set of new tools that I picked up at Williams-Sonoma made by Littledeer. They made quick work of lifting and flipping the delicate little babies. They were a bargain at $12. Once the ebelskivers are done, sprinkle them with powder sugar, serve and and watch them disappear.

The Pioneer Woman Cooks Meets SLC

The Pioneer Woman Cooks: Recipes from an Accidental Country Girl is 250 pages of fun, honest down to earth life experiences mingled with recipes and sprinkled with pictures and how-to-cook wisdom from the kitchen of Ree Drummond.

Last Thursday, together with some fellow friends & food bloggers and several 100's of PW enthusiasts who are yet to be my friends had the rare and wonderful opportunity of meeting this city turned cowgirl in person. She is every bit as personable as you would hope she is, an absolutely genuine "I want to be your friend" kind of person. Many thanks to King's English for their sponsoring this event, the Gallery next door for letting way too many women in their building (the fire department would not have been happy) and to my darling food blogging friends (FoodFinery, BarbaraBakes, TwoPeasandPod, SLCFoodie- please check their sights for pictures of the event) and my good friend Julia who spent from 4 in the afternoon until 6:45 passing the time with me waiting for the grand entrance of Ree Drummond, THE PIONEER WOMAN!

Yesterday I made her Perfect Pot Roast, pages 120-122. Secret ingredients rosemary and thyme and a technic that I hadn't done before. To go along with the roast I made the perfect side of Creamy Mashed Potatoes, pages 146-147 and per the instructions of the author I tried to feel as much guilt as possible as I mashed, stirred and whipped those decadent darlings and put it together to make a very nice Sunday meal. The pan juices spooned over the mashed potatoes was really . . . well I think I may just have to have some of the left overs for lunch.

I highly recommend this new cookbook not only as a resource for recipes, but as a slice of American life.

Artisan Bread in 5 Minutes a Day & the their NEW BOOK!

I have been singing the praises of the book Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day ever since I checked it out from the library and then quickly bought my own copy back in the winter months. Because I am a bread maker myself, I was hesitant that this would really work- but I couldn't have been more wrong. Last week I demonstrated to 30 women just how fabulous this book really is- and honestly once you've tasted the bread and seen the technic in person you're sold.

In our busy world where most of us barely have time to purchase bread, little lone make it-- this is a gift to anyone who wants to have a wonderful product without spending copious amounts of time making it. By utilizing different master recipes you can bake artisan free form loaves, flat breads, peasant bread and things as delicate as brioche. I would recommend if you are interested in learning this technic that you watch this youtube, visit their official web address and give it a try. The authors Jeff Hertzberg and Zoe Francois are very down to earth and approachable and will even answer your questions on Twitter or their website. It doesn't get better than that . . .

Except that their new book just hit the bookshelves yesterday! Now we can all make a healthy version of this incredible bread. Healthy Bread in Five Minutes a Day offers whole wheat and other whole grains and whole vegetables versions as well as a chapter on gluten free bread. I will certainly be giving this book a try and can hardly wait for mine to arrive. Check out this segment for a recipe that you could try today with ingredients you may already have in your pantry as well as a link to purchase the new book at a great rate.

If anyone would like to see how this is done in person, contact me and I would be happy to give you a lesson. I have two different types of dough in my fridge at the moment just waiting and hoping for a good home. Happy Baking and tasting!