DIY Oat Flour

This is so simple that this may be my shortest post ever. This isn't even really a recipe, but it uses basically the same process as making powdered sugar at home.

Homemade Oat Flour

• Rolled oats or oatmeal

Place rolled oats or oatmeal in the blender and blend until finely ground. This homemade oat flour has worked well for me in pancakes, muffins, cake and bread. I haven't tried it yet in a recipe that uses 100% oat flour, but I don't generally make recipes that call for that. I love adding this whole grain flour into recipes for some variety now.

DIY Strawberry Scones

One of the interesting things about living in this part of southern China, is that our strawberry season is in the winter. In the summer it rains a lot, but in the winter it is usually quite dry and sunny. So now is the time to make all things strawberry here.

These strawberry scones turned really good. I had to quick freeze a few for Valentine's Day or they would have all disappeared the first day. The strawberry icing really brings out the strawberry flavor.

To make the rest of the recipe really easy first wash and hull strawberries and puree enough in a blender to equal 1 cup of strawberry puree to divide for the recipe. If you puree too much you can always make smoothies. :)

Homemade Strawberry Scones

• 2 1/2 cups flour
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 3/4 cup strawberry puree
• 1/2 cup oil or melted butter
• 1 egg
• 1 Tbsp baking powder 
• 1 tsp vanilla

1. Mix all ingredients together in a large mixing bowl until well combined.
2. Divide dough in two, and press or roll out into circles (or a giant rectangle on a 9x13 pan) on greased pans until about 1/2 inch thick. (Here are more pictures of making scones.)
3. Score into about 16-18 total triangle-shaped scones.
4. Bake at 400 F for about 15 minutes until just lightly brown.
5. Remove from oven, and let cool.
6. Make strawberry powdered sugar glaze.

Homemade Strawberry Powdered Sugar Glaze

• 1 1/4 cup powdered sugar (approximately)
• 1/4 cup strawberry puree (approximately)

1. Mix together strawberry puree and powdered sugar. To get desired consistency it may be necessary to adjust the amounts of wet or dry ingredients. If the icing is too dry and you don't have any more strawberry puree, you can add a little milk a teaspoon at a time also.
2. Drizzle on top of scones.

Makes 16-18 scones. 

DIY Strawberry Heart Muffins (great for Valentine's Day breakfast)

I made these muffins last year for Valentine's day and they turned out really delicious. I lightly adapted this recipe using my homemade strawberry sauce. Simple pureed strawberries would work as well or just use the original strawberry jam and milk. Anyway you make these they are sure to please your sweethearts.

Homemade Strawberry Sweetheart Muffins Recipe

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 3 eggs 
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 1 cup homemade strawberry sauce or pureed strawberries (or substitute 1/2 cup milk plus 1/2 cup homemade or store bought strawberry jam)
• Extra strawberry sauce or jam for decoration if desired

1. In a mixing bowl first combine the dry ingredients.
2. Next mix in the wet ingredients until just combined.
3. Fill greased muffin cups. Spoon a small amount of strawberry sauce or jam on top or each muffin and drag a butter knife through to create a heart on top if desired. Here are pictures of this technique.
4. Bake at 375 F for 18-22 minutes.

Makes approximately 18 regular sized muffins.

DIY Unleavened Bread

I thought about trying to make lamb this week, but it was really expensive...and really gross looking at the store. So I decided that I was just going to be glad that I don't have to kill a lamb anymore, or even just skin part of an already killed one, and not attempt something that was going to make me feel ill right now.

So I just made stew with ground beef, but also made this unleavened bread to go with it. We read and talked briefly with our boys about the passover and last supper. They are still very young of course and can't understand everything, but it was one more way we are just trying to be always teaching them.

This bread turned out quite tasty and would be a good accompaniment to soups, stews, or pasta, anytime of the year. It was delicious both plain and with butter for dinner.

Homemade Unleavened Bread Recipe

• 3 cups flour (I used 1½ cups whole wheat and 1½ cups white flour)
• 1 cup or more of water
• 1 Tbsp oil
• 1½ tsp salt

1. Combine all ingredients in a mixing bowl, kneading dough until well combined and smooth. Add more water as needed, but dough should remain slightly dry.
2. Divide in 8–10 pieces, and roll into 5 inch flat circles about ½ inch thick.
3. Place on cookie sheets, and bake in a preheated oven at 350 F for 12–20 minutes.

DIY Pumpkin Bread

My husband loves pumpkin bread, probably because his mom is famous for her great pumpkin bread she makes at Christmastime. Nate says he likes that pumpkin bread is less sweet than the scones and you have room to put butter on it. This it the recipe I used this time to make him some pumpkin bread this time. It turned out really well, nice and moist. You can use it to make great mini loaves or muffins as well with less baking time.

Homemade Pumpkin Bread or Pumpkin Muffins Recipe

Pumpkin muffins made using this recipe with
spiced glaze from scone recipe

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 2 cups pumpkin puree or canned pumpkin
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 1/4 cup milk
• 3 large eggs
• 2 tsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp nutmeg
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt

1. Mix all ingredients in a large mixing bowl, stirring until well combine.
2. Pour into greased pans.
3. Bake at 350 for 45-60 minutes for large loaves, 25-35 minutes for small loaves or muffins.

(Makes about 1 large loaf, or 2 medium loaves, or 8 mini loaves, or 12-18 muffins depending on how full you fill your pans.)

DIY Pumpkin Scones

This is my new favorite pumpkin recipe of the year. Last year, I discovered pumpkin soup and love it, but this may just be the best unusual use of pumpkin puree ever! I adapted a recipe I found here, making it a little simpler in my opinion. I'm lazy enough to not like the extra step of cutting in the butter, so I substitute oil or melted butter and they still turn out amazing.

Homemade Pumpkin Scone Recipe

• 2 1/2 cups flour
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 3/4 cup pumpkin puree or canned pumpkin
• 1/2 cup oil or melted butter
• 1 egg
• 1 Tbsp baking powder
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp nutmeg
• 1/4 tsp ginger
• 1/8 tsp (or a pinch) cloves

1. Mix all ingredients together in a large mixing bowl until well combined.
2. Divide dough in two, and press or roll out into circles on greased pans until about 1/2 inch thick. 
3. Score into about 16 total triangle-shaped scones.
4. Bake at 400 F for about 15 minutes until just lightly brown
5. Remove from oven, and let cool.
6. Make spiced powdered sugar glaze.

Spiced Powdered Sugar Glaze

• 1 1/4 cup powdered sugar
• 2–3 Tbsp milk
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp nutmeg

Combine spices and sugar, and add milk a Tbsp at a time until a nice consistency. Stir until smooth. Drizzle over cooled scones. If you want to serve these for company, wait an hour or so for the glaze to harden, but I really have a hard time waiting more than a couple minutes to eat some myself. These are a great with both tea or coffee.

DIY Pumpkin Biscuits

These are a great low-fat twist on traditional biscuits. These are really good with butter and/or honey and as an accompaniment to pumpkin soup.

Homemade Pumpkin Biscuits

• 2 cups flour
• 3/4 cup pumpkin puree
• 1/2 cup whole milk
• 1 Tbsp baking powder
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp oregano or cinnamon (optional)

1. Combine all ingredients in a large mixing bowl and stir until well combined.
2. Drop rounded tablespoons onto a greased cookie sheet.
3. Bake at 400 F for 10–20 minutes.

DIY Tortillas

I tried making tortillas twice back when we were first married, and I wanted to try making everything from scratch. They were OK, but not great. They also take a lot of time to make. So when we were back in Illinois where there is a large Hispanic population and tortillas are cheap, I basically gave up on the idea. But Chinese people don't really eat tortillas, so there are only a couple places in town where foreigners can buy them. One place is the import stores, but everything in these stores is pretty expensive. The only other place that sells them cheaply, but those tortillas aways fall apart when you try to roll them.

So, I started looking for a good tortillas recipe. Eventually, I ended up tweaking this one and made some delicious and cheap homemade tortillas. These are the best tortillas I have had outside of a truly authentic Mexican restaurant. It would be hard to go back to store-bought tortillas because these are so much better. It still takes a while, but now I enlist helpers, and we generally make a quadruple batch. We have a fun family project and can freeze enough tortillas for several weeks.

Chewy Tortillas

2 cups flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
¾ cup warm water
2 Tbsp oil

In a mixing bowl, combine dry ingredients, and then add wet ingredients. Knead until the dough reaches an even consistency. Let the dough rest for 20–30 minutes. This makes it much easier to roll the dough thin enough to make good tortillas.

Next divide the dough into 8 to 10 balls and roll into circles that are ¼ inch or less thick. This is the part that is really helps to have helpers since they can be rolling and someone else can start the next step of fry.

Place a tortilla in a hot, dry, skillet, and fry for about 30 seconds. The tortilla will often bubble up as the first side cooks. Flip it over and cook another 30 seconds. Now place the warm tortilla in a clean kitchen towel. Fry another and place it on top of the first one until all are cooked. This helps the tortillas develop the right consistency. After they are all cooked they can be eaten right away or frozen and reheated in a microwave or toaster oven later. These are great for tacos, fajitas, quesadillas, enchiladas, Mexican lasagna, or anything else you normally use tortillas for.

Bread and Bakery

Light and Fluffy Pancakes

I am very glad that I am not gluten intolerant because I love bread and almost anything made with wheat. I may have gotten this from my Grandpa Roy who always ate enough bread or rolls at family dinners to spoil his appetite. Baking makes the whole house smell good and feel cozy, and almost anything baked tastes better if it is homemade. Making bread and bakery items at home can save a lot of money too, a double bonus.

• Hearty Pancakes
• Light and Fluffy Pancakes
• Pizza Crust
• Pumpkin Biscuits
• Pumpkin Bread 
• Pumpkin Pancakes
• Pumpkin Scones
• Stuffed French Toast
• Tortillas 
• Unleavened Bread

Pizza Crust

I am writing out this recipe from memory. It is so simple and tasty. My mom and I made this delicious crust all the time for our Saturday night pizza tradition when I was growing up. I still make it all the time, but not always on Saturdays anymore. This recipe also makes excellent bread sticks or focaccia.

This recipe makes pizza a frugal treat around here. Which is great because around here you pay about as much as in the states for a medium pizza. But here a medium is like an American personal pan size.

Pizza Crust

Makes 2 Medium thin crust pizza crusts (the real 12 inch kind)

Preheat oven to 350°F
In a large mixing bowl, briefly mix together:
2½ cups flour (white, whole wheat, or a combination)
1 tsp salt

In a liquid measuring cup mix:
1 cup warm water
1 Tbsp oil
1 pkg or 2½ tsp yeast
1tsp sugar or honey

Pour liquid mixture into the mixing bowl, mix, and knead until thoroughly combined. A food processor gets this job does in a couple of minutes if you have one. Or course then you still have to clean the food processor, and I am still debating which I prefer kneading or cleaning.

After mixing let rest for 5 minutes and then press into pizza pans. Let rest again 5-10 minutes. Bake crust for 5-10 minutes before removing and adding toppings of your choice. This is the key to getting crispy instead of soggy crust. After adding toppings return to the oven and bake about 15 minutes more. This recipe freezes really well also (both before and after adding toppings) so you can make your own frozen pizza for busy days.