I like to put special recipes on my Rowdy Baker Facebook page, but since I can’t Pin directly from there I’m posting some of my favorites here. I hope you’ll visit my Facebook page too, though!

BANANABERRY OATMEAL STREUSEL BREAD

Bread:
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup “quick” oatmeal
2 cups sugar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
4 eggs
1 cup oil (I use either peanut or canola)
½ cup buttermilk
1 teaspoon vanilla
4 mashed bananas
1 cup chopped walnuts
1 cup blueberries (or huckleberries) fresh or frozen*

Streusel Topping:
¼ cup melted butter
½ cup brown sugar
½ cup flour
2 teaspoons cinnamon

Heat the oven to 350 F.
Make the streusel topping by mixing the butter, brown sugar, flour, and cinnamon together. Set aside.
Grease two bread pans. (I prefer to spray mine with a flour/oil mixture like “Baker’s Joy”.)
In a large bowl, mix together the flour, oatmeal, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon. *If you are using frozen berries, do not thaw – just toss them in the dry mixture at this time.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs, oil, buttermilk, vanilla, and mashed bananas.
If you are using fresh berries, fold them in now, along with the walnuts.
Divide batter between bread pans.
Top with streusel mixture.
Bake for 50-60 minutes, until the streusel is dark brown and a wooden pick comes out clean when inserted into the middle of a loaf.
Cool in the pan on a rack for 10 minutes, then remove from pan and cool thoroughly.

PUMPKIN CHOCOLATE COVERED RAISIN COOKIES

1 cup butter
1 cup dark brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 egg
1 cup pumpkin butter* (made from 1 1/2 cups puréed pumpkin – see below)
2 cups flour
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup quick-cook oatmeal
1 package (11 ounces) dark chocolate covered raisins

*To make pumpkin butter, put 1 1/2 cups canned pumpkin in a small saucepan over low heat. Stir often, allowing the extra moisture to evaporate. This will take about a half hour. The pumpkin will darken and feel a little dry. You should have about a cup of pumpkin butter. Chill in the refrigerator until cool to the touch.

• Heat the oven to 375 F.
• In a large bowl, beat the butter, brown sugar, white sugar, vanilla, and egg together until well blended.
• Add the pumpkin butter and mix well.
• Stir in the dry ingredients.
• Add the chocolate covered raisins. Stay out of the dough! (Sorry…habit!)
• Drop dough by rounded tablespoons (or a cookie scoop) onto an ungreased cookie sheet. These don’t spread out much, so you can fit quite a few on a sheet at a time.
• Bake for approximately 12 minutes. Cool on a rack.

 

10/12/2012

PUMPKIN-PEANUT BUTTER DOG BISCUITS

2 cups solid-pack pumpkin
2 eggs
1/2 cup dry milk
1/2 cup peanut butter
1/4 cup chia seeds
2 strips bacon, cooked and crumbled (with the grease)
2 teaspoons baking powder
whole wheat flour (approximately 6 cups)

Whisk together the pumpkin and eggs.
Add dry milk, peanut butter, and chia seeds. Whisk until smooth.
With heavy spoon, stir in bacon (and grease), baking powder, and enough flour to make a very stiff dough.
Turn out onto heavily floured surface and knead in flour until the dough won’t absorb any more.
Roll out dough to desired thickness. Place the biscuits close together on cookie sheets.
Bake at 300 F for an hour.
Reduce heat to 250 F and cook until hard. This may take anywhere from 1 to 2 hours.

12/22/2012

Peppermint Patties
8 ounces of cream cheese (softened)
1 teaspoon peppermint extract
9 cups powdered sugar

1 1/2 cups chocolate chips (dark or milk)
2 tablespoons shortening

In a large bowl, mix the cream cheese and extract well.
Add powdered sugar, 1 cup at a time, beating well with each addition.
This is a very stiff mixture – you may need to knead the last of the powdered sugar into it.
Shape into balls, approximately 1″ and place on plastic wrap (or waxed paper) lined cookie sheets. Flatten with a fork.

Cover and chill for an hour.

Melt the chocolate chips and shortening in the microwave, 20 seconds at a time, stirring often. Allow to cool a little.
Dip the patties (using a fork is easiest, tapping off excess chocolate on the edge of the bowl) and put them on lined cookie sheets. Chill until firm.

Store in the fridge.