Mmmmmm Yummy!!!

Does everybody else love bread as much as I do? Not just bread, but cookies and muffins and biscuits too... haha

Last night, Scott & I decided to have a few friends over for dinner. This isn't exactly anything out of the ordinary for us, but its been awhile since we've had people over at our house. Lately we've been going to everybody else's home!

So yesterday afternoon I put a very nice looking beef roast on our smoker after coating it in Cabela's Bourbon Man Rub (wonderful seasoning by the way!) followed by looking for a bread recipe to go with it!

After searching though all my cook books and not finding one that I had all of the ingredients for AND sounded good, I took my search to the computer! I really enjoy using a couple of different cookbook type websites. One is cooks.com and the other is allrecipes.com! This is where I came across a recipe for Rosemary bread, which I had never had before but it sounded great! I just wanted to share this with everybody because it was a HIT last night! There was nothing left of it by the end of the evening.

So here it is.

Jo’s Rosemary Bread (Macaroni Grill type)

INGREDIENTS

· 1 cup water

· 3 tablespoons olive oil

· 1 1/2 teaspoons white sugar

· 1 1/2 teaspoons salt

· 1/4 teaspoon Italian seasoning

· 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

· 1 tablespoon dried rosemary

· 2 1/2 cups bread flour

· 1 1/2 teaspoons active dry yeast

1. Yeast + 1/4 c. warm water, wait 10 minutes.

2. Add flour, salt, sugar, oil, 3/4 c. warm water knead like heck!

3. Add the herbs & pepper and knead some more! (Other substitutions - oregano instead of an Italian blend or fresh rosemary instead of dried!)

4. Let rise an hour or so in an oiled, covered bowl in a warm place.

5. Punch down, let rise another hour.

6. Form into round loaf and bake at 375 until browned. (This took about 30 minutes)

7. Remove from oven, brush with olive oil and sprinkle with coarse salt.

Serve with olive oil and fresh cracked pepper. Oh, and don't forget the wine!!! haha YUMMY!

Hello Fall!!!!!

Last night after putting Kymberlyn in bed I couldn't help but feel like fall is officially here!!! Its a little sad, because I really never felt like we had a summer! Kymberlyn & I only made it to the pool a couple of times and the hot days that use to send us down to the river to cool off on a sand bar were few.

I have to be honest though, I LOVE fall! Crops coming out of the field, brisk morning air, deer season right around the corner and probably my favorite part --- starting our wood stove. There is nothing better than the feel of cozying up on the couch with the heat of the wood stove around me. However, with Kymberlyn being more than active, we've had to make a few adjustments to keep the wood stove area childproof!

So anyway, last night I decided it was time to make some firestarters. I've seen these at craft shows before and then found some instructions on a candlemaking website. Really easy to make! I used scrap pieces of bark and old potpourri set in cupcake paper. I did put a wick in each of these although I've been told that isn't completely necessary since the cupcake paper will light as well.

After you've arranged your wood in your fireplace or wood stove, you take a firestarter, place it in the middle and light it. Its a very quick and easy way to get your fire going! The wax burns up completely and doesn't leave any residue.

The first batches I made last night are unscented, but I'm planning on making a few scented batches as well. I'm thinking about making cinnamon, cedar and balsam fir scented firestarters. If you have an idea for a scent or would like to try some let me know!!!