Great Irish Soda Bread

This recipe was given to me by a friend.  When her church hosts their annual St. Patrick’s Day meal, she and several other ladies get together to make over fifty loaves of this bread to serve!  I’ve tried many recipes, but this one takes first prize!

3 cups of flour
2 TBS brown sugar

2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

1 1/2 cups of buttermilk

1/2 cup of golden raisins

1-2 TBS of melted butter (for the top after baking)

Mix all the ingredients  except the butter together in a bowl, then turn out onto a lightly floured board.  Kneed it until it feels “nice” (you’ll know!).  Free form a round loaf and bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Keep checking it but it will take about 30-40 minutes.  Smear the top with butter after it’s done baking.

This recipe is the property of Tammy Paquin.  If you’d like to use it for your site, please keep it intact and link it back to www.frugal-families.com.  Thank you.

Italian Cookies

This is a recipe from my husband’s grandmother.  Grandma N. was born in Italy and my husband fondly remembers watching her make so many Italian classics from scratch like her Italian cookies and ravioli when he would visit her as a child.    I hope you enjoy this recipes!

Italian Cookies

1 package condensed mince meat
1 1/2 cups sugar
4 TBS cocoa
1 1/4 tsp nutmeg
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/8 tsp ground cloves

Place all of these ingredients into a mixing bowl and add 1 cup of boiling water to soften the mincemeat.

After it has softened, add:
1 cup shortening
4 cups of flour
4 tsp baking powder
1/2 cup walnuts.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.  Place cookie dough, by the teaspoon onto a greased cookie  sheet and bake for 10 minutes.

Soft Pretzels

*If you plan to freeze these do not put salt on them until after you pull them from the freezer

4 to 4 ½ cups flour
2 ¼ teaspoons yeast
1 ½ cups milk
¼ cups sugar
2 tablespoons cooking oil
1 ½ teaspoons salt
3 tablespoons salt
2 quarts boiling water
1 slightly beaten egg white
Sesame seed or coarse salt

In mixer bowl combine 2 cups of the flour and the yeast in saucepan heat milk, sugar, oil and 1 ½ teaspoons salt just till warm (115 –120) stir constantly. Add to flour mixture. Beat at low speed of electric mixer for ½ minute, scraping bowl. Beat 3 minutes at high speed. Stir in as much of he remaining flour as you can mix in with a spoon. Turn out onto lightly floured surface. Knead in enough of the remaining flour to make a moderately stiff dough that is smooth and elastic(6-8 minutes) Shape into a ball. Place in lightly greased bowl; turn once to grease surface.
Cove; let rise in warm place till double( about 1 1/2 hours)

Punch down; turn out onto lightly floured surface, cover let rest 10 minutes. Roll into a 12×8 inch rectangle. Cut into 16 strips, each 12 inches long and ½ inch wide. Roll each into a rope 16 inches long. Shape into pretzels. Let rise, uncovered, 20 minutes. Dissolve 3 tablespoons salt in the boiling water. Lower 3 or 4 pretzels at a time into boiling water; boil for 2 minutes, turning once. Remove with slotted spoon to paper toweling; let stand a few seconds then place ½ inch apart on well greased baking sheet. Brush with mixture of egg white and 2 tablespoons water. Sprinkle lightly with sesame seed or coarse salt. Bake in 350 oven 25 to 30 minutes or till golden brown.

Hamburger and Hotdog Buns

2 cups warm water
5 T white sugar or honey
1 1/2 tablespoons yeast
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/4 cup oil
5-6 cups flour
One Egg white
1 tablespoon water
sesame seeds, or dried onions (for hamburger buns)
cornmeal to sprinkle on the baking sheets

In a large bowl, dissolve the sugar in warm water: add yeast.

Mix in salt and oil. Work in the flour until dough no longer looks wet. Knead on a floured surface until smooth. Place in a well oiled bowl, turning to coat dough with oil. Cover and allow to rise until doubles, about 1 hour.

Punch dough down. Knead again.

For Hamburger Buns divide into 12 pieces, flatten and stretch each piece into a circle about 3 to 4 inches in diameter and place on a cookie sheet that has cornmeal sprinkled on it. You can also divide into 18 pieces, if you prefer a smaller bun. Allow to rise for about 40 minutes, brush with the egg and water mixture, and sprinkle with sesame seeds, or dried onions. Bake for 25 minutes or until golden brown in a 350 oven.

For Hot Dog Buns divide into 18 pieces, roll between your hands until you have a 6 inch rope, place on a sheet with cornmeal sprinkled on it. These should be placed fairly close together, so they will rise more up than out. Let the buns rise for 30 minutes or until a nice hotdog bun shape. Brush with the egg and water mixture and bake in a 350 oven for 25 minutes or until golden brown.

Flour Tortillas

When making this recipe be sure to knead them well till smooth, don’t let them dry out, and do not use oil to cook them as possible the oil will make them crispy and stiff, rather than the soft you want them to be.

4 cups Flour
1 Tbls salt
pinch of baking powder
2 heaping Tbls shortening
1 1/2 cups hot water

Mix together well, knead until smooth. Divide into 2 inch diameter balls, and place in a covered greased bowl. Roll out thin ( the thinner the better) on a floured table and cook on medium heat in an ungreased pan.  They only take a minute or so on each side to cook.