My Prairie Cookbook (7 page)

1½ cups (180 g) all-purpose flour

¼ cup (55 g) firmly packed light brown sugar

¾ teaspoon ground cinnamon

¾ teaspoon ground ginger

½ teaspoon baking powder

½ teaspoon baking soda

½ cup (100 g) vegetable shortening

½ cup (120 ml) light molasses

1 large egg

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Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C). Grease and flour an 8-inch (20-cm) square baking pan.

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Combine the flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, ginger, baking powder, and baking soda in a large bowl. Add the shortening, molasses, egg, and ½ cup (120 ml) water. Beat with an electric mixer on low to medium speed until combined, then beat on high speed for 2 minutes.

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Pour the batter into the prepared baking pan. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Cool on a rack for 10 minutes, then invert the pan to remove the gingerbread.

Nearly every Sunday when I was a little girl, my grandfather would take me to Du-par's coffee shop for breakfast. After my delicious meal, my grandpa would send me home with a loaf of date-nut bread. I always picked the nuts out, then ate my bread with cream cheese on it. It was one of my all-time favorite treats. Here is my version of the recipe. I've included the nuts for the sake of tradition, but I always omit them when I make this; I'm just not a nut fan.

Makes one 8½-inch (21.5-cm) loaf

1 cup (170 g) chopped pitted dates

1 cup (170 g) chopped dried figs

¼ cup (½ stick/55 g) unsalted butter, softened

1½ teaspoons baking soda

1 cup (240 ml) boiling water

½ cup (100 g) granulated sugar

½ cup (55 g) chopped walnuts

2 large eggs

¾ cup (90 g) all-purpose flour

¾ cup (90 g) whole-wheat flour

½ teaspoon baking powder

½ teaspoon salt

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Combine the dates, figs, butter, and baking soda in a large bowl. Pour in the boiling water, stir well, and let stand for 15 minutes.

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Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C). Grease and flour an 8½-inch (21.5-cm) loaf pan.

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With an electric mixer, beat the sugar, walnuts, and eggs into the date mixture. In a medium bowl, stir and toss together the all-purpose and whole-wheat flours, the baking powder, and salt. Add to the date mixture and beat just until blended.

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Spread the batter evenly in the prepared pan. Bake until a thin wooden skewer inserted in the center of the loaf comes out clean, 55 to 65 minutes. Cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then turn it out onto a wire rack to cool completely.

Hint:
For a yummy snack or treat, slice and toast the bread, and then put butter or cream cheese on it. Your tongue will jump out of your mouth and slap you on the back of your head.

I have to be honest—I was always more of a Wonder Bread girl. Then, once, I was on location in northern Oregon, shooting a movie, and I went into this little café for breakfast. They served me the most amazing multigrain bread I'd ever tasted. They wouldn't give me their recipe, so I came home and started trying to create one of my own. It only took me twenty years, but here it is! It's so easy you will hardly believe it. You can use any textured grain, small seeds, and so forth for the oats, so long as it's something that does not require par-cooking before use. Try this free-form loaf with some simple homemade jam for a lighter prairie-style breakfast.

Makes 2 approximately 1-pound (455-g) loaves

4 cups (500 g) all-purpose flour

1 cup (125 g) whole-wheat flour

1 cup (100 g) rye flour

½ cup (about 80 g) steel-cut oats, stone-ground cornmeal, hulled sunflower seeds, flaxseeds, sesame seeds, or finely chopped almonds

1 tablespoon kosher salt

½ teaspoon instant yeast

Strawberry Jam (recipe opposite), for serving

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Mix together all three flours, the oats, salt, and yeast in a very large bowl. Stir in 3¼ cups (780 ml) room-temperature water to form a very thick, sticky dough. Cover the bowl and let it sit at warm room temperature for 8 hours or overnight, until it doubles in size.

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When you're ready to shape and bake the loaves, sprinkle your work surface with a little flour. Turn the dough out onto the counter and divide it in half. Sprinkle the dough pieces with a little more flour and shape them into oblong loaves on a baking sheet. Cover and let the loaves rise for about 1½ hours at warm room temperature, or until nearly doubled in size.

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Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 450°F (230°C). Put a baking pan in the bottom of the oven to preheat as well.

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When the loaves have risen, quickly cut ½-inch (12-mm) slashes in the top with a knife and set the loaves in the oven. (Leave them on the baking sheet, or use a baking stone if you have one.) Pour ½ cup (120 ml) water into the pan at the bottom of the oven to create steam and close the oven door. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, until the loaves are dark brown, sound hollow when tapped, and the inside registers 190°F (90°C) on an instant-read thermometer. Allow the loaves to cool fully on a wire rack.

Makes 2 pints (960 ml)

2 pounds (910 g) strawberries, hulled and lightly mashed

2 cups (400 g) granulated sugar

¼ cup (60 ml) freshly squeezed lemon juice

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Put a small dish (like a saucer) in the freezer to chill. Combine the berries, sugar, and lemon juice in a large stainless-steel skillet over medium heat, stirring until the sugar dissolves. Raise the heat to medium-high and boil, stirring and skimming off the foam with a spoon for several minutes, until the mixture starts to look like thin jam. It's done when a small dollop firms up when dropped onto the frozen dish.

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Transfer the jam to clean glass jars and store in the refrigerator for up to 1 month.