yummy.

since i don't have class anymore (YAY!), and my energy level is slllllloooooooowwwwwwllllyyyyyy starting to show its face again, i decided to be a tad bit domestic last night.  i made whole wheat bread in our bread maker, which has been sadly neglected for far too long now.  homemade fresh bread is one of my most favorite things of all time, and i am totally vowing to make at least 1 loaf a week now that i have more free time to focus on such things.  anyway...i set the timer on the machine so i didn't have to stay up past 11, and i awoke at 5:40 before my run to the smell of warm toasty fresh bread.  holy goodness.  i had about 20 more minutes i could sleep, but my tummy immediately started growling, so i sliced some up with some all natural peanut butter and honey from my friend d's dad's bee farm.  i recommend this as the way to start every morning.  if you have a bread machine, here is the recipe i used.  i am going to be trying out lots of different whole wheat recipes over the next few weeks, so i'll post the ones i like the best.  this one was a little dense, and i think they were a little short on the yeast (the top didn't poof out the way it usually does).  


100% whole wheat bread
makes 1 1/2 to 2 lb loaf - i used the 1.5 lb setting for whole wheat, light crust
* 1 1/2 cups water plus 2 tablespoons water 
* 3 3/4 cups wheat flour
* 2 tablespoons dry milk
* 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
* 2 tablespoons butter
* 2 tablespoons honey
* 1 1/2 tablespoons gluten
* 1 tablespoon molasses
* 2 1/8 teaspoons fast rise yeast
(or 3 tspns active dry yeast) 


this weekend, before justin's big ride on saturday, he asked me to make him the homemade granola bars my cousin posted on her blog a few months ago.  he says they are the best energy boosters on a long ride, and they are super delicious.  this is the original recipe, but i usually do about half the amount of brown sugar (i think they're too sweet with the full load) and add pumpkin seeds, dried cranberries or pineapple, and chocolate and peanut butter chips.  yum!  anyway...jb did GREAT on his ride - finished 100 miles in just over 5 hours - beating his last year's time by over 2 hours.  shiner was super fun and i am looking forward to going out there again next year with some pups and a kiddo in tow for music, beer, and brats.  fun!  


Granola Bars Basic Recipe
 * 2 Cup Oats
* 1 cup brown sugar
* 1 Cup whole wheat flour
* 1/2 tsp baking soda
* 1/2 tsp baking powder
* 1 tsp cinnamon
* 1 tsp salt
* 1 tsp vanilla
* 1/2 Cup honey
* Any dried fruit, nuts, seeds, chocolate chips, butterscotch chips, etc.
 Mix all ingredients and press into greased pan, 9 X 13. Dough will be very dry and crumbly, but press until dough forms with pan.. Bake at 325 for 25 minutes or until edges are browned. Take out and let cool entirely. Cut into strips and store in snack size bags.
 **The dough was very dry. I added a couple of tablespoon of water to help mix it all together and you might need to use your hands to get it mixed up and pressed into the pan.