Catchin' Up with Holiday Breads: Breadsticks and Beer Bread

Even though I have posted lots of things I had baked off this month for assorted Holiday gifts, I didn't manage to get them all posted by the big day. So, I'm continuing in the gift vein, with a couple different recipes that I gave out with Andrew, and which were a great hit. One of which, I found over at a fellow blogger's site and am submitting for the World Bread Day After Hours Party, the second of which was my own invention using an old basic recipe for a base.

I adapted this recipe for breadsticks or crunchy pretzels from one on Arabic Bites that I saw on World Bread Day (by Zorra) back in October. The description of the goodies looked promising (as did the photos), so I gave them a whirl to go with my dad's Christmas gift of Hobgoblin Ale and mincemeat tarts. Needless to say, they were well recieved, and since I know my dad has some glorious Garlic Mustard by Kozlik's in his fridge, I doubt they'll be around long. These are seriously crunchy breadsticks flavoured with garlic, pepper and herbs and made wholesome with whole-wheat flour. Playing around with the initial recipe, I dropped the cheese and added cornmeal for some more texture, and I broke out The SpiceDepot's Garlic Pepper grinder for a new twist. It didn't make as many as Zainab & Hameeda were able to turn out, but I don't think anyone seemed to mind! The cute shapes won over a lot of people too.

Tasaly
Serves 16
½ cup white flour
½ cup whole wheat flour
3 tbsp yellow cornmeal
1 tbsp baking powder
½ tsp dried oregano
½ tsp dried basil
¼ tsp salt
3 tbsp SpiceDepot Grind Fresh Garlic Pepper (or 2 tbsp garlic powder + 1 tbsp black pepper)
1/3 – ½ cup water
1 tbsp olive oil
½ tbsp honey

1. Mix all the ingredients in order listed.
2. Knead dough for 2 minutes, then divide into equal pieces.
3. Let rest for 10 minutes and shape each piece to long sticks.
4. Place sticks on a lightly greased baking tray, and shape them into zigzag shapes.
5. Bake at 350 F for 10-15 minutes, then turn off the oven and let crackers dry 1 hour inside the oven.

Amount Per Serving
Calories: 51.1
Total Fat: 1.1 g
Cholesterol: 0.0 mg
Sodium: 1.6 mg
Total Carbs: 9.3 g
Dietary Fiber: 1.0 g
Protein: 1.4 g

This second bread came as the brainchild of an old Beer Bread recipe my mom had in an old, tiny bread book (that when purchased was a whopping 35 cents!). Again, I added the whole-wheat flour, substituted honey for the white sugar and olive oil for the vegetable oil for a better flavour. This accompanied a few soup mix jars that I put together for Andrew's wonderful parents, and I really do hope they enjoy it! I'd bet it would be great with a rich, chunky soup like the ones I made, or a hearty, spicy chili. It does make excellent toast for sandwiches too, especially if you grate in 1/4 cup or so of Old Cheddar cheese and throw in about 1 tsp of black pepper. Omit salt entirely if adding cheese though, and be sure to pick a rich, flavourful beer that you enjoy drinking - just like you'd pick a wine for tomato sauce.

Stout Irishman's Bread
Serves 14
1 cup flour
2 cups whole-wheat flour
1 tbsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
2 tbsp honey
1 tsp olive oil
12oz dark beer

1. Preheat oven to 350 F. Lightly grease a 9x5" loaf pan.
2. In a large mixing bowl, combine flours, baking powder, and salt.
3. Pour in honey, oil and beer, beating until a stiff batter is formed.
4. Bake in preheated oven for 50 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into center of the loaf comes out clean.

Amount Per Serving
Calories: 110.2
Total Fat: 0.4 g
Cholesterol: 0.0 mg
Sodium: 3.8 mg
Total Carbs: 22.7 g
Dietary Fiber: 2.3 g
Protein: 3.4 g