Navajo Fry Bead/ Indian Tacos

Navajo Fry Bread Recipe

Fry bread is wonderfully lumpy (puffed here and there). It can be served as a dessert or used as a main dish bread.

1/4 teaspoon powdered milk
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 cup water
1 cup unbleached flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
vegatable oil for frying
Sift together the flour, salt, powdered milk, and baking powder into a large bowl. Pour the water over the flour mixture all at once and stir the dough with a fork until it starts to form one big clump.
Flour your hands. Using your hands, begin to mix the dough, trying to get all the flour into the mixture to form a ball. NOTE: You want to mix this well, but you do NOT want to knead it. Kneading it will make for a heavy Fry Bread when cooked. The inside of the dough ball should still be sticky after it is formed, while the outside will be well floured.
Cut the dough into four (4) pieces. Using your floured hands, shape, stretch, pat, and form a disk of about 5 to 7 inches in diameter. NOTE: Don’t worry about it being round. As Grandma Felipa would say “it doesn’t roll into your mouth.”
Heat the vegetable oil to about 350 degrees F. NOTE: You can check by either dropping a small piece of dough in the hot oil and seeing if it begins to fry, or by dipping the end of a wooden spoon in and seeing if that bubbles. Your oil should be about 1-inch deep in a large or other large fryer.
Take the formed dough and gently place it into the oil, being careful not to splatter the hot oil. Press down on the dough as it fries so the top is submersed into the hot oil. Fry until brown, and then flip to fry the other side. Each side will take about 3 to 4 minutes.
Indian Fry Bread can be kept warm in a 200 degree F. oven for up to 1 hour. They refrigerate well and can be reheated in a 350 degree F. oven for 10 to 15 minutes before serving.

Indian Taco Recipe
1 pound lean ground meat (beef, lamb, venison or pork)
1 cup diced onion
4 cooked Navajo Fry Breads
1 head iceberg lettuce, shredded
3 tomatoes diced
2 cups shredded sharp Cheddar cheese
1 (3-ounce)green chilies can diced drained
Sour cream (optional)
In a large frying pan over medium-high heat, brown ground meat and onions until cooked; remove from heat.
Place Fry Bread, cupped side up, on separate plates. Layer ground meat, lettuce, tomatoes, Cheddar cheese, and green chiles onto top of each Fry Brad. top with sour cream, if desired, and either roll up or serve open-faced with a fork.
Makes 4 servings.

Flour Tortillas

3 cups unbleached flour

2 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. salt

4-6 Tbsp. vegetable shortening or lardabout 1 1/4 cups warm water

Mix dry ingredients in a large bowl.Add vegetable shortening or lard. Or use a combination of half lard, half shortening. Use a fork or a pastry cutter to cut in the shortening or just do it the old fashioned way and use your hands.Next add warm water a little at a time until your dough is soft and not sticky. You do not need very hot water.Knead the dough for a few minutes.Now you will pull off pieces of dough to form about 12 small dough balls. Let them rest for at least 10 minutes, longer if you like.This is a good time to heat up the comal. You will want to set it at medium to high heat. If it is too hot the tortillas will cook too fast.Now you can roll out the dough with your tortilla rolling pin or palote. It is a good idea to dust each ball with a little flour just before you roll them out. Lay the palote in the center of the dough ball and roll up, center and roll down. It is good to lift the dough and turn it. Again, rolling pin in the center and roll. Roll them out fairly thin.Lay your tortilla on the hot comal. It takes just a few seconds to cook. Flip to the other side. When they are done it should have lots of nice brown speckles. Place them in a towel. If you would like you can use a tortilla warmer to keep them warm longer.They are ready to be served!

recipe from Texas Rolling Pins

One Hour Buns

One Hour Buns

2 tablespoons sugar
1 cup warm water
1 tablespoon fast rising instant yeast
1 egg
1/4 cup oil
1 teaspoon salt
3 1/2 cups flour -- (3 1/2 to 4)
(I used half whole wheat and half white flour)

In a bowl mix together sugar, yeast and water. Add egg, salt and oil and mix together well. Add about 2 cups of flour and beat well. Add more flour until dough comes away from the sides of the bowl. Knead until smooth and elastic about 10 minutes. Form into 16 little buns or 8 large and place into a greased pan. Let rise until doubled, about 1 hour. Bake at 350* for 15 minutes or until browned.

Crunchy French Bread

Crunchy French Bread

Ingredients

2 cups war, water
1 tablespoon yeast
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 tablespoon sugar
2 teaspoons salt
5-5 1/2 cups bread flour

Directions

1

Dissolve yeast in warm water (110 degrees) and sugar in large bowl; allow yeast to proof or foam (about 10 minutes).

2

Add salt, oil, and 3 cups flour; beat for 2 minutes.

3

Stir in 2 cups flour to make a stiff dough.

4

Knead until smooth and elastic, about 10 minutes.

5

Place in oiled bowl, turn dough to coat all sides, cover and let rise until doubled.

6

Punch down and divide in half.

7

Shape dough into two long slender loaves.

8

Grease and sprinkle with cornmeal either a french bread pan or large cookie sheet.

9

Place loaves in pan and cut diagonal gashes on top of each loaf (I use scissors).Cover and let rise until doubled.

11

Bake at 375 degrees for about 30 minutes.

12

Note: You can sprinkle or spray water on the loaves during baking if you want a really crunchy crust. ( Used cornmeal and added some cheese for cheeseyness)

Caramelized Onion Bread

Caramelized Onion Bread
1 1/2-2 cups thinly sliced sweet onions
2 tbsp vegetable oil
1 tbsp active dry yeast
1 tbsp sugar
1 1/2 cups water, warm (100-110F)
4-5 cups bread flour
1/4 tsp freshly ground pepper
1 tbsp salt

In a medium sauce pan, cook onions and 1 tbsp of vegetable oil over medium-high heat until onions are translucent. Reduce heat to medium, add remaining vegetable oil and continue to cook until onions are light golden, about 15 more minutes. Cool to room temperature, or just slightly warm.
In a large mixing bowl (or the bowl of a stand mixer), combine yeast, sugar and 1/4 cup water. Stir to dissolve and let sit until yeast is foamy, about 5 minutes. Pour in remaining water, 3 cups bread flour and mix well. Add onions, pepper, salt and another cup of flour and stir again. If using the stand mixer, use a dough hook attachment. Add remaining flour gradually until dough comes together into an elastic ball. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic, about 4 minutes. Place dough in a lightly oiled bowl and let rise unil doubled in size, about 1 hour.
Preheat oven to 350F.
Lightly grease a 10-inch tube pan with vegetable oil. Gently deflate risen dough on a lightly floured surface, press a hole in the center of it (like a giant donut) and place in tube pan. Let rise until nearly doubled in size, about 45 minutes.
When bread is finished rising, bake for 45 minutes. An internal read thermometer will read about 200F when the bread is finished and the loaf will be a dark golden color.
Turn loaf out of pan onto a cooling rack to cool to room temperature before slicing.

Makes 1 large loaf

Split Top Citrus Honey Wheat Bread

INGREDIENTS

• 2 cups warm water (110 degrees F/45 degrees C)
• 2 cups whole wheat flour
• 1 tablespoon active dry yeast
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/3 cup honey ( I used local citrus honey)
  
• 1/3 cup vegetable shortening
  
• 5 cups all-purpose flour

DIRECTIONS

1. Dissolve yeast in warm water. Add honey, and stir well. Mix in whole wheat flour, salt, and vegetable oil. Work all-purpose flour in gradually. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface, and knead for at least 10 to 15 minutes. When dough is smooth and elastic, place it in a well oiled bowl. Turn it several times in the bowl to coat the surface of the dough, and cover with a damp cloth. Let rise in a warm place until doubled in bulk, about 45 minutes.
2. Punch down the dough. Shape into two loaves, and place into two well greased 9 x 5 inch loaf pans. Allow to rise until dough is 1 to 1 1/2 inches above pans.
3. When dough is done rising use a sharp knife and make a nice shallow line down the center.
   
4. Bake at 375 degrees F (190 degrees C) for 25 to 30 minutes.

Farmgirl Susan's Almost Too Easy Whole Wheat Beer Bread

Farmgirl Susan's Almost Too Easy Whole Wheat Beer Bread Recipe
Makes One Loaf

2 cups whole wheat flour
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 Tablespoon granulated sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 Tablespoon baking powder
14 ounces beer (or 12 ounces beer & 2 ounces water)

Optional glaze: 1 egg & 2 teaspoons water, beaten

Heat oven to 375 degrees. Combine flour, sugar, salt, and baking powder in a large mixing bowl. Slowly stir in beer and mix just until combined. Batter will be thick. Spread in a greased 8-inch loaf pan (I love my Chicago Metallic Commercial Loaf Pans--they're great for yeast breads, too), brush with egg glaze if desired, and bake until golden brown and a toothpick stuck in the center comes out clean, about 45 minutes.Cool in the pan on a rack for 10 minutes. Remove from pan and cool 10 more minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature.