Saturday, January 15, 2011

The Wonders of Yeast Dough

Hi friends,

I'm feeling very stressed at the moment with mom in hospital.  I've talked to her a few times and she insists that I visit her despite the fact my brother and nephew are there with her to take care of her needs. I'm torn because I usually am there for her but I am exhausted and for a variety of reasons including a flu bug, I cannot visit her.

All this has me thinking of days when I was a little girl and mom was there making me feel secure. She used to make yeast bread and when I would come home from school on a snowy, wintery day, my mouth would water to smell the yeast bread wafting through the house.  She would also use part of her yeast dough to make cinnamon buns.    It is funny how we associate scents and aromas with feelings but did you know that cinnamon has a multitude of benefits? Read more about that here.

I don't have the recipe mom used to use when I was a child but I found a good one on line. I doubled this recipe to have enough dough for cinnamon buns and two small loaves of bread.

So the wonder of the yeast bread for me is not just the wonderful taste but the memories and the feelings of home, comfort, security and love. Blessings to you all this weekend.


Yeast Bread Recipe

1. Dissolve yeast in water, add honey and let stand until it bubbles, approx 5 to 10 minutes.
2. Add salt and oil to yeast mixture, then add flour a little at time until you have a stiff dough.
3.Turn dough out on a floured surface and mold into a ball shape. Place in pan and cover; let rise for about an hour.
4. Punch down the ball of dough and mold it into a loaf shape to fit you bread pan. Cover with a towel and let raise again until it doubled in size.
5. Bake in a preheated oven at 350°F for about 45 minutes. Bread is done when it is golden brown and sounds hollow when thumped.

This recipe is from http://www.food.com

Two loaves of yeast bread, and....a pan of........

Cinnamon buns with raisins and walnuts fresh out of the oven. They aren't as brown as I would like but the syrup was running over and I didn't want to start a fire.
Cinnamon buns with glaze on them.

21 comments:

Bossy Betty said...

Thanks for this wonderful recipe. I hope your mom feels better soon. Hang in there!

Joyful said...

Thank you Bossy Betty. I pray your family is also well through this time of loss. Hugs.

The Professor's Wife said...

Looks delicious! Praying for you and your family

Joyful said...

Thank you so much for your comment and your prayers!

Regina said...

You know the bit you mentioned about smells and taste is so true! My mom made the best pies, only my son enjoys making them more- most every holiday. I connect with a few odd ball memories- one of which is just shredded wheat with plain butter an skim milk warmed up to melt it. I don't drink milk but that is thee comfort food! Strange..anyway, there are a lot of memories..but that will do. Your photos look simply decadent! Wow!! I have one recipe I like to use too. I'm going to go over yours again when I'm through. I ended up baking bread (sorry about your mum). Anyway, I'm having a rather low day so, I'm soaking in a big tub of MMS (very bad to type on the tele)- but works like a charm.. and then I'm going to take a cold as I can shower!! Well, till later, me~

Joyful said...

Regina, shredded wheat with butter and skim milk. Who would've thought of that. But I bet that butter really makes a difference. My mother was a great pie maker and one of my brothers inherited her ability. Interesting that your son did also!

Like you I'm having a bit of a low day. I'm glad you're taking a hot bath as I'm sure that will help. What is MMS by the way? (Thanks for the thought about my mom). I'm thinking if I'm feeling better in a few days I will go up and see her and likely stay there until the end of the month as someone needs to take care of her bills and grocery shopping, although we never know..the nursing room could come up at any time.

Anonymous said...

Oh, I hope your Mum is doing better soon...
(those cinnamon rolls look YUM! ;)

Jan said...

I do hope your Mom understands by now that you cannot go into the hospital with the flu, and that you need to rest. It would make it a lot easier for you.
The recipe looks delicious, I will have to come back to it.
With love and prayers.
Jan

Inger said...

I hope you mother gets better soon. It's so wonderful to have those memories. I still have mine of coming home from school to French rolls with hot chocolate and a good talk about my day with my mom.--Inger

Diane said...

It is difficult when parents expect you to be with them especially when you do not feel well yourself. We know the feeling well :( Hope that your mother soon gets better and also yourself.

That recipe looks good, but how many of you there to eat it all? We would be eating for ever :) Diane

Joyful said...

Thank you RACHEL, I don't have an update on mom yet since I last spoke with her on Friday.

Joyful said...

JAN, I hope you get to try the recipe for the bread and I hope you are still staying dry despite the flooding around you. Hugs.

Joyful said...

CANYON GIRL, the early memories are often pleasant and it is nice to have them. So glad you have yours. I know some are not as fortunate.

Joyful said...

DIANE, yes it is hard, especially when you have been used to your parents being independent and then they want to cling. I do make sure all her needs are taken care of and I will be there soon in any case.

As for the cinnamon buns,I actually made them thinking I would give to a friend of mine who I thought I would see this weekend. It would be for lunches/snacks. Otherwise I freeze the excess and eat later after popping in the microwave for about 30 seconds.

Anonymous said...

Hello,
Everything looks yummy. I will say some prayers for your mama.
Have a peaceful and simple day.
Elizabeth

Joyful said...

Thank you Elizabeth for the comment and the prayers.

Kilauea Poetry said...

Hi there..well I tend to agree with Jan..sounds difficult and I can relate, though my family circumstances wound up slightly different.
Again..your photos are terrific! (Ha ha)..I think the only difference is that I use sour cream for a basic sweet yeast dough. You can then take it and do the variations..one is to use yams, raisins and orange zest..its yummy too! Ya, I haven't had shredded wheat in ages..the melted butter gives it the little flavor of salt.
Oh, MMS- its sodium chlorite
youtube.com/watch?v=bp1eqTajcpQ The guy (Jim Humble) discovered it as a cure for malaria originally. Basically, we all have it in our body as well as the ocean..you can check the link where you find a doctor explaining it pretty well. Regina-

Joyful said...

REGINA, I will look up the MMS. I did talk to mom today. She sounded better somehow. I think all the morphine they have given her for pain makes her groggy and paranoid. Also, when one is so sick, as my mom is, they feel very vulnerable and lonely. I know she will feel much better when she is in the nursing home and she herself is looking forward to going there. Too bad she wasn't ready much sooner as she probably would have better care all around. But at least she is mentally and emotionally ready.

Regina said...

Ya..so your mom is ready then. That has to be so true about the vulnerability and loniness. I mean, talk about the Winter time of your life and the transitions we have to make on the way out. So she doesn't have dementia or anything? My parents are way up there but with just slight dementia..(mostly forgetfulnness) Mom- 89yrs and Dad 94..yikes..
Oh, I didn't mean we all had a little malaria (grin)

Joyful said...

Yes, mom is ready to make her move and she would like it to have happened already but things don't move that fast. I think she will be lucky and get in much sooner due to her medical condition but it isn't like overnight or anything. Mom's mental state has been very strong and her recall has been excellent but I've noticed it has significantly decreased as of late with all the hospital stays and the recent fall.

Joyful said...

Ya..so your mom is ready then. That has to be so true about the vulnerability and loniness. I mean, talk about the Winter time of your life and the transitions we have to make on the way out. So she doesn't have dementia or anything? My parents are way up there but with just slight dementia..(mostly forgetfulnness) Mom- 89yrs and Dad 94..yikes..
Oh, I didn't mean we all had a little malaria (grin)

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