I amazed my husband with my BOSCH, even though my Pretzels were a failure!

Last week one of my favorite foodie blogs posted a recipe for pretzel bites that the author positively swore by.  She said they were heaven in a bite and since she had never steered my wrong before I soon went about making a double batch of these little confections to delight my family with.

I whipped out my BOSCH Universal Plus Mixer, collected my ingredients and started heaping in the extra-large helpings, just sure that they would barely get out of the oven before they were devoured.

Well, I was right, sort of.  They barely got out of the oven before my husband showed up in the kitchen, burning his lips off to try one of my salty treats.  But seeing as how he is always fairly critical of the recipes I try, I shrugged off his instant grimace of disapproval and insisted that he couldn't judge them yet because they still need to be doused in butter not one, but three times!  ANYTHING should be heavenly after three coats of butter, shouldn't it?

Don't let looks deceive you- they were awful!

Much to my dismay- they were a TOTAL bust!  They were HORRIBLE!  After we realized just how bad they were I even tried coating each bite in a generous helping of brown sugar and cinnamon, but it was no use.  My time and ingredients had been squandered on a failure.  Bwahhhhh!!! :-(

(insert jazzy elevator music here- please stay on the line while Mama Kenz attempts to regain her composure)

I won't even give you the link to the recipe because I wouldn't want to subject you to the temptation of trying to make them edible.  And since I ordinarily adore this foodie blog, I wouldn't want to slander its name.  But if you happen to come across a pretzel bites recipe that swears you will likely fly into orbit once you taste those little morsels... well, you've been forewarned!

On the bright side, I did impress my husband with my kitchen's pride and joy- my BOSCH!  As he saw the trays upon trays of bites covering every surface in the room, he asked, "How did you make those things?  In your mixer?  You can just use whatever recipe?"

To which I responded, "Well... yeah!  You think I would have kneaded a double batch of those ridiculous things by hand?!  Psh!  Do you know me at all?"

I did have a really cute and eager helper though!  That's his "say cheese" face!

But the truth is, that I really do love that I can not only use my BOSCH for any baking recipe, but thanks to Marmee's tutelage in her Breadbasket Cookbook and Make It Special DVD, I also know how to rearrange the ingredients in pretty much any recipe to make them work the most successfully (such as ensuring that your bread rises well and such).  That is such invaluable information that I am so thankful to have learned from her!

In conclusion- I think for now I will be sticking more closely to Marmee's delicious recipes because there hasn't been one yet that we have not only loved but been downright impressed with!  Go give her a visit to see some of the awesome recipes, products and information she has to offer at Marmee's Bread Market!

Be sure to visit my sponsor- Marmee's Bread Market- for recipes and everything else you need to easily make fresh baked goods for your family!

Breads, Braids and BOSCH!

Last week I finally got to get a hair cut (I mean, it had been over a year people)!  Luckily my stylist not only possesses awesome haircutting abilities, but a compassionate heart and willingness to trade, in this case, styling for bread-y goodness!

I had planned on making her bread and my famous caramel bars, but a week before my appointment she told me that she had cut all white flour and sugar out of her diet.  Eeek!  What to do?!  I decided to make a good old, standard, home-milled flour, whole wheat loaf (from Marmee's Bread Basket Cookbook, of course!) for starters.  I then used some of that same dough to make one of those awesome braids I learned how to make from Marmee's Make it Special DVD.

Before

At first I was a little stumped as to what I should put in the braid as I usually would use a good helping of brown sugar and cinnamon.  Eventually I decided to go with honey, chopped walnuts and cinnamon- it smelled heavenly!  It was all I could do to keep the greedy little paws of my family off of it!

My packages weren't pretty, but they were tasty!  I did pitch in a little bit of mulah since I didn't feel like 2 loaves of bread were quite a fair trade.  I wanted to bring her some frozen dinner rolls and bread loaves too but she didn't have a freezer at her salon.  :-(  It was still SUPER nice to get the discount though.  Oh, and I love my hair (even though this picture doesn't do it justice... at all).

After- sorry for the horrible picture!

This was another one of those great ways I was able to simply and easily bless others (and myself!) with my BOSCH Universal Plus Mixer.  I have had it for almost six months now and don't know what I would do without it!  I use it so much and we just love it!  Another huge thank you to Marmee's Bread Market for their sponsorship!

Be sure to visit my sponsor- Marmee's Bread Market- for recipes and everything else you need to easily make fresh baked goods for your family!

Get 'em while they're low!

Psst- hey!  Yeah, you!  Haven't you always wanted a BOSCH Universal PLUS Mixer?!  Well- NOW is the time!  Marmee just sent out a notice that BOSCH will be raising their prices on February 6!  Don't miss the chance to get your new BOSCH while the price is still down!  And trust me- this is one kitchen appliance you won't regret buying!  I can't wait to show tomorrow what I made over the weekend with it!  SO yummy!

Be sure to visit my sponsor- Marmee's Bread Market- for recipes and everything else you need to easily make fresh baked goods for your family!

The fluffiest dinner rolls you've ever tasted!

You may remember me mentioning Marmee's Sunday Night Dinner Rolls last week from her Bread Basket cookbook.  Well, after posting I realized that I had never told you guys about these delightful little puppies before!  So, today is the day!

Wish I had a better picture!  This one really doesn't do these amazing rolls justice!

As with any recipe I am leery about it until I, and more importantly my family, taste it!  Well oh my heavenly stars, the first time I popped a bite from on of these little morsels in my mouth I knew they would be a staple in my freezer whether my family liked them or not!

In fact, all the better if they didn't like them cause that would mean more for me!

As luck would have it though, they did like them... a lot!  We seriously have these with dinner whenever we can!  The recipe makes a huge batch so there are plenty to freeze, eat and even share with others!  I have even given these as a birthday present to more than one friend this year (don't laugh!  I'm serious about my bread!).

Another favorite of ours is spreading these rolls with cinnamon and sugar before we rolling them and having them after the meal for dessert!  Sooooo yummy!  Rhythm would solely eat these for dinner if I would let him!

So- just one more fantastic reason to get a BOSCH Universal Plus Mixer!  OH- AND!  I wanted to mention the customer service!  remember a couple of months back when I mentioned how a fondant recipe gone wrong nearly destroyed my mixer!?  Well, that blasted fondant actually bent the metal posts on the driver for my cookie paddles and caused some sort of grinding to start happening within the actual mixer bowl.  Ugh!  So, Marmee put me in touch with L'Equip (the manufacturer) and they sent me a brand new bowl and the brand new cookie paddles are on their way!  Such great customer service and I am sooooo thankful!  Thank you L'Equip & Marmee!

Be sure to visit my sponsor- Marmee's Bread Market- for recipes and everything else you need to easily make fresh baked goods for your family!

Buttermilk Oat Bread!

Could my little bread-making land seriously get any better?!  The deliciousness emanating from my house on a weekly basis is so extravagant I hardly know what to do with myself!  It thrills me beyond belief that we have had exclusively homemade bread for almost two whole months now (thanks to my BOSCH Universal Plus Mixer from Marmee's Bread Market!).

Tonight I tried out Marmee's recipe for Buttermilk Oat Bread- brilliant!  So yummy!  This bread is seriously yummy enough that you could even eat it without butter (but, who am I kidding, why would you want to?!)!  I can't wait to send my husband to work with a couple of sandwiches on it tomorrow morning because I know he is just going to love it!  True to form, I did substitute some of the unbleached bread flour for my fresh-milled whole wheat and still had wonderful results. I have yet to try one of Marmee's recipes that we don't absolutely adore (and devour in short order!).

Have I mentioned one of my favorite things about owning a BOSCH?  It has allowed me to be giving in a time when I ordinarily would not have anything to give.  We have been so broke that we could hardly see straight but having my BOSCH at my side has allowed me to bless other families with some homemade goodness on a regular basis, which in return has been a blessing to me.  It is good for the soul to be able to give!  I have been able to share at least one loaf from every batch of bread I have made and it is incredibly satisfying- just fills me up!

I do seem to be running into one snafoo though that I am hoping it will work itself out when my husband looks at my machine, but last week I was baking a cake for a friend and made an attempt at homemade fondant that went incredibly wrong.  Apparently the stiffness of the fondant was just too much for my cookie paddles to handle and the plastic gears on the bowl and the paddles began to grind on each other, something terrible.  As soon as the horrible sound began to emit from my machine and I realized what was going on, I turned it off, but a small amount of damage had already been done to the plastic- nothing that inhibited the machine from working once the malicious fondant was removed (not to readers- don't bother trying to make it- just buy it!).

Today, however, when I was making my bread, a clunking sound kept coming from the bowl on my machine.  My husband listened to it and thinks it is something with the gears- great.  I am trying not to let devastation set in quite yet and just need to have him look at it more and find my warranty info.  How upsetting!  I can't bear to think of being without my machine!  :-( Hopefully we will get it worked out quickly and relatively painlessly!

Be sure to visit my sponsor- Marmee's Bread Market- for recipes and everything else you need to easily make fresh baked goods for your family!

Winners and some disappointing news...

Well, it looks like only two people entered my giveaway for Marmee's Favorites Bundle.  TWO! Considering that there were supposed to be three winners, it looks like both of the entrants won!

So, congrats Jamie and ButterflyWishes!

However, in light of this disappointing turn out, Marmee and I have decided that the raffle for the Bosch Universal Mixer is just too risky for her to go ahead with.  I am seriously bummed to not be able to offer this opportunity to my readers, but since Marmee already sent me one mixer for review we just cannot move forward with the raffle without a more promising response.

So, if you want to see this wonderful opportunity come back, then you need to 

LET US KNOW!!

Also, I did want to address a comment that was made in regards to the raffle, in which someone compared the raffle to gambling.  I could not disagree more with this perspective.  The raffle was going to be offered in such a way that each ticket would come with a plethora of downloadable items.  The top package was only going to be $7.99, worth 8 entries and come with nearly $40 worth of valuable downloads.  I consider gambling to be any time that you are putting money towards a chance at something and receiving nothing in return except the chance.  I just wanted to clarify that.

Be sure to visit my sponsor- Marmee's Bread Market- for recipes and everything else you need to easily make fresh baked goods for your family!

"Best Bread"- LITERALLY!

So, I recently tried Marmee's recipe for "Best Bread" from her Bread Basket Cookbook.  Can you say "Holy Moly!  One of the best things I have ever consumed in my life?!"  It may sound like I am exaggerating, but I literally cannot keep this bread in the house- not because I don't want to, but because we seriously eat an entire loaf in less than a day!  I don't know how to explain it, but this bread is incredibly fluffy while still maintaining a density that feels glorious to sink your teeth into!  This bread is the perfect combination of sweetness, lightness and downright yumminess!

Ok- so these ones got a little bit out of control!  I thought I had just left them, but when I turned around and they had gone all wild!  It was rather warm in the kitchen...

Now granted, the recipe is only about 1/3 whole wheat (I used about 50/50 in my last batch though and it worked fine), I still feel like it is better than anything I could buy in the store because I know every last ingredient that goes into it.  It also calls for white sugar which I substituted for Sucanant in my last batch and it also worked just fine.

Before baking- I still can't believe that I was able to make this!  Marmee's DVD directions were so clear and helpful that pretty much anyone could take on this seemingly difficult baked good!

Along with making straight up loafs of this dreamy bread, I followed Marmee's instructions in her Make it Special DVD to create a Garlic Mozzarella Sesame Parmesan Braid.  We paired it with some homemade chicken and rice soup and it was AMAZING!  The smell of it baking darn near made me want to crawl into the oven.  This recipe alone is reason enough to go get the Bread Basket Cookbook and Marmee's Bread Market!  And of course, to make it ultimately easy and wonderful to make, you should definitely think about getting a Bosch Universal Mixer... I'm just sayin'!

Be sure to visit my sponsor- Marmee's Bread Market- for recipes and everything else you need to easily make fresh baked goods for your family!

What could be better than homemade hamburger buns?!

This last weekend we decided to have hamburgers so I thought why not take the opportunity to try making my very own hamburger buns?  I love that now that I own a BOSCH Universal Mixer I can even consider throwing together homemade hamburger buns, and make it actually happen in a relatively short amount of time!  The recipe for Soft Buns that I used this go around is featured in the Marmee's Favorites Bundle giveaway I currently have running, along with The Bread Box mini-zine.

I ended up substituting some of the unbleached flour for whole wheat, but they were still gloriously light and fluffy!  I also rubbed their tops down with butter after they came out of the oven, but you could also brush them with egg wash and sprinkle with sesame seeds before baking and they would be equally wonderful!

Of course my hubby and kiddos were delighted to have the real deal on their burgers.  My husband was so jazzed that he even wants me to make some hotdog buns next time!  Even better, I was able to freeze approximately 25 more buns to pop out and bake up anytime we need them.

These buns are very versatile and could be used not only as buns but also as rolls for dinner or, as I like to do, a mid-morning, mid-afternoon, mid-evening and mid-night snack!  Hey- I like me some good bread!  You ladies have really go to try this recipe!  Seriously!  Run over and pick up a copy of The Bread Box at Marmee's wonderful little shop, Marmee's Bread Market, or you could also enter to win a whole bunch of great recipes in my current giveaway- Marmee's Favorites Bundle!  Don't miss this opportunity ladies!

Be sure to visit my sponsor- Marmee's Bread Market- for recipes and everything else you need to easily make fresh baked goods for your family!

Lots up for grabs!!!

There is a LOT going on in my blogging world lately, so I just wanted to bring you all up to speed and let you in on some fun giveaways!

Right now over at The World According to Them I am hosting a giveaway for The Hands on Bible!  This is such a great tool for kiddos and families- don't miss this one!

Also over at The World According to Them I have started posting about the Raising Rockstars Curriculum we are using (and loving) as our core this year and will be starting our Tiny Tot School posts about how I am working with (or rather, keeping busy) Lion Cub!  Be sure to check back there on Monday to read more about our new routine and how it is working for us!  I hope to include some printables as well!

Monday I will be guest posting over at HannahKeeley.com all about getting one step ahead!  I am very excited to be sharing with Hannah's readers and think you all will probably enjoy all the wonderful information and freebies on her site as well!  She is a Christian mom of 7 who has her act together and helps you do it too!

And last, but not least, I will be making a BIG announcement on Monday about my upcoming Bosch Raffle with Marmee's Bread Market AND will be hosting an AWESOME giveaway from her shop with MORE THAN ONE WINNER!  You are not going to want to miss this!

I hope you have a wonderful weekend!

Be sure to visit my sponsor- Marmee's Bread Market- for recipes and everything else you need to easily make fresh baked goods for your family!

My Beautiful Homemade Bread! BOSCH Review!

This past weekend I was finally able to track down all my needed ingredients to begin making our bread from scratch in my fantabulous new BOSCH Universal Plus Mixer sent to me from Marmee's Bread Market!  Okay- seriously, I am not just exaggerating here! I mean, to be honest, I did already kinda know that I was going to love it, but now that I have actually used it, I am forever ruined for bread and mixers!  I think I probably officially qualify as a mixer/bread snob now.  I can simply never go back!

So, you are probably thinking, "She's lost her mind!  What's all the fuss?"  Oh, I am so glad you asked because I am dying to tell you!  I never thought that making bread from scratch at home would be practical or honestly feasible.  After all, I have two young children who require copious amounts of my attention and we are hoping to have more.  Many days it is hard enough to get dinner on the table, let alone bake a fresh loaf of bread!  Then I learned about the Bosch Universal Plus Mixer.  It is the most heavy-duty home machine available on the market (boasting an 800 watt motor!) and can mix & knead up to 6 loaves of bread at a time.  My friends who make all their own bread in a Bosch kept telling me that all you have to do is throw your ingredients in and the machine does the rest!  After learning this, I thought to myself, "Ok- that sounds doable.  It probably isn't quite as easy as they are making it out to be, but it does sound easier than doing it any other way, and I do want to be feeding my family fresh bread made with home-milled flour.  So, maybe that would be my best option."

Well, imagine my thrill when I tried out my new Bosch and found out that they weren't exaggerating- it really is that easy!  This past Sunday I made 10 loaves of bread with very minimal effort!!  SERIOUSLY!  I wanted to try out both of the kinds of grain that I had gotten- Red and Golden- so I made a full batch of Marmie's Basic Whole Wheat Bread with each kind (5 loaves of each).  The instructions that she lays out in both her Bread Basket Cookbook and her Make it Special: Homemade with Love DVD were so simple and easy to follow- she even gives you the exact order to place everything in your mixing bowl for a practically no-fail method!  I also really appreciate that she tells you why you are putting certain ingredients in, what they do and where to find them.

This is literally all I did:

-Put 5 pounds of wheat through my NurtiMill (I had measured it on my kitchen scale first)

-Placed all my main ingredients and some of the flour in the mixing bowl

(This was how much flour I had left over- about a cup.  I sent it home with my mom!)

-Mixed for about 30 seconds 

-Waited 10 minutes for it to get bubbly (notice- I'm not doing any work right here!)

-Turned on the machine and added the rest of my flour (well, there was a little left over- about a cup- because the amount really varies based on weather and such.  Marmie explains all this very clearly in both her book and DVD)

-Let the machine do it's thing and knead my dough for me (most other machines CANNOT handle this task- it completely wears out the motor.  Oh, and again notice, I'm not doing any work right here either!)

-Formed the dough into loaves

-Let two loaves rise so I could bake them and wrapped the other three in freezer paper and zip-top bags to make later in the week

That's it!  In a matter of one hour I had two loaves of bread in the oven, three more in my freezer and I really only did any actual work for about maybe 15 minutes of that hour!  A half an hour after that we were enjoying fresh, warm, whole wheat bread that my boys LOVE!  Rhythm is constantly asking for another slice and I am sure that if Lion Cub could, he would be too!

My Beautiful Bread!

I am amazed by how much confidence this machine has given me as a homemaker.  I feel like I can legitimately take on the task of making my own baked goods without being completely intimidated by it or feeling like I just don't have the time.  This is something completely feasible.  I really can do it!  I am so excited to try out the other recipes Marmie has sent me, and trust me, there are a lot of them!  Even more, though, I love that even when it looks like I have a busy day coming up, I know that I can very easily make my own pizza dough from scratch or some whole wheat rolls for dinner (which I did, by the way... all in one evening... cause now I have a Bosch and I roll like that... and they were both amazing!) even in the midst of the craziness that is often my life.

Thank you Marmie for giving me the chance to incorporate the use of this wonderful machine into the way I care for my family, and thank you Bosch for creating such a wonderful product for homemakers like myself!

So ladies, what are you waiting for?!  Go get your Bosch right here from Marmee's Bread Market!  Not ready yet?  Well don't worry, by the time I'm finished sharing with you all the baked goods I will be feverishly making over the next few months (ok- probably forever!) you will be so inspired and so envious by the constant smell of fresh bread in my home that you will certainly be adding one to your Christmas lists!  And hey- keep watching because next week I will be starting a giveaway for a great download package that will really get you excited and announcing an upcoming raffle for one of these little babies!  You won't want to miss it!

Be sure to visit my sponsor- Marmee's Bread Market- for recipes and everything else you need to easily make fresh baked goods for your family!

My Brand New Bosch Universal Mixer from Marmee's Bread Market

Any of you who have ever looked into baking your own, homemade bread for your family have no doubt heard of the amazing machine that is the Bosch Universal Mixer.  There really is nothing else like it on the market, as far as a home machines go, with a large enough motor to withstand the torque of consistently making large quantities of bread dough.

Many of you have probably seen the other posts I have written about trying to win one of these mixers because I have been dying to get one for nothing short of 2 1/2 years (talk about delayed gratification!)!  I managed to get my NurtiMill for Christmas last year, but in all honesty, it is still sitting on my counter, unused, because the thought of milling all that grain and then having to make the dough by hand was just too daunting!  Well, not anymore!  YESTERDAY, on my happy little doorstep arrived a happy (not-so-little) package containing my brand spakin' new Bosch Universal Mixer courtesy of my wonderful new sponsor- Marmee of Marmee's Bread Market!!

Ok- in all honesty, the box never did actually make it to my doorstep because I was anxiously waiting for the UPS man practically at the window and met him in the yard and practically kissed him!  I also received, via USPS, Marmee's HomeBaker's DVD in which she will teach me how to make bread (which I love because it is like she is actually joining me in my own little kitchen!  And yes, I like to pretend she did this just for me!), her wonderful Bread Basket Cookbook that is packed full of recipes (it will probably take me years to actually try everything that looks good in there, and so far there isn't ONE that doesn't!) and an issue of The Bread Box recipe mag!  Keep in mind that she sent all of this out only on Monday and it arrived in just 2 days!  Talk about service!

Here is the full spread of everything I received from Marmee- notice the cookie paddles she included too!  I can't wait to try them out!  What a great excuse to try out that new chocolate chip cookie recipe I recently found!

Now, my heart did catch in my chest a little bit when I noticed that the box had been damaged, but luckily my new baby mixer wasn't!

Cute baby in box- just had to post it!

As of now, she (yes, my mixer is a "she"- maybe I should name her Martha II too! haha!) is still sitting pristinely on my dining room table for all to admire while I clear a space for her on my small kitchen counters!  A friend of mine very generously supplied me with some wheat to get me started on my little baking adventure until I am able to get to our "local" (and by local I mean an hour away and in a different state!) grain supply store, so I am hoping to possibly start breaking "her" in as early as this afternoon!  It will just depend on whether or not I am able to get to the store to pick up a few extra things I need.  (Side-note- I actually did stop by the store after our park playdate with aforementioned friend and her children, but after Rhythm had skinned his hands on the playground, Lion Cub had beat him over the head with his stainless steel sippy cup, and I turned around to find them both on the brink of meltdown from being too close to naptime,  I thought it would be best to back out of my parking spot and return home...  Ok, so actually I asked Rhythm, "Are you up for it?"  To which he promptly replied, "NO!"  Alright then.  Maybe later.)

Next Tuesday you can expect a full review of my new Bosch- especially since I plan to use it probably about 20 times between now and then!  Also be sure to keep your eyes open for some great giveaways coming up in the very near future along with an announcement about the Bosch raffle I'm hosting that you won't want to miss!

Be sure to visit my sponsor- Marmee's Bread Market- for recipes and everything else you need to easily make fresh baked goods for your family!