Whole Wheat Bread

Ok so I am going to post the recipe I use to make our bread. I love this bread and I have tweeked it lots of times. :) I will give you the basic recipe and then let you experiment with it. That's how you learn :)

Ingredients:
1.5 cups warm water
5 tbsp honey ( I use about 6-7 it seems to taste better)
2 pks of yeast( I buy the big jar of yeast, so its 4.5 tsps).
4 to 5 cups whole wheat flour(Its best if you can grind your own which I WILL do once I get a new grinder :). I burned up my last one lol.)
1/4 cup butter (I use one stick which is 1/2 cup, I also made the last batch with coconut oil and use 1/2 cup).
2 tsp salt
2 large eggs

1. Combine water and 1 tbsp honey in a large bowl. Sprinkle yeast then let stand 10 mins. It should be bubbly. Add 1.5 cups flour and stir well. Place plastic wrap on bowl and let sit 20 mins. It should be doubled.
2. Add butter, salt, eggs, the remaining honey to flour mixture stir well. Add in 2 more cups of flour stir then add 1/4 cup more flour.
3. Kneed the dough until it is smooth (usually 10 min) then put in a greased bowl(I put olive oil in the bowl then I turn the dough once so both sides are greased). Place plastic over the bowl then let sit for 1 hr , this gives you time to sweep, or do a load of laundry. It should be doubled in size when you come back.
4. Punch that dough :) then kneed it to get the air pockets out. Grease two bread pans then divide the dough. Now some people like to shape the dough but I don't. I press it flat in the pans so when it rises its even :). Cover with a towel for 30 min.
5. It should be doubled in size then bake at 375 for 20-25 min. I only go 20 but it depends on your oven. You should be able to knock on the bread and it sounds hollow :)

That's all there is to it friends. Oh and don't cut that bread until its cooled down so maybe a half hour. I also wrap mine in plastic and store them in my bread box. ENJOY

Coconut Oil

Ok so I decided to buy some coconut oil because I read its really good at helping to lose weight, which if you know I have been on the Atkins Diet since the first of May. I have lost 4 skirt sizes and I seem to have come to a stop ugh. So I buy the oil and I DON'T use it lol. It has sat in the cupboard for about 2 wks and I made myself use it today. I made my whole wheat bread and substituted the coconut oil with the butter. Then I made granola cereal and replaced the coconut flakes with the oil and it has a coconut flavor. I think I am starting to like this oil.
 This oil is not only great for baking but also for the skin. I gave Phoebe a coconut oil bath and her skin looks and feels so much softer.(She has a bad case of eczema). I was reading on this oil and you can use it on sunburns, WHICH I think is awesome. So now I have been won over by the coconut oil. I am thinking about taking spoonfuls to see if it helps with the weight loss too :) Well this is my little spiel on Coconut Oil.

Its been awhile

Its been awhile since I have written on this thing. We are finally moved in our new home and the house is settled lol. It was so fun to unpack in the our new home. I had everything put away in 3 days. Adjusting has been fairly easy but I miss my friends but I have made a lot of new ones.
 We have done lots of church hunting in the last few weeks and its really hard to find a church out there that is just right. There are so many things you are looking for and when you find a church that seems like it might be the one you find something that just doesn't work out. We did attend a church this weekend that we really enjoyed. During the services you could feel the presence of the Lord and it was so refreshing. The preaching and teaching just made you think and ponder. I LOVED it.
 The children love living in Rolla. They adapt to things so well. Joshua has made several new friends with the neighbor boys and at church. Gracie is doing good, and growing like a weed. Anna is still Anna lol she is the lively one of our bunch. Phoebe is getting so big and her favorite word is no. If someone does something she says no. They are getting so big.
 I am getting closer to setting up my farmer's market. Got a brand new canopy for $55 at the Goodwill. Going to get a folding table and I will be ready :) I can't wait to start doing this. Since I am not babysitting this will help me feel like I am doing something to contribute to the family. I know I cook, clean, and take care of the kids but I get grumpy if I don't have anything else to do. I never realized this until we moved here and Jeff pointed it out lol. I guess I just like to stay busy :)
 Well that is a brief update of what we have been doing. I should be able to blog more once we get this new adventure settled.