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Pretzels

This bread machine recipe is easy and requires little hands-on work. Most of the time is spent rising or baking.

Pretzels
Makes about 8-10 pretzels

2/3 cup water
1 1/4 tablespoons oil
2 teaspoons sugar
1/3 teaspoon salt
2 cups all purpose flour
1-1 1/2 teaspoons yeast

Additionally you will need:
5 cups water
5 teaspoons baking soda
kosher salt or other topping

Add all ingredients from the first ingredient list in order into the bread machine and let it knead and rise in the machine. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Then divide and shape your pretzels. Cover and allow to rise for 45 minutes in a warm place.

In a non-aluminum pan bring 5 cups of water and 5 teaspoons of baking soda almost to a boil. Gently place the pretzels into the water and allow to cook for about 30 seconds on each side. Try not to let the water come to a full boil. Remove the pretzels with a slotted spoon and place on a greased baking sheet. Sprinkle with kosher salt or other desired toppings. Bake at 475°F for 10-12 minutes or until brown.

Preboiling and baking:


After baking:

If you don't have a bread machine add the warm water into a bowl and then add the yeast and allow it to proof for about 5 minutes. Then add the rest of the ingredients and knead for 10 minutes. Allow to rise until doubled and then follow the above directions.

French Bread

A delicious recipe originally from the cookbook Bread Machine Magic:

Authentic French Bread
Makes one 1 1/2 lb loaf (measurements to make a 1 lb loaf are in parentheses)

1 (3/4) cup water
1 1/2 (1) tsp salt
3 (2) cups bread flour
2 1/2 (2 1/2) tsp yeast
cornmeal

Add all ingredients except the cornmeal to the bread machine in order. Select dough setting and start machine. When the dough is done rising in the machine, turn it out onto a floured surface.

For a 1 1/2 lb loaf, shape the dough into either one 12-inch oblong loaf, 1 large round loaf, 2 thin 18-inch thin baguettes, or 8 rolls

For a 1 lb loaf, shape the dough into either one 10-inch oblong loaf, one large loaf, one thing 24-inch baguette, or 6 rolls.

Dust the top(s) with a little flour and rub it in. Place on a cookie sheet dusted with cornmeal. With a sharp knife or razor, slash the tops about 1/2 inch deep down the center. On an oblong loaf make 3 slashes, on a round loaf make an "X" or "#". Cover and allow to rise in a warm place for until doubled (around 30-45 minutes).

Place a pan of hot water in the bottom of the oven (this will make the bread have a crispier crust). Preheat the oven to 450°F. Bake the round or oblong loaf about 20 minutes, the baguettes about 15 minutes, and the rolls 10-12 minutes. Remove from oven and serve warm or cool on a rack.

This bread does go stale quickly so it's best made within a few hours of eating.


If you don't have a bread machine I imagine you could add the warm water into a bowl and then add the yeast and allow it to proof for about 5 minutes. Then add the salt and flour and knead for 10 minutes. Allow to rise until doubled and then follow the above directions.

I've never tried this without a bread machine, but I see no reason why it wouldn't work.


Happy baking!

SF Chronicle debuts vegetarian cooking feature

Accidental Vegetarian

The editors are soliciting feedback, so I wrote them to make an effort to be inclusive with the recipes, by including as many vegan recipes as they can.

Peta gets OK over hard-hitting campaign

Well, I might have thought it was too strong, but the Advertising Standards Authority has dismissed complaints against the Peta campaign with the slogan “Feeding kids meat is child abuse”. I must say, I’m surprised, but pleased. It’s basically an official body accepting the premise that eating meat is bad. Neat.

Strict Vegan Ethics, Frosted With Hedonism

On Wednesday, The New York Times published a great article, which currently resides at spot number one on the paper's list of most emailed articles. It focuses on my absolute favorite vegan chef, Isa Chandra Moskowitz, while favorably portraying veganism and breaking down a few stereotypes. It also includes some great down-to-earth words from Isa to everyone, vegans and omnivores alike. There are three free recipes alongside the recipe, all of which look great.

ISA CHANDRA MOSKOWITZ, a vegan chef, does not particularly like to talk about tofu. Ditto seitan, tempeh and nutritional yeast.

“I think vegan cooks need to learn to cook vegetables first,” she said last week during a cupcake-baking marathon. “Then maybe they can be allowed to move on to meat substitutes.”

Ms. Moskowitz, 34, was born in Coney Island Hospital, lives in Brooklyn, and is a typically impatient and opinionated New Yorker. She can’t stand how slowly most cooks peel garlic, makes relentless fun of Rachael Ray and rolls her eyes at the mention of California hippies...

Full Article

Vegetarian Kids

A super-positive KYW report in Philadelphia on vegetarian kids includes the statistic that approximately 1.5 million kids between 8 and 18 are vegetarian... That ups the nation's vegetarian percentage significantly, seeing as how how must polls on vegetarians only include adults, about 2.3 percent of whom never eat any kind of meat. It's hard to pull an exact number on this, but estimates put the figure at about 5 million adults. So adding 1.5 million kids to that base gives us about 6.5 million full-time vegetarians in the U.S. over the age 8, to say nothing of those that eat vegetarian part of the time, or flexitarians.

At any rate, getting back to the newscast:

Medical Reporter Stephanie Stahl reports there are ways to make sure those growing kids are eating a well balanced diet.

The Winters like a good steak, but their 12-year old son Dean is not interested. When mom and dad eat steak, he has a protein substitute.

Dean has been a vegetarian since he was in first grade.

"I love animals a whole lot, and I really don't care for meat that much,” he said.

The Winters, like many parents of vegetarian kids, worried at first that their son wouldn't get enough nutrients without that piece of meat on his plate.

"At first, I kind of fought it and tried to get him to eat meat. But he was pretty solid about his convictions,” said Dean’s dad, Harold Winters.

According to the American Dietetic Association, vegetarian kids can be just as healthy as other children.

"There is no need for concern. People can be very healthy eating a vegetarian lifestyle,” said Dawn Jackson Blatner a registered dietician and American Dietetic Association spokesperson.

The key to remember: if you or your child is going to be a vegetarian, there are healthy ways to go about it.

"There are three major steps to do this vegetarian thing right. The first step is to replace the meats with plant proteins, so that would be eating things like beans nuts, seeds. Step 2 is eat lots more fruits and vegetables and then step 3 is replacing your grains with more whole grains,” Blatner said.

Having a vegetarian kid can be an adjustment, but with all the protein substitutes out there, it's not that hard for Dean.

“I really don't feel like I'm missing out on anything,” he said.

The A.D.A. said the number of kids who are choosing vegetarianism is growing and many children may experiment with a partial vegetarian diet.

It is a good idea to consider how you'll add healthy meat-free meals to your child's diet, whether or not he or she is a full-time vegetarian.

(© MMVII, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)

Almost There

DNS is being updated so veggieboards.com should soon point to the new server. Some of you will see it real soon, for others it may be 24 hours.

Update

I'm upgrading the forum software now. Still not sure when the site will be up.

Update

Home on my lunch break and thought I'd post an update. Just looked around the site on the new server and all looks good. We should be able to get things switched over in the morning so the site should be back within the next 4-6 hours. Like I said in an earlier post, some will see the site right away but for some it may take up to 24 hours.