Archive for the ‘Spelt Recipes’ Category

An Amazing Grilled Burger Recipe with Corn on the Cob

Wednesday, June 30th, 2010

Grilled Burger

By: Cindy Widder, General Manager Berlin Natural Bakery

Summer is here and there’s nothing better than getting together with friends and family for a festive backyard BBQ. With the “Summer Hot Dog and Burger Bun Special” being offered from Berlin Natural Bakery this July, it’s a perfect time to share a delicious Grilled Burger recipe.

The thing you need to keep in mind when you are making your own grilled burgers (or whatever dish you are making) is that it’s okay to improvise. In fact, that’s how most new recipes are developed. I’m always taking ingredients from one recipe and combining with others to get my own special dish. Sometimes it works out fantastically, and other times….well, those times I throw out the recipe and start over. But that’s the fun of it. You never know what you might get!

Someone once told me that they never try a new dish when they are making something for an occasion like a family reunion or church function, because they are too afraid of it not turning out well. Not me. I absolutely love trying out new things on my family and friends for any occasion. Sometimes they are huge successes and once in awhile they are a huge flop. At least I haven’t lost any family or friends because of it yet and most of them seem to really enjoy being my guinea pig.

That’s what I’ve done with this Grilled Burger recipe. I wanted to experiment with something slightly different from our usual burgers and this is one of those times where it turned out well. I also grilled (or should I say my husband…he’s the official grill Meister) Corn on the Cob using a butter/honey mix. The recipe for that is below as well.

Grilled Burger Ingredients:
1 – lb ground beef
1/4 cup sweet onion, chopped
1/4 tsp chopped garlic
1 Tbsp. Hot Sauce
1 1/2 tsp. Worcestershire Sauce
1 1/2 tsp honey
1 pkg. BNB White or Whole Spelt Burger Buns

Directions

Mix the first six ingredients together and form into patties. (other ingredient suggestions: green/red pepper, jalapenos, mushrooms, oregano, basil, etc.)

Grill over medium heat for 4-5 minutes on each side or until meat is no longer pink.

Apply your favorite BBQ sauce if desired. Serve on buns with lettuce, tomato, cheese, onion or toppings or your choice.

Grilled Corn on the Cob: (recipe for 4 ears…just double or triple as needed)

Husk corn and remove silk.
Melt 3 TBSP butter in small bowl
Add 1 1/2 Tbsp honey and 1/4 to 1/2 tsp Cajun seasoning (optional) and mix well.
Place each ear on a 13-in by 12-in piece of heavy duty foil. Spread butter mixture over each ear of corn. Fold in edges of foil and seal. Grill approsimately 15 minutes, turning every 4 to 5 minutes. Carefully unwrap foil and season with salt or pepper to taste.

May your summer be full of wonderful celebrations!

Until next time…Happy Baking!

Don’t forget to take advantage of the Summer Hot Dog and Burger Bun Special we are running the entire month of July! Let us know if you have any questions!

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Spelt Muffins: Blueberry Streusel

Thursday, June 3rd, 2010

spelt muffins Blueberry Streusel

By: Cindy Widder General Manager Berlin Natural Bakery

Have you ever bought or made a muffin that looks or sounds so good, only to have it be dry and tasteless with the consistency of sawdust?? The recipe I am sharing with you today is NOT that kind of muffin. I promise. The blueberries and Streusel topping make these muffins sweet, moist and delicious. An added bonus, and one that I love, is that they are easy to make. This recipe makes 12 muffins, but I always double it so that I have plenty to share.

Much to the chagrin of my husband (although he’s finally resigned himself to the fact), I am one of those messy bakers….my kitchen is usually declared a federal disaster zone by the time I’m finished. He says that FEMA won’t even come in! Thankfully, I get to make the mess, my husband cleans up after me and we both enjoy the fruit of our labor. It works out perfectly. So when this recipe said to grease the muffin pan, I immediately thought “no way” and switched to using cupcake papers instead….much less messy.

With the dreary, rainy days we’ve been experiencing here in the Ohio Valley the past few days, these muffins accompanied with a steaming hot cup of coffee or tea make the day seem a little brighter and sunnier. I think I’ll grab a cup of coffee and a muffin right now.

Until next time…happy baking!

Ingredients:
1 egg
1/2 cup milk
1/4 cup oil
1 cup white spelt flour
1/2 cup whole spelt flour
1/2 cup sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup blueberries (I use fresh blueberries, but if you use frozen, don’t thaw them)

Heat oven to 400 degrees. Grease bottom of 12 medium muffin cups (or use cupcake papers). Beat egg and stir in milk and oil. Mix in dry ingredients just until moistened. (If you prefer, you can use all White spelt flour). Fold in fresh or frozen blueberries.

Fill muffin cups 2/3 full (I use an ice cream scoop). Top with streusel topping (recipe follows). Bake 20 – 25 minutes. Allow to cool for 5 to 10 minutes before removing from pans.

Streusel Topping Ingredients:

Mix…
1/3 cup brown sugar (packed)
1/4 cup flour
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

Add 3 tablespoons of cut-up firm butter and mix until crumbly. For me, the best way to mix this is to just dig in and use my hands.

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Recipe: Chicken in Dressing Crust

Monday, May 3rd, 2010

Chicken in Dressing Crust

We’ve had a very interesting spring here in the Ohio Valley. It started with record high temperatures in March, and progressed into an indecisive April. Always wavering on whether to remain cold, shift into warm or advance right on into hot. Take today for example. Temperatures this morning when we awoke were in the mid 30’s, but by the end of the day, they will be in the lower to mid 70’s! Although amazing….a 30 to 35 degree temperature increase within a 6 hour time frame is not unusual for us at this time of year. Talk about making it interesting in knowing what to wear! This morning I put on the Capri’s I planned to wear to work, but then added socks, tennis shoes, a hooded sweatshirt and a coat to wear in order to first take our little dog Woodrow to the park. I looked ridiculous but thank goodness no one else was at the park at that time!

I must admit though, that it is such a marvelous feeling when you walk outside later in the afternoon and the brilliance and warmth of the sunshine overwhelms you. Truly one of those “ahhhhh” moments!

With the arrival of the warm weather, so also arrive thoughts of summer picnics and family reunions. The recipe I am sharing this time is a dish that my mom usually makes every year for our Moser family reunion. It is definitely always a hit and quickly gone. It has no fancy name, but the name itself pretty well describes the dish. I wouldn’t be surprised to learn that mom just named it herself.

May you have a wonderful summer surrounded by family and friends with much laughter, making great memories.

Until next time…..Happy Baking.

Chicken in Dressing Crust

Crust:

1 – 8 oz herb seasoned dressing/stuffing mix (I used half a loaf of Berlin Natural Bakery
White Spelt bread, cut into cubes and seasoned with 2 tsp parsley, ½ tsp salt, ¼
tsp garlic salt, and 1/4 tsp of sage. You could add other seasonings such as
poultry seasoning too, but I personally prefer less seasonings).
¾ cup chicken broth
1/3 cup melted butter
1 egg beaten.

Mix together and place in the bottom of a 10” pie pan. *

Filling:

1 – 4 oz can mushrooms
1 ½ tsp. salt (or to taste)
2 tsp. Flour
2 Tbsp. diced pimento (optional)
½ onion, chopped
1 Tbsp. Parsley flakes
1 Tbsp. Butter
1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
3 cups cubed chicken or turkey
½ tsp. dried thyme
1 cup peas
½ tsp garlic salt
1 cup carrots, chopped
4 slices American cheese or cheddar or cheese of your choice
½ tsp black pepper
1 – 10 ½ oz can chicken gravy or cream of chicken or cream of mushroom soup

Drain mushrooms, reserving the liquid. Mix mushroom liquid with flour. Sauté mushrooms and onion in butter. If using raw carrots, cook slightly before adding. Add all ingredients to the mushroom/onion mixture except the cheese. Cook and stir well until slightly thickened. Turn into crust.

Bake at 375 F until bubbly (approx 45 minutes). Add cheese to top of casserole and bake another 5 minutes until cheese is melted.

* You may want to double this recipe and put it in a bigger casserole dish…something like a 9”x13” pan.

(A couple notes: I stewed a whole chicken {which was enough for a double recipe} and used the broth from it for both the crust and in place of the can of gravy or soup. After sautéing the onions and mushrooms in the butter, I added 1 ½ cups of chicken broth to the pan and brought it all to a boil. I added 2 Tbsp flour to the mushroom liquid instead of 2 Tsp. and mixed well. Once the broth was boiling I added the flour mixture to the broth, stirring constantly and basically made“homemade” gravy. Then I added everything else according to the recipe and poured it into the crust. If you use fresh mushrooms, just add the flour to water…2 Tbsp flour added to ½ cup water).

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Succulent Raspberry Cheesecake Recipe

Monday, January 25th, 2010

By Cindy Widder, General Manager of Berlin Natural Bakery

rasberry cheesecake

As the hustle and bustle of the holidays is winding down, I am sharing this delicious recipe for Raspberry Cheesecake that will delight all of your friends and family. Whether for a New Year’s celebration or “just because”…this dessert makes a spectacular display and tastes even better than it looks.

I used to think that making cheesecake would be so difficult, and for that reason, I didn’t even attempt it for many years. Thankfully after finally giving it a shot, I found out that the belief that making cheesecake is difficult is a total misconception.

The directions may look daunting, but give it a whirl. Just take it step by step and you’ll be done in no time. I think you’ll be delighted with the results. I know your family and friends will be!

Raspberry Cheesecake

Ingredients

For the crust:

* 3-4 Berlin Natural Bakery oatmeal Gem Spelt cookie crumbs (1 1/2 cups)
* 1 tablespoon sugar
* 6 tablespoons butter, melted

For the filling:

* 2 1/2 pounds cream cheese, at room temperature (5-8oz pkgs)
* 1 1/2 cups sugar
* 5 whole extra-large eggs, at room temperature
* 2 extra-large egg yolks, at room temperature
* 1/4 cup sour cream
* 1 tabelspoon grated lemon zest (simply grate the outside peel of 2 lemons)
* 1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

For the topping:

* 1 cup red jelly (not jam), such as currant, raspberry, or strawberry
* 3 half-pints fresh raspberries (I used approx 1 1/2 cups)

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

To make the crust, combine the Oatmeal Gem cookies, sugar, and melted butter until moistened. Pour into a 9-inch springform pan. With your hands, press the crumbs into the bottom of the pan and about 1-inch up the sides. Bake for 8 minutes. Cool to room temperature.

Raise the oven temperature to 450 degrees F.

To make the filling, cream the cream cheese and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Reduce the speed of the mixer to medium and add the eggs and egg yolks, 2 at a time, mixing well. Scrape down the bowl and beater, as necessary. With the mixer on low, add the sour cream, lemon zest, and vanilla. Mix thoroughly and pour into the cooled crust.

Bake for 15 minutes. Turn the oven temperature down to 225 degrees F and bake for another 1 hour and 15 minutes. Turn the oven off and open the door wide. The cake will not be completely set in the center. Allow the cake to sit in the oven with the door open for 30 minutes. Take the cake out of the oven and allow it to sit at room temperature for another 2 to 3 hours, until completely cooled. Wrap and refrigerate overnight.

Remove the cake from the springform pan by carefully running a hot knife around the outside of the cake. Leave the cake on the bottom of the springform pan for serving.
To make the topping, melt the jelly in a small pan over low heat. In a bowl, toss the raspberries and the warm jelly gently until well mixed. Arrange the berries on top of the cake. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Note: I actually used a larger springform pan (at least 10-inch) as this makes a large cheesecake. If you use a 9 –inch, it will just be thicker.

Enjoy! If you’ve never attempted to make cheesecake before, you won’t be sorry you tried this.

For our next recipe, I’m going to move away from desserts and give you a recipe for a scrumptious breakfast casserole. You will need the following ingredients: bacon, ham, onion, a loaf of Berlin Natural Bakery spelt bread (any kind), potatoes (or frozen hash browns), cheddar cheese, eggs, milk, Worcestershire sauce and ground mustard. This is another recipe that can be assembled ahead and then baked the next day.

Have a wonderful New Year. Until next time….Happy Baking!!

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Pumpkin Streusel Bread Trifle

Wednesday, December 9th, 2009

By: Cindy Wider, General Manager of Berlin Natural Bakery

Pumpkin Trifle

With Christmas fast approaching, I am sharing a recipe for Pumpkin Streusel Trifle. This dessert looks so elegant and although it may give the impression otherwise, it is actually a very easy dessert to make. It can be made a day or two ahead of time and stored in the refrigerator. Trifles are typically assembled in a big glass bowl or container in order to display the various layers.

I am including a recipe for homemade vanilla pudding, but if you prefer and you have no dietary restrictions that prevent you from eating it, you may make a 4.6 ounce box of vanilla pudding mix instead. But, I must say…the homemade vanilla pudding is much easier to make than I had imagined. It tastes so good and I really liked the idea of knowing exactly what it contains.

Pumpkin Streusel Bread Trifle

For Homemade Vanilla Pudding:

1/3 cup white spelt flour
2/3 cup sugar
Pinch of salt
1 tsp. vanilla
2 cups milk
2 eggs, beaten
1 ½ teaspoons butter

In a small saucepan, combine the sugar, flour and salt. Gradually stir in milk. Cook and stir over medium heat until thickened and bubbly. Reduce heat; cook and stir 2 minutes longer. Remove from the heat.

Stir about ½ cup hot filling into the beaten eggs to incorporate eggs. Return all to the pan, stirring constantly. Bring to a gentle boil; cook and stir 1 minute longer. Remove from the heat. Gently stir in butter and vanilla. Cool, stirring occasionally. (Will probably take about an hour to really cool).

To make Pumpkin pudding for trifle:

1 – 30 oz can pumpkin puree
½ cups packed brown sugar
1/3 tsp. ground cinnamon or cardamom

In a bowl, combine the pumpkin puree, the brown sugar and the cardamom or cinnamon. Stir in cooled pudding. Reserve in the refrigerator, covered with plastic wrap until assembling the trifle.

To make Homemade Sweetened Whipped Cream:

1 pint heavy whipping cream
¼ cup granulated or powdered sugar
¼ teaspoon vanilla

Whip whipping cream on high speed of mixer until begins to thicken. Turn mixer to lower speed and add sugar and vanilla. Once mixed in, return mixer to high speed and continue whipping cream until stiff peaks form. Refrigerate until assembling the trifle.

Note: My husband loves homemade whipped cream, so to make sure I have enough for a thick layer; I usually make a double batch.

To Assemble Trifle:

One or two loaves of Berlin Natural Bakery Pumpkin Streusel Tea Bread, broken up into bite sized pieces.

Layer half of the Pumpkin bread pieces on the bottom of a large clear bowl. Pour half of the pumpkin pudding mixture over the pumpkin bread and then add a layer of whipping cream. Repeat with the remaining pumpkin bread, pudding and whipping cream. Refrigerate overnight.

For our next recipe, I will be sharing a delectable Raspberry Cheesecake recipe. For the crust, I will be using Berlin Natural Bakery Oatmeal Gem cookies. You will also need five 8 oz pkgs of cream cheese, 7 extra large eggs, sour cream, 2 lemons, 1 cup raspberry jelly or preserves, and 1 ½ to 2 cups red raspberries. (Instead of raspberries for the topping, you can use any fruit you prefer or use no topping at all).

Until next time, may you and your loved ones experience true joy and happiness throughout this Christmas season. And may you get all your shopping done early!! Happy baking!

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Allison’s Vanilla Cream French Toast

Tuesday, November 10th, 2009

French Toast

Welcome back friends!  What a breathtaking time of year we’ve been experiencing lately here in the Ohio Valley.  The trees are beautiful with all the spectacular red and yellow leaves, especially when they glimmer in the sunlight.  In contrast to the warm and sunny days, the nights are beginning to really get cool and we’ve even awakened a few mornings to frost on the ground.  It can make it difficult to know what to wear when the temperature warms up 30 degrees or more from morning to afternoon, but I love it.

On such cool mornings, the delicious French toast I told you about in my last blog is a perfect way to start out the morning.  Everyone will probably think it took you forever to prepare it, but since you mix up the milk mixture the night before, this French toast is actually a very quick and easy breakfast to make on even the busiest mornings.

Alison’s Vanilla Cream French Toast

1 egg

1 can Sweetened Condensed Milk

1 tsp. vanilla

1 tsp. cinnamon

¼ tsp. salt

1/3 cup milk

1 pkg of Berlin Natural Bakery Whole or White Spelt Burger Buns, or

1 loaf of any of Berlin Natural Bakery bread

(I have used both the burger buns and Berlin Natural Bakery Biblical Bread and they have both held up great.  If you are using a French bread or other dense bread, cut the loaf into approximately 1 inch thick slices).

Mix the first 6 ingredients in a container.  Cover and put into refrigerator overnight.  Spread the buns or slices of bread on a cookie sheet or on your counter and leave them out overnight so they can dry out.  Before using the egg/milk mixture, stir it again to make sure all the ingredients are mixed well.  Dip the buns or slices of bread into the egg and milk mixture, leaving them in the mixture for 30 seconds on each side.  Place them on a well-greased griddle or frying pan and brown them on both sides.  Serve with soft butter and maple syrup.

Note: If you forget to let the bread dry out, it’s not a problem.  When you dip it in the egg and milk mixture, just do it for a shorter time as the bread will soak up the mixture quicker since it’s not dried out.

Watch the temperature on your stove as this French toast browns pretty quickly.  I usually start out with a medium high heat and once the pan or griddle gets hot, I turn it back to medium.  (The way I test whether my pan is hot enough is to sprinkle just a few drops of water in the pan.  If the water “sizzles” a little bit, the pan is ready, but if the water pops like crazy, the pan is probably a little too hot).  The great thing about this toast, is that even if it gets a little overbrown, it’s still delicious.  That just makes it more caramelized.

I certainly hope you enjoy this breakfast as much as my husband and I do.  I’m so thankful our daughter Alison made it for us and then shared her recipe.

There’s no doubt that in a couple months, I’ll be wishing I was spending time with my sister Beth in Hawaii, but right now I am truly enjoying this time of year.  Not only is autumn one of my favorite seasons because of the beautiful scenery here in Ohio, but it also means the holidays are just around the corner.

With that in mind, for the next few blogs I am planning to share recipes for the holidays.  The next recipe will be Thanksgiving Stuffing made in a slow cooker.  For Thanksgiving dinner in our home, we always brine our turkey before baking it, and therefore we do not stuff it with the dressing.  Since I don’t have extra room in my oven, I make my stuffing in a slow cooker.  It works out perfectly.

You’ll need the following ingredients for this recipe: butter, onion, celery, parsley, 1 to 2 loaves of Berlin Natural Bakery spelt bread (I usually use both white spelt bread and whole grain spelt bread, but this time I am going to try something different and use white spelt bread and raisin spelt bread.  I’ll let you know how it turns out.), salt, pepper, chicken broth, eggs and any or all of the following seasonings/herbs (poultry seasoning, sage, thyme and marjoram).  I may also add pecans.

It’s been great sharing another recipe with you.  Until next time…..happy baking!

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Delicious Spelt Pancake Recipe

Tuesday, October 13th, 2009

By: Cindy, General Manager of Berlin Natural Bakery

Spelt Pancakes

I love to bake.  It almost seems like it was inevitable.  Both of my grandmother’s were excellent bakers. My mom even has many blue ribbons from our local county fair that she won for her tasty baked goods.  Everything they baked was made from scratch, using sweet creamery butter, farm fresh eggs and ingredients that often came from their own farms or gardens.

I can still smell the wonderful aroma of apple dumplings or cinnamon rolls or chocolate chip cookies baking in the oven when I would burst through the door after coming home from school.  It’s a wonder I didn’t weigh 500 pounds.  As children…we spent our days outdoors, exploring the woods, playing with the neighborhood kids, always on the go and just having a grand time.

Though we didn’t need to be concerned about watching our weight in those days I can no longer just stuff as many cookies or homemade donuts (yummy), or mouth watering pie in my mouth as I once could when I was young (and I wish I still could).

My name is Cindy and for 17 years now I have worked for Berlin Natural Bakery.  Berlin Natural Bakery is the largest all spelt bakery in the United States.  Everything we bake is made using pure spelt flour (no regular wheat will be found in our bakery) and we use only the highest quality, all natural ingredients.

The recipes you find here will be based on using spelt flour or products from Berlin Natural Bakery.  Our desire is to help all who have contacted us with questions about baking with spelt.

If you don’t currently have spelt flour, don’t despair…these recipes are easily adaptable.  For those of you unfamiliar with Berlin Natural Bakery or spelt flour, check out the website www.BerlinNaturalBakery.com.

It is my hope that this blog, and many more to be published, will convey to you that baking does not need to be difficult (even when using spelt flour) and that it can bring a whole lot of pleasure…both in the baking itself and in the joy of eating and sharing what you’ve created!

Or, if you’re  like me and already love to bake, I hope to share some new and tasty recipes you’ll enjoy baking.  As I share my love of baking with you, I hope you will share your life with me as well.  You may come as a stranger, but I want you to leave as a friend.  Feel free to ask any questions, or share your suggestions and recipes.  It is a real privilege to get to know you.

Now then…it’s time to get started.  It seems only appropriate since this is my first blog that for our first recipe, we start with the first meal of the day as well…breakfast.  I’m one of those people who love breakfast.  This recipe comes from a friend, Christy from Zoar, Ohio which she developed using spelt flour, freshly stone ground at Berlin Natural Bakery.  For the best pancakes or waffles, this recipe is hard to beat.

SPELT PANCAKES OR WAFFLES

Ingredients:

2 cups whole spelt flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons sugar

1 tablespoon cinnamon

3 eggs

1/2 cup oil

1 1/2 cup milk (substitute whole milk with rice milk or soy milk)

1 tablespoon vanilla

Directions:

*In a medium size mixing bowl, combine flour, baking powder, salt, sugar and cinnamon.  In smaller bowl, beat eggs, add oil, milk and vanilla.  Add contents of smaller bowl into dry ingredients.  Stir gently till ingredients are blended together.  Do not use mixer and do not over mix.

*Pour batter by 1/3 cupfuls onto a lightly greased hot griddle; turn when bubbles form on top of pancakes.  Cook until the second side is golden brown or according to your personal preference.  Serve with butter and real maple syrup.

(For Waffles: Bake in a preheated waffle iron according to manufacturer’s directions until golden brown).

Well friends, that’s it for this time.  The next time we gather together, I am going to share another great breakfast recipe…French Toast.  You may be thinking, “that doesn’t sound very exciting”, but this is not just any French toast.

My daughter Alison made this scrumptious French toast for my husband and me early one morning before she had to take us to the airport.  It was oh so good and made the start of our day all that much better.  Since I hate finding a great recipe, only to have to make a trip to the store for ingredients before I can actually make it, I thought I would share the ingredients you’ll need now so you’ll be ready to go when I post the next blog.

Most of the recipes are things you probably have in your kitchen already (vanilla, eggs, sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt), but two of the ingredients you may not have.  My daughter used a loaf of French bread that she sliced into thick pieces, but when I made it, I used White Spelt Burger Buns from Berlin Natural Bakery.

May sound crazy, but they worked perfectly.  The Berlin Natural Bakery Raisin Spelt Bread would work equally well for this recipe.  You will also need a can of sweetened condensed milk.  This gives a caramelized outer covering that is…well; I’ll just say this…you’re going to love it!

Until next time…Happy Baking!

You can find premier spelt products made from 100% genuine german spelt in our online store by clicking the icon below!

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