If you like the texture of the raisin bread you’ll like the orange sweet bread. It bakes easy, tastes great and stores really well. Perfect with morning coffee or after meal as a desert. I don’t put too much of the orange marmalade so the orange flavor is not overpowering, but that can be easily altered individually. Its good on its own, with a little butter, ice cream or more marmalade for the ultimate sugar fix.
INGREDIENTS:
4 ½ cups - all purpose flour
¾ cup - granulated sugar
4 ½ tsp - dry yeast
1 tsp - salt
½ cup - unsalted butter
2 - eggs
¾ cup - milk
½ cup - water
1 tsp - vanilla extract
¾ cup - orange peel marmalade
EQUIPMENT:
1 large bowl,
1 large wooden spoon,
2 5”x 9” bread baking pans,
1 cotton cloth towel.
DIRECTIONS:
1. Mix all dry ingredients (including yeast) in a bowl, melt butter,
2. Wisk eggs in a separate bowl, add to the dry mixture; add milk and water, then add the melted butter. Mix all with big wooden spoon until the dough is smooth,
3. Cover the bowl with the cotton cloth towel and place in the warm place for the dough to rise for 1 to 1 ½ hours. It should double the volume.
4. Oil baking pans (5“ x 9“), dust with flour.
5. After the dough rose, spread it on the flat surface dusted with a little flour so the dough wouldn’t stick (clean table surface works great). Shape to about 18” square, spread thin layer of jam on top of the dough, then carefully roll the dough. Cut in half and place both portions in the baking pans.
6. Cover with cotton cloth towel and place in a warm place to raise. The dough should raise almost to the top edge of the pan.
7. Bake in 350F for 25 minutes.
8. Take out of the pan, cool on side, enjoy with tea or coffee.
I come from the place where friends and family are welcomed to a new place with bread and salt - an old Eastern European tradition. It just seems natural then to start this blog with a bread recipe. It’s very simple and delicious if you like the bread with rich texture and crust. It is definitely my favorite bread. I bake several loaves at once that last me a month or so. I keep them in the freezer and thaw one or half loaf at a time. It doesn’t take long to make it and the making is simple - no kneading required.
INGREDIENTS:
1 lb - unbleached all purpose flour
1 tsp - salt
1-1/2 tsp - dry active yeast
1-1/3 cup of water
Optional:
1/4 cup - flax seeds, or
1/4 cup - sunflower seeds
DIRECTIONS:
1. Mix flour, salt and dry yeast in a big bowl (note the yeast are not prepared separately). If you choose to add the seeds this is the time to do that too.
2. Add water and mix with a large spoon. As the dough becomes sticky and heavy you can place it on the board and kneed, but I just pick, fold and press with the large wooden spoon in the bowl for about 5 minutes or until the dough becomes smooth.
3. Preheat the oven to the lowest temperature (in my oven it is 175F) and turn it off. Leave the dough in the bowl, cover the bowl with a cotton cloth towel and place it in the oven to raise (make sure the oven is turned OFF… we want to raise the dough not to burn the house down). Leave the dough in the oven until it rises and doubles the size. It usually takes 1 to 1-½ hour.
4. Prepare the flat pan: grease with oil and sprinkle with flour. Shake the excess flour out. You can use a flat cookie sheet for the round or oval shape bread or a rectangular one to have slices more consistent in size.
5. Preheat the oven to 425F and bake for 40-45 min.
6. Let it cool for 2-3 hours, slice, eat fresh or freeze. I love it fresh, dipped in olive oil, but it also makes any sandwich a true delight.
4 ½ tsp - dry yeast 
1 cotton cloth towel.
3. Cover the bowl with the cotton cloth towel and place in the warm place for the dough to rise for 1 to 1 ½ hours. It should double the volume.
6. Cover with cotton cloth towel and place in a warm place to raise. The dough should raise almost to the top edge of the pan. 
