I can thing of few things that taste better on a cold day than beef stew simmering on the stovetop for a few hours. Now I know you can use the instant pot or crock pot, but I’m a purist stubborn and l just love how the flavors all come together. So if you are looking for a tasty dinner that makes your home smell delicious give this stovetop beef stew a try!

I have been making this stovetop beef stew for close to 11 years ( you can check out my original post here. Be kind… it was when I first started blogging), and will continue for years to come.

Overall it is pretty simple to make. The ending results are a tender, slightly spicy stew that fills your belly and warms your soul. Plus it just makes the house smell super tasty.

Stovetop Beef Stew Ingredients

The ingredient list for this stew is pretty straight forward. I’m sure you have most, if not all, of the ingredients on hand right now.

• stew meat: if you don’t have stew meat (or are looking for a more budget friendly option) try a chuck roast! There have been many times (particularly when Kroger has a BOGO sale on them) I have cut a chuck roast into cubes to use in a stew. It still turns out amazing.
• wine: to deglaze the pan, and a little more for extra flavor. If you don’t like using wine, you can use beef stock in its place.
• stew seasoning: I made this stew seasoning up. It is a simple mix of herbs that you can make at the beginning of what I like to call “stew season” and keep in the pantry.
• veggies: my go-to mix of veggies are carrots, celery, onion, and potatoes. I feel like these are pretty much your standard stew veggies, but feel free to change it up.

How To Make

Making this stew is pretty simple. It requires a few hands on times, but other than that it’s pretty much hands off.

One: start by dredging the meat in flour seasoned with salt and pepper.

Two: Brown the meat in a dutch oven with some oil.

Three: Deglaze the pan with red wine (or beef stock if you don’t use wine) and reduce by at least 1/2.

Four: add the water to pan

Five: Add the seasoning. I actually realized it was easier to add the seasoning to the water first, then add that to the pan. So in the future I will be doing that.

Six: Add the meat back to the pan and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer for 1 hour.

Seven: While the meat is cooking chop up the veggies. If you are lucky recruit some help to peel the carrots.

Eight: Add the veggies and cook for another 45 minutes to an hour. You may need to add more water or wine to the pan.

Nine: Enjoy your delicious stew.

If you are looking for other soup or stew recipes you can check out this ground beef and bean soup, tasty french onion, or a quick and easy chili.

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Stovetop Beef Stew

Course Main Course

Prep Time 30 minutes minutes

Cook Time 3 hours hours

Servings 6 people

Ingredients

• 3 lbs stew meat
• salt and pepper
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 cup red wine
• 3-6 tablespoons beef stew seasoning
• 2 1/2 cups water
• 3 cups diced vegetables of your choice I use a combination of onion, celery, carrots, and peeled potatoes

Instructions

• Start by dredging the meat in the flour. Then season with salt and pepper.
• Brown meat in a large pot or dutch oven. This may need to be done in batches.
• Once meat is brown deglaze with red wine (or beef stock). Cook until reduced by half.
• Add the water and beef stew seasoning. Bring to a boil and let simmer covered for for one and a half hours.
• After the hour and a half is up, add the cut veggies. Then cook for an additional 45 minutes- one hour. If needed add an extra cup or two of water.
• Once done, ladle into bowls and enjoy.

The post Stovetop Beef Stew appeared first on A Sprinkle of Joy.

This homemade beef stew seasoning is simple to make with ingredients you are sure to have around the house. It makes a delicious and stew that is sure to satisfy everyone’s’ taste buds.

I first made this beef stew recipe when Annabelle was a baby (many years ago). I was browning stew meat (while Annabelle was crying) only to realize that I had no beef stew seasoning. As a new mom, I was very stressed and freaking out a little. I called my mom in a panic, who thankfully lived close, and she came over. Thankfully she was able to calm Annabelle down, and I was able to make the homemade beef stew seasoning.

Matt ended up loving my homemade mix and I have been making it ever since. I love how simple it is to throw together. I make a small jar at the start of “stew season” aka September, and it usually lasts me until March.

Ingredients in Homemade Beef Stew Seasoning

I love that most people probably have most of these ingredients already in their house. It only takes about ten minute to throw them all together to make your own seasoning mix.

• 1/2 cup flour
• 1 tablespoon black pepper
• 1 tablespoon garlic powder
• 1 tablespoon salt
• 1 tablespoon paprika
• 1/2 tablespoon basil
• 1/2 tablespoon celery salt
• 1 teaspoon oregano
• 1 tablespoon onion powder
• 1 teaspoon rosemary
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper

All you you have to do is mix all the ingredients together and store in a container of your choice. I store mine in a 8oz canning jar. This recipe makes enough for making stew 3-4 times depending on how much seasoning is used. I recommend 1-2T per pound of stew meat. I hope that you love this mix as much as my family does.

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Beef Stew Seasoning

Course Main Course

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup flour
• 1 tablespoon black pepper
• 1 tablespoon garlic powder
• 1 tablespoon salt
• 1 tablespoon paprika
• 1/2 tablespoon basil
• 1/2 tablespoon celery salt
• 1 teaspoon oregano
• 1 tablespoon onion powder
• 1 teaspoon rosemary
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper

Instructions

• Mix all ingredients together in a bowl or dish.
• Use 1-2 tablespoons per pound of stew meat.
• Store extra in a ziplock bag or mason jar.

The post Homemade Beef Stew Seasoning appeared first on A Sprinkle of Joy.

I am so excited to finally share this recipe for making homemade bagels with sourdough discard. I worked and tweaked this recipe for quite some time until I finally felt I had everything right. These bagels are just the right amount of chewy with a slightly sour taste from the discard. So if you have discard lying around use it to make these delicious bagels.

It is important to note that this recipe does take two days to make. On day one you make the dough, let it rise, and form the bagels. Then you stick them in the fridge overnight, which really helps bring out the flavor of the sourdough. The next day you boil and bake the bagels. I think they are just the right amount of chewy with a very nice crumb.

These homemade bagels are a great way to use up any sourdough discard that you have lying around house. Because unfed discard is being used in this recipe does use a pinch of yeast to help the bagels rise. This recipe also uses home milled flour. I usually use either hard red, hard white, or a combination of the two.

Now settle in, this post on how to make homemade bagels with sourdough discard is a long one, but I wanted to try to add as much information as possible.

Ingredients

• 600 grams hard wheat: I like to sift some of the bran out of my flour when making bagels. I use a size 40 sifter.
• 300 grams water
• 180 grams sourdough discard: This helps give the bagels a slightly tangy flavor
• 48 grams sugar: adds some sweetness
• 2 grams instant yeast: to help make sure the bagels rise
• 6 grams salt: for flavor

How to make homemade bagels with sourdough discard

Step four: next up is to divide the dough into portions. I usually go with 70-90 gram pieces depending on how big I want the bagels to turn out. I like to divide all my dough up first, then I start shaping the bagels.

Step five: Now it’s time to form the bagels. The first thing I do is take a dough portion and bring the corners up. Then I flip it over and roll it towards me to make a ball shape. I try to cup my pinkies under the ball to help shape it and pull it towards me. Since this is kind of hard to explain, I also took a video (which also shows how I finish shaping the bagels). After you form the bagel put it on a cookie sheet lined with either a slipmat or parchment paper.

Step Six: Now it’s time to finish shaping the bagels. I do this by making a hole with my thumb, then using my fingers to stretch it out a little more. Once again this part is also in the video linked above.

Step seven: after all the bagels have been formed put plastic wrap over the bagels and put them in the fridge overnight.

Step eight: bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add the brown sugar and baking soda. Put the bagels in the water and boil them for about 2 minutes, then use a slotted spoon to flip them over. Boil another minute. Remove from the water and let dry a little on a cooling rack.

Step nine: brush an egg wash on the bagels, and dip in toppings (like everything but the bagel seasoning) if desired. Then bake bagels for 20-25 minutes.

Step ten: let bagels cool then enjoy!

Other questions about homemade bagels with sourdough discard

Can I freeze these bagels?

Yes! You absolutely can, and they will still taste great! In fact I brought a bunch of bagels in for a teacher brunch. I made a variety and had to bake them the weekend before. After letting them cool I put them in ziplock bags, then put them in the freezer. The morning of the brunch I took the bags out of the freezer and let them sit on the counter for about an hour or so. Then I preheated the oven to 325 and warmed them up for about 5 minutes. They were loved!

Can I include mix ins?

For the most part yes. I have made these bagels using cinnamon and raisins, and chocolate chips (a kid favorite). Add your mix ins during the kneading step. Blueberries are tricky due to the moisture content. I am playing around with a blueberry bagel recipe and will post it as soon as I can.

What else can I make with discard?

I really feel like the world is your oyster when it comes to discard. One of my favorite things to make it chocolate chip cookies. I recently made this granola which has become a winner in our house.

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Homemade Bagels with Sourdough Discard

Course Breakfast, Snack

Prep Time 2 hours hours

Cook Time 20 minutes minutes

Rise time plus Overnight in Fridge 1 day day 3 hours hours

Servings 12

Ingredients

• 600 grams hard wheat bolted with size 40 sifter
• 300 grams water
• 180 grams sourdough discard
• 48 grams sugar
• 2 grams instant yeast
• 6 grams salt

Water boil

• 2 tbsp brown sugar
• 2 tsp baking soda

Toppings

• 1 egg
• toppings of your choice

Instructions

• Start by milling your wheat berries. I like to use 300 grams hard red and 300 grams hard white. Sift out some of the bran using a size 40 mesh sifter. You want to end up with 600 grams after sifting.
• Add the water, discard and sugar to the flour. Autolyze for about 1 hour.
• Add the salt and yeast. Knead dough until smooth. Allow to rise for about 2-3 hours. The goal is to have it rise about 30%.
• Section the dough into 70-90 gram pieces, depending on how big you like your bagels.
• For a small ball with each section. Then using your thumb, create a hole in the middle to create a bagel shape.
• Place on a cookie sheet lined with a slipmat or parchment paper and repeat with the rest of the dough.
• Cover bagels with cling wrap and place in fridge overnight.
• The next morning take the bagels out and allow to sit for about one hour. After the hour is up bring a pot of water to a boil, and preheat your oven to 425℉.
• Add the brown sugar and baking soda to the water.
• Drop 3-4 bagels into the water at a time. Allow to cook for a few minutes (bagels should float to the top). Then flip the bagels over with a slotted spoon and boil for another minute.
• Remove from boiling water using a slotted spoon and place on a cooling rack.
• After all bagels have been boiled, whisk egg and brush on bagels. If desiered dip eggs in toppings like salt, sesame seeds, or everything but the bagel seasoning.
• Bake bagels for 20-25 minutes. You can bake them on a lined cookie sheet or a pizza stone/steel.
• After 20-25 minutes remove bagels to a cooling rack.
• Let cool for a little, then enjoy! These bagels also freeze great!

The post Homemade Bagels with Sourdough Discard appeared first on A Sprinkle of Joy.

This delicious homemade stuffing chicken bake is sure to become a staple in your house. Made with chicken, butter, crusty bread, broth, veggies, and cheese it is a simple meal to throw together. I hope that your family loves it as much as my family does.

I am so excited to share this homemade stuffing chicken bake recipe with you! With ingredients that you probably have in the house it is a simple dish to throw together and pop in the oven.

A little back story on the inspiration for this meal ( I won’t be offended if you just jump to the recipe ). Way back when, when Matt and I first got married, I had to really learn how to cook. Sure I knew how to make some simple dinners, but I had never really meal planned (which I now love-ish to do). I’ll admit, some of my meals didn’t quite hit the mark. One dinner that was pretty good was stove top stuffing chicken bake (the recipe can be found on the box of stuffing). Well, as the years went on, and I improved my cooking game, that dinner just didn’t quite cut it anymore. So I stopped making it.

Fast forward to now.

I’m milling my own flour, baking my own bread, and getting into sourdough. When you bake enough bread you start ending up with extra that is getting stale. Instead of tossing it I cube it up and throw it in a bag in the freezer. I realized I could probably make my own homemade stuffing chicken bake using that bread, so this recipe was born.

Ingredients:

• raw chicken breasts: I opted for chicken breasts to keep the dish a little healthier. It would also taste great with boneless thighs, or a combination of breast and thigh meat.
• crusty bread: sourdough, Italian, French.. any sort of crusty bread works great in this recipe. I used old sourdough bread that I had been saving in the freezer.
• butter: to sauté the vegetables and give the dish flavor
• celery and onions: aromatics that add flavor
• frozen mixed veggies: to help bulk up the casserole even more
• broth: chicken, turkey, or vegetable. If you have the time, try making your own broth, it really adds depth
• cheese: life is just better with cheese

How to make homemade chicken stuffing bake

Cook your chicken in your preferred way. I like to season mine with salt and pepper and cook them in instant pot, then cut into cubes or shred.

Melt the butter in a stock pot. While the butter is melting dice up your celery and onions. You are going to want once cup of each, which is about a medium onion and three celery stalks. Sauté the onion and celery in the butter until it is crisp tender.

Add the cubed bread to the same pot and mix. Then add the broth. If you can try this recipe with homemade broth as it really ups the ante. We had left over turkey stock in the freezer that I used and it turned out so delicious.

After the broth has been added stir in the chicken, then add the frozen veggies.

Finally, mix in the cheese then spread between two 9 X13 pans. Cover and bake for 30 minutes at 350°F.

Other recipes you may like:

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Homemade Stuffing Chicken Bake

Course Main Course

Prep Time 30 minutes minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes minutes

Servings 10

Ingredients

• 1 lb raw chicken breast
• 10 cups cubbed crusty bread
• 1.5 sticks butter
• 1 cup diced celery
• 1 cup diced onion
• 12 oz frozen mixed veggies
• 4 cups chicken broth
• 12 oz shredded cheddar cheese

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 350℉.
• Cook the chicken breast your preferred way. I like to put mine in the instant pot, since it can be done quickly. Once the chicken is done dice or shredded and put the the side.
• Melt the butter in a large stock pot. Then add the celery and onions and cook until softened.
• Add the cubbed bread and mix.
• Add the cooked chicken and stir.
• Mix in the chicken broth and stir so that everything is coated.
• Stir in the cheddar cheese.
• Pour into two 9 X13 pans.
• Cover with tin foil and bake for 30 minutes.

The post Homemade Stuffing Chicken Bake appeared first on A Sprinkle of Joy.

Hello again wonderful readers! The past few months have been pretty crazy, hence the radio silence on the blog. If you caught my YouTube video then you know that I went back to work as a full time building substitute teacher, and it’s been an adjustment. But I am really hoping to get some more recipes added to the blog, and figured I’d start with an easy granola with sourdough discard.

I know, I know, another sourdough or sourdough discard recipe. I promise I will have a variety of recipes on the blog (and already do. You can search for them at the top or right. I am working on making it more streamlined, but playing around with my theme is scary). Right now though I’ve really been having fun playing around with sourdough and the discard. I was getting tired of using it for the same old recipes, like these double chocolate cookies or these banana muffins. Don’t get me wrong, those are both delicious recipes, but I wanted to try something new. So this granola was born.

Why make your own easy granola with sourdough discard?

Sure it’s pretty easy to buy granola at the store, I know I have done it many times. It’s not that expensive and there are tons of options. But that store bought granola often comes with additives and preservatives to keep it shelf stable.

Enter homemade granola

It’s easy to make using a few simple ingredients you probably already have lying around the house. If you are in your sourdough era, this is a great way to use some of that discard! Plus making your own granola allows you to customize your ingredients.

Granola Ingredients

• old fashioned oats– this recipe would not work well with quick cooking oats. Stick with the old fashioned
• nuts– the nuts help the oats form chunks, and add to the overall flavor
• salt– for taste
• sourdough discard– this too helps form those tasty granola chunks. It also adds a slightly tangy taste
• brown sugar-used to sweeten
• honey– used to sweeten and help bind the granola together
• butter– used as a fat. I have also used coconut oil
• egg whites– egg white really help to crisp up the granola, plus they add a bit of proteins
• mix ins– I love using dried fruit and some dark chocolate. I’m sure coconut would taste great too.

How to make easy granola with sourdough discard

Step one: Mix the oatmeal, nuts, and salt together

Step two: In a saucepan combine the butter, brown sugar, honey, and sourdough discard. Heat until it forms a liquid

Step three: Mix the liquid into the oatmeal and nuts. Then add the egg whites.

Step four: Spread granola onto a cookie sheet and bake at 350°F for 45 minutes to 1 hour.

Step five: After about forty minutes stir the granola slightly then allow it to finish baking. After baking allow granola to cool before adding mix ins. The granola will also get crispier as it cools.

And that’s it! This easy granola with sourdough discard really is simple to make. I am already on my third batch this year (my kids love it to). I add it to my oatmeal in the morning, or in my yogurt. And sometimes I just eat it with milk as a snack whenever I am hungry.

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Easy Granola with Sourdough Discard

Make delicious granola using sourdough discard and egg whites.

Course Breakfast, Snack

Prep Time 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time 1 hour hour

Ingredients

• 400 grams old fashioned oats
• 150 grams chopped nuts
• 1 tsp salt
• 70 grams sourdough discard
• 50 grams brown sugar
• 60 grams honey
• 50 grams butter
• 90-100 grams egg whites
• 150 grams mix ins (chocolate, dried fruit, ect)

Instructions

• Mix the oats, nuts, and salt in a large bowl.
• In a sauce pan combine the discard, brown sugar, honey, and butter. Heat until everything forms a liquid.
• Mix liquids into oats.
• Mix in egg whites.
• Spread onto a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper or a slipmat. Bake for 45 minutes- 1 hours at 300℉. With about 20 minutes left mix granola a little and then continue baking until just turning golden.
• Let cool then add in your mix is. Store in a an airtight container.

The post Easy Granola with Sourdough Discard appeared first on A Sprinkle of Joy.

Meal planning. I feel that you either love it or hate it. For the most part I do enjoy meal planning, although it hasn’t always been that way. I’ve been meal planning ever since Matt and I got married 16 years ago. Over those years I have learned a great deal about how to make meal planning less stressful, and dare I say fun.

If you prefer videos, you can scroll to the bottom of this post for my YouTube video.

What is meal planning?

So incase you are new to the game, meal planning is simply planning out in advanced what you are going to eat for dinner. You can plan a few days at time, a week, or even months at a time. Personally I like to plan two weeks at a time as I have been trying to do most of my grocery shopping every two weeks.

Why should I meal plan?

So there are lots of reasons to meal plan, but these are mine:

1. So I know what to buy at the grocery store. By planning my meals, I can write down the ingredients I need and then know what I need to shop for. This saves me money since I am buying things I know I will need, then skipping those items that may just end up rotting in my fridge.
2. The dreaded question: When my kids ask “what’s for dinner” I can look at my plan and let them know.
3. Plan around classes and sports: I can look at my schedule and make sure to plan something simple on nights that we have lots of stuff going on.
4. It saves me a headache of having to figure out what to eat every night. With my plan written down I know when I need to take something out of the freezer, or what meals may be more involved.

What do I need for meal planning?

Now I know that some people buy planners or other journals to plan, but you don’t need anything fancy.

1. Really all you need is someplace to write down what meals you are going to eat. I simply go to printabulls and print up a blank calendar. My August meal plan is below. You can also see how I include appointments, playdates, or other things to better help me know what I can cook for that day.
2. A place to write down your grocery list. You can search for templates that have ingredients broken down by type, but that isn’t what I do. I simply use a scrap of paper to write down my grocery list. What I think is helpful is writing your list in the order that you shop the store. For example when I go to Aldi I start at the fruit, so that’s the first thing on my list. The last stop is frozen so those items go on the bottom of my list.

Other helpful items

The next few items are not things I have always used. In the last few years I have added them and they have made life so. much. easier in terms of meal planning.

A list of what is in your freezer.

For those of you who follow me regularly you may know that Matt and I buy 1/2 a cow each year. When Matt brings it home we vacuum seal the meat and put it our freezers. I write everything down so I know what cuts of meat we have (we also have a ton of ground beef from the cow, but I don’t write that down, I just know we have a ton of it). Once I use an item I cross it off.

If I am shopping and see that chicken is on sale I will buy a few packs, freeze it, then write it on my list.

I think another important part of meal planning is not letting leftovers go to waste. When we end up with a lot of leftovers (like when we smoke a meal, or make a big batch of soup) we will freeze some. I always like to record what we have frozen so on those days that are super busy I can just pull out a meal. You can get your own blank What’s in the Freezer PDF here.

A list of your favorite meals

This is a new addition to my meal planning and I wish I did it earlier. I asked Matt and my daughters what meals they love, and created a master list of our family favorites. I then took it a step further and typed them up based on what type of meals they are (i.e. baked, crockpot, grilled). If you are anything like my family then in the summer you may grill a lot, but winter = all the soup. I also broke them down even more based on the type of meat, since I am trying to get a larger variety in our rotation.

Now when I meal plan 70%-80% of what we eat comes from this list. Then for the other meals I will try a new recipe I found on Pinterest, or in a cookbook. I do love trying new recipes, so some days we may try a few new meals. If we like them, they get added onto the list. You can get our Family Favorites List here, if you are looking for ideas for your own family. If you want your own blank copy, find it here.

PS: If you have any favorite crock pot or instant pot meals please leave them in the comments! As you can see I am lacking.

A place to keep it all

If you look at my calendar earlier in the post you will see it is on a clipboard. I keep my calendar, list of what’s in the freezer, family favorites, and our grocery list all on that clipboard. I then keep the clipboard on our kitchen desk, since it is easily accessible.

If you prefer videos, you can check out my YouTube video where I talk about meal planning and kind of walk you through what a meal planning session looks like.

The post Meal Planning 101: Tips and Tricks appeared first on A Sprinkle of Joy.

Yes, I am here with another cookie recipe using sourdough discard. I could have waited to share this recipe later, but these double chocolate chunk cookies with sourdough discard are just too good to keep to myself. After I perfected the recipe my girls were like “mom. You have to share this on your blog and YouTube”. So here it is! It will hopefully be on YouTube later this week.

As with my other cookie recipes (this one with sourdough discard, and this one without discard), these double chocolate chunk cookies with sourdough discard are made use fresh milled flour. Specifically I use a soft white wheat which I have sifted out some of the bran. If you don’t have fresh milled flour all purpose will work just fine. You may need to add a little more flour if you do use all purpose.

Ingredients in Double Chocolate Chunk Cookies with Sourdough Discard:

Flour: I use soft white wheat that I mill at home and that has been bolted, meaning I sift some of the bran out

Butter: softened, unsalted butter

Cornstarch: I’ve been adding cornstarch to my cookies for a while now, I feel it helps soften them up

Sourdough discard: this can be fresh discard, or some that has been in the fridge. I find the cookies turn out better if you let the discard come to room temperature if it has been in the fridge.

Sugars: Both brown and white sugar

Baking soda: to help the cookies rise

Cocoa powder: I am not picky with my cocoa power. Whatever you have on hand will work

Egg and egg yolk: both are used to give a little richness to the cookie

Chocolate chunks: I have been loving chunks lately, but chocolate chips work too

Directions:

Step one: Cream together butter, discard and both sugars. After they are mixed add the egg, egg yolk, and vanilla.

Step two: In a separate bowl combine flour, cornstarch, salt, and cocoa powder.

I have to say, as with most cookies, these taste best fresh from the oven. They are so ooey-gooey and chocolately. I store these on my counter in an air tight container. As with my other cookie recipe, these are great cookies for freezing the dough. If you don’t want to bake all the cookies right away, simply put the unbaked dough balls into a ziplock bag after they have been in the fridge for 30 minutes. Then just throw them in the freezer. When you are ready to bake with them put the frozen dough on a sheet and bake it for 12-15 minutes at 375 degrees.

The post Double Chocolate Chunk Cookies with Sourdough Discard appeared first on A Sprinkle of Joy.

So if you’ve been at the sourdough game a while you know that you can end up with a lot of discard. When I first started my journey I simply threw it out. But no longer. I now will often use it in a variety of recipes. My favorite way (along with my kids) is to make these chewy chocolate chip cookies with sourdough discard. The discard just makes the cookies so super chewy and delicious. If you want to step up your cookie game even more use some fresh milled flour like I do.

Matt has made a batch of these cookies to bring to work, I’ve brought them into the teacher lounge at the girls’ school, and I recently baked some of these chocolate chip cookies with sourdough discard for a girls trip I took (post to come soon hopefully). Everyone agrees, they are are tasty. I love that they are no more difficult than a normal chocolate chip cookie.

Before jumping into the recipe I should note that this recipe does use fresh milled flour. For those new to the blog I have been milling my own flour at home now for a few years. I really do think fresh milled flour adds an extra something to baked goods. For this recipe I use soft white wheat that I have extracted some of the bran with a larger mesh sieve. I do have a super quick YouTube video about home milled flour if you are at all curious. I do hope to post more videos about milling my own flour in the future.

At any rate, onto the cookie recipe!

Chocolate Chip Cookies with Sourdough Discard ingredients

These cookies have your basic cast of characters you would find in most cookies (with the addition of sourdough discard)

• butter
• brown sugar
• sourdough discard (can be older discard that was in the fridge, just make sure to let it come to room temperature).
• egg and egg yolk
• soft white wheat flour (or all purpose if you don’t mill your own flour)
• cornstarch
• baking soda
• salt
• chocolate chips

Directions

Start by creaming the butter, sourdough discard, and sugar together. Then add the egg and vanilla.

In a separate bowl mix the flour, baking soda, corn starch and salt.

Add the dry ingredients to the wet and mix until just combined.

Add the chocolate chips and mix.

Portion dough into balls (each about 3T) and put in fridge for at least 30 minutes.

While the are in the fridge, preheat the oven. Then bake cookies for 14-16 minutes. After baking allow to sit on the cookie sheet for ten minutes before removing to a cooling rack.

Obviously these cookies taste best right after the ten minute rest time, but they are still delicious the next day (or the day after if they last that long.

This is also a great recipe for freezing. After you have let the cookies chill in the fridge for 30 minutes simple place them in a ziplock bag or a container and throw in the freezer. When you are ready for fresh baked cookies simple take them out, put them on a cookie sheet and bake for 16 minutes. Then allow to sit for 10 minutes before moving to a cooling rack.

If you don’t have any sourdough discard on hand, then try out these chocolate chip cookies.

Looking to use up more discard… then these banana muffins are calling your name.

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Chocolate Chip Cookies with Sourdough Discard

Course Dessert

Prep Time 20 minutes minutes

Cook Time 15 minutes minutes

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 sticks butter
• 315 grams brown sugar
• 100 grams sourdough discard
• 1 egg
• 1 egg yolk
• 10 grams vanilla extract
• 390 grams bolted soft white wheat all purpose flour will work too
• 20 grams corn starch
• 7 grams baking soda
• 3 grams salt
• 350 grams chocolate chunks or chips

Instructions

• Start by creaming the butter. Then add the sourdough discard and mix.
• Add the brown sugar to the butter mixture and cream until fluffy.
• Add the egg, egg yolk and vanilla.
• In a seperate bowl combine the flour, corn starch, salt, and baking soda.
• Add the flour mixture to the the butter. Mix until flour is just incorperated.
• Add the chocolate chunks and mix.
• Scoop cookies using about 3T per cookie onto a parchment line cookie sheet. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.
• While cookies are in the fridge preheat oven to 375℉.
• Once at least 30 minutes have passed remove some cookies to a separate parchment (or slipmat lined) cookie sheet. Bake 14-16 minutes until edges just start to brown.
• Remove from oven and allow to sit on cookie sheet for 10 minutes before removing to a cooling wrack.

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If you are like me you love a good cinnamon roll. But getting up early to start them is less than fun. That’s why I came up with this recipe for overnight cinnamon rolls with fresh milled flour. Now, don’t worry if you don’t have fresh milled flour, you can totally use a combination of all purpose and whole wheat flour. But if you’ve been thinking of hopping on the fresh milled flour band wagon, I’m here to say do it! I’ve been milling my own flour for a few years now, and really do love how the bread and baked goods turn out. More importantly my kids do too!

Is it easy to make overnight cinnamon rolls with fresh milled flour?

Yes! I would say the hardest part of making these cinnamon rolls is sifting the flour after you’ve milled it. Since I wanted these to be a pretty fluffy dessert I used a fine mesh sieve to sift out some of the bran. In many of the other recipes I make I either leave all the bran in, or just remove some of it.

After you have sifted out the bran (also known as bolting or extraction) it is simply mixing the ingredients together, letting the dough rise, then assemble, bake, and frost.

Ingredients needed for the dough:

• Flour: like I said earlier I used fresh milled flour. For these rolls I use a combination of hard red and hard white wheat. I mill the berries pretty fine (once again to help with fluffiness of the rolls)
  
• Milk: I used 2% since that’s what we drink. But I think 1% would be fine too
  
• Yeast: active dry yeast is my usually go to. If you only have instant yeast at home that will work to. You don’t need to let the and yeast rest if you go the instant route
  
• Sugar: I use both white and brown sugar. They help with the rise, and I think the combination gives the dough a sweeter flavor
  
• Butter: there is a lot of butter in these overnight cinnamon rolls. There is some in the dough, then some spread on top of the dough before you put the filling on, then some in the frosting
  
• Eggs and egg yolk: I use both eggs and egg yolks in this recipe to really bump up the richness factor. I was aiming for more of a brioche-type dough.
  
• Salt: helps with the flavor

Directions for making the dough:

Start by warming the milk. You want it around 100 degrees. Add the one tablespoon of sugar and yeast and allow to rest for about 5 minutes. I apparently didn’t take a picture of this step, so I am sorry. But after 5 minute the yeast should be foamy. After it has gotten foamy add the eggs, egg yolk and softened butter.

Add the rest of the of the sugar and the flour. Stir to mix and allow to rest for 15 minutes.

After it has rested knead the dough until it becomes soft and smooth.

Allow to rise until doubled.

Ingredients for the Filling:

• brown sugar: sweetness and flavor
  
• Cinnamon: taste and flavor

• Nutmeg: more taste
  
• Allspice: a little bit of spiceyness
  
• Softened butter: to spread on the dough and get the filling to stick

Directions for filling:

While the dough is rising I make the filling. Simply mix together the brown sugar and spices. Then after the dough has risen it’s time to roll it out into a rectangle. Spread the softened butter on then sprinkle with the filling ingredients.

Roll the dough up from the long end and pinch the edge closed.

Cut roll about an inch thick. You should get 12 rolls. Place into a pan that has been sprayed with cooking oil.

Cover and place into the fridge overnight.

The next morning take the rolls out and preheat the oven. Bake for 22-28 minutes.

Take out of oven and allow to cool slightly while you make the frosting.

Ingredients for frosting:

• butter: use a softened butter to help for even distribution on the cinnamon rolls
• cream cheese: adds some yummy flavor
• vanilla extract: flavor
• maple extract: flavor
• powder sugar: sweetness

Final Directions for Overnight Cinnamon Rolls with Fresh Milled Flour:

Cream the butter and cream cheese until smooth. Add the powder sugar and extracts and mix until combined. Spread over slightly cooled (but still warm) cinnamon rolls, and enjoy!

Are you looking for more fresh milled flour recipes? Check out these delicious chocolate chip cookies, or super yummy banana chocolate chip muffins! If you are someone who is into sourdough, then you may be interested in these muffins, which are made with sourdough discard. I really hope to get lots more recipes using fresh milled flour and sourdough on the blog soon. I do have a YouTube where I talk a little bit about fresh milled flour if that is something you are interested in.

The post Overnight Cinnamon Rolls with Fresh Milled Flour appeared first on A Sprinkle of Joy.

Hello friends! It has been a hot minute since I’ve posted on this little old blog of mine. April, May, and most of June kept me very busy. I’m pretty sure most weekends were booked, and I had a crazy amount of activities. Then I was trying to edit a video for YouTube, and it was giving me issues, but thankfully I got it done! I figured I’d give a bit of an update on all that has been going on as of lately.

Autumn’s First Holy Communion

Autumn had her First Communion in May. We are so proud of all she learned this year to prepare.

Annabelle’s artwork recognized

One of Annabelle’s artworks was included in the end of year art exhibit for our school district. I was so proud of her! Annabelle loves drawing, crafting, and anything to do with art, so this really made her day.

The Northern Lights

It’s not everyday you can see the Northern Lights in Michigan. Due to the geomagnetic storm in May we were able to see them! I totally let the girls stay up late so they could experience it (the colors showed up more on my phone than what we could see with the naked eye).

The only other time I have seen them is back when I was at MSU, when we randomly saw them one night. Once again, it isn’t a common occurrence in the lower peninsula of Michigan.

End of year shenanigans

The elementary school our kids go to has a color run every year. They kids raise money, then run the track and get hit by color. It’s crazy to think that this was Annabelle’s last color run. But everyone had a blast! And, because we reached our goal, our principal agreed to be slimed!

She is seriously the best principal. She agreed to be slime by each grade!

She took a new job in the district so will not be the principal next year. I am pretty sad about it, as she became principal when Annabelle started kindergarten. We will all miss her very much!

This was Annabelle’s last year in elementary school. It was for sure bitter sweet on her last day of school, and some tears may have been shed. The parents threw a fifth grade celebration for the kids, and I think they all had a blast. I am so proud of all she has done, and can’t wait to see her spread her wings in middle school.

Pool time fun

We opened the pool in May, and have been enjoying spending time in it. Particularly this past week when temperatures were in the upper 90s.

What I’ve been baking

I have been baking a bit, and trying to get better about using my sourdough discard. I really to hope to get lots more recipes on the blog with home milled flour and sourdough discard.

So from upper left I made English muffins, sourdough discard banana muffins, multigrain bread (still trying to perfect this recipe), sourdough biscotti, and sourdough discard chocolate chip cookies… which I hope to get up on the blog soon. They are a little different than my normal chocolate chip cookie recipe.

“Curly Girl Method” Hair

So… I’ve always known I have kinda wavy hair. If I let me hair air dry it doesn’t dry completely straight but with some bend to it. I always just blow dry my hair, which makes it straight, but then it would always be poofy. I’m not sure how, but I randomly watched a YouTube video by Swavy Curly Courtney and realized that I could be styling my hair way different. So I have started my “curly girl” journey. I have already been washing my hair with sulfate free shampoo for over a year so I was excited to take the next step. And let me tell you, I have been surprised and just how much wave and curl my hair is holding.

The first picture is from the day after I washed and styled it… the day after! Normally when I tried to curl my hair with a curling iron it would fall flat after about an hour. But now, if I do a good job on day one, I still have pretty wavy hair the second day. I know my “curls” aren’t the best, but I am hoping that they will start to look better soon.

Grilled breakfast

The other day Matt texted me saying he wanted to have a “staycation” day. He would get up and grill some breakfast, then we’d just spend the day by the pool with a break for hot dogs for lunch.

Let me tell you, this breakfast was awesome. Eggs, bacon, sausage, English muffins, sourdough pancakes, fruit. I for sure want to do this again.

Newest YouTube Video

And, incase you missed it… I finally got another YouTube video up! It took me way longer than expected since I got busy, then I ran into problems editing. But I finally got it done!

Phew! That was a long post! But now I feel that I have caught everyone up! I hope you all have a fabulous week!

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