Man I had fun yesterday! 😀 The sun was HOT and I got outside and did some yard work! BOY did that ever feel good!
We have these rambling, strangling vines that wrap themselves around anything they can, including me while wrestling with them, and I got them all cut and pruned off of the fence! Yay me!
Now to decide what I want to plant to grow up the fence! I first thought beans or pea pods, but it being just the two of us, I think that could quickly get out of hand!
I used to have the prettiest fuchsia-colored morning glories back in Indiana, so if I can find some seeds, morning glories it is!
With things always so hectic and fast-paced once the weather gets nice, I don’t always like to fuss too much indoors with complicated meals and breads from scratch. I LOVE homemade bread though, and wanted something nice to go along with the lasagna I was making for my hubby’s birthday dinner and opted, yet again, for some frozen bread dough!
I really love this stuff in a pinch! And you can flavor it and shape it just about any way your heart desires!
So to go along with my hubby’s request, I decided to make a simple twisty bread if you will, flavored with lots of garlic salt, basil, oregano and a little pepper! This bread is a cinch to make, yet you still get to enjoy the wonderful aroma of bread baking in the oven!
You just can’t beat it other than making bread completely from scratch. But with everything else I had going on for his special day, let’s face it, I’m not Wonder Woman!
My husband LOVES this bread, so I’m all for it then! Why not, right? 😉 I mean seriously, just look at how beautiful it turns out! 😀
It sure beats any so-called “French bread” at the grocery store that actually, to me anyways, resembles a giant hot dog bun!
Once baked and cooled, just slice with a sharp bread knife sawing back and forth and not pressing down and you’ve got some VERY tasty bread!
You can enjoy as is, or do what I did this time to accompany this particular meal, and spread it with melted garlic butter, broil it, top it with cheese, and broil again! AWESOME garlic-herb cheesy bread!
I almost didn’t post this, but I figure, there are probably a lot of people out there in the same situation that want something good that’s simple with almost no fuss at all this time of year!
With SO much gardening, yard work, power washing, pruning, trimming, fixing, window washing, puttying, gutter cleaning and painting….WHEW!!….uhm, yeah, hello – – “semi-homemade” works for me!!! How ’bout you?!
So I hope this helps you out during these BUSY days of spring sprucing and cleaning, without compromising on flavor, taste, and simply making the whole house and entire neighborhood smell like a bakery!
So much fun and so stupid easy! 😀 What’s not to love?!
Hope your day goes well, the sun is shining, and life is treating you kindly! 🙂
EASY GARLIC & ITALIAN HERB TWISTY BREAD
1 (1 lb.) loaf frozen bread dough, I usually use Rhodes (*thawed in the fridge overnight)
butter-flavored no-stick spray, I like Crisco’s
garlic salt, heavy sprinkle
dried crushed basil, medium sprinkle
dried oregano, medium sprinkle
coarse ground black pepper, light sprinkle
DIRECTIONS:
The night before, wrap one loaf of frozen bread dough in plastic wrap and place in fridge.
The next morning, spray a baking sheet with no-stick spray. Slice dough in half lengthwise and roll into 15-16″ long ropes. Twist ropes together and place onto baking sheet tucking ends under. Spray dough well and loosely cover with plastic wrap.
Turn oven light on and place into oven to rise until doubled in size. Mine only takes 1 1/2 hours, but it can take up to 2+.
When risen, remove bread, and preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray bread again, season with lots of garlic salt, basil, oregano and pepper. Lightly spray one last time to set herbs and spices.
When oven is heated to 350 degrees, pop bread in and bake for 22-25 minutes until deep golden brown, outside is hard, and bread sounds hollow when tapped.
Remove bread to rack to cool. Slice with a sharp bread knife in a sawing motion and never pressing. Store bread tightly wrapped in plastic wrap on the counter at room temperature.
For Garlic Cheesy Bread:
Preheat broiler to medium-high. Melt enough butter and as much minced garlic as you like in a small bowl in the microwave. Slice bread into thick slices (twice the thickness of regular sandwich bread), and place onto foil-lined baking sheet. Spoon butter/garlic mixture over bread slices generously. Broil until lightly toasted and remove immediately. Top with handfuls of shredded cheese of choice such as mozzarella, Italian white cheese blend, Mexican blend, etc., pop back under broiler and broil until cheese is melted and bubbly. WATCH closely! Bread can burn very quickly!! Serve immediately or keep warm for a short bit (5-10 minutes) by leaving on the cookie sheet until needed to plate and serve.
