Breads & Rolls

Olive Oil Rosemary Bread

Olive Oil Rosemary Bread  |  Lemon & Mocha

Halloween is over, which means I guesssss it’s okay to start planning for the holidays. I hate when Thanksgiving and Christmas prep creeps before Halloween because it feels like everyone’s trying to rush through October. Here in New England, November and December weather is kind of crummy so I don’t know what the rush is!

Olive Oil Rosemary Bread  |  Lemon & Mocha

However, once October is done, I’m perfectly fine with gearing up for the holidays because they’re fun, bright spots during these next dreary couple of months. Matt and I are taking the holiday season one day at a time since it’s right when our little one will be arriving, but just because I’m not planning my own meals doesn’t mean I can’t help you all plan yours!

Olive Oil Rosemary Bread  |  Lemon & Mocha

Whenever I’m hosting a big meal, some sort of bread, roll or biscuit situation is a necessity. The easiest solution for this also happens to be the most delicious so there’s really no going wrong here. What I’m talking about is this Olive Oil Rosemary Bread that I make in my bread maker. Now before you start asking all kinds of questions, I’ll get right to the point: this recipe is for use in a bread maker, specifically the Breville Custom Loaf bread maker. I am not well versed in bread making so although I would assume you could use this recipe to proof, rise, knead and bake your own loaf without a bread maker, and I would assume you could use this same recipe in a different type of bread maker, I’ve never tried it so I really can’t say with any sort of certainty.

Olive Oil Rosemary Bread  |  Lemon & Mocha

What I can say is that when I follow this recipe, which involves dumping a small list of ingredients in a set order into my bread maker, and pull out a loaf of this crusty, soft and melt-in-your mouth Olive Oil Rosemary Bread it becomes the star of the meal every single time. Dip some into a little olive oil sprinkled with some seasoning salt and you will be in absolute carb-heaven. If you are looking to invest a bread maker, I highly recommend the Breville Custom Loaf bread maker, which I’ve been using for the last four years. Even if it’s only to make this bread over and over again – worth it!

Olive Oil Rosemary Bread  |  Lemon & Mocha

Olive Oil Rosemary Bread
 
Yield: 1 loaf
Ingredients
  • 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons water, 80 degrees F
  • 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
  • 1½ teaspoons salt
  • 3 cups bread flour
  • 2 teaspoons vital wheat gluten
  • 2½ tablespoons dried rosemary
  • 1¾ teaspoons active dry yeast (see note)
  • 1 egg
  • Additional dried rosemary and coarse sea salt, optional
Directions
  1. Make sure the collapsible paddle is attached and in the upright position. Add ingredients to the bread machine, one at a time, in the order they’re listed in the recipe. Select “basic” setting, medium crust color and 1.5 lb size. Press start.
  2. Beat the egg with 1 tablespoon of water. When the dough is at the end of the final rise (right before the bake step), brush the top of the dough with the egg wash then sprinkle with additional dried rosemary and coarse sea salt (if using).
  3. When the bread is done, use oven mitts to carefully remove from the bread machine and place on a wire rack to cool. Let cool 5-10 minutes before slicing.
  4. To reheat to serve warm, wrap the loaf completely in aluminum foil and bake on a low oven temperature for 10-20 minutes until warm.
Notes
If using the “basic rapid” setting, use 2½ teaspoons of instant yeast instead. Also can be called quick-rise, rapid rise, or bread machine yeast).

Recipe from Breville.

Pepperoni Pizza Rolls

Pepperoni Pizza Rolls  |  Lemon & Mocha

Wow! Wow! Wow! I do not know how else to start this post, but that’s all that flashes in my brain when I think about these epic Pepperoni Pizza Rolls. The rolls are crispy on the outside, fluffy on the inside and packed full of pepperoni pizza flavor. There’s plenty of garlic and herb seasoning as well as melted mozzarella cheese and pepperoni slices. When they come hot out of the oven a little melted butter, fresh parsley and Parmesan gets brushed on top before serving. Dip a bite into some warm marinara and it’s just like eating a slice of pepperoni pizza except, dare I say it, better!

Pepperoni Pizza Rolls  |  Lemon & Mocha

Tomorrow is National Pepperoni Pizza and since it’s also pizza Friday I thought it would be perfect to post a recipe for pepperoni pizza. I had all of the ingredients ready to go, but couldn’t get motivated to deal with either my pizza stone or my countertop pizza oven and the rolling and stretching of the pizza dough involved. I started brainstorming for an easier solution and came up with these epic Pepperoni Pizza Rolls.

Pepperoni Pizza Rolls  |  Lemon & Mocha

The shredded mozzarella and chopped pepperoni slices get kneaded right into the pizza dough. You then make the dough into a ball, cut it into eight pieces and roll each piece into its own little ball. The little dough balls get baked at 475 degrees F for twelve minutes and voila! Time to eat!

Pepperoni Pizza Rolls  |  Lemon & Mocha

The secret that makes these even easier is that we’re using Sunny Anderson’s 1-2-3 pizza dough as the base for this recipe. I first saw this published in my Food Network Magazine a few years ago and decided that I finally needed to try it. The 1-2-3 is for the only ingredients involved: 1 tablespoon of garlic and herb seasoning, 2 cups of plain Greek yogurt and 3 cups of self rising flour. I halved this to get eight Pepperoni Pizza Rolls, although they’re so good that if you’re making them for more than just your family you will want to double the recipe I have below! It sounds odd, but the ingredients get mixed together with a dough hook in a stand mixer (or you could mix and then knead by hand if you don’t have a stand mixer) and somehow create the most delicious dough.

Pepperoni Pizza Rolls  |  Lemon & Mocha

If you don’t want to use self-rising flour I included a note in the recipe, but it really helps making them even easier. I promise that even the most novice home cook could nail this recipe – and it only takes twenty minutes to make including the baking time! These are definitely going to be a new regular recipe of mine. Try them out – I know you will love them just as much as we do!

Pepperoni Pizza Rolls  |  Lemon & Mocha

Pepperoni Pizza Rolls
 
Yield: 8 rolls
Ingredients
  • 1½ cups self rising flour
  • 1 cup plain nonfat Greek yogurt
  • 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
  • ½ teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
  • ½ cup sliced pepperonis
  • 1 tablespoon butter, melted
  • 2 teaspoons chopped parsley
  • 1 teaspoon grated Parmesan cheese
  • Marinara, for serving
Directions
  1. Preheat oven to 475 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil, lightly spray with cooking spray and set aside.
  2. Add the self rising flour, Greek yogurt, Italian seasoning and garlic powder to the bowl of a stand mixer. Mix with a dough hook on medium speed until combined, stopping and scraping down the sides and bottom at least once. Continue until the dough comes together.
  3. Add the mozzarella cheese to the bowl of the stand mixer. Chop the sliced pepperonis and add to the bowl of the stand mixer. Mix on medium-low speed until incorporated. Take the dough out of the bowl, form into a large ball and place on a cutting board. Slightly flatten the dough ball then cut into 8 even wedges. Roll each wedge into a ball and place on the prepared baking sheet. Bake for 12 minutes.
  4. While the pizza rolls are in the oven, combine the melted butter, chopped parsley and grated Parmesan in a small bowl. Sprinkle in a little Italian seasoning. When the rolls come out of the oven, brush the tops with the melted butter mixture. Serve hot with the marinara sauce.
Notes
If you don’t have self-rising flour use the following substitution: 1½ cups all-purpose flour, 2¼ teaspoons baking powder, ¼ teaspoon salt plus ⅛ teaspoon salt.

 Pizza dough recipe adapted from June 2017 issue of Food Network Magazine.

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Three Cheese Zucchini Biscuits

Three Cheese Zucchini Biscuits  |  Lemon & Mocha

Sometimes I see a recipe and I need to scrap all my existing food plans and make the new recipe immediately. That is exactly what happened with these Three Cheese Zucchini Biscuits and I’m so happy I did. The biscuits are buttery, tender and savory from the cheddar, asiago and Parmesan cheeses. Just like the Double Chocolate Zucchini Bread, you don’t taste the zucchini in these biscuits, they just add some moisture. Also how good do all the little flecks of green make them look?

Three Cheese Zucchini Biscuits  |  Lemon & Mocha

These are drop biscuits, which means you just drop the biscuit dough on your baking pan – no rolling out or cutting involved. Drop biscuits have a rustic and rocky looking exterior providing plenty of crispy nooks and crannies on the outside. I love making drop biscuits because you can make them so quickly, but they taste like such a special treat. The batter gets mixed together in one bowl and then they only have to bake in the oven for about twelve minutes after being dropped onto your baking sheet.

Three Cheese Zucchini Biscuits  |  Lemon & Mocha

In fact, they’re easy enough for weeknights, but since they are so flaky and delicious, aka addictive, the last thing Matt and I need are daily biscuits! So we savored them while we had them. And by savor them I mean we snarfed them down in like three days tops. They of course taste so good when they’re hot and cheesy right out of the oven, but they also taste good at room temperature or – even better – reheated in the toaster oven.

Three Cheese Zucchini Biscuits  |  Lemon & Mocha

I initially stumbled on this recipe because I was looking for recipes that would use up my zucchini that I thought I was going to have this summer. Thought is the key word because as usual I overloaded our vegetable planter and we haven’t even been able to pick a single zucchini yet. I’m already determined that next summer I’m going to figure out the perfect ratio of things to plant in the planter! We might just need a second larger ground planter for the veggies and keep our raised planter for herbs and maybe one cherry tomato plant. Oh well, I’m glad I found this recipe, even if I couldn’t use our homegrown zucchinis for it, because it is now on our must-make-at-least-once-a-summer rotation!

Three Cheese Zucchini Biscuits  |  Lemon & Mocha

Oh, also, today is National Zucchini Day! So now you definitely need to make these biscuits tonight! Enjoy!

Three Cheese Zucchini Biscuits  |  Lemon & Mocha

Three Cheese Zucchini Biscuits
 
Yield: 12 biscuits
Ingredients
  • 2¼ cups flour
  • 2½ teaspoons baking powder
  • 2 teaspoons granulated sugar
  • ¾ teaspoon baking soda
  • ¾ teaspoon salt
  • 6 tablespoons cold butter, cubed
  • ½ cup shredded cheddar
  • ¼ cup shredded asiago
  • ¼ cup shredded Parmesan
  • ¾ cup grated zucchini (about ½ large zucchini), excess water removed (see note)
  • 1 cup buttermilk (see note)
  • 1 tablespoon butter, melted, for brushing
Directions
  1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
  2. In a large bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, sugar, baking soda and salt. Add the cubed butter then use your hands to mix until you have what resembles coarse crumbs.
  3. Stir in the cheddar, asiago and Parmesan. Stir in the grated zucchini. Add the buttermilk and stir until just combined. Drop small handfuls of dough on the parchment sheet so you have 12 biscuits. It’s okay if they are close together because the biscuits don’t spread a lot during baking. Brush the tops with the melted butter then bake until slightly golden brown, about 10-12 minutes. Remove to a wire cooling rack so the bottoms remain crispy then eat warm or let cool.
Notes
To remove excess water from grated zucchini, wring dry in a cheesecloth or several paper towels.
If you don’t have buttermilk just put a tablespoon of lemon juice or vinegar in a liquid measuring cup then fill with milk until you reach 1 cup. You can use milk with any fat percentage, even skim, which is what I used. Then let sit for 5 minutes before using in the recipe.

Recipe from Two Peas and Their Pod.

Carrot-Coconut Muffins

Carrot-Coconut Muffins  |  Lemon & Mocha

It’s hard to believe we’re already four muffins into the year! It seems like just the other day that I was making the Food Network’s Pomegranate Orange January Muffins and here we are in April. Time flying by is fine by me until we start getting some nice summer weather in Boston. Then it better slow down!

Carrot-Coconut Muffins  |  Lemon & Mocha

The muffins for April from the Food Network Magazine’s Muffin of the Month are carrot muffins with a coconut twist. Very fitting since Easter was this month (just barely) and carrot cake seems to be the official dessert of the Easter Bunny.

Carrot-Coconut Muffins  |  Lemon & Mocha

I’m going to be honest about these muffins since authenticity is very important to me here at Lemon & Mocha. They tasted like really good carrot cake muffins, but with all the specialty ingredients listed, from the coconut oil to the macadamia nuts to the crystallized ginger, I was expecting a wow factor. I wanted the coconut and ginger flavors to punch my taste buds! Unfortunately the coconut seemed to mostly be coming from the flakes sprinkled on top and the spicy ginger-ness was very mild.

Carrot-Coconut Muffins  |  Lemon & Mocha

I am going to make these muffins again at some point, but I’m going to recipe-test and adapt them to make perfect muffins. Not just really good muffins. I’m thinking continuing with the island theme of the coconut and macadamia nuts, but adding more pronounced flavor and some pineapple. Yum!

Carrot-Coconut Muffins  |  Lemon & Mocha

If you tried the April muffins, what did you think?

Carrot-Coconut Muffins  |  Lemon & Mocha

Carrot-Coconut Muffins
 
Yield: 12 muffins
Ingredients
  • 1½ cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • ¼ teaspoon baking soda
  • ½ teaspoon ground ginger
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • ¾ cup packed light brown sugar
  • ½ cup plain whole milk yogurt
  • ⅓ cup coconut oil, melted
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1½ cups grated carrots (about 3 carrots)
  • ½ cup sweetened shredded coconut, plus more for topping
  • ½ cup chopped macadamia nuts
  • ¼ cup finely chopped crystallized ginger
  • ½ cup confectioners’ sugar
  • 2 teaspoons milk
Directions
  1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Line a 12-cup cupcake pan with paper liners and set aside.
  2. In a large bowl, sift together flour, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda, ground ginger, and salt. Make a well in the center.
  3. In a small bowl, whisk together the brown sugar, yogurt, melted coconut oil, eggs, and vanilla. Pour into the well of the flour mixture and stir until combined. Add the carrots, coconut, macadamia nuts, and crystallized ginger then fold until combined.
  4. Evenly divide the batter between the prepared lined cups. They should each be about ¾ full. Bake for 20-25 minutes until the muffin is golden and a toothpick inserted into the center of the muffin comes out clean. Let cool in the pan for 5 minutes then move to a wire cooling rack to cool completely.
  5. While the muffins are cooling, make the glaze. Sift the confectioners’ sugar into a small bowl then add the milk. You want it to be thin enough to drizzle, but thick enough so it won’t just run off the muffins. If it is too thin, add more powder sugar. If it is too thick, add more milk. When the muffins are completely cool, spoon a little glaze onto the top of each muffin and immediately sprinkle with the shredded coconut. The coconut will make the glaze spread out even more.

 Recipe from January/February 2018 issue of Food Network Magazine.

Cheesy Pesto Bread with Crispy Prosciutto

Cheesy Pesto Bread with Crispy Prosciutto  |  Lemon & Mocha

Could there be any more delicious words in one recipe name? Oozing with melted mozzarella, this bread is begging to be made and shared. But maybe shared with a small group of people so there’s more for you. Unless you bake two, then the more the merrier!

Cheesy Pesto Bread with Crispy Prosciutto  |  Lemon & Mocha

In all seriousness, this recipe comes to you from a very special place. It was inspired by my Aunt Karen’s pepperoni bread, which is a definite top three staple at all extended family gatherings. When it comes out of the oven quiet whispers of its presence get spread throughout the party. Everyone fulfills their duty of not being selfish by letting at least one other person know it’s ready without alerting too many people so you have time to go snag some yourself before it’s gone in approximately eight minutes. And eight is probably being generous.

Cheesy Pesto Bread with Crispy Prosciutto  |  Lemon & Mocha

When I think of a recipe that is easy, family-friendly, and perfect for large-groups I immediately think of Aunt Karen’s pepperoni bread, however, it doesn’t really make me think of springtime or Easter. So I set out to “springify” the recipe and came up with the Cheesy Pesto Bread with Crispy Prosciutto you are currently drooling over on your screen. The pesto brightens up the bread and pairs well with the lighter prosciutto, which still brings the same mouthwatering deliciousness as the pepperonis.

Cheesy Pesto Bread with Crispy Prosciutto  |  Lemon & Mocha

In addition to being completely whisper-worthy delicious, this Cheesy Pesto Bread with Crispy Prosciutto is a necessary recipe in your repertoire for two other reasons. The first is that even though it looks fancy with its hypnotizing spirals of cheese, pesto, and prosciutto, making it is very simple. I use Trader Joe’s garlic and herb pizza dough (hard to beat $0.99 fresh dough that tastes like you got it at a pizza shop), but you can use any pre-made or homemade pizza dough you wish.

Cheesy Pesto Bread with Crispy Prosciutto  |  Lemon & Mocha

The pizza dough is rolled out then topped with pesto, fresh Parmesan, and crispy prosciutto. I quickly crisped the prosciutto in a pan over medium-high heat, but you can skip the crisping if you are in even more of a time-crunch. Then comes the shredded mozzarella. After a quick egg wash to seal the edges, the dough gets rolled up, topped with more egg wash and Parmesan, then baked until the top has a gorgeous browned crust and the inside is bursting with gooey cheese. Done!

Cheesy Pesto Bread with Crispy Prosciutto  |  Lemon & Mocha

The second reason you need this recipe in your life is that it is a great make-ahead dish. Whether it’s for a weeknight dinner or a dinner party I love make-ahead recipes. Make and bake the Cheesy Pesto Bread with Crispy Prosciutto ahead of time then when you’re ready to eat it simply reheat wrapped in foil in a warm oven for about 20 minutes. If you want clean and even slices you can cut the bread after it has cooled before wrapping it up like a loaf in the foil. This way after it is warmed in the oven it will already be sliced and ready to be eaten.

Cheesy Pesto Bread with Crispy Prosciutto  |  Lemon & Mocha

If you decide to make your own pesto, I highly recommend this kale pesto. I make a batch of it and then freeze it in separate small freezer bags. I lay the sealed bags flat in my freezer to freeze so once they are solid they take up barely any room. Freezing them like that also makes it easy to break off a chunk when you need only a little bit of pesto instead of defrosting the entire bag. Since they are frozen in a thin layer instead of a block they also defrost very quickly.

Cheesy Pesto Bread with Crispy Prosciutto  |  Lemon & Mocha

I hope you and your family, friends, and lucky taste-testers enjoy this Cheesy Pesto Bread with Crispy Prosciutto!

Cheesy Pesto Bread with Crispy Prosciutto
 
Yield: 6 servings
Ingredients
  • 16 ounces pizza dough
  • 3 ounces sliced prosciutto
  • 3 tablespoons pesto
  • 2 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan
  • 4 ounces shredded mozzarella
  • 1 egg
Directions
  1. Set the dough out to come to room temperature. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with nonstick foil and set aside. Meanwhile, crisp the prosciutto in a nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Flip the prosciutto once it becomes slightly browned then continue to cook until the other side is slightly browned as well. Once done, turn off the pan and lay the crispy prosciutto on a paper towel to soak up any grease.
  2. Using cornmeal or flour so it doesn’t stick, roll out the dough on a clean surface until it is roughly the shape of an 11” x 14” rectangle. I usually hold it then let gravity stretch the dough to get it started. Leaving a 1” border, evenly spread the pesto on the dough. Sprinkle the pesto with 1 tablespoon of the Parmesan. Next, evenly lay the crispy prosciutto. Top with the shredded mozzarella.
  3. Beat the egg in a small bowl. Lightly brush the egg on the border you left. Gently fold the short edges in then, working carefully, tightly roll the dough up lengthwise. You want to be rolling from long edge to the other long edge, being sure to tuck in the short edge sides as needed. When you’re done rolling, pinch the dough at the seam to seal it. I like to pinch it twice to make sure it’s really tight. Carefully place the bread roll seam side down on the prepared baking sheet. Lightly brush the egg on all exposed top and sides of the roll then sprinkle with the remaining tablespoon of Parmesan.
  4. Bake for 22-25 minutes, or until the top is golden brown. Let cool slightly then cut into slices and serve.