Baking with the Bolliers

This recipe has been a Thanksgiving tradition in our family for around a decade. It comes out perfect every time, and even caused quite the commotion last Thanksgiving when my father in law told his mother that my Chocolate Bourbon version was better than hers. (Gasp!) It's even a teeny bit healthy too.  I love making pretty designs on the top. We have cleaned up the ingredients of this Butter Pecan Pie by removing the corn syrup and replacing it with agave nectar. Before you go all crazy on me by telling me that Agave Nectar is just as bad as corn syrup let me get in two points. 1. Yes Agave Nectar is Fructose. That’s why it works in this and my peanut brittle, but depending on  HOW  it’s processed it can be lower glycemic 2. Agave Nectar is Non-GMO and doesn’t contain all the icky stuff used to process corn syrup. Why do you need a fructose component in pecan pie? If you ever made Rock Candy as a child you know that sugar molecules fight through liquid to bond to each o...

Some French bread recipes can be intimating and complicated. This recipe is neither. Mix together the ingredients, let rise, shape, let rise again and bake.  You can bake up two big loaves to feed a crowd or let half the dough chill in the fridge for another day (which I actually prefer the taste if I have time to let it sit). Once you've made it a few times you can play around with the shape a bit. Sometimes I split it into 4 baguettes and shape into long thin loaves.  It's good for everything from a fancy charcuterie tray, to a PB and J. Enough talk, here's the recipe For the video on how to make the bread click  here. Ingredients: Makes 2 loaves 2 1/2 C Warm Water 2 Tbs Yeast 3 Tbs Sugar 1 Tbs Salt 5 1/2 to 6 cups of flour  5 Tbs Olive Oil In a large mixing bowl or a stand mixer with a dough hook combine ingredients in order listed above. Start with 5 cups of flour working up to 6 if necessary. We want the dough to be sticky. Knead dough in mixer for 5...