Mabon Sea Turtle Wisdom Bread Recipes

DARK MOTHER - MABON HONEY WHEAT BREAD

Steps:

• 1. Dissolve the yeast in the warm water. Add honey and mix well. Stir in the whole wheat flour, salt, vegetable oil, and butter and mix until a stiff dough has formed. Gradually work the all-purpose flour into the mix, one cup at a time. Turn the dough onto a lightly floured countertop, and knead for about fifteen minutes. When it reaches the point where it's sort of elastic, shape it into a ball and place it into an oiled bowl. Cover with a warm, damp cloth, and allow to sit and rise until it's doubled in size -- usually about 45 minutes.
• 2. Punch the dough down and cut in half, so you can make two loaves of bread. Place each half in a greased loaf pan, and allow to rise. Once the dough has risen an inch or two above the top of the loaf pan, pop them in the oven. Bake at 375 for half an hour, or until golden brown at the top. When you remove the loaves from the oven, allow to cool for about fifteen minutes before removing from the pan. If you like, brush some melted butter over the top of the hot loaves, to add a pretty golden glaze to them.
• 3. Note - If you're doing this in a bread machine, remember, the recipes makes two loaves. Halve everything if you're allowing the machine to do the mixing. If you hand mix it, you can still drop the single-loaf balls of dough into the machine to bake.

MABON SEA TURTLE WISDOM BREAD

Steps:

• Dissolve yeast in warm water.
• Whisk in sugar/honey, salt, and oil.
• Slowly fold in flour, as it becomes harder to stir, turn the dough onto a lightly floured countertop and dust the dough with flour.
• Knead the dough by folding it in half and pressing it with the palm of your hand until it springs back when you poke it lightly with a finger.
• Form into ball and place in lightly greased bowl.
• Dust dough with flour and cover it with a clean cloth towel.
• Let it rise for 30 minutes.
• After the dough has risen once, punch it down and form balls for the shell about 6-inches, 3-inch balls for the head , and 2-inch balls for the legs, and assemble on a greased cookie sheet.
• Etch a crisscross pattern on top of shell with a knife.
• Use 2 raisins for eyes.
• Let rise for 30 more minutes.
• Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
• Brush lightly with egg wash (1 egg whisked with 1 tbs. water and couple drops green food coloring) and bake for 25 minutes or until golden brown.

TURTLE BREAD

Steps:

• Mix 1 1/2 cups of flour with yeast, sugar, and salt in large bowl.
• Heat water, milk and butter to 125 to 130; stir into yeast mixture. Stir in egg. Stir in enough or remaining flour to make dough easy to handle.
• Sprinkle a surface lightly with flour. Turn dough onto the surface; knead until smooth and elastic, about 5 minutes. Cover and let rise 10 minutes.
• Lightly grease a cookie sheet. Shape a 2-inch piece of dough into a ball for head, and 4 walnut-size pieces for feet. 1 more walnut-size piece shaped for tail, and remaining dough into ball for body. Place on cookie sheet and flatten slightly. Attach head, feet and tail by place 1 end of each under edge of body to secure. Press in raisins for eyes if desired. Cover and let rise 20 minutes.
• Heat oven to 400. Make crisscross cuts in body, 1/4 inch deep, to look like a turtle's shell. Bake until golden brown, 20 to 25 minutes.

TURTLE BREAD

Steps:

• In a small mixing bowl, dissolve yeast and sugar in warm water. Let stand until creamy, about 10 minutes.
• Heat the milk in a small saucepan until it bubbles, then remove from heat. Add the butter and stir until melted; let cool until lukewarm.
• In a large mixing bowl, combine the yeast mixture with the cooled milk, butter, egg, 2 cups flour and salt; beat well to combine. Add the remaining flour, 1/2 cup at a time, stirring well after each addition. When the dough has pulled together, turn it out onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth and supple, about 8 minutes. Cover dough and let rest for 10 minutes.
• Divide dough into seven pieces. One round 2 inches in diameter, five rounds 1 inch in diameter and the remainder in one large round.
• Place the large round on a lightly greased cookie sheet and flatten slightly. Shape four of the 1 inch rounds into 'feet' and one into a 'tail' for the turtle. Shape the two inch round into a 'head' for the turtle Attach each piece by flattening the end which attaches to the body, wetting it slightly with water and pinching it under the turtle's 'body'. Press raisins into the turtle's head for 'eyes'.
• Cover the turtle with as damp cloth and let rise for 20 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
• With a sharp knife, make crisscross cuts in the turtle's body to make the 'shell'. Finally, use a scissors to make a cut for the turtle's mouth. Bake at 400 degrees F (200 degrees C) for 20 to 25 minutes, or until golden brown.

BREAD MACHINE TURTLE BREAD

Steps:

• Place all ingredients except chocolate chips and pecans in bread machine pan in the order recommended by the manufacturer.
• Add chocolate chips and pecans at the Raisin/Nut signal or 5 minutes before the last kneading cycle ends.
• Select Sweet or Basic/White cycle.
• Use Medium or Light crust color.
• Remove baked bread from pan, and cool on wire rack.