Romans 15:13 Ministry: Week #3 {Pumpkin Bread}

Simple. Sweet. Satisfying. That is exactly what I had in mind for this week's Romans 15:13 Ministry treat when I decided to bake a big batch of Pumpkin Bread.
There is nothing as basic as bread. It represents some of the fundamental tenants of life, especially the Christian life. The Lord is the bread of life. We, His children, are called to be "broken bread". Bread was multiplied by Jesus. Bread is eaten together in unity and fellowship not only in the Bible but even today in churches as an act of communion and obedience.
That is how I decided upon bread. Being the season for all things pumpkin I decided to throw in some fall festive flavor into the mix, too. I clicked around all of my usual blogs for recipe inspiration but every list of ingredients was too complex. They all had too much going on in the dough. Most had chocolate chips. Some had raisins. Others kept the fancy to the top in the form of a glaze. Many recipes called for pecans or walnuts and others called for a swirl of cream cheese or even Nutella. But I didn't want a gussied up pumpkin loaf. I wanted a loaf that would satisfy a desire for something sweet while maintaining the simple integrity of basic bread. 
After clicking in and out of boxes on my computer screen I decided that the internet wasn't going to be my golden ticket to the perfect pumpkin loaf recipe. Over-the-top recipes boasted too many chips and not enough loaf for my liking. So I went back to the basic, a cookbook. And not just any cookbook but the cookbook that every baker and chef undoubtedly has on their shelf, Better Homes and Gardens New Cookbook.
Sure enough, filed under "breads" and then "quick breads" I found the simplest pumpkin loaf ever. Trusting the New Cookbook authority, and the fact that it has stood the test of 15 editions, I didn't even look for reviews online. I simply preheated my oven and opened a can of pumpkin.
The simple recipe calling for lots of flour, sugar, eggs and only one can of pumpkin, yielded three generously sized loaves of bread. They were perfectly golden brown with a tint of orange. They rose just the way every baker prays their bread will rise. And they smelled absolutely divine!
The beauty of this bread is that it didn't need any chocolate or dried fruit or sweet glaze to be satisfying and delicious. The bread's star was pumpkin and that's all it needed. The simplicity of bread paired with the fall's favorite vegetable made these loaves the perfect sweet delivery to the ladies at the Women's Connection Bible study.

My prayer is that the ladies who feasted on those loaves of bread saw the beauty of the baked dough, just like I did. A simple loaf of bread can remind us of how Christ can simplify our lives when we turn our struggles, pain and control over to Him. Don't get me wrong, this life won't always be simple. The world is not without its complications and trials. On this earth, surrounded by humans and sin, sometimes it feels like all that surrounds us are imperfections and trials.
But Christ can simplifying even our messiest of circumstances. When we get back to the basics, turn our lives, problems and complications over to Christ He can do a sweet work of simplification. He can remove our worries, burdens and heartache and fill us with His satisfying Spirit of peace and calm. Even in the midst of this chaotic and upside down world, Christ can step in and put our hearts at rest. It is His work of simplification that makes it all possible. Our Bread of Life, King of Kings and All-Sufficient Savior can turn our lives into a place of refuge even in the midst of the fiercest of storms.
All it takes is getting back to the basics and simply asking Christ to take over, take control and release our complications into His care. And just like a simple Pumpkin Loaf, He will come into our lives and simply satisfy our every need with His Holy Spirit that always hits the perfect sweet spot.

{ Recipe found in Better Homes and Gardens New Cookbook}

Romans 15:13 Ministry: Week #2

I looked up the word joy in the dictionary and found a terrible definition. According to Webster's it is a "feeling of great happiness."
This definition left me feeling joyless so I decided to go back to the root of the word, before the days of Webster, and find what joy is really all about.
Sure enough, there it was, the true meaning of joy: rejoice. It comes from the Latin "gaudere" which means "rejoice." The French turned that into "joie" and the English turned that into joy.
Irma Rombauer turned that into the "Joy of Cooking" but more on that in a minute.

Let's just stick to the simple word joy for just a moment.
There are two ways to look at joy. One, you can look at joy as a thing that happens to you. Or you can look at joy as something you make happen. If you simply look in the library dictionary for guidance on joy you will be hard pressed to have it in abundance in your own life because the joy that is taught by Webster's isn't the kind of joy you can choose, it is the kind of joy that just "happens" to you.
But that isn't true joy.
True joy is rejoicing and rejoicing is a choice. No one has rejoicing happen to them. Rejoicing is a verb. Rejoicing is a decision. Rejoicing is a definitive action taken by a person.
And so is joy.
Joy isn't just a feeling of elation because of good circumstances. That would make joy a response, not a decision. But joy is so much more than a conditional response. It is an unconditional action taken by someone who makes a conscious decision.

That brings us to cooking and baking and the joy in those actions. Just ask Irma, there is joy in cooking. Even in the midst of the Great Depression, on the heels of her husbands suicide, Irma found joy in the kitchen and in the formulating and preparing of a meal. She wrote a cookbook on the subject matter, titled it "JOY of Cooking" and 75 years later it is the best selling cookbook of all time.
She found joy in the kitchen because she decided to cook not because it just happened to her. The joy was a product of a decision to go and grab it off the shelf, mix it in a bowl and bake it in an oven. Her joy was roasted, sauteed and broiled along with her meats and potatoes. Her joy wasn't born out of a happiness of life circumstances but out of a decision to make joy happen.

That joy is available to everyone whether or not they choose to cook or bake or order carry out. Joy is as easy to attain as making a decision. If you find decision making hard then I suppose joy is hard to capture and sustain. But if you can make up your mind to be joyful, to live in a state of rejoicing, the joy will flow abundantly without need for a particular mood or "happiness" to overtake you.

And if you do decide to express your joy in the kitchen then I encourage you to share that joy with others through the blessing of your baking and cooking bounty. When joy is shared it is multiplied. I do believe Irma would have agreed that the more joy - the more cooking, the more baking, the more sharing - the better.



For a treat worthy of sharing I suggest these Glazed Pumpkin Muffins (recipe below). My recipe is adapted from AllRecipes. I read countless pumpkin muffin recipes before tweaking this one to make it the perfect muffin recipe (in my humble opinion). I shared these muffins with the women's Bible study I have started to bake for as an outreach of my Romans 15:13 Ministry. These muffins along with thumbprint cookies (recipe can be found recipe here) were my treats of the week. They were a hit with my tasters and a joy to bake!

Pumpkin Muffins
1 cup pumpkin (canned "or" fresh) 
2 eggs, slightly beaten 
1/2 cup water 
1/2 cup veg. oil 
1 3/4 cups flour 
1/4 teaspoon salt 
1 cup white sugar
3/4 cup brown sugar  
1 teaspoon baking soda 
1/4 teaspoon baking powder 
1 teaspoon cinnamon 
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon ginger 
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

1.  Preheat oven to 350 and spray 16 muffin tins with cooking spray. 
2. Blend pumpkin, eggs, water and oil in large bowl.
3. Stir together all dry ingredients and then pour and mix into wet.
4. Fill muffin tins 3/4 full and bake for about 25 or until a toothpick comes out clean.
   
   

Maple Cream Cheese Glaze
2 cups powdered sugar
3-4 TB heavy cream
1 TSP vanilla extract
1/2 cup cream cheese
1 TB maple syrup

Whisk sugar, heavy cream and vanilla together until blended. On low to medium speed add cream cheese and syrup (amount may vary depending on personal taste). If the glaze is too thick add some more heavy cream. Blend until the desired consistency is reached. Drizzle on cooled muffins.

Romans 15:13 Ministry Week #1

Baking on the Fritz has had a blessing territory expansion! Fritz (me) is not only baking to keep my family fat and happy but now I'm baking for a ministry - a real, honest to goodness Christian ministry that reaches out to inner-city women.
If it were proper literary terminology I'd write "wahooo!" to express my excitement that way but because that isn't exactly proper English or even a word found in the dictionary I'll refrain. Just know that it is in that spirit that I announce this latest baking development.

You may be wondering how I went from baking simply as a way to keep my family in an abundance of sweets to baking for a weekly ministry. I could embellish some elaborate story about how my baked goods happened to be tasted by a pastry chef who was blown away by the crumb of my cookies and the delicate sweetness of my cream cheese frosting.
I could then think up a story about how that pastry chef was best friends with a director of a ministry outreach to inner city women and how this woman was just dying to have homemade baked goods to treat the women to each week when they came to Bible study. I could say that this pastry chef looked at me and said, "You must bake for them! I insist on it!" And then I could tell you that this pastry chef took me to the ministry director and presented me and my baked goods, giving his blessing to my baking ministry endeavor.
But that would be completely made up. What I would call a lie. So I'll just tell you the truth.
I emailed the ministry director and asked if I could bake for the women's Bible study that meets each week. She said yes and the rest is history.

Although my foray into baking ministry doesn't have an elaborate story it does have a meaningful beginning. Sometimes God doesn't throw a pastry chef at you and tell you to start baking up blessings. Sometimes you have to take the first step and reach out!
God planted in me this love to bake and has given my body the stamina to stand all day in the kitchen without fatigue. Over these past few months the call to bake for the spreading of Christ's love has grown stronger and stronger. I sat on the idea for a while praying over how to proceed and if to proceed. It was after that period of contemplation that I decided to take a leap of faith and offer what I have to give, my baking.
Can words explain how thrilled I am that my baking ministry was welcomed? I'm beyond thrilled!

Yesterday was my first day of baked goods delivery. I made three treats: pumpkin cookies with a vanilla glaze, blackberry oat bars and apple cherry oat bars. I covered all my treats in foil and wrote on the top "Romans 15:13."

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.

I'm filling people's bellies with treats made by hand, made from scratch and made with love. But more importantly I want to share with them the joy, peace and love found in Jesus Christ. I want them to be full not just on cookies and cake but on the power of the Holy Spirit. 

I don't know what God has in store for Baking on the Fritz. And that's the most exciting thing about this whole baking adventure. I have no idea where it's going! All I know is that next week I'm going to be baking for a room full of women who are opening up their Bible's (maybe for the very first time) to hear about their creator and savior.
Through baking God is showing me that I don't have to venture off into foreign lands and third world countries to be smack dab in the middle of God's territory and God's mission field. This might be right where he wants me, in my kitchen baking up blessings for the society right outside my door. I'm trusting where God leads, embracing the task set before me to spread the love of Christ one baked up treat at a time. 

To find the recipes I used to bake up these goods follow the links below!

Oat bars: Better Homes and Gardens New CookBook

Pumpkin cookies:http://cookingwithruthie.com/2012/11/09/thee-best-pumpkin-cookies/

Pumpkin Pie Crunch Bars

Labor Day is over, August has come to a close. The inevitable has happened, summer has ended and fall is falling. It happens every year and yet, every year, it comes so swiftly that it catches us all off guard. Of course August must end and summer must be replaced by fall and kids must go back to school. We all know the routine and the order of the seasons yet it never fails that it catches us all unawares.
This year has been no different. I can't believe that it is already September third. What happened to August? And July? They are just memories now, replaced by the sounds of school bells and the rumbling of big yellow buses full of children weighed down by cumbersome backpacks.
With the changing of seasons and the changing of daily routines comes another change too, a dietary change. Gone are the days of corn and blueberries, peaches and zucchini. The plates of seasonal eaters are replaced with pumpkin, potatoes, apples and all things cinnamon. Mom's break out their crockpots and soups are reintroduced to the dinner table. Ice cream treats take a back seat to pies, crisps and warm puddings. Everything in the kitchen turns from a refreshing escape to a warm, comforting embrace.
This morning when I awoke I couldn't help but sense this cosmic shift in seasons. It seemed to happen overnight. I went from craving strawberries to thinking of nothing but pumpkins covered in nutmeg and cinnamon. As I watched kids file down the road to catch the school bus the feeling of fall only intensified and my desire to break out a big can of pumpkin became inescapable.
And so it is to the pantry I went, can opener in hand, to break out my first can of pumpkin of the season. Even the act of twisting the openers lever and removing the tin top of the can felt like fall! As I peered at the rich orange inside the can I was overwhelmed with thoughts of school days, freshly sharpened pencils, school bells, tardy slips and corrected homework assignments. Those days are long gone but the connection they have to this season will never fade. Fall is a sign of school days and no amount of time away from a classroom can change that fact.
To reign in the season of pumpkin I decided to bake pumpkin pie bars. This recipe comes from a new cookbook my Mom bought me on vacation. "The Back in the Day Bakery Cookbook" is written by two bakers from Savannah, GA. They run one of the most beloved and respected bakeries in the south. If the pictures are any indication of the pastry perfection that comes from their kitchen then I don't doubt the goodness of their recipes! The pictures look divine! Each page is filled with tantalizing treats all prepared from scratch - no prepared pie crusts here.
So lets get to baking and inviting in a new season in nature and, who knows, maybe a new season in life! There is no telling what a change of leaves will bring. It may be just as good as these pumpkin pie crunch bars!

http://www.backinthedaybakery.com/cookbook.html