Cinnamon Rolls

Um, sorry you can scarcely see them under all that delicious frosting!!!

So I've made lots and lots and lots of cinnamon rolls in my day. They were all vaguely terrible. Dry-ish and a little flavorless and they'd totally fall apart because of the spiral-roll shape (not in a good way). So when my friend Megan, one morning after we'd beaten ourselves to pieces with a Jillian Michaels workout, mentioned that her house happened to be full of freshly baked cinnamon rolls and would we like to come try one? I was like, "Um... is the Pope Catholic?" We HAD just worked out, after all. We'd earned those cinnamon rolls. Wow. Best. Cinnamon. Rolls. I-have-ever-tasted.

Luckily, she was kind enough to send me the recipe.

This one is from Beauty and Bedlam, but I halved it and adjusted some of the ingredients so they would be slightly less than nearly 600 calories per roll! (Yes, I did the calculations on that because I am a masochist.) This made 9 GIGANTIC cinnamon rolls, which were definitely more than enough for my family of 5... and we ate them all day long. Really I couldn't even finish half in one sitting.

INGREDIENTS

Dough

• (1) .25 oz. pks. active dry yeast
• 1/3 cups granulated sugar
• 1/3 cup melted butter 
• 1/2 cup 110 degree water (approximately)
• 1/2 cup warm milk (must be warm)
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1 egg – slightly beaten
• 3 1/4-3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

Filling

• 3 Tbsp. melted butter 
• 3/4 cups granulated sugar
• 1 1/2 Tbls. ground cinnamon
• 3/4 cups chopped walnuts, pecans or raisins – (optional)

Frosting

• 4 oz. neufchatel or fat-free cream cheese
• 2 Tbsp. butter
• About 1 Tbsp. milk
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1/2 tsp almond extract (I just realized I accidentally doubled both extracts, but it was yummy! Reduce these amounts if you're scared.)
• 2 cups powdered sugar

INSTRUCTIONS

1. For bread machine: Add water, milk, melted butter, sugar, salt, egg, flour, and yeast to bread machine bowl, in that order. Set on "dough" setting. (I did this the night before so I could just wake up and roll them out in the morning.) Then jump to Step 6.
2. Without bread machine: In a small bowl, dissolve yeast and 1 tsp. sugar in warm water; set aside.
3. In a large bowl, mix together milk, remaining sugar, 1/3 cup melted butter, salt, and egg; add yeast mixture and 2 cups of flour to mixture; beat until smooth; stir in enough flour to form a slightly stiff dough.
4. Turn dough out onto a well-floured surface and knead for 8 minutes.
5. Place dough into a large greased bowl, cover, and allow to rise in a warm place until doubled in size, about 1 hour.
6. Punch down dough and let rest for 5 minutes. Meanwhile, mix together 3/4 cup sugar and cinnamon.
7. Roll dough out onto a floured surface into a 15″ X 10″ rectangle.
8. Brush 3 tablespoons melted butter over dough; sprinkle cinnamon sugar liberally over dough; sprinkle nuts evenly over dough, if desired.
9. Tightly roll up dough, starting from the shorter (10") side. Pinch edges together to seal. Cut the roll into 9 slices using dental floss or thread.
10. Grease a 9″ X 9″ X 2″ baking pan. (I will say I had to squeeze them into a pan this size, and it made for gargantuan towering rolls that were a bit doughy in the middle - because they were too big to cook through evenly. I thought they were good, but you might also experiment with different pan sizes and shapes - or different roll sizes!)
11. Place cinnamon roll slices close together in the prepared pan; cover pan and allow to rise in a warm place for about 45 minutes or until nearly doubled in size.
12. Bake rolls in a 350 degree oven for 25 – 30 minutes, or until golden brown.
13. For frosting, beat together cream cheese, butter, powdered sugar, vanilla, and almond extract. Add milk, a little at a time, until frosting reaches desired consistency. Spread frosting on warm rolls and eat until you are stuffed.

Preparation time: 30 minute(s) (plus additional rise time)

Cooking time: 25 minute(s)

Number of servings (yield): 9 huge rolls

Soft Pretzels

Something about Fall made me want to eat pretzels. Or we can blame the pregnancy. Whatever! We used to get these AMAZING pretzels from a Dutch market in Maryland, and I've never found anything quite like them. But they make the pretzels right there in front of you... so how hard can it be, right? So I set out to try, and I have to say they were pretty delicious! But just a word of warning - they really have to be eaten the same day. (We tried to keep a few, but no.)

Recipe adapted from the Brown Eyed Baker, who adapted it from Alton Brown

INGREDIENTS:
1½ cups warm water
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
2 teaspoons kosher salt
2¼ teaspoons active dry yeast (1 packet)
4½ cups all-purpose flour
4 tablespoons butter, melted
Boiling water
About 1/4 cup baking soda
1 egg white + 1 tablespoon water, whisked together (for egg wash)
Coarse salt, for sprinkling
Melted butter (3-4 tablespoons)

DIRECTIONS:
1. Combine the water and sugar in a mixing bowl and sprinkle the yeast on top. Allow to sit for 5 minutes, until the mixture begins to foam.
2. Add the flour, salt, and butter. Use the dough hook attachment to mix on low speed until all of the ingredients are combined. Increase the mixer speed to medium and knead until the dough is smooth and pulls away from the side of the bowl, about 4 to 5 minutes.
3. Remove the dough from the mixer and place in a clean, oiled bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and place in a warm spot until the dough has doubled in size, about 45 minutes to 1 hour.
4. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper and brush with the vegetable oil; set aside. [**This is important! I was too lazy to get out the parchment paper and it was beastly to get the pretzels off the pan! And then the chemical reaction from the baking soda left marks on the pan. Just so you know.]
5. Pour boiling water into a 9x9 glass pan (or whatever you have - a shallow dish) until it is about 2/3 full. Add baking soda and stir to combine. (The 1/4 cup is a really rough estimate - I really just dumped some in.)
6. In the meantime, turn the dough out onto a slightly oiled work surface and divide into 8 equal pieces. [**Another note: I made nearly twice as many pretzels with this recipe - maybe mine were just small?] Roll out each piece of dough into a 24-inch rope. Holding each end, whip the center of the rope in toward itself so the U-shape catches and spins a couple times. Lay it down carefully, bringing the two ends down to meet the bottom (center of what was the U). Basically, make a pretzel shape.
7. Place the pretzels into the boiling water and baking soda, 2 or 3 at a time (however many will fit comfortably), for 30 seconds. Remove them from the water using a large, flat spatula. Place the boiled pretzels on the baking sheet. Brush the top of each pretzel with the egg wash and sprinkle with coarse salt.
8. Bake until they are just starting to brown, about 10 to 12 minutes. Transfer to a cooling rack and brush with melted butter, making sure not to remove all the salt! Cool for 5 minutes before serving.

Carrot Bread

I made this for our pre-school Easter party by modifying a zucchini bread recipe. Get it? Carrots? Bunnies? Right. My original recipe notes that you can try 1 ½ cups grated apple instead of zucchini (or carrots in my case) - and also omit the milk. I haven't tried it that way though!

1 ½ cups flour
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
½ tsp. baking soda
½ tsp. salt
¼ tsp. baking powder
¼ tsp. ground nutmeg
1 beaten egg
1 cup sugar
1 cup finely shredded carrots (I just threw them in the food processor)
¼ cup oil
¼ cup milk (this is an estimate – just put in however much it takes to make it more like a thick batter consistency)
½ cup chopped walnuts or pecans, toasted (optional)

1. Grease the bottom and ½ inch up sides of an 8x4x2-inch loaf pan; set aside. In a medium bowl combine the flour, cinnamon, baking soda, salt, baking powder, and nutmeg. Make a well in center of flour mixture; set aside.
2. In another medium bowl combine egg, sugar, carrots, oil, and milk. Add carrot mixture all at once to flour mixture. Stir just until moistened (batter should be lumpy). Fold in nuts, if using. Spoon into prepared pan.
3. Bake at 350 degrees for 50 to 55 minutes. Cool 10 minutes before removing from pan, then cool completely on a wire rack. Wrap and store overnight before slicing.

Buttermilk Cornbread

Ever-so-slightly adapted from a classic allrecipes.com find, this one is FABULOUS... IF you like your cornbread sweet. Which of course I do.

Ingredients
• 1/4 cup butter, melted
• 1/4 cup oil
• 2/3 cup white sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup buttermilk
• ½ teaspoon baking soda
• 1 cup cornmeal
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• ½ teaspoon salt

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease an 8 inch square pan.
2. Combine melted butter, oil, and sugar. Add eggs and beat until well blended. Combine buttermilk with baking soda and immediately stir into mixture in pan. Stir in cornmeal, flour, and salt until well blended and few lumps remain. Pour batter into the prepared pan.
3. Bake in the preheated oven for 30 to 40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Pizza

I am so shamelessly addicted to pizza. I told Travis once that I really don't like to eat anything unless it is sweet or pizza. I'm like a 9-year-old, you know, when you ask what a 9-year-old's favorite food is. It's always pizza. We seriously make homemade pizza almost weekly. Oh and the huge forest of fresh basil growing on our patio doesn't help much. This makes two 12-inch pizzas. (I use 3/4 of this recipe to make one gigantic pizza that fills my pizza stone completely.)

1 1/4 cups warm water (105-115 degrees)
1 package active dry yeast (about 2 1/4 tsp.)
1 tsp. sugar
1 Tbsp. olive oil
1 tsp. salt
2 1/2 - 3 1/2 cups flour
2 tsp. cornmeal,
1 cup pizza sauce
Assorted toppings (pepperoni, sausage, mushrooms, olives, peppers, etc.)
2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese

Combine 1/4 cup water, yeast, and sugar in mixing bowl and let sit for 5 minutes. Add remaining water, olive oil, 2 cups flour, and salt and mix well. Add more flour 1/2 cup at a time until dough forms a ball but is not overly sticky. Place in greased bowl, cover, and let rise until doubled (about 45-60 min.) - (This is where I scrape the dough into a ball and spray the inside of the mixing bowl with olive oil, cover it and put it over a bowl of hot water, which will cut the rising time in half - about 20-30 min.)

Punch dough down, turn out onto floured surface and knead until smooth. Divide in half and roll each half into a round (if you let it rest for about 10 minutes it will stretch easily to the size you want). Transfer to pizza stone or pan sprinkled with cornmeal. Bake at 425 degrees for about 9 minutes. Remove from oven and top with sauce and pizza toppings; bake for another 15 minutes or until it looks done.

Oh yes, back to the basil. I like to do a "pizza margherita" with sliced tomatoes, snipped fresh basil, and slices of fresh mozzarella. Then you feel healthier because you're eating vegetables (you know, the tomatoes) and no meat.

Breadsticks

{This recipe is mine but the picture is not. Sorry, I stole it. Next time I make these I'll take my own picture.}

1 cup warm milk (about 115 degrees)
1 package instant dry yeast (about 2 1/4 tsp.)
1 Tbsp. sugar
1/2 tsp. salt
3 Tbsp. butter
1 egg white
2-3 cups flour

Combine warm milk, yeast, and sugar in electric mixer bowl. Let stand for 5 minutes. Add salt, butter, egg white, and 1 cup flour (add salt last if possible, with the flour, since it will kill the yeast if added directly). Beat well with a dough hook and add a second cup of flour. Knead until well combined, adding up to another 1/2 cup of flour if needed. Do not make it too dry; leave it soft and slightly sticky! Scrape dough into a ball, spray with olive oil, and let rise until doubled. Roll or twist into breadsticks and place on pan. Let stand 10-30 minutes (depending on how big you want them). Bake at 400 degrees for 10-15 minutes. Immediately brush with butter and sprinkle with garlic salt.

ANOTHER VARIATION: We used to love eating at the Pizza Factory in Provo because the breadsticks came wrapped around wooden sticks standing up, which I thought was a very fancy presentation. We've done this as well - just twist the breadsticks around bamboo skewers and prop them up against the edges of a baking sheet. Bake as normal (making sure the skewers are not touching any part of the oven!)

Lion House Rolls (Bread machine version)

So how many of you LOVE the classic Lion House rolls but don't really like to do all the kneading yourself or use the mixer? Don't you just wish you could throw it all in your bread machine until the "rolling" part? Yeah that's what I thought.

Ingredients:
About 1 cup + 2 Tbsp. warm water
1/3 cup dry milk
2 Tbsp. sugar
1 tsp. salt
2 2/3 Tbsp. butter
1 egg white
About 2 ¾ cup flour
1 Tbsp. active dry yeast

Put all ingredients in the bread machine in the order listed. (I use a little more water and a little less flour because it’s easier to add flour to sticky dough than to recover from dough that is too dense.) Set bread machine to “dough” setting (that takes you through kneading and the first rise). Punch down dough and roll out on floured surface. Roll into 18 or 24 rolls (depending on your preferred size) and place in a greased pan. Cover and let rise until doubled (about 45 minutes). Bake at 350 degrees for about 15 minutes. (Cover with foil toward the end if they’re getting too brown.)

Crème Brule French Toast

This recipe is from my grandma, and it is amazing. Make it the night before for an easy yummy breakfast! Sorry, no pictures... maybe next time.

Crème Brule French Toast

Melt over moderate heat and stir constantly:
½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
1 cup brown sugar
2 Tbsp. corn syrup
Pour mixture into 9x13x2 pan.

Cut 1 baguette into 1 inch slices and put over sugar mixture, squeezing in tightly.

Whisk together:
5 eggs
1 ½ cup half-and-half
1 tsp. vanilla
¼ tsp. salt
Pour evenly over baguette slices.

Chill 3-24 hours. Bring to room temperature before baking. Bake at 350 degrees for 35-40 minutes until puffed and golden at edges. Serve hot.

Maryland Banana Bread

Here in Maryland, if you buy unripe bananas, they will never turn yellow. They go straight from green to brown. I have no idea what the problem is. This phenomenon has naturally led me to make a whole lot of banana bread with all my green-to-brown bananas. I thought it would be appropriate to name this version Maryland Banana Bread.

Prep: 20 min. Bake: 45-50 min. Oven: 325° Makes: 1 (LARGE) loaf

½ cup butter
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
3 ripe bananas, mashed
2 cups flour
½ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
¼ cup orange juice
½ cup mashed strawberries (optional)

Cream butter and sugar together in the bowl of an electric mixer. Add eggs and bananas; beat well. Add flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and nutmeg. (Technically you’re supposed to blend dry ingredients together first separately and then add to the rest, but I’m lazy and just throw them all in at once.) Mix just until moistened (overmixing causes tunnels). Add orange juice and mashed strawberries, if desired. Pour into greased 9”x 5” loaf pan. Bake at 325° for 45-50 minutes. Let cool in pan for 5-10 minutes, then remove loaf and cool on a wire rack.

Creamy Caramel-Pecan Rolls

From my Better Homes & Gardens cookbook, 12th ed.

Prep: 25 min. Rise: 30 min. Bake: 20 min. Oven: 375° Makes: 24 rolls

1 ¼ cups sifted powdered sugar

1/3 cup whipping cream

1 cup coarsely chopped pecans

½ cup packed brown sugar

1 tablespoon ground cinnamon

2 16-oz. loaves frozen white bread dough or sweet roll dough, thawed

3 tablespoons butter or margarine, melted

¾ cup raisins (optional) – (I used chocolate chips instead!)

1. Grease two 9x1 ½-inch round baking pans; set pans aside. For topping, in a small bowl stir together powdered sugar and whipping cream; divide evenly between prepared baking pans. Sprinkle pecans evenly over sugar mixture.

2. In another small bowl stir together brown sugar and cinnamon; set aside. On a lightly floured surface, roll each loaf of dough into a 12x8-inch rectangle. Brush with melted butter; sprinkle with brown sugar-cinnamon mixture. If desired, sprinkle with raisins/chocolate chips.

3. Roll up each rectangle starting from a long side. Seal seams. Slice each roll into 12 pieces. Place pieces, cut sides down, on topping in pans.

4. Cover; let rise in a warm place until nearly double (about 30 min.). Break any surface bubbles with a greased toothpick.

5. Bake in a 375° oven for 20 to 25 minutes or until golden brown (if necessary, cover rolls with foil the last 10 minutes of baking to prevent over-browning). Cool in pans on a wire rack for 5 minutes. Carefully invert rolls onto a serving platter. Serve warm.