Freezer Meal Day 13- Grilled Ham and Cheese

I got to spend the day with my sweet sister yesterday.  She is in the hospital with acute kidney failure.  They will be doing a minor surgery on her today to get some answers.  If you all could remember her in your prayers it would be greatly appreciated!

Moments like these, whether big or small, are exactly why we need to prepare now with freezer meals!  Something always comes up, whether its a sick child or other family member, too many places to be at once and cant get dinner going, or you just feel too lazy to cook.  These freezer meals have saved me a lot of stress and time!

Here is another yummy freezer sandwich that goes along with the PB and J for the Masses that I posted earlier.

Grilled Ham and Cheese

Bread

Sliced Cheese ( I used American)

Sliced Ham

Butter (softened)

Wax paper (if desired)

With two slices of bread, add a slice of ham (or more if desired) and a slice of cheese (I used a couple slices). Put sides together and spread the outside with butter.  In a fry pan or on a griddle, grill (at low to medium heat) both sides until golden and the cheese is melted. Allow sandwiches to cool and wrap individually with wax paper (if desired). Put in freezer bags.  Label and freeze

To Thaw:  remove a sandwich from the bag (still wrapped with wax paper) and microwave on high for 30-45 seconds.  You can also grill them again until thawed and crisp again. ( I nuked it first then grilled it.  It was awesome!)

Freezer Meals Day 12- Pigs in a Blanket

It's kid friendly week here at Mommy's Kitchen Creations!  Today I've got a super easy one for you.  My kids like to call these mummys, because their grandma made them these for Halloween.  They are nice to just pop in the microwave and heat them up.

Pigs in a Blanket

1 pkg Crescent rolls

2 small pkgs Lil' Smokies

Preheat oven according to package directions (for the crescent rolls). Un-roll crescent rolls and combine 2 triangles together to create a square.  Pinch seams together.  Cut 5 rows lengthwise and then one cut in half cross wise, to make 10 pieces.  Wrap each piece around a link and place on a cookie sheet.   Bake according to crescent roll package directions. 

To Freeze- when cooked, allow them to cool and place cookie sheet in the freezer. When frozen, transfer to a freezer bag. Label and freeze. 

To Thaw: Toss in the microwave and heat through.  You can also bake them according to package instructions, and just add about 5-10 minutes for thawing time.

Freezer Meals Day 11- Chicken Tenders

It's kid Friendly Meals Week this week.  All week I will have some fun freezer meals that are great for those crazy day lunches, or even dinner... for your little ones.  Every time we decide to eat out my kids tell me they want chicken and french fries.  So today, I have some chicken fingers for you that you can freeze ahead of time and have ready to microwave at a moments notice. 

Spend one afternoon making a bunch of these, and you'll save tons of time and money in the long run. 

Chicken Tenders

1 1/2 lbs Chicken Tenders

1 1/2 C. Flour

2 Eggs beaten

1/4 C. milk

1 C. Bread Crumbs

1 C. Panko Bread Crumbs

1 Tsp Season Salt

Salt and Pepper to taste

Sprinkle raw chicken with salt and pepper.  In a small shallow dish, add the flour with a dash of salt and pepper.  In another shallow bowl add eggs and milk. Beat well.  And another shallow dish, mix together the bread crumbs, season salt, salt and pepper. 

Coat tenders with flour and then dip in the milk/egg mixture. Then coat with the bread crumbs.  Place the tenders on a cookie sheet and bate at 375 for about 15 minutes. 

To Freeze:  After baking, allow them to cool.  Put cookie sheet in the freezer and freeze the tenders. When frozen, transfer to a freezer bag.  Label, date and return to the freezer.

To Thaw:  remove desired amount of tenders and heat in the microwave (about a minute for 3 or less tenders) in the oven (375 for about15 min.) or deep fry them on medium until golden brown. 

Freezer Meals Day 2- Minute Burgers

I have to give the credit to this idea to my Mother-in-law.  Genius! We love hamburgers but hardly ever eat them because I have to remember to thaw the hamburger meat, make it into patties, grill it, etc.  Or remember to buy the patties at the store.  It also seams that by the time I remember to get it all ready in time, the buns have gone stale.  I'm exhausted just thinking about all of the coordinating.  And don't get me started on toppings.  Lets just say I eat my burger for the toppings.  I have to have Lettuce, tomato, onions, pickle etc. or id rather eat cereal for dinner.  Lame and spoiled I know, but hey that's me! For some reason, 9 times out of 10 I chose my meal around the condiments I'm craving instead of the dish.

These burgers are perfect to pull out and toss in the microwave.  They are done in about a minute and my kids love em!  A double plus for me.

Minute Burgers

1 Tbsp Onion Powder

1 tsp Salt

1/2 tsp Pepper

3 lbs Ground Beef or Turkey (uncooked)

Sliced Cheese (if desired)

Combine ingredients into a large bowl.  Mix well.  Pour mixture onto a cookie sheet and press firmly spreading the mixture across the entire cookie sheet. Bake at 350 degrees for 18 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to cool slightly. Cut into squares.  (the size of the buns you will be using) Place (cooled) cookie sheet with meat in the freezer for about 3 hours or until frozen.  Also freeze the buns separately.  When both the buns and the patties are frozen, combine them together and add a slice of cheese to each burger if desired. Wrap hamburgers individually in wax paper. Then put them in freezer bags. I did 4 into a gallon sized bag. Label and date the bags.

To re-heat, microwave in the wax paper for 1 to 2 minutes.  Don't over cook or the bread will get hard. Top with your favorite condiments and serve. I would suggest cooking the meat for about a minute first, then add the cheese and bread, wrap it in the wax paper and do another 30 seconds.

Better Than Sweet Rolls

I volunteered to make some bread for our Relief Society activity night this month.  I decided to experiment a little and make some yummy sweet rolls.  Not the best time to experiment, but I'm so excited that it was a huge success!

When we lived in Provo, my all time favorite place to go was good ol' Chuckarama.  Seriously, what kind of name is that?  We used to call it "Up-Chuckarama". Really though, the food was great. We just liked to call it that.  You know like "Snot in the Box" or "Tomatobees" (that one is actually 2 different restaurants. My kids get them both mixed up). Anyway... you didn't come here to read about my random quirks. Back to Chuckarama.  I absolutely loved their rolls.  And their honey butter... HEAVEN!!!

Not to toot my own horn (Toot Toot). All I could say when I first tried these rolls was "Eat your heart out Chuckarama!" They we SO good!!!  I took my Cinnamon Rolls recipe and played with it a little.  Try them, you'll love em!



Better Than Sweet Rolls 

2 tbsp, saf instant yeast. 

2 1/2 C. Warm Water

1/2 C. Canola oil

2 eggs

1 C sugar

1/4 c. milk

1 tsp Salt

9 c. flour approx

Mix 4 cups flour, salt, sugar, and yeast.  Add Water, oil, milk and eggs.  Mix thoroughly and add flour just until it pulls away from the sides of the mixer.  Knead/Mix on Medium speed for 6-8 minutes. Lightly grease a large bowl.  Move dough to the bowl. Cover and let rise until doubled, then punch down dough.

Roll into balls and place next to each other on a cookie sheet. Bake at 350 for about 15 minutes or until golden brown. Makes about 2-3 dozen

Tip:  You may need more or less flour depending on humidity and other factors.  You'll want the dough to be a sticky as possible but still able to handle.  I coat my hands with a little flour, so that I can handle it easier. The less you add, the lighter the rolls will be..

Italian Bread Bowls

First off- this will be my last post for a week or so.  We will be adding one more little princess to our family this coming monday.  As soon as I am up and around, I've got some fun pumpkin recipes for you to try. We had a pumpkin party last week and found some super yummy recipes to use pumpkin.  Things you would never think of!!! So I'll be posting those in a week or so. Everyone have a great Haloween weekend and be safe out there! 

I've been searching for a great bread bowl recipe lately.  I found one! I'm so glad it turned out.  It seemed that everytime I made them, they would rise out instead of up.  I found out that the key to that is adding more flour.  I add flour according to touch and look.  There are so many things to factor in when making bread, like humidityetc that would effect how much flour you should put in.  So every time I made my bread bowls, I would make them like I would a regular roll, just bigger.  The problem is, they needed to be more dense so that they would rise into a nice round loaf. 

I liked the information given in this recipe, because it helped explain a few things that I didn't catch onto before.  Good thing I found this one, because I was asked to make about 100 of these for a family reunion coming up in a couple of months. 

Italian Bread Bowls

Makes 6-8 bread bowls

1 1/2 tablespoons active dry yeast (use 1 tablespoon instant yeast)
2 1/2 cups warm water
2 teaspoons salt
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
7 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon cornmeal
In a large bowl (or bowl of an electric mixer), dissolve yeast in warm water. Let stand until creamy, about 10 minutes. (You can omit this step if using instant yeast.)

Add salt, oil and 4 cups flour to the yeast mixture; beat well. Stir in the remaining flour, 1/2 cup at a time, beating well with an electric mixer at medium speed after each addition until a soft but not sticky dough is formed (you may not need to use all 7 cups). This bread bowl dough needs to be a bit firmer than a roll/bread dough so that the bread bowls rise up instead of out.

When the dough has pulled together, turn it out onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic, about 6 minutes (or let knead in an electric mixer). Lightly oil a large bowl, place the dough in the bowl and turn to coat with oil. Cover with a damp cloth and let rise in a warm place until doubled in volume, about 40 minutes. Punch dough down, and divide into 6-8 equal portions. Shape each portion into a round ball. Place loaves on lightly greased baking sheets sprinkled with cornmeal (or use silpat liners or parchment paper). If desired, slash the top surface of the bread bowl several times with a sharp knife or razor. Cover and let rise in a warm place, free from drafts, until doubled in bulk, about 35 minutes.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Bake in preheated oven for 15-18 minutes until golden brown and baked through.

Recipe taken from Mels Kitchen Cafe

Lion House Banana Bread

I had some bananas that were starting to get too ripe, so I thought... hmmm banana bread it is.  This recipe comes from the Lion House cook book.  I have a go to recipe that I love but didn't have all of the ingredients for it and had already been to walmart about 3 times that week.  So I found this recipe and was impressed.

We are headed into baking season. What a better way to share how much you love someone than with home baked bread.  I'll be sharing a few bread recipes in the next few weeks. You could make up a goodie plate with all of the different flavors of bread for your friends and neighbors.  It would be a nice alternative to the major sweets that we get/give this time of year.

Lion House Banana Bread

½ cup butter or margarine

1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 cup bananas, mashed

1/4 cup milk
1 tsp lemon juice
2 cups flour
1 ½ tsp baking powder
½ tsp baking soda
¼ tsp salt
½ cup chopped nuts, optional (I didn't add this time)

Cream sugar and butter. Beat in eggs one at a time. Add bananas, milk, and lemon juice. Sift dry ingredients and add to wet mixture. Add nuts. Grease 1 loaf pan. Pour mix into pan and bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour.

Sopapillas

If you are a "Poncho's" lover like our family, you'll love these Sopapillas. They are super easy, and will surely melt in your mouth!

My husband and a bunch of friends are doing a "Biggest Loser" Contest starting tomorrow.  So the next 8 weeks I'm going to try to add a little more healthiness to the blog.  I'm on the lookout for some super yummy, super healthy recipes to try.  I've never been one to care much about calories etc.  But I really want to quit adding temptation and learn a thing or two.  So if anyone has some recipes that you would like to share, please feel free to email them to me. My email address is on the home page. Also, if you would like to submit it with a picture and something clever about the recipe, feel free. You can be my guest post for the day!! 

Don't worry, I'll make up for things with some super holiday goodies for you all in a few months. 

Sopapillas

1 C flour

1½ t baking powder

Dash of salt

1 Tbsp. Shortening (you can also use butter or margarine)

1/3 C warm water

Shortening or cooking oil for frying

Combine flour, baking powder and dash of salt.  Cut in shortening till mixture looks like fine crumbs.  Gradually add warm water stirring with a fork (dough will be crumbly).  On a lightly floured surface knead dough for 3 to 5 minutes or till smooth.  Cover dough and let rest for 10 minutes.  Roll dough into a rectangle. (it needs to be very thin)  Cut into 2½ inch squares.  Fry 2 or 3 squares at a time in grease heated to 425 degrees for 30 seconds on each side.  Keep warm in a 300-degree oven while frying others.  (I don't do this part... they don't make it long enough to get cold!)

PB&J for the Masses

Being a mom of 4 1/2 girls can be pretty busy. We just added packing lunches to our list of daily chores.  I started thinking about anything I could do ahead of time to make life a little easier when it comes to the last minute stuff.  I've really been on this freezer meal kick, since I've had such a big demand for my freezer meal classes.  It's turned my mind into  "hey can I double this batch and freeze some for later" mode.  It's actually been a really great mode to be in, because it saves so much time and energy in the long run. And I need all the energy I can get right now.  I'm in my 3 trimester and really starting to feel the burn so to speak.

I remembered my friend making TONS of PB&J's ahead of time and freezing them. We are talking, the same exact thing you buy for a buck a piece at the store!  These come out to probably 10 cents a piece instead.  I am normally a wheat bread fan and actually rarely give my kids white bread, but frozen white bread is really yummy for some reason.  So, that's why we got the cheap white bread.

I know these are the easiest thing in the world to make, but having them done and ready to go ahead of time, is a big load off.  And really it's no secret recipe... but more of just a quick meal idea for you today.

First you grab 2 loaves of bread and lay them out in rows. 

Spread half with peanut butter and half with jelly

Place the halves together and cut off the crust.  I found a crust cutter from "wonder" at Walmart that worked decently well.  Not fabulous like some other brands but it was still faster than cutting it all by hand.  And it sealed the edges too, to keep it more in tact.

Pack them all in freezer bags and toss it on into the freezer.  Just take out the desired amount, let them thaw (it only takes a few minutes.) And you are ready to go!

This lunch idea came from Recipes From the Pickle Boat



Butter Dip Biscuits

These biscuits make the perfect side to a delicious soup.  My favorite one to eat them with is Carrot Chowder.  These are super easy to make and are done in under 30 minutes from start to finish. 

Butter Dip Biscuits



Butter dips

1 stick butter for pans

2 ¼ C. flour

1 tbsp. sugar

3 ½ tsp baking powder

1 ½ tsp salt

1 C. milk

Melt butter in a 13x9 in pan. In a bowl, mix all dry ingredients. Add milk; stir with fork. Knead together until combined. Roll out into ½ inch thick rectangle. Cut into 2 inch squares. Dip each on both sides with melted butter in pan. Place close together in pan and bake at 450 for 15-20 minutes.

Perfect Pizza Dough

I have been searching for years for the Perfect Pizza Dough.  I finally found it!  The funny thing is, that my dear friend, whom I got the recipe from, had been searching herself for this recipe.  So glad that she shared it!  She's an amazing blogger. Check out her blog... Recipes From the Pickle Boat. You'll love it. 

Tomorrow I will have an insanely delicious recipe using this dough and one of your favorite recipes from here. You won't want to miss it!

The thing I love about this dough is that it's not way hard, like a cracker, and not super fluffy like a loaf of bread.  It's nice and chewy like pizza dough should be.  I also loved that she shared the idea of grilling your pizza so that you don't have to heat up your house!  It was awesome!  The only down fall was that our grill wasn't totally scraped clean so the bottom had a nice charcoal flavor.  I think next time, I might put a thick piece of foil down so that the bottom doesn't get chard.

Also, when you are mixing this dough, follow the instructions!  I got a big head and decided to just throw it all in my bosch.  Nope!  There's a reason why you do this one by hand.  The dough is too thick to be tossed into a mixer it just slides it around and doesn't knead it at all. So learn from my mistake, just do it by hand.

It will also be very thick. Don't think you did it wrong. That's why you knead it for so long. It'll all mix in together don't worry.  And be sure to make two batches.  You can freeze half of it for a rainy day. You'll be glad you did!

 Perfect Pizza Dough

1 1/2 cups 110 degree water
2 1/2 tsp. granulated sugar
2 1/2 tsp. salt
1 Tbsp. olive oil
4 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp. active dry yeast
1/2 cup cornmeal
pizza sauce - of your choice, shredded cheese - of your choice, toppings - of your choice

DIRECTIONS:

In a large bowl, dissolve sugar and salt in water.

Add oil and flour to bowl and stir with heavy spoon for 1 minute.
Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface and press into a circle.
Sprinkle yeast evenly over dough and knead for 12 minutes.
Divide dough into 2 equal-sized portions

Place dough balls in a bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and allow to rise for 1 1/2 hours in a warm location(don't be surprised when it doesn't rise much...you didn't put much yeast in it! it's not supposed to rise a lot).
Place a dough ball on a lightly floured surface and sprinkle a light coating of flour on top.
Working from the edges to the center, press dough into a 12" circle.
Preheat a pizza stone in a 500 degree oven for 1 hour.(this is what gives it the restaurant taste!)
Coat a large board with cornmeal and place the dough onto the cornmeal.
Spread sauce over crust and top with cheese and desired toppings.

Bake in a 500 degree oven for 15-25 minutes, until crust is golden.

Notes: Before allowing the dough to rise, you may place it in a plastic zipper bag and freeze. When ready to use, thaw at room temperature, then proceed with instructions.

If you would like to grill it instead of heating up your house this summer, just toss it on to a preheated grill for about 5-15 minutes.

Tip: don't prepare it on a cookie sheet with sides.  Learn from my mistakes!  It's hard to transfer that way!

Cinnamon Rolls

When I was growing up, a friend of ours made these heavenly cinnamon rolls.  I got the recipe from her and spent the next few years working on making the recipe just perfect. I have to say, It takes a few times getting it just right, but even the mess up batches tastes wonderful! Follow my steps and you'll get it in no time! The bread portion of this recipe is the same as the Basic White Bread recipe that I posted a while back. That's part of the reason why I love this recipe.  If I don't want such a huge batch of cinnamon rolls, I'll split it and make bread or rolls too.  ]

I started a cooking class at my house this week.  Kind of more of a cooking group. A girls time out if you will. I had been wanting some adult time and loved when others would ask me to teach them different things.  So I decided to schedule a time each week to make it official.  I charge a small fee to cover ingredients, but really, I'm just in it for a good time.  I really enjoyed today's class.  I was able to walk them through the steps of the cinnamon rolls and show them some tricks that I learned.  For these classes I try to show some of my dishes that would be better understood in person.  Like cinnamon rolls. 

We will be making things like Flat bread tacos, tamales and different freezer meals in upcoming classes.

But for now, on to the cinnamon rolls. 

Cinnamon Rolls



4 tbsp, saf instant yeast.  (other yeast will do, but not the best. See tip below)

5 C Water

1 C Canola oil

4 eggs

1 C. sugar

2/3 C. Powdered dry milk

2 tsp. salt

14 C. flour approx. (bread flour is best but all-purpose works great too)

Combine 5 cups of flour, salt, sugar, yeast and powdered milk into a bread mixer. I use a Bosch.  Don't add all of the flour quite yet!

Next add the wet ingredients. Eggs, oil and water. I just realized, I didn't get a picture of the rest of the mixing part. Guess I'll have to make another batch:)  Just kidding. Just mix well. Then slowly add flour until it starts to pull away from the sides of the mixer.  You will want it as sticky as possible without totally driving you crazy when trying to mold it. The amount of flour you need to add, depends on the humidity, temperature of your house, etc.  Some days I add 15 cups and some days I only add 12 cups.  Its a new adventure each time you make it! You can add flour when you are rolling it out later, if you need to.

After it starts to pull away from the sides. If you are not using saf yeast, you are missing out! At this point you will need to knead it for at least 8-10 minutes to get your yeast really active!  That's what I love about Saf. It's instant yeast, so you don't have to do all the extra steps. If you are using Saf, just mix it until it's combined and you are done.

Now, coat  your counter top with flour (make sure to clear a big area. It's gonna get big!) Cover the blob of dough with a towel and let it rise until at least doubled. (about 30-45 minutes.) Again, use Saf!  It rises in almost half the time. It makes for a long day when you don't use Saf!  No no no, they aren't paying me to advertise for them, I've just tried the other kinds, and it's not nearly as good. The only problem is that its usually only sold at food storage places or kitchen stores like Shar's.  So stock up when you find it!

See, I told you it would get big! Ahh, don't believe me check out this picture below!

It's like 2 feet wide by 1 1/2 feet deep and about 6 inches high!  That's a lot of dough! I say hey, if you are going to take time to make cinnamon rolls, do it right baby!  Take some to the neighbors, or even freeze them for later! (you can cut the recipe in half though if you want to)

Now that it has doubled in size, pound it down. It's a great time to get that aggression out on something! 

Next you are going to roll it out into a huge rectangle. I usually split the dough pile it half at this point because half of the recipe will cover most of the counter above, length wise.

Here's a couple tips for ya. The longer (from left to right) your rectangle is, the more cinnamon rolls you will have.  The deeper it is, (front to back of counter) the bigger they will be.  The thinner you roll the dough and the deeper the rectangle, the more swirls you will have. So make them however big you want them.  If you want to make a TON of them but want to make them pretty small, stretch that dough out as long as you can and not very deep.  I like to make them nice and huge and fat!

When you have it rolled out, pour melted butter all over the top.  (I like to spread it evenly with a pastry brush. (Don't worry about the mess. That's the best part! K maybe not, but lets be honest, it's a dirty job but someones got to make em! ) I use about 2 cubes or 1 cup of butter for the whole batch. It's totally up to you how much you use. Next, soak up all of that butter with some sugar and cinnamon.  Give it a good coating of both.  Here is also when you can add chopped pecans or walnuts.  And even raisins if you like.  Me, plain ol' cinnamon and sugar is best!

Starting from the front, roll up the dough. Continue to roll towards the back of the counter until you have rolled it all the way. No need to roll it tight just gently roll it up.

When you have it nice and rolled up, grab a piece of thread, fishing line, or even dental floss.  Just please, make sure it's not used fishing line! Or better yet, mint dental floss.  We want cinnamon rolls, not fish flavored or mint flavored rolls!

Slide the thread, under the roll and criss-cross it, like this. I usually go about an inch from the end.  It's up to you, how fat you want them. Just remember, these little guys are going to rise again and double in size, at least! So measure accordingly. And try to keep them all about the same size so they cook evenly.

So, after you have criss-crossed the string. Pull both ends and it will act as a knife, making a nice clean cut.

Lay them about an inch to an inch and a half apart, in a baking pan.  Cover them with a towel and let them rise until doubled.

Bake them at 350 for about 20-30 minutes depending on the size you make them.  They will get golden brown on top.  I like to insert with a toothpick into one of the centers of the cinnamon rolls in the middle of the pan to see if it comes out clean. If it does, they are done.  Another tip, you may need to turn down the oven to 325 if you made them beyond huge, so they don't burn on top, before the middle gets done.  But even I, have never made them THAT big.

Straight out of the oven, pour a generous amount of frosting (recipe below) over the top. It's best to do this step while they are really hot, because the frosting melts and oozes all down into the crevices and makes them simply Heaven!

Enjoy!

Meet some of my friends that came to the class today. Stephanie and Ana.  Great friends! And Good Company! Thanks for coming girls! (don't you totally love my fingerprinted microwave in the back!)

Now onto the best part! The frosting!!!
1 cube of butter

1 (8 oz) package cream cheese

8 C Powdered sugar

1 tsp vanilla

Pinch of salt

Milk 1 tbsp at a time

Soften cream cheese and butter to room temp.  Add cream cheese first and mix well. (I've found it's creamier when you mix up the cream cheese by itself first) Then add butter, vanilla and salt. Next, you are going to add the powdered sugar and milk alternating to get the consistency you want.  (It's best not to add the whole bag at once, just so you don't white wash the entire kitchen before you get enough liquid in there to tone down the powder! Also, whip it for a good 3 minutes or so, to make it nice and fluffy and creamy.

I like my frosting pretty thick, but it's totally up to you. The best consistency for me is where it just starts to drizzle (with an even stream) off of the spoon when you dip it into the bowl and hold it up.


You can freeze these, already frosted, or just after you place them into the pan (before the 2nd rising stage).  Make sure to thaw them, let them rise and then bake them.

Cinnamon Rolls (full recipe)

4 tbsp, Saf instant yeast. 

5 C Water

1 C Canola oil

4 eggs

1 C. sugar

2/3 C. Powdered dry milk

2 tsp. salt

14 c. flour approx

Mix 5 cups flour, salt, sugar, milk and yeast.  Add Water, oil and eggs.  Mix thoroughly and add flour just until it pulls away from the sides.(of mixer)

Let rise until doubled, punch dough.

Filling

1 cup butter (approx.)

Cinnamon

Sugar

Nuts or raisins (optional)

 After rising, roll out 1/4 inch thick into a big rectangle. Spread with melted butter. Sprinkle with cinnamon then sugar. Roll up and slice 1 inch thick. Put into a 9x13 inch greased pans or cookie sheets with sides. Let rise until doubled. Bake at 350 for 20 min. (longer if needed)

Frosting

1 cube of butter

1 (8 oz) package cream cheese

8 C Powdered sugar (I just use a whole bag. It's about the same amount)

1 tsp vanilla

Pinch of salt

Milk 1 tbsp at a time

Soften butter and cream cheese. Whip and gradually add sugar and milk intermittently until desired consistency. Add Vanilla and salt. Whip until fluffy.

Yeast tip:  If using a non instant yeast, Add warm water and yeast into a separate bowl and whisk until dissolved.  Let it sit for about 10 minutes, until bubbly. Then add it into the mixture, when you add the wet ingredients.

Enjoy!



Honey Butter

When we lived in UT, I used to love going to a restaurant called Chuck-a-Rama.  Especially when I was pregnant.  I constantly craved their rolls with honey butter.  Mmmmm! 

Since we don't live there anymore, I decided it was time to figure out a recipe to satisfy the craving. It's so easy to make and adds a great flavor to any bread. It goes deliciously well with the Basic White Bread recipe I posted earlier this year. 

Honey Butter

1 stick of butter (1/2 cup)

3 tbsp honey (more if desired)

Soften butter to room temperature in a bowl. Add honey and whip with egg beaters for 1-3 minutes. Serve with bread.



Italian Herb Garlic Bread

Garlic bread is a huge hit in our house.  I love making my own flavors to go on top.  One of our favorites is this, Italian Herb Garlic Bread.  It gives your usual garlic bread a little twist.  Don't be intimidated by the name... It's super easy to make. You can always use fresh ingredients, but after making the main dish, I usually just want my sides, to be quick and easy.

All you need is a loaf of your favorite bread.  French bread works well and I think sour dough is our favorite.  You can also just use plain ol white bread or even hamburger/ hotdog buns that are leftover.  I haven't tried it with wheat yet, so if you do, let me know how it turns out. 

Italian Herb Garlic Bread

1 cube butter

1 tsp garlic salt
1 tsp Italian seasoning

1 loaf of french bread or other bread

Melt butter and mix in other ingredients.  Brush over each slice of bread. (both sides) Grill on a griddle or frying pan until golden brown. You can also bake them on a cookie sheet at 375 until golden brown. Serve immediately.

Basic White Bread

Don't you just love the smell of you house as bread is baking.  Can we say Heaven!! If you have never made bread before... Try it. It's awesome. Don't get intimidated. Just try it. You don't need any fancy equipment or even a bread maker. If you have a nice heavy duty mixer, that is ideal. (egg beaters wont work too far into the process) Otherwise after the first couple of cups of flour, you will need to start mixing by hand.  I've made this recipe hundreds of times and used my hands quite a bit. Don't be afraid to play with it and get your hands dirty.  It's fun!

This is a simple white bread recipe.  You don't have to use any special flour, just plain white four will do.  I had some extra bread flour this time so I decided to try it.  It made it taste even more light and fluffy.  It also made it rise, like I have never seen before.  So if you have bread flour, go for it, and just fill your pans about 1/4 of the way instead of 1/2. Otherwise, plain ol' white flour works beautifully. Also its not necessary, but it makes a HUGE difference.  You will want to use SAF yeast.  Nothing works better than SAF.  You can find it at food storage stores and specialty bakeware/cookware stores. This recipe come from a friend of mine.  She gave it to us to use in our church cookbook. 

Basic White Bread

4 tbsp, saf instant yeast. 

5 C Water

1 C Canola oil

4 eggs

1 C sugar

2/3 c Powdered dry milk

2 tsp salt
14 c. flour approx (bread flour works best but all-purpose is still great)

Mix 5 cups flour, salt, sugar, milk and yeast.  Add Water, oil and eggs.  Mix thoroughly and add flour just until it pulls away from the sides.(of mixer)

Let rise until doubled, punch dough. About like this :)

For bread... put into greased bread pans. Let rise until its the size of a nice big loaf of bread. For rolls, roll into balls and place in a baking pan about a half inch to and inch apart. Let rise until doubled. Bake about 30 minutes. (Less time for the rolls.When they start to get golden brown... they are done.)\

Tip: the key to light and fluffy bread, is using as little flour as needed.  When the dough starts to pull from the sides of the mixer, or becomes just easy enough to handle with your hands, it's ready. It's better to flour or oil your hands to shape it, rather than have it easy enough to handle with out doing that. 

Garlic Cheese Biscuits

If you have never been to red lobster... you are missing out. Who cares about the seafood...they have these biscuits that are heavenly. My mother-in-law makes some seriously good ones.  I took her info and created my own recipe. It's going to be a huge hit for Easter dinner. They are so pretty too! In her words... Don't even think about counting the weight watchers points for this dish.  They are super easy. There are a few steps to them, but very simple ones.

Garlic Cheese Biscuits

Biscuits:

2 1/4 C. biscuit mix (I used Bisquick)

2 C. Sharp Cheddar Cheese

1 C. Half and Half

Garlic Butter:

1 cube butter

3/4 tsp garlic salt

Other:

1/4 tsp parsley flakes

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Combine biscuit mix, cheese and half and half in a bowl. (you can use milk or even water in place of half and half... but this way is so much better!) Stir until combined. Dough will be slightly moist. Drop the dough onto a cookie sheet. (do not roll, they get too hard)

In a small bowl combine butter and garlic salt and melt in the microwave.

Dust biscuit mix lightly with garlic salt and parsley flakes. Brush uncooked biscuits with garlic butter .

Bake at 400 degrees for about 10 minutes.  When the dough peaks get light brown... they are done. Don't over bake!

As soon as you pull them out of the oven, brush the biscuits with the rest of the garlic butter. Serve immediately.

English Muffin Breakfast Sandwich

This is such a quick and easy breakfast to shake up the usual, cold cereal.  You can also make up a bunch ahead of time and freeze them.  Just wrap them individually in a sandwich bag and stick them in the freezer.  Then you can microwave them for about a minute. You can add whatever kind of meat you want.  Ham, bacon, a sausage patty etc.  You can also add any type of cheese that you prefer.  I like my eggs fried. But you can easily make them scrambled, or omelet style.  This is how I like to make mine. Although I completely forgot the sliced cheese.  The best part!

English Muffin Breakfast Sandwich

4 slices of bacon

2 fried eggs

1 English muffin

sliced cheese

Layer ingredients on a toasted English muffin.  Serve immediately, or freeze for future meals.

Monkey Bread

This has got to be one of my families favorite treats.  It's so easy to make and so delicious! I found this recipe online somewhere, and then changed it to our tastes.  I've made it with refrigerated biscuits and Rhodes rolls, and the rolls are so much better! Also, you want to make sure to have a bundt pan.  It just doesn't bake evenly without one.

Monkey Bread

about 15 Rhodes rolls thawed

1 Cup packed brown sugar

1 1/2 sticks butter (3/4 Cup)

1/2 Cup white sugar

2 tbsp cinnamon

3/4 cup chopped pecans (optional)

Grease bundt pan and pour half of the chopped pecans in the bottom of the pan. Mix white sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl. Break rolls into 1/3-or 1/4 pieces and coat with the cinnamon/sugar mixture. Place evenly in the bundt pan until it is half full. Sprinkle the rest of the pecans on top, allowing them to fall between the pieces of dough.

In a sauce pan, melt butter and add brown sugar over medium heat. Boil for one minute and pour over the layered dough.

Bake at 350 degrees for 35 minutes.  Let cool for 10 minutes and turn upside down onto a plate. Pull apart and enjoy!

One-eyed Sandwiches

Do you remember as a kid, your parents getting really creative with your food to get you to eat it?  Like calling broccoli, trees.  I've got a few recipes like this one up my sleeve.  This is a really cute way to get your kids to eat their breakfast.  My husband had these when he was a boy and still loves to eat them to this day. He likes to make them for our kiddos as well.  This is a good one to let them help out with too. It's quick and easy.

Step one: tear or eat a hole out of the center of the bread.  Melt about a tablespoon of butter on an electric griddle or frying pan and lay the bread on it.

Step two: Crack and egg and pour into the hole in the bread. Top with salt and pepper.

Step three: fry each side for a few minutes until egg is done and bread is crispy. Enjoy!

Reuben Sandwich

The Reuben is one of my husbands favorite sandwiches. We have this running joke, that instead of going to a restaurant to satisfy our usual cravings, we will just try to create a similar flavor/recipe and skip out on the restaurant prices. Especially when I am pregnant and crave the same things over and over... my dear husband will master the dish so that he can make it for me day or night.  This sandwhich is just such a recipe. I love when he says my food is "better than the restaurants!" It makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside.

 I have never been a fan of sauerkraut so I usually make this as a kit.for his lunch at work. Let me tell ya, this one makes all the other guys on the job jealous! I put all of the ingredients in separate bags or containers so he can make it nice and fresh.

You can use the sliced corned beef from the deli, but its so much better with the shredded corned beef. I like to buy a few corned beef roasts and "can" them or you can freeze it already cooked, for faster preparation.  I like to "can" them in pint jars which ends up making enough for my husband to take to work. Stay tuned for "how to's" on canning meats. I'll give you all the details in future posts.

You'll want to remember to drain the sauerkraut so it doesnt get the bread too soggy. Also these ingredient ratios are how my hubby likes them, but really you can add or subtract however you want. You can also toast the bread or eat it plain.

Reuben Sandwich

2 slices of rye bread ( he likes a dark rye or marbled rye)

1 cup cooked and shredded corned beef

2 tablespoons of 1000 island dressing

about 1/2 cup sauerkraut

2 slices of swiss cheese

To toast the bread:  spread the outside of each slice with butter and grill on a skillet until golden brown.  Spread the inside of each slice with dressing and then add corned beef, sauerkraut and cheese. Enjoy!