Monday, December 10, 2012

Super fast Cinnamon Rolls

I got a recipe from Valene King.  She lives in Gunnison and worked for Dwight for several years.  She's a great cook, and I heard about this recipe from a common friend.  I called her today to get the recipe, and she said she was in the middle of making them at that very minute for a fireside at her home in two hours.  She said she can make these in one hour!  It took me 90 minutes.  Here's the recipe:

Sweet Rolls - Valene King

In your bread mixer bowl of other large mixing bowl combine

4 c. hot water
1/2 c. sugar
1 c. oil (I used canola)
3 eggs

Add and mix well

6 c. flour
6 T. SAF instant yeast

Add the rest of these ingredients and mix until just well combined.  No kneading.

4 c. flour
1 T. salt

Let the dough sit in the mixing bowl.  Put a damp cloth on top of the bowl.  Let rise until double in bulk while you prepare

1/2 c. melted butter (to spread on the rolled out dough)
1 c. sugar (mix the sugar and cinnamon to spread on the rolled out dough)
2 t. cinnamon

When the bread dough has become double in bulk, pull out 1/3 of the dough and put it on a well floured surface.  Flip it over so that both sides have flour on them.  Roll out to 1/2 inch thick.  Spread with melted butter and sprinkle with cinnamon sugar.  Roll the long edge to the top.  Pinch the edge of the dough into the roll.  Cut into 1 1/4 inch thick rolls.  Place them on a greased cookie sheet to rise. 
Repeat this step for the rest of the dough in your bowl. (I made 16 rolls with each 1/3 of the dough.  So I ended up with 48 sweet rolls.)  When the rolls look like they have "filled out,"  bake them. 


Bake at 400 degrees for 11 to 12 minutes.  Frost with buttercream or cream cheese frosting.

Good luck!


Friday, November 23, 2012

Amazing Chocolate Cake and Other Great Recipes

Before I write about this year's Thanksgiving dinner, I want to share a great recipe for chocolate cake.  This cake was served for dessert at the Young Women luncheon held yearly for all past Young Women presidencies and boards.  This year we were celebrating 100 years of camp, so the decorations and even the dishes were reminiscent of camp.


We hauled in logs, tree stumps, logs, grasses, trees, and even fall leaves to create a camp setting.  We had two past YW sitting on the stump and singing camp songs accompanied by guitar.




Sister Karen Ashton happened to have the red and white enamelware and the red handled flatware at her cabin.  She was gracious enough to let us use them.  We didn't have a small plate for the bread, so we used a tinfoil tart pan.  Thus, it was a tin-foil dinner.  Actually, we started out thinking it would be fun to have the food served in tin foil, but we decided all the foil would be messy. 



The napkins were tied with twine with a small pine cone and sprig of greenery attached.  The favor was a silver pine cone charm with the "legend of the pine tree" and all of the recipes beautifully encased in a cellophane envelope.

Here are the cake and frosting recipe and the recipe for the warm caramel sauce that was drizzled over the cake.  These recipes were generously shared by the woman who catered the dinner. 

Sam's Chocolate Cake

2 1/2 c. sugar
2 3/4 c. all-purpose flour
1 1/8 c. Dutch processed cocoa
2  t. baking powder
2 1/4 t. baking soda
1 1/2 t. sea salt
3 large eggs
1 1/2 c. milk
3/4 c. canola oil or other neutral flavored oil
1 T. vanilla extract
1 1/2 c. very hot water

1.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2.  Grease pans.  Use 3 8x8 square or 9x9 square or 1 9x13 plus 1 8x8 or 3 8x8 rounds
3.  In a bowl, whisk together sugar, flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
4.  In he bowl of an electric mixer, mix together eggs, milk, oil and vanilla.
5.  Add the dry ingredients to the wet and mix on low speed for five minutes.
6.  Gradually add the hot water, mixing at low speed just until combined.
7.  The batter should be thin enough to pour.
8.  Divide the batter into prepared pans, making sure that it doesn't come more than halfway up the side.
9.  Bake for 35 minutes, until a toothpick in the center comes out completely clean.
10.  Cake can cool in the pan.

Note:  The cake rises a lot! so be sure to not fill the pans too full.  When it comes out of the oven it falls slightly, but should end up flat and not have a big dip in the middle.  It is undercooked if there is a dip.

Chocolate Frosting

6 c. powdered sugar
2/3 c. Dutch processed cocoa
1/4 t. salt
3/4 c. unsalted butter, very soft, not melted (salted is okay)
1 t. chocolate extract (I didn't have this and it was okay)
1/4-1/2 c. cream or half and half, warmed

1.  Sift powdered cocoa and salt into a large bowl (I stir it well with a whisk)
2.  Add butter, extracts and part of the warmed cream.
3.  Mix with an electric hand mixer.
4.  Add cream till you get the desired onsistency.
5.  Whip for 3 to 5 minutes until silky.

Note:  If you're going to just frost the 9 x 13, this is too much frosting.  Cut it down to 4 c. powdered sugar, 1 generous 1/2 c. of cocoa, 1/2 c. butter plus 1 T.

Warm Caramel Sauce

1/2 c. brown sugar
1/2 c. white sugar
1/2 c. butter
1/2 c. heavy cream
1 t. molasses
1 t. vanilla
1/8 t. salt

1.  Mix in a pyrex bowl.
2.  Microwave 1 minute.
3.  Stir.
4.  Microwave 1 minute more.
5.  Still till smooth.

Serve warm over the cake.  Yum!!!!!

 Let me know how you like these recipes!

The menu for the dinner was:
     Italian Rolls
     Berry Almond Salad
     Apricot Glazed Pork Tenderloin with Apple Cider Reduction Sauce
     Jeweled Rice Pilaf
     Yam-Spiked Mashed Potatoes
     Chocolate Cake with Warm Caramel Sauce

Apricot Glazed Pork

4-5 lbs. pork tenderloin (you can use pork loin but it won't be as tender)

RUB:
2 t. Kosher salt
1/2 t. ground ginger
1/2 t. dried thyme
1/2 t. pepper
2 large garlic cloves, minced

GLAZE:
2 T. brown sugar
1/2 c. apricot preserves
1/2 T. dijon mustard
1/4 c. water
1 T. frozen orange juice concentrate

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
1.  Combine rub spices and rub over entire loins.
2.  Place tenderloins in a shallow roasting pan on a rack.
3.  Bake uncovered for 1/2 hour
4.  Glaze:  In a saucepan combine glaze ingredients and heat until smooth.
5.  Bring to a boil.  Cook and stir for 1 minute.
6.  Brush tenderloin with apricot glaze and continue roasting for 1/2 hour more.  Check internal temperature.  Temperature should reach 140 to 150 degrees (unless you prefer your meat well done).
7.  Let meat stand for 10 minutes before slicing.  You will have small medallions, about 4-5 per person.
8.  Serve with Apple Cider Reduction Sauce, if desired.

Yield:  20 servings

Apple Cider Reduction Sauce

1 gallon apple cider (reserve 1/2 c. apple cider to use for thickening)
1/4 c. brown sugar (I think it needed twice that much)
1 c. apple cider vinegar
1 t. peppercorns
1 t. cinnamon
dash allspice
1/2 t. crushed red pepper
3 slices fresh, peeled ginger (thin) (I think it could use more ginger)
1/2 c. cornstarch
salt to taste

1.  Set aside 1/2 c. of the apple cider.
2.  Combine remaining cider with sugar, vinegar, peppercorns, cinnamon, allspice, red pepper, and ginger.
3.  Reduce by half bringing to a boil, then gently simmer for about 2 hours, until reduced by half.
4.  Check flavor, and adjust seasoning if necessary.  Add salt to taste.

Note:  I halved this recipe for 10 and it was still too much.  Try cutting it down to 1/4 of the recipe for 10.

Jeweled Rice Pilaf

2 c. parboiled, long grain rice (she uses Uncle Ben's brown rice)
1 c. wild rice or brown rice
2 t. salt
2 1/2 c. water
1/2 c. butter
garlic salt
1/4 c. craisins, chopped to fine dice
1/4 c. dates, chopped to fine dice
1/4 c. golden raisins, chopped to fine dice
1/4 c. chopped pecans or pine nuts
1/3 c. matchstix carrots, parboiled and chopped (or fine dice a carrot and parboil)
4 scallions, green and white, thinly sliced
1/2 t. salt
1/2 t. pepper
2 t. Herbs de Provence
1/2 c. fresh parsley, chopped
Chicken broth?  It didn't have chicken broth listed in the ingredients on her recipe, but it mentions it in the directions.  I haven't made this yet so I am just guessing on the amount - 1 cup to a full can?

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
1.  In a saucepan add salt to water and bring to a boil.
2.  Place rice in a medium boil and pour boiling water over rice.
3.  Cover and let stand 30 minutes.
4.  Rinse with cold water and drain well.
5.  Melt butter in a skillet.
6.  Add rice and cook over medium heat, stirring frequently, until butter is almost absorbed - about 5 min.
7.  Chop raisins, dates, golden raisins, and pecans if you haven't already done this.
8.  Prepare carrots and scallions.
9.  Stir into the rice:  craisins, dates, raisins, pecans, carrots, scallions, salt, pepper, and Herbs de provence.
10.  Place in a 2 quart greased baking dish and sprinkle with garlic salt.
11.  Pour chicken broth over rice mixture.
12.  Bake covered in 325 degree oven for 1 hour.
13.  Add parsley and fluff with fork.  Bake uncovered 10 minutes more.

Let me know if you try these recipes! 

Thursday, November 1, 2012

Team 1 donuts (on the little Halloween plates):  Harvest Spice, BAM (Bacon, Avocado, Maple), In Prison.  Team 2 donuts (on Japanese plates):  The Ronnie (huevos rancheros on a donut), Coconut Surprise, and the PBD (peanut butter donut).  Winner:  Team 1 by only .4, and best donut went to Coconut Surprise. 

Team 1 Doughnuts:

Doughnut #1:   The BAM (Raised doughnut on slices of bacon with maple glaze, topped with avocado cream and bacon bits)


 Doughnut #2:   Harvest Spice (Pumpkin doughnut with maple cream topped with toasted coconut)


 Doughnut #3:  In Prison (pumpkin mochi cut with a doughnut cutter, topped with chocolate ganosh and garnished with pretzels)

Team 2 Doughnuts:

Doughnut #1:  The Ronnie (Original flat doughnut smeared with guacamole and topped with a sunny side up egg, garnished with chopped tomatoes)


 Doughnut #2:  Coconut Surprise (Pumpkin cake doughnut with crushed M&M's and Nutter Butter cookies and peanut butter inside the chocolate frosting.  All garnished with toasted coconut.



Doughnut #3:  The PBD (Raised doughnut with peanut butter whipped cream on top of chocolate ganosh)


Judges were Auntie Ruthie, Auntie Jeanne, Aaron, Davey, and Stephen.  Special guest appearance by Rob's mom, Maria.
 


The winning team:    Team 1!  who won by only a fraction, actually .4 points! 

Best doughnut awarded to Team 2 for their Coconut Surprise.

Congratulations to everyone for a great competition!

The first annual Doughnut Wars!

Well, as predicted, it was a great success.  Two teams initially had 30 minutes to create three original doughnuts.  When the timer went off, it was apparent that these two teams were not professionals and had to have more time, so we threw out the timer and let the war proceed! 


Team 1:   Emily, Sharyn, Anne, Isaac, and Trent
Team 2;  Sarah, Rob, Sam, and Aimee








Go to next post for more . . .

Tuesday, September 18, 2012

Uncle Roman said it was the best he's ever tasted . . .

Uncle Roman said that last night's spaghetti sauce (Peter, forgive him for calling all pasta sauce "spaghetti sauce") was the best he's ever tasted.  Which is interesting.  I actually intended to make one of our family's favorite recipes:  Uncooked Spaghetti Sauce (again, Peter, forgive us for calling all pasta sauce "SS").  This recipe calls for the following:

3 c. uncooked tomatoes, peeled and chopped
1/3 c. olive oil
1/4 c. fresh basil, chopped or 1 T. dry basil leaves
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1/3 c. fresh parsley, chopped or  1 heaping T. dry
1/4 c. Parmesan cheese, grated
1 t. salt or more if needed

I decided to "primavera" this recipe (or add a bunch of chopped vegetables) so I chopped onion, zucchini, and eggplant and sauteed that with the garlic in a little oil.  I then added the 1/3 c. olive oil, basil, parsley, cheese, and tomatoes.  I did not cook it after I added these ingredients!  Voila!  The best "spaghetti sauce" Uncle Roman has ever tasted on angel hair pasta.  Try it, but please don't call it "spaghetti sauce." 

Sunday, September 9, 2012

Yum!  This is the season for fruit pies. . .

Tonight I tried a new recipe for a pear pie that was shared by Kristen Olsen, the amazing administrative assistant to the Young Women.  It was all hands on deck, so Aimee and Aaron and Peter helped too. It's a wonderful time to make fruit pies.  Besides the pear pie I also made a fresh peach pie.  Here are the recipes.  Try them before the delicious Utah fruit disappears.  And by the way, honey crisp apples are available now at the Spanish Fork farmer's market or at the McMullin's stand in Payson.

French Pear Pie
Preheat oven to 400 degrees.\

Single crust unbaked pie shell
4 large ripe pears, peeled and sliced into the pie shell
3 T. frozen orange juice concentrate drizzled over the pears.

Combine following ingredients for topping and crumble over the top of the pears.
3/4 c. flour
1/2 c. butter, softened
1/2 c. white or brown sugar (I used brown sugar and the color was nice)

Bake at 400 degrees for 40 minutes.  (I had to turn down the heat to 300 after 25 min.)


Fresh Peach Pie Filling

In small saucepan combine:
1 c. sugar
1 1/2 c. water
2 T. lemon juice

Bring to a boil and add:
3 T. cornstarch mixed in 1/4 c. cold water.
Add food coloring - yellow or orange for peach pie and red for strawberry pie.

Bring to a boil again and stir until thickened.  Remove from heat and cool.

Slice fresh peaches and generously fill a baked pie shell.  Pour cooled filling over the peaches.  Serve immediately with whipped cream or ice cream.  (The pie shell and filling can be made ahead.  Just before serving, dip peaches in boiling water for 30 seconds.  Remove skins and slice the peaches.)

Hope you try these recipes out and report back!

Sunday, August 19, 2012

Gluten Free Banana Bread

Here's a recipe I read in the paper.  Emily and Beth, you should try this!

Gluten Free Banana Bread by Elisabeth Hasselbeck, author of Deliciously G-Free cookbook

5 T. butter, room temp
1 c. sugar
2 eggs
1 1/2 c. mashed banana
1 c. brown rice flour
3/4 c. millet flour
1 t. baking soda
1/2 t. salt
1/2 t. xanthan gum
1/4 t. baking powder
1/2 c. chopped walnuts
  1. Preheat oven to 350.  Line 9 x 5 loaf pan with aluminum foil and coat foil with cooking spray.
  2. Beat butter and sugar with an electric mixer on high speed until light yellow and fluffy.  Add eggs one at a time, mixing on mnedium until thoroughly combined.
  3. Add banana and 1/3 c. water and mix on low for 1 minute.  Sprinkle brown rice flour, millet flour, baking soda, salt, xanthan gum, and baking powder over batter.  Add nuts, if desired.  Stir batter just until ingredients are combined.
  4. Spoon into pan and bake for 50 to 55 minutes or until center of loaf springs back to the touch.
  5. Transfer pan to a wire rack and allow to cool for 5 minutes.  Lift bread out of pan and let it cool completely on rack.