Pudding Cinnamon Rolls

September 13, 2010 by
 
I was making a batch of these today and realized that I’ve never gotten around to sharing the recipe!  I’ve had the pictures just waiting to be posted, along with a backlog of recipes.  I seriously need a personal assistant to take care of half of my work load (can I get an amen from about 99% of you?!)  Between managing a home, 2 kids, homeschooling, therapy for my daughter, blah, errands, blah, church, blah, you get the picture.  Amelia has decided that she does not need to sleep after about 2 a.m. anymore, so let’s just say I’m a LITTLE tired.  So what do I do? Make cinnamon rolls of course!
There is something about baking that makes me feel more relaxed.  It’s also a great activity to do with kids.  It teaches math, patience, and best of all, it means you’re spending time together.  I hope you’ll take the time to have a family night tonight and make a batch up of something together. 
 
PUDDING CINNAMON ROLLS
Source: Mel’s Kitchen Cafe
 
ROLLS:
1/2 c warm water
2 T active dry yeast
2 T sugar
3 1/2 oz package instant vanilla pudding
1/2 cup butter, melted 
2 eggs
1 tsp salt
6+ cups flour
 
FILLING:
1 c butter, room temperature
2 c brown sugar
4 tsp cinnamon
 
FROSTING:
8 oz cream cheese
1/2 c butter, room temperature
1 tsp vanilla
3 c confectioner’s sugar
2-3 T milk
 
Combine water, yeast, and sugar in a medium bowl.  Stir to dissolve and set aside.
In your mixer bowl, prepare pudding according to package directions.
Add butter, eggs, and salt.  Mix well, then add yeast mixture. Mix briefly.
Add flour gradually, knead until smooth. (This is a sticky dough, don’t be tempted to overflour).
Place in a greased bowl, cover, and let rise until doubled, about 1 hour.
Roll out on a floured surface to about 34 by 21 inches. 
Mix butter, brown sugar, and cinnamon together, spread on dough.
Roll up tightly, rolling on the long side.
Cut every 1 1/2 inches using a serrated knife or thread. NOTE: I like to cut the log in half, then cut each half into 12 rolls.(You should get 24 rolls)
(To use thread or dental floss, work the middle of a strand of thread under dough roll, then cross over on the top, pulling until thread goes all the way through.) 
Place on a lightly greased cookie sheet about 1 inch apart. 
 (NOTE: I sometimes fit them closely on 1 large cookie sheet – just be careful or they can raise over the edge!, or you can put them on 2 cookie sheets and spread them out).
Cover and let rise until doubled in size.  Bake at 350 degrees for about 15 to 20 minutes.
Remove when they are golden, don’t overbake.
To make frosting, mix butter and cream cheese together, add vanilla and sugar, mix well, then add milk for spreading consistency.  Frost while warm.  Makes 24.
 
 
Filed Under: Bread, Yeast

Hamburgers

September 10, 2010 by
 
 
See that tomato? That gorgeous heirloom perfectly ripe yellow tomato?  It is the ONE and ONLY tomato as of yet to come out of my garden this year.  And possibly the last.  No, I’m not counting the small cherry tomatoes, not that it matters since I didn’t get hardly any of those either.  I planted 16 tomato plants this year and despite them being humongous and healthy and tons of green tomatoes hanging on, I think our wet long spring and short summer just did them in. 
So, what to do with our lonely tomato?  We decided to have a grill night and make our favorite hamburgers to pair it with.  (Probably our last grill night of the year at this rate!)  And yes, that tomato was the bell of the ball at our table, I’m not sure if it tasted so good because it was the only one we’ve had from the garden this year, our it really was the best tomato I’ve ever eaten.  I’m leaning towards the latter.   And I may or may not have snuck a slice or two by themselves….
 
HAMBURGERS
Recipe by My Stained Apron
 
1 pound hamburger
2 slices bread, torn
1/4 cup milk
3 minced garlic cloves
Kosher salt and black pepper, to taste
 
FOR SERVING:
Hamburger buns
lettuce
tomato
cheese of choice
 
Pour milk over bread in a small bowl.  Let sit for a couple of minutes.  Mix hamburger with garlic, salt, and pepper.  Mash bread with a fork to make a paste, mix into hamburger. 
Form into patties, indenting the middle of each patty slightly with your finger.  (This makes the middle cook through more evenly with the outside of the burger.)
Grill or cook in a skillet (cast iron preferably).  Top with cheese of choice. 
Other topping ideas: Bacon, sauteed mushrooms, sliced avocado, ham, pineapple, BBQ sauce
 
 
Filed Under: Beef Tagged With: , , ,

Warm Buttermilk Syrup

September 8, 2010 by
When I was a kid, for a special treat we would have “Ice Cream Waffles”.  You put a scoop of ice cream on a hot crispy waffle and enjoy!  It still remains a fun memory to me, and I promise, if you think it sounds weird, just try it.  Think of a warm waffle cone with creamy ice cream.  We would try all kinds of flavors, from plain vanilla to mint chocolate chip or whatever.  This would be a great addition.  I’m thinking crispy waffles, butter pecan ice cream, and a drizzle of this on top.  It would also go great on a multitude of other dishes, but I’ll leave that to you to have fun experimenting with!
 
WARM BUTTERMILK SYRUP
 
1/2 cup butter
1 cup sugar
3/4 cup buttermilk
1 T corn syrup
1 tsp baking soda
1 T vanilla extract
 
Combine butter, sugar, buttermilk, and corn syrup in a pot and boil over medium high heat.
Add baking soda and vanilla, allow to cook only briefly before removing from heat.
Serve hot, or reheat before serving.
Filed Under: Breakfast, Sauces / Condiments Tagged With: ,

Onion Dip

September 6, 2010 by
We love to occasionally have a family movie or game night (this can be quite interesting with 2 young kids, one having autism as well) but having some fun dips and snacks can make it more successful, that’s for sure.
I don’t know what it is about dips but my girls think it is the most fun to ever be had!  This is easy enough you can have your kids help make it, especially since there is no cooking involved.  (And I forgot to mention my husband goes nuts for this stuff as well!)
ONION DIP
Recipe by My Stained Apron
2 T dried onions
1 1/2 tsp dried thyme
1/2 tsp celery salt
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup sour cream
Mix everything together.  Chill in the refrigerator for at least a couple of hours for best flavor.
Serve with pretzels or chips or your favorite dippers.
Filed Under: Appetizers / Dips / Snacks

Lasagna with Bolognese and Parmesan Bechamel

September 2, 2010 by
 
Once you try this lasagna, you’ll be amazed that you don’t miss all the cheese in those other versions.  Lasagna can be quite expensive to make usually, as most recipes call for ricotta cheese, cottage cheese, parmesan cheese, mozzarella cheese, etc.  And definitely not very healthy.  I am not a huge lasagna fan, but I love this version.
I used to make this dish using just one quart of Bolognese sauce, but we like it better when it’s a little more saucy.  So often times I double it, and use 3 quarts total.  I take the extra dish to a friend or freeze for later even.  Or if I don’t double it, that extra half a quart of sauce mysteriously disappears after my husband goes in the kitchen.  Oh, and did I mention that my husband rates this one at a 10 plus?
Not bad. : ) 
 
LASAGNA WITH BOLOGNESE AND PARMESAN BECHAMEL
Makes one 9 by 13 inch pan or 2 smaller
 
For assembly:
1 1/2 quarts bolognese sauce
3/4 cup milk
Lasagna noodles, homemade or oven-ready
1 lb. sliced Fresh mozzarella, optional
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
 
For the Parmesan Béchamel sauce:
6 T cup butter
6 T flour
2 cups milk
dash salt
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
 
Mix milk together with Bolognese sauce. Set aside.
Make the Béchamel sauce.  Melt butter in a pan over medium heat.  Add flour and cook for a minute.  Add milk and salt, cook until smooth and thickened, stirring often.
Mix in 1 cup of Parmesan.
 
Now to assemble.  Spray your pan with non stick spray, and spoon a little Bolognese on the bottom.
Layer in the following order: (If using the mozzarella, lay the slices on top of each béchamel layer)
noodles, béchamel, noodles, Bolognese,
noodles, béchamel, noodles, Bolognese,
You can stop here, depending on how thick you layered everything, how large your pan is, etc., or add one more :
noodles, béchamel, noodles, Bolognese.
 
Top with the 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese.
Bake uncovered at 375 degrees for 45 minutes to 1 hour. 
I serve with a big green salad and fresh baguettes.
Filed Under: Pasta

Bolognese stuffed zucchini and mushrooms

September 2, 2010 by
I told you, we really love this sauce.  It’s versatile, flavorful, and a total lifesaver when you need a quick dinner that isn’t served by a teenager in drive-thru.  I’m not much for “freezer meals” but I do love having a few things in the freezer that are components of a good meal.  And watch tomorrow for my husband’s favorite use of this sauce.
BOLOGNESE STUFFED ZUCCHINI AND MUSHROOMS
Recipe by My Stained Apron
4 small green zucchini
8 mushrooms, about 1 lb.
Bolognese sauce
1 cup shredded mozzarella or Parmesan
Scoop out the inside of zucchini using a spoon or melon baller, leaving a border of flesh and  being careful not to break the skin.
Pop stems out of mushrooms.
Lay zucchini and mushrooms in single layer in baking pans.
Spoon bolognese sauce into vegetables.
Sprinkle with mozzarella.

Bake at 450 degrees for 15 to 20 minutes.

Filed Under: Beef, Pork

Fresh Lasagna Noodles

September 2, 2010 by
 
 
 
Did you try making spaghetti noodles yet?  Either way, you really should make these!  It takes very little practice to become comfortable working with homemade pasta dough.  The texture, in my opinion, is completely different from store-bought.  In the pictures I was actually making a double batch, since I made a pan for our family and one to take to an amazing friend who just had baby number 7!  If that doesn’t deserve a pan of fresh homemade lasagna, I don’t know what does!
 
HOMEMADE LASAGNA NOODLES
 
This makes enough for one 9 by 13 inch dish of lasagna with 4 to 6 layers of noodles (depending on how thin you make your noodles, how much you overlap them, etc.  Can be doubled.
 
2 1/4 cups flour
3 eggs
pinch salt
 
Mix everything together in a food processor for about 30 seconds.
 
 
 
 
 
Turn out and knead for 3 to 4 minutes.
Until dough is fairly smooth.
Add water if dry, flour if too sticky. (Just a little at a time.)
Cover with a damp cloth or plastic wrap on counter until ready to roll.
To roll out, start with pasta roller on thickest setting. Pat dough flat into a disc.
FLOUR YOUR PASTA ROLLER WELL. Don’t skip this step.  You’ll want to keep it floured the entire time.
Pass it through on the thickest setting a couple times, then go down to the next setting and repeat.
Repeat for the third setting. (If you want it thinner, go ahead and repeat- this is the thickness I use for Lasagna noodles)
If your noodles look shaggy, just dust with a little extra flour and fold in thirds and roll again.
Cut noodles to fit to pan approximately, cutting a little shorter (they will expand when cooked).
Boil in salted boiling water for about 2 minutes, then remove with a large slotted spoon to a bowl of cold water.  Separate noodles and lay out on a damp tea towel in single layer.  You’re now ready to assemble your lasagna!
HAND DIRECTIONS

Put flour in a mound on the counter or in a shallow bowl.
Make a well in the center of flour and add eggs and salt in the well.
Use a fork to whisk eggs in the well, and stir in flour, working in a little at a time.
Add a few teaspoons of warm water if too dry, a little flour if too wet.
Knead for a few minutes until very smooth.
Divide dough into four balls and cover with a damp tea towel or plastic wrap.
Roll each dough ball out as thin as you can on a floured surface, then cut into strips.
Cook same as above.

Filed Under: Pasta

Homemade Spaghetti Noodles

August 31, 2010 by
 
Now that you made the Bolognese Sauce it’s time for homemade noodles.
Once you try them, you’ll wonder how you ever lived without them!
Homemade noodles are incredibly soft and tender, a world above store-bought dry noodles.
While you may not want to make them every time you cook noodles, you really will be surprised at how quick and easy they are when you are used to making them.  I’ve included directions for making them with a pasta machine and also by hand in case you don’t have one.  This recipe can also be used to make other shapes, like fettuccini noodles for instance, just cut into thicker strips.
 
HOMEMADE SPAGHETTI NOODLES
 
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 eggs (large or extra-large)
pinch kosher salt
 
Put all ingredients in a food processor fitted with the metal blade.
Run for about 30 seconds.
If the dough hasn’t balled up add a few teaspoons of warm water and run a little more.
 
Knead by hand for a couple of minutes.  Dough should be smooth.
If the dough is sticky, lightly flour counter and dough while kneading.
Divide dough into 4 balls, and cover with a slightly damp tea towel or plastic wrap.
Take one piece of dough at a time, and flatten into a disc.
Set pasta roller on highest setting and dust well with flour.
IMPORTANT STEP: while working with the pasta dough, make sure your pasta roller and counter stay dusted with flour.  Things will go a lot smoother, trust me.
Roll dough through at highest setting.
Fold dough into thirds, pressing seam closed slightly.
Put through roller again, with the seam in the middle.
Run through the next setting, and keep repeating to desired thickness. (we like second to last setting.)
If your dough seems shaggy, no worries, it’s just too wet.
Work into a ball again and knead in a little flour.
If the dough gets difficult to handle, cut length in half.
Attach spaghetti cutter and run sheet of pasta dough through.
 
Dust noodles lightly with flour and cover with a tea towel while you repeat the process with remaining pasta dough balls.
Add noodles to salted boiling water.  They will be done quite quickly, check after one minute.
Toss with Bolognese Sauce or your favorite spaghetti sauce.
HAND DIRECTIONS
Put flour in a mound on the counter or in a shallow bowl.
Make a well in the center of flour and add eggs and salt in the well.
Use a fork to whisk eggs in the well, and stir in flour, working in a little at a time.
Add a few teaspoons of warm water if too dry, a little flour if too wet.
Knead for a few minutes until very smooth.
Divide dough into four balls and cover with a damp tea towel or plastic wrap.
Roll each dough ball out as thin as you can on a floured surface, then cut into thin strips.
Separate strips, and dust with flour. Cover with a tea towel while you repeat with remaining dough.
Cook in boiling salted water until done.
Check after one minute, they will cook quickly.
Filed Under: Pasta

Bolognese

August 30, 2010 by
 
This is probably my husband’s favorite dish that I make.  He seriously makes a fool out of himself when I serve this.  And I love every second of it. : )  There is nothing like seeing your family savor every bite of a meal.  Happy and content.  I make a big batch of this so I have it on hand in the freezer when needed for a seriously good quick dinner.   And I know with school starting back up, many of you are looking for some extra satisfying dinners with minimal effort. 
I’ll be sharing more recipes for using this sauce this week, so make sure to check back for that!  At the bottom I’m including directions for a small batch as well.  Usually you would use white wine when making this sauce, but since we don’t drink alcohol I don’t cook with it either, so I use all chicken stock in it’s place.  I don’t think you miss it at all.
 
 
Saute onions, carrots, and garlic in the olive oil.  You can finely dice them or puree them in a food processor to make a smooth paste.  Let cook and soften while you cook meat.
In another pan, brown meat in batches, then add the vegetables.
Add tomato paste and incorporate well.
Add chicken stock, then crushed tomatoes.
Simmer on stove for 1 to 3 hours.  Add salt and pepper to taste. (If making for the freezer I under season and season more so when heating to serve.
I then separate into 7 freezer-safe quart containers.  Label and freeze.
To serve: Heat in a pot, add 1/2 to 1 cup milk depending on personal preference.
Toss with noodles. Sprinkle on some fresh basil if desired.
Filed Under: Freezer, Pasta, Sauces / Condiments Tagged With: , ,

Creamy Chicken Chili

August 27, 2010 by
 
This is another of those recipes I scribbled on a scrap of paper- who knows where it originated from.  If I had known I was going to have a food blog I would have kept track better!  I altered it a few times, and we really like this easy, hearty, satisfying dish. 
 
CREAMY CHICKEN CHILI
 
1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1/2 inch cubes (about 2 breasts)
1 medium onion, chopped
1 1/2 tsp garlic powder
1 T oil
2 cans (15 1/2 oz each) white beans, rinsed and drained (I used Cannelini)
   Or cooked dry beans
1 can (14 1/2 oz) chicken broth
1/2 diced red bell pepper (more if you like)
1 tsp salt
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp pepper
1/4 tsp dried chipotle chili pepper
1/2 cup sour cream
1/4 cup whipping cream
Fresh cilantro, for serving, optional
 
Heat oil in a large pan, then add chicken, onion, and garlic powder.
Cook until chicken is cooked through.
Add beans, broth, pepper, and seasonings.
Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 30 minutes.
Take off heat and add sour cream and whipping cream.
Garnish with cilantro if desired.
Serve in bread bowls or with tortilla chips.
Makes about 6 servings.
 
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Filed Under: Chicken / Turkey, Soups / Stews Tagged With: , ,