Homemade Cinnamon Rolls!

The sweet potato ravioli is put on hold until Friday, because Kelly and Colton are at a Bob Dylan concert tonight, and couldn't come for dinner.

But, I did make cinnamon rolls today for the first time. They were a success! My poor, poor hubby is having a TON of major dental work done bright and early tomorrow at 7am, and they said he needed to eat beforehand. I'm well aware that a big sugary breakfast isn't quite what they meant, but I feel sorry for him (he probably won't be able to eat "real" food for a while), and he'll be more likely to eat something yummy like this early in the morning than something healthy. (And maybe I can get him to eat an egg as well...)

Anyway, I was going to use the recipe on the Pioneer Woman's website, until I looked it up and realized that it makes SEVEN pans of rolls. Seven! We don't need that many, and I don't have enough freezer space either ... oh well, maybe at the holidays I can make them as gifts.

So, it was off to Epicurious for some recipe-searching (oh, how I love that website! Thanks, Lissa and Mel!), and here's what I found:

(Apologies for not many pictures, but it's hard to cook with a puppy and make pictures at the same time!)

Cinnamon Rolls with Cream Cheese Glaze

For the dough:

1 cup whole milk

3 tablespoons unsalted butter

3 1/2 cups (or more) unbleached all purpose flour, divided

1/2 cup sugar 

1 large egg

2 1/4 teaspoons rapid-rise yeast (from 2 envelopes yeast) - NOTE: Fleishman yeast packets are 2 1/4 tsp. per packet, so you only need one if you're using that brand

1 teaspoon salt

Nonstick vegetable oil spray 

For the filling:

3/4 cup (packed) golden brown sugar

2 tablespoons ground cinnamon

1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature

For the glaze:

4 ounces cream cheese, room temperature

1 cup powdered sugar

1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

For dough:
Combine milk and butter in glass measuring cup. Microwave on high until butter melts and mixture is just warmed to 120°F to 130°F, 30 to 45 seconds. (You'll want that butter to be at room temp - learn from my mistake, and don't use cold butter for that step.) Pour into bowl of stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment. Add 1 cup flour, sugar, egg, yeast, and salt. Beat on low speed 3 minutes, stopping occasionally to scrape down sides of bowl. Add 2 1/2 cups flour. Beat on low until flour is absorbed and dough is sticky, scraping down sides of bowl. If dough is very sticky, add more flour by tablespoonfuls until dough begins to form ball and pulls away from sides of bowl. (I probably added 3 more Tbsp?)

Turn dough out onto lightly floured work surface. Knead until smooth and elastic, adding more flour if sticky, about 8 minutes. Form into ball. 

Lightly oil large bowl with nonstick spray. Transfer dough to bowl, turning to coat. 

Cover bowl with plastic wrap, then kitchen towel. Let dough rise in warm draft-free area until doubled in volume, about 2 hours.  (And here's where my problem started: the dough wasn't rising! I don't know if it was my yeast, or what, but it didn't rise hardly AT ALL.)

For filling:
Mix brown sugar and cinnamon in medium bowl.

Punch down dough. Transfer to floured work surface. Roll out to 15x11-inch rectangle. Spread butter over dough, leaving 1/2-inch border. Sprinkle cinnamon sugar evenly over butter. (Sometimes I get overwhelmed with the cinnamon, so I used less than this recipe calls for.) Starting at 1 long side, roll dough into log, pinching gently to keep it rolled up. With seam side down, cut dough crosswise with thin sharp knife into 18 equal slices (each about 1/2 to 3/4 inch wide).

Spray two 9-inch square glass baking dishes with nonstick spray. Divide rolls between baking dishes, arranging cut side up (there will be almost no space between rolls). (Haha. Once again - my dough didn't rise.)

Cover baking dishes with plastic wrap, then kitchen towel. Let dough rise in warm draft-free area until almost doubled in volume, 40 to 45 minutes. (Okay, here was the next problem. See the above picture? That was before rising. These are after rising 45 minutes. I don't think they rose a milimeter.)

 

Position rack in center of oven and preheat to 375°F. Bake rolls until tops are golden, about 20 minutes. Remove from oven and invert immediately onto rack. Cool 10 minutes. Turn rolls right side up. (I forged on and baked them anyway, and you know what? They rose a bit during baking, and even though they're small, they still taste great!!)

For glaze:
Combine cream cheese, powdered sugar, butter, and vanilla in medium bowl. Using electric mixer, beat until smooth. Spread glaze on rolls. Serve warm or at room temperature.

These are delicious, despite the lack of rising. I'm going to make them again sometime (they're pretty easy, actually), with maybe some fresher yeast? They're good regardless though :)

Hope you all enjoy! And thanks to Epicurious for such amazingly yummy recipes :)

Ina Garten's Blueberry Coffee Cake Muffins

I got up at 5am to make these bad boys for my co-workers (and my hubby) the other day. In my sleepy stupor, I was lucky to include all the ingredients, let alone pictures. I'll let the "official" Barefoot Contessa Photos be enough...

(source found here)

I don't claim that they're healthy or anything, but man, they sure are good. I probably ate 5 in one day.

Here's the recipe. It says it makes 16 muffins, but I managed to get 24 somehow. Anyway ... you NEED to go and make these. Right now.

Ina Garten's Blueberry Coffee Cake Muffins

 You'll need:

12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature

1 1/2 cups sugar

3 extra-large eggs, at room temperature

1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

8 ounces (about 1 cup) sour cream

1/4 cup milk

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

2 half-pints fresh blueberries, picked through for stems

To make:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Place 16 paper liners in muffin pans.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. With the mixer on low speed, add the eggs 1 at a time, then add the vanilla, sour cream, and milk. In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. With the mixer on low speed add the flour mixture to the batter and beat until just mixed. Fold in the blueberries with a spatula and be sure the batter is completely mixed.

Scoop the batter into the prepared muffin pans, filling each cup just over the top, and bake for 25 to 30 minutes, until the muffins are lightly browned on top and a cake tester comes out clean.

They are so, so delightful. Imagine these with fresh-squeezed orange juice and some scrambled eggs ... yum yum yum!!

Orange Bran Flax Muffins!

These are about the healthiest muffins on the planet. They are so full of bran-y flax-y fiber-y goodness you won't know what to do with yourself! And they taste pretty good, too :)

You're going to need:

1 1/2 c. oat bran

1 c. all-purpose flour

1 c. ground flaxseed

1 c. wheat bran

1 Tbsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. salt

2 oranges, quartered and seeded

1 c. brown sugar

1 c. buttermilk

1/2 c. canola oil

2 eggs

1 tsp. baking soda

1 1/2 c. golden raisins (I left those out of my muffins, cause I'm not a fan of raisins. I wish I had some nuts to add, though.)

First, preheat the oven to 375. Line or spray your muffin tins (you're going to need 2 12-cup tins - this recipe makes 24 muffins!)

In a large bowl, combine:

oat bran,

flour,

flaxseed,

wheat bran,

baking powder, and salt. Mix well and set aside.

Then, in a blender or food processor (oh my GOSH I want a food processor), combine:

oranges,

(and I hit the pulse button a couple of times so there would be more room)

brown sugar (I ran out, so I used 1/2 c. brown sugar and 1/2 c. white sugar)

buttermilk, oil, eggs, and baking soda. 

Blend well.

Pour orange mixture into dry ingredients. Mix until well blended. Stir in raisins (if you're using them. Or nuts. Or whatever else you decide would taste good.)

Then you just divide the batter into the muffin tins. 

(And I put some rolled oats on top of mine, cause I think it's pretty.)

Then you'll bake them at 375 degrees for 18-20 minutes. And voila!

Such healthy little muffins ... and they'll last us FOREVER! (It will take nearly two weeks for us to eat up 24 muffins!)

And, for those who are interested, here's the nutritional info:

Per muffin:

186 calories, 4g. protein, 30 g. carbs, 8 g. fat (about 1/2 of that is alpha-linolenic acid, the super-healthy kind of fat), 1 g. saturated fat, 18 mg. cholesterol, 3 g. fiber, 140 mg. sodium, and 4 g. flaxseed.

I would sing the praises of flaxseed all the livelong day if I could. I love that stuff. My body really loves that stuff. It is very, very good for you. If you aren't eating it, you should be! (And these muffins are a great way to start.)

French Toast!

 It's Grocery day today! That means I make lots of lists, like this one:

And this one:

Grocery shopping actually makes me pretty happy. I love looking at all the produce and fresh foods (especially when I'm at Whole Foods), and I imagine their potential. It makes me happy, knowing those things are going into what I eat. 

Anyway, Ina Garten is gracing my blog yet again! I wanted to make some yummy breakfast for Mark, and the first thing that came to mind was the Challah French Toast recipe found in this lovely cookbook:

(It's actually what's pictured on the cover!)

I didn't use the challah bread it calls for, because Mark had gotten some French sourdough bread at the store the other day. The sourdough didn't do as well as the challah probably would have, but oh well. You can't have everything.

So I got up early, and went downstairs to make breakfast. 

First I had to make this little dear happy:

Once we get out of bed, she likes to be fed IMMEDIATELY.

After the meowing had ceased, I started cooking. French toast starts with these things:

Yummmm. I actually modified the recipe, because I wasn't using a whole loaf of bread, but the original recipe will be posted at the bottom. So, I took four eggs, and cracked them in a big bowl.

Then I added a cup of milk.

(Sorry about the bad lighting ... my kitchen is not the optimal picture-taking area in the mornings.)

Then, because I didn't have any fresh oranges to zest, I added a tsp. of dried orange peel.

I guesstimated 1/2 tsp. of vanilla, 1/2 tsp. of salt and 1 Tbsp. of honey. 

 (The honey that I'm using is organic acacia honey from the Savannah Bee Company. It's my favorite kind of honey in the whole world ... it's very light, and very sweet, and I honestly could sit and eat it with a spoon.)

Then I whisked all that goodness up together.

And put my bread in to soak. For the challah bread, it's supposed to soak for like 5 minutes, but that was way too long for my little slices of French sourdough (the first piece I tried totally fell apart), so I cut the time half. Do this with several pieces at once if you can.

Then I got some yummy unsalted butter, heated it over med. heat in a big pan, and fried those babies up. 

Butterrrrr!

After they were done, and Mark wasn't quite ready to eat yet, I popped them in a warm oven to keep them from cooling off/getting soggy.

Once he was ready, I topped them with sifted confectioner's sugar and served them with maple syrup. We were so busy eating them that I didn't take pictures until we were almost done! But here's the half-eaten product:

That's some good stuff.

Now, here's the real recipe:

Challah French Toast

6 extra-large eggs

1 1/2 c. half-and-half or milk

1 tsp. grated orange zest

1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1 tablespoon good honey

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

1 large loaf challah or brioche bread

Unsalted butter

Vegetable oil

To serve: 

Pure maple syrup

Good raspberry preserves (optional)

Sifted confectioner's sugar (optional)

Preheat the oven to 250 degrees F.

In a large shallow bowl, whisk together the eggs, half-and-half, orange zest, vanilla, honey, and salt. Slice the challah in 3/4-inch thick slices. Soak as many slices in the egg mixture as possible for 5 minutes, turning once.

Heat 1 tablespoon butter and 1 tablespoon oil in a very large saute pan over medium heat. Add the soaked bread and cook for 2 to 3 minutes on each side, until nicely browned. Place the cooked French toast on a sheet pan and keep it warm in the oven. Fry the remaining soaked bread slices, adding butter and oil as needed, until it's all cooked. Serve hot with maple syrup, raspberry preserves, and/or confectioners' sugar.

So yummy!