Anyone Can Make Homemade Cinnamon Rolls

Something about the April snow flurries and the fact that the heated seats in my car have been running since October is starting to get me down. Saturday morning the gray sky greeted me like a kick in the pants, so to cheer myself up and stop drooling at the cover of this month's Food Network magazine I put into action the laborious process of making cinnamon rolls.  Just kidding! It's not really hard, it just takes something that is not my number one skill: patience.  I have talked to several people who are intimidated by baking with yeast, but much like a Sunday morning, it's really easy.

My grandma writes in her cookbook that she starts all her baking early in the morning so that things that have to rise have ample time to do it.  But this recipe allows for overnight refrigerator rise time, which is great because I love cinnamon rolls but not enough to wake up at 3 am.

So Food Network had a recipe this month, but I'm going to give you my grandma's because I made both recently and I thought my grandma's dough was much nicer to work with.  Grandma makes enough to feed an army (or a church congregation as the case may be) so I broke it down to 12 rolls, which your family will devour in one day, trust me.

Step 1.

First things first: the YEAST

put 1/4 cup warm water (about 100-110 degrees) and 1 packet of yeast and a pinch of sugar, set aside.

Melt in a small saucepan:
1/4 cup sugar
1 t. salt
1/4 cup of butter (half of a stick)

Now add, 1/4 cup milk. Warm slowly on stove- don't boil.

OK.  Now mix 1/2 cup milk and 1 egg.  Add the milk and egg to the salt, butter, and sugar mixture on the stove.  Once it is coolish (grandma's word), add the yeast mixture.

Finally, put about 3 cups of flour into a large bowl (or Kitchen Aid Mixer), add the liquid to the flour and mix.  Now the fun part! Knead, knead, knead.  I usually whip it around on high in my mixer for a couple of minutes.  The dough should be smooth and not too sticky.

There are two tricks to making yeast breads, and they both involve the yeast. The first thing to remember is temperature matters.   You always warm the liquid to about 100-110 degrees.  If you don't have a thermometer--have no fear, just use your senses. It should feel hot to the touch but not scalding.  Once you have the temperature right, add the yeast and a little sugar and then (tip number 2) leave it alone for at least 5 minutes.  The sugar helps the yeast do it's yeasty thing. You should see the yeast begin to get frothy.

Once you reach this step you have mastered the art of yeast breads and it's all downhill from here.

I started this late afternoon on Saturday because at this point you can throw the dough in the fridge until the next morning.  Hurray!

Fast forward to Sunday morning, lie in bed as long as you can until "Mama, mama" turns from a delightful coo to a frantic squawk.  At this point, fetch baby, change her and make your way to the kitchen to get these cinnamon rolls going.  If your lucky the wake up call will be around 6:15 so you have plenty of time to roll out your rolls.  Because, people, much like the zombies, these rolls will rise again...

Step 2.
Roll out your dough into a nice big rectangle.  About 10 X 18 inches. I used a ruler, whatever, I'm a teacher.

Slather the dough with softened butter.  I used about 4 tablespoons (but the Food Network called for over 1 cup, so use your judgement).

Mix 1/3 cup sugar with 3 tablespoons cinnamon. Spread liberally over the dough.  Roll dough tightly the long way and slice into 1- 1 1/2 inch pieces. I usually make practice marks in the dough to make sure I have 12 even slices. Place in a greased 9 X 13 inch pan.

Step 3.

Cover with plastic wrap and let rise again (about an hour).  Here's what grandma says about it:

"Rolls like a warm spot, not hot, for rising.  I sometimes wrap up the cookie sheets and put them in the car.  Sometimes I wrapped them up and put them in the sun on the desk in the bay window, sometimes I put them on a chair near the radiator. Those dog days of August are perfect for rolls if not for the baker.  Rolls like it warm and humid."

Step 4. 

We are almost done.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Bake for about 25-30 minutes, until lightly browned.

While the cinnamon rolls are baking, mix up a quick frosting. I usually end up tweaking the liquid or sugar in this to get a nice consistency.

1 1/2 cup confectioner's sugar

1/4 cup milk

3 T butter

splash of vanilla

Frost the rolls while they are warm.

And Viola!  You have made cinnamon rolls. In my family, we ate over half the pan on Sunday morning and felt pretty pleased with ourselves about it. While they are not difficult to make, it does take some patience, but something about the whole process makes the end product seem special. I like that I'm making something for my family not exactly healthy, but utterly wholesome.

Homemade Nutri-Grain Bars

Yesterday I went to Trader Joe's and spent a small fortune to stock my freezer and pantry.  Among other things I stocked up on jam. I had to open the boysenberry this morning. I made baking poweder biscuits soley as a vehicle to spread the sumptuous preserves. Then I realized I had about six open jars of jelly lined up in my fridge.

I've been wanting to make a homemade nutri-grain bar for a few weeks now and I searched around for some recipes.  They would be the perfect way to use up some jelly. Most recipes I found were very high in sugar and fat (many called for at least a cup of butter).

I cobbled together this recipe from some others that I found.  It's main purpose was to use up a few things in my pantry, so feel free to substitute when necessary.  I was pleasantly surprised with the outcome.

Homemade Nutri-grain Bars

1/2 cup butter

1/2 cup white sugar 

1/2 cup brown sugar

1 cup all purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat flour (here I used baby oatmeal cereal-a great way to use this up)
1 1/2 cup oats

1/2 cup plain or vanilla yogurt
1 t. vanilla (optional, only if you are using plain yogurt)

Several Tablespoons jam or preserves

Cream together the butter and sugars, add the flours and oats.  Add the yogurt and vanilla last.  One of the recipes I found online used a 1/2 can of canellini beans ground into a paste.  I didn't have canellini beans on hand nor the inclination to get out my food processor, so I thought yogurt might do as a binding agent.

It worked although the dough was very sticky.

Line a cookie sheet with aluminum foil.  The foil is critical.  Divide the dough in half and press half into the pan, I had to use my hands, it was super goopy.

Next, spread the dough with jam.  I used a couple of different jars to finish up what I had in the fridge.

Cover the jam with the remaining half of the dough.  Again, it's a bit fiddly and you will get your fingers sticky.

Bake at 350 for about 30 minutes.  I checked mine after 25 minutes and found the top layer to be very soft.  I ended up baking the bars for a total of 35 minutes.

Let cool about 10 minutes and slice up. I cut mine into small squares to fit these little plastic containers I get at work.

My go-to snack for the week!

Rocking the Crock Pot Ratatouille

Every Thursday a truck of gently expired food drops off boxes to the back of my school.  The food is distributed to parents and community members who need it. On a good day stale bread and rotten bananas make their way into my kitchen and become cassoulet or banana bread.  Last week's treasure was an eggplant with only a few moldy spots on it.  It had been weighing on my mind for a few days when I googled eggplant + crock pot in hopes of combining my two loves--the crock pot and not throwing away food.

The Internet reared up and smacked me on the forehead. Duh! Ratatouille.  Ratatouille is a perfect recipe for me since you can pretty much do whatever you want.  My version is just a guideline, feel free to add or omit anything you want. I think you should most definitely have eggplant and tomatoes but anything else goes.  

Here's my recipe.

1 eggplant, chopped into large chunks

4 stalks of celery

2 yellow potatoes, chopped*

1 onion, diced

2 peppers (I used a red and a green)

2 small zucchini

1 cup chicken broth

1 can chopped tomatoes

1 Tablespoon oregano

1/4 cup of white wine

salt & pepper

*potatoes are not traditional, but I was trying to please my husband and daughter and I had some on hand

I peeled the eggplant and then sprinkled salt all over it and set it in a colander for 15 minutes.  This helps take some of the bitterness out.  Often I rinse it after this step, but I just left the salt on this time and didn't salt later. 

Throw all the ingredients except the white wine in and turn the crock pot on to high.  Let cook for 4-5 hours on high or 6-7 on low.  

I stirred the wine in at the end and let it cook off for another 20 minutes, salt and pepper to taste at this step.

I served the ratatouille over rice with a little Parmesan cheese over the top and crispy flat bread heated up in the oven with olive oil.

I told my husband all about ratatouille at breakfast on Saturday morning.  You know; how we were going to eat it that night, what is in it, and what a nice French staple it is. He nodded and said, "sounds good." This I would swear to.

So I didn't feel too bad for him when he looked skeptically at the crock pot on Saturday and asked where the meat was.  However, the good news is, he liked it! Or at least he said he did, which is just as good to me.  

Making Grandma's Waffles on a Sunny Sunday Morning

My grandma had one sister, a fixture at every meal and cup of tea at my grandparent's house when we would visit, whom we called Auntie.  She never married and lived most of her life in the house she grew up in on what was once a dairy farm in Waterford, CT.  Auntie was famous to my brothers' and I for her love of the beach and her uncanny ability to float sitting up in the Long Island Sound.  She was also famous for her quirky gifts at Christmas time.  One of my uncles as a young boy upon unwrapping Auntie's gift said, "wrong again Auntie," a quote I have heard repeated many times in my life always followed by hearty laughter.  But once in awhile Auntie would hit it out of the park as she did over 25 years ago with the Mickey Mouse Waffle Iron.  Saturday mornings my parents would often make a big breakfast for us, my dad was the official pancake flipper in the family and my mom would occasionally whip out some Mickey Mouse waffles.

Sadly Mickey retired a few years ago, but not before making waffles in three states for many years.  This morning I had a craving for waffles and pulled out Grandma's Cookbook for a recipe I have never made before and to the best of my knowledge never eaten.  Breakfasts at grandma's were more often the fan favorite blueberry muffins or toast and cereal.

As waffle recipes go, it is fiddly--you have to separate eggs!  But Callah and I went all in this morning as we hooked Nick up with some OJ and set him on the couch with a magazine for a much deserved daddy break.

Separate 3 eggs.  Beat the egg whites until stiff and set aside.

Mix Together:
3 egg yolks
2 T sugar
2 cups milk
1/2 cup oil
2 cups flour mixed with
4 teaspoons baking powder

Fold in the egg whites.

I don' t know about you, but something about whipping egg whites gives me a thrill, and folding them into batter is about as satisfying a feeling as writing with a sharp pencil or pulling on a pair of crisp, clean bluejeans.

We added super fruit (!) blueberries, poured batter (about 1/2 cup) on to the waffle iron and let cook for about 3-4 minutes.  Grandma says to serve on warm plates with warm syrup.  They used to line their plates up on the radiator in their dining room.  I popped mine in the warm oven for a few minutes.

Since I was busy ensuring Callah didn't scald herself AND making waffles AND making some delicious veggie sausage AND drinking coffee, I didn't remember to take a picture until I'd already started eating.  They were fluffy and delicious.  It makes an obscene amount of waffles for a humble family of three, so the leftovers are in the freezer ready to cheer us up come a dreary weekday morning.

My Grandma's Homemade Macaroni & Cheese

Callah's middle name is Mackenzie named for my Grandma Scott whose name was Mary Cameron Mackenzie.  Later she became a Scott when she married my grandfather.  When I found out I was pregnant I knew if I had a girl I wanted to name her after one of my amazing grandma's.  I had two lovely names to chose from; my dad's mom is named Frances June which I think is beautiful.

Callah's cheesy smile for our morning cooking macaroni and CHEESE, of course.

My Grandma Scott died when I was 23, I hadn't met my husband yet, started my career, or even considered having children.  When I remember my grandma I think about crossword puzzles, laughter, ice cream, cooking shows, clip on earings and blueberry muffins.

Upstairs in my Grandpa's house are dozens of diaries that my Grandma kept.  Nearly one for every year of her married life.  This summer I flipped to my birthday and smiled at the hastily written entry, "Ann Cameron Watson born around tea time."  She used those diaries to write her book--part cookbook/part memoir, which she self-published and sold at church functions.  The cover below shows the parsonage my mom grew up in, as illustrated by my Uncle MacKenzie.

I have one copy inscribed "to my darling granddaughter Ann," which is precious to me.  It has blueberry and oil stains, pencil marks scribbled in the margins, the pages are dog-eared and well read.  This morning I turned to one of our favorite recipes: macaroni and cheese.  Over the years I have strayed from grandma's recipe, adding paprika, vegetables, chicken stock, and ham.  But my husband never thanks me for these changes and most recently I stick verbatim to her recipe (just as she would want me to do).

Here it is (for 12-14 servings):
3 cups elbow macaroni
6 Tablespoons butter
6 Tablespoons flour
4 cups milk
4 cups grated cheese

Topping:
4 Tablespoons melted butter
1 1/2 cup dry bread crumbs

Cook the elbow macaroni according to package (about 6 and a half minutes for al dente).  Then melt the butter.

Add the flour to make a roux.

Add the milk slowly and allow it to warm up, but not boil.

Add the cheese and cook over medium-high heat until it is melted.

Add the cooked macaroni and (if you're clever like me) pop it into the fridge until you're ready to bake it.  The breadcrumbs are simple.  Just tear up some old bread, add melted butter and crumble all over the top of the macaroni.  Throw it all in the oven at 350 degrees for about 40 minutes.  I use my big old everyday pan, but a 9 X 13 works great too.

Nick is frying chicken tonight, and although my grandma usually served this with a baked ham, I still think she would be pleased that her memories, recipes, and name live on in our home.