Delicious Buttery Dinner Rolls

Yum! 

These rolls were easy and yummy!

Another great recipe via pinterest!  They were posted around Thanksgiving time, but I haven't had a chance to try them until this last Sunday.

I will definitely make these again!  They make about 48 rolls, so definitely great for a crowd or to share with a neighbor or friend!

Delicious Buttery Dinner Rolls

(www.howdoesshe.com)

• 1 1/2 cups milk
• 3/4 cup + 1 tbsp sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 tbsp salt
• 2 tbsp yeast
• 2 cups warm water
• about 9-10 cups flour (I did about 4 cups of wheat flour and the rest white)
• at least 1 cup butter

Scald 1 1/2 cups milk, 3/4 cups sugar and 1/2 cup of butter in a microwave safe bowl for about 2 minutes.  Cut the butter into pieces so it will melt faster!  There will probably be small pieces of butter floating, but that is OK.

In another bowl combine your 2 cups warm water, yeast, and 1 tbsp sugar.  Let sit until it gets bubbly.  While it is sitting put your egg and 1 tbsp salt in your butter mixture to help it cool down a bit.  It was also recommended to add about 2 cups of flour to the mixture in order to cool it for the yeast.

Once cooled, add your yeast and mix.  At this point, I transferred it to a bigger bowl.  The recipe said the rolls turn out so much better if they are hand mixed, so that is what I did!

Using a fork or wooden spoon, gradually stir in your 7-8 more cups of flour.  Add about 2 cups at a time and stir in order to not add too much flour.  You may want to knead or incorporate the flour with your hands after a while.  When the dough is no longer too sticky (it will pull away from the sides) place plastic wrap over the top and let rise in a warm place.  I let it rise for about an hour.

Cover your working space with flour and place your dough on your surface.  Next cook your dough in half, and then in half again so you have 4 balls of dough.  Try to make them even, but don't stress about it!

Using 1 ball of dough at a time; roll the dough into a circle on your floured counter.  Once it is rolled out, spread some softened butter all over it.  I had some room temperature butter that I grabbed with my fingers and spread.  You will use about 2 tbsp of butter per circle.

Cut your dough with a pizza cutter into quarters.  Next cut your quarters into 3 pieces.  You should end up with 12 triangles.  Roll each triangle starting at the widest end and then tuck the smallest end or tail underneath.  Place each roll on a buttered cookie sheet.  You will make 3 rows with 8 rolls per row.  You will have 2 pans with 24 rolls per pan.  (Two balls of dough will fill each pan.)

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.  Place the pans in a warm spot and let them rise again.  Let them rise until the rolls are touching each other and full in size.  Cook one pan at a time for 10-15 minutes (My rolls took about 20+ minutes).  Keep an eye on them and cook until golden brown.

When they come out of the oven still hot, run a stick of butter over the tops to give them a wonderful buttery glaze! 

Enjoy!!

Snowman Donuts

I found another great idea on Pinterest and made them for Zach's birthday.  We brought them to his class for his birthday treat and they were a hit!  Zach loves powdered donuts, so how could I go wrong!

I did simplify them a little, but like how they turned out.  You can definitely add more decorations if you want!

Snowman Donuts

(idea found on Pinterest)

• Powdered Donuts
• mini chocolate chips for the eyes and mouth
• M&M's for mouth, or you could use Mike-n-Ikes, or whatever you like
• Hershey kisses for the hat
• shish kabob skewers
• Pull apart licorice for the scarf (which I didn't do this time)

Slide 3 donuts on your skewer.  Be careful here, I did break apart a few donuts.  This is the main reason I didn't add buttons on the body, I was afraid of the cracking.

Turn your Hershey kiss around on the skewer top to secure it in place.  Now decorate your snowman however you like or have your kids help.

The ones I saw were wrapped individually in bags with a ribbon tied around the skewer.  I was mass producing for a class, so no bags for me!

They were super cute and easy for a winter time treat!

Thumbprint Cookies

Yes again another fun find on Pinterest.  I kind of ran with the idea and thought this is not only fun for Christmas, but you could modify it for any holiday.  Just red sprinkles for Valentines with a chocolate Hershey kiss, green for St. Patty's day and so forth!  You could probably even make these into little nests for Easter and put the little chocolate eggs in the middle!  We enjoyed these for Christmas with candy cane Hershey kisses in the center!

Thumbprint cookies

(modified from Better Homes red and white cookbook)

• 2/3 cup butter or margarine
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 2 egg yolks
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 1/2 cups flour
• sprinkles of your choosing
• Hershey kisses of your choosing

In your mixer, beat your butter or margarine on high speed for about 30 seconds.  Basically you want all the chunks gone!  Then add your sugar and beat until combined, scraping the sides as needed.  Beat in egg yolks and vanilla.

Add you flour and combine.  The recipe says to chill for 1 hour, but I usually test the dough and if I can handle it I start right away, if not put in the refrigerator for 10-20 minutes and test it again.

Shape dough into 1 inch balls.  Roll your dough in your sprinkles.  Then place on your cookie sheets about 1 inch apart.  Continue doing this until you have filled your cookie sheet.  Now take your thumb and make an indent into your cookies.  Basically you are putting your thumb print into your cookie ball and flattening it a little.

Bake at 375 degrees for 10-12 minutes or until edges are lightly browning.  While your cookies are cooking, start unwrapping your Hershey kisses.  Once they come out of the oven, start placing the kisses in your thumb print.  Once all the kisses are in your cookies, place them on a cooling rack and let them cool.  If you don't let cool, your Hershey kisses will get smooshed because they get melty from the heat of your cookie!

Enjoy these yummy treats for any holiday!

Salt Dough Ornaments

I found this idea on a craft site and remembered doing this as a kid!

The kids had a lot of fun doing this (and a great activity since the kids are out of school!) and they turned out really great! These ones aren't all the way decorated yet, but so far so good!

The best is that they got to decorate how ever they wanted and I loved how they turned out! I put there initials on the back with the date and they will be fun to find through the years!
Salt Dough Ornaments

• 2 cups flour
• 1 cup salt
• 1 cup water

Mix salt and flour

Add in 1/2 cup water and mix together (I did this all in my mixer). Gradually add the remaining water and knead dough until smooth. I did this with my dough hook and then in the end kneaded it with my hands in the mixing bowl to incorporate all the flour and salt.

Roll out the dough on baking paper or floured counter top. Cut out shapes with cookie cutters or design your own.

Bake at 250 for 1hr-1 1/2 hours, making sure you don't burn them. It took me the full 1 1/2 hrs, but check them at an hour. Let cool and paint! We made ours the night before and then decorated the next day!

Use paint, modge podge and glitter, spray paint, whatever you have on hand!

Peppermint Candy Cane Brownies

I found this on http://www.ourbestbites.com/. which is a site I frequent and absolutely love a lot! I made these brownies the other day and they are sooo good I haven't been able to leave the leftovers alone! Yes, bad couple of days!

I didn't have the peppermint extract to make the frosting layer, but I really like the brownies just like this! I would make these again and again and again!

Super moist and irresistible is how I would describe these brownies and they look very festive to even bring to a Christmas party!

Peppermint Candy Cane Brownies

(Our Best Bites)

Brownies:
4 squares unsweetened chocolate (4oz)
1 C butter (2 sticks)
4 eggs
2 cups sugar
1t vanilla
1 1/4 C flour
1/2 t baking powder

Frosting:2 C powdered sugar
4 T butter, softened
1 1/2 t peppermint extract
1 T milk
pink food coloring

Chocolate Glaze:
6 oz (about a cup) semi-sweet chocolate chips ,you could also use dark
6T real butter

Additional:1/2-1 C crushed candy canes (Use Bob's NOT Spanglers!) --I used whatever brand I had and they were good, but I bet the Bob's kind are great!

First, the Brownies:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
The chocolate you want is baking chocolate, which is sold in bars by the chocolate chips (you can also substitute cocoa powder. Just follow the directions on it for how many tbsp and oil equal a 1 oz bar. That is what I did.). Make sure it is unsweetened.

Give those squares a rough chop so they'll be easier to melt. (or when using the cocoa powder, I always find it easier to melt the butter and then add the cocoa powder and oil. This way you don't burn the chocolate)

Melt in 30-45 second intervals in your microwave, stirring in between, until melted and smooth. Set aside. (I melted my butter in a pan on the stove and then added the cocoa powder as I described above)

In a stand mixer or with electric beaters, beat eggs for about 3 minutes until thick and frothy.

Add sugar and vanilla and beat to combine. Then add in the melted chocolate and butter that you set aside. Combine flour and baking powder and whisk into brownie batter by hand until just combined. Pour into a lightly greased 9x13 pan.

Bake for 20-25 minutes (I found this time frame way off for my oven! I probably cooked them twice as long as it says! So give yourself more time to bake than you think, you might need it!). Test with a toothpick and don't over bake! When brownies are done, cool on a cooling rack. When completely cool, pop in the fridge to chill. (makes the frosting spreading easier)

Next layer is the frosting:Combine all frosting ingredients and beat until light and fluffy. Add extra milk by teaspoonful if you need a little more. Spread evenly over cooled/chilled brownies and place back in the fridge to chill again while you do the final step. (I didn't have any peppermint extract so I omitted this part)
Chocolate Glaze:
Place chocolate chips and butter in a microwave-safe bowl and cook in 30 second intervals until smooth. (Since my microwave is broken!!!! I did this on the stove too! Make sure to melt butter first so chocolate doesn't burn if you go this route!)

Set aside for a few minutes, stirring occasionally, so it can cool off just a bit. Quickly spread on top of brownies. Remember the Frosting is cool and the chocolate is hot, so work fast! I didn't have frosting on my brownies, so I took my time and spread out the chocolate nicely!

Sprinkle the crushed candy canes on top and return to the fridge until chocolate is set on top.

Remove from fridge a few minutes before serving. Cut into squares.

Peppermint Sandies

Again, my sister came to my rescue and gave me this recipe too! They are another fun yummy holiday treat! My kids even helped me roll them into balls!

Peppermint Sandies

(I will find out where she found this!)

• 1 cup butter, softened
• 1/3 cup powdered sugar
• 1/4 cup finely crushed peppermint candies
• 1 tbsp water
• 1/2 tsp vanilla
• 1/2 tsp peppermint extract
• 2 cups flour
• 1/2 cup whipping cream
• 6 ounces white baking chocolate
• more crushed peppermint candies for dusting

Preheat oven to 325.

In a large bowl, beat butter with an electric mixer on high speed for 30 seconds. Add powdered sugar and 1/4 cup crushed candies. Beat until combined, scraping sides of bowl occasionally. Beat in water, vanilla and peppermint extract until combined. Beat in as much of the flour as you can with the mixer. Using a wooden spoon, stir in remaining flour.

Shape dough into 1-inch balls. Place 1 inch apart on an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake about 15 minutes or until bottoms are lightly browned. Cool on wire rack.

Meanwhile, for the glaze...In a medium saucepan, bring whipping cream just to simmer. Remove from heat and add white chocolate, let stand 3 minutes. Stir until smooth. Let stand for 45-60 minutes or until glaze starts to thicken.

Spoon about 1 tsp of the glaze over each cooled cookie. Sprinkle with additional crushed peppermint candies!

Brownie Bites with Chocolate Mousse

This chocolate mousse is the best, let me repeat, the best chocolate ever! It is definitely worth the time and effort, although it is very simple to make! It is definitely dangerous, I can be caught quite frequently after making it getting a spoon and dipping into the bowl!

I found this idea on Real Mom Kitchen. She did these little brownie bites, but put a different filling on top! I will post her recipe here and you can find the chocolate mousse recipe under desserts, posted about February!

They were a fun simple dessert and we put them on a platter and drizzled chocolate syrup over all of them and then even put some crushed candy canes on top! If you are looking for a simple Christmas dessert (or anytime dessert) look no further and try these!

Brownie Bites

• 1 package brownie mix (9 x 13 size) or use your favorite brownie recipe
• 1 (12 oz) package semi sweet chocolate chips
• 1 cup whipping cream

Prepare brownies according to package directions, or make your own recipe.

Put brownie batter into greased mini muffin tins (she recommended using liners. The first time I made these I didn't use liners and they were a pain. The second time I did, but ended up taking the liners off. I also ran out of liners and did some in just greased tins and they came out better the second time letting them cool longer!). Fill tins half way. If you use your cookie scoop they fill up about perfectly.

Cook according to temperature on package or recipe for 12-15 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean.

While brownine bites bake, make your chocolate mousse (found in dessert section) or this ganache. Use a double boiler to melt chocolate chips in the cream to make a ganache frosting.

Allow brownies and ganache to cool (or mousse needs to sit in refrigerator for at least 30 minutes).

Frost brownies with ganache when the ganache cools to the consistency of frosting (or dallop on the mousse). For a holiday touch, sprinkle with crushed peppermint candies.

You can make about 24-30 or so bites!

Thick and Chewy Gingerbread Cookies

Thick and Chewy Gingerbread Cookies

*Makes about 2 dozen gingerbread men*

3 cups (15 ounces) flour
¾ cup packed (5 ¼ ounces) dark brown sugar
¾ teaspoon baking soda
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
1 tablespoon ground ginger
½ teaspoon ground cloves
½ teaspoon salt
12 tablespoons butter softened to room temperature (but not warm!), cut into 12 pieces
¾ cup light or dark molasses
2 tablespoons milk

With an electric mixer, stir together the flour, brown sugar, soda, cinnamon, ginger, cloves and salt at low speed until combined, about 30 seconds. Stop the mixer and add the butter pieces. Mix at medium-low speed until the mixture is sandy and resembles fine meal, 1 to 2 minutes. Reduce the speed to low and with the mixer running, gradually add the molasses and milk; mix until the dough is evenly moistened about 20 seconds. Increase the speed to medium and mix until thoroughly combined, about 10 seconds.

Scrape the dough onto a work surface and divide it in half. Working with one portion at a time, roll the dough ¼ inch thick between 2 large sheets of parchment or wax paper. Leaving the dough sandwiched between the parchment or wax paper, stack the dough on a baking sheet and freeze until firm, 15 to 20 minutes. (Alternatively, refrigerate the dough for 2 hours or overnight.)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper or silpat liners.

Remove one dough sheet from the freezer and place on the counter. Peel off the top parchment or wax paper sheet. Gently cut the dough into 5-inch gingerbread people or 3-inch gingerbread cookies, transferring the shapes to the prepared baking sheets with a wide metal spatula and spacing them ¾ inch apart. Set the scraps aside. Repeat with the remaining dough until the baking sheets are full. Because flour is not added during rolling, dough scraps can be rolled and cut as many times as necessary.

Bake the cookies until set in the centers and the dough barely retains and imprint when touched very gently with fingertip, 8 to 9 minutes. Do not overbake!! Cool the cookies on the sheets 2 minutes, then remove the cookies with a wide metal spatula to a wire rack; cool to room temperature. Gather the scraps; repeat the rolling, cutting and baking. Frost as desired (I used a ziploc bag filled with simple white icing).

Store soft gingerbread in a wide, shallow airtight container or tin with a sheet of parchment paper between the cookie layers. These cookies are best eaten within one week.

Recipe Source: from My Kitchen Cafe (www.mykitchencafe.blogspot.com)/adapted from The New Best Recipe

Fragrant Cinnamon Ornaments

I found this last year and decided or had the time to try them this year! The boys and I made these last night for family night. They are super simple and the boys helped mix, roll, and cut out the ornaments. They smell really good and were a fun project to do with the kids!

Fragrant Cinnamon Ornaments

• 6 tbsp applesauce
• 10 tbsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp ground cloves

Mix together all ingredients to form a dough. If dough is dry, add more applesauce.

Roll out dough to approximately 1/8" thick on a cinnamon sprinkled surface. Cut dough into desired holiday shapes using cookie cutters. Cut a hole in the top of each shape with a drinking straw or use a toothpick to make a hole large enough to string ribbon through.

Place shapes on a cookie sheet. Place in a 150 degree oven or the lowest setting (my lowest was 170 degrees) for 2 hours. After 2 hours, turn oven off and leave in oven for 5-6 hours or overnight. Tie ribbons through holes and use as ornaments or tie on packages!

Sparkling Tree Cakes

These were so fun to make and a great Christmas treat idea!!

Yummy too!!

Sparkling Tree Cakes
(from Kraftfoods.com)

1 pkg. (2-layer size) yellow cake mix
1/4 tsp. green food coloring
1 pkg. (8 oz.) PHILADELPHIA Cream Cheese, softened
1 cup powdered sugar
1-1/2 cups thawed COOL WHIP Whipped Topping
16 peppermint sticks (3 inch)
1/2 cup BAKER'S ANGEL FLAKE Coconut
2 squares BAKER'S Semi-Sweet Chocolate, chopped
1/4 cup PLANTERS Dry Roasted Peanuts, chopped
Assorted Christmas candies
colored sugar


PREHEAT oven to 350°F. Grease and flour two 9-inch round cake pans; set aside. Prepare cake batter as directed on package; tint with food coloring. Pour evenly into prepared pans.

BAKE as directed on package. Cool in pans 10 min.; remove to wire racks. Cool completely.

BEAT cream cheese and powdered sugar with electric mixer on medium speed until well blended. Stir in whipped topping with wire whisk. Spread onto tops and sides of cakes.

CUT each cake into eight wedges to resemble Christmas trees. Insert peppermint stick into curved side of each cake for the tree trunk. Decorate with remaining ingredients. Store in refrigerator.

Thumbprint Cookies

These are a family favortie at Christmas time! It is from the Betty Crocker cookbook and really are jam thumbprint cookies!

I substituted chopped almonds for the walnuts on these cookies or you can just leave the nuts off!

Thumbprint cookies

2/3 cup butter or margarine

1/2 cup sugar

2 egg yolks

1 tsp vanilla

1 1/2 cups flour

2 slightly beaten egg whites

1 cup finely chopped walnuts (or substitue favorite chopped nut)

1/3 to 1/2 cup strawberry, cherry, or apricot jam or preserves (or substitute hershey kisses)

Grease a cookie sheet. In a large mixing bowl beat butter or margarine for 30 seconds. Add the sugar and beat till combined, scraping sides of bowl occasionally. Beat in egg yolks and vanilla till combined. Beat in the flour. Cover; chill dough about 1 hour or till easy to handle.

Shape dough into 1-inch balls. Roll balls in egg whites, then in nuts. Place 1-inch apart on the prepared cookie sheet. Press your thumb into the center of each ball. Bake at 375 degrees for 10-12 minutes or till edges are lightly browned.

If adding hershey kisses, place hershey kisses on cookies just out of the oven. The chocolate will be very soft for a while so remove to wire rack and let sit.

If adding jam, just before serving-fill centers with jam or preserves!

Pretzel Kisses

These are yummy, easy, and can be made so many different ways! Put a layer of mini pretzels on a cookie sheet. Place one Hershey kiss, of your choice, on top of each of the pretzels. Bake at 250 degrees for 3-5 minutes. When you pull them from the oven place an M&M on top of each one and gently press. The chocolate should be soft enough so that you can press the M&M all the way down.
(Candy cane Hershey kisses were used in the above picture with Christmas colored M&M's)

Candy Cane Crispies

Make rice crispies as you would normally, and then just sprinkle your crushed candy cane on top. Pat the crushed candy cane pieces down so they stick to the rice crispy treat.
(To crush candy canes, put 6 unwrapped candy canes in a ziplock baggie, close it, then hit it with your rolling pin until it's finely crushed.)