Cinnamon Rolls and overcoming my fear of yeast

I think I only made cinnamon rolls a couple of times with my mom growing up, not because I didn't like them, but because I hate working with yeast.  Making cinnamon rolls always seemed messy and fussy and I just could not get past the fact that during the whole process there is an actual growing organism sitting on my counter, smelling up the kitchen.
So have I gotten you in the mood for cinnamon rolls?  Well I think I've found my solution to a much simpler process that eliminates the whole bowl of yeast of the counter thing.  This type of recipe may not be new to you, but it had never occurred to me that it could be made with a bread machine (probably because I don't own one).  I borrowed the breadmaker from my friend down the street and dove in.  They turned out absolutely wonderful.  I can't stand dry cinnamon rolls, but these were moist and delicious.  Besides using a bread machine, there is one other trick that sets this recipe apart- pouring a little caramel in the bottom of the pan before placing the rolls in to rise.  It just seems to take them to a whole new level.
For the icing I made up my own with a combination of a little cream cheese (only a little, I don't like a total cream cheese frosting) butter, whipping cream, vanilla, and powdered sugar.  Turned out great.  They were devoured my the class I teach each morning.  So if you're looking for a simpler, absolutely awesome cinnamon roll- give these a try!

Cinnamon Rolls

1 cup warm water (110 degrees F)

1 egg

3 cups bread flour

1/4 cup white sugar

3 tablespoons instant powdered milk

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

5 tablespoons butter, softened

1 teaspoon instant yeast

1/3 cup butter

1/2 cup vanilla ice cream

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup butter, softened (for spreading)

1 tablespoon ground cinnamon

1/2 cup brown sugar

Place water, egg, bread flour, white sugar, powdered milk, salt, 5 tablespoons butter and yeast in bread machine in the order suggested by the manufacturer. Select DOUGH setting, and turn machine on. Meanwhile, in a small saucepan, melt 1/3 C butter.  Add 1/2 C brown sugar and ice cream; bring to a boil, and cook for 2 minutes.  Pour caramel into the borrom of a lightly greased 9x13 pan. Preheat oven to 350 degrees When machine has finished cycling, remove dough from pan and turn it out onto a lightly floured surface.  Pat dough into a rectangle.  Spread with softened butter and sprinkle lightly with cinnamon.  Crumble 1/2 C brown sugar over the top.  Roll up lengthwise and seal edge.  Cut into 12 rolls, and place in prepared pan of caramel.  Allow to rise until doubled in size, about 45 minutes. Bake at 350 degrees for 20 to 25 minutes or until golden brown. Use your favorite frosting!

Pastries!

Jared and I went to Spain for a week at the beginning of the month and had a wonderful time.  It seems like when I travel my experience can be influenced a great deal by the food I enjoy while I'm there.  I had been very excited to eat tortilla espanola, and paella because of my childhood memories of making them with my mom.  But I was pleasantly surprised by the pastries we got to enjoy every morning.  I generally associate pastries with France, and for some reason had not expected all the wonderful pastries that would be tempting me in all the shop windows.  Most mornings we would get a chocolate croissant and an apply pastry and devour them with fresh squeezed orange juice or hot chocolate.  If only we Americans ate breakfast like that on a regular basis! So much for cereal.
So the other night we had a few visitors, Jared's aunt and a couple of her friends.  I decided to make a big paella and follow it up with some wonderful dessert.  When I think of dessert, my mind automatically goes to chocolate.  So I made my favorite flourless chocolate cake.  But after some consideration I decided that not everyone likes to inject chocolate directly into their bloodstream.  So I decided to make the apply pastries as a nice second choice.
I have to say, not only were these very easy to make (the hardest part was peeling the apples) but they were received with way more enthusiasm than I expected.  I kind of felt sorry for the cake sitting there being overlooked, because no one could get enough of the apple pastries.  So, here is a really simple recipe that everyone will be absolutely amazed you actually made it yourself!

Apple Tarte Fine
2 medium size firm sweet apples (golden delicious)
1 sheet frozen puff pastry, thawed
2 T butter, cut into small pieces
2 T sugar
3 T melted butter
3 T sugar

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  ThawPeel and core the apples, cut into four quarters.  Slice into about 7 slices per quarter.  On a sheet of parchment paper, roll out the puff pastry slightly.  Cut with a sharp knife into 6 even pieces.  Place the pastry onto a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper leaving an inch or so between pieces.  Dot the pastry with the small cut up pieces of butter, then sprinkle the 2 tablespoons of sugar evenly over all the dough.  Then layer the slices of apple, overlapping slightly .  About 6 slices per piece of puff pastry is right.  Using a pastry brush, brush the tops with the melted butter.  Then finally sprinkle with the remaining 3 tablespoons of sugar.
Bake for about 15 minutes, depending on how brown you like the edges.
While they are baking, boil on the stove- 1/3 C apricot jam and a couple tablespoons of water until it is nice and runny and smooth.
After they have been removed from the oven, using the pastry brush, brush the apricot jam over each individual pastry.
These are delicious both warm and cool.

These are so perfect for the fall season which is finally here!  So enjoy!

Apple Turnovers

Although they're mostly considered a breakfast food, apple turnovers are good as a snack pretty much anytime.  Growing up we used to 'make them' with the Pillsbury can we bought at the store.  You unroll the dough, squeeze on the fruit filling, seal, and bake.  Well, this recipe honestly wasn't very difficult. The only time consuming part was peeling and cutting the apples. 
This also gave me an opportunity to use one of my favorite store bought products- frozen puff pastry dough.  I love using this stuff because it tastes great and looks impressive.  This with the combination of the homemade apple filling made a delicious turnover.  And don't forget the icing! I also love the combination of apples, cinnamon, and nutmeg which makes it very fallish.  Perfect for the weekend.

Apple Turnovers
4 Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored, and cubed
2 T butter
3/4 C brown sugar or dark brown sugar
1 t cinnamon
1/4 t nutmeg
1 t lemon juice
1 T cornstarch
1 T cold water
1 package frozen puff pastry sheets, thawed

Icing
1 C confectioners sugar
1-2 T heavy cream (or milk if you prefer)
1 t vanilla

Melt butter in large skillet over medium heat, then put the apples in.  Cook and stir for 2-3 minutes.  Add brown sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg.  Cook and stir for another 2-3 minutes.  Stir in lemon juice.  Stir together cornstarch and water, then pour it into the skillet and mix well.  Cook until sauce has thickened.  Remove pan from heat and let cool slightly.
Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Unfold puff pastry sheets.  Mine are the shape of a large square, so I cut mine into 4 smaller squares.  You can cut them into 8 if you prefer mini turnovers.  Spoon the apples into the middle, then fold over and seal.  Putting a little water around the edges with my finger helped seal it together nicely.  Place turnovers on baking sheet lined with parchment paper, leaving about an inch of space in between. 
Bake for about 20-25 minutes until puffed and lightly browned.  Cool on wire rack.
TO make the glaze, mix the sugar, cream, and vanilla in a small bowl.  Drizzle over turnovers.

Easter Baking

A holiday for me is pretty much an excuse to bake something special. So in addition to making easter cookies with the girls, I decided to make a few other things. We started off the day with French Toast Kabobs. They girls loved them. You just have to cube the bread before dipping it in the batter. I have a great recipe that is pretty sweet, so you don't even need to use syrup.

2 eggs
3/4 C sugar
1 C 1/2 and 1/2 or whipping cream
1 t vanilla
It's best with sourdough bread. Yum!

Now on to the Easter Baskets. I love to dip my own chocolates. So I thought it would be fun to make all of the chocolates for the girls' Easter baskets myself instead of buying it. I made praline eggs, rice crisp bunnies, whole hollow bunnies, and white chocolate pretzel rods with sprinkles. These were all really easy and the girls thought they were really fun.

When I was trying to decide what to bake, the first thing that came to mind was my favorite flourless chocolate cake. Sometimes I think I should try something new, but I always come back to this recipe. I think one of my favorite things about this is how imperfect it looks. I think it makes a striking presentation. But best of all it is sooo rich and moist. I've tried several flourless chocolate cake recipes but this is my favorite by far.

Flourless Chocolate Cake
12 ounces Ghiradelli 60% Cacao bittersweet chocolate chips
1/2 C (1 stick) unsalted butter
8 large eggs, separated
1/2 C white sugar
1 t vanilla

Glaze
4 ounces semisweet chocolate chips
3 T unsalted butter
1 T whole milk
1 T light corn syrup
1/4 t vanilla
1/3 C chopped almonds

Preheat oven to 350. Butter 9 in springform pan, and line with parchment paper, then butter the paper(I also love Pam with flour).
For the cake, melt the chocolate and butter (I usually use a pan on the stove on very low, use a double boiler if you have it). Stir until smooth, remove from heat.
In a medium bowl, combine egg yolks, 2 T of the sugar, and the vanilla. Beat lightly until well combined. Add egg mixture to chocolate, whisking together until well combined.
In a separte bowl, beat the egg whites and remaining 6 tablespoons of sugar with an electric mixture until soft peaks form. Pour in the chocolate mixture and fold to combine. Pour batter into pan.
Bake on lower shelf for 30-35 minutes. Watch towards the end and when it just begins to crack on top, then it's done. Don't overbake or it will be dry. Cool on rack, once cooled, then remove sides of pan.
For the glaze, melt the chocolate and butter (again, I usually just do this on the stove on very low heat). Stir until smooth, then remove from heat and add the milk, syrup, and vanilla. Pour over cake and let it run down the sides (for this I leave the cake on the rack and put the rack over some foil to catch what drips off). Then sprinkel the top with the chopped almonds. (I use salted almonds because I'm allergic to other nuts, but just use your favorite nuts). Put in refrigerator for about 10 minutes to set the glaze.

I also thought I should add something more springish, so I made an old favorite of my mom's, a lemon pound cake. This was a first for me since I I've never made a pound cake at all. First we hunted around for a recipe similar to one my mom used to make. It was really pretty easy and I could tell just from the batter how good it was going to be. It was a big hit! Here's a link to the recipe I used: http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Sour-Cream-and-Lemon-Pound-Cake-2121

Starting a baking blog

Well, I've decided to start another blog. More for my fun than anyone else's. I'm sure not many people will be interested in what I've been baking lately and whatnot, but I thought this would be a good way to put my thoughts in one place and use it as a reference for things I've made. Hopefully I'll keep up on it. I'm sure I could do a better job on keeping up on our family blog too.
Also, I really hope that people will leave comments and suggestions. I always like more ideas!

To start off, these are a few random pictures I've taken over the last several months. I don't have pictures of the really good stuff, but these were fun times. The picture below was taken when we made halloween cupcakes for our neighbors. I got the spiderweb decoration idea from a magazine. I thought they were the cutest. Of course, the girls have their own decorating ideas!

These were some seriously yummy pumpkin muffins. I love pumpkin recipes, not just in the fall, but all year round. I think I got this recipe off the internet. But they turned out fantastic. I sprinkled sugar on before baking and that gave them a really great texture. yum! Here's the recipe- 1 1/2 C flour, 1 tsp baking powder, sift together and set aside. Mix together 1 C canned pumpkin, 1/3 C vegetable oil, 2 eggs, 1 tsp pumpkin pie spice, 1 1/4 C sugar, 1/2 tsp baking soda, 1/2 t salt. Stir in flour mixture. Spoon into muffin pan. Stir together 1 tsp cinnamon and 1 T sugar. Sprinkle over top of each muffin before baking. 350 degrees 25- 30 minutes.

Evelyn enjoying the muffin, wow, her hair has grown so much since the fall!

For her birthday, Ann really wanted a mermaid cake, so this is what I came up with. Obviously, the water is just icing dyed blue. The sand was fun though, first you frost the area, then cover it with crushed graham crackers so it really looks like sand. Ann loved it. I also just picked up a few decorations to stick in it at the local cake decorating shop (oh how I miss The Decorette Shop back in Portland).

These are the best pumpkin chocolate chip cookies ever. I got the recipe from a co-worker back when I lived in Provo. Here's the recipe if you're interested - 1 C canned pumpkin, 1 tsp baking soda, 1/2 C margarine, 1 egg beaten, 1 C sugar, 1 tsp cinnamon, 1/2 tsp ground cloves, 1/2 tsp nutmeg, 1/4 tsp salt, 2 C flour, small bag of chocolate chips. Beat pumpkin, baking soda, and margarine until creamy. Add the egg and sugar, mix well. Add flour, spices, and chocolate chips, mix well. Bake 350 degrees 12- 15 minutes.

Well, I already know what I want to do on my next couple of blogs, so hopefully I'll get to that soon and it'll be a bit more interesting (and not all fall related recipes).