Cinnamon Rolls

Adapted from allrecipes.com

1 cup warm milk (110 degrees F/45 degrees C)

1 packet or 8 grams yeast
2 eggs, room temperature

1/3 cup margarine, melted

4 1/2 cups bread flour

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup white sugar

1 cup brown sugar, packed

2 1/2 tablespoons ground cinnamon

1/3 cup butter, melted

1 (3 ounce) package cream cheese,softened

1/4 cup butter, softened

1 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/8 teaspoon salt

1. Place warm milk & yeast in the bowl of stand mixer and allow to sit for about 10 minutes.  Add eggs, margarine, flour, salt & white sugar.  Attach the dough hook and allow to mix & need for about 10 minutes (or until the dough is stretchy and not too sticky).  Remove bowl and cover, allowing the dough to rise in a warm dry place for about an hour.
2. After the dough has doubled in size turn it out onto a lightly floured surface, cover and let rest for 10 minutes. In a small bowl, combine brown sugar and cinnamon.
3. Roll dough into a 16x21 inch rectangle. Spread dough with 1/3 cup butter and sprinkle evenly with sugar/cinnamon mixture. Roll up dough and cut into 12 rolls. Place rolls in a lightly greased 9x13 inch baking pan. Cover and let rise until nearly doubled, about 30 minutes. 
4. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).  Bake rolls in preheated oven until golden brown, about 15 minutes. Once complete, place a cookie sheet on top of your pan and turn the rolls out upside down and allow them to cool for a few minutes.  While rolls are baking, beat together cream cheese, 1/4 cup butter, confectioners' sugar, vanilla extract and salt. Spread frosting on warm rolls before serving. 

To make the night before, complete recipe through step 3, then cover and refrigerate.  In the morning, allow rolls to sit at room temperature for about 30 minutes, then complete step 4.

To freeze, complete through step 3, cover & freeze.  The day before you want to cook them, move them from the freezer to the fridge.  When ready to cook, allow rolls to sit at room temperature for about 30 minutes, then complete step 4.

Freezer Cooking: Egg Muffin Sandwhiches

I don't do much freezer cooking.  I don't have much freezer space nor the desire to actually cook in bulk.  However, having a husband who leaves the house before dawn (commuting 1 1/2 hours each way) for work, has led us to discover that freezer cooking for his breakfast benefits everyone.  He needs something more substantial than cereal and milk or yogurt, so we've gone to making egg muffin sandwiches.  This way he has a hearty breakfast, that he can heat quickly (and quietly) & I don't have to get up 4 hours before the kids to make it.  I spend about an hour a month preparing them & he's got enough to get him through almost every morning for the entire month!

18 English Muffin

18 eggs

1 package of Canadian Bacon (there are only 15 pieces in the pack I buy, so he has 3 that don't have meat)

18 American Cheese slices

I have this adorable little egg frying pan and it works perfectly!  I spray a little non stick cooking spray, crack the egg into the pan, break up the yolk with a tooth pic & cook it.  Since I'll be using the entire carton of eggs, I just put the cracked shells back in the carton :)

As each egg is cooked, I place them on a wire rack to cool. 

As the eggs are cooking, I get out my bread knife and begin to the cut the muffins in half.

Go ahead and toss the box, but keep the bag the box comes in for later.

Then I begin assembling the sandwiches.  I start with the bottom of the muffin, then add an egg, a slice of canadian bacon & the top of the muffin.  We have found that adding cheese at this point is really not the best idea since it heats so much more quickly than the rest of the items.

Once all the sandwiches are assembled, I individually wrap the sandwiches in seran wrap.  Once they are all wrapped, I place the individually wrapped sandwiches into the bag from the english muffins, secure the top of the bag and place in the freezer.

In the morning, my sweet husband takes out a sandwich, unwraps it, wraps it in a paper towel and microwaves the entire thing for 1 minute & 15 seconds.  While it's cooking, he grabs a slice of cheese out of the fridge.  Once it's cooked, he opens it, adds the cheese, lets it sit for a minute or so and enjoys a nice, hot, filling breakfast.

Best part is, there is an entire month of drive thru style breakfasts for about 10 bucks...can't beat that!

How To: Freezing Raspberries

from thriftyfun.com

Selecting High-Quality Fruit Raspberries:

Once frozen, berries do lose some of their texture, but they are still good for use in dishes and desserts. Select firm, mature, well-colored berries that are fully ripe. Avoid leaky, mushy, or discolored berries. Remove those that are immature, moldy or damaged.

Preparing for Freezing:

Put raspberries into a colander and dunk in cold water to wash gently. Lift and drain. If possible, until you're ready to process them, store raspberries in a single layer in the refrigerator to avoid crushing. They will stay fresh for 1 or 2 days.

Best Freezing Methods(s):

Unsweetened (Plain) Pack

Place raspberries in a single layer on a cookie sheet and tray-freeze. Once frozen (within 24 hours), pack them into suitable containers, leaving 1/2 inch of headspace. Seal, label and freeze. Raspberries can also be packaged and placed directly into the freezer, although berries that are tray-frozen are likely to freeze together in clumps.

Sweetened (Sugar) Pack

Combine 1 quart (1 1/3 pounds) of raspberries and _ cup sugar. Mix carefully to avoid crushing the berries. Stir until most of the sugar is dissolved. Pack into suitable containers, leaving 1/2 inch of headspace. Seal, label and freeze.

Syrup Pack

Pack raspberries into containers and cover with cold, light syrup (2 cups sugar to 4 cups water). Pack in suitable containers leaving 1/2 inch of headspace. Seal, label and freeze.

Suitable Packaging:

Freezer containers should be moisture and vapor resistant and should not be prone to cracking or breaking at low temperatures. Containers should provide protection against absorbing flavors or odors and should be easy to label. Suitable packaging for freezing raspberries includes freezer-grade plastic bags, rigid plastic containers or glass containers and heavy-duty aluminum foil.

Maximum Storage Time:

Up to 12 months at 0ºF.

Thawing:

Add frozen raspberries directly to dishes and desserts.

Tips & Shortcuts:

Raspberries frozen in a sweetened (sugar) pack are best for pies. They will retain their texture better in sugar than if frozen in an unsweetened (plain) pack.

Crispy Treats

4 Tbs butter (substitution not recommend)
1 bag marshmallows (or 4 1/2 cups mini marshmallows)
6 cups crispy rice cereal

Line a baking pan with parchment paper. Spray a large bowl with non-stick spray (preferably butter flavored) and add crispy rice cereal. In a large pot, melt butter and marshmallows until smooth. Stir marshmallows with cereal in the large bowl until well combined. Pour mixture into baking pan. Take a 2nd sheet of parchment paper and spray one side with non-stick spray. Place paper (sprayed side down) on top of the cereal and roll with a rolling pin until evenly distributed. Cool & cut.

Store no more than two days at room temperature in airtight container. To freeze, place in layers separated by wax paper in airtight container. Freeze for up to 6 weeks. Let stand at room temperature for 15 minutes before serving.

My husband LOVES rice crispy treats :) I used to make them for him and they always paled in comparison to the ones his mom makes. The difference...real butter. So, I made them like this tonight and he is thankful!

Pumpkin Bread

From: Sierra Schmidt

3 cups flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
4 tsp of Pumpkin Pie Spice (or 1 tsp nutmeg, 1 tsp cloves, 1 tsp cinnamon and 1/2 tsp ginger)
3 cups sugar
1 cup vegetable oil
1 egg
2 cups canned pumpkin (16 oz)

Preheat oven to 350. Mix first 4 ingredients in a mixing bowl. Mix last 4 ingredients in a separate (large) bowl. Gradually stir pumpkin mixture into dry mixture. Pour into greased and floured loaf pan. Bake time: 1 hour 20 minutes

Recipe yields one large loaf

My boys love this bread. I make it for them with whole-wheat flour, 1 1/2 to 2 cups of sugar (instead of 3) and unsweetened applesauce instead of oil and it is super tasty. The recipe says 1 large loaf, but I have a mess when I try to just make one. I split it and have 2 descent size loafs. It also freezes really well.