Friday, December 19, 2025

Mexican crinkle cookies

 


Came from A Taste of Home, in peachie and blogged here:
Robert Matthew Cowan my son loves these - easy, soft, chewy, and the hint of cinnamon are bomb.





Thursday, December 4, 2025

Gingersnap Cookies - chewy dad's fav


 

3 cups sugar

2 1/4 cups shortening

3/4 cup molasses (dark color)

CREAM above 3 ingredients

add 3 eggs

add 6 cups of flour gradually

1 teaspoon salt (I always use kosher salt)

1 Tablespoon Cinnamon

1 Tablespoon Cloves

1 Tablespoon Ginger

2 Tablespoons baking soda


Roll in a ball (or medium cookie scoop) roll in sugar


Makes a lot (medium scoop 6 dozen)

Do Not grease pan


bake 350 for 8-10 min.  You take out when they get lines in them

something extra add a Hersey's kiss on top when out of the oven.  My dad's fav and his 40th birthday treat! 


ENJOY






Lion House Bakery Challah Braid

 Awesome - My kids favorite of late.  Made RS Christmas dinner 12.2.25

Recipe makes 2 loaves

I double the recipe in my Bosch and make 4 loaves on 2 sheet pans. One loaf gives me aprox. 15-17 slices, but I prefer just to rip hunks of this amazing bread with softened butter.  Comfort and deliciousness at it's finest.


1 Tablespoon dry yeast
1.5 cups water (110-115 degrees)
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 teaspoon salt
2 eggs, beaten well
Pinch of saffron (optional)
  (Saffron maybe more for looks than taste unless you go to Turkey and buy fresh if so bring me some!)
4.5-5 cups flour
1 egg yolk, beaten well
1/4 teaspoon water
Sesame seeds / Poppy seeds / or Everything but the Bagel seasoning
sea salt fancy touch
corn meal optional


Place yeast and water in a large bowl.  Stir slightly to dissolve.  Add sugar, oil, salt, beaten eggs, saffron, and 2.5 cups flour.  Beat well.  Add enough remaining flour to make a soft dough and knead until smooth.(Remember slightly sticky dough makes very awesome bread but you don't want super sticky as that is too hard to shape post rising)  Place in a greased bowl.  Cover and let rise until double in bulk (1-2 hours).  Punch down dough and divide into 6 pieces.  Roll each piece into a long rope 18-20'' long x 1'' diameter.  Braid three of the ropes together. (Online other great braiding / knot ideas).  Repeat with the remaining 3 pieces of dough. Place on a greased cookie sheet sprinkled with some corn meal (think it gives it a fancy elevated easy touch).  .  Mix egg yolk with 1/4 teaspoon water and brush over braids. (Heather uses an entire egg with 1 Tablespoon of water)  Sprinkle with seasame seeds/poppy seeds & sea salt or fav salt. (or Trader Joe's everything but the bagel seasoning for a punch of flavor)

Cover (with a towel or spray plastic wrap with Pam) and let rise 45+ min. (usually doubles in size) You'll get a feel for the rise depending on the season / your warmth in your room etc.

(unique to have eggs / with yeast in a bread more of a "roll" thing to do, so this bread is extra fluffy and yum)

Bake 350 for around 20 min.

some braid techniques

Thursday, September 18, 2025

Spring Mix fruit salad and balsamic

 


2 cups candied walnuts (I buy the candied walnuts from Trader Joe's or candy above but no one has time for this I love Trader Joe's the most!)
12 oz. crumbled Gorgonzola Cheese
20 oz. Spring Mix
2 cups seedless red grapes
2 stalks of celery
2 granny smith apples

Clean and cut grapes in half, core and cut apples into bite size pieces.  Dice celery and combine with spring mix.  Before serving toss with grapes, walnuts, and Gorgonzola cheese.  Top with Sweet Balsamic Dressing to taste.


Sweet Balsamic:
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup. balsamic vinegar
1/3 medium red onion (dice in food processor)
3 cloves garlic
1/3 cup rice vinegar
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
juice of 1 lime
1/4 cup Parmesan Cheese
2 Tablespoons sour cream (love the touch of sour cream with oil and vinegar, makes this dressing one of my fav's)
1/2 cup vegetable oil

Mix together in a blender and chill in a glass shaker jar (I use old washed spaghetti sauce/jam jars etc.)

Wednesday, June 11, 2025

Pretzel Bites with Sourdough Discard

































Crispy, chewy and delicious pretzel bites made with sourdough discard. Perfect for a crowd or a snack. Top with your favorite toppings and enjoy!
Prep Time15minutes 
Cook Time8minutes 
Rise Time1hour  30minutes 
Total Time1hour  53minutes 
Course: Snack
Cuisine: American
 
Servings: 32 pretzel bites
 
Author: Amy Coyne

Equipment

  • Mixer
  • baking sheet
  • parchment paper

Ingredients

Sourdough Pretzel Dough

  • 145 grams sourdough discard heaping 1/2 cup, or bubbly sourdough starter
  • 175 grams lukewarm water 3/4 cup
  • 5 grams granulated sugar 1 teaspoon
  • 8 grams instant yeast 2 teaspoons
  • 6 grams salt 1 teaspoon
  • 285 grams all purpose flour about 2 cups, see recipe notes - plus more for rolling

Baking Soda Wash

  • 120 grams hot water 1/2 cup
  • 15 grams baking soda 1 Tablespoon

Toppings

  • 55 grams unsalted butter, melted 4 Tablespoons
  • 12 grams flaky salt 2 teaspoons, for topping
  • 20 grams parmesan cheese, shredded 1/4 cup, if desired
  • 60 grams cinnamon sugar 1/4 cup, if desired

Instructions

  • To a large bowl or to bowl in a stand mixer, mix together the sourdough discard, water, sugar, instant yeast, salt and flour.
  • Knead by hand about 5-8 minutes or knead in a stand mixer for about 5 minutes until it comes together and forms a smooth ball. Add a little more flour as needed. The dough will still be sticky, but not overly sticky. Pinch off a piece of dough and roll it into a ball in your fingers. If it forms a ball with minimal sticky residue left on your fingers, you can stop adding flour. Check out a few other tips for kneading dough here.
  • Lightly oil a bowl or container (affiliate link) and turn the dough around in the bowl to cover it lightly with the oil. Drape a kitchen towel or some plastic wrap over the bowl and let dough rise for 1-1 ½ hours.
  • Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
  • Once dough has doubled in size, flour a counter with 1-2 Tablespoons flour and punch down the dough. Turn it out onto the floured surface and separate into 4 sections.
  • Roll each section into a long strand and cut each strand into 6-8 pretzel pieces. Place each pretzel bite on the parchment paper.
  • Heat 120 grams (1/2 cup) of water in the microwave until almost boiling. Add 15 grams (1 Tablespoon) of baking soda (it will bubble up a little) and mix together. Make sure the baking soda is completely dissolved before proceeding.
  • Use a pastry brush to brush each pretzel bite with the baking soda/water mixture. Alternatively you can dunk each pretzel bites into the baking soda/water mixture.
  • Preheat the oven to 500ºF. Let the pretzel bites rise for about 10-15 minutes (usually the amount of time it takes for the oven to preheat) before baking.
  • Bake the pretzel bites for about 8-10 minutes until crisp and lightly brown on the outside.
  • While the pretzel bites are baking, melt the unsalted butter and prepare any toppings (salt, parmesan cheese, cinnamon sugar).
  • As soon as the pretzel bites are baked through, remove them from the oven and brush with melted butter. Continue adding butter until all of the butter is on the pretzel bites. It may seem like a lot of butter, but keep adding it for the best taste and flavor.
  • Top with salt, cinnamon sugar or parmesan cheese and enjoy immediately.

Notes

Flour: You may need more or less flour than called for in this recipe depending on the percentage of flour and water your sourdough discard has. Check for readiness of the dough by rolling the dough into a ball in your fingertips. If it forms a ball with just a little sticky residue on your fingers, you can stop adding flour. If it is very sticky, add a little more flour about a Tablespoon at a time.
Substitutions: Bubbly sourdough starter can be substituted for sourdough discard. Alternatively, if you don't have sourdough discard on hand, the discard can be omitted and you can increase the flour to 2 1/3 cups the water to 1 cup of water in the recipe. Keep the other ingredients the same.

Nutrition

Calories: 50kcal | Carbohydrates: 8g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 2g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 0.4g | Trans Fat: 0.1g | Cholesterol: 4mg | Sodium: 347mg | Potassium: 12mg | Fiber: 0.3g | Sugar: 0.2g | Vitamin A: 43IU | Vitamin C: 0.001mg | Calcium: 2mg | Iron: 0.4mg
QR Code linking back to recipe

Tuesday, June 10, 2025

Jeni's Salted Carmel Ice cream recipe

 Hailey and I watched masterclass tonight 6.10.25 and watched Jeni create icecream. I couldn't believe the boil stage, and cornstarch etc. no wonder her ice cream so wonderful it is pure goodness and less ice crysal-y ...Loved her journey of never giving up and the opportunities her 22 year old self started with Scream and now to Jeni's.  With that personal touch she had to do everything right.

We will make this week for Father's day and add cashews.

LYK the review:




Wednesday, June 4, 2025

Keylime Pie Olson fam fav

 


Olson fam favorite.
I got this from my co worker Robyn when I worked at Apple Yard Art in college around the year 2001.

Still a fam favorite and I always buy the gram crust to save time.

Lime filling:
4 tsp. grated zest plus 1/2 cup strained juice from 3-4 l imes
4 large egg yolks
1 14 oz. can sweetened condensed milk

Whipped Cream Topping
3/4 cream
1/4 cup confectioners' sugar
1/2 lime sliced paper thin and dipped in sugar (optional)


1) For the filling:
Whisk zest, and yolks in medium bowl until tinted light green, about 2 minutes. Beat in milk, then juice, set aside at room temperature to thicken.

2) center rack, 325 middle rack adjust keylime pie
bake until center is set yet wiggly when jiggled 15-17
cool 4 hours or overnight

3) for whip cream up to 2 hours before serving
whip cream to soft peaks
add sugar 1 Tbsp at at time
continue to whip until stiff peaks
pipe or spread on top
Garnish with optional sliced lime slices in sugar



Tuesday, April 8, 2025

Ann Romney Cinnamon Rolls - with maple glaze

 

Dough:
2 packages active dry yeast or (4.5 tsp.)
1 Tablespoon sugar
1 cup warm water
1 cup milk
6 Tablespoons butter
3/4 cup sugar
1 tsp salt
5.5 cups flour
3 eggs beaten

Recipe page 89, The Romney Family Table - an excellent Recipe book

Filling:
6 tablespoons butter melted
3/4 cup brown sugar
2 Tablespoons ground cinnamon
3/4 cup raisins optional
cinnamon chips optional

Glaze:
 3 cups powdered sugar
2 Tablespoons melted butter
1/2 tsp. maple flavoring (I use mapeline)
Hot water


I bake 350 degrees
I use dental floss to cut my sweet rolls quick and fast


I believe these are Robert and my fav.  We love the maple glaze - 
These are always a conference weekend hit.

Hot Cross Buns

  Easter Tradition Liz Cowan's fav recipe

 From the Pioneer Woman recipe here


Liz is a master at these rolls.  She doubles the recipe and 
makes 2 sheet pans or 48 rolls worth of Hot Cross buns
 I may have to attempt and make for YW/YM brunch or April lesson Sunday



What are hot cross buns?

They're puffy, perfect little yeasted buns filled with tangy raisins and heavenly spices, and decorated with a cross of sugary icing. (good website description!)

Ingredients

Buns

  • 2 cups 

    whole milk

  • 1/2 cup 

    canola oil

  • 1/2 cup 

    sugar

  • 1 

    (0.25-oz.) package active dry yeast (2 1/4 teaspoons)

  • 4 1/2 cups 

    all-purpose flour

  • 1/2 tsp. 

    (heaping) baking powder

  • 1/2 tsp. 

    (scant) baking soda

  • 2 tsp. 

    salt

  • 1/4 cup 

    sugar

  • 1 tsp. 

    cinnamon

  • Spices: cardamom, nutmeg, allspice (optional)

  • 1/2 cup 

    raisins

  • Cooking spray

  • 1 

    egg white

  • Splash of milk

Icing

  • 1 

    egg white

  • Powdered sugar

  • Splash of milk

Directions

    1. 1For the buns: Combine 2 cups milk, canola oil, and 1/2 cup sugar in a saucepan. Stir and heat until very warm but not boiling. Turn off the heat and allow to cool until mixture is still warm, but not hot, about 30 minutes.
    2. 2Sprinkle the yeast over the milk mixture. Add 4 cups of flour and stir to combine. The mixture will be very sticky. Cover with a towel and set aside for 1 hour.
    3. 3Add the remaining 1/2 cup flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Fold together to combine. At this point, you can cover tightly and store the dough in the fridge overnight or continue on with making the buns. 
    4. 4Combine 1/4 cup sugar with the cinnamon and whatever other spices you want to use.
    5. 5On a lightly floured surface, stretch and press the dough to slightly flatten. Sprinkle with a couple of tablespoons of the sugar/cinnamon mixture. Sprinkle on about a third of the raisins. Then fold the dough over on itself and flatten so the dough is "plain" again. Repeat the sugar/raisin process, then fold and flatten the dough again. Repeat a third time until all the raisins are used. (You won't use all the sugar/cinnamon mixture.) Fold the dough one last time.
    6. 6Pinch off golf ball-sized bunches of dough. With floured hands, quickly roll the dough into a ball, then turn the edges under themselves slightly. Place on a lightly greased cookie sheet. Cover and allow to rise in a warm place for at least 30 minutes (an hour or more is better).
    7. 7Preheat the oven to 400°F. (hc update using 350 next time)  Mix 1 egg white with a splash of milk. Brush onto each roll. Bake for 20 minutes (hc checking at 15) or until tops of buns have turned golden brown. Remove from the pan and allow them to cool completely.
    8. 8For the icing: Mix 1 egg white with enough powdered sugar for the icing to be very thick. Add a splash of milk, as needed, for consistency. When the rolls are completely cooled, add the icing to a small plastic bag and snip the corner. Make a cross on each roll with the icing. Happy Easter!


Liz is pure perfection on these rolls.  I need to master these.  They looked so cute in my new Magnolia scalloped dessert treat case from Angie 2025 above.