Pumpkin or Squash Soup

This is a comfort food recipe that my friend got out of the Oregonian last fall.  She's made it a handful of times and I've had the pleasure of eating it!  It's the BEST soup ever!  It's full of flavor and so yummy with some warm rolls to dip in it!  The recipe calls for pumpkin, but I've used butternut squash and acorn squash, and it's just as yummy!  So use what you have!  I guess they're all from the squash family anyway!

1/4 cup butter 
1 clove garlic, crushed 
1/2-1 cup chopped onion (depends on how much you like onion)    
1 tsp curry powder 
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp coriander
a pinch of red pepper (opt).   
3 cups chicken broth
2 cups pumpkin or squash, soft
1 cup Half & Half

1.  If you're using fresh squash, cut in half, scoop out seeds, place face down on a greased baking sheet and bake at 350 degrees for 30-40 minutes or until squash is fork soft.  (You can also use canned pumpkin.) Let squash cool.  Once cool, scoop out the soft insides and set aside.
2.  Melt butter in a dutch oven or large soup pot.  Saute garlic and onion in the butter until soft.
3.  Add curry powder, salt, coriander, and the red pepper.  Cook for a minute more.
4.  Add the chicken broth and boil gently for 10-15 minutes.  (I'm not sure I even wait that long...why?)
5.  Add 2 cups of squash or pumpkin and a cup of half & half.  If you don't have half & half, milk works just fine.
6.  Blend with an emersion blender or ladle into a blender and blend until smooth.

Resurrection Rolls

These rolls are not only delicious to eat, but teach a beautiful message about the Resurrection of Christ.  We usually make these as a Family Home Evening treat the Monday before Easter.  I make the kids help me prepare them.  As we do, we discuss that the Marshmallow is white and pure.  It represents our Savior, Jesus Christ.  After He was crucified, his friends and family took His body from the cross and wrapped it in linen (the bread dough) and anointed his body with oil and spices (butter and cinnamon).  Then they placed His body in the tomb (the oven).

While the rolls bake, we have an Easter lesson, usually regarding the events that lead to the Resurrection and the beautiful gifts and promises that we have been given because of His sacrifices.  When the timer goes off we open the tomb (oven) and pull out the rolls.  I bring one roll over to the kids.  We talk about how Mary went to the tomb to morn the loss of the Savior.  I remind the kids that we place the marshmallow in the roll to represent Christ.  I open the roll up and we discover that the marshmallow isn't there!  (It's melted into ewey-gooey yumminess.)  For Jesus Christ had ascended to Heaven and the tomb was empty!  Even my 17 year old son loves this tradition!

I discovered this wonderful recipe and tradition at Sister's Cafe.  It was submitted by Erin.

1 package frozen bread or roll dough, thawed (or homemade roll dough)
6 TB sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
1 bag large marshmallows
1/4 cup butter, melted

1. Combine sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl and set aside. 

2.  Divide the dough into individual roll sized portions. Press each portion into a flat circle. Place1 large marshmallow in the center of each roll. Pinch roll dough very firmly around the marshmallow. 

3.  Roll each into a seamless, or nearly seamless, ball with your hands. Brush rolls with melted butter. Sprinkle sugar mixture over rolls. 

4.  Cover rolls with plastic wrap and put in the fridge overnight. On Sunday morning, preheat oven to 350°. Take rolls out of fridge and bake for 15 minutes until rolls are golden brown. Be careful not to overbake. (These may also be baked without sitting overnight. After wrapping the marshmallow in them, let them rise for about an hour or so and then bake them as usual.)

Orange Rolls

1 recipe of your favorite dinner rolls dough 

(You can use frozen Rhodes Bread loaves too.)

½ cup softened butter

1 cup sugar

2 Tbsp freshly squeezed orange juice

Grated orange rind from two large oranges

Orange Glaze

Mix together 1 ½ cups powdered sugar, 3 Tbsp orange juice, and ½ tsp grated orange rind.

Orange filling

Combine butter, sugar, remaining orange juice and orange rind in a small bowl and mix well.

1. When bread is ready to use, divide it into 3 sections.  Roll each section into a rectangle about 9x13, and ¼ inches thick. 
2. Spread each rectangle with 1/3 of the butter mixture. 
3. Starting with the long side, roll up jellyroll style.  Seal edges well, then cut into 1-inch slices.
4. Place on a greased baking sheet (about 15 on a sheet – three rows of five).  Let rise away from draft until dough doubles, about 1 hour. 
5. Bake at 350 degrees for about 15-20 minutes.  Remove rolls from pans and cool on wire rack.  When rolls are cool, drizzle with orange glaze.

Flaky Buttermilk Biscuits

I found this recipe in my local newspaper a few weeks ago and tried it.  It was a great recipe!  I use it for making Biscuits and Gravy and ended up wishing I had doubled the recipe to have some just to eat with butter and jelly.  So yummy!

*Preheat oven to 450 degrees

Melt 4 Tbsp. butter in a 9 inch baking pan.  (I stick the pan and butter in the oven while the oven is preheating.)

2 cups flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
3/4 cup buttermilk

(Makes 9, 3-inch biscuits)

1.  Sift together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.  Cut in the remaining 4 Tbsp of butter with a fork or pastry blender.  It should resemble coarse cornmeal when done.
2.  Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and add buttermilk.  Stir only to moisten and until the dough is free from the sides of the bowl.
3.  Knead gently, about 10-12 times.  Roll out to at least 1-inch thick.  Cut with a 2 or 3-inch cutter dipped in flour.  Place biscuits in the pan with the butter.  Turn biscuit to cover both sides in melted butter.  Place close together in pan.  Bake 12-15 minutes and serve hot.

* If you need to hold off on baking for a little while, you can hold cut dough rounds in the refrigerator for up to 1 hour.

For a touch of sweetness, 1 Tbsp of sugar can be added to the dry ingredients also.

German Pancake in a 9x13 Pan

I LOVE breakfast, and one of my favorite breakfasts is German Pancakes, sometimes known as Dutch Babies.  They are a puffy-egg pancake that is made, typically, in a pie plate.  I've modified mine to feed a large family of 7.  With 2 growing boys and a husband, I end up making about 3- 9x13 pans.  The typical German Pancake is served with fresh lemon juice and powdered sugar.  I like mine with lemon juice and maple syrup.  Some of my kids like fresh freezer jam on them, and when fresh berries are in season, they add those with the lemon juice and powdered sugar.  

(To reduce this to the original pie plate size, cut it into 3rds.)

German Pancake

4 Tbsp. butter

6 eggs

1 ½ cups flour

1 ½ cups milk

1 tsp salt

*Lemon Juice, maple syrup, and powdered sugar.

1.  Heat oven to 400 degrees.  Slice butter and add to the 9x13 pan.  Place in the oven until the butter is melted.  Brush or roll butter around the edges of the pan.

2.   In the meantime, place eggs, flour, milk and salt into a blender and blend well.

3.  When pan comes out of the oven, pour mixture into hot pan and immediately put back into the oven.

4.  Bake for 25-30 minutes or until puffy and golden brown.

*Serve with lemon juice, maple syrup and powdered sugar.

Breakfast Casserole

I should rename this meal Dinner Casserole.  We happen to eat this more for dinner than breakfast, because quite frankly, I'm too lazy to cook in the morning! My kids like to top this with ketchup...yuck...or maple syrup.  However, it doesn't need anything.  They just seem to have to top everything with something!

*Preheat oven to 425 degrees

6 cups shredded frozen hash browns
1/3 cup melted butter

Pour melted butter over the hash browns in a 9x13 pan.  Bake for 25 minutes.

1-2 cup diced ham, crumbled bacon, or my favorite - ground sausage
1 cups grated Monterey Jack Cheese (or any on hand)
6 eggs
3/4 cups milk
1/4 tsp salt

1.  While hash browns are cooking, cook bacon or brown sausage.  Set aside.
2.  Mix the remaining ingredients together in a bowl.  Pour the egg mixture over  the hot hash browns and turn the oven down to 350 degrees.
3.  Top with sausage, bacon, or ham,  and top with cheese.
4.  Bake for 30 minutes.  Make sure the middle is set.

(Pictured with ground breakfast sausage and cheddar cheese.  I also added red bell pepper to this batch.)