Cinnamon Roll Cake

I've been on Pinterest for a while and I've seen this recipe a lot!  Several months ago I decided to give it a try.  I used the recipe from cookin up north blog.  (I  don't know if it's any different  from the other recipes out there or not.)  I followed the recipe the first time I made it.  It was really good!  The second time I made it  I decided to try to make it a bit healthier!  This recipe takes 3 sticks of butter.  I don't know about you, but that is a bit extreme to me.  I couldn't do it so I got 1 stick of butter out and decided to try it.  I wasn't sure if it would turn out OK or not.  Trust me on this, it turned out great.  I don't think you would be able to tell the difference!  A picture of it before it goes in the oven!!! (I do swirl the gooey stuff with a knife before I bake it!)

So here is a run down of what i do different. My changes are italicized out to the side!!
Cake:
3 c. flour~ whole wheat flour (soft)
1/4 tsp.salt
1 c. sugar~ 3/4 c. sugar (I just eyeball this, I use a 1c. measuring cup and never fill it up all the way!)
4 tsp. baking powder
1 1/2 c. milk
2 eggs
2 tsp. vanilla
1/2 c. butter, melted~I use 4 Tbsp. butter (1/4 c.)

Topping:
1 c. butter, softened~ I use 1/4 c. (the rest of the stick)
1 c. brown sugar ~ 1/2 c.
2 Tbsp. flour~ 1 Tbsp
1 Tbsp. cinnamon

Mix everything together except for the butter. Slowly stir in the melted butter and pour into a greased 9x13 pan. For the topping, mix all the ingredients together until well combined. Drop evenly over the batter and swirl with a knife. Bake at 350 for 28-32 minutes.

Glaze:
2 c. powdered sugar~ 1 c.
5 Tbsp. milk~ 2-3 Tbsp.
1 tsp. vanilla
While warm drizzle the glaze over the cake.

You won't regret trying this cake!  It is the best right out of the oven!  Enjoy!

Strawberries

In past years I've kept a notebook containing my canning/freezing information. I thought it might be easier to keep record of it here on my blog.

All of this came from the strawberries in my patch and from my mom's patch. I made one regular batch of strawberry jam, and I made 2 batches of strawberry/rhubarb jam. I've frozen 10 bags of whole strawberries to use for smoothies or whatever else looks good in the winter!
I'm going to share my recipe for the strawberry/rhubarb jam. I found this recipe at Food.com, but I changed it up a bit.
On my first batch I used 3 cups strawberries, 2 cups rhubarb like it calls for and I used dutch jell instead of liquid pectin. I added a little more than 4 cups of sugar, which was plenty for us. (I can't imagine using 7 cups, like the recipe calls for.) The tart from the rhubarb wasn't quite as strong as I would've liked, so on my second batch I used 3 cups rhubarb and just shy of 4 cups of sugar. I haven't tried it yet so I don't know if it's any different than the first batch.
This recipe was super simple. It tells you to flip your jar over after you get the ring on for about
5 minutes.
(This recipe made 1pint and 6-7 half pints)


**All of my jars sealed, but I'm still storing this in the freezer for extra protection. My sil told me that one time she made grape juice, as it was coming out of the straino machine it was hot enough it was sealing the jars. They put the rings on and thought it was fine, it ended up fermenting and turning into wine! In my house this jam is like gold so I'm not willing to risk any of it going bad so that is why it's going into the freezer! If you enjoy strawberry/rhubarb together this jam is a must!

From Scratch....

It's time for our scratch cooking series from Sarah over at 8-muddy boots. Sarah is trying to encourage us to cook from scratch. It's normally healthier and it's normally cheaper!
This week was normal! I made Grandmother bread over the weekend and I will be making it again today! I need to make granola in the next few days too. I made several soups this week and our Stromboli. We put ham and cheese, tomato, pepper,onion and garlic in the Stromboli and it turned out really good!
I'm going to share our pancake recipe which I made yesterday morning.
This is the original pancake recipe.
Here is how I make it:
1 cup whole wheat flour
1 cup quick cooking oats
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups buttermilk (I add some vinegar to milk to make my buttermilk)
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 eggs
1 banana
1/2 cup blueberries
I put all ingredients in my blender. (you may want to start with the oats just to be sure they blend well) I mix well in the blender and then pour into my hot skillet. (*The batter is somewhat thin*) We LOVE these pancakes. As you know I'm trying to watch my weight, these are pretty healthy. They have around 60 calories, and a little over 1 gram of fat! (we get around 20 pancakes out of this recipe.)

Here they are, a nice pretty blue color!

Go visit Sarah and share your recipes!

I'm so excited!

My family is looking into getting honey this spring. I think we are all really excited. We have been doing some experimenting with cooking with honey, so far we are very pleased with what we've found.

I made this , using honey! I think we all thought it was very good!

Here is how I did it.....

This is my pie crust, I used 100% whole wheat flour. (and yes I know my crust skilz could use some work, I'm teachable!)

I took 3/4 cup honey,6 Tbl. cornstarch, and between 1-1.5 cups of water. I followed the directions here and let it get thick and bubbly. I continued to follow the directions. Here are some changes I made.... I added only 2 Tbl. of butter, 1 tsp. vinegar and no lemon extract. I kept the lemon juice the same.

The next time I make this I will use 1/2 cup of honey, and add a little more lemon juice.

Meringue recipe: 3 egg whites, 2 Tbl. sugar, 1tsp. vanilla

Pretzels

Here is the recipe I used. The only change I made was I added 1.5 cups whole wheat flour. I didn't add the kosher salt either. When I got mine out of the oven I put them on a cooling rack. I had 2 Tbl. melted butter I lightly brushed on. (I put my cookie sheet under the rack, that way any excess could run off.)



12 pieces of dough soon to become pretzels.


Here's a little video of Zeke making them. (So easy a 5 year old can do it!)

*hint* The thinner and longer the rope the prettier they will turn out.

Ready to go in the oven.

When the pretzels came out of the oven we used these yummy dips to dip into. (You could also make cinnamon sugar pretzels.)

Does this all make sense? If you have any questions please ask! I feel like my brain is only in partial working order today!

This has nothing to do w/ pretzels, but I just loved his "outfit"! He was ready to go in the snow 1st thing this morning!

Do you want to be LOVED??????????????????

I can make that happen!!!!!!! Do you believe me?? You should, you know! (I hardly ever lie)

Are you ready to find out how??? It's really simple!

Here is all you need to be loved, these 4 simple things:

Cinnamon Butter

Here is how to make it.

This is the original recipe. For us the honey was too strong so......

I made some adjustments, here is my recipe:

1/4 cup butter (half stick)

1/4 cup powdered sugar

1/8 cup honey*

1/2 tsp. cinnamon

You want the butter to be room temperature/softened. Just mix everything together. I do mine in a bowl with a fork.

*I don't have an 1/8 cup measuring cup, so what I did was squeezed my honey out for 7 seconds. (yes I know I'm weird!!) I think it's probably less than 1/8 cup. So you may want to use less and then add a little more if you need/want it. Enjoy all the LOVE, you deserve it!!

Obviously you can adjust the quantity of the recipe to make more.

I use real butter, cause I think it's healthier than margarine.

Slathered on a fresh piece of bread!

Someone inhaling it! They all came back for seconds!

Stay tuned for some YUMMY recipes, coming soon! You won't regret it!

Stromboli

Dough:

1 Tbl. yeast

1 1/3 warm water

1/4 oil

1/2 tsp. salt

4-5 cups flour.

Mix together til a soft dough forms. Let rise for about 45 minutes. Divide the dough in half.

Filling:

3 Tbl. mustard

12 slices American cheese

12 slices hard salami

1 1/2 lbs. ground beef (browned and drained)

1/2 pound thin sliced cooked ham

4 cups shredded mozzarella cheese

oil

oregano to taste

Bake @ 400 degrees for 25-30 minutes, or until lightly browned. Cool before cutting into thin slices. According to recipe these freeze well!

Here is our dough

Here it is after I rolled it out on the counter, on the cookie sheet.

Here it is AFTER I reread the directions! (yeah, I'm that kind of cook!) =) You will need 2 cookie sheets!


Here is where we change the filling. My kiddos do not like mustard so we use pizza sauce. I didn't measure 3 tablespoons I just spread some down the middle.

Next comes the toppings: we use pepperoni instead of salami, we also used ground sausage instead of beef. (and ham too)

Next comes cheese. I used mozzarella and cheddar.

I personally love getting my kids involved in the kitchen. Yeah it might make a little more mess, but I think it's fun for all of us. At this house often times they start getting the crankies around supper, this generally helps! They feel useful, they are learning cooking basics, and having fun.

Next step is a fun one!!! You cut slits down both sides.

Option: The recipe tells you to spread dough into a 15x12 rectangle. Load up one side of the dough with toppings and fold over the remaining dough, then seal the edges.

When my mom made Stromboli growing up she always cut the slits, that is why I do it this way, plus I think it looks so much prettier!

Then you start overlapping the slits you cut.

Here it is all done.

Optional: Spread oil over the top and sprinkle with oregano

Here it is fresh from the oven!

Yummmm.............. Can you taste it?????

*If you choose to do the fold over, your toppings will go on the left or right side instead of in the middle!

Tapioca

Tapioca Pudding

Soak 1/2 cup tapioca overnight. (I soaked mine for about 3 hours this morning and it worked fine) I buy my tapioca in bulk @ my local bulk food store.

I only add 1 cup of sugar,instead of the1.5 it calls for. I know not a huge reduction, but if I'd cut it anymore my can would get kicked! =)

Mix 1 quart (4 cups)milk and 3/4 cup sugar, bring to boil.

Drain your tapioca and then add it to milk mixture. Cook and stir till tapioca is clear. My directions say at least 30 minutes, I don't think I've ever cooked mine that long.

This is after about 8 minutes, you can see they are almost clear.

Then beat 3 eggs, add 3/4 cups sugar and 3/4 teaspoon vanilla to above mixture and bring to a full boil.

Tip: When adding eggs to something hot take some out of the hot and add it to your eggs. Stir it up and then your eggs won't take on a scrambled texture when you add it back into the hot pot.

Here it is finished!

Does your family like Tapioca Pudding? It's one of our families favorites. I remember my Grandma making this ALL the time.

God Bless Texas!

I have no idea why it's called Texas sheet cake, I tried to find out, but no luck! It doesn't matter what it's called to me, it is one of my favorite desserts!

Here is my mom's recipe:

2 sticks of butter- bring butter to boil, take off of the burner, then add following

3T. cocoa powder

1/2 cup water

mix well and then add to above mixture:

2 cups sugar

2cups flour

1 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. Cinnamon

1 cup buttermilk

1 tsp. vanilla

2 eggs beaten

Bake @ 350 for 20 minutes

Here it is getting mixed....

Here it is in the pan ( i have written down 15.5 x 11.5 pan, mine is bigger than that)(I'd just use a big cookie sheet!)

Here it is baked...

When I take the cake out of the oven I start on the frosting.

1 stick of butter

6 T. milk

3 T. cocoa, bring these 3 things to a boil.

Take off the burner and add

1 box of powdered sugar (I've never bought my powdered sugar in a box, so I measured and I used 6 cups)

1 tsp. vanilla

Here it is ......You spread this on a slightly warm cake.

In the process of being frosted.

And here is the empty frosting pan! If my head would fit inside I would lick it clean!!! So yummy! If you need a chocolate fix this is a great choice. I had this baked,frosted and my kitchen back in order in an hour!

How I do Vanilla!

When I was first married I used imitation vanilla. I really had no clue what the difference was between that and REAL vanilla. Down the road I realized that it was better to use real vanilla,health wise and flavor wise.
A year ago for Christmas my sil got me some vanilla beans. It was not a concept I was familiar with. As I learned more about it I got pretty excited to use it. I had no idea you could buy your own vanilla beans and make your own vanilla.

Here's how to do it:

First you buy your beans. This is where I've been buying mine. I like that they are organic and I think the price is really good.


So, here they are. I believe these are Tahitian. (These are long.) I put one 10 pack of beans in a 750 ml bottle of vodka. This company has a few varieties to choose from. They have more info on their site about size and the difference between their beans.



Next buy your Alcohol. We use Vodka. The first directions I saw said you could use rum or bourbon too. I think both of those have more flavor than the vodka, since I want a truer vanilla flavor I stick w/ vodka.




Next you take your beans and cut them length wise. (I think you can tell by the picture below,what's happening.) Sometimes the ends are hard, if so we cut those off too.




Next step is to drop the cut beans into the bottle of vodka.



Ta-Da.....Your done!
It will take 4-6 weeks before you will use it, that way it's full strength.




Some helpful hints:
As you use your vanilla and your beans start to be exposed you can "top" off your bottle with more vodka. It will last quite a while. (I'm not sure exactly how long.) If you notice the color isn't darkening as much when topped off or the flavor is diminishing it may be time to get new beans.
You don't need high quality alcohol for this. I try to get the cheapest I can find. At CVS You can normally get a bottle for $8-$9. I have gotten a larger bottle at meijer for around the same price. I use a glass bottle for my vanilla, my vodka refill bottle is plastic. If your using real vanilla, this is the most cost effective I've come across.
What kind of vanilla do you use?

Orange Cookies!

This is one of my favorite cookie recipes!

1 cup butter
1tsp. baking soda
2 cups sugar
pinch of salt
2 large eggs
1 tsp. (heaping) baking powder
1 cup sour milk
4 cups flour
1 medium orange, juice and rind

Frosting
2 Tbls melted butter
1 Tbl orange rind
4 cups powdered sugar
juice of an orange

Cream together the butter and sugar till fluffy. Then add eggs beat well. Add sour milk and orange juice, and rind. Separately mix soda, powder, flour,salt, add to the above mixture beating well. Drop by heaping tablespoon on to greased cookie sheet. Bake @ 350 for 12 minutes. Cool on a wire rack. Yield-3 dozen
Once cool frost and enjoy! If frosting is to thick(mine was) add milk

Rice Recipes

When I buy rice I get it with my mil at Sam's Club. We prefer the Jasmine rice. It has good flavor and it cooks well! We buy a 25# bag and split it up. (I figured up the cost of the rice and it's 15 cents per cup.)



This is our favorite recipe, we have this quite often.
Herbed Rice
1 cup rice (jasmine)
1 1/2 cups water
1 Tbl. Chicken bouillon
1/4 tsp. thyme
1/2 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. pepper
1 Tbl. garlic
2Tbl. butter
I mix everything together in a casserole dish, and put the butter on top. Bake for 45 minutes at 350 degrees!

Just a word of advice or warning: I gave this recipe to my friend and she said it didn't turn out, like the rice was crunchy. I've had this happen a few times when it gets over baked waiting for Mark to come home. When I've used different rice (not jasmine) it hasn't turned out as well either. I also don't cover it when I bake it. It's an easy yummy rice. I hope this doesn't scare you from trying it!!!

Fried Rice
If you don't have leftover rice cook rice according to the directions (using chicken broth instead of water) (I try to use around a cup)
Saute in oil carrots, onion, and celery
Add egg and stir, add rice, meat of your choice, and 2 Tbl. soy sauce.
Enjoy!
Do you have any rice recipes your family loves????

New Recipe

I made this recipe and added 1 mashed up banana. It was excellent. I'm not normally a fan of pancakes, but these were great. I doubled the recipe, and instead of a food processor I used a blender!

Trifle!

Make a pan of brownies. Cut them into 1" squares.

Get a pretty bowl, and put a layer of brownies into the bottom.

Then put pudding on top of that (I use chocolate, but any would be good) I didn't get a picture of the pudding layer, TJ was scared of the thunder! Then put cool whip on top of that.

Then add another layer of brownies. I also had a little bit of strawberries left so I added that as well.

Then add the rest of the pudding.


Then the rest of the cool whip!

Here's your finished dessert! It's really easy and really good!