Bunny Goes to Grandma's

Meet Bunny. She was born on Saturday, April 5, 2015 and weighed 3 1/2 ounces.

 

 

Bunny is a little mischievous. She decided to stowaway in Abby's suitcase and sneak a ride to grandma's house for Easter.

 

 

Bunny made it safely to grandma's house undiscovered...

 

 

Bunny wanted to go exploring.

 

 

 

 

Soon it was bedtime and Bunny had to go to sleep.

 

 

Bright and early on Easter morning, Bunny was discovered - and put to work babysitting the twins.

 

 

After babysitting, Bunny decided to have a cup of coffee.

 

 

Bunny thought she would read the comics with Nate...

 

 

 

...and then she visited one of her favorite spots - the candy jar!

 

 

 

 

Bunny made a few friends while she waited for dinner.

 

 

 

Bunny helped make dinner too.

 

 

Bunny had a lot of yummy Easter dinner.

 

 

After a big dinner, Bunny had a little bit of dessert.

 

 

Sadly, it was time to leave, so Bunny went upstairs to pack.

 

 

Bunny said goodbye to her friends.

 

 

After a long trip, Bunny is finally home - safe and sound!

 

 

A few of Bunny's newfound friends snuck a ride home, too!

 

 

The End!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Homemade Pizza Pockets

  A few weeks ago, we needed to hurry home from church on Sunday to get a few things done around the house. We live about an hour from church and you can imagine the appetites we work up on the way home.

Even if you eat a big breakfast you will still be FAMISHED by lunchtime. So we try to bring a snack for the way home or we might hit Little Caesars and completely demolish one pepperoni and two cheese pizzas in the blink of an eye. Anyways, I thought I might try making pizza pockets and see if we could be spared a stop on the way home and the I-might-chew-off-your-arm-if-I-don't-eat-now disease that occurs if you wait too long to eat lunch on Sundays.

 These were a hit and I think we may end up having them again soon. (All of them were eaten except for one that an onion-hater accidently bit and discovered that there were onions and [gasp!] green peppers inside...)

You can add sausage, ham, onion, peppers, mushrooms, spinach, etc. too!

Pizza Pockets:

Makes about a dozen

Dough:
4-5c. flour
1 1/2c. warm water
1/4c. oil
2 Tbsp. yeast
1/4c. sugar
1 tsp. salt

Fillings:
pizza sauce
mozzarella cheese
pepperonis
sausage, sautéed onions, peppers, etc. (optional)

1 egg, beaten

1. Mix the warm water and yeast together and let sit until foamy, about 5 minutes. In the bowl of a mixer, combine the 4 cups of flour, oil, salt, and sugar. Pour in the yeast and water mixture and knead until the dough no longer sticks to the sides of the bowl. (You will probably need to add the remaining cup of flour to it.) Place the dough into a greased bowl and let rise in a warm place until doubled in size.
2. Preheat the oven to 375F and lightly grease a cookie sheet. Roll out a small ball of dough into a rectangle (about the size of a small baseball/large golf ball) about a 1/4in. thick. On one half of the rectangle, spread pizza sauce, sprinkle on the mozzarella, and top with pepperonis. Fold over the other side and pinch together the seams. Place it on the cookie sheet and poke a clean fork through the top a few times. Brush with the egg and when the pan is full (the pockets should be at least an inch away from each other so they don't rise and collide while baking) bake for 10-15 minutes or until golden.

Coffee Cake!

    Doesn't everyone need a good, moist coffee cake in their lives now and then? (Specifically, every other Saturday morning?)

 

This was so yummy! (It almost tasted like a real cake!) I think I ate two or three pieces at breakfast and another piece and a half as a snack later...

 

 

Coffee Cake Recipe:

Serves 8-10

 

1c. butter

1 1/2c. sugar

4 tsp. vanilla

2 eggs

4c. flour

2 tsp. salt

2 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. baking soda

1 1/2c. milk with 1 tsp. of lemon juice added to it

 

 

1. Preheat the oven to 350F. In a mixer bowl cream the butter and sugar. Add the eggs, beating well after each addition, and the vanilla.

2. Combine the flour, salt, baking powder, and baking soda in another bowl and add to the butter and sugar mixture. Add the milk/lemon juice and stir until no streaks of flour remain.

3. Grease a 9x13 or 12in. round cake pan (I grease the pan, line the bottom with wax paper, and then grease it again. I think I've been traumatized by cakes not coming out in one piece, so I have to take safety precautions. ;) ) and pour the batter in. Bake for about 40-45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out with a few crumbs attached.

 

~Adapted from Sally's Baking Addiction (I love this site!)

 

Cinnamon Roll Brioche

Oh. My. Word.

 

Up until three days ago I had never dreamed of making brioche. I had never even eaten it before. The thought of making it had not once crossed my mind. But then I saw this and all of that changed. (Even though my shoes and a not very pretty pipe are in the background, the photo above is still one of my favorites.)

 

 

This is (well, I should say was) delicious. If you think cinnamon rolls are good, this is even better!

 

I think I cut the rolls a little on the gigantic side and next time I'll cut them a little bit smaller. It was still really good though!

 

 

Canned, store cinnamon rolls are actually (and I am ashamed to admit this) good. Although fresh homemade rolls are delicious, the store ones have a little crust on the outside and a certain amazingly yummy taste that homemade ones don't seem to have. 

 

 

You might say that's because the store cinnamon rolls contain preservatives and harmful chemicals etc... that make such delightful tastes. This Cinnamon Roll Brioche has none of the those and possesses all of those delicious, store cinnamon roll tastes. The little crust on the outside, the creamy, vanilla-y icing, the amazingly yummy taste that only the store rolls seemed to have. This has all of those and tastes even better!

 

 

It is super-duper, incredibly easy to make and is super-duper, incredibly delicious too!

 

 

Recipe:

Makes one large loaf

 

Dough:

1/4c. warm water

1 Tbsp. yeast

5 Tbsp. sugar

1/2c. warm whole milk

1 1/2 tsp. salt

2 eggs

12 Tbsp. melted butter

1/2 tsp. vanilla

4-5c. flour

Filling:

2 Tbsp. cinnamon

8 Tbsp. melted butter

1/2c brown sugar

Icing:

4 Tbsp. melted butter

2 Tbsp. heavy cream

1/2 tsp. vanilla

2-3c. powdered sugar

1. Combine warm water, yeast and sugar in a large mixer bowl and mix on low speed until incorporated. Allow the mixture to sit about 3 minutes or until poofy.
2. Add the warm milk, salt, eggs and melted butter and mix until combined. Gradually mix in the flour until the dough comes together. Remove the dough from the bowl and place on a lightly floured surface. Kneed into a smooth ball. Grease a large bowl and add the dough to the bowl. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let sit 1-2 hours or until the dough has doubled in size.
3. To make the filling. Add the brown sugar, cinnamon, and salt to a bowl and mix well.
4. Lightly dust a surface with flour. Once the dough has doubled in size, punch the dough down and roll the dough into a rectangle (about 9x24 inches). Spread about the butter evenly over the dough. Spread the brown sugar + cinnamon evenly over the butter and lightly push the brown sugar into the butter. Starting with the long edge closest to you, pull the edge up and over the filling and carefully roll the dough into a log, keeping it fairly tight as you go. When you reach the edge, pinch along the edge to seal.
5. Preheat the oven to 350F.
6. Place the log seam side down on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. With a pair of sharp kitchen scissors cut diagonal slices almost to the bottom of the log. Arrange the cut sections so that they lean to alternating sides. Use your hand to gently push the dough together to help compress the log better. Alternately, you can bake the bread in two 9x5x3 bread pans to make two bread loafs. Cut and shape the dough as directed and then use your hands to push the dough together to almost the size of you bread pan. The dough will zigzag slightly. Using the parchment paper, lift the dough up and into the bread pan. Cover the dough and let it rise until doubled in size.
7. Bake the bread log for 30-35 minutes (the bread in the loaf pan needs about 40-45 minutes).
8. To make the icing mix the butter, sugar, vanilla, and cream together. If the icing is too thick add more cream and if it is too thin you can add a little more powdered sugar. :)

 

~Adapted from Half Baked Harvest

Tuscan Tortellini Soup

      The. Best. Soup. Ever.

 

 

If you like lasagna then you will love this soup...and even if you don't like lasagna you will probably still love it.

 

 

This soup is worth rushing home after co-op to take pictures of in the 30-degree weather before the sun sets all the way. Because, in the battle of taking food pictures for the blog, day light savings usually wins.

 

 

But today I won.

 

 

  Deliciousness, anyone?

 

 Recipe:

This soup serves 8

 

1 Tbsp. olive oil

20oz. Italian sausage, casings removed

4 cloves garlic, minced

1 onion, diced

4c. chicken broth

2  28oz. cans crushed tomatoes

1 tsp. Italian seasoning

salt and pepper to taste

1/2c. heavy cream

20oz. mixed cheese tortellini

1c. freshly grated parmesan

 

1. Heat olive oil in a large stockpot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add Italian sausage to the skillet and cook until browned, about 3-5 minutes, making sure to crumble the sausage as it cooks; drain excess fat. Stir in garlic and onion. Cook, stirring occasionally, until tender, about 3-4 minutes.

2. Whisk in chicken broth, crushed tomatoes, and Italian seasoning; season with salt and pepper, to taste. Bring to a boil and stir in tortellini; reduce heat and simmer until tortellini is cooked through, about 5-6 minutes.

3. Stir in heavy cream and Parmesan until well combined and heated through.   

 

~Originally from Damn Delicious  

 

 

Cinnamon Rolls

      I managed to get a few pictures of these really, really, really yummy cinnamon rolls before we ate all of them - for dinner.

 

I may or may not have devoured two of these in three minutes flat...

 

 

...the icing is really good too. (Look at the cinnamon bun juice!)

 

 

 Recipe:

 

Makes 18-20 cinnamon rolls

 

Dough:

6-7c. flour

1 1/2 tsp. salt

1/4c. sugar

4 Tbsp. canola oil

 2 Tbsp. yeast

2c. warm water 

 

Filling:

6 Tbsp. melted butter

3/4c. brown sugar

2 Tbsp. cinnamon

 

Icing:

2 Tbsp. melted butter

2c. powdered sugar

1 tsp. vanilla

pinch of salt

 

1. In a large mixer bowl, combine 6c. of flour, the salt, and the sugar.

2. Stir the yeast and warm water together in a small bowl and let it sit until foamy, about 5 minutes.

3. When the yeast/water is foamy, add it to the mixer bowl and knead for 1-2 minutes - if the dough sticks to the mixing bowl add a 1/4c. of flour until it no longer sticks. (You should not have to add more than 1c. of flour.)

4. Lightly oil a bowl (you can even use the same mixing bowl!) and set the dough into a slightly warm spot - the oven works great here - to rise until doubled in size.

5. Roll the dough into a rectangle on a clean, floured surface, about an 1/4in. thick, and spread the melted butter over it. Sprinkle the brown sugar and cinnamon over the melted butter and, if needed, spread it out so that the butter, brown sugar, and cinnamon are evenly distributed.

6. Beginning lengthwise, roll the dough into a long cinnamon bun log. Cut the log into 1in. slices and place in a greased pan. Let the cinnamon buns rise until doubled in size and then bake at 350F for 30-40 minutes or until golden brown.

*Optional* When you pull them out of the oven, rub them with a little melted butter for a yummy soft crust.

7. Let the cinnamon rolls cool for a few minutes and then combine the melted butter, powdered sugar, vanilla, and salt in a measuring cup. Pour the icing over the top and enjoy!

 

Apple Turnovers

    We had these for breakfast this morning and even the pickiest of our (many) very picky eaters liked them. 

 

They had a nice flaky crust...

 

 

...and a nice cinnamony filling.

 

 

You could have them for dessert or you could have them for breakfast.

 

 

 

We will probably have them for breakfast again. And maybe for dessert sometime too. :)

 

Recipe:

Makes about 20 turnovers.

 

5-6 granny smith apples, diced, quite small

3 Tbsp. butter

3/4 c. brown sugar

1 tsp. vanilla

1 Tbsp. cornstarch

1 Tbsp. cinnamon

pinch of salt

 

1/2 pack phyllo sheets

5 Tbsp. butter, melted

 

1. In a large pot, combine apples, butter, sugar, vanilla, cornstarch, cinnamon, and salt over medium heat. Stir often for 5 minutes or until slightly thickened.

2. Remove the dough from the package and cover it with a damp towel because it will dry out very quickly.

3. Lay one phyllo sheet on a clean dry surface and brush lightly with butter. Fold it in half lengthwise and brush lightly with melted butter. Place 2-3 Tbsp. of the apple mixture onto the corner edge and fold it over to make a triangle. (Pictorial below.) Once it is completely folded, brush with melted butter and bake at 375F for 10-15 minutes or until golden brown.

 

 

~ Originally from Home Cooking In Montana