Cinnamon Rolls (aka Melt in your Mouth Heart Attacks)

Seriously, from dough, to filling, to frosting, this recipe took 7 STICKS of butter!

Ready for the oven

I recently lost 12 pounds on my mission to shed 40 and I'm convinced that just ONE of these cinnamon rolls would put all 12 of those pounds and then some right back on me. That's why I repeat this mantra when I look at them...

Ingredients:

1 cup sugar

1 cup butter, melted

1 Tablespoon salt

5 eggs

½ cup milk

2 Tablespoons yeast

2 and ½ cup warm water

12 cups flour

Filling:

1 and ½ cup butter

2 cups brown sugar

2 teaspoons cinnamon (I doubled that)

2 Tablespoons light corn syrup

2 Tablespoons water

For Dough: Dissolve yeast in warm water. 

Mix sugar, salt and butter. Add eggs and milk and beat well. 

 

Add yeast mixture; mix in flour. Knead to make smooth elastic dough. 

Let rise until double. 

Divide dough in half. 

Roll one half into a rectangle ¼ inch thick. 

My little helper

Cover with filling. 

Roll up (starting with long edge) and slice into 1 inch rolls. 

Put a little filling into the pans and place rolls in pan.

 Let rise again. Bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes.

The two in the back are covered with cream cheese frosting and the two in front are covered with caramel frosting

Cream Cheese Frosting

4 cups powdered sugar

4 ounces cream cheese

½ cup butter, softened

1 teaspoon vanilla

3-4 Tablespoons milk

Mix all ingredients together and frost cooled cinnamon rolls.

Healthy-ish Breakfast Casserole

Even your pickiest eater will love! I wish all my "experiments" turned out so fabulous! I took our standby breakfast casserole and transformed it into something I would serve to royalty. (If royals are so inclined to eat such things as casseroles.) I really had NO idea whether this was going to work or not when I started and when I tested it on my husband, he had not even realized I had made some major changes. Other variations at the end.

Fresh from the oven

Instead of cubed bread, I peeled and chopped up 1 medium-sized eggplant. I also incorporated fresh vegetables and herbs.

Ingredients:
1 medium to large eggplant, peeled and chopped into small pieces. Place into a 9X13 pan.
1 pound ground sausage
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
7 eggs
2 cups milk
1 teaspoon dry mustard
1 handful fresh spinach
several sprigs of fresh parsley
1 medium onion
a few splashes of Wildtree's Smoky Chipotle Hot Sauce or hot sauce of your choice
1 teaspoon Wildtree's Rancher Steak Rub OR salt and pepper to taste

I did add 2 slices of my homemade "Rustic Cracked Wheat Bread" because I wasn't sure how absorbent the eggplant would be. (The original recipe calls for 6 slices cubed bread.)

1 pound ground sausage, cooked, drained and crumbled (We butcher our own so it is very low fat.)
Place on top of cubed eggplant

 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese. Sprinkle on top of sausage

In a medium bowl, mix together veggies and herbs of choice with eggs and milk and pour over everything. Sprinkle top with Wildtree's California Style Garlic and Pepper Blend.

If you don't have one of these awesome handy dandy Tupperware Food Choppers, you should definitely talk to my friend, Marcie! This is one of my MUST haves!

This is the egg and herb mixture to pour over the casserole

Bake at 350 for 45-55 minutes or until eggs are set. You can prepare this in the evening and bake the next morning so it is great for company, or you can bake immediately.

If you have a REALLY picky eater, put the eggs, veggies and herbs into the blender. Voila`. They will never know. I do that with smoothies all the time. My kids drink fresh spinach in their yogurt and fruit smoothies and think it is the best ever. A lot of times I throw a little fresh mint in the smoothies too, so if they see a fleck of green and ask what it is, I tell them it must be that yummy mint leaf.

This casserole really was INCREDIBLE! And I looked up some nutrition info.

For one cup of chopped cooked eggplant, you are looking at 33 calories, 0 grams of fat, 0 g cholesterol, 237 milligrams sodium, 8 g carbs, 2 g dietary fiber, 3 g sugar, 1 g protein. Info from Self Nutrition Data.

1 slice of wheat bread (if you use 6 sliced cubed as in the original recipe) is 60 calories, 0 cholesterol, 100 milligram sodium, 12 g carbs, 1 g dietary fiber, 2 g sugar and 2.5 g protein. Info from Live Strong.

VARIATIONS: We also love this casserole with fresh diced tomatoes tossed in with the bread cubes or eggplant and then Wildtree's Fiesta Salsa Mix in with the egg mixture. We also like jalapenos and other hot peppers one on end on top for mommy and daddy.

Apple Crisp

Our children love apples. I use them for baking and cooking, eating raw, sliced, diced, chopped, you name it. I had some Granny Smith apples that needed used up so I made a basic apple crisp.

Wish I would have gotten more of the crisp and less of the ice cream in the photo

Ingredients:
5 cups sliced, peeled cooking apples
2-4 Tablespoons granulated sugar
I also added 1 Tablespoon Wildtree's Cranberry Spice Blend
1/2 cup regular rolled oats (not quick oats)
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg, ginger or cinnamon
1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup chopped nuts (optional)

Method:
Place chopped apples in 2-quart baking dish. Stir in granulated sugar. (This is also where I added the Cranberry Spice Blend.) Stir well

For topping: In medium bowl, combine the oats, brown sugar, flour, and nutmeg. Cut in butter until mixture resembles fine crumbs. Stir in nuts of using. Sprinkle over top of fruit.

Bake at 375 for 30-35 minutes or until fruit is tender and topping is golden. Serve warm with ice cream or freshly whipped cream.

Grilled Cajun Blue Hake and Summer Squash

One of our favorite vegetables this time of year is summer squash. A favorite hobby of mine is coming up with creative ways to prepare it. After the first time coating it like this and grilling it, I didn't have to keep looking for different methods. This is our absolute favorite. This is great with zucchini too. We don't care much for cod, but we love Blue Hake. This is one of many ways we enjoy this fish.

I brushed the blue hake with Wildtree's Smoky Bacon Grapeseed Oil and Wildtree's Cajun Seasoning. Blend, wrapped it in foil and grilled until done. I cut the squash into strips length-wise, tossed them with Wildtree's Roasted Garlic Grapeseed Oil and Wildtree's California Style Garlic and Pepper Blend and grilled them until tender.

Citrus Pork and Roasted Vegetables

I had too many carrots and potatoes to go in the roaster with the meatloaf I made for the picnic Friday, so on Sunday I made a marinated pork roast using the rest of the vegetables.

Ready for roasting

I threw some of Wildtree's Lemon Rosemary Blend (about 2 Tablespoons) and Wildtree's Dill Dip Blend (about 1 Tablespoon) in a gallon plastic storage bag. I added about a tablespoon of Red Wine Vinegar and a splash Wildtree's Zesty Lemon Grapeseed Oil. I put the pork loin in the bag and marinated that overnight. The next morning, I placed it in the roaster and added the carrots and potatoes, making sure they were covered with the marinade as well. Then I squeezed a fresh lemon over it all and slow-roasted it for several hours. I served the sliced loin with Wildtree's Outrageous Orange Sauce and the vegetable were fabulous with the seasonings from the marinade. The pink peppercorns in the Lemon Rosemary Blend make this dish really stand out. As always, to learn more about all-natural, preservative-free Wildtree, visit my Wildtree page.

Butter Cookie Cream Cheese Fruit Bars

I took these bars to the Sadie Rose Foundation memorial picnic and balloon release too. Sorry about the long name for them, but they are a made-up recipe, using some of my favorite things. I started by using my favorite butter cookie recipe from Deer Valley Ranch, where I was one of many "kitchen chics." There, we made these buttery cookies and served them with a dip of strawberry ice cream for lunch-time dessert.

As you might notice, I forgot to take a picture before my friend, Zena, and I tried them out.

For these bars, I used that "Wonderful Butter Cookie" recipe and spread the dough in a greased 9X13 pan. I baked it as a crust, then spread a layer of Wildtree's Lemon Lime Cheesecake (prepared) and topped it off with fresh blueberries and raspberries. (If you want to make this recipe without the lemon lime cheesecake filling, simply prepare the filling recipe below without adding the cheesecake blend and it will still be a tasty dessert.)There were no leftovers from the picnic and I plan to make them again for our family camping trip this weekend.

Wonderful Butter Cookies

Recipe from Deer Valley Ranch

1/2 cup shortening (I use all butter)

1/2 cup butter (so I use 1 cup butter total and no shortening)

1 cup granulated sugar

1 egg

2 and 1/4 cups flour

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon vanilla (can use 1/2 teaspoon vanilla and 1/2 teaspoon almond flavoring)

Butter cookie crust

Method: Mix all together. Roll in 1-inch balls, roll ball on sugar and press down lightly with a fork. Bake at 375 for 8-10 minutes. DO NOT over-bake or wait for them to turn "brown." These are easy to over-bake.

For the dessert pictured above, make the cookie dough recipe and spread into 9X13 greased pan. SPrinkle the granulated sugar over top of crust. Bake at 350 for 15-20 minutes. Again, do not over-bake. Cool completely. 

Topped with filling and ready for the berries

The filling ready to be spread onto cooled crust

For Filling:

8 oz. cream cheese

4 teaspoons Wildtree's Lemon Lime Cheesecake Blend

1 cup heavy whipping cream (beat with splash of vanilla and 2 Tablespoons sugar until mixture forms soft peaks) 

Mix all together and spread over top of cooled butter cookie crust. 

Top with fresh blueberries and raspberries.

Iced Coffee (Another great potluck contribution!)

Iced Coffee

4 cups strongly brewed hot coffee (regular or decaf)
1 cup granulated sugar
1-2 teaspoons vanilla
Ice
Milk

Pour strongly brewed hot coffee into 1-gallon pitcher. Add sugar and stir until dissolved. Add vanilla. Add enough ice to fill pitcher to 1/3 or 1/2 full. Pour milk into pitcher until full. Stir well and serve immediately. (If taking to a potluck, use a thermal drink container so it stays cold.) People will love you at the family reunion or summer holiday gathering for providing this special treat.)