Cinnamon Rolls

In my family, we have a tradition of cinnamon rolls for breakfast on Thanksgiving and Christmas. As I was growing up, we would always get the Pillsbury cinnamon rolls. But now that I've become a home cook, I wanted to make homemade rolls. I've managed it before but that was before I had started this blog. So they finally get their place in my blog as my 101st post and the first food post back after my six month hiatus. 

What You Need:

Dough

• ¼ oz. package of yeast
• ½ cup warm water
• ½ cup scalded milk
• ¼ cup sugar
• ⅓ cup butter or shortening
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1 egg
• 3 ½ to 4 cups all-purpose flour

Filling

• ½ cup melted butter
• ¾ cup sugar
• 2 Tbsp. ground cinnamon
• ¾ cup raisins, walnuts, or pecans (optional)

How to Do It:

Preheat your oven to 350°F. In a small bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water and set aside. In a large bowl, mix milk, sugar, butter, salt, and egg. Add 2 cups of flour and mix until smooth. Add yeast mixture. Mix in remaining flour until dough is easy to handle. Knead dough on lightly floured surface for 5 to 10 minutes. Place dough in a well-greased bowl, cover and let rise until doubled in size, usually one to one and a half hours. When doubled in size, punch down dough. Roll out on a floured surface into a 15 by 9 inch rectangle. Spread melted butter all over the dough. Mix sugar and cinnamon and sprinkle over buttered dough. If you choose to use raisins, walnuts, or pecans (I personally don't care for them), spread them over the cinnamon/sugar mixture. Beginning at the 15 inch side, roll up the dough and pinch edges together to seal. Cut into 12 to 15 slices and place on a baking sheet coated with butter and cinnamon/sugar mixture. Allow rolls to rise for about 45 minutes until dough is almost doubled. Bake for about 30 minutes or until nicely browned. While the rolls are baking, mix a glaze of milk and powdered sugar. After the rolls are baked, allow them to cool slightly then cover them with your glaze.

This recipe is an easy one to make ahead the night before you bake them, which is what I do. Typically, I make the dough and cover it with a damp cloth and allow it to rise overnight. The next morning, I typically roll out the dough and cut the rolls while the oven is preheating. After the oven is preheated, bake the rolls as instructed. When they are finished and cooled, slather them in your delicious powdered sugar icing and enjoy with a cup of hot cocoa or hot apple cider!

Original Recipe: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/paula-deen/cinnamon-rolls-recipe.html

The Little Kitchen Chef is Baaaaaaaaaack!

After a six month hiatus, I am finally back in the kitchen. A new and different kitchen in a new and different state. The hubby and I have had a crazy ride over the past six months. Due to some lease agreement issues, we had to leave New Jersey. I moved back in with my parents in Ohio and Husband moved from couch to couch in Brooklyn. We saw each other when we could but it was pretty rough being apart for so long. Thankfully, he got the job he has been working towards for two years in our new home of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. So after a week of unpacking box after box and putting things in some kind of order in our new apartment, I am finally back in a kitchen! This kitchen is a bit bigger than my last one and I am working on getting it all set up in the best way for me to get back into the rhythm I was in before I went AWOL. 

I'm excited to get cooking again and the hubby is dying for some new recipes that he can "guinea pig"-out on. (See what I did there?) So now I'm ready to start cooking again. My first recipe will be posted in a couple days and I hope you all enjoy the newest recipes from the Little Kitchen Chef.

Buckeyes

As many of my readers know, I'm from the Buckeye State and proud of it! My family is full of Buckeye fans, whether they are playing football or are a delicious candy. I'm a proud Bobcat (that's Ohio University, to those of you who don't know) but I'll always love the Bucks. My Granny makes buckeye candies every year for Christmas and they're always gone in the blink of an eye. I made this before for my friends up north (Ann Arbor, Michigan) and even though they're not the biggest fan of the football team, they loved the candies!

Sorry they're a little messy looking! :-(

Now, I'm responsible for teaching these New Yorkers what a buckeye is! Most people outside of Ohio don't know what a buckeye is (shocker) or that they are a type of tree, a nut from the tree, and a candy. 

Actual buckeye nuts. See the resemblance?

The buckeye tree is the state tree of Ohio, hence the "buckeye state" and calling people from Ohio "buckeyes". The buckeye nut and foliage from the tree is actually poisonous to humans unless heated and leached. But now we can eat buckeyes with no problem, as long as they are these yummy candies! 

What You Need:

• 2 cups powdered sugar
• 1 1/2 cups peanut butter
• 4 Tbsp. melted butter
• 1/4 tsp. vanilla
• 12 oz. chocolate (chips or melting wafers)

How to Do It:

Mix the powdered sugar, peanut butter, melted butter, and vanilla together until well combined. Roll into one inch balls (or smaller if preferred) and chill for at least one hour. Melt down the chocolate. When peanut butter is well chilled, dip balls into chocolate and (almost) cover. I use a toothpick to make things easier when you're dipping. After balls are covered in chocolate, continue to chill until you're ready to eat them. You can also freeze them for awhile if you need a quick shot of chocolate to get your blood sugar up!

Easter Dinner in New Jersey

This year for Easter, my family came to visit! I made a full Easter dinner for all six of us, my sister, brother-in-law, parents, and husband. 

Taking the subway to Chelsea Market

Chelsea Market

Downtown gazebo on a beautiful day with Mom and Sister Bear

Over their time here, we went to the Big Apple, had a good time hanging around our town, went to church Saturday night, and took a trip to IKEA. This was my sister's first trip over to see my town, although both she and my brother-in-law have been to New York City before.

Easter dinner with our family was a great time for everyone. I'm so glad my family was able to make it from Ohio this year! I always love making dinner for my family, especially during the holidays. You probably saw my Thanksgiving dinner that I made in November and I had just as much fun making Easter dinner.

For Easter dinner, we had the traditional ham, cheesy potatoes, green beans, and deviled eggs. I also made a broccoli-cauliflower salad that was served cold and delicious! For dessert, I made a fruit pizza that everyone loved (even my anti-cream cheese sister)! Everything turned out pretty perfectly and was delicious. I bought the ham pre-cooked and all that needed done was a good re-heating. As for everything else, I assembled most of the food on Friday so it was ready to pop in the oven or serve immediately on Saturday. 

Fruit Pizza

This recipe comes from a family friend, Sharon, who made it for us first a couple years ago. My dad calls it (excuse my French...) "pretty good shit". There are several different fruits that you could use but I prefer strawberries, blueberries, and kiwi. My sister typically wouldn't eat anything that has cream cheese in it but she made an exception this Easter. This recipe is so easy to use and will surely make anyone that eats it super happy!

Typically, I would cut the pizza into squares but this year I wasn't present for the cutting of the dessert and my sister thought I actually wanted it cut like a pizza. It turned out just fine being cut like this but now she knows why it's usually cut into small squares instead of large pie slices! We could barely finish our slices because they were too big after all the dinner we ate!

What You Need:

• 1 pkg. refrigerated sugar cookie dough
• 8 oz. cream cheese, soft
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• sliced strawberries, washed
• blueberries, washed
• 2 kiwis, sliced and washed

How to Do It:

Roll the sugar cookie out onto a greased cookie sheet and bake according to package instructions. In a medium bowl, beat together cream cheese, sugar, and vanilla. When cookie is baked, careful not to over-brown, cool on a wire rack. When cookie is cooled, spread cream cheese mixture over cookie. Place fruits over cream cheese mixture and chill at least four hours before serving. To serve, I suggest cutting into small squares.

Broccoli-Cauliflower Salad

This recipe comes from my mom who got the recipe from one of my great aunts. This is a wonderful little side dish that is super easy to make and take to a potluck dinner or a host's house. My mom used to make this salad for several family get-togethers and it was always a family favorite. Very rarely were there any leftovers and this was a side dish that was bound to be requested by at least three family members.

Not much work goes into this dish at all so it's an easy one to prepare and I love making it ahead of time too. I had mine ready two days before serving and Hubby couldn't keep his fork out of the bowl! The sauce used for this salad is something that can be used for coleslaw as well. I've never actually used it on coleslaw but it would be delicious on really anything I think! Definitely try this salad out and let me know how it goes!

What You Need:

• 3 clumps broccoli
• 1 head cauliflower
• 8 oz. cheddar cheese, finely shredded
• 1 lb. bacon, fried and crumbled
• 1 cup mayonnaise
• 2 Tbsp. vinegar
• 1/2 cup sugar

How to Do It:

First, cut up broccoli and cauliflower into bite-size pieces and combine with cheddar cheese in a large Tupperware bowl. Whisk together mayonnaise, vinegar, and sugar and pour over salad mixture. If you are making your salad ahead of time, only add the crumbled bacon before serving. Mix all together and chill for at least an hour before serving.

Cheesy Potatoes

This recipe comes from my aunt Amy in Ohio who makes these delicious potatoes for Easter every year. These are my favorite side dish for any large dinner. I love having these delicious potatoes at dinner and most people like them as well. Typically, I would have corn flakes on my potatoes for a little crunchy-ness but potato chips work pretty well too. The best part about these potatoes is the simplicity of them and how great of a potluck side dish they are. Typically I don't have any leftovers so they are something awesome to take over to a host's house. I used to actually have several helpings of these potatoes during Easter dinners when I was a kid (unless they had too much onion in them...).

So hopefully you will find my cheesy potatoes to be as delicious as I think they are! I have back-up in Hubby if you think otherwise! Enjoy!

What You Need:

• 2 lb. shredded hashbrown potatoes, thawed
• 1/2 cup melted butter
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1/4 tsp. pepper
• 16 oz. sour cream
• 1 can cream of chicken soup
• 2 cups cheddar cheese, shredded and divided
• onion (optional amount)
• corn flakes (optional)
• 1/4 cup melted butter (if using corn flakes)

How to Do It:

First off, place the hashbrown potatoes in a greased 9x13 baking pan, mix melted butter over potatoes and preheat oven to 350°F. Combine sour cream, chicken soup, salt, pepper, and onion (I don't use much). Pour sour cream mixture over potatoes and mix until all potatoes are covered. Mix in one cup of shredded cheese, sprinkle remaining cup of cheese over potatoes. Bake on 350°F for 45 minutes. If adding corn flakes, bake potatoes on 350°F for 30 minutes and add corn flakes with melted butter over them for the last 15 minutes of baking.

S'More Bars

In honor of yet another game night and my sister who will be visiting for Easter, I made something I learned from my sister, Jodi. I can remember people requesting that she make these for different get-togethers. So, for my friends at game night, I made s'more bars! It's like a s'more without the waiting and the work and the smell of campfire on your clothes at the end of the night.

S'more bars are an easy go-to for you to take to any event that you may need a quick dessert for. The best thing about s'more bars are the lack of mess. So many times a s'more can get really messy and make your hands awfully sticky. With these bars, there may still be mess but definitely not as much as a regular s'more. You'll love these bars and so will all of your friends and guests! 

What You Need:

• 3/4 cup butter, softened
• 2/3 cup sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 3 c. graham cracker crumbs
• 1/2 cup flour
• pinch of salt
• 8 chocolate bars
• 3 1/2 cup mini marshmallows

How to Do It:

First, preheat oven to 350°F beat the butter and sugar together until you have a fluffy mixture. Then, blend in the egg and vanilla. Mix together graham cracker crumbs, flour, and salt.

Stir crumb mixture into butter mixture. Remove 2 1/2 cups of the graham mixture and press into the bottom of a greased 9x13 baking pan. Reserve remaining mixture.

Place chocolate bars over the graham mixture (I only had six chocolate bars but it worked out okay).

Pour marshmallows over chocolate bars and spread as evenly as possible.

Crumble remaining graham mixture over marshmallows.

Place into preheated oven and bake for 20 to 30 minutes. Remove when chocolate and marshmallows are melted and graham mixture is lightly browned.

Cool 10 minutes on wire rack then cut into bars and cool completely.

Pizza Margherita

Now that I'm back into cooking, I wanted to try something a little different. When Hubby and I were in Italy last spring, we had the best pizza margherita I think I could have hoped for. Being myself, I wanted to try to make one. So I did! Say hello to Pizza Jen-erita...Okay...I'll work on the name...

A little different from the one we had in Italy, but still looking good, right? I may be biased but come on, you have to admit you want a huge slice of this awesome looking pizza! This is a very easy recipe and meal to make. Yes, it takes more time than opening a can of pizza sauce or just ordering out, but I guarantee anyone will love this pizza and appreciate the homemade aspect of it!

Pizza Margherita from Milan, Italy

I was watching Rachael Ray a couple weeks ago and she made this pizza from a chicken breast, tomatoes, cheese, and basil and I wanted one so badly! So tonight I decided to try my hand at it. The recipe for the sauce is from me with a little Rachael Ray instruction thrown in and the dough I didn't make. But if you're making your own dough, I have a great recipe here that is Hubby-approved!

What You Need:

• 1 pizza crust
• 1 lb. cherry tomatoes
• 3 cloves of garlic, peeled and halved
• 1/2 red onion, finely diced
• 1 Tbsp. oregano
• 3 Tbsp. olive oil
• mozzarella cheese
• basil leaves

How to Do It:

I did not make my own crust, as you can see above, but again, click here to get a great pizza dough recipe.

In a saucepan, combine whole tomatoes, halved garlic, and diced onion. Cover with three tablespoons of olive oil and one tablespoon of oregano. Stir and cover, allowing to cook over medium heat until tomatoes burst. 

Stir the sauce occasionally so as not to burn the tomatoes. When the tomatoes are burst and the sauce has taken a good form, cover your pizza crust with your fresh sauce. Add mozzarella slices and bake on 425°F for about 15 minutes or until crust is golden and cheese has begun to brown slightly. Remove from heat and cover with basil leaves.

Serve hot and enjoy!

Break Time!

Clearly, I have not posted in a long time...mea culpa... But, I am back to it now after a break from new recipes and cooking in general. I was back in Ohio for a short visit last week and didn't do any cooking, then I got sick so I really wasn't up for cooking, and now I'm back to it! But first, I thought I would shine some light on a few "local" businesses I ate at while in the Buckeye State. Some of these restaurants can only be found in the Midwest and some of them you may not have heard of at all but I enjoyed every one of them and I want to share my experiences with you so you can try them out! 

Fiesta Tropicana: Lancaster, OH

My first stop on my trip (and pretty much anytime I go to Ohio) was Fiesta Tropicana. Located on Memorial Drive in my hometown of Lancaster, this Mexican restaurant is family-owned and operated and headed up by Chico who is the nicest restaurateur you could hope to meet! The restaurant was formerly known as Fiesta Mexicana but the name changed a few years ago; however, locals still know it as merely "Fiesta." 

When you stop by, make sure you don't fill up on the addictive chips and salsa that are gratuitous because your meal is going to be huge, I guarantee it! I know it will be rough to pull yourself out of your salsa coma when your food arrives and you'll probably already be too full to eat it, but you have to give it a try because it's the best Mexican food you'll find in town. If you're of drinking age, I highly recommend any of the margaritas (numerous flavors are available) or one of the imported Mexican beers.

The meals are very large so I'll warn you now that you will probably need a to-go box by the end but every bite is worth the tiny bill you will pay at the end. I recommend trying the fajitas, they are incredible, and the enchiladas and chimichangas are great also. I had a vegetarian meal which consisted of a cheese enchilada, bean tostada, and rice. I'll also recommend the guacamole and the queso dip which are both so creamy you'll want to eat them forever!

Before you stop here though, be sure to check out my favorite place on Memorial Drive, right across the street from Fiesta, Slater's Hardware. Not just a hardware store, this is a classic mom-and-pop shop that has everything from antiques to model airplanes to hardware and paint. You'll be hard-pressed to walk out empty handed, whether you found a cool antique or you smelled the fresh, free popcorn on your way out the door! Check it out and say hi to all my old friends there!

Roosters: Lancaster, OH

This is a "fun, casual joint" that serves up some awesome chicken wings! Originating in Ohio, this franchised restaurant has since spread to Kentucky, Indiana, and West Virginia. I know that most people like Buffalo Wild Wings (BW3's) and I do too, but Rooster's is probably my favorite for real chicken wings and great sauce. The Lancaster location can be found on Memorial Drive (obviously a popular road for restaurants in Lancaster) but I also recommend the Circleville, Ohio location also! 

I recommend any of the wings and my favorite sauce is probably the Carolina Gold or just the classic Mild sauce. My meal when I visited though was a buffalo chicken sub and curly cheese fries. The sub had chicken tenders covered in Rooster's Mild sauce, provolone cheese, lettuce, and I also had blue cheese dressing. I highly recommend those curly fries because if you're gonna go for it, you might as well go all out, right?

Cardo's Pizza & Pasta: Circleville, OH

This little pizza place is located in good old Roundtown and has great pizza and pasta! I've had the taco salad, I've had the subs, but on my latest trip, I tried out the cheese ravioli and it was so good! The sauce was one of the better I've tasted and the raviolis were really good. Definitely try it out if you find yourself in Circleville (especially if you're going to the Pumpkin Show in late October).

Buckeye Station: Stoutsville, OH

Right in the middle between Amanda and Circleville, you'll find Stoutsville, Ohio and the Buckeye Station. Yes. It is a gas station. But behind the gas station and convenience store façade, you'll find some great food! At the back of the property is a side door leading into the Buckeye Station restaurant. There you'll be welcomed by the bartender and a menu of delicious pizzas and subs named after the Big 10 teams.

 

You'll also find the chili. A seasonal menu item, it was my lucky day that they had it because my cold was just starting and I needed something to warm me up! The Buckeye Station's chili did the trick and it was so good! I also had the fish sandwich (otherwise known as the Maryland) which I didn't snap a picture of, sorry. But it was definitely good! I'd also recommend the pizza and the BBQ wings!

Ale House 1890: Lancaster, OH

Formerly known as the Minute Bar, this bar and restaurant re-opened as Ale House 1890, or AH 1890, in July 2014 on Main Street in Lancaster. I went here with a group of close friends from high school while I was on my food tour of home and I fell in love! I had been to the Minute Bar before and like the atmosphere but it was a small, cramped space that did need a slight update. Now, it's a sleek restaurant with the bar still intact and offering 30 to 50 craft beers as well as bistro burgers and flatbread pizzas. 

I opted for the Black and Bleu Burger which came with a side of french fries. I would highly recommend this to any first-timer at Ale House. It was delicious! My friends also recommended the Margarita Pizza and the Pecan-Crusted Chicken. After dinner, we had dessert (of course) and were offered a candied pecan caramel cheesecake which did not get photographed because it was too good to even look at. Therefore, it had to disappear from my plate as quickly as possible! 

I totally recommend that you try out Ale House if you live in the area. It's great food for a reasonable price and an amazing atmosphere. 

Wine and Canvas: Columbus, OH

Now, this is not a restaurant but I still want to give it a shout-out because I had such a great time I think anyone should try it out. This is a painting class that also incorporates liquid encouragement. Before you panic, I am not an artist in the least sense of the word but I can do this, especially with that liquid courage... My sister, mom, close friend, and I went here for a fun night out and I really think y'all should consider it! They have many different locations so just look and see if there's one near you but we went to the Columbus location and had a great time.

They do offer snacks, drinks, wine (of course), and they give you everything you need for your night of artistry. All you have to do is bring a fun attitude and you're sure to have a blast! Our paintings turned out beautifully, if I say so myself, and we all had a great time! The instructors walk you through the steps with easy to follow instructions and are always willing to help out if you need it. It's always fun to see how everyone's different personalities play out in the works of art we go home with.

Well, there you have it! You've been on a food tour with a local and I hope you try out all of the places I mentioned. Don't be intimidated at first glance, some of the places look a little "too local" but you'll be welcomed into every one with open tables and leave with full bellies. 

Peanut Butter Blossoms

Tonight is another game night. And we all know by now what happens on game nights...the Little Kitchen Chef attacks her friends with delectable desserts! This week, it's cookies. I do cookies a lot. Mainly because they are very easy to assemble and make ahead of time and who doesn't love cookies, amiright? Typically, I make chocolate chip cookies because they are one of my favorites and it's so easy to make a huge batch of them and freeze the dough in little balls so you can just pop one into the oven when Sweet Tooth starts yelling at you because it's the Lenten season and you've given up sweets for the upteenth time in your life.

Anyways, this week I made peanut butter blossoms. They may be called other names by some or most of you but this is what I've always called them since I was a kid and my second mommy (my babysitter) made them every holiday season. I think this is probably where my love for anything that combines peanut butter with chocolate came from. I blame you, Vickie!

 This particular recipe came from my Grandma's recipe box and is marked with my Great-Aunt Susan's name so I'm assuming my Grandma got it from her sister-in-law at some point. As you can see, it doesn't have any instructions on how to mix the cookies so I just used my knowledge of other cookie recipes and kind of made up my own instructions to mix these puppies up. It seemed to work because they turned out pretty beautifully, if I do say so myself.

What You Need:

• 1 cup Crisco or other shortening
• 1 cup creamy peanut butter
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 3 cups flour
• 2 tsp. baking soda
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 2 eggs
• unwrapped Hershey kisses

How to Do It:

First, cream together your peanut butter, shortening, and sugars.

In a separate bowl, combine dry ingredients. Add dry mixture to peanut butter mixture a little at a time, mixing after each addition until just combined.

In a small bowl, beat the eggs lightly. Add vanilla and mix well. After all the dry ingredients are combined with the peanut butter mixture, add the vanilla and egg mixture, stirring to combine. 

Mix on low speed until well combined. And pull some out to roll into a ball.

This one looks a little large and is what I used for the peanut butter cookies that I did not place a Hershey kiss into (apparently, some people don't like chocolate...psh...eye roll). When the balls are formed, roll them in granulated sugar until just coated.

Next, place on a greased cookie sheet, spaced about an inch apart. If you are not using the kisses, smash down the ball by pressing down on them with a fork to make a criss-cross pattern. If  you are using kisses, leave them in the shape of balls.

Bake in a 375°F preheated oven for about 10 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out cleanly. Be careful not to burn the bottoms (it's easy to do with the sugar on their butts). When the cookies are baked, remove them from the oven onto a cooling rack and immediately press a Hershey kiss into the middle of each.

The cookie will break apart a bit but don't panic, that's what they do. When they are nice and cooled, they will hold their shape perfectly and, if you've made them right, shouldn't break apart. I removed mine from the baking sheet after they had cooled slightly and placed them on a piece of foil (parchment paper or wax paper work well too) to cool the rest of the way before packing them up for the trek to game night.

Enjoy your hard work now! Unless, of course, you did give up sweets for Lent. In that case, I'm sorry to force you to look at these delicious cookies. Oops...Bon appétit!