Navajo Tacos

2 1/2 C. flour
1/2 tsp. salt
2 1/2 tsp. baking powder
warm water, enough to make a soft dough
Shortening, for deep fat frying
2 cans refried beans
1 pound hamburger
2 large tomatoes - diced
Lettuce
Cheese

(note: may substitute chili con carne for refried beans and hamburger)

- Mix the flour, salt, baking powder and water together and knead the resulting dough 10 minutes (while the shortening is heating).
- Handpat the dough into thin, flat circles the size of a pancake; keep submerged in deep hot grease until lightly golden.
- Brown the hamburger, then mix with the refried beans and warm the mixture.
- Place a large spoonful or so of the refried beans mixture on each of the fry bread. Top with cheese, lettuce and tomato.

Butterscotch Sticky Buns - Christmas Breakfast

- 15 frozen Rhodes rolls, cut in half
- 1 small box cook and serve butterscotch pudding
- 1/2 Cup melted butter
- 1 Cup brown sugar
- 1/4 Cup milk
- Cinnamon to sprinkle
- Optional: 1/2 Cup chopped nuts

Spray bundt pan with cooking spray, cover bottom with nuts. Place rolls around the pan. Sprinkle with butterscotch pudding powder. Combine butter, milk, and brown sugar and pour over rolls and butterscotch. Sprinkle cinnamon to taste. Let rise over night. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes.

Super Healthy Super Easy and Super Quick Super Bread

2 1/2 Cups Spelt Flour

1/2 Cup Seeds (you can use any kind of seeds or nuts, I use Chia Seeds and Flaxseeds)

3 tsp Aluminum free baking powder (you can use regular baking powder)
1tsp Salt
2 Cups plain Kefir
1 1/2 -2 Cups hot water

Mixed the dry ingredients and then slowly add the Kefir and the hot water, use only enough hot water to make it all stick together.

Bake for 30 minutes on 320 F.

All the ingredients are available at Giant in the Organic department.

Best Ever French Toast

French Toast

The America’s Test Kitchen Family Cookbook, Revised Edition

Serves: 4

Prep time: 5 minutes

Total time: 45 minutes

Many types of bread can be substituted for white sandwich bread, including cinnamon-raisin bread and challah.  The recipe can be doubled and the cooking time sped up by preparing batches simultaneously in two skillets or by using an electric griddle.

8 slices of high quality white sandwich bread

6 tablespoons of unsalted butter

1 cup milk

1 large egg

2 tablespoons of sugar

2 teaspoons of vanilla extract

3/4 teaspoon cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

1.   Adjust an oven rack to the middle position and heat the oven to 200 degrees.  Arrange the bread on a wire rack set over a baking sheet and bake until slightly dry, about 15 minutes.

2.   While the bread is in the oven, melt 2 tablespoons of butter and whisk it together with the milk, egg, sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, and salt in a medium bowl.  Slowly whisk in the flour until smooth.  Pour the batter into a large shallow dish. 

3.   Transfer 2 pieces of the bread from the oven into the batter and soak both sides, about 30 seconds per side.  Meanwhile, melt 1 tablespoon of the butter in a 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium heat until beginning to brown, swirling to coat the pan.  Remove the bread from the batter, allowing excess batter to drip back into the dish, and lay in the hot skillet.  Cook until golden brown on both sides, about 2 1/2 minutes per side.  Transfer the French toast to the wire rack to keep warm in the oven.  Repeat with the remaining butter, bread and batter.

Test Kitchen Tip: Flour does the trick

            All too often, French toast is as soggy on the outside as it is on the inside.  To remedy this, we experimented with a number of techniques.  In the end, we found that adding flour to the batter, although a bit odd, was a highly successful solution.  It lends crispness to the French toast that milk and egg alone cannot provide.

Jen’s variations:

            I use my multigrain bread and skip the drying in the oven.  I also use my electric griddle to cook 4 at a time. I use a shallow baking dish that can accommodate 4 pieces of bread soaking at the same time.

*** I would 1 1/2 the batter because I ran out of batter when it came down to my last 2 pieces of toast! 

***We used this buttermilk syrup from Linsy on top...so GOOD!

Amber's Thanksgiving Rolls

1 ¼ ounce packet active dry yeast or 2 ¼ teaspoons yeast (I use Saf-instant yeast in 1 lb pkg)

½ cup sugar

7 ½ to 8 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting (I use King Arthur unbleached all purpose)

12 tablespoons (1 ½ sticks) unsalted butter, melted and cooled, plus softened butter for brushing

2 cups whole milk, at room temperature

2 large eggs, at room temperature

1 tablespoon kosher salt, plus more for sprinkling

Place the yeast in ½ cup warm water(almost as warm as a warm bath) with 1 tablespoon sugar added . Let sit until

it bubbles and froths slightly. Set aside.

In mixer with a dough hook attachment:

Mix melted butter and milk at low speed. Add the eggs and mix until blended. Scrape the yeast mixture into

mixing bowl and mix until incorporated. Add ½ cup sugar, 7 cups of flour and 1 tablespoon of salt; mix until the

dough forms a ball, 2 to 3 minutes, adding up to ½ cup to 1 cup more flour if the dough is too wet and sticky.

Brush a large bowl with softened butter. Transfer the dough to the bowl, cover with a towel and let rise in a warm

place for 2 – 2 ½ hours until dough doubles in volume.

Preheat the oven to 375 and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Dust with flour a clean flat surface or use a

non-stick silicone mat and turn the dough out onto it. Flour your hands; gently press the dough into a 16 by 8 inch

(or larger) rectangle, about ½ to ¾ inch thick. Don’t use a rolling pin.

With the long side of the dough in front of you, cut the dough lengthwise two times with a floured knife or pizza

cutter. You will nowhave 3 strips of dough. Don’t separate the long strips but cut the strips into 12 equal parts –

you will end up with 36 rolls.

16”

To form rolls, pick up each roll, fold the roll unevenly in half so the top part slightly overlaps the bottom half, then

tuck the overhang underneath. Place the rolls seam-side down on the prepared baking sheet in 3 tightly packed

rolls. (If making in advance, wrap the baking sheet tightly in plastic wrap and freeze up to 3 weeks.

Bake (at 375)until the rolls are bursting at the seams and golden brown – 18 to 20 minutes. (If frozen, bake 25

minutes at 325 then 10 minutes at 375.) Remove from the oven and brush with softened butter. Sprinkle with

kosher salt and serve immediately.

Gingerbread Waffles

I'm getting excited just thinking about breakfast on Christmas morning. We tried these last spring although I have to admit I thought it was a strange time of year for gingerbread. Nevertheless they were delicious. With Amy's buttermilk syrup they would be fantastic. Sort of like eating a gingerbread house first thing in the morning! If you don't want the work in the morning, you can make them in advance and even freeze them. While frozen you can put them into your toaster and they come out tasty and your home will smell like heaven.

Gingerbread Waffles (Family Fun Magazine, April 2010)

4 eggs

½ cup sugar

1 cup molasses

1 cup buttermilk

3 cups flour

2 teaspoons ground ginger

1 ¼ teaspoons cinnamon

1 teaspoon ground cloves

¼ teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons baking soda

2 teaspoons baking powder

½ cup unsalted butter, melted

Fresh whipped cream and fruit, optional

With an electric mixer, beat the eggs until they’re light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add the sugar, molasses, and buttermilk and mix until blended about 1 minute. In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, spices, salt, baking soda and baking powder. Add the dry ingredients to the egg mixture and stir until smooth. Stir in the butter. Cover and refrigerate the batter overnight or cook immediately in a waffle iron until golden brown, 2 to 4 minutes. Serve with whipped cream and fruit, if you like. Makes 14.

Pumpkin Cornbread

We had this with Danielle's Chicken Tortilla soup and both are delicious! The soup was great- the chicken is so tender. My kids do not ordinarily touch cornbread but they made an exception for this recipe! You can scroll down for Danielle's soup recipe.

Pumpkin Cornbread (Real Mom Kitchen)
½ cup all-purpose flour
½ cup whole wheat flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 cup cornmeal
2 large eggs
1 cup pumpkin puree (canned or freshly cooked and processed)
2/3 cup brown sugar
¼ cup canola oil
1 tablespoon molasses
1. Preheat oven to 400°F. Grease 10-inch glass pie pan or 9-inch square baking pan.
2. Sift flours, baking powder, salt and spices in a large mixing bowl. Whisk in cornmeal.
3. In separate bowl, beat eggs lightly. Whisk in pumpkin, brown sugar, oil and molasses.
4. Make a well in the dry mixture. Add pumpkin mixture and blend batter with a few quick strokes.
5. Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake for 30 minutes, or until cornbread is browned and the surface has a slightly springy feel.

Citrus Cream Cheese Pull Apart Rolls

This recipe is originally from Cooking Light Magazine but was featured at Home Based Mom. We tried them this morning for the first time and they were a huge hit. I'm pretty sure we just started a tradition for conference mornings.

Citrus Cream Cheese Pull Apart Rolls
1 package frozen roll dough — (25-ounce)
Cooking spray
1/4 cup butter or margarine — melted
1/2 cup sweetened dried cranberries — (such as Craisins)
OR 1/2 cup dried apricots — chopped
1 cup granulated sugar — divided
2/3 cup 1/3-less-fat cream cheese — (6 ounces) softened (I used the whole 8 ounces)
2 tablespoons fresh orange juice
1 large egg
1 tablespoon grated lemon rind
1 tablespoon grated orange rind
1 cup powdered sugar
5 teaspoons fresh lemon juice

Thaw roll dough at room temperature 30 minutes. (It usually takes longer for them to be soft enough to cut.) Cut rolls in half. Place 24 halves, cut sides down, in bottom of each of 2 (9-inch) round cake pans coated with cooking spray. Brush butter evenly over rolls. Cover; let rise in a warm place (85º), free from drafts, 30 minutes. Sprinkle with dried cranberries. Combine 1/4 cup granulated sugar, cream cheese, orange juice, and egg; beat at medium speed of a mixer until well-blended. Pour cream cheese mixture evenly over rolls. Combine 3/4 cup granulated sugar, and rinds. Sprinkle evenly over rolls. Cover and let rise 1 hour or until doubled in size. (It usually takes longer to double in size.)

Preheat oven to 350º.Bake at 350º for 20 minutes. Cover with foil. Bake an additional 5 mintues or until rolls in center are done. Remove from oven; cool 15 minutes. Combine powdered sugar and lemon juice. Drizzle over rolls.

OVERNIGHT VARIATION: After pouring the cream cheese mixture over rolls, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate 12 hours. Gently remove plastic wrap from rolls; sprinkle with rind mixture. Let stand at room temperature 30 minutes or until dough has doubled in size. (Depending on the temperature of your kitchen it may take longer to double in size.) Proceed with recipe as directed.

Wheat Bread

Put all the ingredients in your kitchen aide if you want…it’s what I did

31/2 c. flour
1/3 c. gluten
1T + 3/4 tsp yeast
21/2 c. hot water (120ish)

Mix together 1 minute, cover and let rest 10 minutes

1/3 c. oil

1/3 c. honey

1 T. salt

1 T + ¾ tsp lemon juice

21/2 c. flour

Put in mixer and let mix for 10 minutes (so machine does kneading) or else just mix it for 10 minutes.

Heat oven to 350 for 1 minute (literally, it never heats to that temp, but it gets the oven just warm enough), turn oven off and put dough in the oven to rise for 30 minutes.

Grease 2 bread pans. Divide dough evenly & shape into loaf. Let rise until double. Cook at 350 for 30 minutes. Brush top with butter if desired.

This is another delish recipe from Tiffany. I say it once I say it a million times - she is an amazing cook!

The BEST Blueberry Muffins Ever!

I found this recipe several years ago and I'm telling you they are not only absolutely delicious, they are beautiful too! This only makes 8 muffins, trust me you'll want to double this recipe. Also, I have used frozen (thawed out) blueberries too. Nothing beats fresh but it was still really, really good with the frozen berries.

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup white sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1 egg
1/3 cup milk
1 cup fresh blueberries
1/2 cup white sugar
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup butter, cubed
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon


-Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Grease muffin cups (This usually doesn't work too well for me) or line with muffin liners.
- Combine 1 1/2 cups flour, 3/4 cup sugar, salt and baking powder. Place vegetable oil into a 1 cup measuring cup; add the egg and enough milk to fill the cup. Mix this with flour mixture. Fold in blueberries. Fill muffin cups right to the top, and sprinkle with crumb topping mixture.
- To Make Crumb Topping: Mix together 1/2 cup sugar, 1/3 cup flour, 1/4 cup butter, and 1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon. Mix with fork, and sprinkle over muffins before baking.
- Bake for 20 to 25 minutes in the preheated oven, or until done.

Take a bite of heaven.

Banana Crunch Muffins

I love muffins so this is a favorite. They remind me of banana nut bread but way better. They are really moist and the coconut makes it so yummy!

3 cups flour
2 cups sugar
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda 1/2 tsp salt
1/2 pound butter, melted and cooled (I actually use a little less)
2 eggs
3/4 cup milk (calls for whole, but I use whatever is on hand)
2 tsp vanilla
1 cup mashed bananas (2 bananas)
1 cup medium diced bananas (1 banana)
1 cup small diced walnut (can be omitted if you do not like walnuts)
1 cup granola
1 cup shredded coconut


Grease muffin tins or line with paper liners. Mix flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt into the bowl of an an electric mixer. Add the melted butter and blend. Combine the eggs, milk, vanilla and mashed bananas in a separate bowl. After combined, add to the flour/butter mixture. Scrape the bowl and blend well. Don't over mix.

Fold the diced bananas, granola, walnuts and coconut into the batter. Spoon the batter into muffin tin, filling each one to the top.

Bake at 350 degrees for 15-20 mins depending on oven. Keep checking until the tops are light brown and the toothpick comes clean. Cool slightly and serve.

Recipe from The Barefoot Contessa Cookbook by Ina Garten.

Waffles

I am not the biggest lover of waffles or pancakes but these are to die for! They are my mother-in-laws special recipe and I am not even sure what makes them so tasty but trust me they are.


2 eggs separated-beat the egg whites forming peaks and set aside
6 Tb. margarine, melted

Mix together:

1 cup flour
1 Tb. sugar
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt

Add and beat: 1 1/2 cups buttermilk to dry mixture.

Then add: 2 egg yolks and melted margarine

Beat until smooth.

Fold in egg whites.

Spray/grease waffle iron before cooking each waffle.