I've never made cinnamon rolls, and it's a good thing these were easy and they turned out, because with twelve of them coming out of the oven we invited the grandparents over to share. They were a hit. The rolls were pretty good, too.

Also, best. mixer. ever. Thanks Curtis and Joules.

Easy Cinnamon Rolls
Origin: Better Homes and Gardens
Yield: 12
Prep Time: 25 minutes            

Ingredients for rolls:
  ● 4  to 4-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
  ● 1  package fast-rising active dry yeast
  ● 2/3  cup milk
  ● 2/3  cup water
  ● 1/2  cup sugar
  ● 1/2  cup cooking oil
  ● 1/2  tsp. salt
  ● 2  egg yolks
  ● 1/4  cup butter or margarine, softened
  ● 1/3  cup sugar
  ● 4  tsp. ground cinnamon

Ingredients for frosting:
  ● 3 ounces cream cheese, softened
  ● 3 tbsps butter, softened
  ● 3/4  tsp vanilla
  ● 1 tbsp milk
  ● 1-1/2  cups powdered sugar

Directions:
1. In stand mixer bowl, combine 2 cups flour and yeast. In small saucepan, combine milk, water, 1/2 cup sugar, oil, and salt. Stir frequently over medium heat till just warm (~120 degree F).

2. Add milk mixture and egg yolks to dry mixture. Mix on low speed for 30 seconds, then on medium for 3 minutes. Slowly add remaining flour, but don't dough to pull entirely away from sides.

3. Turn dough out onto a floured surface. Knead until you have a moderately soft dough that's smooth and elastic (3 to 5 minutes), adding flour as necessary. Cover and let rest 10 minutes.

4. Roll out dough to form a 14x12-inch rectangle. Spread with softened butter and sprinkle with a mixture of 1/3 cup sugar and cinnamon.

5. Roll up, jelly-roll style, starting from long side. Seal seam. Slice into 12 pieces. Place in greased 13x9x2-inch baking pan. Cover; let rise in warm place till nearly doubled (20 minutes).

6. Bake in a 375 degree F oven for 20 minutes or until golden. Cool slightly; remove from pan. Frost warm rolls with Cream Cheese Icing. Serve rolls warm or cool on a wire rack. Makes 12 rolls.

For Cream Cheese Icing: In a medium bowl, beat cream cheese, butter or margarine, vanilla with hand mixer until light and fluffy. Beat in milk. Gradually sift in powdered sugar and beat until icing is spreading consistency. Spread over warm rolls.

Nutrition Facts
    * Servings Per Recipe 12
    * Calories 427,
    * Total Fat (g) 20,
    * Cholesterol (mg) 62,
    * Sodium (mg) 188,
    * Carbohydrate (g) 58,
    * Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet

Gingerbread Cupcakes

Origin: Healthy Cooking
Yield: 21 cupcakes
Prep Time: 25 minutes
Cooking Time: 20 minutes
Inactive Prep Time: cooling

Ingredients:
  ● 2/3 cup sugar
  ● 1/2 cup canola oil
  ● 2 egg whites
  ● 1 egg
  ● 2 cup unsweetened applesauce
  ● 1 cup molasses
  ● 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
  ● 1 cup whole wheat flour
  ● 2 1/2 tsp baking soda
  ● 1 tsp ground ginger
  ● 1 tsp ground cinnamon
  ● 1 tsp ground allspice
  ● 1/2 tsp salt
Frosting
  ● 8 oz. cream cheese
  ● 1 stick butter, softened
  ● 1 tsp vanilla
  ● 16 oz. powdered sugar

Directions:
1. In a large bowl, beat the sugar, oil, egg whites and egg until well blended. Add applesauce and molasses; mix well. In a small bowl, combine the flours, baking soda, ginger, cinnamon, allspice and salt; gradually beat into applesauce mixture until blended.

2. Fill paper-lined muffin cups two-thirds full. Bake at 350 for 18-22 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks. Allow to cool completely before frosting.

3. For frosting, combine all ingredients and mix until creamy. Frost cupcakes when cool.

Still, incredibly yummy.

Creme Brulee

Origin: various websites
Prep time: 30 minutes
Cooking time: 45 minutes
Inactive prep time: at least 3 hours
Servings: 8-12 depending on dish size

Ingredients
• 1 qt heavy whipping cream
• 1 vanilla bean
• 1-1/2 cups sugar, divided
• 6 large egg yolks

Directions
1. Slit open the vanilla bean, and scrape pulp. Combine pulp and bean with cream in a pot. Bring to a boil, whisking frequently, then remove from heat and let sit for fifteen minutes. Remove bean shell.

2. In a mixing bowl combine 1/2 cup sugar with egg yolks and whisk gently until combined.

3. Add hot cream to egg mixture very slowly, stirring continuously in order to keep egg from cooking.

4. Pour mixture into 8-12 small (4-6 oz) ramekins. Place ramekins in baking dishes and add hot water until lower half of ramekins are under submerged. Bake at 325 for 45-50 minutes, or until firm but still slightly trembling.

5. Remove from baking dishes immediately and put in refrigerator to chill for at least 3 hours.

6. Remove from fridge and allow to warm for 30 minutes to an hour. Sprinkle tops with remaining sugar and use a torch to caramelize or brown the sugar.

Pecan and cranberry crusted rockfish

Origin: me
Prep time: 20 minutes
Cooking time: 10 minutes
Servings: 3-4

Ingredients
• 1 lb rockfish fillets
• 1 egg
• 1 tsp milk
• salt and pepper
• flour
• 1 cup fresh cranberries
• 1 cup pecans
• olive oil
• butter

Directions
1. Combine egg and oil in a shallow bowl. Beat lightly.
2. Combine pecans and cranberries in food processor and pulse until finely chopped.
3. Mix flour, salt, and pepper to a third shallow bowl.
4. Dredge fish in flour, then egg, then cranberry and nut mixture until well coated.
5. Heat oil and butter in a pan over medium high heat. Fry fish 4 minutes to a side until browned on the outside and opaque on the inside.

I served it with lightly steamed asparagus over wild rice, a lemon wedge, and pomegranate seeds. It makes a pretty Christmas meal.

Alkmaarse kaassoep (Alkmaar cheese soup)

Origin: Classic Dutch Cooking
Yield: serves 4
Cooking Time: 30 minutes
Ethnicity: Dutch

Ingredients:
  ● 3 tbsp butter
  ● 1 onion, chopped
  ● 1/2 cup flour
  ● 5 cups milk
  ● 1-1/4 cups mature (sharp) Gouda
  ● 1 small celeriac
  ● salt
  ● toast (croutons)

Directions:
1. Melt the butter in a pan. Add the onion and cook over low heat, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes or until softened.
2. Stir in the flour and cook, stirring constantly, for 2 minutes, then gradually stir in the milk.
3. Continue to cook, stirring, until slightly thickened. Add 1/2 cup of the grated Gouda and cook, stirring occasionally, for about 15 minutes.  Meanwhile, peel and finely dice the celeriac, then cook in a pan of boiling water, for about 10 minutes, until softened.
4. Drain the celeriac and add to the soup with the remaining cheese.
5. Season to taste with salt, ladle into warm soup bowls and garnish with chives. Serve immediately with toast or croutons.

Some variations I've seen online:
• Add more cheese, less milk
• Color with powdered saffron, thicken with pureed potatoes, flavor with 1/2 tsp crushed caraway seeds.
• Top the soup with a cheese crust made from a mixture of three crushed rusks, 1-3/4 cups grated Gouda and a pinch of milk paprika sprinkled over top. The pan should then be placed under a preheated broiler until the crust is a golden brown.

Boerenkool met aardappel (Dutch kale and potatoes)

Origin: Classic Dutch Cooking
Yield: serves 4-5
Ethnicity: Dutch

Ingredients:
  ● 3.5 lbs kale, tough stalks removed, finely shredded
  ● 2-1/4 lbs potatoes, peeled
  ● 11 ounce smoked sausage
  ● 1/2 cup milk
  ● 2 tbsp butter
  ● salt
  ● butter to serve

Directions:
1. Steam the kale in a little boiling for 10 minutes, then set aside to drain.
2. Boil potatoes in a large pan and half cover with water. Put the drained kale and the sausage on top, cover and cook over a medium heat for 30 minutes.
3. Remove the sausage and drain the vegetables. Return the vegetables to the pan, mash well, and stir in the milk and butter until smooth.
4. Season to taste with salt and serve with the sausage and some butter on top.

Our own variation:
I make this as a side dish so I leave out the meat. I merely mash the potatoes, then mix in the previously steamed kale. I Add about 1-2 cups of smoked Gouda cheese, and spread the mixture into a baking dish. I make the dish ahead, then heat it at 350, covered, for about forty minutes.

Gestoofde Runderlappen (Dutch stewed/spiced beef)

Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cooking Time: 4-8 hours in a slow cooker
Difficulty: Easy

Ingredients:
  ● 3 lbs round steak, cut into six pieces
  ● 1/2 cup butter or bacon drippings
  ● 3 medium onions, sliced
  ● 1 cup water or dark beer
  ● 3 tbsp vinegar
  ● 1/2 tbsp mustard
  ● 1 bay leaf
  ● 1/2 tsp whole cloves
  ● 5 peppercorn

Directions (my version):
0. To get bacon drippings, I fry the bacon that I'll offer at dinner as topping for the soup, salad, and potatoes, then remove it from then pan, drain, and let cool before I crumble it and set it aside. Now I have bacon drippings.
1. Pound meat and rub each piece with salt and pepper. Heat bacon drippings (or butter) in skillet until very hot. Brown meat thoroughly on both sides.
2. Remove meat and place in slow cooker.
3. To drippings add onions and fry lightly, then remove to slow cooker.
4. To slow cooker add water or beer, vinegar, mustard, bay leaf, cloves, and peppercorns. Cover meat and cook on low for 8 hours, medium for 6 hours, or high for 4 hours.

Tomato basil relish

• 1/4 cup (?) red onion
• 1/4 cup (?) fresh basil
• 1-2 garlic cloves
• 1 tsp balsamic vinegar
• 1 tsp olive oil

The biggest different between this and bruschetta is the size of the ingredients. I took the centers completely out of my tomatoes and diced them. I put the onion and basil (and I'm not sure about the amounts here because I just eye-balled it) into my food processor with the garlic cloves (I used two small cloves) and process until very fine before adding to the bowl of tomatoes. I stirred to mix well and eyeballed the ratios. The second biggest difference between this and bruschetta is the consistancy, because I think of bruschetta is wet, while I kept the relish moist to dry.

This was great on the chicken sausage dogs, but a little sweet. If you're not fond of slightly sweet relish you can add a little more garlic to make it even spicier, or use a different vinegar (or maybe even no vinegar—fresh ingredients speak for themselves!).

We love this recipe. There's lots of room for variations, too. I've tried this it corn flakes, I've tried it with panko, and last night we tried it with whole wheat panko (because that's all they had at the store). I think my favorite is the regular panko, but others preferred the corn flakes because you can get a more even coating on the slices with that. Also, the original recipe called for them to be served with fresh homemade salsa, but we felt they were fantastic on their own. Others I think might enjoy them with something like a ranch dressing. And The cayenne is not entirely necessary, either, as any seasoning (or none) will do.

Semi-fried Green Tomatoes

  ● 1/2  cup flour
  ● 1 tsp salt
  ● 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
  ● 1 large egg
  ● 1 tbsp milk
  ● 1 cup cornflake crumbles or panko
  ● 4 medium green tomatoes, cut into 1/2 inch slices
  ● 1/4 cup canola oil

In a shallow bowl combine the flour, salt, and cayenne.  In another shallow bowl beat egg and milk together. In a third shallow bowl place corn flakes, well crumbled (I go over mine with a rolling pin), or panko in a third bowl.
Coat tomato slices with flour mixture, then dip into egg mixture, then coat with crumbs/panko.
In a large nonstick skillet, heat 4 tsps oil over medium heat.  Fry tomato tomatoes in batches for 3-4 minutes on each side or until golden brown, adding more oil as needed.  Drain on paper towels before
placing on an ungreased baking sheet. Bake at 375℉ for 4-5 minutes or until tender.

I don't have a finished product picture (we were too hungry and they disappeared to fast!), but here's a before...

This recipe is a combo from several others scattered around the web. Some changes I'd make: next time I'd like to try the sun dried tomatoes not packed in oil, or maybe even fresh ones.

Summer Salad with black eyed peas

Serves 8-10

Ingredients:
  ● 2 cups dry black-eyed peas (or about 2 cans)
  ● feta cheese, about 1 cup, crumbled
  ● 1 jar of sun-dried tomatoes in oil, about 8 ounces
  ● 1 cup Kalamata olives
  ● 2 green onions, chopped
  ● 1 garlic clove, minced
  ● 1 large bunch of spinach, washed, dried, and torn
  ● 1 lemon, both zest and juice

Directions:

1. Bring a pot of water to a boil. Add the black-eyed peas and turn heat down to below a simmer. Cook uncovered until done, about 45 minutes. When done, pour into a colander and  wash with cold water to stop the cooking and cool.

2 In a large bowl combine spinach, feta, olives, onion, tomatoes, lemon zest, and garlic, and cooled peas. Toss to mix well. Squeeze lemon over top, to taste, right before serving.