Fluffy Cinnamon Rolls

Fluffy Cinnamon Rolls

(8-10 servings)

Ingredients:

1 cup Whole Milk

2 envelopes Active Dry Yeast

½ cup plus pinch Sugar

½ lb. (2 sticks) Unsalted Butter, softened

1 tsp. plus more fro seasoning Salt

2 large Fresh Eggs

4¼ cups All-Purpose Flour (sifted)

½ cup (packed) Dark Brown Sugar

1 tbsp. plus 1/8 tsp. Ground Cinnamon

1 cup Confectioner's Sugar (powdered sugar)

2 tbsp. Half & Half

Directions:

In a small microwave-safe bowl, microwave milk on high in 30 second bursts until warm but not hot. Stir in yeast and pinch of sugar and let stand 5 minutes until foamy. In a large mixing bowl (stand mixer works best) using the paddle attachment, beat one stick of butter with ½ cup of sugar and tsp. of salt on medium speed until light and fluffy. Beat in one egg at a time until blended. Add 2 cups of flour and beat on low speed until incorporated. Beat in warm milk mixture, scraping in yeast that has settled in the bottom of bowl. Now switch to the dough hook. Gradually add the remaining flour and beat at medium speed until a soft sticky dough forms (about 5 minutes). Scrape the dough into a large, lightly oiled bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Let dough stand in a warm place until doubled in bulk (about 1 hour). Cut four 15-inch long sheets of wax paper. When ready, turn dough out onto a well-floured work surface and divide into quarters. Working with 1 piece at a time, roll the dough to a 14x7 inch rectangle, about ¼ inch thick. Roll dough around a rolling pin and unroll onto a sheet of wax paper. Repeat the process with remaining 3 pieces. Place dough on sheet pans and freeze for 15 minutes (well chilled but still pliable). During this time, blend remaining butter with the brown sugar, 1 tbsp. cinnamon and a pinch of salt. Now evenly spread ¼ of cinnamon butter mixture on a sheet of dough. Trim edges to form a 12x6 inch rectangle. Working from the long side, tightly roll up the dough. Repeat process with remaining dough and then return to freezer for about 20 minutes or until very cold. Butter a 10 inch springform pan. Cut the dough into 1 inch pieces (about 48 total) and place cut side up in pan. Start on the outside and work your way around the pan ending in the center. Push together to get them all in. Cover with plastic wrap and let raise for 1 hour in a warm place. Remove plastic wrap and place in a 350 degree pre-heated oven for about 40 minutes. Test with an instant read thermometer in the center looking for 180 degrees. While rolls are baking, mix the confectioner's sugar, half & half and remaining 1/8 tsp. ground cinnamon in a small bowl. Remove rolls from oven and let stand 5 minutes. Run a knife around inside rim of pan to loosen. Release springform pan and remove ring. Slide rolls onto a plate and drizzle with the glaze. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Note: You could add a ½ cup of filling to cinnamon butter mixture if desired. Try a ¼ cup each of chopped nuts (pecan or walnut) and raisins. Or just do one of the ingredients.

Note: Unbaked rolls can be raised overnight in refrigerator and baked next morning. Just allow dough to come to room temperature first. Baked rolls can also be left overnight. Just cover with plastic wrap and leave set out at room temperature.

Note: I'd leave the rolls in one big round to serve for a better presentation. Let everyone just pull their own serving off the big round.

Ideas for Future Efforts

Cinnamon Rolls for that Mother's Day Brunch too!

Last week I gave you a couple of quiche recipes for a possible "Mother's Day Brunch" you might want to try.  Well, this week I have a couple of recipes that will make nice accompaniments for those quiche at your brunch.

My Blog Assistant Recruiting another Assistant

These recipes actually work for many different occasions.  They are not difficult recipes to follow or make but do take a little time.  I know you can just buy them either ready-made or in a canister that just needs to be panned up and baked.  There is nothing wrong with these and convenience makes them very popular.

But I do believe that the best "Cinnamon Roll" you can eat is one made from scratch at home.  These are usually saved for special occasions.  "Mother's Day" sure sounds like one of these special occasions, don't you think?

I have two different recipes and both are very good, just slightly different.  And like anything worth doing, just take a little practice to get yourself comfortable making.  In fact, I'm sure after trying one or both of these recipes you'll be making them often.  Maybe even making up special occasions just to justify being able to eat them more often.

Of course, what makes them so good is all the butter, sugar and cinnamon that you put in them.  The first recipe tomorrow is for "Fluffy Cinnamon Rolls" and they are not big ones.  Which means you get to eat more of them.

Thursday's recipe is for "Cinnamon Rolls with Maple Frosting" and here you want to see the filling oozing out.

Don't forget that you can always customize these recipes with some changes to the fillings too.  I like to use both granulated and brown sugar in my filling.  You also can't get enough cinnamon in a cinnamon roll as far as I think.

So have some fun with these recipes and "Happy Cooking" until next week.

Hash-Brown Crusted Cheese Quiche

Hash-Brown Crusted Cheese Quiche

(6 servings)

Ingredients:

2 tbsp. Unsalted Butter, softened plus more for pan

1 lb. Frozen Shredded Hash-Browns, thawed

12 large Fresh Eggs

2½ tsp. Kosher Salt, divided

½ tsp. Black Pepper, divided

1½ cups Sour Cream

4-5 oz. Soft Goat Cheese, room temperature

4 each Scallions (green onions), thinly sliced

Directions:

Butter the inside of a 9 inch (2½ inch high) springform pan and the sides of pan with waxed paper the same height as pan. Set aside for now. Squeeze excess moisture from hash-browns. In a large mixing bowl combine butter, 1 egg, 1 tsp. salt, ¼ tsp. pepper with the hash-browns. Pat into bottom and up walls of springform pan using a moistened dry measuring cup. Place on a rimmed baking sheet and into a pre-heated 375 degree oven for 15 to 20 minutes or until set. In a large mixing bowl, whisk sour cream, goat cheese, 1½ tsp. salt and ¼ tsp. pepper until well combined. Now whisk in remaining eggs and pour into the hash-brown crust. Sprinkle with the scallions and bake in the pre-heated 375 degree oven for 45 to 50 minutes or until set. Unmold the quiche and peel off waxed paper before serving.

Note: You could try other soft cheeses if you wish. Maybe some flavored soft cheeses.

Ideas for Future Efforts

Deep-Dish Mushroom Quiche

Deep-Dish Mushroom Quiche

(6-8 servings)

Ingredients:

1 Pastry Shell (Pastry Dough for Quiche)

1 tbsp. Canola Oil

1 lb. Oyster Mushrooms, stems trimmed & large caps halved or quartered

1 lb. White Mushrooms, thinly sliced

as needed to season mushrooms, Salt and White Pepper

1 tbsp. Unsalted Butter

2 small Shallots, minced

1 tbsp. Fresh Thyme, chopped

¾ cup Shredded Gruyere Cheese

2 cups Milk

2 cups Heavy Cream

6 large Fresh Eggs, lightly beaten

3 tsp. Salt, divided

¼ tsp. White Pepper, divided

2 pinches Freshly Grated Nutmeg

Directions:

In a large skillet over high heat are the oil. When ready add both types of mushrooms and season with a little salt and pepper. Stir until softened (about 5 minutes) and then reduce to moderate. Add the butter, shallots and thyme and continue cooking for about 12 minutes or until mushrooms are tender. Taste and season with more salt and pepper if needed. Let cool before continuing. Scatter ¼ of cheese and half of mushrooms over the bottom of pastry shell. In a blender, mix half each of the milk, cream and eggs. Season with 1½ tsp. salt, 1/8 tsp. pepper and a pinch of nutmeg. Process on high until mixture is frothy. Carefully pour this over the cheese and mushrooms in shell. Now top this with ¼ of cheese and remaining mushroom mixture. Repeat the process with the milk, etc. and carefully pour over items in shell. Scatter the last ¼ of cheese over top and on a rimmed baking sheet. Bake for 1½ hours in a pre-heated 325 degree oven or until richly browned and custard is barely set. Cool in pan until just very warm. Cut pastry shell even with top of pan and carefully remove springform pan ring. Cut into wedges and serve.

Note: You could try other cheeses if you can't find the Gruyere. Two other ones are Comte and Emmental. A less expensive Swiss cheese could be use as well. Taste will be slightly different because the cheeses are different.

Ideas for Future Efforts

Pastry Dough for Quiche

Pastry Dough for Quiche

(1 serving)

Ingredients:

1¾ cups All-Purpose Flour

½ tsp. Salt

12 tbsp. Unsalted Butter, cut into ½ inch cubes & freeze 10 minutes before use

3 tbsp. Sour Cream

¼ cup Ice Water

1 large Fresh Egg, egg white only & slightly beaten

Directions:

In a food processor, combine flour and salt with 3-1 second pulses. Next add the butter and pulse about 10-1 second pulses or until butter is about pea size. In a small bowl combine sour cream and water. Pour half of mixture into processor and pulse 3-1 second pulses and then repeat with second half of mixture. Check dough for dry flour and whether it holds together. If so, add 1 to 2 tbsp. more of ice water and pulse 3-5 1 second pulses. Turn dough out on to a work surface and form into a 6 inch disk. Wrap with plastic and refrigerate 1 to 2 hours or until firm but not hard. Roll out dough to a 15 inch circle about ¼ inch thick. Loosely roll dough around rolling pin and unroll over a 9 or 9½ inch spring-form pan that has been sprayed over bottom and all of the wall. Working your way around the pan, gently lift dough and put into pan pressing into the bottom corner. Dough should come up sides and just over the top. Cut off any dough beyond that. If dough cracks or has any holes, fix with scrap dough. Refrigerate any leftover scrap dough in case needed later. Cover the dough inside the pan with foil (spray side touching dough) and fill with dry beans (3-4 cups) for weight. Place on a rimmed baking sheet and put in a pre-heated 375 degree oven on a rack in the lower middle section. Bake for 30 to 40 minutes or until exposed dough is lightly browned. Remove from oven and carefully discard the beans and foil. Fix any cracks or holes with leftover dough. Replace in oven for another 15 minutes or until bottom is lightly browned. Let cool while you prepare filling.

Note: You can use this dough for pies too.

Ideas for Future Efforts

Quiche for a Mother's Day Brunch

Mother's Day is coming up in May here in the USA (2nd Sunday of May).  It's one of the busiest days in the year for a restaurant.  There are always long waits at all the good ones.  Why not skip all that this year and do a "Mother's Day Brunch" for that special woman (or women) in your life?

This week and next I'm going to offer some recipes you might want to consider for such an occasion.  There are two "Quiche" recipes this week and two different "Cinnamon Roll" recipes next week.  In each case, there is one recipe that's unique but still easy to make.  While the other recipe will take a little more effort on your part.  They're all  well worth the trying even if it's not on Mother's Day.

The harder Quiche recipe involves making the pastry dough for the it.  It's a good dough recipe and could be used for any pies you make as well.  Now you could buy some refrigerated pie dough for the recipe.  But if you do that, you'll need to use both pieces in the package.  This Quiche recipe is for a deep-dish style and you need the dough going up and just over the pan's rim.  The "Pastry Dough for Quiche" recipe will appear tomorrow.

On Thursday, the recipe for "Deep-Dish Mushroom Quiche" will appear.  It uses two different mushrooms.  If you have trouble finding both, just substitute another mushroom that you like or double the one you can find.  The recipe calls for Gruyere cheese, which is a type of Swiss.  It's price is on the high end. I mention a couple of options in the note at the bottom of the recipe by name.  They to are a little pricy and can be hard to find.  You really can use any type of Swiss cheese that you like and can find.  However, using on of the other three cheeses named will improve the taste of the dish.

A recipe for "Hash-Brown Crusted Cheese Quiche" will be on Friday this week.  This one is interesting because of using the hash-browns for the crust.  You can take this same process for the crust and use it on other Quiche recipes if you desire.  It kind of makes a statement on the plate when you serve it.

If you like the idea of having a brunch for mom (family & friends too) there are more recipe ideas you could use under the various recipe tabs above.  Because brunch usually has both breakfast and dinner items, you can find a dish or two to compliment the Quiche recipe you pick.

Here are a few recipes available in the recipes tabs that you might like to try with the Quiche.  Chicken Marsala, Grilled Flank Steak, Deviled Eggs (V), Greek Layered Dip (V), Jane's Salad or Fresh Corn Salad (V) are from the tabs above.  If you have my cookbook, here are few more to try; Italian Baked Chicken, Connie's Hash Brown Casserole and Roasted Asparagus.

I hope you will try the recipes offered this week at sometime if not for Mother's Day.  As I mentioned early, next week I'll offer a couple of "Cinnamon Roll" recipes.  In the mean time, "Happy Cooking" and please help spread the site to family and friends.

Green Salsa Verde

Green Salsa Verde

(2½ cups)

Ingredients:

1¼ lb. Fresh Tomatillos, husked, rinsed & quartered

1 cup (lightly packed) Fresh Cilantro

1 medium Fresh Serrano Chili, seeded & quartered

1 small Fresh White Onion, chopped

2 cloves Fresh Garlic, smashed

1 tbsp. Canola Oil

as needed Salt & Black Pepper

Directions:

Place the tomatillos, cilantro, serrano chili, onion and garlic in a blender and puree until smooth. In a medium sauce pan, heat the oil over medium heat. Transfer tomatillo mixture to pan and season with salt and pepper as needed. Bring the salsa to a boil and then reduce heat to medium-low and simmer about 10 minutes or until reduced to about 2½ cups. Cool in refrigerator before serving. The salsa should keep up to 5 days in the refrigerator.

Note: You can control the heat (spiciness) of the salsa by leaving the seeds in or using a jalapeno or some other chili pepper. Leave the chili out if you don't like having some heat in your food.

Ideas for Future Efforts

Pico de Gallo (Chef Saul)

Pico de Gallo (Chef Saul)

(2½ cups)

Ingredients:

1 small Fresh White Onion, small dice

4 large Fresh Tomatoes, seeded & small dice

1 medium Fresh Serrano Chili, seeded & fine dice

2 tbsp. Fresh Cilantro Leaves, chopped

1 clove Fresh Garlic, minced

2 tbsp. Fresh Lime Juice

1 tbsp. Extra Virgin Olive Oil

to taste Salt & Black Pepper

Directions:

Combine all the ingredients in a large mixing bowl and toss together well. Let the mixture sit at room temperature for at least an hour before serving. Can also be refrigerated and served cold. Refrigerate after use and it should keep a day or two in good form.

Note: Again if heat in your food is a factor, you could use a jalapeno instead. Even a poblano chili to lessen the heat works.

Note: For a little change in taste, try adding some small diced fresh pineapple to the mix.

Ideas for Future Efforts

Part 3 of Mexican Cuisine (Salsa, Dips & Chips)

Anyone who has gone into a Mexican restaurant, at least in the USA, knows you automatically receive chips & salsa when the waitperson comes to the table.  For us it's a staple of Mexican cuisine.  Now these restaurants don't serve the same chips & salsa as everyone else.  Most try to do their spin on the dish.

Some places just serve bought corn tortilla chips.  While others fry their corn tortilla chips up fresh each day. Still others offer fry up flour tortillas to serve with their salsa.  A few offer the options of corn or flour too. Healthier establishments might even serve baked chips in place of the traditional fried ones.  Thankfully for you it's easy enough to either (fried or baked) at home.

I'll eat both but prefer the fried flour tortilla chips when I can get them.  Of course there are so many different types and styles that you can buy in grocery stores.  If I go that route, my preference is for a grocery chain in the Midwest called Hy-Vee.  They sell under their own brand, a multi-grain tortilla chip.  In my option, it's the best on the market.  At least of the ones I've been able to try.  But everyone has their favorite, so for them.

All those chips mentioned above are great by themselves but go to a whole new level when you add a salsa and/or dip.  I'll mention just a couple of dips before going to salsas.  Guacamole is classified under a dip or a salsa.  It just depends on who you ask.  I'll call it a dip for today  Another popular dip is the Rotel tomato, Velveeta and meat one.  This is considered Southwest or Texas style spicy food.  Not really Mexican.

Mexican salsa (Southwest & Tex-Mex too) is really varied in spice, taste, texture and ingredients.  First off you can have fresh or cooked salsas.  Tomatoes and Tomatillos seem to comprise the majority, but there some without either ingredient.  White onion is another stable in most salsas.  As is some kind of a chili pepper.

You can find bean salsas using mostly the pinto or black bean as they seem to be the most popular beans in Mexico.  Mango, Jicama, sweet potato, cactus, pumpkin seed and Chayote (vegetable pear) can also be found as main ingredients in a salsa.

Tomorrow's recipe is for what in Mexico is usually referred to as Classic Tomato Salsa.  It's also known as Salsa Ranchera or Salsa Mexicna but most people in the states know it as "Pico de Gallo."  It's the king of fresh salsa and has numerous variations to the recipe.  This recipe is from my friend, Chef Saul, in Cabo, Mexico.

Thursday's recipe is "Green Salsa Verde" which is green most of the time.  However, it is also made with tomatoes instead of tomatillos and then it is red.  It's good as a dip but is used more as a sauce with many dishes.  That is one other use for all salsas really.  They can be used for dipping chips, as a sauce over a burrito or as a condiment or relish to be served along side an item.

Don't forget that besides these two recipes, I have several already on this blog or in my cookbook.  In fact, the recipe for canned salsa in my cookbook has even passed the test of Hispanic individuals.  Several have commented that it is better than what their families make.  They also won't admit that to their families.  Not bad for a Gringo, I say.  Well "Happy Cooking" until next week and please share this with friends.

Grilled Chicken Burgers & Peach BBQ Sauce

Grilled Chicken Burgers & Peach BBQ Sauce

(4-6 servings)

Ingredients:

1 tbsp. Canola Oil

¼ cup Yellow Onion, minced

½ tsp. Salt, divided

4 large Fresh Peaches, peeled,seeded & chopped (see note)

2 tbsp. Brown Sugar

2 small Fresh Tomatoes, seeded & diced

1 tbsp. Apple Cider Vinegar

1 tsp. Minced Chipotle Peppers in Adobo Sauce

2 tbsp. Fresh Cilantro, minced

2 tbsp. Fresh Lemon Juice

1 ½ lb. Fresh Ground Chicken Breast

4-6 Hamburger Buns (your favorite)

Directions:

In a large saute pan over medium heat, add oil. When oil is hot add the onions and half of salt to pan. Cook until onions soften (about 5 minutes). Next add the peaches, tomatoes and continue cooking another 10 minutes. Stir in the vinegar, brown sugar and Chipotle peppers and cook 5 minutes more. Remove pan from heat and add in cilantro, lemon juice and remaining salt and let cool. Using a blender or food processor, process to consistency you desire. Return mixture to the pan and simmer on low for 15 minutes. In a large mixing bowl, combine chicken and ½ cup of sauce. Using a fork or your hands, gently combine and form into 4 or 6 loose balls. Press the balls into patties and grill over medium-high heat until you have an internal temperature of 165 degrees. Remove to a serving platter and grill buns while letting burgers rest. Serve with remaining Peach BBQ Sauce and other desired condiments.

Note: You can use frozen peaches for this recipe. Thaw 2 cups chopped and reserve the juice. Just add where directions mentions fresh peaches. Include juice with the peaches.

Note: If you want to get fancy with the ground chicken try grinding it yourself. Use a food processor for grinding. Cut breast meat into small cubes, put single layer on a sheet pan and place in freezer for about 30 minutes. In small batches, pulse about 30 to 40 times. Repeat as needed with the remaining batches. Check the ground chicken for any large pieces. Remove these and pulse them a few more times. Then just follow directions above.

Ideas for Future Efforts

Grilled Butter Burgers

Grilled Butter Burger

(4-6 servings)

Ingredients:

1 ½ lb. Fresh Lean Ground Beef

3 tbsp. Unsalted Butter, melted and slightly cooled

as needed Lawry's Seasoned Salt

as needed Onion Powder

as needed Garlic Powder

as needed Black Pepper

4-6 Hamburger Buns (your favorite)

4-6 slices Cheese (your favorite) (optional)

Directions:

Place ground beef on a large mixing bowl. Pour the cooled melted butter over the ground beef and gently mix with a fork or by hand. Form into 4 – 6 oz. patties or 6 – 4 oz. patties and place on a sheet pan. Refrigerate for an hour or up to one day before grilling. Liberally season each side of the parties with the 4 seasonings listed in the ingredients. Have your grill ready on high-heat, oil grates and place patties on them. Grill on each side for 4 to 5 minutes depending on the degree of doneness you desire. Top with cheese slices (if using) and close lid to help cheese melt. This takes a minute or so depending on type of cheese. After cheese has melted, remove burgers to a serving tray and grill buns to desired brownness. Serve with your favorite condiments.

Note: If you want to get fancy with the ground beef, try grinding it yourself. Use a food processor for grinding. Cut selected steak meat into small cubes, put single layer on a sheet pan and place in freezer for about 30 minutes. In small batches, pulse about 30 to 40 times. Repeat as needed with the remaining batches. Check the meat for any large pieces or stringy gristle. Remove these and pulse this meat a few more times. Then just follow directions above.

Ideas for Future Efforts

Grilling Season Should Be Starting

Even though we just had more snow last Thursday & Friday (April 3-4), grilling season is here.  In fact I grilled some burgers on Sunday.  They were great.  There's just something about the taste of food coming off a grill outdoors.

I've talked about grilling several times before in this blog.  So I'm not going to go back over all the previous mentioned text.  I do, though, want to remind of a few items as you get started this year on your grill.

Clean it up before using it after a long winter.  It should have been clean from your last use.  So it won't take the much time or effort.  Remember to be patient when using your grill.  You need to wait for the grill to get to temperature before you start your food.  Rushing it will only give you a poor quality product to serve. Also remember to oil the grates before placing any food on them.  This really helps keeping items from sticking to those grates.  Give your food time to cook before trying to move or turn it.  Your meat will release from the grill grates easier.  Doing the oiling, correct heat before you start and letting items cook long enough will keep your food from sticking.  It will also give you those classic grill marks your looking to achieve.

A few reminders on handling your different meats.  Always be sure to pat all your meats dry before placing on the grates.  This gives you that beautiful seared outside.  Any marinade that you have used before putting the food on the grill has done it's job.  It helps (not hurts) your finished product by patting it dry before starting the cooking process.

Ground meat burgers (beef, chicken, pork, lamb etc.) need to be handled gently.  Overworking the meat makes it tough.  So handle your meat as little as possible when combining ingredients and/or forming patties. Also remember to indent the center of the patty.  This keeps it from expanding up to much and making it into more of a meatball instead of a patty for your bun.

Don't forget that besides steaks, chicken and burgers of all kinds, the grill is great for vegetables too.  Even pizzas work well.  Be creative with grill and the different types and styles of food you can serve family and friends this year.

I'm starting your grilling season out with a couple of burger recipes I have found and like.  I've adapted them a little for my taste.  The first is using beef and adding a little butter to help the flavor.  It's called "Grilled Butter Burger" and shouldn't be confused with Culver's (a great fast-food chain out of Wisconsin) Butter Burger.   They call their's a butter burger because they butter the buns before they grill them.  This recipe has the butter right in the burger.  The Thursday recipe is for a "Grilled Chicken Burger & Peach BBQ Sauce."  It uses grill chicken and has the sauce in it and over it.

I hope you have a tasty and memorable grilling season this year.  Remember to try some new dishes as well as all your old favorites too.  Until next week "Happy Cooking."

Bacon Biscuits

Bacon Biscuits

(12-16 each)

Ingredients:

1/3 lb. Thin Sliced Smoked Bacon (your choice)

3 cups All-Purpose Flour

1½ tsp. Kosher Salt

1½ tsp. Baking Powder

¾ tsp. Baking Soda

5 tbsp. Cold Bacon Fat

1 ½ cups Heavy Cream

Directions:

Cook bacon (see note) until crisp and drain on paper towels. Once cooled, chop bacon into very small pieces and set aside. You may refrigerate overnight. Take the bacon fat from cooking bacon and pour into a small bowl. Refrigerate until cold and solid. Again, you could leave overnight. In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, salt, baking powder and baking soda. Now add the cold bacon fat and gently blend into the flour mixture with your hands. Do this until mixture looks like coarse meal. Next combine this mixture with the cream until loose dough forms. Scrape dough from bowl on to a flour surface and knead gently until smooth. Roll the finished dough into a 10x12 rectangle a half inch thick. Straighten up the sides and cut into 12 squares (3x4 cut) or into 8 rectangles (2x4 cut). If cutting the rectangles, you can then slice each corner to opposite corner to make a 16 triangles. You could also use a biscuit cutter if you desire. Once you have cut the biscuits, place on an ungreased baking sheet about an inch apart. Place the baking sheet in a 350 degree pre-heated oven for about 22 minutes or until golden brown. Cool biscuits on a wire rack. Best if served while still warm but able to handle.

Note: You can cook the bacon on top of the stove or in the oven. Your choice on how you want to do it. Just be sure to save the bacon fat as you need it for this recipe.

Note: I love bacon so I tend to error on the side of more bacon than less when trying to get a third of a pound.

Ideas for Future Efforts

Navajo Fried Bread

Navajo Fried Bread

(6 servings)

Ingredients:

4½ cups All-Purpose Flour

½ tsp. Salt

2 tsp. Baking Powder

1½ cups Water

½ cup Milk

for frying Canola Oil

Directions:

In a large mixing bowl combine the dry ingredients. Slowly add the water and milk to form dough. Remove to a floured surface and knead several times. Tear off a small amount and roll into a 5 inch circle. Poke a small hole in the middle of circle with your finger. Place the circle into 375 degree hot oil and fry. You'll need an inch or two of oil in the pan. Turn after bottom side becomes golden brown. Remove when both sides are golden brown to paper towels to drain. Repeat process until all the dough has been fried. Serve this fried bread while still warm.

Note: This Fried Bread is great for any type of taco. Works well with your favorite Sloppy Joe mix too. Really any hot or warm type sandwich would be enhanced.

Note: Also good with just some honey.

Ideas for Future Efforts

Starting Year 4 of My Food Blog

Today starts my 4th year of the "Cabana Boy Cooks" food blog.  It's really hard to believe that its been that long or 300 recipes counting this week.  Hopefully I have been able to help or encourage a few people over that time.  I know that I have because of hearing from many of you.

I'd like to give all of you a big "Thank You" for following my posts, whether you're a regular or occasional follower.  Please continue to check out my posts and the recipes.  Also, pass on my link to other family and friends.  I would like to reach more people around this wonderful world of ours.

Almost 30% of my viewers are from outside the USA.  This has been a big surprise to me and I'm very humbled by it.  For those that don't read english, I hope the translation tab has helped convert it into something that makes sense to you.  I'm always looking for feedback so please let me know how it is working for you.  Thank you in advance for your comments.

Over the next week or two I'll be making some changes to my blog's layout.  If you have any suggestions for me, please send them my way.  I continue to try and make this food blog user friendly and informative.

I will mention here that I have no plans on adding photos of the food recipes that I post.  Because I'm most interested in helping new and inexperienced people in the kitchen, I stay away from those photos.  I said it in my cookbook and will repeat here.  The first thing you want to achieve in cooking is a dish that tastes great to you.  If you master that, the appearance of the dish will improve each time you make it.  Also, we're not all artists.  Today's chefs see the plate as their canvas and produce a piece of art each time they serve a dish. Also, each person has different abilities in this area.  Just make each dish look the best you can do and enjoy the taste.

I had mentioned above that there are 300 recipes for you to check out on the recipe tabs at the top.  In going through them this week, I noticed I'm a little behind in a few areas.  The number of recipes is low in several of the tabs.  I'll be making that a priority this year.  Breakfast recipes as well as soups, salads, sandwiches and drinks could use some more numbers.  Again, please let me know if there is something in particular that you would like to see.

Another reminder about the recipes you see on my blog.  They are a combination of my own creation, my version of a recipe or someone else's recipe which I like or feel you should have in recipe box.  So if you have a special recipe that you think others would enjoy, please send it to me and I'll share it on a post.  I'll thank you in advance for this too.

This week's recipes have no real connection but that they fall into the bread category.  I happen to love bread.  My guess is it has to do with my mother baking all day twice a week for us as we grew up.  Another ingredient I love is bacon and so one of the recipes has that in it.  Tomorrow's recipe is for "Navajo Fried Bread" and it makes a great vessel for a sandwich of many types.  Thursday's recipe is for "Bacon Biscuits" and these you should have as often as possible.

Thank you once again for following my attempt to help people in the kitchen.  So until next week, "Happy Cooking" and for my neighbors "Spring is Coming someday."