Thursday, Recipes!

 Seems like a great excuse to me! I will use it.

I took a three-hour nap yesterday and then finished the wedding dress last night and I also hemmed three pairs of pants and shortened the sleeves on a dress coat.  So, I did get a lot done, just later in the day.

Still coughing but feeling better every day. 

I have at least 10 pairs of pants to hem in here and some patches to replace.  Elastic to replace in p.j.s.

The bride is coming tomorrow at 10 and then I have one more wedding dress to get do for the year. Unless something short term comes up. It has been a weird year. Or maybe things are just getting back to normal post covid which really messed with weddings.

Had my goodest buddy stop by yesterday with a bag of sweetened popcorn.  SO yummy.  She made me feel less isolated, and she got a good laugh over my description of leaving the house one time in a week and having a coughing fit at the checkout and wetting my pants. One needs a good friend to confess all things to.

Anyway, here are the recipe's I promised.

My Roll dough recipe.

one package of yeast (I use bulk so 2 and 1/4 tsp.)

1 cup of very warm water 105 to 115

3 tablespoons sugar

2 tablespoons shortening or butter

Add all of these and stir let rest about 5 minutes for yeast to bloom.  Do not worry if shortening or butter are not incorporated. 

While yeast is blooming

in a separate bowl

Beat one egg, add 

3/4 tsp salt to egg and stir

Now add 1 and 1/2 cups flour on top of yeast mixture.  Do not stir

On stop of the flour add you egg and salt mixture this will prevent salt from touching yeast mixture and causing death to yeast spores.

Stir well, you can even use a hand mixer here if you want.

Now add 1 1/2 more cups of flour. This should make a soft sticky dough.

Turn out onto 1/2 cup of flour and cut this in with pastry scrapper or just use your hands. 

Knead about ten times put into greased bowl, turning dough upside down to grease both sides and then cover with a towel and let rise.  About 1 hour.

Now shape rolls, or cinnamon, or orange rolls. Let rise until double

bake at 400   15 to 20 minutes. I turn my rolls at 10 minutes to bake evenly

You can double or triple this, I think if you are not familiar with bread making make a single batch and practice. Practice does make perfect when it comes to breads.

You can use this to make 10 hamburger buns or hot dog buns, add an egg wash with sesame seeds on top.  So good.

Never Fail pie crust

4 cups of flour (I have used WW)

1 3/4 cups Crisco (You can use other shortening, butter, lard, but best results with Crisco brand, or do 1/2 and 1/2)

2 tsp salt

Now cut in with a pastry cutter until fine and crumbly

In a separate bowl beat one egg well 

add 1/2 cup very cold water 

add 1 tbls of apple cider vinegar

Mix this together and add to the flower mixture. Mix in until dough forms divide into 4 crusts.

Sprinkle flour before rolling.

Bake at 425 for 10 to 12 minutes.  I usually double this and then freeze crusts wrapped in parchment and stored in a zip lock. Then when I want to make a pie, I pull out what I need.

Let's face it, pie crust is a pain, once you have the knack figured out, make plenty it just saves time and headache.

I have been using these recipes for at least 47 years. Good luck, let me know if you use them. 

I think people are afraid of making bread and pie crust. Just remember even if it is not perfect people will eat it, and it will taste so much better than anything you could buy at the store.

Pie crusts:

You will also save money. Even though Crisco is spendy, a large can, can make this recipe 4 times or 16 crusts. Now look at the price of ready-made crusts and you can see how this will save you by 1/2. plus the difference in taste, no comparison.

Bread:

Flour is about 9 cents a cup, depending on what you buy, I you buy yeast in bulk it runs about .31 a batch, add and egg a tiny bit of sugar and salt, water and you have bread. Even the cheapest package of rolls cannot compete in price or taste. Just remember there are no preservatives and these rolls are best eaten the day of or the day after.  They will not keep unless frozen.

Hey good luck. Homemade is always best. But if I was invited over to a completely store-bought dinner, I would still eat it and love you.

I am off to blow my nose.

God is good

Kim