Cinnamon Twist

I had some extra monkey bread dough and saw this on Pinterest and thought I'd give it a try. 

I should have just done cinnamon rolls like I wanted too.  It was doughy and too crunchy on the top.  And not many things are too crunchy for me. :0)

Banana Muffins

We have gotten a ton of banana's lately.  We have eaten them all.  I've not even had some left to make banana bread with.  But there was one and I really wanted to try this new recipe from Pinterest.

SO GOOD!

Love them and can't wait to make them again.  I liked that I only needed one banana and I think I'll put just a bit more pecans in the next batch.

Glazed Orange Rolls

I think I need to put this website on my side bar.  I found a bunch of really good recipes.  Here is the orange rolls I tried.

The baby loved them, my husband said they were gross and he would just have to eat them all.  I liked them warm.  They were really good.  I cooked mine too long.  I did the 22 minutes but they should have come out at 20.  They were just a little brown.  Not really burnt but I would have liked them lighter.

Here is the link over for this recipe.

Blueberry Lemon Muffins

I was able to get a Bountiful Basket last weekend and it came with blueberries.  I'm not a big fan but my husband is.  So to Pinterest I went.  I found 5-6 recipes and looking to see what I had in the house I decided to try these.  Mary Lou's Muffins.  We are BIG fans of lemon in this house so I figured I couldn't lose.

I've never made muffins with real blueberries before.  I usually just buy the mixes that say to just add water, but I'm all about trying to expand my craft of cooking.

OMG!!!  These are the best muffins that I have ever tasted!  No joke!  They just melt in your mouth and the flavor... AMAZING!

I have no idea what the lemon verbena is that the recipe called for but I had some fancy paste that my mom gave me when I was looking for lemon flavoring for the Mountain Dew Cupcakes that is used.  I really think it made the difference. 

I happen to have one more package of blueberries that I was wanting to try another new recipe with but they just might end up being in more muffins.  :0)

Coconut and some other breads

I love this coconut bread recipe so much!  Another one from my friend Lisel, (I get all the good ones from her).  I use to just do things for her so she would make some for me but I finally asked her for the recipe because just one little mini loaf was never enough.  I'm being very kind and sharing the recipe here.

Coconut Bread:
4 eggs
2 cups sugar
1 cup oil
2 teaspoons coconut extract

Mix together:
3 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt.
Add this to the egg mixture.  Then add:
1 cup buttermilk
1 cup coconut

This will make 7 mini loafs!  Please don't try and make it fit into 6.  If tried and it does not work.  

Bake at 325* for 40-45 minutes.  

For the glaze you will need:
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup water
2 Tablespoons butter.
Boil this for 5 min.  Remove from heat and add
1 teaspoon coconut extract
5-10 drops food coloring


Cool for 2-3 minutes and then pour over warm bread.


I do not put food coloring in mine but Lisel always does.

I also tried making a new bread recipe, Cherry Eggnog Tea Bread.  It was okay.  Here is a picture of all the breads I made.  The first is a Chocolate Quick Bread.  The eggnog bread is in front.  The coconut is in back and on the one side and the bread in the middle is my Oatmeal Cinnamon Bread.  LOVE IT! 

Monkey Bread

I thought I would share this recipe with you today.  I love this and it is the only way my oldest son will eat chili.  He eats the chili with his monkey bread.  :0)  This is my Mom's recipe and it is amazing!

You will need: (Makes 2 pans)

1/2 cup sugar
2 cups luke warm water
3 Tablespoons yeast.

Let this rise for 5 minutes.  I should have taken a picture of my yeast.  It was a beautiful raise. :0)

Add:
2 room temperature eggs  (Yes, it really makes a difference.)
4 Tablespoons melted butter, cooled.  (I just use oil.)
3 cups flour

Mix this and then add 3-4 cups more flour.  It will look like this.

Cover this and let it double.  It can take anywhere from 20 minutes to an hour.

Punch down, roll out, cut into squares.  This recipe makes two bunt pans of bread so split it before rolling it out.

Dip in melted butter.  I put 1/2 cup of butter on the stove on low while I let the monkey bread rise to melt it.  That way it's not hot when I go to dip it.

Stack them in your pan.  Work your way around.  Make them fit, it doesn't need to look pretty here.  It will look pretty when it's done. :0)  I pour the left over butter over the top when I'm done. 

Bake at 350* for 25 minutes.  Now the top will go brown.  Let it go the full 25 minutes or you will have doughy bread in the middle.  Turn it out on a plate when it's done and enjoy!

We eat this with chili, soup and just about anything else.  It is so good!  I've tried making it with cinnamon and sugar before and one time with Parmesan cheese but they were not as good as just plain.

Banana Bread

My kids have been begging me to make banana bread with the really brown, almost gross banana's that have been sitting on our counter for over a week.  I gave in.

So pretty right. :0)

Even good with peanut butter, jam or honey.

There were 4 loafs and only 5 minutes out of the oven...

Guess I'm not saving any for when we are on the deer hunt.  I'll just have to break down and make more.

A couple projects and some bread

First thing I want to show you is a dress I finished yesterday for my oldest daughter. I found this Simplicity pattern when they were for a dollar and I just couldn't pass it up. I decided to let my daughter pick the fabric for her "butterfly" dress. When I finished the top I was very un-impressed with it. I didn't like how the materials went together or how it looked at all. I even had her put it on and still didn't like it. I would have gone with some totally different fabric but it was her birthday dress so I went with it. But when I finished the pants and she put it on... Much better. It is very much her and I can't wait to make another one. ;0)

Next on the list is this.It is a grocery bag holder that I first saw on my friend Bonnies blog. Here is her's. I really liked it and to think of getting rid of all those bags under my cabinet was amazing. I made a few for my house a few months ago but I had a neighbor having a birthday right by mine and I wanted to give her something. I didn't have a lot of money to go buy her anything and I happen to have a TON of scrap material so I made her one. I hope that she likes it.

And since I promise my husband some garlic bread to go with our dinner tonight I thought I would make french bread to make it with. It didn't turn out so hot.
Here is the recipe. It is the yummiest bread that I have ever made. We love it and I can't wait for dinner now.

French bread (This makes one but you can easily double it to make 2)

1 1/2 cups warm water
1/2 T olive oil
1/2 T yeast

Mix and set aside while you mix;

4 cups flour (I do half wheat, half white)
1/2 T salt
1/2 T sugar

Add yeast mixture. Knead for 5 min or until soft. (Love my Kitchenaid for this!) Let this raise 1 hour. Roll out onto a floured surface. Roll into a loaf and let raise another hour. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes. *IT WILL NOT BE BROWN* If you want a brown loaf you can put an egg wash on it before baking which is 1 egg, a pinch of salt and a t. water mixed.

Thanks for joining me in my project over load. And this is just what I've worked on for the last 2 days. Wait til you see what else I have in the works. :0)