Super Cinnamon Rolls

Cinnamon rolls are a lengthy project but I have developed a great system to make them easy and company ready in no time! The secret is to prepare them ahead of time and freeze them individually. They taste wonderful, if not better, when thawed from the freezer. With a quick trip to the microwave you become super chef in no time! This recipe always gets great reviews too!

Rolls:                                                           Measure the roll ingredients and place on the "dough cycle" 

1 cup warm milk (105F to 115F)                 (do not delay start due to yeast). You can also mix the 

2 Eggs                                                          ingredients manually and knead and rise the dough.

1/3 cup butter, melted

4 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup granulated sugar

2 packages of quick active yeast

Filling:                                                         While waiting for the dough, mix brown sugar and 

1 cup packed brown sugar                           cinnamon together.

2 Tablespoons ground cinnamon

1/3 cup softened butter

When dough cycle is complete. Remove the dough and place on Roul'Pat. Roll out into a rectangle (or funky rectangle like mine!) Spread softened butter on dough using the spatula. 

 Generously sprinkle the brown sugar and cinnamon mixture evenly.

 Roll up the dough by tucking in the long end.

When the dough is rolled together. Here is the fun part: Head to the bathroom and get some unflavored dental floss. Use the floss to "cut" the dough into slices. Once you discover how nice floss works with delicate dough like this, you may find yourself keeping an extra stash in the kitchen! The other benefit is that the floss can't ruin the Roul'Pat like a knife would.

 Now place your rolls into the desired pan(s) to be cooked. I used two large round molds and it worked fantastic! Plus, super easy to clean the sticky carmel off the pan! Bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes (more time if using a different pan)

 Here is the finished product. Yum! Once cooled, place each roll in an individual ziplock freezer bag and store until ready to serve. It takes about 1 1/2 minutes on medium power to reheat. Drizzle with frosting recipe below.

Frosting:

3 oz whipped cream cheese

1/4 cup softened butter

1 1/2 cups powdered sugar

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Whip up the ingredients in a mixer and serve on the side or on top of rolls. This recipe will hold up really well in refrigerator for a week.

 ENJOY!
(recipe courtesy of Gold Medal Flour)

Cleaning aluminum baking sheets

A big component of the Demarle at Home Cooking systems are the perforated baking sheets. The holes in the pan allow the perfect airflow to anything you are cooking with. Unfortunately, these pans do get build up on them and over time loose their shiny metal look. I found the cure to clean them!


In this photo you can see and compare the difference of the pans.

Half the pan is clean and half not in the photos below.

The ingredients are simple and natural but the results are amazing with a little bit of elbow grease!


1 Tbls. Cream of Tartar
2 Tbls. Lemon juice (I used the fake lemon since I had no lemons at home)
2 Tbls. White vinegar
2 Cups of hot water



Mix it together and dip your scrubber (scrubbing brush, pad, or scour pads work) into the solution. And scrub, scrub scrub. You should see it clean pretty easily.

 

And here is the final result....  YEAH, good as new!

Easy Baguette for any cook!

Subway has the best bread! There is one secret to achieving the Subway bread at home and it so easy you will be the best cook on the block!

It's DeMarle at Home silform bread tray!http://www.mydemarleathome.com/shop/productdetail.aspx?prod=SF000295 Don't forget that all our pans need the perforated pan to perform at their best!

This recipe is SO easy and it's fat free too! Its from the Demarle at Home Beginnings and Endings Cookbook.

Crusty Fat-Free Bread 

Ingredients: 

1 envelope rapid-rise dry yeast

2 cups lukewarm water 

1 tablespoon salt

1 tablespoon sugar

4 1/2 to 5 cups all purpose flour

Seasonings on choice (I used herbs de provence)

(2 cups of boiling water in a oven proof dish on bottom rack)

In a mixing bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water. Add salt and sugar and mix well. Beat in flour, one cup at a time, with a wooden spoon until a smooth ball forms clearing the sides of the bowl. Cover and set aside in a warm place until it doubles in size (about one hour). Flour your hands and put a little flour on the Roul' Pat (yep, it is some sticky dough even for a Roul' Pat!) Knead a few times (if you can, its pretty sticky!) Cut the dough in half, and then in half again so you have 4 balls. Don't use anything sharp on the Roul' Pat or bread form! Place oven rack in center and heat oven to 400 degrees F. Place your pan (I used my sunflower mold on another pan) on the lowest bottom rack. Then pour your boiling water in the pan. While the oven is heating, shape your dough into 4 baguette shapes on the silform tray with your perforated pan under it. Let them sit until oven is ready. Apple small slits into the bread, lightly brush with olive oil and sprinkle on the seasoning mix. Bake for 25-30 minutes until crusty and brown.

And there you have it, your own Subway bread at home!

Pumpkin Muffins!

It's that time of the year again where the scents of evergreen and pumpkin whisk you away into holiday dreaming. These muffins are absolutely incredible! What makes them so amazing is the straight muffin pan from Demarle at Home! Clean up is a breeze and you guests (or kids!) will be begging for another.

As you can see, these aren't just any pumpkin muffin. These are deluxe pumpkin and apple streusel muffins.

find the recipe here:http://allrecipes.com/recipe/pumpkin-apple-streusel-muffins

There are over 500 excellent reviews on this muffin and I can see why! These muffins taste even better in the Demarle at home straight muffin pan. See, any baking is made so much better when there is airflow to what you are cooking. Combine this with the silicone and glass woven together and you have perfect crisp texture on the outside with a soft, perfectly cooked inside. These are bakery worthy!

See the spills? No big deal because it literally falls off these pans. I've never, EVER enjoyed the clean up because I am such a messy cook. BUT, with these pans, there is hardly anything to clean. Take a look at how they pop out of the pan. No papers needed!

Angry Bird Cake

This year my daughter wanted Angry Birds on her cake. She specifically wanted a 3 tier cake with a slingshot of course.

This is what I created...

I could have bought a slingshot and placed it on the cake but would Chef Duff do that? So I went for a Rice Krispy treat version and covered it in melted chocolate, put it on a stick, and placed it through the layers(I also did this for the little TNT boxes). I used a rolled Airhead for the sling. The birds were purchased from Amazon.

I used to find fondant very difficult to work with. I was looking around Amazon one day and came across fondarific fondant. It was rated high and nut free! Score! I tried it out on my sons cake and it worked great (it also tastes better then most fondant). See below...

A Super hero lovers dream!

Shabby table to chic look

I love this transformation! A table I bought at Goodwill for 4$ and transformed it for under 20$.

Here is my secret weapon. 1-2-3 primer- No sanding needed! I sprayed the legs and used a foam roller for the top. Foam rollers are very important when panting furniture.

After letting the primer dry overnight. I mixed the paint. Ever hear of Annie Sloan chalk paints? They are sweeping the furniture painting lovers off their feet. You shouldn't need to even paint primer with this paint but I did anyway. It covers nice and I wasn't doing any antique finish to it.

Ever notice the clearance paint flubs at Home Depot and Lowes?

These paints are generally $11-$15 if mixed a color of your choice. Isn't this a cool color for $2.50?

To make the chalk paint, I started with a quart measuring pail and figured out what 1:4 ratio (1 part Plaster of Paris and 4 parts paint) was needed. I measured the Plaster of Paris first, dry, then added water and mixed it till it was smooth. Usually 1 Tablespoon at a time till the desired consistency. Finally, I mixed the paint together with the Plaster of Paris mixture.

Beautiful!

There is one final step. Adding water based polyurethane. I used a spray on version from Menards that had very little smell. I applied 4 coats of this as directed several hours apart. 

The piece on the floor is the leaf for the table. I love how this color came out! 

Open frame design

Open frames are a fun way to class up the wall and make it interesting. Here is what I got at my favorite store- Goodwill. All these frames were 2.99 or under....
They all look like a nice color in this picture but they are actually different shades of gold.
   
                                                 

And here is what was inside some of them.... (Look beyond what you see)

Pretty, Huh?

I purchased a flat black spray paint and 3M medium abrasive scrubber. I painted the frames and let them dry overnight. I then used the scrubber to return the gold finish along the edges and design of the frames. This is my end result...

And the finished product on the wall...

Total cost: around $15.00