One Hour Dinner Rolls (Kaiser Rolls)

Simple from-scratch dinner rolls that are a complement to soups or salads, any time! (For the fluffiest rolls, total time may exceed one hour...)

Yield: 

24 dinner rolls

Ingredients: 

1/2 cup warm water (115 degrees F)
1 1/2 tablespoons active dry yeast
1/2 tablespoon sugar
2 eggs
1 1/2 cups warm milk (115 degrees F)
1/2 cup oil or melted butter
2 teaspoons salt
1 tablespoon honey or molasses
1/3 cup sugar
6 1/2 cups all-purpose flour or bread flour, approximately

Instructions: 

1. In a 2-cup measuring cup or small mixing bowl, combine the water, yeast, and 1/2 tablespoon sugar. Stir with a fork to combine, and then set aside. (Mixture will get foamy.)

2. In a 4-cup measuring cup (or medium-large mixing bowl), lightly beat the eggs. Add the warm milk, oil or butter, salt, honey or molasses, and 1/3 cup sugar. Stir to combine.

3. In a medium-large mixing bowl, combine the two wet mixtures and stir. Stir in enough flour to form a soft dough, and continue to add flour and knead until a smooth, elastic dough forms (about 10-15 minutes).

If using a bread machine: Pour both wet mixtures into bread machine, add about 4 cups of flour, and turn on the dough cycle. Add more flour as needed to make a smooth, soft dough. Scrape sides of bread machine pan with a gentle spatula if needed as it mixes. When dough is smooth and elastic, turn off bread machine. Continue with step 4.

If using a stand mixer: Pour both wet mixtures into mixer bowl. Add about 4-5 cups of the flour and allow it to mix (or knead with a dough hook) until a smooth, soft dough forms, adding more flour as needed. When dough is smooth and elastic, turn off mixer and continue with step 4.

4. Allow dough to rest for 5-10 minutes, covered. While dough is resting, grease two 11x15-inch baking sheets. Turn oven on to 200 degrees and set a timer for 2 minutes. After 2 minutes, turn off the oven. (Leave the door shut so it stays warm inside!)

5. Separate or cut dough into 24 pieces. I divide in half, then divide each half in half again. Now I have fourths, and I divide each of those in half. Now I have 8 pieces of dough, and I divide each piece into 3 pieces, resulting in 24 pieces. :)

6. Form each piece of dough into a roll. To make Kaiser (or rosette-shaped) dinner rolls like the ones in these pictures, roll each piece of dough into a rope about 8 inches long. Tie the rope into a knot, with two long "tails" remaining. Tuck one tail under and one tail over, tucking in the middle, to make the rosette shape.

For a video demo of this EASY technique, scroll down to the additional notes of this recipe! :)

7. Place rolls on greased sheets. Cover lightly with a clean towel and place sheets in the warm oven (do not turn back on!) and allow to rise until nearly doubled. This should take about 25 minutes if your oven was pre-warmed, your yeast was good, etc. It MAY take longer, though, which is why I recommend starting these rolls in plenty of time for dinner (more like two hours in advance instead of just one!).

8. When rolls are almost doubled in size, remove them from the oven. Pre-heat the oven to 375 degrees. Bake rolls for about 15-20 minutes, until done.

Serve hot and enjoy! Leftover rolls should be stored in an air-tight bag or container.

Although these are called "One Hour" dinner rolls, be sure to start them in plenty of time so you're not rushing! I made the ones in these pictures in about an hour's time, and as you can see they are not as fluffy as they could be! (Still delicious hot, with fresh soup and a salad!) :)

If you want to make these rolls even more beautiful, you can brush with a beaten egg and sprinkle with sesame seeds or poppy seeds before baking! Or, toss hot freshly-baked rolls in a bowl with a little melted butter before serving. Or, just brush tops with butter when they come out of the oven. :)

Recipe Credit: Tammy's Recipes

Kaiser Rolls

1 package of yeast
1 cup warm water divided
2 tablespoon sugar divided
3 tablespoons canola oil
1 teaspoon salt
3 to 3 1/4 cup flour
1 egg white
2 teaspoon cold water

In a large bowl, dissolve yeast in 1/4 cup warm water. Add 1 tablespoon sugar; let stand for 5 minutes. Add the oil, salt, remaining warm water and sugar and 2 cups flour. Beat until smooth. Stir in enough remaining flour to form a soft dough.

Turn onto a floured surface; knead until smooth and elastic, about 6-8 minutes. Place in a greased bowl, turning once to grease top. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1 hour.

Punch dough down. Turn onto a lightly floured surface; divide into 8 pieces. Shape each into a ball. Place 2 in. apart on greased baking sheets. Cover and let rise until doubled, about 30 minutes.

Beat egg white and cold water; brush over rolls. Sprinkle with poppy and/or sesame seeds. With scissors, cut a 1/4-in.-deep cross on tops of rolls.

Bake at 400° for 15-20 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from pans to wire racks to cool. Yield: 8 rolls.

Recipe Credit: Cooking with Avoir

Chicken and Apple Curry

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 30 minutes

Ingredients (Serves 4)

• 1 TBSP olive oil
• 1 tsp butter {omit for dairy-free}
• 2 large onions, chopped
• 3 apples, chopped {I used small Fuji apples}
• 1 stalk celery, diced
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 lb. chicken breast, chopped into 1 inch pieces
• 2 TBSP curry powder
• 3/4 tsp salt
• 1 3/4 cups low-sodium chicken broth or water
• 1/4 cup cold water
• 1 TBSP cornstarch
• {optional garnishes} plain yogurt, chopped mint, parsley, coconut, peanuts, cashews, almonds, green onion

Instructions

Heat oil over medium-high in a large skillet or Dutch oven. Add butter, and melt. Stir in onions, and saute until softened, about 7 minutes.

Stir in apples, celery, and garlic, and saute for 5 minutes. Push everything to the outside of the skillet.

Put chicken in the middle of the skillet. Cook for about 3 minutes, then flip. Sprinkle everything with curry powder. Stir everything together.

Season with salt, and stir in chicken broth. Stir well, and scrape up any bits that have gotten stuck to the bottom of the skillet. Turn heat down to medium, and simmer for about 5 minutes, stirring often.

Whisk together 1/4 cup cold water and cornstarch until no lumps remain. Stir into skillet, and simmer until sauce has thickened, about 5 minutes.

Serve warm over cooked brown rice with optional garnishes.

Recipe Credit: Meme Inge

Thai Yellow Chicken Curry with Potatoes

• 1 tablespoon oil
• half a yellow onion, sliced thinly
• 1 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite-sized pieces
• ⅓ cup yellow curry paste
• 10 baby golden yukon potatoes, cut into bite-sized pieces
• 1 14-ounce can coconut cream (it's like coconut milk, but even more luscious)
• ½ - 1 cup water
• 2 teaspoons fish sauce (optional)
• 1-2 tablespoons brown sugar (optional)
• cilantro and rice for serving

1. Heat the oil in a large pot over medium low heat. Add the onions and saute for a few minutes until the onions are fragrant and softened. Add the chicken and curry paste; saute for 3-5 minutes. Add the potatoes and stir to coat with the curry paste.
2. Add the coconut cream and ½ cup water to the pot - simmer for 20-30 minutes or until the chicken and potatoes are fully cooked, adding more water depending on the consistency you want for the sauce.
3. Stir in the fish sauce and brown sugar to really take it up a notch. Seriously - so good. Serve over rice.

NOTES

The yellow curry paste I use is HOMEMADE because I can never find it in the store - and it's super easy to make. It takes about 45 minutes, but then you'll have enough to last you through five batches of curry (and you can freeze it). Here's the recipe!

Recipe Credit: Pinch of Yum

Easy Homemade Yellow Curry Paste

• 4 large shallots
• 4 large heads of garlic (not individual cloves - FULL HEADS of garlic)
• 1 6-inch piece of fresh ginger
• 5-20 whole dried Thai chili peppers** (they're very small and usually found in the spice section)
• 1½ tablespoons salt
• 2-3 tablespoons turmeric
• 2-3 tablespoons mild curry powder
• 2 teaspoons roasted ground coriander
• 3 tablespoons lemongrass paste (I use Gourmet Garden which they sell at my regular grocery store)
• ¼ cup packed cilantro leaves and stems

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
2. Prep the aromatics: Peel the shallots - then drizzle with oil and wrap in foil. Peel the ginger and cut into thin slices. Arrange in a single layer, drizzle with oil, and wrap in foil. Pull the outer paper off the garlic. Cut the pointy tops off the heads of garlic so the cloves are partially exposed. Drizzle with oil, and wrap each head of garlic in foil.
3. Bake the aromatics: Place all the foil packets on a baking sheet. Bake for 15 minutes. Remove the ginger (it should be soft), increase the temperature to 400, and roast the shallots and garlic for another 30 minutes until golden brown and very fragrant.
4. Soak the chilis: While the aromatics are roasting, pour boiling water over the chili peppers to rehydrate them. Let them soak for 15 minutes. Drain the water.
5. Make the paste: Put everything in a food processor or very strong blender. Pulse or puree until the yellow curry paste reaches your desired consistency. The recipe should make about 1½ - 2 cups of curry paste, and I use about ⅓ cup or more in each of my yellow curry recipes, so usually I can get 4-5 batches of curry out of this yellow curry paste recipe. The paste keeps for about a week in the fridge and it freezes well!

NOTES

**The number of peppers will either make your curry paste mild or hot.
5 chilis = very mild
10 chilis = medium
15 chilis = medium hot
20 chilis = HOT

The measurements for the spices can be played with a little bit, which is why the curry and turmeric are written as 2-3 tablespoons. I usually go for MORE spice, but if you don't have enough of one thing, try adding a little more of something else to compensate. It's definitely somewhat of a flexible recipe.

Bjork and both really like spicy food, but the 20 chili version was hard for us to eat. 10 chili peppers (medium) was my preferred amount - yum! I highly recommend starting with just a few if you aren't ready for the heat. :)

For a more traditional Thai yellow curry paste that features a few harder-to-find but true to actual curry ingredients, check out THIS RECIPE.

You can use less salt (1½ tablespoons seems like a lot, I know), but you will likely need to add it in later when you make it into a curry - just remember this is divded into at least 4 batches with 4-6 servings per batch, so that salt gets distributed out pretty well.

Recipe Credit: Pinch of Yum

Slow Cooker Beef Stroganoff ~ No ‘Cream of X’ Soup

Tender chunks of beef and hearty mushrooms are complemented by a parsley-flecked sour cream sauce in this easy, comforting slow cooker meal.

Ingredients

• 2 pounds beef stew meat 
• 12 ounces white mushrooms, cleaned and sliced
• 1 medium onion, diced
• 2 tablespoons minced fresh garlic
• 1 1/2 cups beef broth
• 2 tablespoons red wine (optional)
• 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
• 2 tablespoons dried parsley (or 1/2 cup fresh parsley)
• 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
• 6 tablespoons flour
• 1 bay leaf
• 4 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
• 8 ounces sour cream
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• Egg noodles

Directions

1. Place beef, mushrooms, onion, and garlic in crock pot. In a medium bowl, mix together beef broth, red wine (if using), Worcestershire sauce, mustard, garlic powder, onion powder, dried parsley, thyme, and flour. Whisk mixture until flour is dissolved. Pour into crock pot, add bay leaf, and stir all ingredients until coated. Place lid on crock pot and cook for 8 to 10 hours on low (or 4 to 5 hours on high).
2. About 20 minutes before serving time, add cream cheese to crock pot and replace lid. After 10 minutes, stir warmed/softened cream cheese into sauce, pushing with the back of a spoon to break it up and incorporate it into sauce. Stir sour cream into sauce. (Add fresh parsley at this point as well, if using.) Replace lid and cook on low for a few more minutes until heated through.
3. In the meantime, boil egg noodles according to package directions. Remove bay leaf from stroganoff, taste, and add salt and pepper as desired. Serve over hot egg noodles and garnish with additional minced parsley, if desired.

Tips, Tricks, & Variations

Don't open a whole bottle of red wine just for the sake of this recipe. But if you already have a bottle open, or if you're going to be opening a bottle to drink with dinner, you can add an optional splash to this stroganoff for another layer of flavor.

Instead of 2 tablespoons dried parsley, you may use 1/2 cup of fresh minced parsley, but add fresh herbs to the recipe at the same time as the sour cream as opposed to at the beginning of the recipe.

The cream cheese makes the stroganoff sauce extra creamy, but you may leave it out if you prefer to make this dish lighter.

Recipe Credit: Five Heart Home

Strawberries 'n Orange Cream Crepes

yield: 8-10 CREPES

 

total time: 1 HOUR, 40 MINUTES

Ingredients:Light, buttery, delicate crepes filled with orange liquor-spiked whipped cream, fresh strawberries, and a sprinkle of cinnamon. This basic crepe recipe goes well with your favorite crepe fillings and toppings, so feel free to sub in your favorite goodies.

CREPES

• 3 Tablespoons unsalted butter (melted and cooled for 15 minutes), plus more for the pan
• 1 cup (125g) all-purpose flour
• 1 Tablespoon granulated sugar
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup (180ml) whole milk1
• 1/2 cup (120ml) water
• 2 large Eggland's Best eggs
• 1 and 1/2 teaspoons vanilla

ORANGE WHIPPED CREAM

• 1 cup (240ml) heavy cream
• 3 Tablespoons (37g) granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoon orange juice
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 Tablespoon (15ml) orange liquor/triple sec (such as Cointreau)2

FILLING/GARNISH

• 10 large fresh strawberries, sliced
• ground cinnamon, to taste

Directions:

1. Feel free to read my step-by-step notes and use my step-by-step photos below this recipe.
2. Make the crepes: Start with the butter. It should be melted and set aside for at least 15 minutes so it is not extremely hot (which will then "scramble" your eggs when mixed). Make sure it's slightly cool.
3. Add the cooled melted butter, flour, sugar, salt, milk, water, eggs, and vanilla to a blender (or use an electric mixer or whisk). Mix on medium-high speed for 20-30 seconds or until everything is combined. The mixture will be the consistency of cream and silky smooth. Pour into a medium-size bowl, cover tightly, and chill in the refrigerator for 30-60 minutes and up to 1 day.
4. Melt a little extra butter in a small frying pan over medium heat. Pour 1/4 cup of chilled batter onto the center of the pan. Tilt the pan and swirl the batter evenly to all sides. Cook 1-2 minutes or until the bottom is lightly browned. With a thin spatula, gently flip the crepe and cook for 1 more minute on the other side. Transfer the cooked crepe to a large plate and repeat with the remaining batter, making sure to butter the pan between each crepe. If desired, separate each crepe with parchment paper so they do not stick together. Though, if using enough butter on your pan, the crepes won't stick.
5. Make the whipped cream: Whip the cream in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Or use a handheld mixer. After about 1 minute when the cream begins to thicken, add the sugar, orange juice, vanilla, and liquor. Continue to whip until it forms stiff peaks, about 3 minutes more. Makes about 2 cups. You may have some leftover if you don't pile it on as heavy as I do.
6. Assemble the crepes: Spread a generous (or not so generous?) amount of whipped cream down the middle of the crepe. Top with a few slices of strawberries. Fold up the sides of the crepe and press down to seal. Top with more whipped cream, strawberries, and a sprinkle of cinnamon. Serve warm.
7. Make ahead tip: Unfilled crepes will remain fresh in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 1 day or in the freezer for 1 month. Batter may be made the night before. Pour into a mixing bowl and cover tightly, then prepare crepes in the morning.

Additional Notes:

Other filling options: Use your imagination! Nutella, fresh fruit, plain whipped cream, peanut butter, jam, or anything savory.

1. I prefer whole milk in the crepe batter. For a richer tasting crepe, half-and-half or heavy cream work as well. 2% is OK, but I wouldn't use any lower fat milks.
2. You can leave out the orange liquor. Instead, use 1 Tablespoon orange juice (and leave out the 1 additional teaspoon orange juice).

Adapted from Kraft

Recipe Credit: Sally's Baking Addiction

Unbelievable Blueberry French Toast Casserole

yield: 12 SERVINGS

 

prep time: 25 MINUTES

 

total time: 9 HOURS, 20 MINUTES

Ingredients:Minimal prep work and unbelievable taste! Let the refrigerator do all the work and wake up to sweet blueberry french toast casserole in the morning.

• 1 (12-14 ounce) loaf french bread, sourdough bread, or challah1
• 1 cup (180g) fresh or frozen blueberries2
• 8 large Eggland's Best eggs
• 2 and 1/4 cups (540ml) whole milk
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 3/4 cup (150g) packed light brown sugar
• 1 Tablespoon (15ml) vanilla extract

STREUSEL TOPPING

• 1/3 cup (69g) packed light brown sugar
• 1/3 cup (42g) all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 6 Tablespoons (86g) unsalted butter, cold and cubed
• Optional: extra blueberries, fresh fruit, maple syrup, and/or confectioners' sugar for topping

Directions:

1. Grease a 9x13 pan with butter or spray with nonstick spray. Slice then cut the bread into cubes, about 1 inch in size. Spread cubes into the prepared baking pan and top evenly with blueberries. Set aside.
2. Whisk the eggs, milk, cinnamon, brown sugar, and vanilla together until no brown sugar lumps remain. Pour over the bread. Cover the pan tightly with plastic wrap and stick in the refrigerator for 3 hours - overnight. Overnight is best.
3. Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C). Remove pan from the refrigerator.
4. Prepare the topping: Whisk the brown sugar, flour, and cinnamon together in a medium bowl. Cut in the cubed butter with a pastry blender or two forks. Sprinkle the topping over the soaked bread.
5. Bake for 45-55 minutes or until golden brown on top. I usually bake it for 45 minutes because I like it softer. Serve immediately. Cover leftovers tightly and store in the refrigerator for 2-3 days.
6. Make ahead tip: Prepare the topping in advance, cover tightly, and store in the refrigerator. Sprinkle over the soaked bread before baking. For freezing, prepare the recipe through step 4 (without preheating the oven) and freeze for up to 2 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator then bake as directed.

Additional Notes:

This recipe can easily be halved in an 8 or 9-inch baking pan. The bake time will be slightly less, around 30-35 minutes.

1. Day-old, crusty bread is perfect for french toast casseroles. I typically use a loaf of challah bread that I slice and let sit out overnight.
2. Instead of blueberries, try strawberries, raspberries, or blackberries. In the fall, try cranberries or thinly sliced apples or pears. So many options!

Recipe Credit: Sally's Baking Addiction