"Quick" Dinner Rolls

I have a thing for bread.  I consider it one of the side dishes I serve at dinner.  I prefer to make homemade bread, even if I cheat and use my bread machine to make the dough.  There are times however, I take an even shorter short cut and use frozen dinner rolls and just spruce them up a bit.

I just take an ordinary angel food pan and spray it with a little non-stick spray.

Then I put a layer of my favorite frozen dinner rolls, right out of the freezer,

in a single layer in the bottom of the pan.

Next, I sprinkle a variety of seasonings over the frozen rolls.  I have some special seasoning blends that are for pasta that work great for these rolls.  Sometimes I just use garlic salt or crushed basil.  Whatever flavor that will compliment my main dish.

I add another layer of rolls and seasoning and repeat until I've used up all 36 rolls.

I cover the pan with a clean dish towel and then I put it in the oven - a cold oven - to keep it out of any drafts so the rolls can thaw and rise.

About 8 hours later, this is how they look.

I bake them in the pan at 350 degrees until they are golden brown.

I invert them on a plate and if they still seem a little "doughy" at the bottom, I slide them on a cookie sheet and put them back in the over for a few minutes until the bottom is golden brown.  I put them in the middle of the table and they become pull apart dinner rolls.  My kids love them!

"All sorrows are less with bread."  -Miguel de Cervantes

Fun Night Out for Restaurant Week

Last night, I had a wonderful evening of great food and conversation.  It was a planned night out as a few weeks ago, I asked a few friends if they would be interested in going to an upscale restaurant during Restaurant Week in Minneapolis and St. Paul.  The premise of Restaurant Week is that around 50 restaurants, put a menu together of some of their best dishes and charge one price.  Lunches are $10 to $20 and dinners are $15 to $30.  It's a great way to try upscale/expensive restaurants at more humble prices.  Restaurant Week takes place three times a year:  Summer, Fall and Winter.  There are a wide variety of places to eat for everyone's taste.....burgers, sushi, steak, pizza, salad, seafood and so on.  For more information and the list of restaurants here is a link to the Minneapolis St. Paul Magazine website.  www.mspmag.com  Click on the Events:  Twin Cities Restaurant Week tab on the right.

Three of my friends and I visited Borough in Minneapolis last evening.  We ordered from the Restaurant Week menu, so we were able to choose three courses for $30.  We had to begin though with pre-dinner drinks and an appetizer - not included in the $30 menu but well worth it!!  We had Sangria or a Lemon Basil Gimlet - both were very summery and refreshing, and Octopus (yam, soy, daikon, cilantro, lime, peanuts) - a Borough signature dish.

We began dinner with a wine recommendation from our server.

Then, first course was a choice between Carrot Soup (carrot, shrimp, ginger, curry granola, yogurt, basil)

or Burrata (artichoke, mache, sunflower, pine nut, tomato, sourdough).

For our main course, we chose between Sturgeon (pan roasted, corn, chanterelles, heirloom tomato, rye, dill)

or Chicken (breast, leg, potato salad, green beans, fennel, cornbread, chipotle).

Of course we also had dessert - either Chocolate (malted milk, cake, chantilly, cherry, vanilla, chocolate sorbet)

or Radish (broth, chevre, friand, lemon balm, watermelon, lemon sorbet).

There was not a bite left on any of our plates.  We thoroughly enjoyed the food, atmosphere and conversation.  Here is a link to Borough's website for all of the restaurant's details. www.boroughmpls.com  I look forward to Restaurant Week in the Fall to try another new place!  Hey Betty, Keri and Wendy???  Are you with me???

"Food is for eating, and good food is to be enjoyed....I think food is, actually, very beautiful in itself."  -Delia Smith

A Clean Room

My daughter has been gone since July 1st.  She will be coming home on July 19th.  She has been having a fabulous time traveling the country with her friend and that friend's family.  As a surprise to her, I thought I would clean her room.  Oh, what a chore that was!  She had things squirreled away in every nook and cranny.  Being sensitive to her feelings though, I didn't throw anything away.  I put things gingerly into bags and boxes and she and I will go through them next week.  I also stayed out of her dresser and bed drawers.  Even at 12 years old, she deserves some privacy.

So now I can actually see the floor - sorry, no "before" pictures!

I also did a couple of DIY pictures to spruce up her room.  She has a blackout shade that had started to lose its stitching.  With a little thread, I corrected that problem.

  My stitching didn't look all that great so I used a little glitter tape to cover up my sewing.

My second project was the little chair in her room.  This little chair used to by mine when I was a little girl.  It matched a toy box I had.  My parents had it recovered and they used it as a little reading chair in their living room.

My daughter has this chair in her room now and loves reading and watching movies in it.  The only problem is, the green and taupe colors don't really match the purple in her room.  So, I finally bought some purple fabric and lime green tulle......

and made a little chair that matches her room.  I added her special afghan made for her by her Grandma Carol and now she has a new "girlie" chair.

Hopefully she'll like the little changes.  I'm sure it won't stay this clean but after missing her for almost 3 weeks, I won't mind the mess!!!

"You never know what you have until you clean your room."  -Unknown

Whole Foods

I have discovered a new place that sells hormone free meat and has been our "go to" for weekend suppers.  I'm sure many of you already know about Whole Foods but it has been my new great discovery.  Their meat counter is incredible!  Yes, it is a little bit more expensive than a regular grocery store but my family's health is well worth the extra dollars and I like to splurge a little on our weekend meals when we're all home to enjoy.

Our favorites so far are the different flavored burgers.  We've had bleu cheese burgers, spicy chipotle burgers and last night, we had cowboy burgers.

These were so good:  hormone free ground beef with provolone cheese, bacon, onions, roasted red peppers and some smokey seasoning.  By cooking these on the grill, it caramelized the onions, melted the cheese, made the bacon more crispy and added flavor to the smokey seasoning.

Whole Foods also has a wealth of seafood options and chicken creations.  They have a great cheese selection, wonderful breads, delectable desserts, savory olives, organic fruits/vegetables and many, many more yummy items!  For those of you with special food needs (gluten allergies, dairy intolerance, etc.) you can find all kinds of wonderful products.  It may become one of my weekly grocery stops!

"One cannot think well, love well, sleep well, if one has not dined well."  -Virginia Woolf

Felted Birdhouse

I was so excited to get this great birthday gift for a very good friend of mine.  It's a felted birdhouse.

It is meant to be used outside so can withstand the elements.  I found it at my local Bachman's store and the brand is Wild Woolies.

I did a Google search on Wild Woolies and found that they are sold at many retail establishments and through Amazon.  There are also other brands of these adorable bird houses.  That got me to thinking that I bet Ravelry probably had knitting patterns for them too.

Being an avid knitter, I'm always on the lookout for cute new and quick projects.  I did a search in Ravelry on felted birdhouses.  There weren't many that came up and only one was a free pattern.  I printed off the free pattern and am hoping to give it a try with some leftover wool yarn I've been hanging on to for just such a project.

I also thought to decorate my birdhouse, I would use my knitted flower book and felt a variety of brightly colored ones to cascade all over.

I can't wait to get started!!  I'll post pictures later…….if it turns out!!!

"A bird doesn't sing because it has an answer.  It sings because it has a song."  -Maya Angelou

French Toast

My son Jack works for a lawnscaping crew in the summer.  I pack him a lunch every day with two different kinds of sandwiches and lots of fresh fruits and vegetables.  He usually gets home after we eat supper but I always save a plate for him.  Besides working, he is a body builder so he burns a lot of calories.  Usually at about 9pm he is asking for something to eat.  I have come up with something that is filling, tastes good and is quick to make.

French Toast can be be the best teenage "stomach filler" around if done with lots of seasoning.  I use a loaf of French bread cut into thick slices that I soak in 2/3 cup of half 'n half, 1/3 cup of orange juice, 2 eggs and 1 teaspoon of seasoning (cinnamon, pie spice, a combination of cinnamon and nutmeg).  Then I toast in 1 Tablespoon of butter in a skillet and you have the makings for a great breakfast or a great nighttime meal for a famished teenager.

 Best served with real maple syrup, orange slices and a very large glass of ice cold milk!

"One should not even attend the end of the world without a good breakfast."  -Jeff Lindsay