Ramona's Mini Cinnamon Rolls

I'm not quite sure where to start here.   Grandkids or curry?  Well, let's just start with curry.  It's not something I'm terribly fond of.  I'll put it in chicken green bean casserole or chicken salad with a bit of chutney.  But, a full-on curry?  Not so much.  One of the few things that's just not a favorite.  Now, keep in mind that I make the assignments for the Blogger CLUE Society.  Every month we're assigned a fellow blogger and asked to choose a recipe to make and post about.  It's a fabulous group of bloggers so I always love reading everyone's posts.  And, I get a LOT of great ideas for future meals.  Last month we stopped at the store and bought the things I needed so I could make one of the recipes that very night :-)  When I make the assignments, I decide up front what the formula will be.  Then, that's the way it is.  I don't look at the list.  I don't choose who I'd like to have.  I just pick a formula like one has six, two has seven...  So, this month I got a blog titled Curry and Comfort.  My heart sank.  I'd have to fix curry and blog about it like I liked it.  But, I'd soldier on and do it for the group.  Then, I started reading Ramona's wonderful blog.  It's not all curry.  In fact, a huge percentage isn't curry.  There are TONS of wonderful recipes there.  I had a list of fun things to try.  We were heading to Columbus over the holidays to see our kids and grandkids.  And, Ramona has some great kid friendly recipes.  One in particular caught my eye.  Our munchkins love sweet rolls.  They would love these mini cinnamon rolls.  So, Ramona, thank you so much for a fun morning with my grandkids.  They came in the kitchen all tousled and barely awake.  And, they left with full bellies from a fun meal!

Ramona from Curry and Comfort is delightful.  She's originally from Sri Lanka but has spent most of her life in the US.  It's no wonder she's got great recipes for kids since she's got two of her own.  And, like me, she collects cookbooks.  My hubby would be SO happy if I only had 400 like she does.  Last count I had about 1200...  One of the things I like about Ramona's blog is that she doesn't just do photos of the finished dish.  She shows you along the way what the dish looks like.  And, she uses some convenience foods for those of us who are crazy busy.  One of our differences is that she loves spicy food and I'm not a huge fan of anything spicy.  So, instead of making her Asian Apricot Chicken Wings and taking the heat out, I focused on the recipes I didn't need to change thanks to me being a wimp!  But, I am so going to make those wings later.  And, just a note her, according to my friend, Christiane, Ramona has some fabulous curries on her blog.  Hopefully, you're a fan of curries and will go try some.  And, I promise, some day soon I'll try one myself. 

I'm going to let Rosie and Bradley show you how:

Unroll the dough from a can (or two - these don't last long) of crescent rolls.  Lay the two pieces out on a silpat or your very clean counter.  Press the seams together. 

Melt a tablespoon or two of butter (you'll need about one per can.)  Then, brush on the butter.  You see we didn't have a brush to a spoon worked just fine.

Sprinkle the dough with cinnamon and sugar and roll the dough up lengthwise. 

Cut each roll into eight rounds.  Put the rounds on a baking sheet cut side up.  Bake according to the package directions.  While they're baking, make some powdered sugar icing.  Pour about a cup of powdered sugar into a bowl.  Add about a quarter of a teaspoon of vanilla and a tablespoon of milk.  Mix well.  The kids did a magnificent job of sharing their tasks.

It should be easily drizzled.  If it's too runny, add powdered sugar.  If too thick, add milk.  Once the rolls come out of the oven, drizzle them with the icing.  Now, the trick is to keep everyone from snitching one so you can actually serve them with breakfast.  That's the reason for the second pan of rolls!  There's the finished product - with one missing already! - along with homemade sausage and quiche. 

 

 

 

Now, here's a list of the other bloggers who are participating this month.  Please stop by and visit them.

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• Sparkly Shortbread Cookies from Lisa of Authentic Suburban Gourmet
• Cherry and Cream Pavlova from Ramona of Curry and Comfort
• Pomegranate Champagne from Christy of Confessions of a Culinary Diva
• Rosemary Peach Sparkling Cocktail from Alice of A Mama, Baby and Shar-pei in the Kitchen
• Baked Ziti from Azmina of Lawyer Loves Lunch
• Maple, Caramel, Golden Sugar Blondies from Kelli of Kelli's Kitchen
• Strawberry Champagne Cocktail from Stacy of Food Lust People Love
• Milky Way Martini from Aly of Cooking in Stilettos
• Cornish Game Hens with Whisky Herb Citrus Glaze Lea Ann of Cooking on the Ranch
• Peach Buckle from Anna of Anna Dishes
• Potato Salad with Champagne Vinaigrette from Wendy of A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Lemon-Ginger Crinkle Cookies from Jean of Lemons and Anchovies
• Soft Pretzel Sticks with Spicy Mustard Sauce from Heather of girlichef
• Sparkling Mojitos from Heather of girlichef
• Salted Toffee Chocolate Chunk Cookies from Liz of That Skinny Chick Can Bake
• Blood Orange Margaritas from Liz of That Skinny Chick Can Bake
• Mini Cinnamon Rolls from Kate of Kate's Kitchen
• Brown Butter, Brown Sugar Banana Bread from Christiane of Taking on Magazines
• Savory Clafoutis from Christiane of Taking on Magazines
• Cardamom White Chocolate Panna Cotta from Debra of Eliot's Eats

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Steaks with Martini Butter

The primary benefit to being the cook is not having to do the dishes.  Well, that and the fact that I get to choose the menu.  This last weekend, we headed to Columbus, OH to see David and Kara and Bradley and Rosie.  David is my stepson, Kara is his wife and Bradley and Rosie are our grandchildren.  They are wonderful folks and the best parents around. I'd volunteered to cook - lunch and dinner.  I knew we were having sloppy joes for lunch.  Dinner, well, that was another story.  No clue.  I'd seen a recipe for martini butter for steaks but had no other ideas.  David loves meat slabs.  We typically don't.  Be they beef or pork or lamb slabs, they're typically not on our menu.  We'd prefer to get the majority of our calories from vegetables or starches.  On the way out of town, we stopped at the farmer's market and I bought corn on the cob, green beans and red potatoes. They sounded like they'd be fine with steaks. I'd brought several cooking magazines for the ride but they didn't yield anything wonderful.  Ok, fine.  I'll make it up.

Cut to the chase here.  Dinner turned out very well.   The steaks were perfect.  The martini butter.  Well I may never make another steak without making a bit of martini butter.  It enhanced the flavor without overwhelming anything.  I did saute some onions to add to the steaks.  For the green beans, I sauteed some grape tomatoes with oregano and browned some bacon and shredded a bit of parmesan cheese.  Rather than rambling on, let's go thru the whole menu:


Steaks with Martini Butter
Corn on the Cob
Rosemary Potatoes
Green Beans with Roasted Tomatoes
Crescent Rolls with Shallots, Oregano and Parmesan


Steaks with Martini Butter

Ingredients:
4 m- 8-10 oz strip steaks about 1" thick
2 T Worcestershire sauce
2 t truffle oil
salt and pepper
1/2 c drained pimiento stuffed Spanish olives
1/4  c gin or vodka (we used vodka)
2 T dry vermouth
2 t Dijon mustard
8 T unsalted butter, softened

Directions:

Put the worcestershire sauce and truffle oil in a 9x13 glass pan.  Coat both sides of the steaks with the sauce mixture.  Grind some fresh pepper over the steaks.  Allow them to sit at room temperature for 30 minutes prior to grilling.

Process the olives, gin or vodka, vermouth and dijon in a food processor.  When you've got a slurry, mix in the butter.

Grill the steaks to your preferred internal temperature.  Plate them immediately after you remove them from the grill and put a dollop of martini butter on each.  Once you've plated the steaks, add the rest sides to the plates.  This will accomplish two things.  One the steaks will have a few minutes to rest and allow the juices to redistribute and two, the butter got on them when they were very hot. 


Green Beans with Roasted Tomatoes

Ingredients:
1 lb green beans
olive oil
2 T vermouth
1 lb grape tomatoes
6 slices bacon
1/2 c shredded parmesan
1 T olive oil
4 sprigs fresh oregano

Directions:

Chop the bacon.  Use a small skillet and brown it.  Remove the bacon from the skillet and pour off the bacon fat.  Do not wipe the skillet because the browned bits (fond) will add some wonderful taste to the tomatoes.  Put a little olive oil in a larger skillet and heat it to shimmering.  Add the green beans.  When they've cooked for a couple of minutes - and before they've started to brown, add the vermouth.  Put the cherry or grape tomatoes in the small skillet with a little more olive oil and the oregano.  Saute them until they're bursting.  Plate the dish with the green beans on the bottom, topped with the tomatoes then the bacon then the grated cheese.


Stuffed Crescent Rolls

Ingredients:
1 package crescent rolls
3 shallots, minced and sauteed
oregano, chopped fresh
parmesan cheese, grated

Directions:
Unroll and separate the crescent rolls.  On the wide end of each put some of the sauteed shallots, some oregano and some grated cheese.  Roll as usual and bake following the package instructions.



martini butter recipe adapted from Fine Cooking