Can't Resist Rolls (The BEST Crescent Rolls You'll Ever Eat!)

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I'm scared of yeast. I admit that I have a total bread-phobia. Baking bread scares me.I remember when I first got married, my mother-in-law bought me a bread maker. The first time I used it, the bread was as flat as a pancake and hard as a rock! I was mortified. I mean, who screws up bread FROM A BREAD MAKER?! I DO!!
Anyway, my sister Nicole is a great cook and she makes big yummy dinners for whatever holiday I'm in town for. She makes these awesome rolls. I devour them every. single. holiday. But three years ago, I found myself staying in California for Thanksgiving and I was SO bummed that I wouldn't be partaking of Nicole's amazing crescent rolls. So I did what any craving pregnant woman would do and busted out the cookbook she had given me that her church had put together. Lo and behold, there was her recipe for "Can't Resist Rolls".
I'm not gonna say I wasn't scared of screwing them up, because believe me I was! I had my parents driving over from Arizona to eat Thanksgiving dinner at my house and for the first time ever I was in charge of the whole turkey dinner. I definitely wanted the dinner to be nice. After reading the directions probably ten times through just to make sure I had it all down, I attempted to make rolls for the FIRST time ever! And guess what?? They were GOOD! And pretty darn easy!
Ever since that Thanksgiving, I make these awesome rolls for almost every holiday and sometimes just because. You better believe I'm making them for Christmas Eve dinner this year! You should too! They get prettier and prettier every time I do them. Practice makes perfect! :) So all of you awkward bread people, check it out! You can totally make these! And all you bread pros, check it out - these are awesome crescent rolls to make for whenever you have a roll craving. I've included pictures of most of the steps for those bread-challenged, like myself, ha!Here's what you need:
Can't Resist (Crescent) Rolls:
Printable Recipe HERE
Yield 4 dozen rolls

Ingredients:

• 2 (1.4-oz) packages of yeast
• 1/2 c. warm water
• 1 tsp. sugar
• 2 c. milk
• 1 c. oil
• 1 c. sugar
• 2 tsp. salt
• 8 c. flour
• 4 eggs
• 1/2 c. butter (melted)

Directions:

1.  In a drinking glass, dissolve yeast in warm (but not hot) water with 1 tsp. sugar. In a microwavable large mixing bowl (I used my big Pampered Chef one) warm milk, sugar and oil for one minute. Add salt.


2.  Add 2 cups flour and mix with mixer. Add eggs and beat. Stir in yeast mixture. Add three cups flour, beat again. Add last 3 cups flour and mix with a spoon.


3.  Cover and let rise 2-3 hours, until size doubles...


4.  Once doubled, separate dough into 4 equal balls.


5.  Roll out each ball individually into a 1/4" thick circle.


6.  Brush with melted butter...


7.  Add cut like a pizza into 12 pieces.


8.  Roll into crescents...


 ...just like this...

9.  And place on buttered cookie sheets - 2 dozen per sheet.


10.  Once all dough is rolled out, cover with a dish towel and let rise for another hour.


See? All big and fluffy!

11. Now bake 'em for 8-10 minutes at 375 degrees F. If you don't want to make 4 dozen dinner rolls, make 2 dozen and use the rest of the dough to make cinnamon rolls, orange rolls, etc.

Seriously, these rolls are amazing. Give them a try and let me know what you think!


If you're looking for more side dish ideas, check these out:Brown Sugar Glazed CarrotsHomemade Soft PretzelsMom's Sunday Fruit SaladCreamy Yogurt Fruit DipSO Good Mandarin Orange Salad
Click HERE to print this recipe. If you liked this recipe, PIN it! It would be wonderful if you followed me (via GFC) on the right hand side, click on "Join This Site"--> I'm also on PINTEREST and FACEBOOK too! Thanks!
LINKING THIS RECIPE TO THESE FUN PARTIES:Wednesday Extravaganza, Cast Party Wednesday, Full Plate Thursday,

Cottage (Shepherd's) Pie

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A few short days ago, I told you about how my husband had come down with a severe cold. It should be with little surprise that I am now, too. With every last drop of chicken noodle soup now consumed, I had to turn to another comfort food for some relief.

















We call this dish shepherd's pie around here; however, its correct name is cottage pie. From what I understand, both dishes are basically the same with the only variation being the type of meat used in the dish. For shepherd's pie, lamb is used. For cottage pie, beef is used.

Regardless of what we call it, cottage (shepherd's) pie is hearty comfort food at its best. Serve with warm biscuits or crusty bread... A perfect meal for warming a sick, old soul on this cold and blustery April day.

Ingredients
5 medium-sized potatoes, peeled and cubed
3 Tbs. sour cream
1/4 c. milk
1/2 c. mozzarella cheese, divided
1/4 c. Parmesan cheese

1 to 1 1/2 lb. ground beef
1 pkg. brown gravy mix
1 c. water
3 Tbs. Worcestershire sauce
2 Tbs. ketchup
3 garlic cloves, finely chopped

3 carrots, diced
2 medium onions, diced
2 celery stalks, diced
1/2 green pepper, diced
1/2 c. frozen corn
1 tsp. Italian seasoning

salt and pepper
2 Tbs. butter
2 Tbs. olive oil

Directions
Preheat oven broiler.

In a medium pot, cover potatoes with cold water and bring to a boil over medium heat. Cook until completely soft. Drain and mash. Add sour cream, milk, 1/4 c. mozzarella cheese, Parmesan cheese and salt/pepper to taste. Mix to thoroughly combine. Set aside.

In a large skillet over medium heat, brown ground beef. Drain any fat, then return to skillet. Add garlic, brown gravy mix, water, Worcestershire sauce, ketchup, and salt/pepper to taste. Mix well. Reduce heat to low and simmer until most of the liquid has evaporated. Spread evenly into a medium sized casserole dish. Set aside.

In the same skillet, heat butter and olive oil over medium heat. Add vegetables, Italian seasoning and salt/pepper to taste. Cook until softened, about 10 minutes. Spread evenly over meat mixture. Spread mashed potatoes evenly over vegetable layer. Top with remaining 1/4 c. mozzarella cheese. Place in broiler to brown potatoes and cheese, about 2 to 3 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool slightly before serving.

Colorado Beercation

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Did you all have a fabulous Fourth? Matt and I decided to get out of town and head to Colorado for some beer tasting and perhaps a little cooler weather. We started out in Denver which was hot and smokey from the wildfires in Colorado Springs. We cooled off at downtown brewery Great Divide.

Quite the popular place on a Thursday evening. Matt and I each enjoyed a 3 sampler flight for $3 with the proceeds going to charity. I had the Wild Raspberry Ale, which I wish had more raspberry flavor, the Wolfgang Doppelbock, yummy, and the Chocolate Oak Aged Yeti, perfect.
The next day we made a quick drive through Golden to wave at the mammouth Coors Brewing Co. on the way to the beer mecca of Ft. Collins. On the route to Ft. Collins we stopped at Longmont for lunch and beers at Oskar Blues.

Oskar Blues has three beers on the American Homebrewers Association's top 50 beers list from 2011. Matt has been working on trying them all, but these beers weren't available here in Minnesota. This was his chance to try them all and eat some great Southern food (my shrimp po-boy and Matt's bbq pork were fabulous).

I had a sour wheat called Berliner Weisse Ale from Crabtree Brewing that was fabulous. I'm a sucker for a good sour beer, if only I could get this one at home.

We pulled into Ft. Collins as the monsoon rains hit, but that didn't keep all the breweries from being absolutely packed! Our first stop was one of Matt's favorite breweries, Odell.

Another wheat sour! I was a happy girl. The Cutthroat Porter was great too. Next stop was right around the corner, New Belgium.

Definitely the biggest and most popular of the breweries we visited, it also had what could be our favorite beers of the trip. We have really enjoyed the Lips of Faith series and the two we tried here did not disappoint. I had the Tart Lycee which is an amazing summer beer, luckily their libation locator shows I can get it at home. Matt went nuts for the Cocoa Mole Ale. He described it as the best spice cake you ever had, a bottle of this went home with us.

The final stop for the day was back in downtown Ft. Collins, the little Equinox Brewing.

We had never heard of Equinox until someone mentioned it at Great Divide. Their tasting room was a popular place with the locals on a Friday evening, probably also due to the live music that night. Their beers were enjoyable with the Rockbiter Steinbier and Rockbiter aged in bourbon barrels being the most interesting.

After all that it was time for some Colorado Style Pizza at Beau Jo's and another pint from New Belgium. So this Colorado style pizza, every Beau Jo's we saw on our trip was packed, we figured we had to try it. You order your pizza by the pound, a good portion of which is crust. Every table has a bottle of honey on it and once you have eaten the part of the pizza with the toppings you put honey on the crust for dessert. It was so good, especially if there was a little bbq sauce from the pizza left on the crust too.

A few other tips of places we enjoyed in Colorado...

In Denver we stayed at The Curtis Hotel, a Hilton that is more like a boutique. Every floor has a theme like big hair, scary movies or dance music. It's bright and fun plus is an easy downtown location. Bonus the attached restaurant/martini bar, The Corner Office, is much better than your average hotel eats. The menu has a lot of ethnic flavors and dishes as well as creative cocktails. Their happy hour is pretty popular.

Also in Denver we ate at Rioja. The chef there is a James Beard nominee and the restaurant is considered one of the best in Denver. Matt and I both had pasta dishes which were so beautifully made. His was a deconstructed carbonara and mine an artichoke ravioli in broth. We cannot recommend this place enough.

Finally, we spent a day in Rocky Mountain National Park. What an amazing place! The day was cloudy with looming rain but didn't ruin any of the beauty. I'm so glad I finally got to see this part of the US.

One tip, if you plan on spending a day in the park bring your own food. The only concessions at the alpine summit and it was packed. We stopped at the Safeway in Estes Park and picked up a picnic lunch and snacks. Picnic areas with amazing views (and fearless chipmunks) are around every corner of the park.


Now, we are busy planning our next big trip, Iceland and Denmark!

If you are not reading this post in a feed reader or at http://agoodappetite.blogspot.com OR at http://agoodappetite.com then the site you are reading is illegally publishing copyrighted material. Contact me at katbaro AT yahoo DOT COM. All recipes, text and photographs in this post are the original creations & property of the author unless otherwise noted. © 2007-2012 Kathy Lewinski

Farmers Market Finds and Weekly Menu 6/15 - 6/21/12

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It's hot, just nasty hot. Even a simple trip to the farmers market requires a shower afterwards. Luckily, that summer weather means the produce is looking beautiful at the market right now.
Mainly, we stuck to the basics...

Eggs
Sweet Corn
Zucchini
Cucumbers
Garlic
Beans
Sweet Onions
Fingerling Potatoes

And here is how we'll use them this week...

Swedish Shrimp Sandwiches - with hard boiled eggs
Gazpacho topped with sweet corn - using the first of the tomatoes from our garden
Quiche with sweet onions and zucchini
Hamburgers with roasted potatoes and green beans

Really a pretty easy menu, but one that works well with the weather.

If you are not reading this post in a feed reader or at http://agoodappetite.blogspot.com OR at http://agoodappetite.com then the site you are reading is illegally publishing copyrighted material. Contact me at katbaro AT yahoo DOT COM. All recipes, text and photographs in this post are the original creations & property of the author unless otherwise noted. © 2007-2012 Kathy Lewinski

Beef, Mushroom and Farro Soup

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We are so busy this time of year getting ready for Christmas. Meals tend to be hearty and easy. If they give us leftovers, all the better. Soup seems to fit the bill a lot.

This classic soup is fill of umami and will keep you satified on a cold winter night.

We used farro in this soup because we didn't have enough barley on hand, you can certainly substitute.

Beef, Mushroom and Farro Soup

1 T olive oil
1 lb stew beef
8 oz button mushrooms
2 yellow onions sliced
2 garlic cloves, minced
4 c beef broth
2 c water
2 T soy sauce
1 t crushed, dried rosemary
1 c farro
salt and pepper

In a large heavy soup pot, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Salt and pepper the beef. Add the beef to the pot and sauté until cooked through. Add the mushrooms and onions. Sauté a minute or two until the onions are tender and the mushrooms have released their liquid. Add the garlic sauté another minute. Add the broth, water, soy sauce and rosemary. Bring to a boil. Add the farro. Bring to a boil again. Reduce the heat, cover leaving the cover open slightly and simmer for 20 minutes or until the farro is tender (it should still have a slight toothiness to it). If it seems too thick add another cup of water. Taste and adjust the seasoning as needed.

Serve with a crusty bread.

Makes 6 servings.


If you are not reading this post in a feed reader or at http://agoodappetite.blogspot.com OR at http://agoodappetite.com then the site you are reading is illegally publishing copyrighted material. Contact me at katbaro AT yahoo DOT COM. All recipes, text and photographs in this post are the original creations & property of the author unless otherwise noted. © 2007-2012 Kathy Lewinski

Easy Slow Cooker Thai Chicken

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I can't believe November is almost over! Where did the month go?! I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving, I know I did!
My parents drove over from Arizona to spend the holiday with my family. We had an awesome dinner and celebrated my oldest son's 11th Birthday! (Still can't believe I have an eleven year old... ;) Plus my dad built a gate on the side of my house so my kiddos will stay put in my backyard and can't run around the side yard to my front door. Woo hoo! Thanks Dad! I am beyond grateful for my amazing family! I feel so blessed!So now that it's winter I use my crock pot ALL the time! I love that you can make an awesome meal but don't have to put a whole lot of effort into it. For me, dinnertime is the hardest time of night. Most nights I'm dealing with grumpy kids that are about ready for bed and I feel like throwing in the towel when I have a dinner to make. But with a slow cooker meal, all the work is done and you just serve it up!

This is a seriously tasty chicken dish that my boys and especially my husband really like. It's not authentic Thai, but I love peanut sauces and this one tastes great. Plus you probably already have most of the ingredients in your fridge or cupboard! Give it a try and let me know what you think!


Slow Cooker Thai Chicken: (Adapted from Allrecipes)
Printable Recipe HERE
Ingredients:

• 3/4 cup salsa
• 1/4 cup peanut butter (chunky or creamy)
• 1 cup light coconut milk
• 2 tablespoons lime juice
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon white sugar
• 1 tablespoons grated fresh ginger*
• 2-3 pounds skinless chicken thighs
• chopped peanuts, for topping
• chopped cilantro, for topping

Directions:

1. Combine the salsa, peanut butter, coconut milk, lime juice, soy sauce, sugar, and ginger in the crock of a slow cooker; mix well. Place the chicken in the sauce, spoon mixture over chicken to coat.
2. Place the lid on the cooker and set to LOW. Cook until chicken is fork tender and sauce has thickened some, 8 to 9 hours. Serve with rice (jasmine is our favorite) and garnish with peanuts and cilantro before serving.

*Ginger tip: Buy a hunk of ginger at the store. Peel it and cut it into cubes and throw into a freezer baggie and freeze until you need it. It thaws quickly and tastes fresh!
If you're looking for some more great dinner ideas, check these out:Amazing White Chicken ChiliEasy Baked Sweet and Sour MeatballsHealthy Southwestern CasseroleVegetarian Shells & Black BeansEasy Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup
Click HERE to print this recipe. If you liked this recipe, PIN it! It would be wonderful if you followed me (via GFC) on the right hand side--> I'm also on PINTEREST and FACEBOOK too! Thanks!
LINKING THIS RECIPE TO THESE FUN PARTIES:Trick or Treat Tuesday, Totally Tasty Tuesday, Tasty Tuesday, From Dream to Reality, Cast Party Wednesday, Tasty Thursday, Showcase Your Talent Thursday, Fantabulous Friday, Weekend Wonders, Friday Fun Party, Foodie Friday, Weekend Wrap-Up, Strut Your Stuff Saturday, Saturday Show & Tell, Spotlight Saturday, Tuesday Talent Show,

Easy One Dish Turkey (or Chicken!) Casserole

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For Thanksgiving this year, I cooked an 18 pound turkey. This was a pretty big deal for me because I've only cooked one other turkey before and I pretty much screwed that one up so I wanted this one to be perfect. I borrowed my friend Jenn's roaster and roasted up my huge turkey to perfection this year. I was pretty proud of myself! But when the big day was over, I had a whole huge container of leftover meat.After several days of eating leftover turkey sandwiches, I decided to try a new recipe for a turkey casserole. If you know me, you know that I seriously LOVE trying out new recipes. I found the recipe in the newspaper, had all the ingredients and it sounded wonderful. Well, it wasn't.

Epic. Fail.

Oh my word, it was awful! My boys wouldn't even eat it! So with more turkey meat still sitting in my fridge, I decided to just make my mom's old stand-by casserole recipe. It had been awhile since I'd made it. My boys were super skeptical after my first attempt but gave it a try anyway. Ending result? An enthusiastic two thumbs up! They loved it!!! My oldest hugged me and said, "Thanks for dinner Mom! That was so good! Way better than that other turkey thing." At 11-years old, that's a huge compliment and I'll take it! :)

There are a couple great things about this casserole.
1) It only uses one 8x8 pan. No mixing bowl needed!
2) Uses turkey OR chicken!
3) Tastes amazing - kid approved!

Since this is a basic recipe, you can adapt it to what your family likes! If you don't have stuffing leftover like I did, make up a new batch of Stove Top and throw it on the top. I make this year round and my kids love it!


Easy One Dish Turkey Casserole:
Printable Recipe HERE
Ingredients:

• 2 cups cooked, diced turkey or chicken
• 1 can low fat cream of chicken soup (or make your own)
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1/2 Tbsp. dried onion flakes
• 2 Tbsp. fresh chopped parsley (or 1 tsp. dried)
• salt and pepper to taste
• 3/4 cup frozen peas
• bread dressing (leftovers or make a quick batch of Stove Top)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Mix all ingredients except bread dressing in an 8x8 pan, stirring until combined. Spread bread dressing over top. Cover loosely with aluminum foil.
3. Bake for 20-30 minutes or until heated through and bubbly. Take off foil and let the top brown a bit. Serve warm and enjoy!

 If you're looking for more great comfort food dinner ideas, check these out:Skinny Cheesy Pasta BakeLighter Chicken Pot PieCrock Pot Skinny Chicken JambalayaHealthy Chicken Tamale PieMini Meatloaves & Roasted PotatoesClick HERE to print this recipe. If you liked this recipe, PIN it! It would be wonderful if you followed me (via GFC) on the right hand side, click on "Join This Site"--> I'm also on PINTEREST and FACEBOOK too! Thanks!
LINKING THIS RECIPE TO THESE FUN PARTIES:Tasty Thursday, Showcase Your Talent Thursday, Fantabulous Friday, Weekend Wonders, Friday Link Party, Foodie Friday, Weekend Wrap-Up, Strut Your Stuff Saturday, Saturday Show & Tell, Spotlight Saturday, Tuesday Talent Show, Totally Tasty Tuesday, Tasty Tuesday, Trick or Treat Tuesday, Cast Party Wednesday,