Ethan's Sweet Pork Sliders

My kids are off track, so I am taking advantage of the opportunity to let them spend some time in the kitchen.  I handed Ethan a stack of my cooking magazines and told him to select our menu for last night.  He settled on Sweet Pork Sandwiches that he found in an old issue of Taste of Home, with S'more Bars for dessert.  Later in the day we were driving past a restaurant that advertised sliders, and Ethan declared that we had to make small rolls.  The kids had fun helping me form the rolls, and the meat was delicious.  I modified a few little things, so I am posting it the way I made it.  Quite sweet, but tasty.  This recipe requires a substantial amount of cooking time, so plan accordingly.

Ethan's Sweet Pork Sliders

1 boneless pork shoulder butt roast (2 1/2 - 3 pounds)
1 medium sweet vidalia onion, chopped
1 T. butter
1 can (15 ounces) tomato puree
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce
2 T. lemon juice
2 T. molasses
1/2 t. salt
Rolls of your choice

Place pork on a rack in a roasting pan and bake uncovered at 350 degrees for 2 hours or until tender.  (I simply used a cooling rack placed inside a 10x15 jelly roll pan, and I tried out convection mode on my oven, still at 350 degrees.  It came out great at the 2 hour mark.  This roast was packaged encased in a mesh sleeve to keep all the little pieces together.  Leave the mesh in place until the cooking is through.)  Once you remove the roast from the oven, allow it to rest for at least 10 minutes before slicing to let the juices settle.  Slice it into very thin pieces or shred it.

Meanwhile, in a dutch oven or other sturdy pot, saute onion in butter until tender.  Stir in the remaining ingredients and bring to a boil.  Reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, for 30 minutes.  Stir the pork into the sauce and simmer for another 10-15 minutes.  Serve on buns.

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It just so happens that since the pork takes 2 1/2 hours to get ready, that's the perfect amount of time to make your own rolls.  Any of you that have been in my kitchen know that I knead by hand (no mixer, thankyouverymuch, and plus I like it that way), and that I rarely measure anything that goes into my bread doughs.  I've gotten quite comfortable with the approximate ratios that work, and yeast and I are on very good terms.  This is frustrating for people that want to know how I made whatever roll I served to them, because most of the time I really can't remember.  I am giving you the basic principal here.  The only measurement that is going to be really approximate is the flour, and that's something that varies from batch to batch depending on the humidity, how packed your flour is, what type you use, etc.  That's why kneading by hand is so great - I can tell when I've got just enough by how the dough behaves.  Any of you local readers are welcome in my kitchen for fun times with bread dough.  It's such a satisfying skill to learn.  I keep telling my kids that they are royally spoiled because I make yeast dough of some sort several times a week.  I made rolls last night for dinner, and have overnight cinnamon rolls rising in the fridge.  Anyway, let's get on with the recipe.

Rolls of the Wednesday Sort

2 cups warm water (warm to touch, but not so hot that you have to withdraw your finger)
1 T. yeast
1/4 cup honey
1/3 cup canola or vegetable oil (you may also substitute melted butter)
1 t. kosher salt
2 cups whole grain flour (I prefer a mixture of white wheat and semolina)
3-4ish cups unbleached all purpose flour

Soften the yeast in the warm water in a large bowl for a few minutes.  Add in the honey, oil, salt, and whole grain flour and stir to combine.  Stir in the all purpose flour cup by cup until the dough gets difficult to stir by hand.  At this point, sprinkle a fairly generous layer of flour on top of the dough glob, and begin kneading by hand.  Add in a handful of flour at a time until your dough glob works it's way into a lovely smooth ball that feels springy but not too stiff.  It is tempting to add a LOT of flour so that it won't stick, and this is where finesse comes in.  I always have a bit of dough clinging to my hand, but not a freakishly thick layer.  I add just a light layer each time and work it until it starts to get sticky, then add a little bit more.  Total hand kneading time is 5-7 minutes, depending on how efficient you are.

Either drizzle a little oil in the bowl or mist the dough and bowl with PAM, turning to coat.  Cover the bowl with a towel and let it rise in a warm place for 45-60 minutes, or until doubled.  Turn the dough out onto a clean work surface and cut or pull off equal globs of dough.  To make the mini rolls, the globs were about walnut size.  For more normal dinner rolls, a generous plum size. 

It's difficult to explain how to form rolls properly, but I found this good tutorial.  And again, I'd be happy to demonstrate it to any of you willing to come hang out in my kitchen.  This same principal applies to how I form my round rustic loaves of bread.

Place the formed rolls on a 10x15 baking sheet that has been misted with cooking spray, cover with a towel, and allow to rise again for 30-60 minutes or until almost doubled.  Preheat your oven to 375 (or 350 in convection mode).  If you like a glossy top, beat an egg with a fork, then paint the egg wash over the top of each roll.  You can also brush on milk or melted butter.

Bake for 10-15 minutes for tiny rolls, and 15-20 minutes for larger rolls.  They are done when uniformly golden across the top and they spring back when touched.  Remove to a wire rack to cool.

Semolina Sweetheart Rolls

These lovelies are simply a variation of the Semolina Bread I posted last. I added a splash of molasses for an extra flavor boost and formed them in muffin tins. My kids were delighted to discover that they look like hearts.

I have a new absolute favorite jam - Bonne Maman Cherry Preserves. My local grocery store carries it, and it is a slice of heaven! No nasty corn syrup to sully the flavor of the marvelous concoction of ripe cherries and sugar. It's totally amazing on these rolls and we've also found it to be delicious inside crepes with a dollop of whip cream and a few slivered almonds.

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Semolina Sweetheart Rolls

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1 1/3 cups warm water

2 t. active dry yeast

3 T. butter

3 T. molasses

4 T. honey

3/4 t. kosher salt

1 1/2 cups semolina flour

1 1/2-2 cups unbleached all purpose flour

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In a medium bowl dissolve the yeast in the water until softened. Stir in the butter, molasses, honey, salt and semolina flour and let this mixture rest for 10-15 minutes until it begins to rise and bubble.

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Stir in enough all purpose flour until it forms a nice glob, then sprinkle a generous amount over the top and knead it in, adding more flour as needed until it forms a smooth and elastic ball, about 5-6 minutes.

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Drizzle a small amount of oil over the dough and turn to coat until the bowl and the dough ball are evenly and lightly oiled. Cover bowl with a towel and set aside to rise until it is doubled, about 70 minutes.

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Turn the dough out onto a work surface and divide into 24 equal chunks. Form each into a ball and place two balls into each well of a regular sized muffin pan that has been misted with cooking spray. Let rise until nearly doubled, about 20-30 minutes, then bake at 350 for 15-18 minutes or until golden.

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Immediately after removing them from the oven, rub a pat of butter over the tops, then remove to a wire rack. Serve immediately or store in a ziplock bag once completely cooled and reheat before serving.

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Makes 12 rolls

Truly Excellent Overnight Cinnamon Rolls

I went in search of a good overnight cinnamon roll recipe. One friend directed me toward a recipe on Allrecipes that looked promising until I realized that the overnight part was the first rise and it wanted me to allow 2 1/2 hours in the morning to fiddle around with the dough. Not what I want on Christmas morning. I have tried other overnight recipes that yielded a tough roll or ones that rose nearly out of the pan before I even managed to get them in the oven. These ones came out perfect. The dough was soft and supple, very easy to work with, and the flavor was just the classic sort of fluffy cinnamony sticky goodness that you want on Christmas morning. All sweet roll recipes are a blank canvas, ready for you to do what suits your taste, so feel free to tinker with the filling.

Notice the Ov-Glove. Yes, ladies and gentlemen, I am the proud owner of a pair. My kids spotted them at the store while out doing last minute shopping with daddy and insisted that I needed them. So far so good!

Overnight Cinnamon Rolls

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1 1/2 T. active dry yeast

1/2 cup warm water

1 stick (1/2 cup) of butter, diced

1/2 cup white sugar

1 teaspoon salt

2 cups scalded milk

1 egg, lightly beaten

5-6 cups all purpose flour

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Filling:

1 stick butter, softened

1/2 cup packed light brown sugar

2 t. cinnamon

1 t. vanilla

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Glaze:

4 T. butter, melted

1 t. vanilla

3 cups powdered sugar

1 t. cinnamon

2 T. real maple syrup (optional)

2-4 T. milk, depending on desired consistency

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In a small bowl, dissolve the yeast in warm water and let stand about 10 minutes. Heat the milk on the stovetop or in the microwave until just boiling, then remove from heat and stir in the butter, salt and sugar. Allow to stand until the mixture has cooled to lukewarm, then stir in the egg and yeast. In a large mixing bowl, combine the liquid mixture and 4 cups of the flour. Stir in more flour little by little until it gets too difficult to mix by hand, then knead in enough additional flour until the dough forms a ball that is soft and only lightly tacky. Knead for 4-5 minutes until it is smooth and elastic. Lightly oil the dough ball and turn to coat, then set aside to rise for 1 1/2 hours or until doubled.

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Make the filling by beating the butter, sugar and cinnamon together until fluffy and creamy. Turn the dough out onto a lightly greased surface and spread/roll into a large rectangle (24"x 12", roughly). Spread the filling over all of it in a thin, even layer, leaving one long edge with a 2 inch margin. Roll up, pinching the margin end shut, and cut into 2 inch thick slices with dental floss. Place in a large (I used the next size up from a 9x13 - not exactly sure of the size, but I'm guessing 10x15) greased baking pan, and cover with saran wrap that has been lightly misted with cooking spray. Place in the fridge overnight.  ***Please read the notes at the bottom of this post in regards to rising and pan choices.***

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The next morning, pull the pan out of the fridge 30 minutes before baking. Bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes, until golden and cooked through. Meanwhile, mix the glaze ingredients together and drizzle over the tops of the rolls right after they come out of the oven.

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Yields 12 very generously sized rolls

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Notes from making this several more times:

-I have made the dough in the evening and refrigerated the whole glob overnight.  3 hours before serving time, I removed it from the fridge, let it rest at room temperature for an hour and a half, formed the rolls, let them rise for 40 minutes, then baked as indicated above and the results were very good.  In some ways, I actually preferred the texture this way.
-I have been able to get more consistently even baking by making thinner slices - more like 1 1/4" slices, smaller rolls (the rectangle rolled out to 8"x24"), and baking them on a jelly roll sheet pan with just a little more space in between.
-Adding vanilla to the filling and cinnamon and maple syrup to the glaze is a very, very good thing.  I just edited the post to reflect those changes.  You can leave them out, but you'll be sorry.
-I made a quickie orange roll version by beating 1/2 a stick of butter, 1/2 cup brown sugar, and 1/2 cup orange marmalade until well combined and spreading that over the dough.  For glaze, I simply stirred orange juice into powdered sugar until it reached drizzling consistency.

Light, fluffy and buttery potato rolls

I made these last night, and they came out wonderful! I've tried other potato roll recipes in the past that were dense or overly moist. This one had one little quirk with getting the yeast to go, but I have figured out a way around it and will post it the way that works rather than the way that was sent to me originally. Also, the original recipe is for double the amount. 16 rolls was plenty for our gathering, so I made and am posting just half the recipe.

1/2 stick butter

1 1/2 cups milk

1/2 cup instant mashed potato flakes or pearls

2 T. oil

1 1/2 t. salt

1/4 warm water

1 T. yeast

1/3 c. sugar

2 eggs

4+ cups flour

In a saucepan, melt the butter and add the milk. heat just until bubbles form around the edge, being careful not to scald it. Add the potato flakes, oil, and salt, and stir well. Allow to sit until cooled to lukewarm, about 15-20 minutes.

Meanwhile, activate the yeast in the 1/4 cup warm water in a small bowl. In a large bowl, beat the eggs, add the sugar, then beat in the potato mixture. Stir the yeast in, then stir in the flour a cup at a time until the dough becomes too stiff to stir by hand. Knead in enough remaining flour until the dough turns smooth and elastic.

Pour a little oil in the bottom of the bowl and use the dough to spread it up the sides of the bowl. Flip the dough over until evenly lightly oiled. Cover and let rise for an hour, or until doubled. Then pour the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface and gently flatten with your hands into a large circle, about 14-16 inches in diameter. Melt 2 T. butter and spread it all over the dough. Cut the dough into 16 even wedges, pizza style, and roll each wedge up starting from the bottom.

Place on a lightly greased baking sheet and cover with a towel. Let rise for 60 minutes, or until doubled. Bake at 375 for 12-15 minutes or until golden on top.

Random recipes from my weekend

January is so cold and dreary that I just had to make something springy last weekend. I love fresh salsas of any kind, and the options of how to serve it are limitless. This one was great in a tortilla with grilled chicken strips, shredded cheese and sour cream.

Super Fabuloso Southwest Salsa

2 Roma tomatoes, diced
1/2 cup diced green bell pepper
1 medium avocado, diced
1 medium mango, diced
1 small can of corn, drained (I prefer Del Monte brand)
1 cup of black beans, drained and rinsed
3 T. minced cilantro
juice of one lime
salt to taste
dash of garlic powder
dash of chipotle chili powder

Don't skip the chipotle chili powder! It's seriously one of my favorite spices. It's got a lovely smokey flavor and more kick to it than regular chili powder, and I use it all the time in my mexican cooking. If you wanted to kick up the heat in this, you could certainly add a minced jalapeno or annaheim pepper. I avoided onions or shallots (my preference), because I find that if you don't eat it right away or have some leftovers the onion flavor can get overpowering.

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For Sunday dinner, I did a turkey breast, caramelized roasted yams, and nutty broccoli and bacon with homemade rolls on the side. All of these are pretty simple and full of flavor.

Crockpot Turkey Breast

6 1/2-7 1/2 pound bone in turkey breast, thawed
2-3 sprigs fresh rosemary (or 1 t. dried)
4 cloves of garlic, peeled
kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
2-3 T. butter, optional
2 T. brown sugar

Place the turkey, breast side down, into an oval 6 quart crock pot. You may remove the skin beforehand, but I have found after making it both ways that this is unnecessary and that the skin comes off very easily once cooked. Toss in the garlic, rosemary, sprinkle a bit of salt and a few grinds of pepper over it. Cut the butter into pieces and distribute evenly around the turkey. Sprinkle the brown sugar on top. Put the lid on, set for either 6 hours on low or 3-4 hours on high and walk away. Bask in the wonderful aroma and avoid the temptation to open the lid.

Once it's done cooking, remove the turkey to a plate or cutting board, flip it over, and loosely tent with foil for 10-15 minutes while the juices settle. Use a turkey baster to suck out the juices from the pot. Usually there's about 2 cups. Melt a couple tablespoons of butter in a saucepan or large skillet, stir in 2 T. of flour, then slowly whisk in the pan juices and simmer until the gravy is the desired consistency. Correct the seasoning with salt and pepper as needed, and add a bit of water if needed to thin it. Serve immediately.

Caramelized Roasted Yams

3 large yams, peeled and cut into steak fry sized chunks
3 T. butter
3 T. brown sugar
1/2 t. cinnamon
dash of cloves and allspice

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees and spray a jelly roll pan with PAM. Melt the butter in a medium size bowl and stir in the spices and sugar. Add the yam chunks and stir until evenly coated. Spread out onto the baking sheet in a single layer. Bake for 35-45 minutes, stirring 2-3 times, until yams are cooked through and caramelized.

Nutty Broccoli and Bacon

3 cups bite size broccoli florets
1/4 cup bacon bits
1/4 cup salted cashews
salt, pepper

Steam broccoli either on the stovetop or microwave for 4-5 minutes, or until crisp-tender. Meanwhile, in a small non-stick skillet, saute the bacon bits until warm and crispy, then stir in the cashews and cook for one minute more. Drain the broccoli thoroughly and pour into a serving bowl. Stir the bacon and cashews in. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Whole Wheat Honey Rolls

2 T. active dry yeast
2 c. warm buttermilk (today I substituted buttermilk powder and warm water)
1/2 cup butter, melted
1/3 cup honey
1 t. salt
1 t. baking soda
3 cups whole wheat flour (I used hard white wheat)
2 - 2 1/2 cups all purpose flour

Dissolve yeast in warm buttermilk. Buttermilk will appear curdled when heated to 110-115 degrees. If you elect to use buttermilk powder, dissolve the yeast in the same amount of warm water, then add the buttermilk powder in with the flour. Add butter, honey, salt, baking soda and whole wheat flour. Beat until smooth. Stir in enough all purpose flour to form a soft dough. Turn onto a floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic, 6-8 minutes. Place in a greased bowl, turning once to grease the top. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about one hour.

Punch dough down. On a lightly greased surface, divide into 4 equal parts. Divide each part into 6 equal portions and shape each into a ball. Place on a greased 15 x 10 pan, spaced equally. Let rise until doubled, about 30 minutes. Bake at 400 degrees for 12-16 minutes, or until golden brown. Delicious served warm with honey butter. Yields 24 rolls.

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Just a reminder to the other people posting to add labels to your post. This enables people to click on categories listed on the sidebar to quickly find the desired recipe.