Grandma Roberts' Parker House Rolls

These are my all-time favorite rolls. They are my Grandma's Parker House Rolls, and they are the only rolls worth the time and attention to make. (My No-Knead Rich Dinner Rolls work nicely in a pinch, though.) So, of course I'll be adding them to the menu for Thanksgiving tomorrow. My grandma recently passed away. While I'm saddened that she's no longer on this Earth, I am grateful that I can remember her and feel her here with me when I make her recipes.  I know she's looking down on me and I'm sure she would be happy that I am carrying on some of her traditions.
   Her original recipe calls for melted shortening as the fat in the dough, I have made this recipe with oil and melted butter as well and they all turn out wonderfully. She also wrote the recipe to include cake yeast, but since I never have that on hand I addapted it to use dry, instant yeast. These rolls are in no way a low-fat food, but one bite and you'll fall in love with them too. They are unbelievably soft and delightful. My grandma knew what she was doing when she made these!

This is how it starts:

Milk goes into a small sauce pan to heat up. (I have also done this step in the microwave.)

While the milk is heating, put the yeast into 1 cup of either lukewarm milk or water. (I tend to use milk. I think it makes for a softer roll.) Grandma's recipe says "lukewarm" but I would make sure that the temp of the liquid is at least 105F. You want to wake up the yeast. (She had the hands of a farmer's wife, so I'm sure her lukewarm is different than mine.) :)

Just mix the yeast and milk (or water) and set aside. I am using instant, rapid rise yeast so there is no need for me to wait for the yeast to foam or "bloom" but if you are using cake yeast or regular dry yeast you will want to make sure that the yeast is completely dissolved and the mixture gets a little foamy before you continue.

When the milk is scalded (hot but not boiling) turn it off.

Add in the sugar,

and salt.

And stir to combine, until the sugar is dissolved. Set this aside to cool slightly (down to at least to 120F)

In a large bowl (I used my stand mixer. - This was before it died on me. . . sniff, sniff.) Add in your fat of choice: melted shortening, or vegetable oil, or melted butter. (Grandma's recipe says to add this in the middle, with the flour, but for convenience I add it at the beginning. I'm going to give you her recipe at the end, so you may notice the changes, but note that you can add the fat at the beginning or the middle and it turns out great either way.)

To the melted fat, add the yeast mixture. (Again, you'll notice that I didn't dissolve my yeast completely, because I am using rapid rise yeast and there is no need to do that.)

Add in some of the flour, and then turn the mixer on low. (Or mix in the flour and then add the next ingredients.)

While the mixer is on low, add the warm milk/sugar/salt mixture. (If mixing by hand, just stir it in slowly.)

When the mixture is smooth (like this) then you can start adding more flour.

Add it one cup at a time, so that the flour can get incorporated evenly. The recipe calls for 6 cups of flour, but I find that depending on the day I may need more or less.

When the dough comes together into a soft ball, and pulls away from the sides it's done. (If mixing by hand, you will want to knead it by hand for at least 5 minutes to get it to come together.)
The dough should be very soft, but not sticky.

Set it aside in a warm place to rise for about an hour (it needs to at least double in size). I just out the towel over the bowl of my stand mixer and left it where it was on the counter, because my kitchen was warm.

After an hour, check on the dough. It should be rising nicely.

Knead the dough again (I just turned on my stand mixer for a few minutes.)




On a floured work surface, roll out the dough into a rectangle. (Or as close to it as you can.) Then portion the dough out. I like to cut 1 inch strips and then cut the strips into squares. I fold the squares over on themselves to make little balls. (For more detailed pictures on forming the dough balls see my No-Knead Rich Dinner Rolls post). This recipe will make 24 normal sized rolls, or 12 gigantic rolls (like I made this time).

When all the dough balls are portioned out, place them in a buttered baking dish (I use a 9x13 when making 12 rolls and a 10x15 dish - or 9x13 plus an 8x8 - when I make 24 rolls) and brush them with melted butter. (Grandma's recipe says to "Use melted butter generously". I find that I use 1/2 stick, melted butter to accomplish this and brush the dough balls all liberally.) My mom says that she has seen Grandma take the back of a knife and use it to fold the rolls in half, and place more butter inside each roll. I have tried that, and I don't get a folded roll (like the traditional Parker House style). Instead my butter gets absorbed into my roll, and they still bake up in one mass. So, I usually forgo that step. It's not listed in the recipe, it's just something that my mom saw my Grandma do.

Set the rolls aside (again covered and in a warm place) to rise for another 30 minutes to 1 hour. They should double in size again. The longer they rise, the lighter the rolls will be.

After the second rise, brush with more butter (if they don't look shiny anymore) and bake them @ 350F for 20 minutes, or until golden brown and they sound hollow when you tap them. Remove them from the oven and then again, liberally brush them with butter (another 1/2 stick, melted). I never said this was diet food. But they are heavenly. And on days like Thanksgiving, it's completely appropriate. :)

 Other options for baking these up is to make smaller dough balls and place 3 together in a muffin tin to make clover rolls. (Even just 2 to a muffin tin works nicely - they end up looking like those brown and serve rolls you can buy at the store.) If you like your rolls more crusty, you can bake them spaced out on a cookie sheet. I prefer mine more on the soft side, so I like using a baking dish.

These are THE BEST rolls, and I try to use that term sparingly. I find that in the Pinterest world of today it is really over used, but I sincerely mean it. I've not found a better roll! They are a family staple at our table. I hope they find a place at yours too!

Here's the recipe:
  This is her recipe, but all of the parenthesis are mine. :)

Grandma Roberts' Parker House Rolls

1 cup milk
1 cup lukewarm milk or water (recommended 105F)
1 T salt
5 T sugar
1 cake yeast (or 1 T dry yeast - I use rapid rise yeast)
6 T melted shortening (or veg oil, or melted butter)
6 cups sifted flour (maybe more depending on the day)
*butter (1 stick -8 oz-, divided and melted. I like salted butter, but unsalted is fine.)

In a small sauce pan scald the milk (heat to just before boiling), and turn off the heat. Add the sugar and salt and stir to dissolve. Set aside to cool (to 120F). Dissolve yeast in lukewarm milk (or water) and add to the (scalded and cooled) milk mixture. Add in 3 cups of the flour and stir. Add in the shortening (or butter or oil) and the remaining flour. Rise and knead twice. Use melted butter generously. (This means: knead the flour on a floured work surface until it comes together into a soft, but not sticky ball. Rise for 1 hour - until doubled - and then knead it again. Divide it into rolls, and brush liberally with 1/2 stick of melted butter. Cover and let rise for a second time, until  at least doubled in size.) Bake @ 350 for 15-20 minutes (or until golden brown and sound hollow when tapped. Liberally brush the hot rolls with the other 1/2 stick of melted butter and cover with a towel until ready to serve.)

Chocolate Pumpkin Pie

 
 If you are looking to mix things up this Thanksgiving, this pie might be the way to do it. It's Michael Symon's Chocolate Pumpkin Pie. I made it a few weeks ago, and my pumpkin pie lover (my son) raved about it so much that he asked me to make it again for Thanksgiving (tomorrow). It has the silky texture of a chocolate truffle pie, with the flavor of a pumpkin pie. It reminds me of my Chewy Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies - enjoying both chocolate and pumpkin at the same time.
    I really enjoyed the flavor and texture of this pie, but on Thanksgiving I like to stay traditional. So, this pie will not be on my Thanksgiving menu, but I'm sure my son will make sure it stays in rotation. :) I should warn you that if you make this recipe, realize that it makes enough for 2 pies. The recipe from The Chew that I followed said that it makes one 4 cup pie, but I used a 9 inch deep dish pie shell and I still had 2 cups of filling left over. I ended up making 24 mini pies as well. (You can see a few of them in the pic above. They were so poppable, that only a few made it to the picture taking stage.)

Here's how to make it:

This was before I roasted my Halloween pumpkins, so I used can pumpkin. The recipe calls for 1 14 oz can.

To the pumpkin I added evaporated milk

brown sugar

cornstarch

pure vanilla extract

and 1 1/2 to 2 tsp pumpkin pie spice (to taste). (The original recipe called for adding cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg and cloves, but I'm all out of ginger and cloves, so I used the pre-mixed spice blend instead. FYI I like the Trader Joe's brand.)

Then I pricked my pre-made pie shell, so that it wouldn't bubble up in the oven, and I baked it @ 400F for 10 minutes. (You're not looking to completely cook the pie shell at this point. You just want it to set up so that you don't have a soggy crust in the end.)

To the filling, I added a dash of salt (forgot to add this earlier).

In a microwave safe bowl, I put some chocolate chips. They turned a little white, because it's so cold in my house, but they will work just fine. I microwave the chocolate in 30 second intervals, stirring well in between, until the chocolate is melted.

The original recipe says to melt the chocolate in a double boiler with the butter. And since I have had bad luck with microwaving chocolate and butter together (see one of my first posts: Peanut Butter Eggs). So, I chose to melt the butter and chocolate separately. Again, I used the microwave to melt the butter. 20 seconds usually does it.

To the filling, I added 3 eggs.

When the eggs were combined, I whisked in the melted butter.

The pie shell was ready at this point, so I took it out of the oven. See, it's not brown and cooked yet, just set. That is what you want.

Finally, I whisk in the melted butter into the filling mixture.

Whisk everything together completely.

I put the pie shell onto a parchment paper lined cookie sheet,

and I filled the pie shell.

I filled it up to the brim, until it could take no more. I put the whole thing into the oven and let it bake @325F for about an hour (until the center is set).

Now, as I mentioned before, I still had 2 cups of filling left over. I could have done another pie, but I thought that mini pies would be fun. I just cut circles out of some pie dough and pressed the dough into greased mini muffin cups. I ended up baking about 24 mini pies with this 2 cups of filling.

After the pie cooked and cooled, it looked like this. I did have one small crack on the top, but that is easily covered up with whipped cream!

Here's a picture of the pie and some of the mini pies. Aren't they cute?

They are so adorable, and the perfect little pie bite.

They are the perfect little hand pies for my youngest. :) I think she enjoyed 3 of them!

It really is a wonderful pie. If you are a chocolate lover and want to try a new twist on a old classic, this pie is for you! Enjoy!

Here's the recipe:
adapted from Michael Symon's chocolate Pumpkin Pie

Chocolate Pumpkin Pie

• 2 9 inch pie shells (or 1 9 inch pie and 24 mini pies) 
• 9 oz Semisweet Chocolate chips, melted
• 4 tablespoons Unsalted Butter, melted
• 1 14 oz Can Pumpkin
• 1 12 oz Can Evaporated Milk
• 3/4 cup Packed Light-Brown Sugar
• 3 Large Eggs
• 1 tablespoon Cornstarch
• 1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
• 2 tsp pumpkin pie spice 

Pre-bake the pie crust (for large pies) @ 400F for 10 minutes.  (If doing mini pies, there's no need to pre-bake.) Set aside to cool and then turn oven down to 325F.
   In a large bowl, mix together the pumpkin, evaporated milk, light brown sugar, eggs, cornstarch, vanilla, salt, pumpkin pie spice. Mix in the melted butter and chocolate, and pour into pie crust. Place pie pan on a baking sheet.  Bake at 325F until center of pie has set, about an hour. Refrigerate until cooled completely to serve. 
 

Tortellini Soup

   The other day I was shopping at the market and saw that fresh tortellini was on sale. A 20 oz package (that normally sells for $8.99) was on sale for $5.99 and you also got a loaf of fresh baked french bread for FREE, so of course I bought some! :)  I have been wanting to try this tortellini soup recipe that my friend Kim says is her favorite soup. I hardly ever splurge on tortellini, so I have had this recipe pinned for over a year now and hadn't been able to try it . . . until now.
    I used Charlotte's Tortellini Soup recipe as a starting off point, but I wanted to add more veggies than the recipe called for, so I changed my version some. I also used half and half water and beef broth, because you honestly don't need to spend the money on broth when the water and veggies make their own yummy liquid together. The other change you'll see in my version is that I omited the red pepper. This was a mistake on my part. I had it in the fridge and forgot to add it. So, add it if you wish, but feel free to customize the soup to your liking.
   I'm giving you the original recipe, and also my bulked up version. My big pot of soup fed my family for three days, so if you don't want a huge pot of soup you might want to cut back on the ingredients a bit. (Even if you cut back on the other veggies, you can still use one full can of tomatoes to make your life easier.)  My initial thought was that I would freeze whatever soup we didn't finish after the first night, and then have it for another meal down the road. But we all loved it so much that we wanted to eat it all up over the next couple of days!
    I haven't tried the original recipe, as written, so I'm not sure how it tastes. . . but I probably would cut back on the amount of ketchup it calls for. I used 1 cup for my pot of soup which was larger, and it was almost too sweet. As with most things, you can change this recipe up to suit your families tastes. I hope you enjoy it. It's one that we will be making time and time again. Thanks Kim! :)

 here's my bulked up recipe: 

Tortellini Soup

1 pound ground Italian sausage (may use links, if you prefer)
1 large onion, diced
3 large carrots, sliced
3 ribs of celery, sliced
1 1/2 tsp Italian seasoning
3 tsp minced garlic
1 medium to large zucchini, chopped
1 Mexican squash, chopped
4 cups beef broth
*4-5 cups water
1 (15 oz) can diced tomatoes, with liquid (I used Italian Style with onions and garlic)
1 cup all natural ketchup
20 oz fresh tortellini pasta
salt and pepper to taste
Parmesan cheese to taste 

In a large pot over medium high heat, brown the sausage and break up into small pieces. (if using links, slice them into bite sized pieces). When the sausage is brown, drain the fat and add the onions, carrots and celery. Salt and pepper the veggies lightly. Cook over medium heat for 5-10 minutes, until the onions are translucent. Add the garlic, zucchini, squash and Italian seasoning. Cook for another 5 minutes, and then stir in the tomatoes, ketchup, broth and water. Add 1/2 tsp of salt and 1/4 tsp of freshly ground black pepper to start (you can add more if you need it later). When the liquid comes up to a boil, add the pasta and cook for 7-10 minutes or until pasta and veggies are tender (follow package instructions for pasta). *If the pasta has absorbed too much liquid, you can add 1 more cup water. Taste and add more salt and pepper if desired. Serve hot, topped with Parmesan cheese.
**This soup is really hearty, with not a lot of broth. If you like more liquid feel free to add more in the form of water or broth. (If you use water, you'll want to add more salt.)

here's the original recipe (from allrecipes.com):

Charlotte's Tortellini Soup

1 pound sausage  

1 cup chopped onion 

2 cups sliced carrots  

1 cup sliced celery  

6 cups beef broth  

1/2 cup red wine  

1 (16 ounce) can whole peeled tomatoes, with liquid  

1 cup ketchup  

1 teaspoon Italian seasoning  

2 cloves garlic, minced  

1 cup zucchini, sliced  

1 pound fresh tortellini pasta  

1 red bell pepper, diced  

1/4 cup chopped parsley 

salt and pepper to taste  

2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese

Brown sausage in pot; drain off fat. Add onions and saute until tender. Add carrots, celery, beef broth, red wine, tomatoes, ketchup, Italian seasoning, and garlic. Bring to a boil and simmer for 30 minutes. Skim away the fat from the soup. 

Stir in the zucchini, tortellini, red bell pepper, and parsley. (If you use fresh tortellini, cook them according to package directions.) Simmer, covered, for about 25-30 minutes or till the tortellini are tender. Season with salt and pepper. Sprinkle with cheese right before serving.

Nana's Peanut Butter Fudge

 
I grew up in a house where my mom did not cook. She redeemed herself in all other things "motherly" but cooking was never her forte. She is a self proclaimed disaster in the kitchen. Finding this out pretty early into marrying my mom, my dad (who once thought of making cooking his profession) took over preparing the meals. He provided most of our meals (usually making big batches of something that we would eat on over the next few days), but on rare occasions my mom would make us something simple. She made things like American Goulash, spaghetti and pancakes. One of my favorite treats from my mom's short repertoire of recipes is her Peanut Butter Fudge. This is my favorite peanut butter food memory from when I was growing up. Yes, I enjoyed quite a few peanut butter and jelly sandwiches (and still do to this day), but it was this fudge that was really something special. How my mom could make only 4 ingredients turn into something so luxurious tasting and gift worthy was remarkable to me. I can vividly picture her sitting in a chair, the fudge perched in front of her on another chair and her beating the fudge into submission with a wooden spoon (the only time she used a wooden spoon, because she hates to clean those things!). Needless to say, I have added this recipe to my family recipe book and even submitted it for publication in our local church cook book.
    This fudge is smooth and incredibly light in texture. Usually fudge is dense and often times grainy; but those things are the opposite of my mom's fudge. It's creamy and melts in your mouth. A real treat that is so dangerous that I have to quickly give away before I eat the whole pan!  A bonus is that it can be made with all shelf stable ingredients. Since my brave hubby still hasn't received any pay since the government shutdown we are living off mostly pantry staples. I've had some wonderful friends give us fresh meals and groceries, so we are using those as well; but mostly our food comes from our cupboards (for the time being).
    I prefer to use chocolate chips and make it a Peanut Butter and Chocolate Fudge, but you could use any chips (chocolate, butterscotch, peanut butter, or white chocolate chips) and the fudge will turn out amazing.

This is all it takes:

1 1/2 cups of half and half (or 1 12 oz can of evaporated milk as I have here), 3 cups of sugar, 1 cup of peanut butter and 1+ cups of chocolate chips (or chips of your choice)

In a medium to large sauce pan, combine the sugar and half and half (or evaporated milk). You want to make sure the pan is large enough that the mixture won't boil over. I used my biggest sauce pan - the size just under the soup/pasta pot.

Stir them together and attach a candy thermometer (if you have one). My mom never used a thermometer, she just boiled it until she thought it looked right. It needs to come to a boil and then boil until it reaches soft ball stage. (You can test this by dropping a small amount of the candy into ice water. If the candy comes together to make a pliable ball, it's done.)
**If you are using a candy thermometer, make sure to test it first. Just fill a pot, fitted with the thermometer, with water. Make sure the water covers the bottom of the thermometer so it can get an accurate reading. Then put the pot of the stove and turn the heat to high. When the water starts to boil, check the temperature. Water should boil at 212F. My thermometer is off by about 11 degrees (it shows water boiling at 201F), so I know to pull my candy from the heat 11 degrees short of my goal. Always test your thermometer before using it, to ensure an accurate reading.

Turn the heat to high and let the mixture come to a boil. When it reaches a boil, turn down the heat just low enough to keep it boiling, but not high enough to boil over. (See mine came dangerously close to boiling over.) Continue to boil the mixture until it reaches soft ball stage. I try to refrain from stirring it while it's boiling, but if you just have to stir, then only stir in the middle. DO NOT scrape the sides of the pan, and this can cause the fudge to go sugary.

When it has reached the desired temperature, turn off the heat and stir in the peanut butter. (I usually just eye ball this, because that is what my mom did.)

Stir it in, but be careful not to scrape the sides.

When the peanut butter is mostly combined, add in the chips of choice (mine is chocolate). I mom always just grabbed a few handfuls, and threw them in. I use a measuring cup and do a rounded cup.

If you haven't done so already, you'll want to have a 9x13 dish ready to put the fudge in. I like to line mine with parchment paper, so that I don't have any clean-up afterwards, but it's up to you. Mom just pours hers into a pan - sometimes with foil, sometimes without.  I think parchment paper is the way to go.

Now, if there is anything "hard" about this recipe, this would be it. You have to stir. A LOT. My mom would always sit down with the hot pot and a towel and just beat the heck out of the fudge. She would lift the pan by the handle, and beat air into the mixture to help it set. I do that at the end, but in the beginning I just stir it. Again, I don't scrape the sides at all. Just stir.

And stir.

And stir. You will see it start to get thicker, and show the wake of the spoon.

Eventually it will become even thicker. If you're making it in a non stick pan like me, it will come away from the pan and become one mass. This is when I sit with it and a towel on my lap, tilt it slightly and beat air into it.

You want to keep beating it until the fudge is no longer shiny. Like this:

Then dump the fudge into the prepared pan,

and get it evened out as much as possible.

The left overs in the pan is what is left for the cook. (My son says this is the best part about cooking.) ;)

I let the fudge sit for about an hour (so that it is set, but still a little warm) and then I lift it by the parchment paper and place the whole thing on a cutting board. I cut 1 inch strips down the length of the fudge. I find that if I cut it when it's still warm, it cuts cleaner.

Then I turn it all and cut 1 inch strips down the width of the fudge - making 1 inch square pieces.

Then I move all the pieces at once (holding the corners of the parchment paper) and place everything back into the 9x13 pan.

When the pieces are completely cool, I package them up to give away. (Because I can't trust myself around an entire pan if it!)  Any container will do, as long as the fudge doesn't get squished.

YUM!! 

 If my mom can make it, then anyone can! :) Try it out and let me know what you think. I promise you won't be disappointed.

Here's the recipe:

Nana's Peanut Butter Fudge

1 1/2 cups half and half (or 1 12 oz can evaporated milk)
3 cups granulated sugar
1 cup peanut butter (smooth is best)
1+ cups chips of choice (I like chocolate)

**If using a candy thermometer, be sure to test it (explained above) and adjust your temperature accordingly. 
In a large sauce pan, combine the sugar and half and half (or evaporated milk). Bring the mixture up to a boil and cook until  soft ball stage. Remove from heat and add the peanut butter. Stir until almost combined and then add the chocolate chips (or other chips of choice). Stir the fudge until it has turned (is no longer shiny) and then dump it out into a 9x13 pan that has been lined with parchment paper. Spread the fudge out evenly. Let it sit for at least 30 minutes, and then cut the fudge into 1 inch pieces while it is still warm (but not hot). When it has cooled completely, it's ready to be packaged and gifted (or devoured by you and whomever is lucky enough to be in the kitchen with you).