I am pretty excited to share this recipe with you today! These rolls are dead easy, will be the talk of the dinner table and come with some history. On PEI, there is a very popular lobster supper restaurant that bakes these fresh rolls all day everyday from which this recipe has been adapted from.

As you can tell from the ingredients below, these rolls are very wholesome and traditional. No additives, no extras – just plain old fashion goodness.  You are going to spend most of your effort on the kneading.  Not that these are intense to knead, however you will want to put forth the effort to ensure the quality.

Ingredients

• 8 Cups Flour
• 1 Tbsp. Salt
• 1/2 Cup White Sugar
• 1 1/2 Packages Quick Rise Yeast
• 3 Eggs
• 1/2 Cup Vegetable Oil ( Olive Oil )
• 3 Cups Waters

Method

1. Preheat Oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Combine flour, salt and sugar in a large bowl and mix thoroughly.
3. Add yeast to dry ingredients; mix well.
4. Add remaining ingredients in a separate bowl and mix well.
5. Add dry mixture to wet ingredients; mix well and knead ( about 5 minutes).
6. Let set for about 10 minutes.
7. Cut dough into small ball pieces and begin kneading them and shape them into the pan.
8. Let rise 60-75 minutes or until they double in size – cover with tea towels to keep them warm and moist.
9. Bake at 350 degrees for 20-30 minutes.
10. Brush tops with butter once removed from the oven.
11. ENJOY!

Zesty Tip: Place your dough to set in a warm place to yield better results.  I like to put mine on top of the pre heating oven.

Well there you have it!  A pretty simple roll with lots of flavor and tradition.  Give this recipe a try, I am sure you will like it.  Try it fresh from the oven, topped with butter or dipped in your homemade stew.

Have yourself a great Wednesday and I look forward to sharing some more recipes with you.

Take care

zesty

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Who is up for a Cinnabun that will knock your socks off?  We had a family brunch a while back and I could not resist making these fresh out of the oven when the guests arrived.  Believe it or not I forgot to actually post these and when I was going through my pictures, I realized that I never shared these with you.

The pictures are not great cause these were made before I began researching and learning ” How to take amazing food pictures“.

These actually were not that difficult to make and they tasted delicious.  They literally disappeared minutes after being removed from the oven.

Follow along and let me know what you think.

Ingredients

• 1/4 Cup warm water
• 1/4 Cup butter, melted
• 1/2 (3.4 ounce) package instant vanilla pudding mix
• 1 Cup warm milk
• 1 Egg, room temperature
• 1 Tbsp. white sugar
• 1/2 Tsp. salt
• 4 Cups bread flour
• 1 (.25 ounce) package active dry yeast
• 1/4 Cup butter, softened
• 1 Cup brown sugar
• 4 Tsp. ground cinnamon
• 1/2 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
• 1/4 Cup butter, softened
• 1 Cup confectioners’ sugar
• 1/2 Tsp. vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 Tsp. milk

Method

1. In the pan of your bread machine, combine water, melted butter, vanilla pudding, warm milk, egg, 1 tablespoon sugar, salt, bread flour and yeast. Set machine to Dough cycle; press Start.





2. When Dough cycle has finished, turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface and roll into a 17×10 inch rectangle. Spread with softened butter. In a small bowl, stir together brown sugar and cinnamon. Sprinkle brown sugar mixture over dough.





3. Roll up dough, beginning with long side. Slice into 16 one inch slices and place in 9×13 buttered pan.



4. Let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 45 minutes.
5. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
6. Bake in preheated oven for 15 to 20 minutes. While rolls bake, stir together cream cheese, softened butter, confectioners’ sugar, vanilla and milk. Remove rolls from oven and top with frosting.



7. ENJOY!

Zesty Tip: When working with dough, have a well floured surface and be quick.  Do not over work the dough as it will become tough.

Well as you know the weekend is almost upon us.  The Jamaican excitement is winding down and I am coming home Saturday night.  Be sure to stay tuned for a Monday recap of the journey and hopefully some decent pics. Have a great weekend.

Take care

zesty

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Ever since I was a little boy, I always loved raisins. Whether they were right from a box, inside pastry, added in main courses or in my favorite… bread - I always loved them. Raisin bread is on e of my favorite things to eat. Freshly sliced with a butter on top….. I could eat it all the time. Now I tend not to get raisin bread that much at the bakery/grocery store but from time to time I like to indulge.

But this time around I thought I would try and make a loaf from scratch - it is an old family recipe and sometimes we use to add walnuts. I am not crazy about walnuts on their own but inside this bread they are actually quite tasty. They give the bread a nice texture as well. So below is the recipe for zesty’s raisin walnut bread - I hope you enjoy it!!

Ingredients

• 1 package (1/4 ounce) active dry yeast
• 3/4 cup raisins
• 2 cups lukewarm water (105° to 115°)
• 2 Tbs. honey
• 2 3/4 cups whole wheat flour
• 1 1/2 – 2 cups flour
• 2 tsp. salt
• 1 cup walnut halves, coarsely chopped

Method

1. In a large mixing bowl, stir together honey and 1/2 cup of the lukewarm water. Add yeast and stir to dissolve. Let stand until foamy, about 5 minutes. Stir in remaining 1 1/2 cups lukewarm water.
2. Add whole wheat flour, 1 1/2 cups of white flour and salt. Stir until well combined. Add enough of remaining white flour until dough leaves sides of bowl.
3. Sprinkle flour on a flat dry surface. Turn dough onto the surface and knead 5 to 10 minutes, adding more flour if necessary, until dough is smooth and elastic. Don’t make the dough too dry.
4. Lightly oil a large mixing bowl. Place dough in bowl and turn to coat. Cover with damp cloth and set aside in warm place to rise until doubled in bulk, about 1 1/2 hours. Place a piece of parchment paper on a large baking sheet.
5. Punch dough down and turn on to floured surface. Knead raisins and walnuts into dough. Shape (round, long, square,) into 1 large loaf and place on prepared baking sheet. Cover with damp cloth and let rise until almost doubled, about 30 minutes.
6. Preheat oven to 425°F. Using a spray bottle spray loaf with water. Bake 15 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 375°F and bake 30 minutes or until nicely browned. Cool on rack before slicing.

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