yay for food!

Well I now have two whole entries ready to post but I'm waiting for a certain someone to upload pictures for me. That someone is still at work and I'm bored and lonely, therefore, this picure-less post will have to do for now.

I spent a majority of my weekend moving things from upstairs to downstairs and doing a major "purge" of my current belongings. It feels great! I've also gotten to cook a lot more, which makes me a very happy girl! I just made some poppyseed dressing (Chris keeps talking about it, so I thought I'd surprise him with a nice salad tonight) which turned out very sweet but very good. It is different because you add honey, not sugar, which has a nice flavor.

Poppyseed dressing

1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/3 cup honey
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
2 tablespoons poppy seeds
1 tablespoon minced onion
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1/2 teaspoon salt

Put all ingredients in a blender. Blend. How easy is that?

I also went home and stole my mom's bread machine. I'm making bread now that I'm super excited about. Hopefully I will have some delicious bread for turkey sandwiches (my favorite!).

And last but probably the most important, I made Cinnamon Rolls. I didn't add enough yeast but they turned out SO DELICIOUS anyway. Plus, they're HUGE. I didn't make the glaze that it recommended but instead made frosting with warm cream cheese and powdered sugar...mmm...I just drooled a little. Here's the recipe:

Overnight Cinnamon Rolls

• 1 cup milk
• 1/3 cup butter
• 1 (.25 ounce) package active dry yeast
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 4 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 3 eggs

• FILLING:
• 3/4 cup brown sugar
• 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 cup raisins

1. Heat the milk in a small saucepan until it bubbles, then remove from heat. Add the butter and stir until melted; let cool until lukewarm.
2. In a large mixing bowl, dissolve the yeast in the milk mixture. Add the sugar, 3 cups of flour, salt and eggs; stir well to combine. Add the remaining flour, 1/2 cup at a time, stirring well after each addition. When the dough has pulled together, turn it out onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth and supple, about 8 minutes.
3. Lightly oil a large mixing bowl, place the dough in the bowl and turn to coat with oil. Cover with a damp cloth and let rise in a warm place until doubled in volume, about 1 hour.
4. Deflate the dough and turn it out onto a lightly floured surface and roll into a 10x 14 inch rectangle. Lightly brush the far edge with water. In a small bowl combine the cinnamon and 3/4 cup brown sugar and sprinkle over the rectangles. Then sprinkle the raisins and chopped nuts over the dough. Roll up the dough into a log and seal the seam.
5. Cut the dough into 12 equal pieces; place the pieces in a greased 9x13 inch baking pan, or 12 inch deep dish pizza pan. Cover with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator to rise overnight.
6. The next morning, preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Take the rolls out of the refrigerator and let stand at room temperature for 30 minutes.
7. Bake the rolls for 25 to 30 minutes or until golden.