Roll Dough Creation

I recently sorted through months -- if not years -- worth of recipes, discarding the ones that didn't sound as good as they originally did and filing the ones I wanted to cook for my family.  One, however, was kept out because I knew it would be perfect for Thanksgiving.

The recipe was from a flyer I'd received from Bridgford, a company that makes frozen bread dough.  I was familiar with Bridgford because I use their Parkerhouse rolls to make better than garlic bread pull apart rolls. This time, though, with just a few easy additions, the rolls are transformed into pumpkins.

The visual design of the rolls was inspired by Holly, food blogger behind Beyond Kimchee, using a homemade roll recipe.  I substituted the roll recipe my family has come to expect for the holidays, but you can use your favorite roll recipe, or save time and start with a package of frozen rolls from the grocery.

Shape the homemade bread dough or thawed rolls into balls.  I normally get 18 cloverleaf rolls from one batch of dough.  I made the balls a little bigger so I only ended up with 15.

Try to keep the balls close to the same size to ensure they bake evenly. Don't fret, though, if the balls aren't the same exact size because pumpkins aren't all the same size either! 

Put the dough balls on a greased cookie sheet, spacing them about 2-inches apart.

Flatten each ball slightly using the palm of your hand.

Using a pair of kitchen shears or a knife, make six cuts around the edge of the dough.

Make a hole in the center of the dough using your pinkie.

Cover the dough and let rise until double in size.  Insert a pecan piece in the hole in the center for the stem.

Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, or until golden brown.

Whether you make the rolls from scratch or use a package of frozen rolls, these pumpkin shaped rolls are a whimsical and delicious addition to a Thanksgiving meal.

© Margaret's Morsels

Almost Homemade

I'm always surprised when people assume I cook feasts for my family year round.  I love to cook, but the only feasts I prepare are at Easter, Thanksgiving and Christmas!  Not only would that be too much food for a family of three on a regular basis, I don't have time to cook like that every day.  As I've written before, suppertime is the most stressful time of day for me.  This is why I'm always looking for shortcuts that will allow me to spend less time in the kitchen, while still making foods my family will eat and get supper on the table at a decent hour!

In the blogs I posted for Chicken Parmesan, Chicken Alfredo and Baked Ziti, I either mention adding garlic bread to round out the meal, or have a picture of the plated dish with garlic bread on the side.  Garlic bread is a packaged food I find convenient to keep in the freezer for nights when I need a quick bread to go with a meal.  Sometimes, though, I want to serve something that tastes homemade, but doesn't require the time and effort of making something from scratch.  What my family affectionately calls "Better than Garlic Bread Pull Apart Rolls" meet all of these requirements.

The bread starts with a package of frozen rolls.  You've probably seen these in the freezer case at the grocery and wondered what to do with them.

These rolls are a real time saver and can be used for monkey bread, cinnamon rolls and a myriad of other dishes.  They can even be baked as rolls!  Although I don't have to make the bread, I still need to plan ahead of time since the rolls have to be thawed overnight in the refrigerator.

A couple of hours before we're going to eat, I remove the rolls from the refrigerator.  While the margarine is melting in the microwave, I take the rolls out of the package and place them on a piece of waxed paper.

You don't have to do this, but I find it faster than removing the rolls from the bag one at a time, especially if the rolls are stuck together.  Once the margarine is melted, stir in garlic powder and garlic salt.  These are the same seasonings used in equal proportions in Garlic Cheese Biscuits, but this roll recipe uses 50% more garlic powder.

The friend that gave me the recipe bakes the rolls in a Bundt pan.  I tried that once and thought the rolls were dry.  If you're like me and love the round shape, but don't have a ring shaped pan, you can improvise and make your own.  Grease a small, ovensafe cup or bowl -- this keep the rolls from sticking to it -- and place it in the center of a 10-inch round cake pan. You now have a ring shaped pan!  If you don't want to go to that much trouble, use the 10-inch pan without the cup or bowl, or use a 9 x 5-inch loaf pan instead.

Dip each roll in the melted butter mixture and place it in the greased pan, stacking the rolls in two layers.  If there's any butter mixture left, pour it over the top layer of rolls.

First layer

Second layer

Put the pan in a warm place free from drafts, cover it with a towel and let the rolls rise an hour.  After the rolls have risen, bake them for 30 to 45 minutes, or until brown.  When the rolls are done, put the pan on a cooling rack for 10 minutes.  If the rolls come apart when you take them out of the pan, you can separate them and serve them in a bread basket.

The frozen rolls make the finished product taste as though it was made from scratch.  People love these rolls and, unless they ask for the recipe, assume they're homemade.  I don't mind letting them think that since they're "almost" homemade!

Better than Garlic Bread Pull Apart Rolls

6 to 8 Servings

1 (1 lb. 9 oz.) pkg. frozen Parkerhouse style roll dough, thawed

1/4 cup butter, melted

1 tsp. garlic powder

1/2 tsp. garlic salt

Thaw dough according to package directions.  Melt butter; stir in the garlic powder and garlic salt.  Dip each roll in the butter mixture and place in a greased 10-inch round cake pan, or 9 x 5-inch loaf pan.  Put the pan in a warm place free from drafts, cover with a towel and let rise an hour.  Bake the rolls at 350° for 30 to 45 minutes, or until brown.  Put the pan on a cooling rack and let cool 10 minutes before removing bread.

© Margaret's Morsels

A Bowl Full of Cherries

I've posted a lot of recipes that came from my mother.  Today, I thought I'd share one that was given to me by my mother-in-law.  Ironically, I'd seen the recipe in a cookbook years earlier, but dismissed it thinking it wouldn't be any good.  Boy, was I wrong!

Cherry pie filling salad only uses five ingredients.  One of them -- sweetened condensed milk -- is prominently featured in the recipe and the reason I dismissed the recipe in the first place.  It's not that I don't like sweetened condensed milk -- I use it in other recipes -- but I couldn't imagine a salad made with milk.  After all, sweetened condensed milk is, as the name says, milk that has been thickened by removing the water and then sweetened with sugar.

The sweetened condensed milk 

is combined with lemon juice,

crushed pineapple

and cherry pie filling.

My mother-in-law used regular cherry pie filling, but I use lite which has fewer calories and less sodium, carbs and sugar than regular pie filling. When it's mixed with the other ingredients, you won't even be able to taste the difference.  Once these ingredients are thoroughly combined,

a carton of Cool Whip is folded into the mixture.

To make this salad a little healthier, I use Cool Whip Lite which has less fat than regular Cool Whip.  Refrigerate the salad several hours or overnight until it's thoroughly cold.

Although it's called salad and could be served as such, my mother-in-law served it as a dessert.  I serve it that way too, but with a twist.  I like to freeze it in individual paper baking cups.  If you want to freeze it, make sure to use regular or low-fat Cool Whip.  The fat in the Cool Whip helps make the salad firm when frozen.  You don't need to refrigerate the salad first if you're going to put it in the freezer.

Line a muffin tin with paper baking cups.  You'll need 30 if you want to freeze the entire salad.  Spoon the mixture into the cups, filling almost all the way to the top.

Use a spoon to smooth the top and put the pan in the freezer overnight.

The next day, remove the baking cups from the pan and store them in a covered container in the freezer.

One advantage of using low-fat Cool Whip is that, when frozen, it's not rock hard.  You can take it out of the freezer and serve it immediately without having to wait for it to soften.  If you use regular Cool Whip, remove the desired number from the freezer and let them soften a few minutes at room temperature before serving.

You can skip freezing the salad and serve it straight from the refrigerator.  I serve part of it this way and freeze the rest.  When the temperature goes from hot to scorching in the summer, these individual frozen treats are much more refreshing than a popsicle or scoop of ice cream.

Cherry Pie Filling Salad

4 to 6 Servings or 30 Servings if Frozen

1 (14 oz.) can sweetened condensed milk

1/4 cup lemon juice

1 (20 oz.) can crushed pineapple, drained

1 (21 oz.) can cherry pie filling

1 (8 oz.) carton Cool Whip, thawed*

Mix the first four ingredients.  Fold in Cool Whip.  Mix well and refrigerate. Store leftovers in the refrigerator.

To freeze, put paper baking cups in a muffin pan.  Spoon the mixture into the  cups, filling almost all the way to the top.  Use a spoon to smooth the top and put the pan in the freezer overnight.  The next day, remove the baking cups from the pan and store them in a covered container in the freezer.

*If freezing the salad, use regular or low-fat Cool Whip, not fat-free.

© Margaret's Morsels

I Scream, You Scream, We All Scream for Ice Cream

I scream, you scream, we all scream for ice cream!  There's no better time to scream for ice cream than July since it's National Ice Cream Month.


When I got married, my husband and I registered for, and received, an electric ice cream maker that used rock salt and ice, lots and lots of ice.  I used it a half dozen times and then put it in the back of the closet, pulling it out only for special occasions.  It was just too much trouble to use.


Several years ago, I bought an automatic ice cream maker that does not require rock salt or ice.  I was so impressed with how easy it was to use, I sold the electric ice cream maker at a yard sale.  The automatic ice cream maker not only looks different from an electric ice cream maker, it works differently too.

Automatic Ice Cream Maker

The automatic ice cream maker comes with a bowl that contains a liquid inside its walls.  The bowl must be put in the freezer for 24 hours before you make the ice cream.  The liquid in the walls freezes which lets you make the ice cream without rock salt or ice.  Once the bowl is frozen, put the bowl in the ice cream maker, insert the paddle, put on the lid and turn the unit on.  The bowl starts turning and you pour the thoroughly chilled ice cream mix into the bowl through an opening in the lid.  Twenty minutes later you have ice cream.

Although this ice cream maker has a lot of pros, it also has some cons.

• You need to plan accordingly so you have plenty of time to freeze the bowl, chill the mix and, if desired, let the ice cream harden before you serve it.  I generally start the process two days before I'm going to serve the ice cream. 

• It's not as large as a regular ice cream maker so you can't make more than 1 1/2 quarts at one time.  Since most ice cream recipes make more than that, it's a good idea to purchase a second bowl.  If you don't, you'll have to freeze the bowl again before you can finish making the batch.

• The ice cream mix must also be made a day ahead and refrigerated so it's very cold when your pour it into the frozen bowl.  

• Unlike the old ice cream makers that had to be packed with rock salt and ice and allowed to "ripen," this ice cream is ready to eat as soon as it's done.  If you like soft ice cream, this is a good thing.  We prefer a firmer ice cream so I immediately transfer the ice cream to an airtight container and freeze it overnight.

Soft ice cream is ready in 20 minutes.

The ice cream after being frozen overnight.

My favorite ice cream recipe is the one my mother used.  I have no idea where the recipe came from, but it's the only one she ever used.  The only change I've made is using egg substitute instead of raw eggs.  Well, that and the fact that I don't need rock salt and ice!

Vanilla Ice Cream
3 Quarts

egg substitute equal to 6 eggs

2 cups sugar

2 (14 oz.) cans sweetened condensed milk

3 qt. whole milk

1/4 cup pure vanilla extract

pinch of salt

You need a very large bowl.  If you don't have one, make two batches using half the ingredients in each batch, or halve the recipe and make 1 1/2 quarts.

Put egg substitute in a bowl.  Add sugar; stir.  Add the remaining ingredients; mix well.  Pour into freezer container and freeze according to manufacturer's directions.

If you use an automatic ice cream maker, you need to refrigerate the mixture in advance.  It's easier to pour in the machine if you store it in gallon jugs or 2-liter bottles.  Shake or stir the mixture before pouring it into the machine so the ingredients are thoroughly mixed.

© Margaret's Morsels