New Things!

It seems that life is dishing up a lot of things new! It has been some years of thinking to myself, "this blogging stuff really looks fun!" I am sure it is the same with a lot of bloggers out there- months of thinking they should start a blog and then finally taking the plunge. I decided to take that plunge when I started thinking of my days as a blog entry. It seemed to me if so much time was spent in dreaming- I should do something about it! So here I am with another new thing, wondering where it will take me!

New things should come in pairs (it's safer that way). So with the new starts, should come a little celebration with a new recipe. And with the new season upon us- Pumpkin Rolls it is!

My daughter is in Kindergarten and was introduced to a new letter this week. The letter "B"! And every new letter should be celebrated with a fun project! "B's" project was making "BUTTER"! How fun and arm tiring. So do a little celebrating with us!

Butter

1 pint mason jar

1/2 C heavy cream

Pour cream into mason jar. Put lid on tightly. Hand to child and cut them loose, shaking wildly. The cream will turn to whipped cream and it will feel like nothing is moving in the jar. Keep shaking! All of the sudden you will see the walls clear and you will be left with butter and buttermilk! YUM!

Pumpkin Rolls

1T yeast (SAF yeast- the best!)

1 C warm water (or you can heat up the buttermilk left in jar)

1/3 C honey

3T butter- melted

1t salt

1/2C powdered milk

1C canned pumpkin

1-1/2 t ground cinnamon

3/4t ground cloves, nutmeg, and ginger

4 to 5C all-purpose flour

You can easily make this recipe by hand kneading or using a mixer with a bread hook. I used my food processor with the kneading blade.

1. Dissolve yeast in water in food processor. Let sit for 15 min. Yeast should be nice and bubbly.

2. Add all ingredients but the flour. Mix for a few seconds.

3. Now add one cup of flour at a time until the sides are clean. Let it knead for a little longer, then place in oiled bowl.

4. Cover and let it rise for about a hour until it has doubled in size.

5. Punch down and separate into 32 pieces. Roll into balls and place in two greased 9" round pans(16 rolls per pan).

6. Let rise for about 30 minutes, until double in size.

7. Place in oven and turn on to 375 degrees. Bake for 25-35 minutes. They should look nice and golden on top. Brush with a little butter while they are warm.