Texas Roadhouse Rolls (Secret Recipe Club)

It's November's Secret Recipe Club Reveal Day and boy, did we get lucky! We were assigned 365 Days of Baking and More, an incredible blog by Lynne filled with sooo many baking (and non-baking!) recipes that we had a very difficult time choosing one. We were quite tempted to stay in our comfort zone and make something that didn't involve baking. As you are probably aware, we've had some baking issues in the past. But then, we decided to challenge ourselves. Lynne's blog is primarily about baking, and we should embrace the theme! So, then, the questions were: should we make one of Lynne's dozens of cookie recipes? Homemade Suzy-Q's in tribute to the (oh-so-sad) end of Hostess? Donuts? Muffins? Brownies? Cupcakes? Then we saw it: a copycat recipe for Texas Roadhouse's famously fabulous rolls with cinnamon honey butter. Woot!!!

If you have ever been to a Texas Roadhouse, you know what we're talking about. These rolls are light, fluffy, slightly sweet, amazing bites of paradise. We love them and do our best not to fill up on them before the rest of our food comes. We often fail. We were so excited to see Lynne's recipe, punctuated with her enthusiasm for how good they come out. To quote her:

           "This is one of those recipes on the 365 blog that I STRONGLY recommend that you make!  I'm not trying to force you into anything here, but I really don't think you'll be sorry. These should be served at EVERY special occasion!! Even when there isn't a special occasion you just NEED, yes you NEED to have these in your life. They. Are. Almost. Better. Than. Chocolate. Almost."

That did it for us. We were going to make rolls. From scratch. For the first time, ever. Here we go! We followed her recipe exactly. Her blog had clear, step-by-step directions and pictures to go along with them, so it was easy to follow. Nothing about it was especially difficult, although it was sort of time-consuming, you know, waiting for the dough to rise and rest and all that. At the same time, it was kind of fun!!! Baking?!?! Fun?!?!? Yes, we said it.

Results? Our rolls were a teensy-weensy bit dry. Nothing that delicious butter couldn't take care of. We ended up with 21 rolls, so as usual, we shared with the neighbors. Perhaps we are too critical of our own work, because D texted, "OMG. #%@ amazing. It was perfection. I could eat 10 of those. Like a dessert." Enough said. Thank you, Lynne! You may have converted us!

How great would these be on the Thanksgiving table?!?!?

Texas Roadhouse Rolls

Ingredients:

4 teaspoons (2 packages) active dry yeast
1/2 cup warm water
2 cups milk scalded and cooled to lukewarm
1/2 cup plus 1 teaspoon sugar, divided
4 tablespoons melted butter, divided
7-8 cups flour, divided
2 whole eggs
2 teaspoons salt

Cooks' note: Since we had never made bread by hand before, we found this website about kneading dough very helpful!

In the bowl of a stand mixer, dissolve the yeast with the warm water and the teaspoon of sugar. With the dough hook attachment, mix in the milk, remaining 1/2 cup of sugar, and 2 1/2 cups flour to make a medium batter. Mix thoroughly. Allow to stand until light and foamy, about 8-10 minutes. Add 3 tablespoons melted butter, eggs and salt. Continue to mix with the dough hook until well combined. Slowly add remaining flour, to form a soft dough. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface, and allow it to rest for about 10 minutes. While dough is resting, prepare a large bowl by spraying it with cooking spray. Knead dough until it is smooth and satiny (we did this by hand and it took about 7-8 minutes). Place into prepared bowl and turn over, coating it with oil. Cover bowl tightly with plastic wrap and set to rise in a warm area until double in size, about 1-1 1/2 hours. Punch dough down. On a lightly floured surface and with a lightly floured rolling pin, flatten dough into a rectangle until it is about 1/2-inch thick. Fold the rectangle in half the short way so that it is about 1-inch in thickness, and lightly roll together to seal the sides together. Allow to rest for 10 minutes. With a dough scraper, cut into rolls. Place rolls on a greased baking sheet. Cover with a damp towel and allow to rise in a warm area until double in size, about 1 hour or so. Preheat oven to 350 and bake rolls for 10-15 minutes or until lightly golden. Upon removing from oven, brush tops with melted butter.
Serve with Cinnamon Honey Butter.

Cinnamon Honey Butter

Ingredients:

1/2 cup butter (1 stick), room temperature
1/4 cup honey
1 teaspoon cinnamon

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat the butter for approximately 30 seconds until lightly whipped. Add honey and cinnamon and beat until smooth and thoroughly combined, scraping down the sides of the bowl. Continue beating on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 2-3 minutes.

Dissolve the yeast with water and sugar.

Scald the milk and allow to cool to lukewarm.

The yeast starts to foam up in the bowl.

Add the scalded milk, sugar and flour and mix with the dough hook attachment.

Allow it to stand until it is light and foamy, about 10 minutes.

Add the melted butter, eggs and salt.

Mix in remaining flour using the dough hook attachment until it forms a soft dough.

Turn onto a lightly floured surface and allow to rest for 10 minutes.

Knead dough until soft and satiny. When you pinch it, it should feel like an earlobe.

Turn into a bowl sprayed with cooking spray, then flip it.

Cover tightly with plastic wrap and allow it to sit in a warm place for 1 to 1 1/2 hours, until it doubles in size.

It doubled!

Punch it down. It's amazing how full of air it is!

Roll it out to 1/2 inch thickness on a floured surface. It takes up our whole baking mat!

Fold it in half and roll it to be about 1 inch thick.

Use a baking scraper to cut into desired size rolls.

Place on a greased cooking sheet.

Cover with a damp towel and allow to rise in a warm place for about an hour.

Bake at 350 for 15 minutes, until golden brown.

Brush with remaining tablespoon of melted butter.

Huzzah! We made rolls!!!

Serve warm with cinnamon honey butter.

Tea-Smoked Chicken and Leftover Tea-Smoked Chicken Pho

We found a two-ounce package of this distinctive tea in our cupboard. It smelled so good - smoky, caramel-y, rich. Neither of us could remember where it came from, but we had just bought a brick of pu'er tea on a recent visit to Boston's Chinatown, so we decided to use this package to make Tea-Smoked Chicken.

Before we go on, we should share a hard-earned tip. When you are tea-smoking a chicken, open the windows in your kitchen, turn on a fan or two. This method of ours makes a LOT of smoke. It reminded us that we need to replace our smoke detector batteries...

 

Anyway, we digress. First we dry-brined the chicken in kosher salt for about three hours in the refrigerator. Then we smoked the chicken on our stovetop with a smoking mixture of the pu'er tea, raw rice and sugar; this took about 25 minutes. Finally, we baked the chicken with a basting glaze made from garlic, ginger, rice wine vinegar, soy sauce and Szechuan peppercorns. The meat was very juicy, really tender, and extremely flavorful. The skin was salty and smoky and sooo very yummy. Tea-smoked success!

We really enjoyed this chicken, and so we ate quite a bit of it that night, but when two people sit down to eat a whole chicken, there's bound to be leftovers. So the next night, we used our easy pho recipe and made Leftover Tea-smoked Chicken Pho. And we had leftovers from that, too! So from one $5 chicken (on sale!), a few pantry ingredients, some tea (which, it turns out, is pretty expensive, but you can use any tea you want!) and a little bit of fresh produce, we ended up with six individual meals. That works for us!

Tea-Smoked Chicken

Ingredients:

1 whole chicken

1/4 cup kosher salt

2 ounces loose tea

1/2 cup uncooked rice

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1 tablespoon Szechuan peppercorns, crushed

2 tablespoons soy sauce

2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 tablespoon minced ginger

pinch granulated sugar

Rub the chicken inside and out with the kosher salt. Place in refrigerator and allow to dry-brine for 2-3 hours. When ready to cook, heat oven to 375. Line a large roasting pan with two layers of aluminum foil. Combine the tea, rice and sugar in a bowl and pour into the roasting pan over the foil. Place a roasting rack over the tea mixture and set the chicken on the rack. Create a tent of aluminum foil over the whole pan and set over high heat on the stove top. Allow the chicken to smoke on high heat for 15 minutes, then turn heat off and let it sit in the smoke for another 10 minutes. In the meantime, prepare the basting glaze. Whisk together the peppercorns, soy sauce, rice wine vinegar, garlic, ginger and sugar and brush about half of it over the chicken. Place uncovered in the oven and bake for 30-45 minutes (or until temperature reaches 165) , basting occasionally with the remaining glaze. Allow to rest for five to ten minutes before serving. Use leftovers to make pho using this recipe.

Goose Egg Oven Pancake

Last spring, to celebrate their 40th birthdays, Amy and her bestie Karen went on a girls' weekend to Bennington, Vermont. They stayed at a quaint and charming bed and breakfast called the Eddington House Inn. The proprietor, a very hospitable lady named Patti, made the most amazing breakfasts and afternoon treats that we were stuffed the whole weekend. Thank goodness there was plenty of shopping to be done in town, so we had a few chances to walk it off!

As we (sadly) packed up to leave, Patti very kindly offered to send us some of her breakfast recipes, and somehow, we have never gotten around to making any of them. Now Meatless Monday has approached, and with it, four fist-sized goose eggs from Amy's generous friend M. As we were running through our egg-dish repertoire, suddenly Amy thought about Patti's "oven pancake." A perfect Meatless Monday breakfast-for-dinner choice!

This simple yet delicious pancake can be made in about 15 minutes and is big enough for two to share. Topped with chopped fruit, maple syrup, yogurt, or some simple berry jam mixed with a little water (as we did), it is a delightfully different dish suitable for breakfast, brunch, or dinner.

Special thanks to Patti for sharing this fantastic recipe!

Note: The only change we made was to substitute one goose egg for Patti's 2 large eggs.

Goose Egg Oven Pancake

Ingredients:

1/2 stick butter

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 cup low-fat milk

1 goose egg

1/4 cup raspberry jam, thinned with water

confectionary sugar for sprinkling on top

Heat oven to 375 degrees. Melt butter in an ovenproof (we used cast iron) pan. While the butter is melting, whisk together the flour and the milk. Add the goose egg and whisk until smooth. Pour the batter into the melted butter and place pan in the oven. Bake for 10-12 minutes, until fluffy. Carefully remove from pan and place on a platter. Drizzle with thinned jam and sprinkle with confectionary sugar (or other toppings of choice).

Looking Back, Longingly (Maine Foodie Tours)

Stormy weather indeed. Two weekends ago, we shopped for supplies in the morning, then attended a costume party while Hurricane Sandy threatened, looming large into the week up through Halloween. Our area was unscathed, and we spent a couple of grateful days checking in with friends and family and watching news reports of people not quite as fortunate. With leftover candy still in a bowl on our table, we did our best to avoid the flurry of phone polls and campaign ads, voted with our hearts and minds, and watched as the nation re-elected its President. That political storm had barely passed when in blew Winter Storm Athena, dumping five inches of slushy snow onto our leaf piles, mums and jack-o-lanterns. It sure made us miss Maine.

Lobster Salad Pate a Choux and Wine Spritzers at the Cape Arundel Inn,

just across from the Bush Compound

The Cape Arundel Inn Wine Spritzer:

In an ice-filled wine glass, mix 1 part Italian dry white wine with 2 parts lemon-lime soda, and garnish with a lemon slice.

Yes, a mere eleven weeks ago, we were sunning ourselves on the shores of Goose Rocks Beach, just north of Kennebunkport. We ate pounds of lobster and steamer clams, rode around (Roman Holiday-style, natch) on a scooter, went out for ice cream, watched fire works, stargazed, got tipsy in the afternoon, met new friends from Montreal, and enjoyed the relative silence that a beach vacation with Amy's family offers. All that, and we went on a Maine Foodie Tour.

Blueberry Scallop Crostini and St. Germain Cocktails at The Colony Hotel

St. Germain Cocktail:

Mix two ounces Freizenet Brut with 1 1/2 ounces St. Germain Elderflower Liqueur and 2 ounces club soda. Serve with a twist.

How could we be in Maine for a week and not go on a Maine Foodie Tour? The Savor Kennebunkport Culinary Trolley Tour promised all we could ever want in a trolley tour - four glorious gourmet stops, all with tastings of food and liquor in some of K-port's finest historic restaurants and resorts. Sign. Us. Up.

Cheese and Fruit Platter with the Ocean Avenue Spritzer at The Nonantum Resort

Ocean Avenue Spritzer:

Fill a large glass with ice, then add 1 1/2 ounces Don Q Limon Rum and 2 ounces Honeymaker Blueberry Mead (made in Maine). Top with Green Bee Honey Soda. Garnish with a lemon twist, fresh blueberries and a sprig of rosemary.

We met our trolley at the agreed-upon location, were greeted by our gracious hosts and embarked on the tour. The ride was filled with fun foodie facts, historical information about the Kennebunk area, and Maine trivia. With gorgeous old mansions shaded by tall spruce pines on one side and bright blue sky with seaside vistas on the other, we were already enjoying ourselves and we hadn't yet had a single bite. As for the food and drink, the pictures here tell the story better than we can. We nibbled and sipped, chatted and listened, wondered and learned, strolled and relaxed. The drink recipes were emailed to us after the tour by the kind folks at Maine Foodie Tours. Next time you're in the area, we highly recommend taking one.

Raspberry Bars and Choco Noir Wine at The Captain Lord Mansion



Meatless Monday: Shakshuka

Okay, it has been a while since we have done a Meatless Monday post. Amy has had a stressful time the last few months, and when she's stressed, it's not chocolate she wants, it's steak. She's a carnivore to the core, but the Big Bad Work Project is over, and it's time to focus on health and all that, especially as the Big Bad Holidays draw near. So, at least for now, we have a Meatless Monday post for you.

A few weeks ago, we learned that a fellow food blogger by the name of Daniel Saraga died suddenly, and a bunch of his fellow bloggers, including us, made some of his recipes in his honor. We posted about them on the same day as a tribute to Daniel, and it moved us to be a part of that. When we took a look at everyone's posts that day, we were inspired to make more of Daniel's recipes. One that really spoke to us was Shakshuka, or Israeli eggs poached in a spicy tomato sauce. To us, it was fascinating. Neither of us had ever had anything like that before.

So recently we made Shakshuka for Meatless Monday. Following Daniel's recipe and suggestions, we created a spicy, chunky tomato sauce, poached heirloom eggs in that sauce, and ate the eggs using pita bread and our hands instead of forks and knives. While we made a few slight changes, we mostly followed Daniel's recipe, which can be found here. Exactly what we did is below, and the result was a unique Meatless Monday breakfast-for-dinner dish that we thoroughly enjoyed. Thanks, Daniel. Requiescat in pace.

Shakshuka

Ingredients:

1/4 cup olive oil

1 onion, chopped

1/2 teaspoon CT salemme pepper

5 garlic cloves, minced

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1 tablespoon hot paprika

1 28-ounce can diced tomatoes

6 eggs

1/2 cup feta cheese, crumbled

Heat oil in a large skillet (we used our paella pan) over medium-high heat. Add onions and crushed pepper and cook, stirring occasionally for six minutes until soft and slightly browned. Add garlic, cumin, and paprika, and cook, stirring frequently for 2 minutes. Add diced tomatoes with liquid, reduce heat to medium and simmer for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Reduce to medium-low, stir and make six wells in the thick sauce. Crack eggs over wells, cover the pan, and cook for about five minutes, or until yolks have set to desired consistency. Uncover, and baste the eggs with a light coating of the tomato sauce. Sprinkle the feta throughout the pan, turn off the heat, and let sit for 1-2 minutes.  Serve right out of the pan with toasted pita bread and a side of home-fried potatoes.

Shop Rite's Culinary Workshop: The Gastropub Experience

Our friend Lise Jaeger is a chef and in addition to several other jobs, she does culinary workshops at the Shop Rite, one of our local grocery chains. We've gone to a few of these, where for a mere $20 each, Chef teaches the participants four recipes (usually, a main, two sides and a dessert) around a specific theme, but the teaching is hands-on. The students (and there are usually only 6-8 students in a class) actually do the measuring, chopping, prepping, etc. (always with helpful tips from Chef) and once everything is ready, we all enjoy our finished products. It's a great experience in that we always learn something new, we get four new recipes to try at home, we get to see Chef (who is a very busy lady) and we have a delicious dinner.

Last week's theme was "The Gastropub Experience." The term "gastropub" refers to establishments, orignally in the United Kingdom but the concept is everywhere now, that take typical "pub grub" and bring it to a higher level. The name is a combination of gastronomy and pub, and therefore intends to show that the place serves higher quality food than what is usually expected at a pub. (Not that there's anything wrong with pub food! It certainly has its place in the world).

We put on our nametags, introduced ourselves, washed our hands, gloved up and got to work. The first thing we had to do was to make the brownie batter and get the brownies into the oven so they could cook and cool while we prepared the rest of the meal. Once we did that, we began to work on the main entree and side dishes.

The main course was Beer-Marinated Grilled Flank Steak. Since the class is usually only 2 hours long, Lise had already marinated the flank steak in a marinade of porter, chopped yellow onion, chopped garlic, and jalapenos. She explained the recipe to us and we moved on to work on the side dishes.

One side dish was a Warm Three Greens Salad. It consisted of slicing an onion and caramelizing the slices, then adding some garlic, Swiss chard, kale and spinach to the pan (the three greens). It was amazing to watch all those leafy greens reduce in the pan! Once they did, we removed them from the pan and dressed the salad with some balsamic vinegar, golden raisins and slivered almonds. It was a tasty and healthy side packed with antioxidants!

The second side dish was Cauliflower with Gruyere and Bacon (the not-quite-as-healthy-side-dish). First we made a bechamel sauce to which we added gruyere cheese. While it thickened, we trimmed and blanched our cauliflower and placed it in a casserole dish. We poured the sauce over the cauliflower, sprinkled it with crumbled cooked bacon and then with some panko mixed with a little more gruyere. This cooked until it was hot and bubbly. Creamy, cheesy, and bacon-y - this is one way to get Amy to eat cauliflower!

The last thing we needed to do was grill the flank steak and we could serve the meal. We topped the steak with Crosse & Blackwell Caramelized Onion Chutney with Peppers, the evening's sponsor product and an easy way to get the flavor of caramelized onions without the work. The two Chrises in the group helped Lise plate the dishes. Hardly anyone was talking as we ate because the food was so good. Of course, none of us could forget the Stout-Infused Dark Chocolate Brownies that were waiting for us at the end. We all pronounced the brownies the fudgiest and tastiest we ever had.

Because these recipes are provided by Shop Rite, we don't feel that it is proper to post them. However, if you have a Shop Rite near you, you should look into their culinary workshops. They are worth every penny!