Pancakes Worth Eating

I grew up on good whole wheat pancakes and as a kid I assumed everyone else was eating the same goodness. I was so disappointed the first time I ate pancakes in a restaurant and discovered white pancakes. They looked like pancakes but sure didn't taste like them.
I have to share my recipe with you. I hate to think of other poor children out there eating paste pancakes. These taste so good and are so easy to make. The recipe has been adapted from several sources. The original is from my sister-in-law Lee (she has lots of good recipes at her site), I added my Dad's secret ingredient (corn meal), and my sister Anne's use of 3 eggs.
Whole Wheat Pancakes
3/4 cups whole wheat flour
1/2 cup white flour (I actually use all whole wheat)
1/4 cup corn meal
1 tsp salt
2 Tbsp ground flax seed (optional - this adds more nutrition and fiber)
3 tsp baking powder
2 Tbsp honey
1/2 cup oil
3 eggs
1 1/2 cups milk
Mix dry ingredients in a bowl. In another bowl, mix the wet ingredients and whisk them together well (this is important to dissolve the honey and to make sure the eggs are mixed in).
Add the dry ingredients and mix until just mixed together. Don't over mix (mom's rules).
Heat a skillet or griddle on med heat and spoon or ladle batter on and cook until the bubbles stop popping on top (mom's rules again, helped teach a little kid how to make pancakes).
I have found that using a large ice cream scoop makes good 4" sized pancakes.
This batter doesn't make the pancakes too thick. I like it that way they don't get doughy in the middle (something that little kids just can't stand).
The pancakes aren't complete unless they have home made syrup to top them off.

Homemade Maple Syrup
1 cup white sugar
1 cup brown sugar
1 1/2 cup water
1/4 cup corn syrup
1 tsp Mapleine maple extract (I get it at my local grocery store pretty cheap)
1 tsp vanilla extract
Mix everything but the extracts in a sauce pan and bring to a boil. (the corn syrup keeps the syrup from crystallizing). Boil for 2 minutes. Remove from heat and add the extracts. Store in a bottle in the fridge.

Tasty Goodness

I tried some net yummyness this week. Bryan is nuts for good bread. My niece Katie posted a recipe for Quick Sour Dough Bread. It was quick, it does taste like sour dough, and it is very good. I added 2 Tablespoons of flax seeds. This changed it enough that I will have to do some tweaking. It was still very good!


I also went to The Black Apple and saw some yummy cupcakes.

The cup cake recipe is here. The butter cream recipe is here. My secret addition (not secret any more is it!?) is the addition of cinnamon. I added 1 tsp of cinnamon to the cupcakes and 1 tsp of cinnamon to the frosting. The cupcakes smelled just like snicker doodles when they came out of the oven. For more cupcake goodness go to 52 Cupcakes.

Pork Tacos

I have to share this recipe with you. My sister, Mary, shared this with our family and I had to give it a try. She calls it Cuban Pork Roast. It is so full of flavor and not too salty. I like that.
For my Tacos, I use only plain corn tortillas. They are so much better for you than the wheat flour ones. I opt for the plain tortillas over fried shells too for health reasons.
What I do is take the corn tortillas and heat them in a cast iron pan (that has NO oil in it). This will soften up the tortillas so they don't just break on you.
Then we layer on the goodies we like,
And they are:
Pork Roast
green onions
chopped tomatoes
cheese
avocados
etc.

Here is the Pork Recipe:
2 to 3 pound boneless pork roast
1 Tablespoon minced garlic (I use 3+ Cloves)
2 Tablespoons minced parsley
1 Tablespoon paprika
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon salt
2 Tablespoons lime juice
2 Tablespoons honey
2 Tablespoons olive oil

Directions:
Mix all together except the pork. Rub the mixture over all surfaces of the pork. Cover well, and refrigerate for 6 to 24 hours.
Roast the pork in the oven at 425 degrees for 30 to 40 minutes. (that seems a little short to me)
My sister (and I did too) put it into the crock pot and cooked in for 10 hours on low.
I then took it out of the pot and shredded it with a fork.

Chopped tomatoes:
Chop up Roma tomatoes
Add some chopped fresh Basil
Add a pinch of salt
Let it set for a couple of minutes to bring all the flavors together. This gave a really nice kick to the tomatoes.

Sesame Noodles

(note the awesome bowl!! Miss Caroline made that for me in pottery class this spring)

I think this is my favorite noodle dish. Bryan has been asking me to make it almost everyday. Today I had to make it to end my NO salt fast. I had to have some tests done and couldn't eat salt for 4 days. I didn't know how much I loved the stuff.
Here is the recipe
Sesame Noodles
4 Tbsp peanut butter (I like it with crunchy)
4 Tbsp soy sauce
Pinch cayenne pepper
3 Tbsp vegetable oil
1 Tbsp toasted sesame oil
1 pound cooked pasta, drained and cooled (I don't salt the water as this dressing is so salty)
3 Tbsp toasted sesame seeds
4 green onions chopped
Whisk peanut butter, soy sauce, cayenne, oil and sesame oil. Add the noodles and toss to coat. Sprinkle with sesame seeds and green onions to garnish.

Happy Easter

There are some things that are just plain happy.

We only get to have this cookie only a couple of times a year and Easter is one of them.
I have to share the recipe.
Sugar Cookies
Mix and set aside:
2 cups white flour
2 cups whole wheat flour
1/2 tsp. cream of tartar
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg* (this is optional)

In a mixing bowl cream:
1 cup butter
1 1/2 cups sugar (I use 1 cup)
1 egg
When this is fluffy, add:
1/2 cup sour cream
1 tsp vanilla
Really mix this well and get it good and fluffy.

Add the dry ingredients and mix well. Refrigerate 2-3 hours.
*(a note on the addition of nutmeg, If you are going to bake these right away, the nutmeg flavor is a little strong so in that case I leave it out. However, if you can leave the dough in the fridge for a couple of days, the nutmeg mellows out and gives these cookies the most wonderful flavor.)

Roll the dough out on a well floured surface to about 1/4" thick. Cut as desired. Place on a baking sheet and bake at 375*F for 10 - 12 minutes. Personally I like these cookies a little brownish. I like them crispy. Just my own personal preference.
Let them cool and frost them with butter cream frosting and add some sprinkles (Mary Kay for cookies, not necessary but so much more cute.)
Butter Cream Frosting
(we put this on very thin so that we can afford to eat just one more cookie)
1 stick butter
3 3/4 cup powdered sugar
3 - 4 Tbsp milk
2 tsp vanilla
food coloring
cream the butter and sugar together, add the vanilla and then the milk until it is nice and fluffy. I divide it into bowls and add a few drops of color and frost away.

Conchas

We have a new Paneria that opened up in Neosho. We are so excited to be able to get Mexican treats not. However, we decided we wanted to try these at home. So I searched Pan Dulce recipes and did some tweaking so I could eat them too. I love Pan Dulce but can't have that many carbs all at once. I have come up with a whole wheat version that I like and my kids like. Even Bryan ate them which was amazing.

Here is my version.

Here is my recipe.
Whole Wheat Conchas
1 stick butter
1 1/2 cups milk
2 1/2 Tbsp yeast
2 tsp salt
6 cups Whole Wheat Flour
2 Tbsp Gluten
1/3 cup honey
2 eggs
2 Tbsp Lemon juice
4 Tbsp Flax Seeds
Melt the butter and milk together in a pan to 110 deg. F.
Mix the yeast, salt, gluten, and 2 cups of the flour with a whisk. Add the milk and butter mix to this and beat well for 2 minuets.
Add the honey, eggs, lemon juice, ground flax seeds, and 1 more cup of the flour. Beat for 2 minutes.
Add the remaining flour until you have a stiff dough. (no more than the total 6 cups - remember that whole wheat flour takes time to absorb the liquid but when it does it can leave a stiff dough very dry, NOT GOOD).
Kneed the dough for about 5 minutes. Cover with a dish cloth and let rise for 1 hour.
Meanwhile, make the topping.
Vanilla and Cinnamon topping
1 cup powdered sugar
3/4 cup butter
1 pinch of salt
1 1/2 cup white flour
3 tsp. ground cinnamon
3 tsp vanilla
Yellow food coloring (optional)
In a med bowl bead the butter and powdered sugar until light and fluffy. Add the flour, vanilla, and salt and mix until it has the consistency of thick paste. Divide the paste into 2 containers. Add the cinnamon to one and the food coloring to the other. (in the bakery they have yellow, pink and brown conchas).

When the dough is done rising, divide it into 16 equal balls and place them on a greased baking sheet (or two). Divide each bowl of topping into 8 balls, and pat them flat. Place the circles of topping onto the balls of dough and pat down lightly. Cut grooves into the topping like a clam shell (thus the name conchas or shells). To do this I used a canning jar lid. Cover them and let them rise for about 45 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 375*F and bake for 20 minutes or until lightly golden brown.

You can make chocolate topping by adding 2 Tbsp of cocoa powder to one of the bowls of mix.
These are great warm or cold and with the wheat and flax seed in there they don't make a bad breakfast. :o)

Behold the Bread

I made this bread in my oven. I am still amazed! And yes, it did taste as good as it looks. So chewy and good.
My friend Jill came to my house for a diaper making day and brought a loaf of this bread and the recipe with her. I am so glad! I love bread and I love making good bread. I have dreamt of making bread that looks like this and now I have. Here is the link to the original recipe. When I made it, I did 4 times the recipe and added 2 Tbsp. gluten. This make 2 nice big loaves. I have tried this in whole wheat and am still working on the recipe to make that work well.
Here is how you do it.
First you mix the dry ingredients.

Then you mix in the water by hand or with a spoon.

This is what it will look like. Very wet and sticky.

Then you cover it with plastic wrap and let it set for 18 hours. It can go up to 24 hours if you need to. This is what it will look like.

Now dump it out onto a floured board and fold in thirds one way and then turn it and turn in thirds again.

Cover with an inverted bowl and let rise for 2 hours. Meanwhile, heat the oven to 450* and heat a lidded dutch oven for 1 hour.
Plop the dough into the hot dutch oven and put the lid on.
Bake for 20 minutes with the lid on. Then remove the lid and bake another 20 minutes.

Pull the loaf out of the oven and let it cool and a rack completely ... if you can. Hee Hee
Then Slice it and enjoy.

Really Big Buns

Do I need to say anything about these buns? I think that photo says it all.
These are by far the best Cinnamon Buns I have ever had or made. I used to be the world's worst cinnamon roll maker and now I have to humbly say that I am a queen!
I don't deserve all the credit though. My good friend Coralee gave me the original recipe that I have played with to come up with this one.
These buns are not as bad as they appear. They are 100% whole wheat. They have honey inside instead of sugar. (that is a sugar glaze on top but not much and the buns are good without it) They also contain fresh ground flax seed. They are also not as big as that photo might suggest. That lovely bun is sitting on a beautiful plate my brother Joe made when I got married. You can seem more of is art work here.
Now for the sharing of this wonderful recipe and my dirty secrets for making health food taste so good.

Coralee's Cinnamon Rolls
2 Tbsp dry yeast (I always throw in an extra 1/2 tbsp for luck)
6 Cups whole wheat flour (I use hard white wheat freshly ground it makes a lighter bun or bread for that matter)
2 Tbsp gluten (this helps make your dough soft and fluffy because the fiber in whole wheat cut the natural gluten strands and this gives the dough a boost)
2 tsp. salt
1/4 cup warm water
1 1/2 cup milk (scalded and cooled)
1/3 cup honey
2 Tbsp lemon juice (this is my secret weapon, lemon juice is a dough conditioner and makes whole wheat fluffy and soft and to die for, you can also use vinegar but I like the flavor of the lemon better.)
1 stick of butter
2 eggs
2 Tbsp ground flax seed (these add good nutrition and fiber)
More honey and some cinnamon
*************************
Dissolve the yeast in the warm water and set aside. In a large mixing bowl, mix the 1/3 cup honey, eggs, milk, lemon juice, butter, flax seed, and 1/2 the flour mixed with the gluten. Beat well and add the yeast mixture. Mix and let rise for about 15 minutes. Add the rest of the flour and kneed the dough for 8-10 minutes. (I just do all of this in my Kitchen aide mixer rather than kneed. The dough is very sticky at this stage.) Cover the dough with a towel and let it rise once or twice. (about 1 hour)
Divide the dough into two pieces. Roll each piece out into a rectangle. Mix some butter and honey together and smear it on the two rectangles and then sprinkle them generously with cinnamon. Roll them up into a long roll. Cut the cinnamon rolls with dental floss for a clean cut without smashing the dough. Each log should yield enough rolls to fill a 9X13" cake pan, or a total of about 32 cinnamon rolls.
You can add raisins and nuts if you wish but my family won't permit that. I live with it.
Place the cut rolls into a buttered pan. Cover them and let them rise for about 15-20 minutes (long enough to pre-heat the oven that we forgot to pre-heat to 375 deg F. ) Bake them for 18-20 minutes or until golden brown.
If you want a glaze on them, add it right when they come out of the oven. My glaze is just a couple of scoops of powdered sugar, a lump of butter and some milk and vanilla.

I have an even more sinful cousin to this Bun,
The Orange Roll
for this you add the zest of one large orange (2-3 Tbsp) to the dough when adding the second amount of flour.
Form into rolls and bake as above (you can do the cinnamon thing or not, I like it so I do the cinnamon)
Frost these with light orange frosting:
2 Tbsp butter
3 Tbsp orange juice concentrate (I use just orange juice if that is all I have)
orange zest
Powdered sugar (enough to make a glaze)
Ice them when they come right out of the oven so it soaks in and make happy gooeyness.

Here is another view of the bun and that lovely plate.

Hanna's Dinner

I think I have mentioned before that I am having the kids fix dinner on Friday nights. This last week was Hannah's turn and she was so excited to get to do such a grown up job. She loves to cook and chose her 2 favorite things to fix, Ramen and Easy Candy. :o)
Here are her recipes/tutorial pictures of how you make these delightful dishes.

Easy Candy

In a Saucepan mix:
2 C sugar

3 Tbsp cocoa powder
½ C milk
½ c butter
Mix and boil for 1-2 minutes.
Remove from heat and add:
1 C peanut butter (your favorite - creamy or crunchy)
1 tsp vanilla
½ tsp salt

Mix until the peanut butter is melted and mixed in.
Add:
3 C rolled oats ( in the past I always used quick oats but have found that Old fashioned oats are just as good and better for you.)
Mix in thoroughly.

Drop by spoon onto wax paper covered cookie sheet. Place in the freezer to firm up.
Now is a good time to make sure it tastes right.

Storage has never been an issue so I guess after they are hard you can put them in an air tight container and store them in the freezer. If you keep them at room temperature they get grainy and I just don’t like that so we do the freezer. However, as I said before they don’t last beyond the day we make them.

This is a Bennion family tradition. It is fast and easy and kids can make it. We made this for family home evening and anytime we needed a chocolate fix. After we moved to Missouri I would make this when my mom and dad would leave me home alone and I would make it fast, put it in a plastic container and keep it under my bed. I would then wash up, dry and put away all the dishes so no one would know. I never told this to my mom until I found out that my Grandma Wood used to do the same thing when she was a kid back in the 1910’s with fudge. Snitching and hiding chocolate has a long history in my family. I think my kids are looking to the day when they can do this too. It is hard to sneak things past a sneaker though.

Ramen a la Hannah
Ingredients:

• 1 package of your favorite Ramen Style noodle soup mix.

Fix this according to the package directions. Tip for better ramen, don't boil very long so the noodles are more firm. They are better and more authentic.

• Add-ons: Things you choose to add to your ramen. Here are some of our favorites:

For a more adult flavor you can also add a drop or two of toasted sesame oil and about 1/4 tsp of soy sauce.

This recipe actually comes from my Sister-in-law Miyuki who is a native of Osaka. She fixed this for us one Sunday and we were surprised at how well we liked Ramen again.

Boiled Pig

pork shoulder roast

1 cup soy sauce

1/2 cup sake (don't have it so use sprite)

3 Tbsp sugar

2 cups water

seasoning:

3 thick green onions cut into long pieces

1 inch chunk of fresh ginger sliced

5 spice mix just a pinch, (this is optional)

************

Stab the meat with a fork and tie it with string. Boil water, add the meat. Boil until white. mix the sauce and boil. Add the boiled meat. Reduce heat to low and simmer 1-2 hours. Turn off heat and leave until cooled down. Slice and serve on Ramen.

Stir Fried vegetables

Chop up favorite vegetables: cabbage, carrots, celery, onions, broccoli, what ever.

Put a little oil in your pan and heat it on high. Add the vegetables and stir quickly to cook. Season with salt and pepper.

National Soup Swap Day

I missed it. January 23 was National Soup Swap Day. You are supposed to get together with your girlfriends, exchange packages of soup and recipes while munching and visiting. Too much fun. You get to go home with about 6 or more soups to go right in your freezer and share the recipes with your friends.
I don't have time to organize things like that (although I am dieing to). So, I will share two soup recipes with you here that we had this week and just love. I am trying really hard to bring some order to the chaos I call a life. As a result, I am trying to plan my meals out at least 2 weeks in advance if not a whole month. To simplify this task I have assigned some nights with certain dish types and Tuesday is soup night. This is working pretty well so far. It made the choice of "What's for Dinner?" so much easier.
Here are the recipes I have to share with you.
South of the Border Soup (found on Kiddley)
Ingredients
olive oil
1 onion chopped
1 clove of garlic chopped
1 stalk of celery chopped
1 can of crushed tomatoes
1 can of beans
1 can of chicken broth
1 small can of corn
Pinch of cayenne pepper (more if you like it hot)
Pinch of cumin
Pinch of dried oregano
Pinch of dried basil
Slices of avocado, grated cheese, sour cream, squeeze of lemon and tortilla chips (about one cut up per person) or you can just cut up corn tortillas like noodles and add them to the soup near the end.
Method
Fry the onion, garlic, celery and spices gently in the oil or butter until onion is soft. Add the tin of tomatoes and cook until bubbling. Add the can of beans and the can of corn. Cook until nice and bubbly and then blend with a hand blender. Add chicken stock and let it heat through.
Serve in big bowls with slices of avocado, cheese, cream and tortilla chips floating on top. You can add a squeeze of lemon juice at the end, but lime would been better.
You could add some bite sized bits of chicken for extra deliciousness but it really isn't missed. Bryan didn't miss the meat. By blending all the ingredients, no one could recognize things they don't like. Bryan hates corn in anything so I didn't tell him it was there. :o) I love hand blenders.

Soup #2
Better than Olive Garden's Sausage and Potato Soup
This in not lo-cal but it is very good. Bryan ordered this yesterday at OG and then said he wanted to fix it for dinner (Thursday is crock pot, casserole, or Bryan fix dinners). My mom has made this and greatly improved the Olive Garden original.
Ingredients
1 pound Italian Sausage
1 onion chipped
1 slice of bacon diced
3 cloves garlic minced
1 tsp. chicken bouillon ( I used more water, so I used more like 6 tsp)
4 cups water (I used a lot more like 2 1/2 qt)
2-3 potatoes, cubed
2 cups kale, rinsed and julienned
1/2 cup heavy cream or a can of Evap milk
1/2 large package Velveeta style cheese cubed

Cook up your sausage. If it is in links, slice them (mom does it that way) or just crumble up whole sausage and brown.
In a large pot, boil water, bouillon, potatoes, and sausage. Saute the onion with the bacon in a frying pan for a bout 10 minutes. Add the garlic and cook. Add this to your pot and bring back to a boil. Boil for about 20 minutes.
Add the cream (or milk) and bring back to a boil. Turn the heat off and add the cheese and stir until it is all melted and incorporated.
Serve with good crusty bread. This soup is very thin but silky because of the cheese.
We LOVE it!
Enjoy!

Pita Bread - Illustrated

I don't know if I have the patience or focus to do a real tutorial but I can illustrate some directions. :o) This is an adaptation of the Pita Bread recipe that my sister Mary gave me a while back. We love it and it is really good for you.

I bake this bread in very hot oven, 450* F. on a baking stone. I got mine when I was a Pampered Chef dealer. I highly recomend theirs. I love mine!

Pita Bread
2 3/4 cup warm water
1/3 cup olive oil
1/3 cup honey
2 tsp salt
2 Tbsp yeast
1/4 cup ground flaxseed
1/4 cup toasted wheat germ
6 to 8 cups whole wheat flour
Preheat the oven to 450 degres F. with your baking stone in there.

Mix the water, oil, honey, salt, yeast flaxseed, wheat germ and 3 cups whole wheat flour. This will be very soupy. Let it rise about 10 minutes. Add 3 cups of four and mix in well. If the dough seems really sicky then add more flour about 1/2 cup at a time. The dough is done when it starts to pull away from the sides of the bowl. You do want it a little sticky. Let the dough rise for about 1 hour or until doubled in size.
Quick lesson about wheat while you let that rise. The bran and germ of the wheat kernal take a long time to absorb water but when they do they really hold onto it. That is why they are so good for you. When making bread with them, they can play tricks on the begginer. If you kneed your flour until you have a nice tight dough and then let it rise, your beautiful dough will become stiff and hard and will make a very dense and dry loaf of bread. This isn't just what you are looking for. However, if you leave your dough just lightly sticky, as the dough rises the bran will contuinue to absorb water and your sticky dough will end up to be a very wonderful, elastic dough, making a beautiful loaf of bread. I have read somewehre that some people soak their wheat flour in their liquid the night before and add their yeast in the morning and a little extra flour to tighten the dough up. I haven't tried that yet but may try it. I think they skoaked their wheat in milk. Well back to the recipe.
Now that your dough has risen you need to divide it into 4 pieces to work with. Divide each of the 4 pieces into 8 balls of dough (one ball at a time).

Now take and work the balls of dough one at a time in plenty of flour. Like this.

Then roll out the dough into your pita shape. The thickness of your dough is up to you. I shoot for 1/4". Here is Hannah the Chief Pita roller at work. She is also explaining the process.

Next you want to put them in the oven on the baking stone. If you don't have one, you can use a cookie sheet but your results may varry.
Bake the pitas for 3 minutes on one side then flip them over and bake for 2 minutes on the other side. (I actually skip that and just do 5-6 minutes on one side only because I like having eyebrows).

When you take them out of the oven, wrap them in a dishtowel to keep the moisture in. This will help them keep soft while cooling off.

Hannah likes her's with fresh strawberry jam. I like mine with butter and honey.
For dinner on Monday, we had fresh pitas right from the oven with Garbonzo Bean Dip. Even Bryan likes this one and that is amazing.

Here is the recipe for that too.
Curried Garbonzo Bean Dip
2 - cans garbonzo beans - drained and rinsed
1/4 cup olive oil
2 Tbsp lemon juice
1/2 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp curry powder
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup chopped cilantro
In a food processor, blend everything except the cilantro until smooth. Add the chopped cilantro and blend until it is pretty unifor in texture.
Serve with Pita bread, pretzels, veggie sticks, crackers ..... etc.... . I love this in a veggie sandwitch with sliced cucumbers, peppers, lettuce, and avacado and if I have it I add a slice for fresh parmasean cheese.
Also, if you don't have cilantro or if you are like me and think it tastes like dish soap, you can use parsley. Bryan in now a cilantro nut so I add it and hide the fact that it has curry because he HATES curry in all forms. It has enough other flavor (namely curry) which hide the cilantro enough for me that it doesn't bother me in this recipe.

Grandma Wood's Brownies

These are a classic. This is the quick dessert my mom always makes when a crowd is coming. It is comfort food for all of us adults when we get together and remember good times with mom. It is a simple recipe and requires no frosting. That was the rule as children. NO FROSTING. Now we can't think of putting the stuff on it now. They are perfect the way they are.
Here is a photo of one that Hannah did frost :o) after doing her self portrait. It looks like mustard on top.

(yes I let her break our hard fast rule)
Grandma Wood's Brownies
In a Mixer beat well:
3 large eggs
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup melted butter
1/2 tsp vanilla

Sift, add, and mix well:
3/4 cup flour
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tap baking powder
1/3 cup cocoa powder
(you can use 2 squares baker's chocolate instead of the cocoa powder - if you do, melt it with the butter)
1 cup chopped walnuts (in really big pieces)

Pour into a buttered 9x13 cake pan. Bake at 350*F for 20 minutes or until done. (you can tell they are done if you touch the center and it springs back)

These are great served warm with vanilla ice cream. They are best after they are cooled off served with a glass of cold milk.

Hot Rolls

My sister-in-law, Holly, visited this week from California and she brought the most wonderful rolls ever! She was kind enough to share the recipe with me.

Here is the recipe:

Mix 1/2 cup warm water with 2 tbsp. yeast and 2 tbsp. sugar. Let this sit for 15 min.

Mix and beat well:

1 cup hot water

1/2 cup sugar

1 1/2 tsp salt

1/2 cup melted butter

3 large eggs

1/4 cup toasted wheat germ (optional)

Add the yeast mixture and blend well.

Add 1-2 cups whole wheat flour and 3-4 cups unbleached white flour. (you want a total of 5-6 cups of flour). The dough will be a little sticky and soft.

Cover and let rise in a warm place for 40 min. Punch down the dough and divide into four sections. Take each section and roll it out on a floured surface to about 1/4 inch thickness in a nice circle shape. Brush the surface with melted butter. (you will need a whole stick of butter to finish the recipe.)

Cut the dough circles into 8 pie pieces with a pizza cutter or a knife. Roll up the wedges starting at the fat end and roll them up like a cresant roll. Cover the rolls and let rise in a warm place for 40 minutes.

Bake the rolls at 375 deg. F. for 15 minutes, or until light brown.

Brush the rolls with melted butter when they come out of the oven.

These are SO good. You will love them.