Cuz there aren't enough pumpkin recipes floating around right now

Ya know what makes mine better? It uses donuts. Donuts make everything better, right? Or is that butter? Actually, I'm not a huge donut fan, but I'll tell ya what I am a fan of, using up leftovers.

I had gotten the kids donuts one Saturday as a treat. I snuck out before they got up and got a dozen of the little gems. Problem being, our family can't finish a dozen donuts. Or maybe it's that I don't want them to? Anyway, whatever. I found myself with 4 leftover donuts.

Those donuts stared me down for the better part of the day. I picked them up to throw them away but stopped. On the counter I saw 4 newly purchased cans of pumpkin puree (we loves us some pumpkin in our house. Also HOO-RAY for the pumpkin shortage being over) and the wheels a started turnin' in the ol' noodle.

So, I cut them upI whipped up yer basic custard for the bread pudding, with the addition of some pumpkin puree and pumpkin pie spices.
I decided on individual ramekins for portion control. Ok, that's a lie. I did that because of my brand spankin' new, colorful ramekins that I got at Target in the Dollar Spot. Total steal.

Anyway, I placed the ramekins in a roasting pan and filled them with the cubed bread 4 donuts is not enough for this recipe. Probably 6-8 would be better. I ended up with a lot of extra custard, which I just baked off on it's own and was fabulous on its own!

Next, I poured the custard over the donuts till it was about half an inch below the rim. Smoosh the donuts down if you'd like. Allow it to set and soak up all that custardy goodness for about 15 minutes.

Preheat your oven to 350 while they soak. Place your pan with the ramekins in it on the middle wrack. Pour HOT water into the pan until it is about halfway up the ramekins. Fancy work alert: this is called a Bain Marie or a water bath.

But MammaDucky, why do I need to do that? Because I said so, that's why! Wait, sorry, you're not my children. You want to do this because it promotes even baking and gives the custards a silky texture. Don't skip it.

Mine took 25 minutes to reach that light golden brown color on top and a toothpick inserted into the center came out clean. CAREFULLY remove from the oven! That water will be hot!

Aren't they pretty?!

They were pretty yummy too!

Yep, did that.Ooops! All gone!!Mission Accomplished. Donut box empty.

Pumpkin Bread Pudding

3 large eggs

3/4 Cup canned pumpkin (plain, not pumpkin pie mix)

1/2 Cup milk

1 Cup heavy cream

3/4 Cup brown sugar, packed

1 tsp pumpkin pie spice (don't have it? combine 1/2 tsp cinnamon, 1/4 tsp ground ginger, 1/8 tsp freshly ground nutmeg & 1/8 tsp allspice)

6-8 donuts, day old

or you can opt for the standard baguette, Ciabatta loaf or the golden child of bread puddings, croissant ~le sigh.
Combine the first 6 ingredients in a bowl. Cut up the bread/donuts and place in greased ramekins or an 8 inch baking dish. Pour custard over the top and allow to soak for 15 minutes. Place break pudding in a larger dish and pour hot water into the larger dish. Try to aim for the water equalling the custard in the smaller dish (or halfway). Place dish on middle wrack in a pre-heated 350 degree oven. For the 8 inch dish, bake for approximately 45 minutes. Ramekins, 25 minutes. Bake until light golden brown and toothpick inserted into center comes out clean.

Eat.

Carbs are my friend

I love bread.

No, seriously, I love bread. Those no-carb/low-carb diets would never work for me...ever.

If I could live off of bread alone, I probably would.

I go to the club stores and buy the humongous packages of yeast. Yeah, I'm that girl.

I've previously discussed my dislike for the Thanksgiving tradition that has been forced upon me. The food is gross as it is always re-heated, store bought food (including the turkey). The one redeeming thing for this meal has always been the rolls. Sweet jebus they are good. I knew better than to assume they were homemade, so I asked our hostess what brand they were.

"Sister Schubert," she replied. Score! I all but ran to the store to buy a bag. Crap man, they were pricey, but oh so worth it.

As I devoured the first bag I never dreamed that I could successfully recreate these beauties!

Of course I first searched the Internet for copycat recipes. I found one. It was good, but not spot on. So I tweaked it a bit and hit the jackpot. I made them for Christmas dinner when my family was in town. My sister took one bite and new exactly what they were. She has worked in the restaurant business off and on most of her life. A restaurant she had worked in used Sister Schubert rolls as their house rolls. She squealed with delight that we now possessed the recipe. She ate 6 rolls....no joke.

This recipe will make A LOT of rolls. Feel free to cut it down or freeze some dough, or bake the rolls and freeze some.

Best Rolls. Eat All Day (or B.R.E.A.D)

8 tsp. yeast (NOT rapid rise yeast!!!)

7 tsp. sugar

1 cup warm water

1/2 cup sugar

6 cups bread flour

1 stick butter

1/4 cup oil

1 egg

1 cup hot water

2 tsp. salt

This recipe is written for a standing mixer. If ya don't have one, just mix up and knead like you would normally do with any bread! Combine yeast, sugar and one cup warm water in a 2 -cup large bowl or measuring cup (this makes it easier to see when it is actually at two cups). Stir to dissolve and let rise until it equals 2 cups. In large mixing bowl, add 1/2 cup sugar,oil and salt. Mix well . Add egg, mix well. Add the one cup of hot water, and yeast mixture. Mix well. Slowly add flour and keep it kneading on low speed until the ball of dough is smooth and rebounds when you poke your finger into it. Take out the dough, spray bowl with Pam, put dough back in bowl and spray dough with Pam as well. Cover and let rise til double in a draft-free, warm place (I turn my oven light on and leave it in there).

Punch down dough and work down. Tear off balls (he he, I said balls) of dough that are about one to two inches in diameter. Place on greased pan. Cover and allow to rise until doubled in size. Bake in preheated 400* oven on LOWEST wrack. Bake until they just start to get a hint of color. You may think they aren't done, but trust me, if you wait till they're golden brown, they'll lose the amazing texture. Brush with melted butter. The amazing part is they are still super tender and yummy cold/room temp and for several days after!!

After rolling a crap ton of individual hunks of dough into balls, I was burnt out and running out of baking sheets. I opted to throw some of the balls (tee-hee) into a greased loaf pan, creating a pull apart loaf. Then, I got even lazier and just made a plain old loaf. All was good.

Cool! Double Prizes!!

Quick! What movie is that from?!?!?!? Alas dear readers, the prize is not two toys stuck together from a Claw machine, but a second post on this Friday!

The Xanax clicked in and I'm raring to go. Ok, that's lie. I didn't take any Xanax. But I did take a shot of the Jack Daniel's sitting in the board room. Mwuahahahahaa!!!

On with the show!

Oooooo, fresh, warm bread. Is there anything better? Yes there is, but I'm not that kind of blog.

I made this bread the other day at work. Yes, I cook at work. About a couple of times a week. See, one of my bosses lives adjoining to our office and shop. She's a wealthy, kinda snobbish, little on the lazy side woman in her 60's. She doesn't do anything for herself. She pays people to do things for her. She doesn't even shop for her own clothes entirely. The owners of her favorite boutique call her when their new lines come in and tell her they have some items she would love. When this owner goes "to market", she always has her eyes open for clothes for Fifi. Yeah, her name is even a tad snobbish.

Where was I going with this? Oh yeah. She pays me to cook a few meals for her and her hubby every week. Few bonuses for me: she buys all the food and always buys enough for me to take home half; I get to cook good meals for my family without having to rush it; and I get to get out of the office and into my zen of cooking.

I made this Honey Wheat Bread, you know, to be healthier.

Honey Wheat Bread

1pkg active dry yeast

2 1/2 C warm water

1/4 cup honey
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 stick softened butter
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups wheat flour
1 1/2 cups rolled oats
4 cups bread flour

Directions: proof the yeast in the warm water. Let set till creamy (10-ish mins). I added the honey to the yeast mixture after it had proofed. Fed the yeast a bit, as my Dad would say.

In a separate bowl, combine all the dry ingredients. With your hands (remove rings, unless you like picking dough out of the prongs), mix in the softened butter. Create a well in the center and pour in the yeast mixture.
Keep working it with your hands in the bowl till it comes together as a ball. Transfer to a floured surface and knead it for about 7 minutes. **For all of you lucky folks that have stand mixers that actually work, you can go ahead and let the machine to the work for you.
You'll know your dough has been kneaded enough when the dough springs back if you press your finger into it.
Place is well oiled bowl and cover. Allow to rise in warm, dry place until doubled in size, about 1 1/2 hrs.

Punch down the dough (release your aggressions on that poor dough) and form into loaves. Slap 'em in a couple of loaf pans (or bake on a baking stone). Let them rise again. I did another 1 1/2.

Bake in a preheated 375 degree oven for 30 mins. Ovens vary so watch it. You want your crust to have a nice golden hue. A good way to tell if it's done in the center is to give it a good tap with your fingers. It should sound kinda hollow. Pull her out of the oven and wait for the crowds to gather.

It never hurts to rub butter on the hot crust. The kids and I sat and stared at the bread until it was cool enough for me to handle and cut. So yummy!