When in doubt, bake bread

It was one of THOSE DAYS.

More leaves on the ground than on the trees.

A cold front that came in overnight, along with some rain.

Snow possible in the evening.

You know, that type of November day when you just want to lay in bed all day with a good book, only emerging for a cup of tea and a muffin.



But no such luck... there are boys to be played with and fed!

So I made up a batch of potato rolls during Jameson's nap, and then we headed outside to make a leaf pile. No matter what the weather, these guys know how to make it fun.

Alex requested to be buried over and over and over. Then he requested to sleep in the leaf pile tonight, claiming it to be "quite cozy". To his great disappointment, I nixed that option. When we had all had enough, I shuffled the boys in, hooked them up with some educational websites, and put those rolls in to bake.

About fifteen minutes later, I brought the boys some hot rolls drizzled in honey, and then settled down for a few quiet moments with my book and my own plate of rolls. No sooner than I had sat down---and they were asked for more. They each ate EIGHT of these rolls before I had that moment to sit down and enjoy a few of my own. (of course, by then, Jameson was done with the computer and needed some attention... so it goes!)

These rolls are the result of quite a lot of recipe tampering. The original recipe was made with all white flour, lots of shortening or butter, white sugar... you get the idea. I've slowly experimented and found what I think to be a pretty awesome recipe.

The boys thinks so too, as evident by a whole pan of rolls disappearing between the three of us!

My next step is to figure out how to make it without the eggs, so it can be both dairy-free and egg-free when we make these into cinnamon rolls at Christmas. Then my nephew Benjamin can enjoy them too.

Potato bread

1 1/2 cups warm water

1 pkg active dry yeast

1/4 to 1/2 cup honey

2/3 cup Spectrum Organic all-vegetable shortening (or butter, or regular shortening)

2 eggs

1 cup lukewarm mashed potatoes (I usually don't have any ready, so I microwave a potato or two, scoop out the insides and mash them up with a little bit of liquid)

7-7 1/2 cups flour (I used to mix half wheat/half white... then I discovered King Arthur's flour WHITE whole wheat flour... still whole wheat but a softer texture. I mix 4+ cups of that and the rest normal white flour)

Using a mixer, dissolve the yeast in the water. Then stir in honey, shortening, eggs and potatoes. Slowly mix in flour until the dough sticks to the mixer. Then transfer it to the counter, adding more flour and kneading until your stress level starts to dip. (and, oh yeah, the dough isn't sticky)

At this point, you can put it in a greased bowl, cover with a towel, and put in the refrigerator if you aren't going to make it right away.

Otherwise, shape it into small rolls and put in a lightly greased pan. This will make several pans worth. The rolls should be formed to be about 1.5 or 2 inches in diameter because they rise quite a lot. You can also make a loaf of bread out of this--but for some reason my kids just like the rolls better. (if you want to make your 7 year old extremely happy, roll out into a big rectangle--about 15x9. Spread with 2 Tablespoon butter (or butter substitute) and then sprinkle with 1/2 cup sugar and 2 teaspoons cinnamon. Roll up the rectangle from the longest side and then cut it in one-inch slices. Put the slices in a lightly greased pan.).

Leave in a warm place, cover with a towel, and let rise for an hour or two. You can also put the shaped rolls in your refrigerator and take out later to rise.

Bake rolls for 12-15 minutes in a 400 degree oven. Bake cinnamon rolls for 20-25 minutes in a 375 degree oven.

Enjoy.