Clover Orange Rolls

These orange rolls are delicious and incredibly easy! I make these for parties, sunday dinners, and treats for my neighbors.  You are going to love them on a special ocanssion, especially when you don't have a lot of time.

  

Ingredients

18 Rhodes Dinner Rolls, thawed but still cold

Zest from 2 medium sized Oranges

1/2 C. Sugar

1/4 C. Butter, melted

Icing Ingredients

1 C. Powdered Sugar

1 Tbs. Butter, melted

1/2 tsp. Vanilla

3 Tbs. freshly Squeezed Orange Juice

Directions

Spray one 12 hole muffin tin with nonstick cooking spray.

Combine sugar, zest, and 1/4 C. melted butter in a bowl.  Mix well. 

Cut each roll in half, and dip the entire 1/2 of each roll into the sugar mixture.  Then place 3 halves (so 1 1/2 rolls) into each muffin hole.  Cover with plastic (not tight just loosely) and let rise until they have doubled in size.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and bake on the center rack for 10-12 minutes, until golden on top.

Cool the pan with the rolls still inside until slightly cool.  Then frost while they are still in the muffin pan.  Let the glaze harden a bit and eat!

For the Icing

Mix powdered sugar, butter, vanilla, and orange juice, into a bowl.  With a pastry brush, over each of the rolls while they are warm.  Sprinkle with a little more zest from an orange to finish off, and enjoy!

Banana Bread

Today was baking day at the Strasburg house.  I had 7 bananas that had gotten REALLY ripe (okay completely brown), and I have been promising a guy in my church my Cinnamon Rolls since January.  So as I sit typing this, my cinnamon rolls are rising and I'm eating a slice of Banana Bread slathered in butter.  I just got asked for my Banana Bread recipe and I thought for sure I had put it on here, and I haven't.  Today is all of your lucky day because I am sharing my "Highland Famous" (Highland is where I live) Banana Bread.  :)  I think I have given a loaf to at least 1/2 of my ward.  It's kind of my go to treat when I want to bake something but don't have a lot of time.  I also always buy way too many bananas and so it's always available.  

Before I give you the recipe, just thought I would share that you should never throw your bananas away.  If they are getting old, but you're not ready to use them; throw them in the freezer and then you'll always have them available.  Plus, they won't ever go to waste!  You can freeze them for up to 3 months!  Okay, here's the recipe!

Ingredients

1 1/2 C. Flour

1 cube Butter (YES, it has to be butter!), melted

Dash of Salt

1 C. Sugar

1 tsp. Baking Soda

3 ripe Bananas, mashed

1 Egg, beaten

Directions

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.

Mash your 3 bananas.  In your mixer combine flour, salt, baking soda, and sugar.  Mix with your bananas until well combined.  Add in your egg, and mix again.  Then pour in your melted cube of butter. Mix well.

Line a loaf pan with parchment paper and lightly spray the parchment paper with nonstick cooking spray.

Bake for 1 hour and 5-15 minutes (just depends on your oven).

Tips: I always check my bread after 1 hour just to see how much longer it will need.  I stick a toothpick in the middle and then I normally cook it for 5 more minutes.  Then I turn on the broiler and let it crusty the top of the bread for just about a minute or less.  I take the bread out and place it on a cooling rack. You can serve it warm or cold but you HAVE to use Butter  :)  Enjoy!

Crock Pot Shepherd's Pie

As I was digging through the pantry and freezer to see what I had to work with for dinner the other day I decided upon Shepherds Pie.  The only problem is that I didn't have time to make it, so the crock pot came to m ind.  I had so many errands that day, that I knew if I threw it all in there, that I would have a few minutes later to do the potatoes, so this recipe was born, and man am I happy about it!

Ingredients

1 lb. Mild Ground Sausage

1/2 lb. Ground Turkey Sausage (I just pulled the meat out of the casings)

4-5 whole carrots, peeled and diced

1 can beans or peas, drained

1 can corn, drained

6-8 small Yukon Gold Potatoes Whole

3 cubes Beef bouillon
1 1/2 cups water

1 handful of dried parsley, oregano, and basil

1/3 c. dried Onion

2 Tbs. seasoning salt

Pepper to taste

1 cube butter

1-2 cups Sharp Cheddar Cheese

a Few Tbs. Milk

Directions
Spray the bottom of the crock pot with cooking spray. Crumble up the meat in your hands and lay on the bottom (You can cook yours before, but I didn't have time so I didn't.) Spread your onions and herbs/seasonings over your meat.

Dump the vegetables on top of that, and then pour the water and the bouillon cubes in.  Set on low and let cook for 6 hours.

2 hours before it's done, poke holes in the potatoes with a fork, and then layer them on top of the meat dish in the juices.  Let them cook for about 1 hour to 1 1/2 hours.  You just want them soft enough to mash.  Take them out, cut into chunks, add a cube of butter and some milk and mash to your liking.

Then slowly suck up some of the juices (the oily juice on top of the meat) and discard. (Your just trying to remove some of the grease from the meat cooking in the crock pot and not beforehand.  If you cooked the meat before you can skip this step.)

Then layer your mashed potatoes on top and sprinkle with the cheddar cheese.  Put the lid back on and let the cheese melt.  Once the cheese has melted it's ready to serve!  Enjoy!