And The Angels Sang Praises

Actually it was my mom and dad and granny. Ok- actually it was me and James, and all the kidlets and my mom and dad and grandma. We sang praises and Hallelujah to the orange rolls we had for Easter Dinner. They were absolutely one of the best things I've ever made in my short legged life. I can't tell you exactly what is was that made them so wonderful. It could have been the new bread recipe, or the fact that my yeast was really fresh, or maybe it was the fact that it was Easter and everything should be perfect on that day. I don't know, but these rolls were so dang good!!

My dad even made the comment that my sister Hollie would have been proud of these rolls. She's the roll queen, and I'm always trying to make mine taste like Hollie's. I may have done it last Sunday. Orange Rolls are the roll of choice at any fancy Clawson-Garner occasion. If there are orange rolls on the table then it must be a special day. I have always loved the way my mom would make these rolls. Instead of a standard roll she would roll the dough out as if she was making a cinnamon roll and top it with butter and then a mixture of white sugar and orange zest. She would then carefully roll the log up and cut it into small c-rolls. Then she would place each roll in a greased muffin tin, let rise, and then bake. Nothing really out of the ordinary, just a perfect little package of orange goodness. When the rolls are hot out of the oven you drizzle a glaze of orange juice, powdered sugar, and a bit of almond extract. YUMMM! My dad is usually the tester to make sure that the rolls aren't poison, but this last Sunday they were a little late, and I had to take one for the team. It was dangerous I know, but I survived and ended up eating about 20 of these babies by the end of the night. The whole meal was delish. I'll have to write about the Potato Fennel and Leek Gratin next or the Creme Brulee Pie . James said the Potato Gratin was amazing and my granny wants me to make the Creme Brulee Pie for everyone at her funeral. She said no Funeral Potatoes, just Creme Brulee Pie. It's her fave. That's why I made it:) But I'm counting everything I'm eating right now. My butts growing a mind of it's own so I must stop this food lust. One neighbor told me he gains weight just reading my blog. Oh well. Sorry Stan, but you really must have Orange Rolls at your next fancy occasion. They'll make your thighs twitch!!

Yummy Bread Recipe

(This is the new recipe I used. When I smell this bread it smells likes Maddox rolls. Now that is a good thing. My kids love me to make this into loaves and have it hot with jam. This recipe made 3 dozen orange rolls. I probably could have made about 3 1/2 dozen since they were so dang big and puffy. It also made 2 big loaves of bread. (9x5 pans) I think it would be great as cinnamon rolls too.)

3 cups warm water

3 tablespoons active dry yeast

3 teaspoons salt

4 tablespoons vegetable oil

1/2 cup white sugar

8 cups bread flour

Directions

In a large bowl, combine warm water, yeast, salt, oil, sugar, and 4 cups flour. Mix thoroughly, and let sponge rise until doubled in size.

Gradually add about 4 cups flour, kneading until smooth. Place dough in a greased bowl, and turn several times to coat. Cover with a damp cloth. Allow to rise until doubled.

Punch down the dough, let it rest a few minutes. Divide dough into three equal parts. Shape into loaves, and place in three 8 1/2 x 4 1/2 inch greased bread pans. Let rise until almost doubled.

Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 35 to 45 minutes. The loaves may need to be covered for the last few minutes with foil to prevent excess browning.

Orange Rolls

After the dough has risen I divided the dough into 3 balls. Roll each one out into a thin rectangle and top with melted butter, white sugar, and orange zest. I combine the sugar and orange zest before I place it on the dough. Roll up as for a cinnamon roll and cut into 12 pieces. Place each piece in a greased muffin tin and cover with a towel until almost double. Bake until puffy and browned. I didn't take note of how long that was. I just checked until they were perfect. When the rolls are done immediately drizzle the orange glaze over the top. You can lick up the drips on the counter when nobody is looking. Enjoy with dinner.

Orange Glaze

Juice from the orange you zested

powdered sugar

almond extract

milk if necessary for thinning