Orange Marmalade Rolls

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!

Merry Christmas! This weeks Pioneer Woman Challenge was to make something from her Christmas recipes. I chose to make the Sweet Orange Marmalade Rolls. I made the rolls yesterday and took them down to my parents house so we could eat them Christmas morning. Tadd & I tried a pan of rolls before we left for the ride down to Auburn; these are a big pan of ooey gooey goodness!! These rolls are very easy to make and don't require a lot of attention. The marmalade was a nice change from regular cinnamon rolls.

Orange Marmalade Rolls

(Printable Recipe)

FOR ROLLS:
½ whole Recipe Of "Cinnamon Roll Dough"
8 Tablespoons Orange Marmalade
½ cups Melted Butter
1 cup Brown Sugar
½ teaspoons Kosher Salt

ORANGE GLAZE:
2 pounds Powdered Sugar
6 Tablespoons Melted Butter
½ cups Milk
½ cups Orange Juice
1 dash(es) Salt

Roll out dough into a long rectangle. Spread marmalade over the top. Pour on butter, and then sprinkle on the brown sugar evenly. Sprinkle with salt.

Beginning at the long side farthest from you, roll the dough in a long roll toward you; begin careful to keep it tucked tightly. Pinch edge to seal.

Cut rolls into 1 to 1 1/2 inch rolls and place into buttered pans. Allow to rise for at least 20 minutes.

http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2009/04/orange-marmalade-rolls/

Cheese Ball

This is a "must have" for our Christmas gathering with Tadd's family. His father loves it! He barely sits down before he digs into this cheese ball. It is really simple to make and it tastes great. The flavor combination of the cheese and worcestershire works perfectly. It is one of my favorite foods at the holidays.

Cheese Ball

(Printable Recipe)

1 (8 oz) package cream cheese, softened

1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

2 tsp worcestershire sauce

1 tsp lemon juice

ground red pepper (to taste)

Combine all ingredients and mix until combined. Cover in plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight. Form into a ball and roll in a combination of paprika, chili powder and parsley. Serve with crackers.

Almond Toffee Oatmeal Cookies

These cookies are the BOMB! I made these for my Christmas cookie platter this year and it was everyone's new favorite cookie. The toffee and almond flavor is the star of this cookie. I forget that this is an oatmeal cookie when I am eating it. I am glad I gave so many of these away. I could have eaten all these cookies myself. The toffee melted all through the cookie making them irresistible!

Almond Toffee Oatmeal Cookies

(Printable Recipe)

1 cup butter, softened
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
2 tsp vanilla
2 tsp almond extract
1/2 tsp salt (omit if using salted butter)
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1 1/2 cups flour
1 1/2 cups oatmeal
3/4 cup toffee bits
3/4 cup sliced almonds

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Combine butter and sugar in mixing bowl. Beat until light and fluffy, about 2-3 minutes. Add in egg, vanilla, and almond extract. Beat until combined. Slowly add in the flour, baking powder and baking soda. Stir in the oats, toffee bits, and almonds.

Scoop dough into balls and place on a cookie sheet lined with parchment. Bake for 10-12 minutes. Allow to cool for three minutes on the cookie sheet. Move to a cooling rack.

Makes 4 dozen cookies

Pecan Tarts

This is one of Tadd's favorite Christmas cookies. He loves to eat these right out of the oven when they are warm. These take a little work but it is worth it. The cinnamon and cream cheese tart shells are the best. It really makes these little pies stand out.

Pecan Tarts
adapted from Southern Living
(Printable Recipe)

Shells:
6 oz cream cheese, softened
2/3 cup butter, softened
2 cups flour
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon

Beat cream cheese and butter at medium speed of an electric mixer until creamy. Gradually add flour and cinnamon, beating at low speed just until ingredients are blended. Wrap dough in wax paper, and chill 2 hours.

Divide dough in half. Divide each half of dough into 24 balls. Place in lightly greased miniature muffin pans, shaping each into a shell.

Filling:
3/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1/4 cup karo syrup
1 tablespoon butter or margarine, melted
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 large egg, lightly beaten
3/4 cup finely chopped pecans, toasted

Combine first 5 ingredients in a small mixing bowl; beat at medium speed of an electric mixer until blended. Stir in pecans. Spoon filling evenly into pastry shells.

Bake at 325° for 25 minutes or until set. Cool slightly. Remove from pans, and cool completely on a wire rack.

Meow Monday

Herbed Butter

This is such a simple idea that I can't believe I've never done this before! I saw this over on Gourmet Mom on the Go and decided to try it for Tadd's family Christmas. I used pesto, but you can use anything (honey, rosemary, chili powder and lime juice, etc). These looks so fancy, but they are so easy! Try it for your holiday meal this week!

Herbed Butter

adaped from Gourmet Mom-on-theGo
(Printable Recipe)

½ c (one stick) butter, softened

1-2 Tbsp pesto

Mix all ingredients with electric mixer until blended.

Spoon into a pastry bag with a large star tip (I use the Pampered Chef Easy Accent Decorator) or spoon into a ziploc, bagsnip an end off, and you can pipe out small circles or shapes.

Pipe out flowers onto wax paper, return to fridge to harden. Remove just before serving and set on individual plates or a serving platter.

Christmas Cakes

It never really feels like Christmas until I start baking. I love to be in the kitchen baking cookies and listening to Christmas music. My favorite thing to bake is pound cakes. I have been using Southern Living's Vanilla Butter Cake for the past few years. It is an amazing cake - the vanilla smells so good when it is baking. I use a Christmas Tree Bundt pan and ice the tops of the trees, so it looks like snow. I also have monogramed boxes (from BakingBoxes.com) and a Happy Holidays embosser (from Williams-Sonoma). It makes a great gift! I made three cakes this week and I am making three more on Sunday.

Macaroni Beef Saute

This isn't fancy, but it is a great weeknight meal. I had some tomato juice leftover from making Italian Pot Roast earlier this week and I thought this would be a good way to use it up. My mom made a dish very similar to this when I was growing up. I changed the recipe to suit our tastes (added the Italian Seasoning, basil and red pepper flakes) and it turned out great. I will definitely be making this again - probably after we eat pot roast again.

Macaroni Beef Saute
(Printable Recipe)

1 lb ground beef
1 cup uncooked elbow macaroni
2 tsp minced onion flakes
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 3/4 cups tomato juice
1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp pepper

2 tsp basil

1 tsp Italian Seasoning

1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce

parmesan cheese for topping

Saute beef, macaroni, onion, garlic in skillet until macaroni turns slightly yellow. Drain; add tomato juice and seasonings. Bring to boil. Cover and simmer 20 minutes. Then uncover and simmer until sauce is reduced to the way you like it. Sprinkle parmesan cheese over pasta and enjoy!