New Brahm Family Tradition

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Yesterday I decided that I wanted cinnamon rolls for breakfast on Thanksgiving. I'm thinkin' new tradition. I mean, my kids might not actually be mine if they didn't like cinnamon rolls. I'm a fat kid at heart. Really, I am. After my spur of the moment Brahm Family Tradition making, I started scouring the internet for an amazing recipe. Well, I found it, so here I am, after eating my second one, (See, told you- fat kid.) to share the yumminess with you all. I found this recipe, and really only decided on this one because I was curious about the whole potato thing. I mean really, who puts potatoes in cinnamon rolls? Apparently I do. Always. Forever and ever I will put potatoes in my cinnamon rolls. Next time I'm thinking of trying more of a cream cheese type frosting, but the frosting (or glaze, whatever) in this recipe is just peachy. (Or sugary, really.)

Classic Cinnamon Rolls

Ingredients

• Rolls:
• 1 cup mashed potatoes
• 1 cup reserved potato water
• 3/4 cup butter OR margarine
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 1 cup hot water
• 2 envelopes Fleishmann's® Active Dry Yeast
• 1/2 cup warm water (100 to 110 degrees F)
• 2 eggs
• 8 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, or more if needed
•  
• Filling:
• 1/2 cup butter OR margarine, softened
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 1/2 teaspoons Spice Islands® Ground Saigon Cinnamon
•  
• Icing:
• 3 cups powdered sugar
• 6 tablespoons butter OR margarine, softened
• 1 teaspoon Spice Islands® 100% Pure Bourbon Vanilla Extract
• 5 tablespoons milk, or more as needed

Directions

1. Combine potatoes, potato water, butter, sugar, salt and hot water in large mixing bowl. Stir until butter melts; set aside and let cool. Combine yeast and 1/2 cup warm water in small bowl. Let rest 5 minutes. Add eggs, 2 cups flour and yeast mixture to potato mixture. Beat until well mixed. Continue adding flour, 1 cup at a time until soft dough forms.
2. Knead on a lightly floured surface until smooth and elastic (about 4 to 6 minutes), OR knead with electric mixer using dough hook. Place in a greased bowl, turning to coat. Cover.
3. Let rise in a warm, draft free area about 1 hour, until doubled in size. Punch dough down; divide in half.
4. Roll one portion of dough on a lightly floured surface to a 12 x 18-inch rectangle. Spread with half the butter. Combine sugar and cinnamon; sprinkle half of the mixture over surface. Roll up tightly lengthwise, sealing edges. Cut into 12 slices. Place in greased 13 x 9-inch pan. Repeat with remaining dough. Cover.
5. Let rise 30 to 45 minutes until nearly doubled.
6. Bake in preheated 350 degrees F oven for 25 to 30 minutes.
7. Cool for 15 minutes. Combine icing ingredients and drizzle over rolls.
8. Makes 24 rolls.

Footnotes

• 2 medium potatoes yield about 1 cup mashed potatoes.

Nutritional Information 

Amount Per Serving  Calories: 404 | Total Fat: 13.5g | Cholesterol: 51mg

Entry re-do. Or really just "Entry Do."

Since we moved into our house a year ago, I've been wanting to do something with our entryway. You know, like make it look like an actual entryway and not just a short hallway with a door at the end? Plan A was to do board and batten, but I couldn't get away with just doing the batten and painting it white since our walls are textured and that would just look weird. Plan B was beadboard, which I still might do someday, but I wanted something cheaper and easier for now.

A couple weeks ago The Lovely Neighbor Jan and I went to Urban Salvage in downtown Fresno, which is by the way, my new favorite place, and along with a few other things, some of which I have no idea what I'm going to do with, I picked up two sets of shutters. I've been looking for old (cheap) shutters for a year. These, were $2 a pair. SCORE! After bringing them home, I decided that I finally knew what I wanted to do with the entry. Turns out, that one pair of shutters matched the height of an old window I had sitting in a closet. The window used to be in our guest bathroom, but I'd replaced it with something else a little while ago. I painted the window a cream color with some $2 ReStore paint from my paint stash, and then used a dark walnut glaze over it to age it a little bit. The bottom pane used to be a mirror, and the top was just a regular window, but I wanted something a little more functional for an entry so I put the mirror on top, and painted the bottom glass with chalkboard paint. I'd planned on not doing anything with the shutters, but after I got them up, they just didn't look right, so I dry brushed them with some of the leftover grey/blue paint from our bedroom.

The coat hooks I made out of some scrap wood I had in the garage that had come off of a pallet I'd found in a dumpster. In the process of making these I learned how to put in a new blade on a circular saw, and how to use a circular saw. I am woman, hear me roar. Again, I painted them with ReStore paint from my stash. The actual coat hooks I picked up from Lowes for $4 a piece. They're in the doorknob aisle, in case you're ever looking for them. Took me about 20 minutes to figure that one out. Fun fact: The hooks in the bathroom aisle cost 3 times as much as the hooks in the doorknob aisle. (Ok, not fun fact. Just an irritating fact.)

I saw a picture somewhere on Pretty Handy Girl's blog of some similar coat hooks that she'd made and adapted it to what would work for us. Her version had a lot more scrap pieces of wood put together with several hooks. I wanted ours to frame the window, and also have some hooks low enough for the kids to reach by themselves, so I made four individual coat hooks.

The garland came from my bookshelf. I think I've finally found a permanent home for that thing. At least until I decorate for Christmas...

The "Family" thing I found on Pinterest. Well, sort of. They used yarn, I used twine, 'cause I just love twine.

Source: cfabbridesigns.com via Hannah on Pinterest

I wish I had a before picture of the entry, but really, there was nothing, so just close your eyes and pretend like the inside of your eyelids are a light grey/blue color, and you'll get the idea.