Entries for the 2010 holiday recipe contest are rolling in, but there’s still room for more. The deadline for getting them to me is just a couple of weeks away: Friday, Oct. 22. I’m in need of recipes in each of the five categories: appetizers, breads, side dishes, entrees and desserts. The winner in each category, to be picked by area chefs, will receive a $100 grocery gift certificate. So send your recipes in ASAP to abraly@timesfreepress.com.
NEW ON THE MARKET … From time to time I’ll serve Shake ‘n Bake pork chops to my husband for dinner. He loves them for their flavor. I love them because they’re so simple. Now, the company has come out with a new taste: Buffalo chicken. You can coat any cut of chicken with the mixture in the little packets, but I used chicken tenders and served them with blue cheese dressing and celery sticks for a game-time snack recently. No, they weren’t as good as tasty fried wings in Buffalo sauce, but they were good. And talk about simple!
SOUTHERN LIVING has long been a place where cooks can find tried-and-true recipes, and a new cookbook continues that tradition. Released Tuesday, “1,001 Ways To Cook Southern” ($41.95, Oxmoor House, 928 pages) celebrates our multifaceted culinary heritage. The mouthwatering recipes and gorgeous color photographs will have you turning the pages for more.
Here’s a sweet example.
Sweet Potato Cinnamon Rolls
You can make the dough the night before and let it rise overnight in the refrigerator. To prevent glaze from spilling over in the oven, put a baking sheet lined with aluminum foil on the rack below the pan while baking.
2 (1/4-ounce) envelopes dry active yeast
1/2 cup warm (100 F-110 F) water
1 teaspoon sugar
5 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup mashed sweet potatoes
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup melted butter
2 tablespoons orange zest
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
Filling:
3/4 cup melted butter
2 cups firmly packed light brown sugar
1 cup chopped toasted pecans
2 tablespoons ground cinnamon
Glaze:
1 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
1/3 cup light corn syrup
1/4 cup butter
1/2 cup whipping cream
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Pulse first three ingredients in a large-capacity (11-cup) food processor 4 times or just until combined, using the metal blade. Remove metal blade, scraping yeast mixture into food processor bowl. Let stand 5 minutes.
Insert short plastic dough blade; add 1/2 cup flour to processor bowl and process 2 minutes. Add mashed sweet potatoes, next 7 ingredients and 4 cups flour; process 2 minutes. Add remaining 1 cup flour and process 30 seconds or until a dough forms, coming together to hold a shape. Dough will be sticky.
Place dough in a large bowl coated with cooking spray. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place (85 F), free from drafts, 1 to 1 1/2 hours or until doubled in bulk. Punch down dough. Turn dough out onto a well-floured surface and roll into an 18- by 10-inch rectangle. Spread evenly with filling, leaving a 1-inch border. Roll up dough jellyroll fashion, starting at one long side. Cut into 12 (1 1/2-inch) slices and arrange in a lightly greased, 13- by 9-inch baking pan. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise in warm (85 F) area free from drafts, for 30 minutes.
Heat oven to 400 F. Bake rolls for 10 minutes. Remove rolls from oven; drizzle about 1/2 cup glaze slowly over rolls, starting at 1 edge of pan, drizzling in a circular pattern; let glaze soak in. Repeat procedure with remaining glaze. Bake rolls 7-10 minutes longer or until lightly browned and a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Remove rolls from oven and invert on aluminum-foil-lined baking sheet. Invert again, glaze side up, onto a serving platter. Let cool 20-30 minutes. Serve warm.
For glaze: Stir together all ingredients until well blended.
For filling: Stir together sugar, corn syrup and butter in a small saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a light boil, stirring constantly. Remove from heat and stir in cream and milk.