Mom's Cinnamon Rolls. If there is anything on earth that speaks Home Sweet Home more to the human heart than homemade cinnamon rolls, I would love to know what it is. To celebrate moving into my new home, and Mother's Day which has just passed, I thought I would bake my mom's cinnamon rolls.
And not only would I bake them but I would small batch them. When seven goes down to two and then down to one, small-batching only makes sense. Even so I ended up with six nice largish rolls.
Mom's Cinnamon Rolls are not cinnamon rolls in the common sense of the word. These are easy cinnamon rolls and there is no yeast involved.
Instead they are a fluffy tender biscuit type of cinnamon roll. Flaky, rich and delicious. In all honesty I would have to say that I LOVE these cinnamon rolls better than any commercial cinnamon roll you can buy out there, including the big namers.
I have to say that those ones out there always disappoint me. They never ever come up to the eating pleasure of my mom's rolls. Plus they are very quick and easy to make.
So easy that when my children were growing up we often baked a full size recipe of them for a night treat for them to enjoy while watching TV before bed. Truth there.
These are the cinnamon rolls I grew up on and the only ones which truly bring me joy. Of course I have fancied them up a bit.
Mom only ever made very basic ones. Biscuit dough, rolled out, spread with butter, brown sugar and cinnamon, rolled up, sliced and baked.
I vary on that theme in that I don't roll them out quite as thin as she did. I also like to cream together the butter, brown sugar and cinnamon for the filling.
I probably use a bit more of everything for the filling also. When it comes to cooking I never like to hold back. Basically I like to add an edge to everything without actually going way over the top.
My children always liked it when I added a layer of raisins and nuts to them. I do confess that is a very delicious route to take. Sometimes I even added chocolate chips.
You would not believe how delicious chocolate chips and cinnamon are together. Why, they go together just like peas and carrots! Yum yum!!
I also like to add a delicious honey butter glaze. Sometimes I will add a bit of cinnamon to the glaze as well, which really adds loads of lush cinnamon flavor.
Today I left cinnamon out from the glaze and I cut the recipe down to only six delicious rolls. I gave two to my sister for Dan, and I have frozen two and I enjoyed one with my afternoon break.
Not to brag or anything, but I do believe that this batch turned out better than ever. If you are adverse to using shortening, by all means use butter in it's place. They will be even richer.
Flakier, moreish even. But then again, even with shortening they are basically pretty moreish. You can see from the photos just how flaky and buttery they are.
With just the right amount of cinnamon sugar/buttery filling. I have so many happy memories tied up in these.
One of my earliest memories is of mom making these. I remember one time her friend Irene was visiting for the weekend with her little boy, I think both of our dads had gone hunting for the weekend. Irene decided to make these cinnamon rolls.
This is a very Nova Scotian way of making Cinnamon rolls. Mom and Irene were both Nova Scotia girls, living with their Military husbands in Manitoba, far, far away from home. They both made Cinnamon rolls in the same way
Deliciously, from biscuit dough.
They had met each other at business college and then went on to work together for the Dept. of Agriculture in Truro before each marrying and going their separate ways.
Our oven caught on fire that particular night, and I was sent out to call the fire department. We did not have a telephone in our home. I then wait at the phone box for the truck to come so I could point them in the right direction.
I think I was all of six or seven years old. It was a flurry of activity and much excitement I have to say. We never did get to eat cinnamon rolls that night.
You might could have called them Cajun style cinnamon rolls. Blackened. haha
Its funny the things which stick in your mind. Mom and Irene stayed friends for all of their lives. In fact Irene was just living down the road from here until a few years ago now. I am not sure if she is still alive or not.
As I said, I also used to make these for my own children, very much to their delight. They could scarf down a double recipe in no time at all.
Five kids, three of them boys, will do that to just about anything that is good to eat!! They all also now make these same rolls for their own children, also very much to the delight of my grandchildren.
Oh how I long for the let-down of these Covid restrictions so I can see my grandchildren, maybe have some of them for the weekend. I will bake them some of these and we can pig out on them while we watch movies or play games.
That was something I really missed living in the UK, being able to spend "real" time with the grandchildren. Now I want to make up for lost time, but alas Covid is not co-operating. We are very much locked down at the moment.
Its like we have moved back to square one again and are living like we had to live when this all began. The main difference being we all now have toilet paper, and water and many of the other necessities of life.
The panic buying has stopped. Whew! Last year this time it was really hard to find flour or yeast or, yes . . . toilet paper!
Things are much better that way, this time around. Except we are still missing family and still missing friends.
Still missing our freedoms. But it won't be for long. If we all just do what we are supposed to do and not get silly, we will have our freedoms back before too much longer. I really believe that.
And in the meantime we can all bake cinnamon rolls. Small Batch Mom's Cinnamon Rolls, because we are only small groups for now, and some of us forever.
In any case if you want more than six rolls, you can very easily double the recipe. It will make an even dozen of the softest, sweetest, flakiest cinnamon rolls you ever want to eat!!
They really only are at their best on the first day. Just like regular cinnamon rolls . . . . but you can freeze them quite successfully.
Quick and easy. None of the faffing about with yeasts and risings, etc. Here's to mom, sweet memories and new beginnings!
Mom's Cinnamon Rolls (small batch)
Yield: Makes 6 rolls
Prep time: 10 MinCook time: 20 MinTotal time: 30 Min
Mom used to make us cinnamon rolls using biscuit dough rather than bread dough. We always loved them. I small batched the recipe for the smaller family. These are delicious!
Ingredients
- 2 cups (280g) all purpose flour
- 4 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 cup (110g) vegetable shortening
- 1 TBS sugar
- 1 free range egg, beaten lightly
- 3/4 cup (180ml) whole milk
- 1/4 cup (60g) softened butter
- 1/2 cup (100g) packed soft dark brown sugar
- 3 tsp ground cinnamon
Honey Butter Glaze:
- 1/2 TBS honey
- 1/2 TBS butter
- few drops vanilla
- 1 cup (130g) icing sugar, sifted
- enough milk to thin to a thick drizzle
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350*F/180*C/ gas mark 4. Line a small baking tray with baking paper.
- Sift the flour and baking powder into a bowl. Stir in the sugar and salt. Drop in the shortening and cut it in with a pastry blender until the mixture resembles coarse bread crumbs.
- Beat together the egg and the milk.
- Add the egg mixture to the dry ingredients, stirring them in with a fork, only adding enough to give you a soft dough that is not sticky. You may not need it all.
- Tip the dough out onto a lightly floured board and knead gently two or three turns. Pat or roll out to a rectangle that is roughly 1/2 inch in thickness, and approximately 6 by 10 inches in size.
- Mix together the butter, brown sugar and cinnamon. Spread this mixture over the dough evenly.
- Roll up tightly from the short edge. Cut into 6 1-inch thick slices. Place them on the baking sheet, cut sides up. Press lightly with the palm of your hand to flatten slightly.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 15 to 20 minutes until golden brown. Remove from the oven and let cool slightly.
- Whisk together all of the ingredients for the glaze until smooth. Flick this glaze over top of the lukewarm cinnamon rolls and serve. Delicious!
Thanks so much. Do come again!!
Hello! Yes, I'm back. My internet finally started working today. It should have been up and running last Tuesday, but like for some reason there was a problem with the wiring in the house.
The earliest they could get an engineer out was late today! They do say better late than never! I took advantage of the break getting things organized in the house, etc. and cooking a few things ahead so I could hit the ground running!
One thing which I cooked was these healthy, juicy and delicious turkey burgers! Yes, you CAN have a turkey burger that is moist and tender as well as being healthy and incredibly tasty!
I have never been a huge fan of beef burgers, but have always loved turkey burgers. All too often, however, turkey burgers can end up being a bit dry and flavorless.
Its a shame really because Turkey is such a healthy protein, and very good for you. Its actually considered to be one of the superfoods. Not only is a rich source of protein, but it is loaded with nutrients and vitamins.
It is also known to contain anti-cancer properties. You can be sure that when you choose a healthy source of protein such a turkey over beef, you are doing something good for your body and your health!
It is especially rich in selenium, which is known to help prevent certain kinds of cancer, including bladder, breast, lung and stomach cancers!
And if that alone is not enough to get you to switch from beef to turkey, if you happen to be a Diabetic (like myself) it is also a low Glycemic Index food. That means it won't cause the blood sugar spike that you would get from more sugar-rich and carb-rich foods!
If you are a Diabetic, including some turkey in your diet can help you to keep your blood sugars under control!!
Low GI foods such as turkey can also help to promote heart health! Being low GI eating turkey helps to increase the levels of "good" HDL cholesterol in your body, and helps to remove "bad" LDL cholesterol.
LDL cholesterol is the kind of cholesterol that lines and furs up the walls of your arteries, increasing your risk of heart attack or stroke. Including turkey in your diet as much as you can actually can boost your HDL cholesterol and increase your resistance to these diseases.
Turkey and poultry are also a part of the MIND diet. Scientists developed the MIND diet to help to slow the progression of Alzheimer's and other causes of dementia.
By eating turkey and other types of poultry at least twice a week, as a part of the MIND diet, older adults can preserve their memory and thinking skills. As an older adult, I am all for that!!
These turkey burgers are a healthy twist on your regular beef burgers, and I can guarantee that they are so delicious you won't miss red meat at all. In fact I am positive you are going to love them.
The recipe is perfectly sized for just two people, and in face I actually cut the recipe down even further, cooking only one for myself. It is only ever going to be very rare from now on that I am cooking for more than that.
Do be careful not to use regular ground turkey in these, not ground turkey breast (which is usually labelled 99% fat free). You do need a little bit of fat to help to keep these flavor filled and moist.
I used a healthy mix of both light and dark turkey meat. Not only does it help to boost the flavor but it also keeps them nice and lush.
A tiny bit of bread and milk are mashed together to form what is called a panade, a paste of bread and milk. This is so easy to do.
You simply tear the bread into small pieces and mash it with the milk. Make sure you discard the crusts. I used a rustic whole wheat bread myself to up the fiber and the protein.
It also helps to keep them beautifully moist and tender. Additional flavor comes from the addition of a good Dijon mustard and some Worcestershire sauce.
Those are pantry staples in my house. I use them in a lot of things. They are real flavor boosters!
Other than that there is a small amount of salt and pepper. Easy peasy and not too hard on the budget without any fancy add-ins!
Initially they are seared in a hot skillet in a small amount of oil. This initial searing helps to create a lovely golden brown crust on both sides of the burger. Ideally this will only take about four minutes maximum per side.
Once you have done that, you can turn the heat of your burner down to a slow simmer, and half cover the pan with a lid. Cooking them for a few more minutes at this lower temperature is the secret to keeping them from drying out.
This last bit of cook time helps them to gently cook through, without drying them out in the least.
You want to only cook them just until the juices run clear and the interior temperature of the burger is a safe 160*F/ 72*C.
I did add a slice of cheese to my burger for the last minute of the cook time. As you can see my burger is incredibly moist, despite being perfectly cooked through.
This was one incredibly delicious and juicy burger! Feel free to serve these with your favorite burger toppings and buns. I like to toast the inside cut surfaces of my buns. This helps to hold the buns together.
I also spread the bun with a bit of mayonnaise made with olive oil and added a healthy layer of mixed spring lettuces and sliced ripe tomatoes.
With a tossed salad on the side, this made for a very healthy and delicious meal for one or two if you follow the recipe exactly. These are quite large burgers, each one using six ounces of turkey. If you are not up for that, you can cut the amount from 12 ounces (for two burgers) down to about 10 and still have a really delicious burger!
Enjoy!!
Juicy Turkey Burgers
Yield: 2
Prep time: 5 MinCook time: 18 MinTotal time: 23 Min
This simple turkey burger recipe yields two perfectly juicy and delicious burgers. No fuss, no muss.
Ingredients
- 1/2 slice of rustic whole wheat bread, crusts removed, and torn into bits
- 1 TBS whole milk
- 10 ounces ground turkey (use a mix of breast and thigh meat for the juiciest burgers)
- 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tsp Dijon mustard
- 1/4 tsp fine sea salt
- 1/8 tsp freshly ground black pepper
- 1 TBS light olive oil
- 2 toasted hamburger buns
- your favorite toppings, etc.
Instructions
- Place your torn bread and the milk into a bowl large enough to hold all of your burger ingredients. Mash the two together until you get a paste.
- Add the ground turkey, Worcestershire sauce, Dijon mustard, salt and pepper. Mix together thoroughly with your hands, using a light touch.
- Shape into two lightly packed balls and then shape each ball into a 1-inch thick patty.
- Heat the oil in a 10-inch non-stick skillet over medium heat. Add the burgers and cook until golden brown and lightly crusted on both sides, about 4 minutes per side.
- Reduce the heat to low and partially cover the pan with a lid. Cook until the juices run clear, about 8 to 10 minutes longer, flipping them over after 4 minutes. If you want a cheeseburger, add a slice of cheese to each for the last minute or so of cooking.
- Serve hot on toasted buns with your favorite burger toppings.
Fresh Lemons are one of my absolute favorite things to cook and bake with. Lemons are used as accents for many, many recipes to add zest and flavor. Those types of recipes exist in abundance. The recipes I am sharing with you today are recipes which really accent the delicious flavors of Lemon!
There is a mix of savory and sweet goodies, something for every palate and every lemon lover. If you are like me, you can never get enough of lemon flavours!
Perhaps you have a bowl of lemons on the countertop staying you in the face begging to be used. Maybe you are lucky enough to have a tree in your garden that you can just pop out the door to and pick a few. Whatever your reason, these recipes I am sharing here today are guaranteed to please! These are my best and brightest!
SAVORY RECIPES
Sticky Lemon & Ginger Chicken Stir Fry
Deliciously spiced chicken bits, and crunchy vegetables in a sticky lemon and ginger sauce.
Quick and easy to make and oh so delicious! Something tasty to make on those nights when you are really pressed for time!
Sticky Lemon Chicken
This is a very simple recipe here today, using only a few ingredients . . . but it has BIG flavour . . . and juiciness. Just look at that succulent juiciness . . . it's a very good thing.
Honey, lemon and oregano . . . it's the Holy Trinity of chicken deliciousness. Trust me.
Quick, easy and some of the most delicious chicken you could ever want to eat! What more could you ask for!
Roast Chicken with Lemon & Garlic
A well roasted chicken is a beautiful thing to behold . . . moist and tender, almost succulent, with a crisp and flavourful skin. I think of all the roasts, it is one of my favourites.
Garlic and lemon work with chicken to form a trinity of delicious flavours. In this instance, the chicken itself is filled with four peeled and bruised garlic cloves, a small onion peeled and quartered, one half lemon and its juice, and a nice sprig of fresh thyme. Simple.
Turkey Meatballs and Lemon Rice
tasty tender turkey meatballs, with a lovely veg and lemon flavoured rice pilaf. Colourful and delicious. All you need is a salad on the side.
I am a huge fan of ground turkey and I love, Love, LOVE this delicious all in one entree!
Ina's Skillet Roasted Lemon Chicken
This tasty recipe was adapted from the Ina Garten cookbook entitled Cooking For Jeffrey. This is somewhat of an unusual recipe. It is so delicious. You begin by spatchcocking a chicken and making a herbed olive oil.
Sliced lemon and onion, along with some garlic are placed in a deep oven proof skillet and the butterflied chicken is placed on top, after brushing it throroughly on the underside with some of the herbed olive oil mixture.
You squeeze the juice of a whole lemon over top of the chicken, cover the dish tightly with foil and then let it rest for a time. The end result is moist, delicious lemony chicken. Scrumptious! I'd expect nothing less from Ina.
Lemon Sauced Salmon Patties
Simple salmon patties. Flaked and mashed tinned salmon, mixed with some breadcrumbs, milk, egg, parsley, grated onion (I use my micro plane grater) and seasoning, mixed together and spooned into well buttered muffin cups.
Served with a rich creamy and delicious lemon sauce. The two together are bliss. A store cupboard family favorite.
Creamy Lemon Rice
Don't let the bad photograph put you off from making this fabulous side dish! It is a dish I made often for a lucious side dish when I worked at the manor.
Its very easy to make and goes perfectly with chicken, fish, pork, veal, etc.
This may not look like much . . . its just rice after all, but don't let the simplicity of it fool you into thinking it isn't very special! This is a fabulous side dish!
Lemon & Green Olive Pasta
Lemon & Green Olive Pasta is a delicious riff on a traditional Italian Pasta Dish called Spaghetti Aglio e Olio. Spaghetti Aglio e Olio is a simple Italian dish of garlic, olive oil, parsley, and Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese tossed with cooked pasta.
This dish differs in that the pan sauce includes buttery Castelvetrano Olives and crispy lemon bread crumbs. A garnish of more bread crumbs and cheese finishes it off. It is also filled with lots of chopped fresh parsley, garlic and torn basil.
In short it is yummo!!
Pasta with Lemon Cream Sauce, Asparagus & Peas
Delicious pasta with a light sauce with vegetables. The vegetables are cooked until just crispy tender and the whole thing is a wonderful symphony of textures and flavours that really please. Adapted from a recipe in Cooking Light magazine.
Quite simply delicious.
Lemon Linguine
This lush recipe uses simple ingredients . . . liguine, fresh lemon, cream, parmesan cheese . . . some seasoning, fresh parsley as a garnish.
From Nigella, so you know that its really good. Simple and tasty!
SWEET RECIPES
Buttermilk Lemon Puddings
One of my favourite lemon desserts has always been Buttermilk Lemon Puddings. These are delicious lemon puddings which upon baking, just like magic, separate into two distinct layers . . . one a lush lemon custard and the other a fabulously tart lemon cake.
This is a dessert I used to make fairly often when entertaining at the Manor down south. I think lemon is a common love of ladies.
These are very simple to make. The recipe serves two people generously, but can easily be multiplied to serve more.
Lemon Kisses
This is THE perfect lemon cookie. These cookies are crisp, buttery and full on lemony! Wowzah wowzah! Pucker up because these cookies are going to slap you with a lovely lemon kiss!
They are so simple to make and bake as well. The recipe is one I adapted from a little BBC Good Food Book, entitled Easy Baking Recipes.
Two crisp buttery cookies, sandwiched together with lemon curd and drizzled with a lemon drizzle icing. Scrumptious!
Lemon Curd Cookies
Lemon Curd Cookies. There lush and buttery shortbread cookies are flavoured through and through with lemon from the inside out. Crispy edged and dimpled with lemon curd centres, they are real lemon winners!
These delicious lemon cookies are the lemon lover's ultimate dream! If you love lemon as much as I do, you are sure to love these!
Double Lemon Drizzle Loaf
This is a a Lemon Drizzle Cake that is quite different to all of the rest that I have seen out there. Its a lovely moist loaf, filled with LOTS of lovely lemon flavors.
Flavors from the pureed cooked lemon in the loaf, to that candied lemon syrup sinking into the cake and lightly coating the surface. Not to mention that lovely lemon icing drizzle. Its fabulously tasty!
Lush Lemon Pound Cake
This is a fabulously delicious old fashioned lemon pound cake. If you are a fan of lemon and of cake, prepare yourself to fall in love!
This easy pound cake recipe uses simple ingredients that most of us always have in our kitchens and packs a triple lemon wallop! With plenty of lemon zest, lemon juice and lemon extract, it scores a hat-trick of lush lemon flavours every single time you bake it!
This is a delicious lemon pound cake which is wonderfully moist and flavourful. The texture in this is pound cake beautiful! It also boasts a lush lemon drizzle finish. What's not to love about this!
Coconut & Lemon Cake
This is a basic layer sponge cake recipe which uses coconut milk and a bit of coconut oil as well . . . for plenty of coconut flavor and moistness.
The lemon in the cake batter comes from the use of the juice of one lemon. There are more coconut and lemon flavors in the frosting/filling. A bit of coconut oil and the zest and juice of one lemon goes into the butter cream. Its also filled with some lemon curd.
A final flourish of flaked coconut garnishes the top for a fabulous finish!
Mary Berry's Lemon Drizzle Cake
Nothing beats a nice thick slice of a Lemon Drizzle Cake with a hot cuppa on a cold drizzly day. And when you are talking about Mary Berry's Lemon Drizzle Cake you know you are talking about the best Lemon Drizzle cake ever!
This is one of those cakes that improves upon standing. If you can leave it overnight without cutting into it so much the better. Its hard to do that though coz its just so darned good. I always want to cut into it right away!
Lemon Friands
About four bites of the most heavenly little cakes in the world . . . just four . . . little . . . buttery . . . bites . . .
These delicate little almond cakes topped with a delicious swirl of lemon curd are absolutely delightful! These would be great for an afternoon tea party, or . . . just because! Simply wonderful!!
Lemon Ginger Biscotti
Lemon Ginger Biscotti. If you love Biscotti, these fabulously flavoured Biscotti are destined to take place as one of your favourite versions!!
These beautiful crisp biscotti are flavoured with plenty of lemon beginning with rubbing lemon zest and sugar together to release the natural oils of the lemon zest.
More lemon flavour comes from the use of Lemon Extract, as well as vanilla. Vanilla and lemon are perfect partners . . . but . . . . add ginger to the mix, and you have a true marriage made in heaven!
Crisp and moreish with plenty of lemon and ginger spark
Lemon Splits
I discovered these Lemon Splits in the grocery shop in the UK several years or so ago. What they are is plain Welsh Cakes, without the spice and raisins, put together with a layer of lemon curd in the middle. My goodness but they are some tasty.
I decided to create my own version of them at home. Incredibly edibly moreish and so simple to make.
These are fabulous enjoyed with a hot cuppa! Very traditional.
Lush & Creamy Lemon Mousse
You are going to fall in love with this beautifully lush and creamy Lemon Mousse Recipe I am sharing. Not only is it very easy and quick to make, using only three ingredients, but it is incredibly delicious!
Whisk together, spoon into glasses and serve with a crisp biscuit on the side and dessert is served!
Easy Lemon Refrigerator Dessert
This is kind of like a whipped cheesecake. I should have had fresh fruit to serve with it, but alas, I forgot to pick it up at the shops, so on this particular day we just had jam on top, which was also very delicious.
No matter what you choose to serve on top, you are sure to love this simple and easy dessert!
Lemon Cream Danish
Three words. Lemon. Cream. Danish.
All butter puff pastry. Cut into squares and spread with a Greek Yoghurt and vanilla mixture. Full fat of course. (and why not?) Drizzled with lemon curd . . . swirled down into the yogurt mixture. Edges folded over. Edges sprinkled with demerara sugar for some crunch and then baked until puffed, golden brown, and flakey . . .
Need I say more?
Lemon Puddle Cake
Picture a deliciously light, baked lemon batter, with a tingly lemon curd at the bottom. Now smother it with pouring cream, or a dollop of creme fraiche . . .
One word. Delicious.
Frozen Lemon Souffle
These were incredibly popular single serving sized desserts when I worked at the Manor. For luncheons or for dinner parties, always well received.
I loved making them because not only were they simple and easy to make, but you could make them well ahead of time, simply taking them out of the freezer about 15 minutes before I was ready to serve them. Garnished with a tiny bit of frozen fruit, they always went down well with the guests.
This is the perfect dinner party dessert. Light and lush.
And there you have it, just enough lemon savories and desserts to get you started on a lemon journey for today. This is by no means the full extent of all the lemon recipes I have shared on here over the past eleven years but it is enough to whet your appetites for lemon I think!
Moving into my new house today. With any luck my next post will be coming from within the walls of my new home! My fingers are crossed!
This content (written and photography) is the sole property of The English Kitchen. Any reposting or misuse is not permitted. If you are reading this elsewhere, please know that it is stolen content and you may report it to me at: mariealicejoan@aol.com
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