Cinnamon Rolls -- From Scratch!

After receiving a dutch oven for my birthday, I've developed a mild obsession with it. I'm cooking, baking, grilling, simmering, and roasting every and anything I can fit inside it. Truly one of the great cooking inventions.

Anywho... with the weather being dreary and drizzling such as it is, I felt like a batch of cinnamon rolls sounded like a solid plan. But not those store-bought "unwrap and bake" types -- from scratch and 100% homemade. I searched around the internet for something like 15 minutes before finding a suitably light dough recipe. For most dishes, it only takes me a minute or two to find a good "jumping-off point" recipe; finding one for cinnamon roll dough was quite an undertaking!

When I had settled on a good basic premise, I began modifying the dough and filling recipes. It took me two batches until the memory of cinnamon roll taste I had in my head matched the taste of my food. I made more for my co-workers and family, all of whom said it was utterly divine. Here's what I came up with...

Method

First, heat 3/4C of milk to between 120 and 140 degrees. Then mix in 1/4C of softened butter until it is fully melted. Set this aside and begin mixing the dough ingredients.

Dough:

Bubbling away in the Dutch Oven

• 3 1/4C Flour
• 1/2C sugar
• 1/2 tsp Salt
• 1/4C warm water
• 1 package active yeast
• 1 large egg, beaten
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• Butter solution mentioned above

** Note:  only add 2 1/4C of the flour while you're first mixing the ingredients together. Once it begins to form into dough, then add the remaining cup of flour a little at a time. Then cover the dough with a damp cloth for about 10 minutes to let it rise.

While the dough and yeast are doing their thing, start making the filling.

Filling:

• 1C Brown Sugar
• 1/2C Softened Margarine
• 1/4 tsp Ground Cloves
• 1 TBS Cinnamon
• 1/8 tsp Almond Extract
• 1/2 tsp Nutmeg
• 10 drops Pure Vanilla Extract

Mix those items together rapidly to create a paste-like consistency. Use a rolling pin to spread the dough flat on a floured board, then spread the filling material evenly across the surface. Roll the dough, then slice across the width of the roll (about an inch wide per slice). Then place in a pan. 

I chose to bake these rolls in a Dutch Oven. If you decide to use a traditional oven, bake at 375 degrees. It should take around 20-25 minutes for the cinnamon rolls to be done. 

When done, remove the cinnamon rolls from the pan and brush any remaining filling material across the top. Another good alternative would be a cream cheese frosting (like this), depending on your personal preference. 

Enjoy! 

Plank-Grilled Salmon Fillets + Side Dishes

While checking out a local meat shop, I got the urge to buy some salmon and make a new twist on a classic dish. So, I picked up a couple pounds worth of salmon fillets and headed home. 

I opted to grill the fillets on alder planks, available at most supermarkets or at the Fair Oaks Hardware store here locally. Generally cedar and alder are the two woods most commonly chosen for smoking fish, with cedar being the more aromatic of the two.

The process to make this particular entrée is fairly simple, but takes a bit of time to complete.

Method:

Ready to serve

1. Marinate salmon in a solution of white wine (your choice), lemon pepper, sage, tarragon, and dill. Generally 2-4 hours.
2. Soak wood planks in water for at least one hour
3. Lightly blacken the planks on each side over a medium-hot grill
4. Place fillets on the planks, cover with a thick layer of brown sugar
5. Close the grill and cook at 350-400 degrees until lightly opaque
6. Serve and enjoy!

For a healthy and easy side dish, I thought of grilled asparagus -- super easy to make and grills quickly. 

Grilled asparagus:

1. Trim off the thickest bottom portions so all stalks are of equal length
2. Peel the lower 2 inches, removing the tough, fibrous material
3. Lightly coat in olive oil
4. Salt and pepper to taste
5. Grill over medium-high heat until asparagus becomes tender, but still holds shape (not soggy and bendy like a noodle)
6. Spray with a light balsamic vinegar, then serve.

Once those two were done, I whipped up some sweet potato fries. Just peel and cut your sweet potatoes into  wedges, coat in oil and rub in spices. I used only salt, pepper, and brown sugar. Then grill hot until crispy. How's THAT for a piece of cake, eh?

Simple. Tasty. Done.  

Pecan Marinade-Injected Pork Loin

Done and ready to slice!

Why must it always rain when I decide to cook?!

Weather notwithstanding, I went ahead and fired up the grill. And boy, am I glad I did! This recipe came out phenomenally well and, naturally, I just had to share it with you. The best part? It's easy and low-maintenance.

I began by picking up a pork loin from Costco. This thing was huge! Since I only needed to feed 3 people, I prepared just 1/4 of the loin. I vacuum-sealed and froze the rest for another day.

So, first things first... In a small bowl I mixed the following ingredients, which would serve as the marinade to be injected into the meat:

• 3/4 C  Apple Juice
• 1/2 C  Water
• 1/2 C  Brown Sugar
• 1/4C  Kosher Salt
• 2 TBS Worcestershire Sauce

After whisking the ingredients together, I filled up my injector needle. You can pick one up at just about any grocery store. I purchased the one seen above at Lowe's. I injected the meat four times on each side, causing it to plump up significantly.

Once the meat was fully injected, I placed it on my grill surface and applied a dry rub. The one I used is called Jeff's Naked Rib Rub, but it works equally well on any cut of pork. You can use whatever rub you prefer. 

Indirect heat with waterpan

Then I fired up my Weber Kettle grill, setting it up for indirect heat. Now, in case you don't understand what I mean by "indirect heat," I've taken a couple photos to demonstrate what I mean. In simplest terms, it means all the charcoal on one side of the grill and a water/drip pan on the other. Once that setup was complete, I placed some soaked wood chips (pecan, in this instance) on top of the charcoal to create a light smoke while the meat cooked. You'll also notice that I opted for lump charcoal, rather than traditional Kingsford-type briquettes. 

Pecan chips on top of lump charcoal

And so, onto the grill went the pork loin. The rub I used is based largely on paprika and brown sugar, so I anticipated that it would eventually create something of a dark brown "bark." I adjusted the upper and lower vents to maintain a temperature of 300 degrees, then went in search of a beer.

Coming along nicely after an hour

 Around an hour or so later, I took a peak at the pork loin to check my progress. The dry rub was, as expected, beginning to form a nice bark and the smell from the grill was incredible! The internal temperature, however, was not high enough to consider it "done." For a pork cut such as this, 150 degrees or so is the appropriate and safe internal temperature. 

It took about another hour to reach the desired temperature. I removed the meat from the grill, wrapped it in foil, and let it rest for 20 minutes (and let me tell you, it was tough to wait that long). I sliced it and taste tested... it was delightfully moist and flavorful with a subtle sweetness. Originally, when I was deciding how to prepare this cut of meat, I had thought it would be necessary to add barbecue sauce -- not so! It was so flavorful that absolutely no sauce of any sort was necessary.

Despite the fact that I've been overly verbose in explaining the methods for preparing this dish, it's remarkably easy and I'm sure you'll have equally terrific results! Trust me, this one is worth a try.