Anyway, I began the video at 2pm and stopped it when everything was done at 4:15pm. I made cinnamon rolls, freezer biscuits, and granola bars from scratch. Now the bad news is because I was using my phone to video everything I was unable to take pictures for you all to see the making process, but we did get a few behind the scenes pictures.
I was super nervous and felt awkward when I first began recording. Meerkat also lets you see viewers and their comments, which made things a little better. I had moments where I was just silent and did my baking business, and other times where I would ramble on about biscuits and cinnamon rolls, and eventually, it got to the point where I actually felt like I was having a conversation with someone in the room, and not talking to myself. I had a lot of fun overall, and I will be doing it again!
So, back to the recipes!
In a little over 2 hours, I made cinnamon rolls, biscuits, and granola bars. Here are the recipes...
Cinnamon Rolls
Ingredients:
(Dough)
|
(Filling)
(Icing)
|
- First, place the yeast into the bread machine and add warm milk. Then add all other ingredients for the dough. Close the lid, press the "dough" cycle, and start. The machine will mix and knead the dough, and give it a warm environment to rise in. It will tell you when the dough is done and has risen (about 1 1/2 hours).
- In a small bowl, mix the brown sugar and cinnamon together and try to get out all the clumps. Set aside.
- When dough is ready, fold it out onto a lightly floured surface. Pat some flour on top and use a rolling pin to roll it into a 16 x 21 inch rectangle (make sure it is 1/2 to an inch thick). Gently spread the softened butter over the dough, then evenly add the brown sugar mixture on top of that. (note: make sure you leave your butter out for at least an hour beforehand so it is soft enough to gently spread). Roll the dough up (vertically or horizontally... depending on how many and how big you want your rolls to be) and slice into rolls. Place rolls onto a greased 9 x 13 inch baking pan. Cover and let rise again for 30 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Bake the rolls for 15 minutes or until tops are browned.
- To make the icing, beat together the powdered sugar, salt, vanilla, and butter. You can either spread on rolls when they come out of the oven, or put it into a container and freeze. I freeze mine and the rolls separately in a ziplock bag, that way I don't have to eat them all up immediately.
Freezer Biscuits
- Mix together the flour, baking powder, and salt in a bowl. Cut in butter with a pastry cutter, or, cut the butter up into small pea-sized pieces and mix into the flour with a knife. Add in the cold milk and mix everything together until just moistened (do not overmix).
- Fold out dough onto a lightly floured surface. Pat some flour on the top and press the dough out until it is about an inch thick. Take your desired biscuit cutter, and cut out your biscuits, placing them onto a cookie sheet afterward. (For flaky biscuits and rise better, do not twist the biscuit cutter in. Cut stright in, and straight out.
- Freeze the biscuits flat on your cookie sheet for about an hour. Take them out and place them into a ziplock bag and put back in the freezer for future use.
- To bake... thaw your biscuits in the fridge overnight, or on the counter for about 30 minutes. Bake at 450 degrees for 10 to 12 minutes. (Do not open the oven during this time! They rise better if you leave them be until they are done.)
Granola Bars
- In a small sauce pan over medium heat, melt and mix together the butter, honey, and brown sugar. Let it boil for 2 minutes. Turn the heat off and add vanilla.
- In a separate bowl, mix together the cooking oats and rice cereal. Add the wet ingredients to the dry, and gently mix together. Fold out onto a cookie sheet, and press together tightly into a 3/4 inch thickness. (I only use half of the cookie sheet.)
- Gently press your toppings on top, and set aside to cool for at least 2 hours.
- When completely cooled, cut into bars.