Cheese Stuffed Rolls

I have been wanting to try these ever since I saw them on Pinterest. Cheese and bread. My favorite combination. 

So last night since I had a little free time (not really but I pretended like I did), I decided to give them a try.

I have just started dabbling in the world of bread making.  And I am actually starting to enjoy it. There is something therapeutic about kneading bread with my hands. I can't explain it but it is just relaxing to me.  And of course, in the end, I get to eat my product.  There are few foods I love more in the world than bread. Especially bread hot out of the oven.

And this one? Worth every second.

I ate two of them!

Since I am careful with calories, I really try to limit my bread intake.

But I couldn't resist.

And honestly, if I hadn't already indulged on other treats that day, I would have had three. Or four.

They were that good.

They literally melted in my mouth.

Throw in the cheese, and I was in food heaven.

And honestly, they were not that much work.

Even a bread newbie like me can make them.

In less than an hour.

Convinced yet?

Ingredients:
1 cup hot water (just hot from the tap)

2 Tbsp yeast (I used Rapid Rise for this one)

2 Tbsp sugar

2 tsp garlic powder (You will really be able to smell it but it is not overpowering at all in the end)

1/4 cup melted butter (I used salted for this one)

1/4 cup olive oil

2-3 cups all purpose flour (I used King Arthur's unbleached.  The original recipe called for 3 but 2 1/2 was plenty for mine.  I am learning that you just have to work with the dough until you get the right consistency rather than trying to stick with a certain measurement on flour)

8 oz. mozzarella, cut into chunks

shredded Parmesan


Note:  The original recipe also added other cheeses to the top. But in the interest of calories, I stuck with Mozzarella and Parmesan. And honestly, that was enough for me.

Directions:
Add yeast to water.  Set aside for a few minutes. The yeast (if active) will kind of foam in the water after a few minutes.

In a separate bowl, mix the sugar, the garlic powder, the melted butter, and the olive oil.  Stir in yeast mixture.

Slowly add flour. I added half a cup at a time.  Mix thoroughly. You can use a mixer with dough hooks.  I actually prefer to mix by hand.  Add flour until the dough becomes less sticky and more elastic.  Add in the salt.  Knead for 10 minutes. I don't really think I kneaded it that long. But I did really work the dough to make sure all ingredients were mixed in. Oh, and I just kneaded in the same bowl I had mixed in.  I didn't even oil it since there was a little extra flour. I didn't have any trouble with stickiness.

Set the bowl in a warm place, covered with a wet towel.  Allow to rise for about 30 minutes or until doubled in size.  I put my bowl on top of the oven which was preheating (to 375).  It gave it warmth but not too much.  I think mine doubled in around 20 minutes.

Divide dough into pieces (whatever size you want).  I flattened the dough into circles that fit into the palm of my hand. Take a mozzarella chunk and place in the middle of the flattened dough, then wrap the dough around it to make a ball.  Place the "balls" on a greased cookie sheet. I used my pizza stone.  I got around 14 "balls" from my dough.

Sprinkle shredded Parmesan (or any other cheese of your choice) over the top.  That was a little difficult because they are balls, so the cheese slid off. I kind of pressed the cheese into the top instead.

Bake at 375 for 11-15 minutes until rolls are golden brown.

Take out of the oven and brush with butter. I also sprinkled some Italian seasoning on top.

Enjoy.

Reba
PS This is probably my favorite bread recipe to date...and that is saying a lot because I have tried some good ones recently.

Cheese Stuffed Chicken Breasts

Not long ago, I saw a recipe on Pinterest for stuffed chicken breasts. I already have a recipe for something similar, so I almost overlooked it. But something inside me said, "Try this one." Okay, it may have been my growling stomach. But wherever it came from, I listened.

And I am SOOOOOO glad I did.

I made this recipe (and followed the original fairly closely), placed it on the table, and waited for the response.

I believe hubby's words were "restaurant worthy".

Wow.

He is always complimentary but I don't remember ever hearing something like that!

I will be making this again. Probably soon since I only got one serving.

Ingredients:
Chicken breasts (I did use 6 and probably could have had 8 since there was NONE left over)

1 block cream cheese (I used light...oh, the original recipe doesn't call for that much. I made a creative change for my taste buds :)

1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, grated (And I did do freshly grated)

1/4 cup minced fresh Basil leaves (so thankful for the spice "singles" I can buy in produce at the grocery store)

1 clove minced garlic

2 (or so) tbsp olive oil

salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
Using a knife, cut a slit in one side of the chicken breast. It is like a little pocket.

Salt and pepper to taste.

Mix the garlic, Parmesan cheese, softened cream cheese, and minced basil leaves together.

Spoon some of the mixture into each "pocket" chicken breast.

Heat oil in a skillet on the stove (medium high heat?).

Place each chicken breast on the skillet, cooking about 3-5 minutes, until chicken is browned.

Flip the chicken breasts and cook another 5-10 minutes.

At the end of that 10 minutes, I checked the chicken to make sure it had cooked all the way through.

Then I spooned all remaining mixture ingredients over the chicken AND into the skillet so it became a rich, cheesy sauce. Yum. (This was a little different than the original recipe)

I let it simmer a couple more minutes until the sauce was heated through, then I removed from the heat and let it rest a few minutes.

We ate ours atop a bed of angel hair pasta (the sauce and the pasta was REALLY good) with a side salad and some garlic knots.

Like I said, no chicken left in the end.

Always a sign of a good meal!

Reba

Braided Spaghetti Bread

The first time I saw this on Pinterest, I knew we had to try it.

Braided Spaghetti Bread.

Go to the website above. Their picture is MUCH prettier than mine.

Anyway, it had bread, spaghetti, and Mozzarella. What else could I possibly need?

Unfortunately, the day I planned on making it, I was running late. I ran to the grocery store, picked up the dough, then came home to find that it would take a while to thaw the dough. So into the freezer it went.

Finally yesterday was my chance. I put the dough in the fridge in the morning before I left for school.

When I was ready to cook, the dough was ready too.

Here is the recipe, followed by a few "sidenotes".

Ingredients:
1 Loaf Rhodes Bread Dough (12 Rhodes rolls can be used instead)...mine came three to a package. Thawed to room temperature.

6 oz spaghetti, cooked and drained (I actually used almost a whole 13 oz. box)

1 cup spaghetti sauce (I used closer to 2)

1 pound (or so) ground beef, browned (optional...that was my option :)

8 oz Mozzarella, cut into cubes

1 egg white

Parmesan cheese

Parsley flakes

Garlic Powder

Directions:
Take the bread dough and roll it out. This was the longest part of the process for me. I just had to really work with the dough. I think part of the problem was that I hadn't thawed to room temp; I had left it in the fridge. Roll it into a 12 x 16 inch rectangle. I recommend rolling on parchment paper or on a greased cookie sheet. Cover with plastic wrap and let it rest for 15-20 minutes. Okay, I totally forgot about the plastic wrap. But it worked fine anyway.

After the spaghetti is cooked and has cooled a bit, mix the spaghetti with the sauce and the ground beef (if using).

Remove the plastic wrap from the dough. Spread the spaghetti down the middle of the dough (about 4 inches across). Add cheese cubes on top of the meat.

Make cuts about 1 1/2 inches apart to about half of an inch within the filling. I found kitchen scissors to work very well to make cuts.

Fold the top and bottom strips toward the filling. Cross back and forth across, alternating each side. Pull the last strip and pull over the bread, tucking underneath.

Transfer the parchment paper to a baking sheet (I had done all of this on a sprayed cookie sheet...no transferring necessary).

Brush with the egg white, garlic powder, and Parmesan cheese.

Bake at 350 for 30-35 minutes or until golden brown.

Let cool slightly, then slice.

This was a HUGE hit with the family; every one of them ate more than one helping. Even the really picky child. I was SOOO sad to not have any leftovers to take for my lunch today. I would have eaten it again, gladly. (I could have eaten the entire loaf last night by myself, but I shared) Next time I would make sure to have a salad to go with it. Otherwise, what else does the meal really need?

Because I cooked meat (and lots of it), added more sauce, and put in more spaghetti, the other change I would make for our family of 6 would be to make 2 of them. Mine was SOOO full, it was really difficult to braid. It would have been better to have two doughs ready and just divide the meat/spaghetti mixture between the two.

So mine didn't turn out beautifully. It didn't matter in the end.

It was delicious.

I am already looking forward to making it again.

(I also want to try the calzone version...hubby was almost salivating when I told him about it)

More soon,
Reba