Quick Cinnamon Rolls, potentially a coffee cake.

I made these cinnamon rolls, kluged together from a couple of recipes.

• 3 c flour

• 1/4 tsp. salt

• 4 tsp baking powder

• 1/2 c sugar

• 2 eggs

• 2/3 c milk

• 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract

• 1/2 c butter or shortening–melted but not hot (I used coconut oil)

filling

• 1/4 c melted butter

• 3 tsp cinnamon

• 1/2 c sugar

topping

• 1/4 c brown sugar

• 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract

• 1/2 c melted butter

• optional 1/2 c nuts, citrus zest, chocolate chips, or dried fruit

frosting

• 1/2 stick butter

• 1/2 package of cream cheese (I used neufchatel)

• 1/2 c powdered sugar - add more to get correct texture and depending on humidity

In a small bowl, lightly beat eggs until mixed, add milk, extract, and butter. In a separate bowl, sift together flour, salt, baking powder, and sugar. Make a well in the center and pour in wet ingredients. Once the dough comes together, turn it onto a floured board and knead for 1 minute. If it's sticky, sprinkle with flour. Roll dough into a 9" x 13" rectangle (give or take).

Mix together filling ingredients, and spread onto the dough leaving 1/2" from the edges. Roll into a long log and cut with a sharp knife into ~18 individual rolls. line up in buttered 9" x 13" pan, leaving some space for expansion. Pour topping over entire pan evenly. Bake in a preheated 350° oven for 25-30 minutes or until golden.

Allow to cool 5-10 minutes. Whip together frosting ingredients, then spread frosting evenly over the top of the whole pan. Cover pan to slightly melt frosting, or serve sooner. Alternatively, they can be turned out, frosted, and served upside down.

Alternatively, because this wasn't really a good pull-apart rolls recipe, I think this would be delicious as a coffee cake if it were doubled and layered into a greased bundt pan with a streusel made from 1 stick butter, 1 cup brown sugar, 1 cup flour, and a couple of tsp of cinnamon cut together with a fork or pastry cutter. I'm sure it would need to cook a little longer, if you're a strict recipe follower I'd say start with 30 minutes and then cook until it returns a dry toothpick or cake pick.

It fulfilled the need for cinnamon roll without the, like, six hour process... and they were almost gone after brunch. Woo.

Potato Nommage

Potato salad? Yes, please. It's the 4th of July.

So the trick to great potato salad is there is no trick. I made a fab bleu cheese potato salad last night for a BBQ night. I used my bleu cheese dressing recipe, posted earlier, and skipped the sour cream and buttermilk. Instead, I added roughly a tablespoon of dijon mustard and some dill and a handful more bleu cheese crumbles.

To this I added about three pounds of yukon gold potatoes that had been chunky diced and boiled in water that is salty like sea water; it's how I cook basically any starch. Cooking time varies depending on your stove, how small your chunks are, and how many potatoes you use. When they're fork-tender, drain them in a colander but don't rinse, let them cool for a few minutes. At this point I poured a tablespoon of regular milk into a mixing bowl big enough to toss in, and then put half the potatoes in. To this I added the dressing which had been marinating for a few hours. Adding it hot melted the cheese and melded the flavors together. The milk on the bottom helps keep the potatoes from sticking to the bowl. Once half the potatoes are coated, add the rest of the potatoes and mix around. If the dressing is too tight, add a little milk. Once the consistency is right and all the potatoes are coated, taste it and see if you need salt or pepper. Let it cool down for maybe 20 minutes or so before refrigerating, you could serve it hot or cold, I like it both ways. I added a little too much salt last night, so I wound up adding the juice of a small lemon to brighten it back up.

So tasty, y'all.