Bready or Not Original: Portuguese Sweet Bread Rolls in the Bread Machine
These Portuguese Sweet Rolls come together fast thanks to a bread machine. The resulting bread is sweet, flaky, and perfect to go with any meal–though as a born Central Californian, I have to recommend serving alongside tri-tip!
I grew up surrounded by a vibrant Portuguese community. That meant a lot of awesome food, like linguica on Me-N-Eds pizza, and rounds of sweet bread on the counter at Boston Pizza. We didn’t have a lot of money, so when we could grab that bread loaf, it was a real treat!
As with most any bread, these rolls are great to freeze and eat later. The fresher they are when you freeze them, the fresher they’ll still taste when you warm them up later!
Bready or Not Original: Portuguese Sweet Bread Rolls in the Bread Machine
Equipment
- bread machine
- 2 1/2-inch cutter
- rimmed baking sheet
- plastic wrap
Ingredients
- 1 cup half & half
- 1/2 cup water
- 1/3 cup melted butter 80 ml
- 1/2 cup white sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 1 1/2 teaspoons sea salt
- 4 cups white bread flour plus more
- 2 teaspoons instant dry yeast or bread machine yeast
Instructions
- Place the half & half and water in a liquid measuring cup and gently warm in a microwave-safe cup in microwave to reach 100-110 degrees.
- Follow bread machine directions for loading ingredients into the bucket; for most, that means liquids first. Stir together the half & half, water, butter, and sugar. That should lower the temperature enough to make it safe to add the eggs (you don’t want them scrambled!); stir those in to break the yolks. Add the salt, flour, and yeast. Start the machine on the DOUGH cycle.
- Check on it once it starts mixing. If the mixture looks runny, add spoonfuls of flour until it comes together; if it’s too thick, add a touch of warm water. Let the cycle finish.
- Grease a rimmed baking sheet with nonstick spray or butter.
- Lightly flour a flat surface. Pat out the dough to be about 1/2-inch thick. Use cutter to slice dough into rounds; place rounds spaced out just a touch on the greased pan. Press dough scraps together as much as possible, and bring together into more rounds. Loosely cover baking sheet with plastic wrap and set in a warm place to rise for about 45 minutes.
- Near the end of the second rise, as the rolls begin to look puffy, preheat oven at 350-degrees. Discard plastic wrap.
- Bake rolls for 17 to 20 minutes, until they are golden across the top. Let cool a few minutes before pulling apart to enjoy.
- Rolls may be eaten fresh, or will keep in a sealed bag at room temperature for a day or two. They can also be frozen right after initially cooling, and thawed later for later enjoyment. They can be eaten at room temperature but are even better warmed up.
OM NOM NOM!
Bready or Not Original: Pumpkin Spice Sugar Cookies
Pumpkin Spice Sugar Cookies! These are simple, delicious classic cookies, with warm spices inside and out.
These were among the last cookies I made in Arizona as I was frantically trying to use up my remaining butter and eggs. I thought I had everything figured out, and then I realized (after I made the dough) that I’d already packed up all of my rolling pins. Whoops. Therefore, I used good ol’ arm muscle to flatten the dough, and I ended up satisfied with how they turned out!
That said, don’t be like me. Make your life easier and use a rolling pin! You’ll get more consistent cookies, for sure.
Bready or Not Original: Pumpkin Spice Sugar Cookies
Equipment
- plastic wrap
- parchment paper
- Rolling Pin
- 2 1/2-inch round cookie cutter
- cooling rack
Ingredients
Cookie dough
- 1 cup unsalted butter (2 sticks) room temperature
- 2 cups white sugar
- 2 large eggs room temperature
- 2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 Tablespoons pumpkin pie spice
Topping
- 1/2 cup white sugar
- 1/2 Tablespoon ground cinnamon
Instructions
- In a large bowl, cream together butter and sugar until they are light and fluffy. Add the eggs. Gradually mix in the flour and pie spice. Roughly divide the dough in half, flattening each portion into a disc, and wrap in plastic wrap. Tuck into the fridge overnight.
- Let dough sit out about 20 minutes to warm up enough to roll out. Preheat oven at 350-degrees. Prepare a large cookie sheet with parchment paper. Place the topping ingredients in a bowl and stir to combine.
- On a lightly floured flat surface, roll out one disc of cookie dough to 1/4-inch thickness. Portion out using the cookie cutter. Press the top of each round into the topping mix and then set, spaced out, on prepared cookie sheet.
- Bake for 10 to 12 minutes, until cookies ae set. Let sit on sheet for a few minutes, then transfer to a cooling rack. Repeat process with remaining dough, reassembling scraps to create more cookies. Store cookies in a sealed container at room temperature.
OM NOM NOM!
Bready or Not Original: Marble Swirl Bundt Cake
This Marble Swirl Bundt Cake is not only delicious but pretty, as it contains a light and dark swirl inside!
Spices are the prevalent flavor through the darker portions of the cake, with the pale portions plain and sweet in balance.
There are a lot of ingredients in this cake, though the assembly is straightforward. Save yourself some effort at baking time by combining the spice ingredients a day ahead!
Bready or Not Original: Marble Swirl Bundt Cake
Equipment
- large bundt cake pan
- nonstick spray with flour or regular nonstick spray
Ingredients
- 2 2/3 cup all-purpose flour
- 4 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 4 large eggs room temperature
- 2 cups white sugar
- 1 1/3 cup almond milk or regular milk
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter melted
- 1/3 cup canola oil
- 1/4 cup maple syrup
- 2 teaspoons instant espresso powder or unsweetened cocoa powder (sifted)
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon ground allspice
- 1 teaspoons ground cloves
- 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
Instructions
- Move rack to lower 1/3 of oven; set to preheat at 350-degrees. Generously coat the interior of a large bundt pan with nonstick spray, preferably a baking spray with flour.
- In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside. In a big mixing bowl, place eggs, sugar, milk, butter, and oil, beating until creamy yellow. Gradually mix in the dry ingredients, but reserve the empty bowl to one side. Scrape the bowl of batter as needed, mixing until it is smooth.
- Measure out 3 cups of the batter into the reserved bowl. Add the maple syrup, espresso powder or cocoa, cinnamon, allspice, cloves, and nutmeg, whisking until smooth.
- Pour half the plain batter into the greased pan. Top with half the spiced batter, spreading to the sides. Draw a butter knife through the layers, swirling up and down and around. Pour the remaining batters into the pan, repeating the swirl process with the butter knife.
- Bake bundt cake for 45 to 50 minutes. The top should feel dry and the middle should pass the toothpick test. Let cool in pan for 1 hour, then carefully invert onto a cooling rack; if any chunks stick to the pan, try to nestle them back into place on the cake.
- Finish cooling. Slice into wedges. Store under a cake dome or otherwise wrapped; individual slices can also be wrapped in plastic.
OM NOM NOM!
A THOUSAND RECIPES FOR REVENGE on sale in USA, UK, & AUS!
This is the last week to catch A Thousand Recipes for Revenge on sale across a chunk of the world. Amazon has the ebook marked down to:
I have no idea when it will be on sale again, so buy it while the price is good! Also, remember that the sequel, A Feast for Starving Stone, comes out in January. This would be a great time to preorder that as well.
[Note that the US Amazon link uses my affiliate information.]
#SFWAPro
Read MoreBready or Not Original: Chewy Apple-Cranberry Oatmeal Cookies
Ready for fall, even if only psychologically? These Chewy Apple-Cranberry Oatmeal Cookies are loaded with apple, cranberry, and walnut. They are autumn in a single bite!
I will always prefer chewy cookies over crisp ones, and these are especially chewy thanks to the apple pieces, dried cranberries, and walnut bits along with the oats. They are such a great combination!
I love using apple butter in this recipe because of the deeper flavor, but by all means, you can substitute applesauce. It’s certainly cheaper and easier to find. (Just to note, I have a great Crock Pot Apple Butter recipe on the old Live Journal if you want to make your own.)
Bready or Not Original: Chewy Apple-Cranberry Oatmeal Cookies
Equipment
- cookie sheet
- parchment paper
- teaspoon scoop or spoon
Ingredients
- 1 baking apple such Granny Smith or Gala
- 2 cups old-fashioned oats also called rolled oats
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1 cup brown sugar packed
- 1/4 cup unsalted butter melted and cooled
- 1/4 cup apple butter or applesauce
- 1 large egg room temperature
- 1/2 cup dried cranberries
- 1/2 cup walnuts or pecans, chopped
Instructions
- Preheat oven at 35-degrees. Line cookie sheet with parchment paper. Peel apple and finely chop enough to fill 1/2 cup. This likely will not be an entire apple; eat and enjoy the rest.
- Mix together oats, flour, cinnamon, baking soda, salt, and nutmeg. In a separate bowl, combine the brown sugar, butter, apple butter, and egg. Gradually incorporate the contents of bowls. Fold in the chopped apple, cranberries, and walnuts.
- Use a teaspoon scoop or spoon to place dough, spaced on, on prepared cookie sheet. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes, until set but still soft. Let sit on cookie sheet on stove for a few minutes before transferring to a cooling rack. Continue to bake rest of dough.
- Store in a sealed container at room temperature.
OM NOM NOM!
Bready or Not Original: Honey Ginger Blondies
These Honey Ginger Blondies are sweet and spicy-warm, the bars chewy and delightful.
Many years ago, back in January 2016, I posted a recipe for Honey Blondies. They were smooth and sweet. Quite excellent. Earlier this year, I resolved to rework the recipe because I needed to use up ingredients prior to moving.
It took me several bakes to get the balance right. I wanted the ginger present, warm and cozy. I wanted adequate chocolate to balance with the sweetness of the sugar and honey. The textures needed to be right, too–the interior smooth but for the chewy bits of candied ginger and softened chocolate.
The result is a delicious, unique recipe that is perfect year-round!
Bready or Not Original: Honey Ginger Blondies
Equipment
- large saucepan
- 9×13 pan
- aluminum foil
- nonstick spray
Ingredients
- 1 cup unsalted butter 2 sticks
- 2/3 cup honey
- 1 1/2 cups brown sugar packed
- 1 1/2 Tablespoons fresh ginger
- 2 1/2 cups flour
- 2 large eggs room temperature
- 1 1/2 Tablespoons vanilla extract
- 2 teaspoons coarse salt
- 1 1/4 cup candied ginger chopped
- 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
Instructions
- Melt butter and honey in a large saucepan. Stir in the brown sugar and fresh ginger. Remove from heat and set aside to cool for about 20 minutes.
- Since the contents are still likely a bit warm, add some of the flour and stir to cool things off. Mix in the eggs and vanilla extract followed by the rest of the flour and the salt. Mix until just combined, and let it continue to cool about 30 minutes.
- Preheat the oven to 350-degrees. Prepare a 9×13 pan by lining with foil and greasing with nonstick spray or butter. Fold the candied ginger and chocolate chips into the batter, then spread into the pan.
- Bake for about 30 minutes; the edges will just be turning brown. Let the blondies cool completely on a wire rack, speeding the process in the fridge, if desired. Use the foil to lift them out to cut into squares. Store in an airtight container.