Pumpkin Muffins

(from the inside label of the Libby's Easy Pumpkin Pie Mix)



Makes 24 muffins 400° 16 minutes

Muffin Ingredients
4 Cups baking mix
1 Cup raisins (optional)
2/3 Cup quick or old-fashioned oats
2/3 Cup sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
1 can (30 oz) Libby's Easy Pumpkin Pie Mix
2 large eggs

Streusel Topping
3 Tbsp flour
3 Tbsp sugar
3/4 tsp cinnamon
2 Tbsp butter

Preheat oven to 400°. Paper line muffin cups.

Combine streusel topping ingredients and cut butter in thoroughly with fork in small bowl.

For muffins, combine baking mix, raisins, oats, sugar, and cinnamon in large bowl. (If only half like raisins, omit now and stir in 1/2 cup to batter after half the muffin cups have been filled.)

Combine pumpkin pie mix and eggs in medium bowl, mixing well.

Stir into oat mixture just until moistened.

Spoon batter into muffin cups 3/4 full.

Sprinkle with streusel topping.

Bake for 16 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean.

Cool slightly, serve warm.

Potato Rolls

Makes 48 rolls. Bake 12-15 minutes at 375°

3 Cups scalded milk
3/4 Cup sugar
1 Cup instant potato flakes
1 Tablespoon salt
1/2 Cup shortening
1/2 Cup margarine
4 eggs

Bring milk almost to boil in pan. In a very large bowl combine the sugar, potato flakes, salt, shortening and margarine. Add the milk and stir to melt the shortening and margarine. When slightly cooled (about 5 - 7 minutes) add the eggs and stir.

1 1/2 Tablespoons yeast
1/4 Cup very warm water
1/2 teaspoon sugar

While waiting to add eggs, sprinkle water over yeast and sugar in a small bowl and set aside.

8 Cups flour (approx)

Once the eggs are mixed in, add about two cups of flour and the yeast and mix by spoon. Gradually stir in the rest of the flour by spoon or hand. I knead the dough right in the bowl by putting my hand under the mixture and folding the dough in half while turning the bowl about a quarter turn as I go for about 5 - 10 minutes.

Put the dough into a greased bowl and cover with lightly greased saran wrap and let rise for about 1 to 1 1/2 hours or until double.

For crescent rolls, separate dough into 4 equal sections and roll each into a large circle.

Lightly butter. I use a sandwich bag to spread the butter on the dough and the baking pans.

Cut into 12 even pie slices.

Roll from the largest side towards the point.






Put onto a buttered tray and cover loosely with greased saran wrap and let rise another 30 minutes. If your kitchen is cold and you need to force the rise, warm the oven to 175° and then shut off and place rolls in warm oven to rise.



If rising in oven, remove rolls from oven and preheat to 375°. Remove saran wrap and bake for 12 - 15 minutes. I switch the trays in the oven halfway through baking so they brown evenly. Makes 48 rolls, 24 on each cookie sheet.

French Toast

Use your favorite bread. If I don't actually make bread for french toast I buy the Red White and Blueberry bread from Great Harvest and use that for the french toast. Just use a good bread that won't get too soggy and fall apart.

I don't have exact measurements as it always varies depending on the number of people you are serving but I think the most important part of making french toast is to whisk your eggs BEFORE you add any other ingredients. This makes it so you don't have that lumpy eggy membrane on the french toast. It's just easier to dip and fry.
So lets say I'm using about 5 eggs, I'll whisk them really well first in a bowl large enough to dip the bread, so that they are smooth and THEN I add milk until it looks like about 1 part egg to 2 parts milk.
Then I add a little sugar, maybe a spoonful, some vanilla (1/2 tsp?), and cinnamon. Add more cinnamon during cooking as necessary. Mix everything together well.
Prepare pans by heating to medium heat. Spray lightly with something like Pam. Or if you prefer, use butter or even bacon grease. I prefer spray oil because it doesn't burn as fast and doesn't make the bread soggy.
Quickly dip the bread into the egg/milk mixture on both sides. I call it a dip-n-flip. If you do it really fast you will get PERFECT un-soggy toast everytime. (If you are using drier bread it is okay to dip a little longer.)
Obviously just cook it the way you like. Golden, light, dark, etc...Serve with real butter and any flavor syrup. Or you can use the following OH SO YUMMY recipe in place of the syrup.

-Mash one banana and mix in a spoonful or so of Tang. (Thanks Jari)! Try it, you'll like it! ;D

Garlic Bread

No matter what kind of bread we use (this is even really good on the wheat hoagie rolls from Sam's Club) we always season our garlic bread this way...

Butter bread generously.

Sprinkle with granulated garlic to taste.

Lightly sprinkle with paprika.

Crush dried parsley over the bread.

Top with parmesan to taste.

Place under broiler for about 5 minutes, or until lightly browned, watching continuously (trust me).

Make LOTS because there will never quite be enough!

White Bread

This bread is good for sandwiches, toasted with jelly, hot out of the oven with real butter, etc. But we usually make it especially for french toast and sometimes for garlic bread. Sooo yummy!

White Bread -6 loaves- 350° for 30 minutes

1/2 Cup sugar
3 Tbsp salt
1 Cup instant powdered milk (powder)
6 Cups water (at about 110°)
3/4 Cup vegetable oil
about 15 Cups (or 5 lbs.) flour


Mix the sugar, salt and powdered milk in a very large bowl. Add the oil and some of the water (1 or 2 cups). Stir to make sure there are no powdered milk lumps. Add the rest of the water and mix.
Add 5-6 cups of flour and sprinkle in 3 Tbsp yeast. Mix a little by spoon: mixture will be lumpy. Add the rest of the flour, 1 cup at a time, mixing by spoon until it starts to be too hard to mix with a spoon.
Then I spray my hands with spray oil and knead the bread right there in the bowl by putting my hand under the bottom of the dough and folding it basically in half and turning the bowl about a quarter turn every fold. I add most of the rest of the flour in this way. Just get it so it isn't sticky anymore.
Dump the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead about 15 more minutes.
Let dough rise in a greased (I use something like Pam) bowl covered with greased plastic wrap. (About 1 1/2 hours.) Rise until double.
Punch dough down and rise until double again.
Punch down and separate into 6 even sections and shape into loaves.
Place in greased loaf pans.
Let rise again, covered, about 30 minutes.
Bake at 350° for 25-30 minutes, rotating loaves halfway through to prevent uneven browning.
Let cool in pans for 10 minutes and then remove from pans and place on cooling racks.
Let bread cool thoroughly and place in storage bags. Only slice it as you need it- it stays softer.