Marie Callender's Corn Bread

INGREDIENTS:

1 box (9 ounce size) Jiffy corn muffin mix, plus ingredients to prepare
1 box (9 ounce size) Jiffy yellow cake mix, plus ingredients to prepare

Honey Butter Recipe:

1/4 pound butter
1/4 cup strained bacon drippings
4 slices bacon, cooked crisp and crumbled
2/3 cup honey

DIRECTIONS:

Cornbread: Prepare each box according to package directions and gently fold together. Pour into a greased (with strained bacon fat) 9 x 13 pan. (You can sprinkle with a little crisp bacon.) Bake according to box directions for the yellow cake mix.

Honey Butter: Beat butter until light and creamy. Add drippings and bacon. Take honey and beat into butter mixture until light and fluffy (almost floats out of the bowl) Can be frozen (will last up to a year).

Rich Golden Rolls

Ingredients:


1/2 cup milk, scalded
1/3 cup sugar
1 tsp. salt
1 cup (2 sticks) butter
2 packages active dry yeast
1/2 cup warm (not hot) water
2 eggs
4 1/4 cups sifted flour

Directions:


To scald the milk, heat in a small saucepan until tiny bubbles form around the edges of the pan (I sometimes do this in the microwave in a large Pyrex measuring cup). If you prefer to skip the milk scalding step, use powdered milk rehydrated with water according to package directions and measure out 1/2 cup.

Stir in sugar, salt and butter. Remove from stove and allow to cool until lukewarm.

In a large mixing bowl (rinse bowl in hot water first so the water doesn't cool down too much when added), dissolve yeast in warm, not hot, water. Allow to stand for 10 minutes.

Cooks Note: If using quick-rising yeast, or if you have several hours to allow for rising time, 1 packet of yeast is sufficient).

When milk mixture has cooled to lukewarm, add it to the yeast along with eggs, and half of the flour. Beat until smooth.

Stir in just enough flour to make a soft dough; turn out onto a work surface which has been lightly dusted with flour and knead dough until smooth and elastic, about 10 minutes. Alternatively, knead using the dough hook attachment for about 5 minutes.

Place kneaded dough in a bowl which has been oiled, turning once to coat all sides so the dough won't form a crust as it rises. Cover with a damp towel or plastic wrap and place in a warm, draft-free place to rise until doubled in size, about 1 hour.

Punch dough down to remove air bubbles. Dive into 4 pieces.

Roll each piece out on a lightly floured work surface to form a circle 1/8-inch in thickness. Using a sharp knife, slice the circle into 8 wedges.

Roll up each wedge, beginning at the wide end. (Before rolling, the dough may be brushed with warm (not hot) melted butter, but this will cause the rolls to need a longer rising period).

Place the rolls, with the point tucked underneath, on a lightly oiled cookie sheet. If desired, the ends may be curled inward to form crescent shapes.

Cover loosely and allow the rolls to rise in a warm, draft-free place until doubled in size, about 1 hour (or more, depending upon room temperature).

Bake in a 400°F oven for about 20 minutes, or until the rolls are light and golden.

Makes about 32 small rolls.

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Seasoned Salts & Pickle Salts

"A wise woman puts a grain of sugar into everything she says to a man, and takes a grain of salt with everything he says to her." Helen Rowland

By Meathead Goldwyn

Our dining table is always set with a pepper mill, a table salt shaker, and a small bowl with Seasoned Sea Salt. It is easy to make and the large grains really add a spark to potatoes, pastas, pizza, veggies, and just about everything else that needs salt. This blend also makes a nice rub for beef roasts.

But you don't have to stick with my recipe. Feel free to create your own house blend with your favorite seasonings. Start with 1 part seasoning mix and add 6 to 10 parts large grain salt.

Another fun technique to make pickle salts. Just take pickle juices, dehydrate them in a dehydrator or by leaving them in a non-reactive pan to evaporate. Then scrape them up. You can use them like this, or grind them in a mortar and pestle, coffee grinder, or blender. Try making them from dill pickles, sauerkraut, pickled mushrooms, pickled peppers, onions, whatever you can find!


Ingredients:

1/2 cup sea salt
2 teaspoons of dried herbs such as oregano, thyme, or rosemary, your choice, your blend
1/4 teaspoon powdered garlic
1/4 teaspoon powdered onion
1/4 teaspoon well-dried orange or lemon zest

About the sea salt.

Technically all salt is sea salt since it all comes from the sea. But most salts labeled "sea salt" are large grain, and they dissolve more slowly. You can go to smaller grains such as kosher salt or table salt. If you do, because they are so concentrated, cut back on the herbs. But this is one of those recipes where you can adjust it to your taste.


Method:

Mix all the ingredients together in a bowl and store. We put it in a little pewter bowl on the dining table with a little tiny spoon. You can use it right away, but I find it is better after a week of aging so the aromatic herbs can penetrate the crystals.

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