Sunday, November 30, 2008

I Am a Messy Cook


I don't know that I'd call myself a cook.

But when I do cook, I'm definitely a messy cook.

I like to move fast. My sister teases me because I don't mess around. I get 'r done, as they say, and am kinda rough doing it. So when it comes to cooking 12 pumpkin rolls, the quicker the better.

But....

I forget that it's hard to be fast when I am cooking.

I just end up slinging pumpkin all over the cabinets...
and the counters and floors have a nice coating of powdered sugar everywhere...

And I ruined a whole sheet of pumpkin bread (tried to peel it off the pan too quickly).
Last year, when I was making pumpkin rolls, I was being quick and careless and was scraping the side of the mixing bowl with one hand while SIMULTANEOUSLY mixing with a beater in the other hand. Left hand slips down into the beater and I honestly thought I had cut off my thumb. The pumpkin rolls had a little red hue to them last year. Just thought it was food coloring, huh?

They are delicious though and messing up my whole Body for Life diet something awful.

Here is the recipe, in case you'd like to try them.

Yummy Pumpkin Rolls

Ingredients:

  • CAKE
  • 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 3 large eggs
  • 1 cup granulated sugar
  • 2/3 cup Pumpkin Pie Filling
  • 1 cup walnuts, chopped (optional)
  • FILLING
  • 1 pkg. (8 oz.) cream cheese, at room temperature
  • 1 cup powdered sugar, sifted
  • 6 tablespoons butter or margarine, softened
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • Powdered sugar (optional for decoration)

Directions:
FOR CAKE:
PREHEAT
oven to 375° F. Grease 15 x 10-inch jelly-roll pan; line with wax paper. Grease and flour paper.

COMBINE flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, cloves and salt in small bowl. Beat eggs and granulated sugar in large mixer bowl until thick. Beat in pumpkin. Stir in flour mixture. Spread evenly into prepared pan. Sprinkle with nuts.

BAKE for 13 to 15 minutes or until top of cake springs back when touched. (If using a dark-colored pan, begin checking for doneness at 11 minutes.) Allow to cool. Carefully remove cake from pan using wax paper underneath cake. Then, carefully peel off paper and lay cake on fresh piece of wax paper sprinkled with powdered sugar.

FOR FILLING:
BEAT
cream cheese, 1 cup powdered sugar, butter and vanilla extract in small mixer bowl until smooth. Spread thin layer of cream cheese mixture over cake. Cut cake into thirds, widthwise. Roll up carefully and roll in powdered sugar if necessary. Wrap in wax paper and then plastic wrap; refrigerate at least one hour. I like to freeze mine. I take them out and cut off the ends to make the ends looks crisper. I then put back in freezer and hand out when needed, making sure to tie up with a bow!

Also, I had some request for Thanksgiving Day recipes, so here they are!

Carolyn's Salad
Lettuce of Choice, cut into 1/2 inch shreds. (she used romaine)
Craisins
Bleu Cheese
Toasted Walnuts
Pre-made Raspberry Vinegarette Dressing

Easy and DELICIOUS! I want it right now!!

Finally, here is the corn recipe:

Judy's Corn

Cook 2 lb. bag of frozen corn according to instructions. Drain off most of the water.

Add:
1/4 C. butter
8 oz of cream cheese with chives
1 tsp. onion salt

Stir on top of stove until blended.

I never said I loved healthy recipes, now did I???

11 Wonderful Responses:

Unknown said...

okay Carolyns salad sounds sooooo yummy!
oh and btw ima messy cook too ;-)

Dawn said...

Yep, I am too!

My mother inlaw only requested I make one thing for our dinner- chinese coleslaw.

The thing is, every single time I make it I burn the slivered almonds and sunflower seeds in the broiler. Then I end up having to either go out and buy more or send my husband out to buy more.

I usually just buy two of everything now JUST IN CASE. Well, I didn't this time and wouldn't ya know it! I burned them! But, I'm not taking all the blame. My mother in law knows how I am with them so she will helping me keep watch. So it is partially her fault as well! LOL! I ended up at Wal-Mart in Purcell Thanksgiving morning buying more almonds!

Thanks for sharing the recipes. I'm printing them off! :)

4 Lettre Words said...

Okay, I am a clean-as-I-go cook, even rinsing and putting used utensils/dishes in the dishwasher so there's no mess in the end. I know. I know.

I do have a very messy desk, though!


P.S. Those recipes sound so good!

Michelle said...

Thank for sharing your recipes with us. I kind of clean as I go. Hoping not to have too big of a mess at the end. I am going to try out the Pumpkin recipe also it sounds really good.

Anonymous said...

Yes, messy, but timely too! Just like you said, you get things done! You would have it all cooked AND cleaned up before I would have it half cooked!

Kimbo

Mike said...

We make the corn recipe each year for Thanksgiving, Christmas, potlucks, etc. I just took it to work last week for our Thanksgiving feast there. It was a hit. It always is!

Anonymous said...

So, after I ate the hunk of cookie dough and cajun trail mix...I decided, enough crunching on the trail mix..Joe can't sleep! (this would be info I just shared in my email to you...I sooo ramble...)

And I digress...

...well, I just had to come visit. And what I see out of that mess is a beautiful countertop. So, I'll trade! :0 HATE my little white tiles...gag....I'd even take the mess with it. And, hey, I'm a bit of a clean freak. ;)

I am going to try that corn recipe. Corn is the one veggie that Joe will eat. That and chocolate. ;) Wink wink...

Kathleen said...

Looks delicious! And, hey, with all of that sugar coating on the cabinets, etc., you could just turn your kitchen into a festive, Christmas Gingerbread house kitchen! :-)

Amber said...

Those sound good! I might have to try them! I am a messy cook too. By the time dinner is over, there is never enough room in the dishwasher for all the dishes I have dirtied up and my counters and floor are always covered in splats of this and that. My husband gets so irritated with me because he will have just mopped the kitchen and then I get in there and start cooking and the floor is a mess in no time!

ellen said...

that's funny! and exactly how my kitchen looks when i cook with the littles!

Dave & Amy Moore said...

YUM!!!! Nothing says Thanksgiving better than a good ole' pumpkin roll!! One of my all time favorites!! Thank you for sharing all of these great looking recipes!