ZUCCHINI BROWNIES

 2 cups flour
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup oil
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 1/2 cups zucchini
Chocolate chips

In large bowl, combine first four ingredients.  Then in separate part of bowl, mix the oil, sugar, vanilla and zucchini.  Finally, mix everything together.  Pour into a greased 9x13 cake pan.  Sprinkle the top with chocolate chips.  Bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes.

PUMPKIN PECAN LOAVES

        This is a true family favorite and designed for home-grown winter squash and pumpkins.

3 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
3 cups sugar
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon nutmeg
3 cups pumpkin or winter squash, cooked and pure'd
  (or 1 can of 15 oz. pumpkin plus 2/3 cup water)
1 cup oil
4 eggs
1/2 cup chopped pecans (or change to 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips)

 In a bowl, combine dry ingredients.  Combine pumpkin, oil and eggs in another bowl and stir these into dry ingredients just until combined.  Fold in pecans or chocolate chips.  Spoon into two greased and sugared 9x5x3 inch loaf pans.  Bake at 350 for 60-65 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean from center.  Cool ten minutes before removing from pans to wire racks.

Carmel Glaze:
1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup sugar
 1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup whipping cream or canned milk
2/3 cup powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla

Combine butter, sugars and cream in a saucepan.  Cook until sugar dissolves.  Cool slightly and stir in powdered sugar and vanilla until smooth.  Drizzle over cooled loaves.

ZUCCHINI BREAD and MUFFINS

This recipe has been fiddled with a lot to make it work just right.  It's a blessing because it uses so much zucchini!

1 cup oil
3 eggs
1 cup white sugar
1 1/2  cups brown sugar
4 cups shredded zucchini
1 teaspoon real vanilla (or 1 tablespoon artificial )
3 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon

     Mix oil, eggs, sugars, zucchini and vanilla until smooth.  Add dry ingredients and mix until moistened.  Pour into 2 greased and sugared loaf pans.  Bake at 350 for 50-60 minutes.  Make sure toothpick comes out clean.  For muffins, fill greased tins 2/3 full and bake 20-22 minutes.
     Cool ten minutes in pans before inverting onto cooling rack.

LEMON ICING:
1 teaspoon melted butter
1 teaspoon lemon juice
2 teaspoons milk
1 cup powdered sugar
     Stir together until smooth. Drizzle or spoon onto loaves/ muffins when slightly warm, or completely cooled.

RANCH COOKIES

This is the "go to" cookie for happiness when family visits the ranch.

2 cups butter
2 cups white sugar
2 cups brown sugar
4 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
     Cream together butter and sugars.  Add eggs and vanilla and beat well until smooth. 
Add:
5 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
4 cups quick cooking oatmeal
2-3 cups chocolate chips
    Mix dry ingredients into creamed mixture, saving the oatmeal and chocolate chips to mix in last.
Spoon onto greased cookie sheet.  Bake at 350 for 10-12 minutes.  Make sure they are lightly browned on bottom.  Cool on baking rack.  Yields 60 cookies.

MAMA'S BEST ROLLS

  (Mama is my grandmother Duella Eyre Hamblin, known for her magic in the kitchen)

Yield: Approximately  3 ½ -4 dozen rolls. I always double the recipe and freeze some for later Bake: 350 for 13-15 min.or til golden brown.

 May make ahead and freeze in pan or in ziplock bags.  To serve:  thaw, reheat in pan, covered with foil for about 10-15 minutes at 350 degrees.

1. Whisk these DRY ingredients together in large bowl:

3 cups high gluten flour                                                              Tips for success:

½ cup powdered milk                                           a.  use fresh Lehi Roller Mills or high gluten flour

5 teaspoons SAF instant yeast                              b.  SAF yeast

2 ½ teaspoons salt                                                c.  Real butter

¼ cup sugar                                                          d.  Don’t let over-rise

2.  Add these WET ingredients all at once to the dry:

½ cup canola or vegetable oil

2 ½ cups hot water

2 beaten eggs  - Make sure these are not cold. Defrost in microwave if necessary.

     Mix together wet and dry ingredients thoroughly - until very smooth.

3.  LAST, add  3 more cups high gluten flour.

     With a sturdy wooden spoon, mix the remaining flour into dough. This will take a  strong hand. Grasp both hands around spoon.  You become the dough hook and while occasionally turning the bowl, stir into a soft ball.  Signs that you have mixed it enough:  Dough should be very smooth and not sticky to the touch and the spoon should snap off the ball of dough easily.  More flour may be needed if dough continues sticky; just add by small increments until the dough feels right. Cover and let rise 20 min - ½ hour til double

 Tips for Rolling out dough:  Put dough on lightly floured surface.  Flatten it slightly with your hands until it is even all around.  Begin to roll, working from the middle out on all sides.  Roll to approx. ¼ to 1/3 inch thickness.  “Shrink” the dough by gently lifting it and giving a light shake. After shaping rolls, let rise in warm place until double.

Parker House Rolls:  Roll dough to 1/3 inch thickness. Brush dough with melted butter.  Cut with round glass, can or roll cutter to desired size.  Fold in half, butter on the inside.  Place in jelly roll pan; 8 down, 4 across.

Crescent Rolls: Divide dough in two. Pat each into an even circle. Roll, working from middle out on all sides, to about ¼ inch thickness. “Shrink” dough.  Brush with melted butter.  With pizza cutter, slice in fourths, then eighths, then into 16 pieces.  Roll from wide side down into a tight roll.  Place tip down on jelly roll pan; 7 down, 3 across. 

Orange Fan Rolls:   Pat dough out into an even rectangle, then roll evenly from middle out into a large rectangle to approx. ¼ to 1/3 inch thickness.  Shrink.  Brush with melted butter. Sprinkle with about 1/3 cup sugar over surface. With orange zester, zest peels of 2  oranges. Slice dough with pizza cutter into 1 ½ inch squares. Gather up 5 squares in a stack and place in greased muffin tin, with edge sides down in pan. Make a cinnamon variation by sprinkling cinnamon on top of the sugar, and adding raisins, cranraisins, or nuts if desired. Cranraisins with the orange rolls would be fabulous, too.

Glaze for orange rolls:   Microwave ¼ cup butter with ¼ cup milk for 1 minute.  Add 1 pound  pkg. powdered sugar. Beat until smooth.  Add ½ tsp. orange flavoring, or juice from one orange, which may require that you add more sugar. Make to desired consistency. Drizzle over cooled rolls on baking rack.

STORY TIME:    In the fall of 2002,  Jenean Knowlton and I had a short-lived bakery business out of our homes in Alpine, Utah, based almost exclusively on my roll and cinnamon roll recipes, I had quite a few people before this who would call me during holiday times to bake for them.  Jenean joined me at Thanksgiving time and we advertised to make rolls and pies; she the pies and I the rolls.  I warned Jenean that I thought I could take orders only up to 50-55 dozen, and to not give me more than  I could handle.  Jenean kept on taking orders for the rolls, without counting the tally until she called me up to tell me that the total roll count for orders was 220 dozen.  At that time, my kitchen was of limited size and I had  but one conventional oven.  I about fainted when she told me the tally, but I got organized the night before.  With my young daughters and my mother, we worked non-stop the day before Thanksgiving, stirring, rolling and cutting out the rolls, baking them all in my little oven.  Customers dropped in at my house to pick them up.  On Thanksgiving morning, I made ten more dozen rolls for my large extended Bangerter family; I thought that was easy street compared to the day before.

     Jenean had told her customers that she would deliver their pies.  She and her husband, Nels, went absolutely insane trying to deliver those beautiful pies.  After it was all said and done, Jenean, normally chipper and a fabulous cook said to me, "I don't think I like to bake any more."  From them on, we did not advertise, but I continued to make rolls for those who called me during holidays.

MAKE AHEAD CRUSTY ARTISAN LOAVES

3 cups warm water
1 1/2 Tablespoons yeast
4 teaspoons salt
6 1/2 cups flour, divided

Mix half the flour with other dry ingredients.  Add warm water and mix until thoroughly smooth. Stir in rest of flour. Mix well, but don't knead.  Let rise for at least three hours, covered.  Refrigerate at least one hour.  Shape and place on stone or sheet sprinkled with corn meal and let rise one hour.  Preheat oven to 450 degrees.  Pour one cup of water in bottom of metal bowl or pan and place in bottom of oven under baking bread.   Bake for one half hour.

STORYTIME:
My daughter Katherine married Tyrell Bowen August 24, 2011. Katherine wanted spinach-artichoke spread for their outdoor wedding reception and I imagined the spread would be wonderful with some bread that had a firm and chewy texture.  I made this dough and shaped it into long, skinny loaves, twisting it. After baking,  the loaves were frozen and just before the reception, cut into small rounds.  When I saw how the guests were piling up with dip and bread, I knew it wouldn't last long.  Uncle Cory was heard to say that he could take it intravenously. It was no surprise, the spread was gone halfway through the evening (and the homemade marinated meatballs).   I do have to say....we had far more guests at Katherine's reception than anticipated, to the tune of 500 plus. Midway through the evening, Katherine and Tyrell sliced a piece of their wedding cake for a taste and a picture.  The next time I turned to look, the cake had vanished!  It was such a beautiful evening, that many lingered at their tables, and had to fill up on mint brownies, lemon bars, cream cheese apricot-almond squares, cut up fruit and slushy punch.  We ran out of clear plastic plates that night.  Uncle Grant and Aunt Cleadonna sent someone to the store for more, and in the meantime, they had to wash plates and cups to keep up, poor souls!

NO FIDDLE BREAD-STICKS

A no-fuss, parmesan encrusted bread-stick.
Yield: 1 jelly roll pan.

1 1/2 cup very warm water
1 Tablespoon yeast
2 Tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon salt
Approx. 4 cups white flour, divided.

Mix together dry ingredients with 2 cups of the flour.  Add very warm water and stir til mixture is smooth.  Add more flour a little at a time, just until dough is soft but non-sticky.  Knead 8 minutes by hand, or 3-4 minutes in bread mixer.  Cover dough and let rest for 20 minutes.

Melt 1/2 cup butter.

Spread 1/4 cup butter in bottom of jelly-roll pan.  Place dough into buttered pan and flatten with finger tips to make fit.  Brush with remaining butter. Sprinkle lightly with garlic seasoning and moderately with parmesan cheese. Cut with pizza cutter into strips lengthwise, then in thirds - across.   Let rise 20 minutes.
Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes or until lightly browned.