Garlic Parmesan Bread Knots & Twists

The Best Bread Knots & Twists

I love bread and these Bread Knots & Twists are no exception. You can make them from scratch by throwing together ingredients for Dinner Rolls dough or you can purchase it, premade, frozen. Either way you can make Knots & Twists that are absolutely amazing. Once you learn a simple twist and tie technique, all you have to do is let the dough rise, brush in the Garlic seasoned butter, sprinkle on the Parmesan Cheese and Oregano, then bake to perfection. In just a matter of minutes, you can sink your teeth into an American Tuscany; code for Heaven on Earth.

Bread Knots & Twists
Dinner Rolls Dough Ingredients:

4 to 5 Cups Flour
2 tbsp Yeast, Instant Rapid Rise
1/3 cup Sugar, granulated
1 1/2 tsp Salt
1 1/2 Cups Warm Milk, 110 degrees
1 egg
2 tbsp Melted Butter, for basting

Freeze dough or follow the instructions, below, for Bread Knots & Twists.

Bread Knots & Twists Ingredients:

16 Frozen Dough Dinner Rolls, thawed
1 Cube Unsalted Butter, melted
1/2 tsp Salt (Don’t add salt if butter is salted)
1/2 tsp Garlic Powder
1/2 tsp Onion Powder
Parmesan Cheese to taste
Oregano to taste

Bread Knots & Twists Instructions:

To make Bread Knots & Twists, thaw and Roll the dough before it rises. Twist and Tie the dough into desired shapes and place on a greased cookie sheet 2 inches apart. Cover with a towel and allow the dough to rise at least triple the size. In the meantime, melt 1 cube of Butter and add the Salt, Garlic Powder and Onion Powder and stir with a whisk. When the dough has risen, baste and coat the dough with the melted Butter mixture. Then shake Parmesan and Oregano over the top of all the Knots and Twists. Bake at 350 degrees for 15 to 20 Minutes. Then coat again with the remaining butter and serve Garlic Parmesan Bread Knots & Twists while they’re still warm.

If you want the dough to rise quicker after you’ve twisted and tied the rolls into knots, heat your oven to 200 degrees then turn it off. Add a large bowl of water to the bottom rack and place the cookie sheet full of dough on the top rack. The dough will rise 3 times faster this way so keep a close eye on it and be sure NOT to cover with a towel this way. The Bread Knots & Twists won’t turn out right, if you do.

Fried Zucchini

Easy Fried Zucchini

This Fried Zucchini is absolutely delicious. I really can’t say enough about it because it’s so easy to make and the taste is amazing, with or without dipping sauce. I got the idea, to make it this way, several years ago. One of my favorite Italian chains serves an appetizer very similar to this one and I liked it so much I figured I’d put together my own recipe. So this is what I came up with.

My Fried Zucchini Secret

The trick, to this Fried Zucchini recipe, is to keep the breading on while you’re frying. So, be gentle flipping each peace over. You also need to be sure to cook the Zucchini slices all the way through so that they are tender on the inside yet crispy on the outside. This means you need to fry them at a medium low temperature but no lower than 325 degrees Fahrenheit. If you do this, you’re Fried Zucchini will turn out great!

FYI: You can use this exact same recipe for Fried Green Tomatoes! 😉

Fried Zucchini Ingredients:

1 Zucchini, sliced
2 eggs
1/2 cup Flour
1/2 tsp Salt
1/2 cup Seasoned Bread Crumbs

Cut the Zucchini into 1/4 inch slices. Dip each slice into the salted flour, then the egg wash and then the seasoned bread crumbs. Fry with 1/8 inch of oil in the bottom of a pan, set on Medium Low, for 1 to 2 minutes per side. Dab on paper towels and serve the Fried Zucchini with Marinara and Ranch Dressing or dip.

Blackened Chicken Alfredo

The Best Chicken Alfredo

I love Chicken Alfredo and this particular recipe is a favorite of mine because it holds everything that I love and hold dear to my heart, when it comes to Italian food. I’m talking about pasta tossed in Alfredo, topped with marinated and grilled Chicken(Blackened), and fresh chopped Tomato and Parsley. So it’s a hearty dish with plenty of Carbs, Fat and protein. What more could you possible want on your plate?

Chicken Alfredo in Restaurants

There’s no doubt that Chicken Alfredo is very common and popular, these days, among most Italian restaurants. You can even order it on a pie from your favorite pizza delivery service. But every where I go it’s always made a little different. Seems like everyone has got their own way to of making white sauce. And there are some really good recipes out there, however, there are some that are just plain awful. So you really have to be careful with who you trust to make your sauce. This particular recipe is a copy cat of local restaurant here in town called, “Wingers” and it’s fashioned around the idea of an old “50’s” style diner. They serve popcorn, wings and the best Vanilla Coke in town. They also have a recipe called Blackened Chicken Alfredo on their menu and I order every time I’m there.

Blackened Chicken Alfredo Ingredients:

2 to 4 boneless Chicken Thighs (one for each plate)
1 pkg Lemon & Herb Marinade (or your favorite marinade)

Pasta
2 cups Penne Rigate Pasta (or your favorite)
1 tsp Salt (for boiling water)
4 tbsp Olive oil (2 for Boiling water and 2 after pasta is cooked)

Alfredo Sauce
1 tbsp Unsalted Butter
1 chopped Garlic Clove
1 chopped Green Onion
3 tbsp chopped Red/Green Bell Pepper
1 cup Whipping Cream
1/3 cup Parmesan Cheese
1 tbsp Creme cheese

Topping
1 chopped Roma Tomato
2 tbsp fresh chopped Parsley
Salt and Pepper to Taste

Marinate the Chicken and start Grilling First, then start boiling the water and season with salt and olive oil. Cut all the veggies. In a hot skillet on High, add butter, Garlic, Scallions and Bell Pepper. Saute for 1 minute then add creme 1/4 cup at a time. Stir, boil then add until it’s gone. Add Parmesan Cheese and Cream Cheese, then take off the heat. Be sure to watch the chicken and turn once after chicken has Blackened with Grill marks (not Burned). Strain Pasta, add remaining olive oil, then stir into Alfredo Sauce. Lay each serving of pasta down first, on a plate, then cut each Grilled Chicken Thigh into 1/4 inch slices and lay over the pasta, and garnish the Chicken Alfredo with some chopped Tomato and Parsley, then serve.