Bread Twists

Bread Twists

What’s the Deal with Bread Twists?

Bread Twists for me, started when I was a young man.  I would camp with some friends near a reservoir we would boat and fish on, and we would twist canned biscuit dough around our Hot dog and Marsh mellow skewers to make “Bread Twists”!  Now I don’t now if this is something everyone else does elsewhere, but I’ve never seen anyone else do it since.  However, there is a local Pizza Joint here, that shall remain nameless, that has branded their very existence around them.  They are so good, I thought I’d share a real simple way to make these yourself at home.

 Rhodes Texas RollsInstead of going through a whole dough recipe and having to worry about the yeast and what not, do yourself a favor and pick up a frozen bag of dinner rolls.  I used these Texas Rolls made by Rhodes because they are 50% larger than the average dinner roll, so it gave me more Twist to work with.  The great thing about a pre-made dinner roll is that they’ve taken all the guess work out of making a fluffy light bread, which is the key to making perfect Bread Twists.  It is critical, however, to follow the thawing instructions and let the dough rise properly.  Once you’ve done that, roll them out with some flour into a long cylinder shape that you can then roll flat with a rolling pin.  Then using a Shish Kabob Skewer, pierce the tip on one end of the dough, then slide the dough to the bottom of the skewer and twist the dough to the end of the skewer and stab the tip of the remaining twist.  It’s important to let them rise back up again before baking so they remain fluffy when they cook.  I use a cake pan when I lay the Bread Twists Side ways in order for the bread to swell and cook down as well as out in every direction.  This also helps to brush the Garlic and herb seasoned butter over the top.

Bread Twists Ingredients:

12 thawed Dough Rolls and Skewers

4 tbsp melted Butter
1 tsp Garlic Powder
1/2 tsp Salt
1/2 tsp dry Oregano

Parmesan (Don’t mix with the Butter)

Mix all the Butter Topping ingredients together and brush the twists on all sides before and after baking.  The twists do tend to come unraveled during the handling, but they twist back just as easily. Shake Parmesan Over the top after they’ve been basted and bake at 350 degrees for approximately 10 minutes or until Golden Brown.  Because oven temperatures may vary, the time will too so watch them carefully because they cook faster when the dough has been rolled out and flattened for twists.  Bread Twists are great with Italian Pasta, Pizza or just Dipping in Marinara, Alfredo or Garlic and Olive Oil.

Five Onion French Onion Soup

The Best French Onion Soup!

This French Onion Soup recipe has Five Different Onions that make the flavor truly unique.  Recipes use different onions for different desired effects.  Specific colors, for example, derive a bitter or sweet taste and some more bold than others.  Generally, the desired onion, represents the flavor you what to be hitting to balance out the other ingredients.  So, by combining all of the above, I’m taking this French Onion Soup to a whole new level.

The French Onion Soup Secret

Caramelizing the Onions is where most of the magic happens when you’re making French Onion Soup.  So it’s very Critical that you take this seriously.  Don’t saute only, to save time, because it won’t turn out the same.  Spend a good 20 to 30 minutes to really develop the flavor you would expect from any restaurant that serves a good French Onion Soup.  Also, when it comes to the broth, don’t be to picky with it.  I mean, it should taste good but I’ve made this soup dozens of times just using Beef Bouillon.  I have found that Knorr makes one of the better, cheaper bouillon’s out there because it’s smooth and it isn’t too salty.

Another thing you want to be careful with is the wine.  Adding to much will kill this soup off in seconds.  The wine takes the soup to a whole new level but use it sparingly.    If you follow this advice, you’ll treat your pallet to a little piece of heaven.

French Onion Soup Ingredients:

1/2 sliced White Onion
1/2 sliced Red Onion
1/2 sliced Yellow Onion
1/2 sliced Sweet Onion
1 bunch chopped Green Onion
1 cube Butter
1 tbsp Sugar
1 1/2 qt Beef Broth or Stock (Bouillon is fine)
2 bay leaves
1 tbsp Thyme
1/3 cup Red Wine (you can substitute apple cider)
1 chopped Garlic Clove
Graded Swiss Gruyere
Texas Garlic Toast for soup Bowl Crouton

Heat the Beef Broth in a Soup Pan and add the Bay Leaves, Thyme and Red Wine.  In a Skillet, saute the Onions in the melted butter and add the sugar for caramelizing, approximately 20 minutes.  Then add the Onions to the broth and Simmer for another 10 to 20 minutes. Place the Texas Garlic Toast in the oven at 425 degrees at bake until the bread is crispy and toasted through and through like Croutons.  Grade the Swiss Gruyere and remove Bay leaves from the French Onion Soup.  Add one Crouton to a bowl and Ladle the soup over the bread, then add the Gruyere over the top. Place the French Onion Soup in the oven, under a high broil, for just a few minutes, until the cheese melts and bubbles with a nice golden brown tint, then serve.

Seafood and Crab

Seafood and Crab

Seafood and Crab Everything!

If you don’t know or haven’t realized by now, Seafood and Crab can go with just about anything.  You can find it in Sushi, Cold Noodle Salads, Cheese Dips for chips or crackers and Sub Sandwich’s like the photo I’ve got here in this article.  The list goes on and on.  Of course it isn’t real Crab Meat though either.  It’s made from imitation crab which consists of mostly Alaskan Pollock, egg whites and red food coloring.  I guess the Pollock is what classifies it as “Seafood” even though there isn’t any real crab.  But the recipe for Seafood and Crab is not so confusing and serves as the basic front line for dozens of other recipes to boot.  Here I make a real basic sub sandwich that would normally have Tomatoes, Banana Peppers and olives on it as well if I were using a bigger loaf.  But I use the basics just to show you how you can still get your fix by just using a few ingredients.

Seafood and Crab Ingredients:

2 cups Imitation Crab meat
2 chopped Green Onions
1 chopped Garlic Clove
1 cup Mayonnaise
1 tbsp Olive Oil
Salt and Pepper to taste

Just mix all the ingredients together at once in one bowl and add the Seafood and Crab to your favorite recipe or dish.