Baked Eggplant and an update

Well, summer is over and kids are back in school. I think I checked out blog-wise back in June, but I have been busy creating! Mostly in the kitchen and my art studio; not a whole lot of crafting. I wanted to share one of our favorite healthy recipes-baked eggplant and ranch (read on) with you. My kids actually love it and it's good for them!

And as my summer goes, I was really busy teaching painting workshops to elementary aged students. We had a blast painting watermelons, flip flops, flowers, flags and much more. If you'd like to get some great ideas on fun things to paint with your children, plus some easy to follow tutorials, click on the picture below. I'd love to have you as a follower on my art blog also. I'm currently trying to redo it right now so it has a cleaner and easier to follow format.

www.sleepyheaddesignsstudio.blogspot.com

Now for the recipe:

I wish I had a formal recipe but I don't, so keep in mind you may have to tweak some things as you go along:

First, I cut skin off egg plants and slice into rounds about 1/4" thick. I usually use 2 medium sized eggplants

Place in a bowl of milk to soak while preparing mix

In a separate bowl combine:

 1/4 cup all purpose flower (estimate)

2 cups +/- Italian seasoned breadcrumbs (this time I used Panko breadcrumbs)

1/2 cup grated Parmesan and Romano cheese (from the bottle shaker)

Salt and Pepper to taste

Spray metal cooking sheet with canola oil

Dredge eggplant rounds in mix and place on sheet

Lightly spray each round with cooking oil

Bake at 425 degrees until brown and crunchy.

Serve with homemade buttermilk ranch dressing

A yummy snack, appetizer or side dish! After these are cooked you can also freeze any leftovers and then just pop back in the oven to warm and crisp!

Welcome Summer with a Frozen Chocolate Pie

Since I've been such a terrible blogger lately, I thought I'd share one of my favorite dessert recipes that will be a great way to kick off your summer. It's delicious, quick and easy to make, and only has a few ingredients. I know, I feel guilty posting when I don't have more to share or say, but summer has kicked in, the kids are all home, and I started teaching my art classes last week. I will be posting weekly on my art lesson blog, so if your looking for a painting project for yourself or your kids, come see me over at my studio! Last week we painted Folk Art Houses, Peacocks and American Flags. Click HERE to see post.

Try this recipe out this week-your family will love it! In fact, I always make two at a time!

Four Ingredients:

6 Hershey Bars with Almonds

1 Stick butter

1 Carton Cool Whip

1 Oreo or Chocolate Pie Crust

In your microwave, melt chocolate bars and butter on low heat in a microwave. Stir together until smooth. 

Fold cool whip into chocolate mixture and stir until smooth. 

Pour into pie crust and place in freezer.

Top with cool whip before serving.

Enjoy!

Easy, delicious, non rising cinnamon rolls

Yummy Cinnamon Rolls (recipe without yeast)

Try fixing these easy cinnamon rolls for your kids as an afternoon snack. I got this recipe from www.momswhothink.com and tried it out. Believe me when I say it was sooo simple. . . I don't bake much, especially from scratch, but these will now be a regular at my house. I didn't have buttermilk on hand, so I used regular milk and mine turned out fine. So yummy!

Ingredients

Rolls:

2 1/2 cups all purpose flour, plus extra for the counter

2 Tablespoons white granulated sugar

1 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/4 cups buttermilk
6 Tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

Cinnamon Filling:

3/4 cup packed dark brown sugar
1/4 cup white granulated sugar
3 teaspoons cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 Tablespoon unsalted butter, melted

Cream Cheese Frosting:

8 oz cream cheese
1/2 cup butter
1 teaspoon vanilla
3 cups confectioner's sugar
1 Tablespoon milk
**To make frosting, mix all ingredients until smooth.

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 425°. Generously coat a 9 inch round cake pan and a wire cooling rack with vegetable oil spray.

2. Make the filling: combine together the brown sugar, 1/4 cup granulated white sugar, cinnamon, salt, and the 1 Tablespoon melted butter until the mixture resembles wet sand.

3. Make the dough: In a large bowl, whisk together the flour; 2 Tablespoons white granulated sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.

4. In a separate bowl, whisk the buttermilk and 2 Tablespoons of the melted butter together.

5. Stir the buttermilk mixture into the flour mixture with a wooden spoon until absorbed, about 30 seconds. The dough will look shaggy.

6. Turn the dough out onto a generously floured counter and knead until smooth, about 1 minute.

7. Press the dough out into a 9 by 12 inch rectangle using your hands.

8. Brush the dough with 2 Tablespoons melted butter. Sprinkle the dough evenly with the filling, leaving a 1/2-inch border. Press the filling firmly into the dough.

9. Loosen the dough from the counter using a bench scraper or a metal spatula.

10. Starting at a long side, roll the dough, pressing lightly, to form a tight log.

11. Pinch the seam to seal. Slice the dough into 8 even pieces.

12. Place the slices in the greased pan.

13. Brush with the remaining 2 Tablespoons melted butter. Bake until the edges are golden brown, 20-25 minutes.

14. Use a knife to loosen the buns from the pan. Flip the buns out onto the prepared wire rack, then turn buns upright and let cool for 10 minutes before frosting with cream cheese icing. Prepare the icing while rolls are cooling.

www.momswhothink.com