Yumminess: Traditional Chicken Noodle Soup & Dinner Rolls

Last night we had a Court Activity (in the complex we live in we have "courts" made up of 3 or 4 buildings.) that was a Bread and Soup night. I went all out and made Homemade Chicken Noodle soup (Rachael Ray Style) & Dinner rolls (Our best Bites)... Here are the Recipes! & My Pictures.

Traditional Chicken Noodle Soup

Ingredients
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil (EVOO)
3 celery ribs, chopped
2 medium-size carrots, chopped
1 large onion, chopped
1 bay leaf, use fresh if available
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 quarts chicken stock
1 pound wide egg noodles
1 pound chicken tenders or chicken cutlets, cut into bite-size pieces
 Directions 

Heat a large soup pot over medium-high heat with EVOO. Add celery, carrots, onions and bay leaf, and season with salt and pepper. Cook for about 2-3 minutes then add chicken stock. Bring to a boil and add the egg noodles. Cook according to the package instructions, adding the chicken pieces during the last 4-5 minutes of cooking. Ladle a portion of noodles, chicken, vegetables and soup into a bowl & Enjoy!

Dinner Rolls

Ingredients

2 c. whole milk (if you’re in a pinch, you can use 2%, but whole is best. Don’t use 1% or skim)
½ c. + 1 Tbsp. sugar, divided
1/3 c. (5 1/3 Tbsp.) butter
2 tsp. Kosher salt
2 pkgs. active dry yeast (or 4 1/2 tsp.), preferably bread machine yeast
2/3 c. warm (105-115-degree) water
8-9 c. all-purpose flour
3 beaten eggs

 Directions 

Combine milk, 1/2 c. sugar, butter, and salt in a medium saucepan. Heat over medium heat until butter melts. It’s salty. It’s sweet. Yum.

Remove from heat. Allow to cool to lukewarm. I usually rub some ice cubes along the sides of the pan or pop the entire pan in a sink full of ice cubes to cool the mixture down because this step can take forever. This step is really important because if the mixture is too hot, it will kill the yeast.

 While the milk mixture is cooling, dissolve the yeast and 1 Tbsp. sugar in warm water. Let stand about 10 minutes. If the yeast hasn’t bubbled, you’ll need to repeat this step–moving on with yeast that hasn’t been activated properly will only end in heartache for you and hate mail for us.
In a large mixing bowl, combine 3 c. flour and milk mixture. Beat on low for 30 seconds, scraping sides of bowl constantly. Add yeast mixture and beat on high for 3 minutes.

Add beaten eggs. Why should you beat your eggs first? Same reason you should combine your dry ingredients before adding them to moist ingredients when making cookies and cakes–it ensures everything is well-mixed and can be evenly-distributed through your dough or batter. If you add the whole eggs, your dough may not be as consistent.

Stir in as much remaining flour as needed to make a soft dough. This dough should be very soft–it will be coming away from the sides of the bowl, but it will still stick to your finger when you touch it. Don’t worry, it will firm up during the rising process. Part of what makes these rolls so good is that they’re so soft and light; if you add too much flour, they will be heavy and dense. Place the bowl in a warm place and cover with a clean towel; allow to rise 1 hour.

Punch down dough. Lightly flour your work surface and turn dough out onto surface. Divide in half.

Spray 2 9×13 glass pans with cooking spray. Roll first portion of dough into a rectangle and then cut it into 12 equal-sized pieces. I like to use a pizza cutter because it has a blade on each side, so it cuts right through dough without sticking to the blade. This dough should be very easy to work with, almost like playdough. Shape each piece into a ball and place in prepared pan. Repeat with remaining dough in the second pan.

Cover with a clean cloth and allow to rise in a warm place for about 30 minutes. When dough has about 15-20 minutes to go (depending on your oven), preheat oven to 375.

 Bake for 15-18 minutes or until golden-brown.

When done, remove from oven. Rub a stick of cold butter over the tops of the rolls. You must now eat one. Now. While it’s hot.
 Then pop the rest into a bowl and no one will ever know that you cheated.

Crock Pot Old Fashion Beef Stew with Lion house rolls

 Crock Pot Beef Stew:

2 lbs. beef stew meat, cut into 1 inch cubes

1/2 cup flour

2 Tablespoons oil

1 bay leaf

2 Tablespoons Worcestershire sauce

1 onion, chopped (opt)

2 Knorr Beef Bouillon cubes

1/2 tsp. pepper

2 tsp. salt

2 tsp. sugar

6 carrots, peeled and sliced

1 cup sliced celery (opt)

4 lg. potatoes, peeled and cut into cubes

4 cups water

Coat meat with flour; set excess flour aside. In large skillet heat oil. Brown meat on all sides. In slow cooker, combine browned beef, bay leaf, Worcestershire sauce, sugar, chopped onion, bouillon cubes, pepper, salt, sugar, and vegetables. Pour water over all. (Almost to the top of your slow cooker). Cover and cook on low 8 to 10 hours. Turn control on high. Thicken with flour left over from coating (about 1/4 cup) dissolved in a small amount of warm water. Cover and cook on high 10 to 15 minutes or until slightly thickened. Makes 6-8 servings. Serve with

Lion House Dinner Rolls.
2 cups warm water (110 to 115 degrees)
2/3 cup nonfat dry milk
2 tablespoons active dry yeast
1/4 cup granulated sugar
2 teaspoons salt
1/3 cup butter, shortening, or margarine
1 egg
4 1/2 to 5 cups all-purpose flour or bread flour
1/2 cup butter, melted

Directions:

In a large bowl of an electric mixer or Kitchen Aid, combine water and dry milk powder, stirring until milk dissolves.  Add yeast, then sugar, salt, butter, egg, and 2 cups of the flour.  Mix on low speed until ingredients are wet.  Increase mixer speed to medium and mix for 2 minutes.  Add 2 cups flour; mix on low speed until ingredients are wet, then for 2 minutes at medium speed. Add remaining flour, 1/2 cup at a time, and mix again until dough is soft, but not overly sticky, and NOT stiff.  *Note:  It is not necessary to use the entire amount of flour.

Scrape dough off sides of bowl and pour about 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil all around sides of bowl.  Turn dough over in bowl so it is covered with the oil.  (This helps prevent the dough from drying out.)  Cover with plastic wrap and allow to rise in warm place until doubled in size, about 1 to 1 1/2 hours.  Sprinkle cutting board or counter with flour and place dough on floured surface.  Roll out and shape as desired.  Place on greased or parchment lined baking pans.  Cover with clean towel, or cover lightly with plastic wrap.  Let rise in warm place until rolls are doubled in size, about 1 to 1 1/2 hours.

Bake at 375 degrees for 15 to 20 minutes, or until golden brown.  Brush with melted butter while hot.  Makes about 1 1/2 to 3 dozen rolls, depending on shape and size of rolls.

Note:  This recipe can be doubled, tripled, or even quadrupled if you have a large enough bowl.

Pictures to come..