Wednesday, April 15, 2015

It's Raining and the Hummers are Back

It finally is raining here regardless of what the weatherman says!  It is a gentle steady rain and is very cool.  I was able to get some pictures earlier just before the rain came in.

First thing:  The hummers arrived here day before yesterday.  I had syrup in the fridge and DH quickly filled  the feeder and put it up.  This is his job completely.  This morning one returned and actually fed in the misting rain.

Yard

This is the fairly new front (middle) yard shrub and tree border.  When we lost the trees due to the tornado a few years ago, we were told that the remaining ones were hollow and wouldn't last many more years. I couldn't put trees near them because of their roots so decided to plant a border between the front ditch (road) and the house.  It is finally coming together.  I still want to put more shrubs in but will try to use what I have already.

 

I have one remaining branch on the old lilacs that were  cut down when we clear-cut the front shrub border by the road.

 

Just behind it is a massive bed of regrowth that will have to be thinned mercilessly!



Cooking

I was completely out of sandwich buns and found one for 40-Minute Buns  from Taste of Home.  I couldn't believe it would work since there was no raising time at all.  You just make up the dough, make out the rolls,cover let rest l0 minutes and bake!  They were excellent.  DH liked them better than any I have done before because they were so soft and moist.

This will be my go-to recipe for buns now.




TOTAL TIME: Prep: 20 min. + resting Bake: 10 min. YIELD:12 servings

Ingredients

  • 2 tablespoons active dry yeast
  • 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons warm water (110° to 115°)
  • 1/3 cup vegetable oil
  • 1/4 cup sugar
  • 1 egg
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 3 to 3-1/2 cups all-purpose flour

Directions

  • 1. In a large bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water. Add oil and sugar; let stand for 5 minutes. Add the egg, salt and enough flour to form a soft dough.
  • 2. Turn onto a floured surface; knead until smooth and elastic, about 3-5 minutes. Do not let rise. Divide into 12 pieces; shape each into a ball. Place 3 in. apart on greased baking sheets.
  • 3. Cover and let rest for 10 minutes. Bake at 425° for 8-12 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from pans to wire racks to cool. Yield: 1 dozen.

Nutritional Facts

1 serving (1 each) equals 195 calories, 7 g fat (1 g saturated fat), 18 mg cholesterol, 204 mg sodium, 29 g carbohydrate, 1 g fiber, 5 g protein.

Note:  I flattened the balls before baking.



6 comments:

  1. Oh, the Lilacs! They could grow here, but never bloom. It was hard to get blooms even near Atlanta. They are the shrub of my childhood, my father's favorite flower.

    I would try the rolls but we'll eat the whole thing and get so obese we can't walk. I think this must be the 'school rolls' that fattened the teachers in the schools were they were baked. Didn't seem to affect the children, who went outside and played.

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  2. Great roll recipe - just perfect for us here. We never think about what we want to bake soon enough to have time to raise, so this will work really well for us.

    My lilacs are just about to open here. I had better get my hummer feeders filled and out, too. Since our landscape is still dormant, I am going to put some bright silk flowers near the feeders to see if I can grab a few passing migrant hummers and convince them to stay until things are blooming here.

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  3. Glenda,

    I love Lilacs! They smell beautiful and so sweet.

    Thank you for sharing this great recipe for rolls. I've printed it out and will try it. The guys love rolls when making sandwiches instead of bread.

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  4. thanks for the recipe Glenda, I printed it off. I'm always looking for 'easy' cooking.

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  5. Well that sure sounds like a quick and easy recipe! I don't mind using my regular whole wheat bread recipe for buns but they take longer. I'll sure give this one a try.

    I haven't seen hummers yet. Guess I'd better go find the feeders and get them ready, I haven't got anything in bloom for them except the spiraea and the iris, and the apple trees are in bloom. I don't know if hummers get anything from them or not.

    Your yard looks so green and lush. We are getting rain much like you described. Today our tanks overflowed so I guess we must've got a good accumulation.

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  6. Mmmmm, I can smell them and the lilacs too.

    Thanks for visiting.

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