Extended Thanksgiving Weekend

This Thanksgiving weekend turned into a 6-day weekend for me with our two “snow days.” Can’t complain about that!!

The weather warmed up today and melted quite a bit of snow.

My day got started this morning by making breakfast for myself and Craig. Nothing was picture-worthy because it was still dark and indoor pictures as so unattractive.

After breakfast, I took the ham out of the freezer that we will be having for Thanksgiving tomorrow. This ham is from my parent’s farm!!

I also got busy making homemade rolls for tomorrow. I made the following recipe, and I’m also going to make a batch of Beginner’s Rolls. I’ve made them both before–and really like both–but I want to see how they compare side-by-side.

Soft Whole-Wheat Dinner Rolls

Ingredients

3/4 cup warm (about 120* F) low-fat milk

2 Tablespoons sugar

2 Tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

2 Tablespoons canola oil

2 eggs, divided

1 teaspoon quick-rising yeast

1.5 cups whole-wheat flour

1 cup all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon wheat germ

Directions

1. Whisk yeast, whole-wheat flour, all-purpose flour, and salt in a bowl.

2. Whisk milk, sugar, butter, oil, and 1 egg in a separate bowl.

3. Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients and mix with wooden spoon until the dough comes together.

4. Sprinkle flour on work surface, and knead dough for 1-2 minutes–adding flour if sticky.

5. Coat a large bowl with cooking spray and transfer dough to bowl. Coat dough with cooking spray and cover with plastic wrap. Let rise at room-temperature until doubled in size, 1.25 – 2 hours.

6. Divide dough into 12 equal pieces. Working with one portion of dough at a time, gather and pinch the edges together, shaping the dough into a rough ball. The spot where the edges come together is the bottom of the ball. Place each ball, bottom down, on a clean work surface. With a slightly cupped hand, move the ball around in a circular motion, keeping the bottom in place while tucking the loose edges into it and stretching the surface of the dough tight. Cover with plastic wrap. (If making ahead of time, refrigerate the rolls now.)

7. Let the rolls rise at room temperature until almost doubled in size, about 1.25 hours.

8. Preheat oven to 400* F. Whisk the remaining egg in a small bowl, and brush the tops of the rolls with it (you’ll have some left over); sprinkle with wheat germ. Bake the rolls until light brown on top, about 20 minutes.

Workout

While the bread dough was rising, I again attempted to run on the “ice rink” outside. Yesterday I only made it one mile, but somehow I managed to run a whole 2 miles today! I hope the conditions improve soon because I’m itching to go on a longer run–especially since it hasn’t been as cold!

I’m hoping to go to the gym once Craig gets home from work tonight.

Blog Information

This afternoon, I’ve been busy working on my blog as you can see!! I’m excited about the new layout. I like to change things up every once in a while!

I did discover this awesome blog (thanks Sarah!): Blogging With Amy for some very helpful tutorials, videos, and easy-to-understand posts for those new to blogging–myself included.

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I hope everyone has a wonderful Thanksgiving tomorrow and enjoys the time spent with family and/or friends!

Craig and I will be celebrating with his parents here in Anchorage.