Update
This cake is nasty! I guess I've gotten so used to being able to produce good stuff from my kitchen that I didn't bother to try it for once before posting it. I mean, it's not cough-syrup-flavored or made with lice, but it's not exactly tasty. Its issues are: too dense, not enough filling, not enough flavor overall. There, I said it. Based on the continued popularity of my blog post about the homemade toothpaste, I'm guessing that my honesty about kitchen failures is entertaining. Which was in part the point. Success! So, if you feel inclined to mess around with this recipe, feel free. I would add about 2-3 more cups of raisins and real sugar instead of corn syrup, skip the whole "1 TB of this, 1 TB of that" business and just dump a whole boatload of butter in its place, and let this one rise twice like it was supposed to, rolling it out between risings and filling it with the aforementioned raisins. But that's just an estimate, since I probably will just make actual real cinnamon buns next time instead of lazy, cabinet-purging muffinettes. (I felt at the time that muffins would be a good call. Turns out: I was wrong.)
Fruit Filling (I use the word "filling" loosely)
1 C. golden raisins
1/4 C. granulated sugar or light corn syrup (I used corn syrup...still cleaning out the cabinets)
1-2 tsp. ground cinnamon
Heat the corn syrup on the stove in a small saucepan over medium heat. Stir in the cinnamon and the raisins. Turn the heat down to low and let it sit and bubble for a few minutes-- 5 or so. (It should still be runny.)
Batter
1 pkg. quick-rise yeast (if you have regular, just plan on doubling the rising time, but otherwise do everything else the same)
1/2 C. milk
Heat the milk until it's warm but not hot (otherwise you'll kill your yeast!!). Stir in your yeast and let it proof, ie let it sit and make bubbles for a minute or so. (If it doesn't bubble, start over with new yeast and fresh milk.)
Then, whisk together:
1 C. all-purpose flour
1 C. whole wheat flour
1/4 tsp. salt
In a separate bowl, combine the following, adding the egg second last and the sugar last.
1 egg
1 TB. shortening, melted
2 TB. sunflower oil
1 TB. cream cheese
1/4 C. sugar (I had powdered, but granulated would probably be fine)
Stir the yeast mixture into the wet ingredients. Then add the wet into the dry, including the Fruit filling that you have prepared. Or, you could make it a true filling and layer it into the batter when you get closer to baking it. Either way, set your batter aside in a warm place and let it rise until double. (I'm impatient, so what I do is let it rise to about 75% and then put the batter in a cold oven instead of preheating it. It works out pretty well!) When your batter is how you like it, pour your batter into the receptacle of your choice. I used a muffin pan plus a mini loaf pan, but it would make two regular-sized loaves, or a 9x9 square pan as well. Then, bake it according to your tastes (the impatient way or the regular way) at 350 for 20-30 minutes or until it passes the toothpick test. If you feel extra festive, make a frosting from 1 C. powdered sugar and 1-2 TB. of milk and pour it over the top!
_________
When I was younger, I used to wish that I had a more picture-perfect home life. "Wish" is probably not strong enough a word. I felt instinctively that my life would be a lot easier if it were. I'm thankful, though, for the strength that God has taught me through my non-picture-perfect family, and I'm thankful that he gave me Grandmom and Grandpop, that were such a source of rest when life was so hard. In amongst all of that, they were like an island of food and love in the midst of a raging sea. It was bittersweet to go visit them because I knew I had to leave, and I knew what I had to go back to. But it still meant the world to me. And I appreciated the home-cooked meals while I was there, and the unfashionable winter coats that they sent me when I wasn't there, much more than if their love and kindness were all I had ever known. And at the end of the day, I think I can honestly say that I could survive pretty much anything. My world isn't going to come crashing down if I'm hungry, or cold, or despised. I know that hunger cannot break your spirit, and the cold cannot kill it. I know the difference between being liked for what I have and being liked for who I am, and I know the difference between being disliked for what I've done and being mistreated because I'm vulnerable.
But most of all, I'm thankful for knowing what it means to be loved just for existing on this earth, and not because of anything else. And the wisdom to know that this is the difference between love and appreciation. Appreciation fades. Appreciation can replace its object. Appreciation definitely dies a swift and bitter death once its source dries up. Love...doesn't. Love is worth it. Appreciation isn't. Thank you, Grandmom and Grandpop.
This cake is nasty! I guess I've gotten so used to being able to produce good stuff from my kitchen that I didn't bother to try it for once before posting it. I mean, it's not cough-syrup-flavored or made with lice, but it's not exactly tasty. Its issues are: too dense, not enough filling, not enough flavor overall. There, I said it. Based on the continued popularity of my blog post about the homemade toothpaste, I'm guessing that my honesty about kitchen failures is entertaining. Which was in part the point. Success! So, if you feel inclined to mess around with this recipe, feel free. I would add about 2-3 more cups of raisins and real sugar instead of corn syrup, skip the whole "1 TB of this, 1 TB of that" business and just dump a whole boatload of butter in its place, and let this one rise twice like it was supposed to, rolling it out between risings and filling it with the aforementioned raisins. But that's just an estimate, since I probably will just make actual real cinnamon buns next time instead of lazy, cabinet-purging muffinettes. (I felt at the time that muffins would be a good call. Turns out: I was wrong.)
Fruit Filling (I use the word "filling" loosely)
1 C. golden raisins
1/4 C. granulated sugar or light corn syrup (I used corn syrup...still cleaning out the cabinets)
1-2 tsp. ground cinnamon
Heat the corn syrup on the stove in a small saucepan over medium heat. Stir in the cinnamon and the raisins. Turn the heat down to low and let it sit and bubble for a few minutes-- 5 or so. (It should still be runny.)
Batter
1 pkg. quick-rise yeast (if you have regular, just plan on doubling the rising time, but otherwise do everything else the same)
1/2 C. milk
Heat the milk until it's warm but not hot (otherwise you'll kill your yeast!!). Stir in your yeast and let it proof, ie let it sit and make bubbles for a minute or so. (If it doesn't bubble, start over with new yeast and fresh milk.)
Then, whisk together:
1 C. all-purpose flour
1 C. whole wheat flour
1/4 tsp. salt
In a separate bowl, combine the following, adding the egg second last and the sugar last.
1 egg
1 TB. shortening, melted
2 TB. sunflower oil
1 TB. cream cheese
1/4 C. sugar (I had powdered, but granulated would probably be fine)
Stir the yeast mixture into the wet ingredients. Then add the wet into the dry, including the Fruit filling that you have prepared. Or, you could make it a true filling and layer it into the batter when you get closer to baking it. Either way, set your batter aside in a warm place and let it rise until double. (I'm impatient, so what I do is let it rise to about 75% and then put the batter in a cold oven instead of preheating it. It works out pretty well!) When your batter is how you like it, pour your batter into the receptacle of your choice. I used a muffin pan plus a mini loaf pan, but it would make two regular-sized loaves, or a 9x9 square pan as well. Then, bake it according to your tastes (the impatient way or the regular way) at 350 for 20-30 minutes or until it passes the toothpick test. If you feel extra festive, make a frosting from 1 C. powdered sugar and 1-2 TB. of milk and pour it over the top!
_________
When I was younger, I used to wish that I had a more picture-perfect home life. "Wish" is probably not strong enough a word. I felt instinctively that my life would be a lot easier if it were. I'm thankful, though, for the strength that God has taught me through my non-picture-perfect family, and I'm thankful that he gave me Grandmom and Grandpop, that were such a source of rest when life was so hard. In amongst all of that, they were like an island of food and love in the midst of a raging sea. It was bittersweet to go visit them because I knew I had to leave, and I knew what I had to go back to. But it still meant the world to me. And I appreciated the home-cooked meals while I was there, and the unfashionable winter coats that they sent me when I wasn't there, much more than if their love and kindness were all I had ever known. And at the end of the day, I think I can honestly say that I could survive pretty much anything. My world isn't going to come crashing down if I'm hungry, or cold, or despised. I know that hunger cannot break your spirit, and the cold cannot kill it. I know the difference between being liked for what I have and being liked for who I am, and I know the difference between being disliked for what I've done and being mistreated because I'm vulnerable.
But most of all, I'm thankful for knowing what it means to be loved just for existing on this earth, and not because of anything else. And the wisdom to know that this is the difference between love and appreciation. Appreciation fades. Appreciation can replace its object. Appreciation definitely dies a swift and bitter death once its source dries up. Love...doesn't. Love is worth it. Appreciation isn't. Thank you, Grandmom and Grandpop.
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