Friday Food Frenzy (5/31), Countdown to Baby

I am in baby count-down mode here on Adventures in All Things Food. That means meals have been simple and I am freezing away food like a squirrel stashes nuts! From meatballs and sauce to waffles, I am trying to give my husband some easy options for keeping the kids fed. I have just under 2 weeks and think this week I might make some treats to hide in the freezer for late night nursing/snacking cravings. Be on the look-out for some good freezable cookie recipes, granola and more great bread machine bread recipe coming up soon. 

Also, have you thought about what you will be making for Father's Day? Have a favorite recipe or treat to make your Dad or Grad feel extra special? Be sure to link them up and share your delicious recipes.

Is This Tomorrow by Caroline Leavitt: Book Review #SRC2013

Disclaimer - I was provided a review copy from the publisher to facilitate my reviews. 

All opinions are my own. This post contains an affiliate link.

It is time for stop #3 for the 2013 BookSparksPR Summer Reading Road Trip. This week, I am excited to introduce Caroline Leavitt's Is This Tomorrow. 

from the back cover:

In 1956, Ava Lark rents a house with her twelve-year-old son, Lewis, in a desirable Boston suburb. Ava is beautiful, divorced, Jewish, and a working mom. She finds her neighbors less than welcoming. Lewis yearns for his absent father, befriending the only other fatherless kids: Jimmy and Rose. One afternoon, Jimmy goes missing. The neighborhood—in the throes of Cold War paranoia—seizes the opportunity to further ostracize Ava and her son.

Years later, when Lewis and Rose reunite to untangle the final pieces of the tragic puzzle, they must decide: Should you tell the truth even if it hurts those you love, or should some secrets remain buried?

My opinion:

Having changed schools several times as a child, I know a little about feeling like an outsider. Though, I can only imagine how hard it would have been to overcome the resentment and stereotypes of idealistic 1950's suburbia. Caroline Leavitt created such compelling characters, like Ava Lark, not only was she an outsider for being Jewish, but she was a beautiful divorce at a time when that wasn't acceptable. The author had me personally invested in all the characters right away. This book drew me in and didn't want me to put it down!

Of course the story, aftermath of the disappearance and mystery of what happened to Jimmy kept me turning the pages, and the ending and closure came as a complete surprise. I can't say many stories surprise me anymore.

This is a story of acceptance, love, guilt and distrust. Such raw human emotions are explored in vivid language and well-written characters. Caroline Leavitt is now one of my new favorite authors!

Grab your own copy on Amazon

Be sure to join in on the fun with BookSparksPR Summer Reading on their Facebook page. I will be back next week with my next #SRC2013 read. 

#Ad - Stocking Up on June Dairy, with Safeway's #EverydayDairy Savings

Last year I was excited to help share and promote Safeway's June Dairy Savings, #EverydayDairy,  and this year it is back with another great promotion to help you stock up on your favorites and Buy $15, Save $5 all month long.

The days are finally getting warmer and my kids want to spend every waking moment playing outside. They are busy swinging, digging for dinosaur bones, helping me out in the garden and general yard exploring. All this activity sure does work up their appetites!

Of course, Memorial Day has ended up a little wetter and darker than we had hoped, but I know June will bring more warm weather soon. And the kids can't wait to get back outside and in the dirt.

Safeway's June Dairy Month promotion kicks off 5/29 and is good through 7/2. Save $5 when you spend $15 on participating products. And there are many great products on the list. Look for in-store participating product shelf tags to help you save. We stocked up and I will be back once the baby is born. Dairy rich snacks while nursing, like string cheese and yogurt, are my favorites to keep on hand.

This weekend I created some fast and easy snacks and treats for my family out of  products that will be eligible for the promotion starting on Wednesday. I purchased: Kraft Natural Slices, Chobani Yogurt, Nestle Coffee-mate, Kraft Philadelphia Cream Cheese and Pillsbury Crescent Rolls. You can see my entire shopping trip in my Google+ album and see a few more participating products my family loves.

The first item I made was an Easy Cheese and Broccoli Roll. Finger foods are always a hit with my crew. These had fresh steamed broccoli, Swiss cheese as well as cream cheese in the filling. They were a big hit with my husband.

Easy Cheese and Broccoli Rolls

You Will Need:

• 1/4 c. steamed broccoli
• 1 egg
• 4 oz. Kraft Philadelphia Lite Cream Cheese, at room temperature
• 3 slices, Kraft Natural Cheese Swiss slices
• 1 can of Pillsbury Original Crescent Rolls
• Garlic salt, to taste

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

In a medium bowl, mix together the broccoli, 1 egg and cream cheese. Unroll the crescent roll dough and slice a thin triangle of Swiss cheese to fit inside. I sliced three thin triangles from each piece of cheese. Place a tablespoon of broccoli filling at the widest part of the roll. Roll up as usual. Sprinkle the top with garlic salt. Bake for 16 - 19 minutes until the tops have browned.

Enjoy!

Fresh fruit is in abundance on the farm right now, so I combined our ripe strawberries with a kiwi, graham cracker crumbles and Non Fat, Honey Chobani Greek Yogurt.  Layered in a parfait, it is as visually appealing as delicious! My kids always flip for parfaits.

Last, I made a cool treat for the kids, a Strawberries and Cream Popsicle utilizing the fresh berries we picked earlier this weekend and Nestle Coffee-mate. Check out my Vine video below to see how easy it was to whip up. If you have a Zuko Popsicle maker, it can be made in under 10 minutes. I love fresh and simple treats.

Non-Dairy Strawberries and Cream Popsicles

You Will Need:

• 1 c. strawberries, washed and hulled, + more for garnish
• 1/3 - 1/2 c. Coffee-mate Non-Dairy Creamer, Original, to taste
• 1 Tbsp. sugar
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract

Blend all the ingredients up in the blender, reserve a few strawberries to slice for garnish. 

If using a Zoku maker, with a toothpick or spatula, add the sliced strawberries to the sides of the frozen mold and then fill as usual. For regular Popsicle molds, add the fruit slices to the bottom and fill as usual.

Chill or wait till frozen and then enjoy!

Okay, there are my ideas on what to make with our favorite dairy products. What will you stock up on during the June Dairy Savings at Safeway? What do you want to make?

Remember, this promotion runs 5/29 - 7/02/2013. Connect with Safeway on Twitter and let them know what you made.

The Emerald Tablet, by Joshua Silverman - Book Review

Disclaimer - I was provided a review copy from the Promotional Book Tours to facilitate my reviews. 

All opinions are my own. This post contains an affiliate link.

Genre: Sci-Fi, Fantasy

Leoros doesn't have many friends. The son of a scientist and archaeologist  he is constantly on the move. But when his parents make a startling discovery in Egypt, Leoros' world is turned upside down. 

 Do you wish you could have the power of a god? Would you use it for good…or for evil? 

When an archaeologist discovers the mythic Emerald Tablet buried beneath Egypt’s desert, her son decodes the ancient text leading him to a distant world. 

On that world, a slave girl begins a journey towards a destiny she cannot imagine. But when an ancient foe rises from the ashes, they will be brought together by forces neither understands. 

Leoros, who dreams of being like the heroes in the comic books, must fight to unlock the secrets of the universe to save a people he never knew existed. 

Atlantia, whose bloody visions wake her in the night, senses the darkness coming. 

Together they will face an enemy with the power of dark energy, lose a mentor to the assassin’s blade, and be betrayed by someone they trust. Their fight for the future is just beginning, and before it is over, a final sacrifice must be made. When the darkness comes, will they stand and fight or will they join it? 

There is darkness in everyone. 

  Purchase the book: Amazon | Barnes & Noble

My opinion:

I was excited to read Joshua Silverman's The Emerald Tablet, the first book in his Legends of Amun Ra series. It combined a few of my favorite things, history and legends of ancient Egypt as well as ancient Greece. Plus the story itself wove together elements of history, action, science fiction and mystery. I have devoured numerous science fiction and mystery novels on these subjects so I knew I would enjoy the topic.

The build-up for each character, back story and inner dialogue was a little long for my taste. I wanted to learn more about each distinct character through scenes and actions instead of monologues and flashbacks. Of course, there is so much going on in the story, and so much for the reader to understand that I can overlook some of the excessive build-up and get right to the concept and execution.

The plot was original and interesting, but felt overextended at times. For the start of a series it really needed to hook me. My interest was piqued, but I was also left a little confused at times.  I really wanted to fall in love with this story, but I also wanted the scenes and concepts to flow a little smoother. I did find myself making notes on the different characters and relationships because they were often complex and I didn't remember them easily between reading sessions.

In full disclaimer, I was provided an advanced copy that had some formatting quirks. It happens.  I have been told these are not present in the current Kindle version, so should no longer be an issue. I had a harder time getting into the story because of line breaks and tense changes, etc., but would still consider giving his next book in the series a try. 

I really wanted to love this book. Instead I would give it a 3.5 stars out of 5. I was entertained, but was not staying up late at night to reach that last page.

The Guide To Baby Sleep Positions - A Hilarious Take on Co-Sleeping Antics (Review)

*Disclaimer - I was sent a complimentary copy of this book from RM Media in order to write my review. Associated bloggers are not being compensated in any other way. All experiences and opinions are my own.

Ah, sleep. It is a beautiful thing, wouldn't you say?

I can't say that my nights are perfect right now. With two weeks and change to go before baby #3 is born, I am tossing and turning as well as padding down to the bathroom more often than I care to count each night. Of course, as a Mother of two older children I know that I better enjoy my rest while I can. Things are about to change.

We are a co-sleeping family. Whether you call it co-sleeping or room sharing, we do a bit of both. After trying many products and techniques with my first baby, we turned to a side sleeper for my daughter that attaches to my side of the bed. This is what I recommend to friends having their first child. It allows me to sleep right next to a newborn, nurse easily and we can all get some sleep. Once my children were past the newborn phase we transitioned them into our bed for bed sharing. Though both my children enjoyed this, and it helped us all to sleep more soundly, there are also some challenges to having a little person take over the sacred sleeping space.

My son was a 'toucher'. It didn't matter where he was, or if he was asleep, he had little fingers that would roam. I remember the feeling of his fingers making their way over my face and then in my ears or up my nose in the middle of the night. He was, of course, sound asleep. But, by that time I was usually wide awake and completely creeped out. Now my husband and I laugh about his wandering hands at night, but dare I say it, I kinda miss him being so close to me at night.

Well, Andy Herald and Charlie Capen, from HowToBeADad.com,  have brought humor to the trials and tribulations of co-sleeping with a baby in their book about baby sleep positions. I had a great laugh to the point of tears a few times while thumbing through this quick little book. If you have ever woken up with a child in your bed, you can probably relate to at least one of these descriptions.

One of my favorites was The Superman. Yes, there were a few nights when both my spouse and I awoke to a random simultaneous assault from the bed's smallest occupant. Ah, there is nothing like a swift fist to the face to jar a poor unsuspecting parent awake!

Some of my other favorites include: Jazz Hands, The Booby Trap, and The Family Meeting.

Grab your own copy of The Guide to Baby Sleep Positions from Amazon or share with an expecting friend or family member. This book is sure to get passed around with laughs from everyone. Truly a parental bonding experience!

#Ad - Keeping it Fresh and Healthy this Memorial Day Weekend

After such a dry Spring, we finally got some rain this past week, well a lot of it. Of course, it made me worry about how we would be celebrating our Memorial Day Weekend. I had visions of healthy eating outside, easy meals, the sprinkler running and going strawberry picking with the kids.

I am a homebody right now. With this baby coming in less than 3 weeks I just want to spend some quality time with my kids. I know that there will be big changes coming for the older kids soon and I wanted to make this weekend both fun and memorable for them. That means less time in the kitchen, but still eating well.

Armed with a favorable weather forecast for the weekend, and fingers crossed, I took the family grocery shopping to prepare. Okay, I hate to shop on a holiday weekend, so I planned to keep things as fresh and simple as possible. It was pouring and the kids were all bundled up and dressed in rain coats. It was pretty hard to think about fun and sun with that kind of weather. Of course my kids were just excited about all the rain puddles we would hit on the way into Walmart.

Our local Walmart had already been ransacked midweek by people who probably had the same idea I did. I have a feeling that by the end of the week a lot of the chips, dips and easy prepared foods would be running really low, if not out. Luckily my meals were going to be simple and I found everything I needed. But as the week wore on I was still pretty pessimistic that we would have a clear holiday.

Happily I was wrong. The sunshine came out and we were able to head to the strawberry field Saturday morning. My son loves strawberries, so is more than willing to help out with picking. It is a good thing, too, because bending over is getting more challenging for me the closer to my due date I get.

This is the first year my daughter hasn't just picked the green ones. Last year she claimed they were pretty. This year it is more about the taste.

With my husband busy cutting hay today and the kids and I being worn out from all the strawberries, we opted for a super easy and fast meal outside on the back porch. Our family-go-to-favorite during the warmer months is Taco Salad with homemade Catalina dressing.

I enlisted my best salad spinner to help while I prepped the chicken. We make our taco salad a number of ways, sometimes with meat and sometimes without. This time I wanted to cut down on cooking time by using the Tyson Grilled & Ready Chicken Breast Strips and heating them with just a little taco seasoning for added flavor.

I added just a 1/4 cup of water and let them heat through. It was much faster than slicing and browning all that chicken myself.

I even had time after prepping all the veggies to make a pitcher of whole juice strawberry lemonade. I thought it would be a fun treat for the kids after picking the berries. It is as simple as it sounds, just strawberries, lemons, sugar to taste and diluted with water and ice. Everything goes into the blender and it was garnished with some fresh sliced strawberries.

I set up our salad bar outside on the table. My kids prefer to have a hand in fixing their own salads. Even if I dished up the exact same ingredients and portions for them, it just wouldn't be the same. Our salad bar included items that were either rinsed and sliced, thawed or from a can, so prep time was around 10 minutes total.

The salads were a big hit and so was the fresh air outside. It was the perfect way to kick off our Memorial Day Weekend. I was very pleased with the simple addition of the chicken in our salad, as well. It was moist and tasty. A great little added protein boost to our fresh and hearty salad. Who wants a heavy or complicated meal on a such a beautiful day?

The Kruse Family's Favorite Taco Salad

You Will Need:

• Tyson Grilled & Ready Chicken Breast Strips
• Taco seasoning
• 1/4 c. water
• iceberg lettuce
• tomatoes
• sliced olives
• kidney beans
• sweet corn
• avocado
• sharp cheddar cheese
• Catalina Dressing
• Tortilla Chips

Heat the Tyson Grilled & Ready Chicken Breast Strips in a pan over medium heat. Sprinkle with taco seasoning to taste and then add 1/4 cup water to the pan and let them simmer for 3 to 5 minutes, until the chicken is warmed through.

We like to set up all our ingredients in salad bar fashion and let everyone help themselves. Build as you like and then top with Catalina dressing. This is such a fresh and easy dinner. Enjoy!

Have a great Memorial Day Weekend!

Connect with Tyson on Twitter and Club Tyson on Facebook to stay up-to-date with products, promotions and announcements.

Friday Food Frenzy (5/24): Ready for Memorial Day?

Ready for Memorial Day? Have a family-tested recipe you plan to use this weekend? 

Share your recipes and discover some new ones here at this week's recipe linky. Strawberries are ripe in the field so we will be out picking and I have a few treats to whip up for the family. I am slowing down and getting excited for the new baby. This weekend for me will be all about spending time with my family and a few good dishes. What are your plans?

The Emerald Tablet, by Joshua Silverman - Book Tour

Disclaimer - I was provided a review copy from the Promotional Book Tours to facilitate my reviews. 

All opinions are my own. This post contains an affiliate link.

Genre: Sci-Fi, Fantasy

Leoros doesn't have many friends. The son of a scientist and archaeologist  he is constantly on the move. But when his parents make a startling discovery in Egypt, Leoros' world is turned upside down. 

 Do you wish you could have the power of a god? Would you use it for good…or for evil? 

When an archaeologist discovers the mythic Emerald Tablet buried beneath Egypt’s desert, her son decodes the ancient text leading him to a distant world. 

On that world, a slave girl begins a journey towards a destiny she cannot imagine. But when an ancient foe rises from the ashes, they will be brought together by forces neither understands. 

Leoros, who dreams of being like the heroes in the comic books, must fight to unlock the secrets of the universe to save a people he never knew existed. 

Atlantia, whose bloody visions wake her in the night, senses the darkness coming. 

Together they will face an enemy with the power of dark energy, lose a mentor to the assassin’s blade, and be betrayed by someone they trust. Their fight for the future is just beginning, and before it is over, a final sacrifice must be made. When the darkness comes, will they stand and fight or will they join it? 

There is darkness in everyone. 

  Purchase the book: Amazon | Barnes & Noble

*Stay tuned for my review of this book coming next week!

About Joshua Silverman

Joshua Silverman was born in Washington, D.C. and raised in Orange County, California. While attending California State University, Fullerton and studying Criminal Justice, Joshua was introduced to a creative writing class where he wrote a series of paranormal stories. As a child, he has always been an amateur historian, focusing on ancient Egypt, Greece, and Roman civilizations. Since working in the legal environment, he has combined his passion for creative writing with his love of ancient history by penning his debut novel, The Emerald Tablet, the first of seven in the Legends of Amun Ra series.

Follow Joshua Silverman: Website | Blog | Facebook | Twitter | GoodReads
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Ready for a New Twist on an Arby's Favorite? + Sweepstakes

This is a Sponsored post written by me on behalf of Arby's for SocialSpark. All opinions are 100% mine.

I remember getting Arby's Roast Beef Sandwiches as a kid. Thin, tasty slices of roast beef that went perfectly with their selection of sauces. It was my first experience with horseradish and I was in love.

Well, Arby's is tweaking the recipe a bit. They have just introduced TWO NEW KING'S HAWAIIAN sandwiches! Yes, that would be an Arby’s KING’S HAWAIIAN roast beef sandwich. Now, if you know me, I love Hawaiian rolls and KING'S HAWAIIAN is the brand I grew up loving. Soft, fluffy with a deliciously sweet pineapple taste. Marry that to Arby's classic roast beef, in fact an extra helping of said roast beef, and I may have a new favorite.

The other sandwich is a King's HAWAIIAN roast beef and Swiss. It boasts the same extra helping of mouth-watering roast beef on a King's HAWAIIAN bun with Swiss cheese, crunchy pickles and creamy dijion spread. Yum!

Both of these sandwiches are only available for a limitted time, so be sure to grab your bite of Roast-Beef-atopia while they last.

In celebration of this great pairing, Arby's is hosting a Hawaiian Getaway Sweepstakes. The grand prize winner will be able to surf in paradise with a round trip for two with four night's stay in Honolulu, HI, with a premium group lesson at Hawaiian Fire - one of the island's premier surf schools. Time is running out to enter, but there is still time to get your entry in before May 26th for the Arby’s Hawaiian Getaway Sweepstakes. 

Ready to take the plunge? Grab your sandwich and enter for your chance to win. Good luck!

#Ad Rod Stewart is back with Time (Album Review)

Disclaimer - I participated in this campaign for One2One Network. I received a free copy of the CD to write this review. By posting, I'm eligible for incentives. All opinions & experiences are my own.

As a child of the 80's and 90's, I grew up listening to Rod Stewart on the radio. I am sure we all have our favorite song he sang. I mean, he has been writing and singing for so long it is hard not to have a favorite. I could easily sing along to Maggie May (1971), or Forever Young (1988), but All For Love, written for the movie The Three Musketeers, was one I remember playing over and over in my room.

Yes, it has been 4 decades of music and Rod Stewart is still going strong. Yes, same hair, same tight pants. Time is his first release with new material in almost 20 years. Released earlier this month, 11 out of the 12 tracks were written and produced by him.

"Suddenly ideas for lyrics were piling up in my head," he says. "Next thing I knew, I had a song called 'It's Over' about divorce and separation. And now I was getting up in the middle of the night and scrambling for a pen to write things down, which has never happened to me. I finished seven or eight songs very quickly and I still wasn't done, and it became apparent that I would eventually have a whole album of material to record."

My favorite song off the new album was definitely She Makes Me Happy. Upbeat and fun, it is a great reminder of how good falling in love feels.

Here is the complete list of album tracks:

1. She Makes Me Happy
2. Can’t Stop Me Now
3. It’s Over
4. Brighton Beach
5. Beautiful Morning
6. Live The Life
7. Finest Woman
8. Time
9. Picture In A Frame
10. Sexual Religion
11. Make Love To Me Tonight
12. Pure Love

Download your favorite tracks or the entire album on iTunes or Amazon.

#Ad - Nighttime Accidents Are Normal. Getting Help from #WhiteCloudSleepPants

Disclaimer - This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of White Cloud Sleep Pants. All thoughts and experiences are my own.

Mom Confession: Starting my day with a pile of wet bedding puts this Mom in a grumpy mood. Also, a child woken up in the middle of the night from a wet bed is also in a pretty grumpy mood in the morning.

I have an almost 4 and 5 1/2-year old. They are finally potty trained. *Whew!* But, that doesn't mean all our nights are dry. In fact, lately I have become a laundromat for all the nighttime "oops" and "I'm sorry"s. Though people openly talk about the trials and tribulations of potty training, no one really discusses what goes on afterwards.

Even the most competent child can experience bedwetting. As a Mom I was surprised to discover it is quite common, even in older children. I know, no one talks about it, do they? Bedwetting can affect a child's self esteem and they can be reluctant to discuss it with their parents. My son knows I dislike the added laundry, but I have tried to stress to him that it happens and we just need to take care of it and move on. It's just a developmental stage for him and his younger sister. They don't always wake up in time to make it down to the bathroom, but for some children it can also be caused by a medical condition. Whatever the reasons behind a bedwetting situation, it can be frustrating for everyone in the family.

My husband and I try to be proactive with our kids. They know that drinks are limited after dinnertime and either my husband or I wake them up to use the restroom when we come to bed. Luckily since I am pregnant, I wake up all through the night so it is easy to remind them to use the bathroom then.

Because the laundry was really stacking up and no one likes the wafting smell of pee-stained bedding first thing in the morning, we tried out the White Cloud Sleep Pants available exclusively from Walmart. These are cost-effective, gender neutral sleep pants designed for older children. We tried out  the S/M size, for kids between 45 and 65 lbs.

Thinner than a regular diaper, they are surprisingly absorbent. With stretchy sides, they go on like regular underwear and have a soft inner, hypoallergenic liner that is treated with vitamin E and aloe to be gentle on their skin. My children are very proud of wearing 'big kid' underwear so I didn't want to take a step backwards at night. My daughter liked that they didn't make noise when she wore them in the bed. I have previously tried other nighttime solutions that woke her up throughout the night because they crinkled so much.

The designs are bright and colorful, which is always important to attracting my kids to use something. Since I have two at the same stage I was grateful that I only needed one bag and didn't have to get each child's favorite character or theme.

These are a little large (long?) on my daughter. They fit my son better, but both of my kids are at the bottom of the weight range. Truth be known, they are also pretty low on the growth chart, so I wasn't surprised. They did fit well enough to provide the protection we needed though. I was very impressed with the price per pant. It really can't be beat!

I just want my kids to get a good night's sleep and not worry about whether they will wet the bed. There are so many other things to think about in childhood. This stage too, will pass. I am just glad that White Cloud Sleep Pants can also cause my mornings to be a little brighter and no longer overshadowed with added piles of laundry.

Did you know that over 5 million kids a year experience bedwetting and it is one of the most common experiences during childhood development?

White Cloud Sleep Pants have been developed to provide exceptional comfort and leakage protection while looking like underwear. White Cloud Sleep Pants offer thin, discrete absorbent protection for your child. They have soft, stretchy sides that fit like real underwear, plus leak guards to help protect against leaks. The soft inner liner is hypoallergenic and treated with vitamin E and aloe for skin protection.

Each bag contains two unisex graphic designs and at $7.75, White Cloud offers exceptional value.

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of White Cloud Sleep Pants.

Easy Hawaiian Roll Recipe, in the Bread Machine

Counting down the final weeks to the baby's arrival has not left me with much time left to linger in my kitchen. Eating lately has been more practical, fast and not too special. There is just too much left to do! I do have some strawberry recipes to share soon since our local season has just begun.

Recently I was wanting a good barbecue dinner. The kind of simple pleasure that we could all enjoy outside on a nice, warm evening. Besides grilling up a few pieces of chicken basted in a tasty sauce, I wanted to break out the traditional macaroni salad from Cook's Illustrated and some Hawaiian rolls. Of course, I had the perfect recipe tucked away to try.

These rolls call for pineapple juice and a little coconut extract. A nice, fluffy dinner roll that we could enjoy with chicken leftovers the next day. Now, rolls don't last long in our home. The homemade variety is usually gobbled up within a 24-hour period. I didn't mind though, because I let my trusty bread machine do most of the work. They still need to be hand formed and baked in the oven, but I didn't have to knead them myself or fuss over them for the afternoon.

When using my bread machine, I like to get out all the ingredients, measure them out and then dump in as I double check my recipe. It makes it go so quickly.

I have a Zojirushi bread maker and really love using it to make my dough. I do like the act of kneading bread by hand, but lately I can't even get close enough to the counters, thanks to my expanding pregnancy waist, to really get leverage. Not too mention that with swelling ankles I would rather put my feet up than be standing in the kitchen right now.

After a rise in the machine, I can separate out my rolls and place them in a casserole baking dish that has been sprayed with non-stick spray.

Place these little beauties in a warm spot and cover with a tea towel for 45 minutes to an hour. They puff up nicely and will be ready to bake at 350 degrees.

I wait till they are evenly golden brown on top and then brush them with a little butter as they cool. Warm, fresh rolls are such a simple pleasure.

Ready to try them yourself?

Easy Hawaiian Rolls

You Will Need:

• 1 c. pineapple juice
• 1 large egg, beaten
• 1/3 c. milk
• 4 Tbsp. butter, unsalted and cubed (+ more for brushing the tops)
• 1 tsp. coconut extract
• 1/2 tsp. ground ginger
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1/4 c. sugar
• 1/2 c. instant potato flakes
• 3 c. all-purpose flour 
• 1/2 c. bread flour
• 2 1/4 tsp. active dry yeast

Bring all the wet ingredients to room temperature. You can skip this step if your bead machine has a warming stage in the beginning.

Add the ingredients as called for by your bread machine. Mine calls for wet ingredients, then dry and yeast last. Run your bread machine on the dough cycle.

Spray a 9"x13" baking dish with non-stick spray. When the dough cycle has finished and the dough has proofed, divide the dough into 12- 15 rolls and place evenly in your baking dish. Cover with a tea towel or flour sack cloth and let rise for another 45 minutes to an hour in a warm place.

Towards the end of the rise, preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

Bake the rolls for about 25 minutes, until the tops are golden brown. Remove from the oven and brush the tops with butter. Let them cool slightly before serving.

Enjoy!