Ham Roll-Ups

Recipe passed from Grandma Buis to Mother and down to us. Ingredients:

• 1 box of cream cheese
• 2 large containers cottage cheese
• 1 seasoning packet of Onion Soup Mix (NOT both packets that come in the box.)
• 2-3 packages of very thinly sliced lunch meat

Even though these are called HAM roll-ups, I think the turkey lunch meat is a thousand times better. It is thinner and easier to roll too. We usually buy the pre-sliced meat that you would find near the bologna. Directions:

• Warm cream cheese on the counter until soft.
• Mix cream cheese, cottage cheese and onion soup mix together until blended and there aren't any big clumps of cream cheese.

Feel free to add more cottage cheese if the onion taste is too strong for your liking.

• Put small amount onto middle of a slice of lunch meat.

Fold bottom part of meat up. Then fold in the sides and last the top. These keep their shape easier if they aren't over filled and if you stab them with a toothpick after making them. Good luck getting these onto a serving tray. We eat about half of ours just in the assembling process!

Soft Pretzels

Soft Pretzels

Recipe adjusted for us, but I found it on cloverlane.blogspot.com who got it from allrecipes.com who got it from someone else.

Yes, this recipe has been passed around a lot.

Ingredients:

1 pkg active dry yeast (or 2 1/2 tsp.)

2 TBS brown sugar

1 1/8 tsp salt

1 1/2 cups warm water

3 cups all purpose flour

1 cup bread flour

2 cups warm water (110 degrees)

2 TBS. baking soda

5 TBS melted butter

2 TBS coarse kosher salt

parchment paper

If you don't have parchment paper, you can spray your cookie sheet instead. Just remember to spray it between each batch. 

Directions:

In mixer, dissolve yeast, brown sugar and salt in a 1 1/2 cups warm water. Stir in flour, and knead dough (we used our mixer) for 6-8 minutes. Place in a greased bowl, and turn to coat the surface. Cover, and let rise for one hour.

Combine 2 cups warm water and baking soda in an 8" square pan.

After dough has risen, cut into 12 pieces. Roll each piece into a 3 foot rope, pencil thin or thinner. Twist into a pretzel shape and dip into the baking soda solution pan. Place on parchment covered cookie sheets, and let rise for 20 minutes.

Bake at 450 for 8 minutes or until golden brown. Brush with butter and sprinkle with coarse salt, garlic salt or cinnamon sugar.

OVEN ADJUSTMENTS: Our oven runs REALLY hot, so I had to adjust the recipe and cook the pretzels at about 390 degrees for 6 minutes to get them perfectly soft instead of hard rocks. Adjust the time and temp. for your own oven to get them just right!