Two of my lovely readers, Smidge and Granny, asked me separately what the theme for November would be on The Kale Chronicles. I said I wouldn’t know until Sunday. Here it is Sunday evening and I have had a little time to think about themes for November. My first theme for November is returning to solvency. To that end I sold some more books. To that end I studied the buskers at the Berkeley Farmers’ Market yesterday, watching to see who was making money and who was not: the guy playing quietly to himself and not looking at passers-by had two or three dollar bills in his hat; the guy who sat in a chair playing the blues with his face to the crowds had a guitar case full of dollar bills. Who do you suppose I plan to emulate when I make my debut next Saturday afternoon? In the spirit of solvency I will be continuing to work with what we’ve got around here: today’s recipe incorporates some of the lovely pecans Lisa Knighton just shipped out here.
My second theme for November is NaNoWriMo, aka National Novel Writing Month. As a NaNoRebel I eschew the novel form altogether and have started another 50,000 word installment of my memoir, covering the history of Johnny and Sharyn, my pitiful finances and my various attempts to make money. I may post an excerpt of it here sometime in November to honor what I am doing (I spent the afternoon at a write-in at the Berkeley Public Library, scarfing leftover Hallowe’en candy and black tea, participating in “word wars” with my fountain pen — trying to write more words than dextrous young-ens typing on laptops — and feeling a little like John Henry meeting the steam drill…). At the end of the day I dropped my pen nib into my bottle of black ink by mistake and was grateful for my garage rag and bottle of water with which I scrubbed it clean, wiped the table and began to remove ink from my hands before going home to knead the roll dough that I had left rising in the fridge.
Which brings me to the third theme for November, always and forever a month of gratitude with Thanksgiving the third week in to remind us Yanks about sharing food with others, helping people and other things that got the Native Americans run out of their territory. My friend Vicki has started a month of gratitude posts on Facebook and it makes me happy to go to her page once a day and think about what I am grateful for: today it was the computer I type on and the apple pie that Mom made last night, specifically the slice of it I had for breakfast this morning with my decaf coffee.
When I was in the kitchen this morning mixing up sweet roll dough I realized that I had not had my hands in soft dough for a long time: roll dough is the lightest of yeast doughs — I can knead a full batch by hand without resorting to the Kitchen Aid with the dough hook. I used to make bread every week. I don’t know what happened to that habit — I just fell out of it somehow, between the demands of sourdough starter and the activities of daily living. I enjoyed having my hands in the fragrant dough, stirring with a wooden spoon, working in six cups of flour, greasing the bowl with a little butter before heating a tea towel and setting the dough to rise.
My pecan roll (and cinnamon roll and orange roll and spice roll) recipe comes from our trusty Betty Crocker Picture Cookbook. I make a full recipe of Sweet Roll Dough, using mostly butter, amending it to include a cup of whole wheat flour for health’s sake, scalding the milk because my Grandmother Carroll always scalded the milk. Before I leave to write at the library I divide the just rising dough in half. I give half to my mother to shape into clover leaf rolls and tell her to transfer my half to the refrigerator for a slow rise when she punches her dough down.
For the pecan filling I look at The Cheese Board Collective Works: they make delicious pecan rolls except for the mornings when some misguided person throws Sultanas or golden raisins in them and I have to pick them out. Repeat after me, “Raisins do not belong in pecan rolls, which are all about pecans, brown sugar and butter.” I take inspiration from their recipe, but not proportions: there is no way I am going to include a stick and a half of butter in twenty rolls. Theirs are good. Mine will not induce a heart attack. Pecans have healthy fat for you; butter not so much. If I use half a cup of butter it will be a lot.
To make your own pecan rolls, procure at least a cup of pecan pieces. Make sure you have milk, sugar, eggs, white and whole wheat flour, butter, yeast and brown sugar and cinnamon in the house. Then proceed with the recipe below.
Pecan Rolls
Proof 4 and 1/2 teaspoons yeast in 1/2 cup of lukewarm water. (If your yeast is sluggish, add a pinch of sugar and a pinch of flour)
Scald 1 cup milk.
Add to milk one stick of soft butter (1/2 cup) and 1/2 cup sugar. If you use salted butter you will not need to add any salt. Otherwise, add a pinch.
Pour milk mixture into a large mixing bowl.
Beat 2 eggs in the cup that you used to measure the milk. Temper the eggs with the warm liquid and add them to the mixing bowl.
Add 1 cup whole wheat flour, plus 2 and 1/2 cups unbleached flour.
Check temperature with fingers. When mixture is no more than warm add reserved yeast.
Continue to add flour by the cupful until you have a soft but firm consistency. I used six cups total flour today, beginning with the cup of whole wheat and eventually adding five cups of unbleached flour, but sometimes the recipe takes as much as seven cups altogether. You know how bread is.
Cover roll dough with warm damp dish towel and go away for awhile. When dough has doubled in size, punch it down. If you do not have time to wait through the next rise, put the covered dough in the refrigerator and pull it out this evening or tomorrow morning. Let it warm and then roll it out on a floured board into a large rectangle. Roll it thin, but not so thin that it will break, perhaps 1/2 inch or a little thicker.
Let dough rest while you melt 1 stick of butter and stir in 3/4 cup brown sugar, plus 1/4 tsp cinnamon.
Spread one third of this mixture in the bottom of a baking pan (I used a 13″ x 9″ Pyrex pan), leaving a clear border at the edges with no goo.
Spread the rest of the butter and sugar mixture on the dough. Sprinkle on the pecans evenly and roll the dough up like a jelly roll, starting from the short side of the rectangle. Slice one-inch rounds from the log with a sharp, serrated knife and place each roll atop the goo in the pan. Let rise for fifteen minutes while you preheat your oven to 350.
Bake 25 minutes or until sufficiently brown. Then invert carefully onto another plate so that the goo runs down over the rolls. Enjoy, perhaps with a glass of milk.
Painting Note. No painting. I started one but I prefer not to paint after dark. When I finish it I’ll pop it into the post later in the week. Meanwhile I have NaNoWords to type.
These pecan rolls sound delicious, Sharyn. Break a leg next week with the new “gig.” I’m sure you’ll do well.
Thanks, John. It’s a long set: two and a half hours (I’ve been playing two hours). It will be fine as long as it doesn’t rain on Saturday.
Such a fitting theme my friend, how I wish Australia had a thanksgiving tradition!
Your buns look sweet sticky and so ridiculously delicious 🙂
Cheers
Choc Chip Uru
Maybe you can start Australian Thanksgiving, CCU. The pecan roll I had last night was delicious. I plan on having a larger one for breakfast this morning.
Mmmmmmmmmmme. Now this is definitely one of my favourite ‘treat’ breakfasts. Once every so often, I succumb to the urge and fool-heartedly buy a Cinnabon. It’s always mind-blowingly disappointing. ALWAYS. Last time was about 8 years ago at O’Hare Airport and at that point I swore I would only make my one rolls. I love that you use part whole wheat flour and will definitely give it a go. This type of treat will be welcome come Christmas morning. One recipe I made last year the author suggested to make each bun in a muffin cup and that way they remain nice and round. I think you had mentioned a comment about your recipe, so I’m quite excited to have it now.
http://kitcheninspirations.wordpress.com/2012/04/06/nancys-incredible-cinnamon-buns/
They are so good, Eva. I can’t remember the last time I made them — they are a rare treat. My Mom used to make us cinnamon buns on Christmas morning with some of her roll dough. Cinnabon — feh! Underbaked, too sweet and whiter than white.
You said it.
I have never made pecan rolls, Sharyn, and I must. When my husband had surgery earlier this year he sent me on a quest to find a good pecan roll–his favorite. I came home with very poor substitutes. It seems that even the better bakeries in our area didn’t really do what we would call a pecan roll. Your recipe nails it! I’m eager to give it a try. He hasn’t had an easy time of it lately and this would be comfort food for sure. And I promise–no raisins!
I think the context of your memoir-in-progress sounds very interesting. Just the art of busking–that alone–is a fascinating story. You are one resilient woman, Sharyn. I admire your focus! Debra
Debra, I’m so glad to provide a recipe for Jay’s pecan rolls — I hope he likes them. Feel free to contact me if you need more specifics on how to make them. Go ahead and put raisins in if he likes them that way. Special dispensation.
I could get better at busking (and I am working on it).
appreciating your themes for this month Sharyn, wishing you bounty & joy – and always, that sweet medicine, gratitude. (and your pecan rolls sound so good.)
Thank you, Spree. I am grateful for my kind and supportive readers as well as for my friends who send me ingredients.
I had to make Dorie Greenspan’s pecan rolls, and I agree. Homemade is the best!
Yes, indeed.
Hi Sharyn, I meant to say that I listened to some of your music on cd baby, and wow now I have a voice to add your paintings and words. here’s hoping your busking goes fabulously
Thank you, Claire. Maybe some day I’ll get audio capability and put a link on the blog.
Great themes for November. I can tell you I would be thanking you a million times if you presented me with one of these delicious pecan rolls.
It’s always interesting to look at buskers plying their trade – some people really do just sit there, playing the same few songs over and over… no interaction, they just look bored and then there are others who are a pleasure to watch. There’s a few famous buskers in Paris – they both have permits to play in Chatelet métro station… the main, sprawling hub in the centre of the city. One is a woman who plays a… sitar I think, and the other is actually a big group… It’s about 6 or 7 people who play traditional Guatemalan music or something like that – very loud, very impressive, and they sell CDs at the same time! 🙂
You’ve got some wonderful themes going on this month, Sharyn.. I am certain your book writing would be as lovely as the writing here. I was imagining you as you kneaded your dough.. and the fragrance in your kitchen as you made these pecan rolls. It’s been far too long since I’ve had any dough under my hands too.. you’ve inspired me:) Good luck with your gig.. it’s amazing what we learn from others. I’d thought about making jewelry to sell but noticed so many of them at the market.. and not doing that great. So that plan was scrapped. Thanks for reminding us to be frugal as well.. it’s always a timely message to be grateful for what one already has and to use it wisely. xx Smidge
Barbara, you are just so kind and positive they should give you an award just for that. Thank you. Busking is fun, anyway, and good practice for performing, and it remains thrilling when people pay for snippets of music.
Thank you for your kind words. it appears you have a lot on your plate, filling this month with various themes. Will you be singing with Johnny? Please, at least have someone take pictures (a video perhaps). I am certain you will look radiant! Have a great weekend. i hope your guitar case (or other container of your choice) is filled to the rim.
Thank you, Granny. I threw my back out working the polls on election day so have not had much of an online presence this week. I will be busking tomorrow at the Farmers’ Market and I am just about to go meet Johnny for a night on the town (I have a life membership at our local folk music coffee house that gets me in free — bought it back in the day when I had some money). I appreciate your good wishes.
You are welcome. I hope your back is feeling stronger by now. I’m sure the night out with Johnny shifted your focus away from any discomfort in no time, at least for a while. Have a good week.
These pecan rolls look superb. I look forward to the painted version.
Good luck busking and happy writing, and I hope you have a wonderful November!
Thank you, Melissa — it may be awhile: I threw my back out working on Election Day and can’t sit very long just now to paint or work online.
Beautiful pecan rolls. I’m so looking forward to reading whatever you choose to excerpt here and pleeeease do put an audio link up! 🙂
Thanks, Susan. Can’t afford to put audio on the site just yet. The best I can do right now is give you a link to CD Baby, which offers short clips of the tracks from my Paris CD. Here it is: http://cdbaby.com/cd/SharynDimmick
I love the sound of sweet roll dough. what is it that makes this dough softer than others? I struggle to knead brad dough by hand… one day I will buy myself a kitchenaid! (when I win the lottery 🙂 it’s on my wish list!)
Lauren, I think this is a light dough because of the eggs and milk and relative paucity of whole-grain flour. Roll dough always has milk and eggs and sugar — I guess they all weigh less than flour so the dough is not heavy to handle.
Fabulous looking pecan rolls, Sharyn. Now I’m craving one!
They were really good, Betsy. They are the sort of thing I save my calories for.