Pioneer Woman Cinnamon Rolls

One of the things I had on my 35 Before 35 list was to make The Pioneer Woman Cinnamon Rolls. I enlisted the help of my little sister to help. Here are the pics of our progress throughout the process. I kid you not when I say that within ten minutes of frosting the first pan, it was empty!

Here is the first step of making the dough and letting it rise. This was the hardest part because I am not a patient person.

We then rolled out half the dough to assemble with the gooey filling!

After we filled it with butter, cinnamon and sugar, we rolled into a log for slicing. 

(*Notice the excess in the lower right corner of the picture that oozed out. That's when we knew they were going to be yummy!)

We used cake pans and placed 6 to 7 rolls in each, letting them rise an additional 20 minutes before baking.

While they bakes, we mixed up the yummy maple icing.

(*I want to make again and try a basic cream cheese icing.)

Baking in the oven and then still hot waiting for icing!

Finished product! They were so yummy. I'm definitely making these for Christmas gifts this year for our church staff and school staff.

**Don't want to make a large batch of these? Here is the small batch version (12 rolls) posted over at Kitchen Image.

Toasted Pecans

This is one of my favorite recipes to make and give as gifts during the holidays!

Pour 4 cups of pecan halves (or almonds) onto a large baking pan, spreading them out evenly. Melt 1/2 cups of butter or margarine in a saucepan. Add 4 teaspoons of Worcestershire sauce, 1 tablespoon of garlic salt, and 1/2 teaspoon of Tabasco sauce. Stir the liquid mixture and drizzle it over the nuts. Stir them just a little to make sure they are completely coated.

Place the baking pan in the oven and bake for 30 minutes at 300 degrees. Stir them periodically to make sure they toast evenly.

Pour them onto paper towels to absorb any excess butter. Once cool, place them in an airtight storage container to keep them fresh until you are ready to serve or gift them.