Selena Robins's Blog, page 2

The Perfect Holiday Swap

Did you know you can swap mashed cauliflower for mashed potatoes, or use cauliflower instead of rice, or even as a pizza crust? It’s incredible how versatile cauliflower is—everything can imitate it, but cauliflower never gets a glow-up.

There’s a reason for that: it’s not endorphin-inducing indulgence enough for the holidays. So let’s keep it real—life’s too short for a wanna-be potato dish. Enjoy the spud’s buttery goodness.

However, I have a swap that won’t hinder your holiday feast or taste buds.

Swap out those Christmas cards and gift an e-book instead.

For about the same price as a holiday or Christmas card (sometimes less than a card), you can give a lasting gift that brings hours of entertainment long after the holidays.

E-books are super convenient, budget-friendly, and perfect for all the readers in your life—and don’t forget to treat yourself to a few books as well.

Whether your family and friends love heartwarming romances, exciting mysteries, or suspenseful tales, there’s an eBook just for them. They can read on the go, making them a fantastic gift choice.

Let’s celebrate the magic of stories and the creativity of authors by supporting indie or local writers. It’s a great way to show you care while highlighting some fantastic talents in literature.

Recommended Authors for Gifting

Interracial Romance

If you are in love with interracial romance, with deliciously brooding alpha heroes and the spirited heroines that can manage them, then check out Alexandra Isobel’s book list.

Suspense:

If you enjoyed the suspense and thrills of The Da Vinci Code then you’ll absolutely love THE JUDAS APOCALYPSE by Dan McNeil.

Mystery:

Do you want to cozy up with a great mystery suspense, plus you’re a Beatles fan and love heist books? Then CAN’T BUY ME Love by Dan McNeil was custom-written for you.

Romance, Adventure, Historical, Suspense, Ghost Stories

If you like reading novels steeped in adventure, romance, suspense, history, things that go bump in the night, and more, you may enjoy the wide variety of novels written by Denise A. Agnew. Denise is also a screenwriter, and you can find her movie Secrets Beneath The Floorboards currently on Lifetime Movie Club.

To check out Denise’s books (she has over 50 novels to choose from) on her website click here.

Sexy Women’s Fiction:

If 50 Shades of Grey or Bridget Jones’ Diary books are your reading pleasure, then you’ll love SEX & SAMOSAS by Jasmine Aziz.  

Inspirational:

Do you believe there is a life beyond?

THE ROAD TO BEYOND by Michelina Pagano is a story about two lost souls, Pretty One and Hero, who wake up in a strange, heaven-like place after September 11th. Without memories or belongings, they must overcome obstacles on the journey to find out who they really are. 

In the tone of What Dreams May Become and The Little Prince, THE ROAD TO BEYOND is a modern fairy tale that reminds us that every human being on earth has significance and that even in inexplicable tragedy, we are connected to one another. It explores a plausible afterlife and offers hope to anyone who has lost a loved one.

If you’re looking for a story that’s part fantasy, part soul-searching, and written from the heart, this book is for you.

Just in time for the holidays, THE ROAD TO BEYOND e-book is on sale for just .99 cents. 

To view THE ROAD TO BEYOND’s video, please click here.

Contemporary Romance, Rom-Com

If you like sassy romance blended with humour and sometimes suspense, please consider the catalogue of USA Today Bestselling Author Susan Jean Ricci.

With four heartwarming series, there’s much to choose from. Each series has developed in stages, much like how Susan’s adult years have unfolded.

To learn more about Susan and her books, please visit her website, by clicking here.

Happy browsing and gifting!

From Oven to Table

Is there anything more comforting than the smell of freshly baked bread on a rainy autumn day? And if you’re craving a warm, cozy meal, you’ve come to the right place.

Today’s gray skies inspired me to make a hearty pot of minestrone, but I realized I was out of bread. I did not want to leave my favourite fleece to wear into the drizzle, so I baked a few loaves instead.

This recipe is a breeze—quick, straightforward, and completely knead-free. It’s ideal for lazy days when you want to enjoy comfort food without the extra effort.

Let’s get started on the recipe.

Ingredients:

all-purpose2 cups lukewarm water (98 – 105 F)
4 1/4 tsp. yeast
1 tsp. sugar
2 tsp. salt
4 to 5 cups flour (all-purpose or bread flour)
1 TBSP olive oil
1 egg (for egg wash)

Directions:

In a large bowl, add water, yeast and sugar.

Whisk well, then cover with a dishcloth and set aside for 10 minutes until the yeast is doubled.

Sift the flour and salt into the yeast.

Mix with a wooden spoon or spatula until flour and liquid are incorporated well.

Drizzle the olive oil onto the dough and work it gently through the dough.

The dough will be shaggy, and there’s no need to knead.

Cover the dough with a dishcloth and proof for 90 minutes or until doubled in size. My oven has a proofing feature, but if you don’t have this feature, simply turn your oven light on and place the bowl in the oven.

Once the dough has doubled, sprinkle flour on your work surface. Turn the dough onto your work surface and shape it into a long loaf. Cut the loaf in the middle to make two loaves, or shape it into two round loaves (your choice).

Whisk an egg and about 1 TBPS of water in a small bowl, and brush the loaves with this egg wash.

Pre-heat oven to 425 F.

Cover a baking sheet with parchment paper. Place the dough on the sheet and bake for 25 – 30 minutes (or until the bread reaches an internal temperature of 190 F).

Enjoy with Irish butter, or jam, or, in my case, with a steaming bowl of minestrone soup.

For my version of minestrone soup, please click HERE for the recipe.

Mistaken Identity: Not just a romance trope.

When a critique request turns unexpected.

Besides writing, I also offer critiquing and editing services, and I received an email from Anamica Jayne, a new writer, asking if I’d be willing to critique and edit her novella.

To my surprise, the attached project was an erotic novella – a genre I don’t typically read or write. I emailed Anamica to let her know this was not my area of expertise, however, she still wanted to hire my services.

After thinking about it, I agreed because in reality, I could critique any genre and point out any technical issues.

When Anamica communicated with me, via email, she always addressed me as Mistress Robins, and her narrative read like someone who spoke in broken English.

As I read her novella, I realized the content was beyond what I had expected, as this was a hard-core erotica tale, more suited for male readers than females, in my opinion.

I have a close friend (for the sake of my friend’s anonymity, I’ll call her Natasha) who reads a lot of erotica stories.

I emailed Anamica and asked her permission to forward her novella to a close friend of mine to get a second opinion. Anamica responded that she would rather I not share her work.

I finished the edit and sent it back to Anamica with my suggestions. I explained that it was challenging for me to fully grasp the plot and her characters’ arcs.

I also highly recommended that she get a second opinion, and so I sent her few links that I thought could assist her with publishing goals for her novella. I encouraged her to keep writing, and wished her well with her publishing journey.

She thanked me and told me she wanted to send her payment via snail mail. In cash.

I highly recommended that she not send cash through snail mail and directed her to Pay-Pal.

She said she didn’t trust sending funds through the Internet.

I then suggested mail me a check.

She said she had no checking account and could only pay me in cash.

Although I found this odd, I reiterated that sending cash through the mail wasn’t safe, but she insisted, so I gave her my P.O. Box number.

A week later, I received a package in the mail at home. It was Janet Evanovich’s (one of my favourite authors) CD collection wrapped as a gift with a card attached that said, “Thank you for the wonderful critique and encouragement. Here’s a gift to express my gratitude.” Signed Natasha (my friend).

I was confused. Why was my friend thanking me?

I hadn’t critiqued anything for Natasha in a long time.

I called Natasha to tell her I received her gift and asked her why she was thanking me in the first place.

Natasha couldn’t stop laughing and then imitated a broken English accent: “Thank you, Mistress Robins.”

After a few seconds, it all clicked together.

The erotic author, Anamica Jayne, was my friend Natasha in disguise.

My friend explained that it was the reason she purposely wrote in broken English as a disguise and she couldn’t use PayPal or send a check—as I would then know it was her.

Natasha wanted me to critique this novella without me knowing it came from her. Because the novella was a lot more hard-core than she knew I had read, and she wanted me to read it without knowing that it was her.

The phrase laughing my ass off is not an exaggeration in this case.

Natasha said she cracked up when she read my email asking if I could send the manuscript to a “good friend for a second opinion” because she knew if she had said yes, I’d be calling her to discuss the project, and she knew she would not have been able to keep a straight face or stop herself from losing it.

We still laugh about this stunt to this day.

I’ve had many pranks pulled on me by friends and family. It’s not hard, as I tend to be gullible (sometimes), but I must say, this was epic.

MY NEW LIFE: Six Years Later

It’s been six years since I last heard my husband’s infectious laugh, was the recipient of his dazzling smile, and inhaled the scent of his cologne. Six years since our last walk together, stopping at the Tim Horton’s, where we’d get lost in conversation and laughter. Six years since I’d curl up on the couch next to him, each of us interrupting the other as he watched his favourite documentaries and I read my books.

The absence of his warmth is still a painful ache, but the pain has changed shape over time.

In the past six years, I’ve developed my own self-care strategy, notes to remind myself to breathe, rest, and keep going and embrace what I’m feeling.

You know that clichéd saying, “Time heals all wounds?”

Whoever coined that clearly never had to navigate the emotional minefield at the site of their late husband’s favourite ice cream at the grocery store.

I’m sure Ben & Jerry’s has a new ‘Uncontrollable Sobbing’ flavour that I’m single-handedly keeping in business.” But, I now have the perfect alibi for unsuspecting shoppers who witness this emotional lapse. “These prices! It’s enough to bring us to tears, eh?”

Six years later, and I still hear this other gem from well-meaning but the misguided grief police, “It’s time you move on.” If only it were that simple.

There are no instructional booklets or computer apps for grief. Widowhood is a highly personal journey with no timeline.

Fortunately, as the years have passed, I’ve built up my “grief muscles” and learned to carry the weight of my loss with resilience and more grace.

I’ve learned that while time doesn’t heal the heartache, it does allow the grief to evolve.

The milestones and missed moments that my husband is missing out on, still do sting. On the most challenging days, I show myself extra love and compassion.

I also tap into my treasure trove of memories that transport my mind back into his arms through our shared love.

I’ve also learned some handy new skills – assembling bookshelves (non-IKEA, thank you very much) and fixing dryer seals (thanks, YouTube). I may have cursed like a sailor and gone through a few Band-Aids, but I’m proud to say that the bookshelf is as sturdy as an oak tree.

Besides adding my new handy-woman skills to my repertoire, I’m also sailing new waters, as I was hired to design a romance writing course for Algonquin College, and I’ll be teaching the course in the fall for four semesters.

I know my husband would be beaming with pride, and that knowledge has motivated and inspired me to keep learning new things and taking on new adventures in honour of my beloved David’s memory, and the support he’s always shown for anything new I tackled.

If you are beginning this new life of widowhood or have been living it for a couple of years now, please know that although your grief may never entirely go away, you WILL find ways to carry it and allow it to co-exist with joy and growth, and you will find ways to honour your beloved through your own achievements.

In your darkest moments, flash that wry smile to show even the grief police that you’re still spirited.

Keep walking your path at your own pace. This journey is long, but you’ve got this.

While I still miss David deeply, and the heartache still lingers after six years, I’ve come to accept that grief is a life companion rather than a visitor.

Honouring David’s memory through pursuing our shared passions and embracing new challenges helps keep our connection alive.

I like to think that wherever David is now hanging out, he’s still right beside me, hand in hand, for every step of this incredible journey called life.

I am grateful for the life we shared, for my precious memories of our time together, and for the love we had.

I’m grateful for my family and friends who have comforted me in my sadness and celebrated life with me in the happier moments.

I’m also grateful for the personal growth that has come from walking this road of loss.

Though the pain of absence remains, I have become stronger and learned deep lessons about cherishing each day.

Most of all, I feel grateful knowing that my husband’s spirit lives on in my heart and in the life we created together.

Always leave room for dessert.

Looking for a deliciously layered dessert with an irresistible combination of cake, cream, and fruit, that will end any meal on a high note?

Then the following recipe is for you.

Trifle Parfait

Ingredients:5 oz. milk
1/2 oz heavy cream
4 TBSP white sugar
6 large egg yolks, whisked
1 vanilla pod, split and seeds removed (or 2 tsp. of vanilla extract)
8 oz pound cake (or sponge cake), cubed, or you can also use lady finger cookies, cut in half, or any type of hard cookie that you enjoy
1 can peaches, sliced, light syrup
2 cups whipping cream, softly whipped

Directions:

Please note: For the custard, you can use store-bought box mix for the custard, eg. Bird’s Custard, instead of making the custard from scratch if you want to save time.

If you want to make your own custard, then they are included in the directions.

First thing you want to do is place the cake (or cookies) at the bottom of parfait cups, or large wine glasses, martini glasses, or even make one large trifle parfait, using a large glass bowl. You can get creative with the vessel to serve your parfait.Pour the peach juice from the can of peaches over the cake, covering them well, then set aside while you make your custard.Turn stove top to medium-low.In a saucepan add milk and heavy cream and one teaspoon of sugar.Bring to a gentle simmer. Once it is simmering, turn the heat to its lowest.In a large heat-proof bowl, add the rest of the sugar and the egg yolks. Whisk egg yolks and sugar until light and creamy. The color should be a pale yellow.Keep whisking and slowly pour the warmed milk into the egg mixture.Strain the custard sauce through a fine sieve and then pour it back into the saucepan then add the seeds from the vanilla pod.Over a low heat, stir constantly.The custard will gradually thicken.Keep whisking, and make sure the heat is on low, as you don’t want to burn your custard or have it look like curdles.Once the custard is thickened, removed from the heat and pour through a sieve again.Stir custard, so you don’t get a layer of skin on top.Once custard has cooled, wrap the bowl with saran wrap and put it in the fridge until you are ready to assemble the parfait.Add peach slices to each parfait cup.Spoon custard evenly over the peaches in a thick layer.Top off with whipped cream.

Culinary short-cuts and Cooking Tips

One of the things that I love about cooking, besides the enjoyment of rocking to some tunes as I mix, stir and experiment and enjoy feeding family, friends and sharing recipes on this blog, is that with each cook I discover new things that not only unleash flavour bombs, but can also save time.

I’m sharing a few of my cooking tips that are tried and true that I utilize in my culinary adventures:

Bake don’t boil potatoes for mashing:

While boiling potatoes is a common method for making mashed potatoes, baking potatoes will enhance the texture and flavor and the result is a bowl of velvety-smooth, savory mashed potatoes.

I also bake the potatoes when making home-made gnochhi, less water content and baking provides a more even consistent potato.

Cut acidity in your tomato sauce:

Peel and add a whole carrot to your sauce, when done, simply remove the carrot, and enjoy a sauced up carrot. Or you can also add grated carrots to the tomato sauce. No need for sugar, as carrots contain natural sugar, which counteracts with the acid in the tomato sauce as it cooks. 

Roasted Garlic

If you follow my recipes, you’ve probably noticed that I prefer to use roasted garlic in my recipes. Of course you can use raw garlic and cook it in any recipe, but the reason I suggest roasted garlic are as follows:

Roasted garlic is a flavour enchancer, making the garlic sweeter, milder and more complex, as it carmelizes the natural sugars in garlic, resulting in a delicious, rich and nutty taste, adding depth to your dishes.Roasted garlic reduces its pungency, making it more subtle and pleasant to eat and digest.The soft and spreadable consistency of roasted garlic allows you to easily incorporate it into sauces, mashed potatoes, dressings and really any other dish where you want to enhance flavour.

Selecting The Best Pasta:

When using packaged pasta, choose a pasta that is light in colour.

The lighter the colour (pale yellow), the more pure and authentic the pasta as pasta doesn’t have many ingredients to begin with, therefore, the shorter the list of ingredients, the higher the quality, and if the noodles are almost white in colour, you have yourself great pasta.

When cooking pasta, ensure your water comes to a rolling boil, and then add salt. Good rule of thumb: taste the water before adding the pasta. If it tastes like the sea–too salty, if it tastes like soup–you’re good to go.

Peel Ginger with a Spoon:

Ginger can be tricky to peel, therefore, rather than using a paring knife or vegetable peeler, use a spoon by scraping the spoon against the skin and ginger skin will come right off.

Create your own salt-free herbs & aromatics.

To reduce salt intake and to add depth and complexity to your dishes, experiment with herbs, spices, citrus fruits, different vinegars, and allium such as onions, garlic, shallots and leeks. All these bring a savory, aromatic base for any dish.

Feel free to experiment with different combinations of the many fresh herbs, and spices, to find the ones that suit your palate. You will find that you will not only add so much depth of flavour to your dishes, but you will also gradually reduce your reliance on salt to create delicious and low-sodium meals.

Adding spices in a skillet over medium heat, stirring for one to three minutes, until you can smell the spices giving off a strong aroma will enhance those spices even more.

Make your own Cooking Spray:

Making your own cooking spray is not only simple with ingredients you have on hand, but also healthier and cost-effective.

Use a mister bottle, thoroughly washed and dried.Measure out 1 1/4 cup of water into a glass measuring cup.Add 1/4 cup of oil (your choice: olive, avocado, flaxseed, canola). Do not use coconut oil as it will solidify and won’t work as well.Add into your mister bottle, and before you use it, give it a quick shake.

There you have it, your own cooking spray.

Please don’t hesitate to reach out if you have any questions about these tips, or if you have any tips that have helped you save time in the kitchen, feel free to drop them in the comments.

Sweet Italian Easter Bread

Spring and Easter is a time when daffodils and tulips start to peek through the ground, as we embrace and joyfully celebrate a new season with hope, peace, and for us to anticipater and enjoy chocolate and baking treats.

The following recipe for Sweet Italian Easter bread will delve into the delightful worlf of a classic Italian delicacy.

Whether you’re an experienced baker or a novice, this recipe aims to make the process enjoyable and accessible to everyone. So, gather your ingredients, roll up your sleeves, and get ready to embark on a baking adventure.

Ingredients:

Makes 6 Breads

1 package Rapid Rise (instant) yeast

1 1/4 cups milk

1/3 cup butter (softened,)

2 eggs, beaten

1/2 cup white sugar

1/4 cup brown sugar

1 TBSP honey

3 1/2 cups flour

1 egg beaten with 1 tsp. water

1 tsp. vanilla

1 tsp orange zest

1 tsp. lemon zest

Pinch of Salt

6 Dyed Easter Eggs

Directions:

In a large bowl, mix: 1 cup of flour, sugar, salt, lemon and orange rinds, and yeast and stir well.

In a small sauce pan over low heat, add: milk, and honey, mix and warm over low heat for about 3 – 5 minutes.

Remove from heat and let cool, stirring, as you don’t want the eggs to curdle when you add them.

In the center of the flour mixture, make a well and pour in the milk mixture.

Using your hand, mix the flour and milk mixture in a circular motion.

Once the flour and milk mixture is well mixed, add the vanilla, butter and add the 2 eggs (add eggs one at a time.)

Slowly mix in the remaining flour until everything is mixed well together and you have a doughy consistency.

Sprinkle flour on your working surface.

Turn the dough out onto your working surface and knead the dough until it is soft but elastic (about 7 – 10 minutes).

Cover the dough with a damp cloth, and let it rest for 15 minutes.

After the 15 minutes, uncover and punch dough down.

Divide into 12 pieces.

Roll each piece to form a 1 inch thick rope about 12 inches long.

Take two pieces of the dough-rope and twist together, forming a braid, pinch the ends and loop into a circle.

Line two baking sheets with parchment paper (or grease two baking sheets).

Cover the baking sheets with a damp cloth and let the bread rise until doubled in size (about one hour).

Once risen, brush each  bread with egg wash (1 beaten egg and 1 tsp water).

For added sweetness, you can sprinkle each bread with some sugar.

In the meantime, you can dye your eggs different colors.

Once dough has risen, preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Remove cloth from the dough and in the middle of each bread ring, gently place a colored Easter egg into the center of the bread ring.

Optional: You can sprinkle some sugar on the bread for added sweetness.

Bake at 350 until golden in color. Takes about 20 to 25 minutes.

Bottom of bread should sound hallow when you tap it. It means it’s ready.

Cool on a rack, and you can sprinkle with chocolate or coloured sprinkles if you’d like.

Please note:

You do not have to hard-boil the eggs. Just dye them and be careful not to crack them. They will cook at the same time as the bread. You can eat them afterward, however, I would recommend you eat the eggs right away and not have them sit around.

Happy Easter

Growing up Italian

From learning to talk with our hands before we took our first step to mastering the art of twirling a forkful of spaghetti without splattering sauce on our Sunday best, I’m sharing a few of the rich tapestries that shape our culture, traditions, and some of the quirks and joys of being part of a boisterously expressive Italian family.

And we love every minute of it.

Storm Soup

Do snow blizzards and ice storms have you craving for comforting and tasty eats?

Then you’ve made a pit stop at the right place.

Channel your inner Italian soup-making magic and whip up a big pot of minestrone.

With no set recipe, this versatile soup can be made with any meats, vegetables, herbs, or spices you have on hand.

Get creative and adjust the recipe to suit your taste buds, using my recipe as a guide.

INGREDIENTS:

4 to 6 TBSP olive oil

2 medium carrots, peeled and chopped

2 medium ribs of celery, chopped

1 sweet onion, peeled and chopped

3 TBSP tomato paste

1 head of roasted garlic, OR, if using raw garlic, mince 4 cloves

1 cup of fresh green beans, sliced

1 cup of fresh zucchini, sliced

1 large can diced tomatoes with liquid, or 1 large can whole tomatoes (just mash the tomatoes)

6 cups of beef broth (or whatever broth you have on hand)

1 pound ground beef (or any ground meat you have on hand)

4 Italian sausages (hot or sweet)

1 can white kidney beans

1 can romano beans

2 tsp. Calabrian chili peppers (or any other hot peppers you have on hand)

½ cup basil, chopped

5 sprigs rosemary, chopped

3 TBSP thyme

3 TBSP marjoram

1 TBSP ground cumin

1 TBSP ground ginger

crushed red pepper chili flakes (to taste)

salt and black pepper to taste

1 TBSP freshly squeezed lemon juice

DIRECTIONS:

Bake the sausages until done, then slice and set aside.

Warm 3 TBPS of the olive oil in a large Dutch oven or stockpot over medium heat. Once the oil is heated, add the mirepoix (chopped onion, carrot, celery) and a pinch of salt.

Cook, stirring often, until the vegetables have softened and the onions turn translucent, about 7 to 10 minutes.

Add the tomatoes and tomato paste, stir, and put the lid on the pot to let all the vegetables sweat on low heat.

While the mirepoix is simmering, cook the ground meat in a separate pan, adding salt and black pepper to taste, until the meat is browned with no pink. Drain the fat from the meat.

Add the roasted garlic, the cooked meat, sausage, broth, and all the herbs, ginger, the pepper flakes, chili peppers, and let cook for about 1 hour on medium-low. Taste the broth after 30 minutes or so, so you can adjust the seasoning to your taste.

After an hour, add the romano and kidney beans, green beans, and zucchini, stir, and bring to a slight boil. Once boiled, let simmer on low until the vegetables are al dente and beans are cooked through.

Remember: keep tasting through the cooking process so you can adjusts seasoning and spice level, or you may want to adjust with more herbs. It’s all to your personal taste.

Remove pot from the heat, and let it rest for a few minutes, allowing the flavours to mingle and develop further.

Stir in the freshly squeezed lemon juice (about 1 TBSP) and drizzle with extra virgin olive oil (about 2 TBSP).

Garnish with fresh basil leaves, thin slices of Parmasan or Romano cheese, if you’d like.

You can also cook up some pasta (like ditalini or shells) in a separate pot then add to your soup for extra heartiness.

Serve with crusty bread and enjoy!

It’s a Kneady Time of the Year

What do fluffy socks, fleece-wear, a page-turning book and the scent of freshly baked bread have in common?

They are all guaranteed to dissolve the January blah’s, blues, chills, and early dark skies.

This warm, cozy, crusty bun recipe is guaranteed to gain you much-deserved baking praise.

Cozy Crusty Buns

Ingredients:

1/2 tsp. active dry yeast

1/2 cup + 3 TBSP water (tepid at 100 – 110 F)

3/4 tsp. honey

2 cups bread flour (if you don’t have bread flour, you can use all-purpose flour)

1/2 tsp. salt

3 TBSP. olive oil (plus more for brushing)

Directions:

Add water and honey to a small bowl, and stir so that the honey is incorporated with the water, then sprinkle the yeast on top of water, and let set for 5 minutes (or until yeast has foamed). Stir well.

Add flour and salt into the bowl of your stand mixer and whisk together, then make a well in the middle. If you don’t have a stand mixer, do the exact same thing, using a large bowl.

Add the water, honey, yeast mixture to the middle of the flour mixture.

If using a stand mixer, use the dough hook attachment and turn on medium, and let it knead until the dough forms a ball. If there is dough on the sides, simply scrape it off and let it continue kneading for 10 minutes.

If you are not using a stand mixer, then knead with your hands on a floured board. Knead for 15 minutes.

NOTE: Here is how you can check if your dough needs more kneading.

Indent the dough with your fingertip, if the indentation fills back quickly, you’re dough has been kneaded enough and you’re ready to let it rise.

If it stays looking like a deep dimple, continue kneading.

Lightly oil (with olive oil) a large bowl, then form the dough into a ball, then roll the dough in the bowl, cover, and let rise in a warm draft-free area for 1.5 – 2 hours, the dough should be doubled in bulk.

NOTE: I let the dough rise in the oven with the oven light on.

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper, then punch down the dough, form the dough into 12 balls, keeping the rest of the dough covered as you form the balls

Place dough balls on the baking sheet, cover, and let rise in a warm draft-free area for 1 hour (or until doubled in size).

Preheat oven to 400F

Brush each dough ball with olive oil and bake for 15 minutes. The buns should be golden, and you can tell if they are cooked by tapping the bottom of the bun—it should sound hollow.

Once baked, remove from oven and put on a cooling rack. Can be enjoyed cooled or warm

Suggestion:

Besides using this delicious buns for sandwiches or as a side for soup, they are delicious for sopping up tomato sauce.

You can find my recipe for authentic Italian Marinara sauce by clicking HERE.