Pecan Rolls / Sticky buns / Butterscotch Rolls / Monkey Bread

Originally, I got this recipe from an extended family member named Bonnie. It was titled "Bonnie's Pecan Rolls". We (me, my brothers and sisters) make them for all the major holidays like Thanksgiving, Christmas, sometimes Easter. We prep them the night before, then wake up and put them in the oven to enjoy at breakfast. 

Some make these with pecans, and others make it without. There are many names for this dish, too. The name usually depends where you are from. Some popular names are: "Pecan rolls", "monkey bread", "butterscotch rolls" and those who grew up in areas with Pennsylvania Dutch Amish influence may know these as "sticky buns". Whatever you call them-- these are amazingly delicious! They're sweet, buttery, soft, and melt in your mouth. There are even more variations on this recipe than there are names. This version makes them very easy to make and enjoy, any time you want. 

Pecan Rolls / Sticky buns / Butterscotch Rolls / Monkey Bread

Ingredients:

½ cup butter (113g)

½ cup brown sugar (100g)

1/2 box cook-and-serve Jello Butterscotch Pudding Mix

1 tsp. Ground cinnamon

A handful of chopped pecans (optional)

12-15 Rhodes Dinner Rolls (the raw, frozen balls) depening on the size of your baking pan. If you don’t have them locally, any frozen, raw dinner dough balls will do. They are about the size of a golf ball.

Tip: A round bundt pan is most commonly used, and more festive. But you can use any deep-dish baking pan you have. You want the rolls to fit loosely, bout halfway up the pan when frozen/raw.

Directions:

1. Melt butter and sugar in a saucepan over medium heat, until sugar is dissolved. Stir in the half-box of pudding mic and cinnamon, blend well. Remove from head and set aside. 

2. Grease baking pan genrously. If using chopped nuts, sprinkle them into the bottom of the baking pan.

3. Place frozen dinner rolls in the bottom of the baking pan, evenly and loosely. Pour sugar/pudding mixture over frozen rolls. Cover with a towel or plastic wrap. Let rise overnight 8 to 10 hours, but no longer, or else they may delfate). 

4. Preheat oven to 350 F (176 C).

5. Uncover rolls very gently, to avoid deflating them. Place rolls/baking pan on a baking sheet to catch any mixture that may bubble over during baking.

6. Bake 25 to 30 minutes, depending on your oven.

7. Carefully remove from oven. Place a large plate or platter on the counter and turn the roll pan upside-down over the plate, to transfer the rolls onto the plate. Let rolls stand for 10 minutes. Serve warm.

Crunchy Peanut Butter Chicken - Chinese Buffet Style

This is my absolute favorite dish from Chinese buffets, although not ever buffet has it. So it can be hard to find. You will notice that I have borrowed the marinade and peanut sauce from my Chicken Satay recipe, because those have the closest flavor to the chicken dish from the buffets. But instead of grilling the chicken on wooden skewers and dipping it in the sauce, we are breading/frying the chicken and drizzling the sauce over it-- the way they do at the buffets.

Ingredients:

3 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breast

2 cups panco breadcrumbs

¼ cup unsalted peanuts

Cooking oil of your choice (enough to keep the bottom of your pan in ¼ inch coating)

Marinade from my Chicken Satay recipe

Peanut Sauce from my Chicken Satay recipe  

Chicken marinade:

¼ cup sweetened condensed milk

½ cup finely chopped lemon grass

3 tablespoons soy sauce

1 tablespoon curry powder

Fresh ground pepper

Satay Sauce (makes about 2 cups of sauce):

13.5oz can coconut milk (save ¼ for basting meat)

3 tsp curry paste (3 tsp curry powder mixed with a tiny amount of water to form a paste)

1 tablespoon soy sauce

1 tablespoon sugar

4 to 6 tablespoons peanut butter (I like crunchy/chunky peanut butter for a more authentic touch)

Directions:

1. Flatten the chicken breasts with a mallet until they are about ½ inch thick. Combine the marinade ingredients together in a bowl (chicken included). Blend well and let marinade in the refrigerator for 1 hour.

2. Remove chicken from marinade bowl, leaving any extra marinade behind. Keep the panko bread crumbs in a bowl. If using peanuts, place them in a plastic zip bag and crush them with a rolling pin (or whatever you have), or pulse them in a food processor until they look like bread crumbs. Add the peanuts to the bread crumbs and blend well.

3. Turn the chicken over in the bread crumbs until well coated.

4. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium to mendium-high heat. Fry the coated chicken in the oil until both sides are golden. Remove from oil and let chicken drain on a rack, or paper towel.

5. Prepare the Satay sauce by first warming a skillet over medium heat. Pour in the ¾ can of coconut and simmer for about 30 seconds. Add the curry paste, blend well. Add the soy sauce, sugar and peanut butter, blend very well, making sure all the peanut butter is evenly incorporated. Simmer an additional 30 seconds. You can use more or less peanut butter or coconut milk, depending how thick or thin you like your sauce. Remove from heat and pour sauce into a bowl.

6. Slice chicken into ½ inch strips. Transfer to a plate. Drizzle sauce over the top of the chicken and serve.

TIP: You can serve the chicken on its own, or with your favorite side, or over rice. Some people even serve it over a salad.