Old Fashion Potato Bread

This is a great tasting bread that I tried from one of my grandmother's cooking skills.

Ingredients: 

• 1 serving instant potatoes made according to directions (my grandmother used to run potatoes through a hand grounding machine - like grounding meat!)
• 1 pkg active dry yeast
• 1 cup water
• 1 tbsp spoon sugar
• 1 tsp sea salt
• 1/4 cup butter (margarine) softened + 1 tbsp melted
• 3 3/4 cups bread flour + 1/4 cup in case dough is too wet

You can put everything in a bread machine according to the machine instructions and choose "dough" setting. Remove dough and place it in a large greased bowl and cover with a towel and let it rise until double in size at 85F (about 1 hour). Roll dough into a 16 x 8 in rectangle and then roll up from one end pinching the ends and tucking under loaf. Place loaf in a greased or Pam sprayed loaf pan. Brush surface with melted butter and let it rise until top of loaf is higher that loaf pan and rounded. Meanwhile preheat oven to 400F. Bake for 30 - 40 min until deep golden brown and bottom of loaf sounds hollow when tapped. Let it cool on a wire rack and enjoy it. Makes one loaf.  

Romania: Rolled Burgers -- "Mititei"

Almost every party have hamburgers and hot dogs because is easy and fun to do. Be different next time and amaze your guests with some thing new they never had before. It is cheap, easy and fun to make!


The rolled burgers is a traditional dish in Romania and if you ever visit this beautiful country you owe to yourself to try it. Ask locals where you can find the best "mititei" in town. You never know, you might get invited to their house for some home made!
Here is what you need:

• about two punds (1 kg.) of grounded lean beef
• 100g of beef tallow
• about 15g of thyme and allspice
• some baking powder (bicarbonat), salt, pepper (to your taste)
• 1 medium garlic peeled 
• 1/2 cup of beef broth or water

Here is how to make it:

•  Mix the ground beef with beef tallow and salt (how much salt is up to your taste), set the mixture in a air tight container and refrigerate for 6 - 7 hours;
• After refrigeration add to the mixture the thyme, allspice and baking powder (bicarbonat);
• Using a wooden mortar and pestle crush the garlic and mix it with the beef broth (or cold water) and then strained and add it to the mixture
• If you have a meat grinder with sausage attachment you can use it to bring out this mixture in the sausage form about 8cm long each piece
• Don't have a meat grinder you can shape the mixture with your wet hands in the form of a bratwurst sausage about 8cm long each
• Heat up your grill and grill at high heat turning as it cooks on all sides. Use cold water or beef broth if you have any leftover to baste the rolled burgers as they cooking

This dish is traditionally served with french fries and a fresh garden salad. Enjoy!

Hint: You may replace the lean beef with lamb or equal amount of lamb and beef for an event tastier "mititei"