HOMADE RECIPES

Steps:

• Select a couple of small-ish pumpkins. Cut the pumpkin in half. With a spoon or a scoop, scrape out the seeds and pulp from the center. You don't have to be too thorough with this. Place all the seeds into a bowl (you can roast them later and make pepitas). Repeat until all the pumpkin pieces are largely free of seeds and pulp. Place pumpkin pieces on a baking sheet (face up or face down; I’ve done both) and roast in a 350-degree oven for 45 minutes, or until pumpkin is fork-tender. They should be nice and light golden brown when done. Peel off the skin from the pumpkin pieces until you have a big pile of the stuff. If you have a food processor, throw in a few chunks at a time. A blender will work, too, if you add a little water. Or you can simply mash it up with a potato masher, or move it through a potato ricer, or process it through a food mill.  Pulse the pumpkin until smooth. If it looks too dry, add in a few tablespoons of water during the pulsing to give it the needed moisture. (Note, if the puree is overly watery, you should strain it on cheesecloth or over a fine mesh strainer to get rid of some of the liquid.) Dump the pureed goodness into a bowl, and continue pureeing until all the pumpkin is done.  You can either use this immediately in whatever pumpkin recipe you’d like, store it in the freezer for later use. To store in the freezer, spoon about 1 cupful of pumpkin into each plastic storage bag. Seal the bag with just a tiny bit of an opening remaining, then use your hands to flatten out the pumpkin inside the bag and push out the air. Store them in the freezer until you need them.

Steps:

• Combine the ingredients for the dough. Place the yeast and warm water in the bowl of a stand mixer (or a large bowl, if mixing by hand), stir to combine, and let it sit until dissolved. Place the milk, egg, oil, sugar, and salt in a medium bowl and whisk to combine. Add this to the yeast mixture and stir until combined. Add all the flour and stir until it forms a shaggy dough.
• Knead the dough. Knead on low speed or by hand against the counter until smooth but slightly tacky (it should spring back when poked), 8 to 10 minutes.
• Let the dough rise 1 hour. Cover the bowl with a kitchen towel or plastic wrap. Let the dough rise in a warm spot until doubled in bulk, about 1 hour.
• Divide and shape the rolls. Dust your work surface with a little flour. Scrape the dough onto the flour. Using a bench scraper, divide the dough into 12 pieces. To shape into rolls, tuck the edges underneath to form a plump little package, then roll the dough against the counter or between your palms until round.→ Read more about this technique: How to Shape Dinner Rolls.
• Heat the oven and let the rolls rise again. Line a 9x13-inch baking dish with parchment paper and spray with cooking spray. Arrange the rolls inside the baking dish so that they are spaced a little apart. Let the rolls rise until they look pillowy and fill the pan, 30 to 40 minutes. Meanwhile, arrange a rack in the middle of the oven and heat the oven to 375°F.
• Brush the rolls with butter. Melt the butter and brush it over the risen dinner rolls. This helps the tops to brown and keeps the crust soft.
• Bake the rolls 15 to 18 minutes. Bake the rolls until golden-brown, 15 to 18 minutes. Grasping the parchment paper, lift the rolls from the baking dish to a wire rack and let sit until cool enough to handle.