My Last Meal

If I am ever in a situation where I am being offered one last meal, these will make the list.

I went through a little phase where I was making Cinnamon Rolls... a lot.

I have a pretty easy dough recipe and Cinnamon Rolls are good, so it just naturally happened.

Then one day I was making Spinach Artichoke Dip and thought to myself,

"Hmm... I wonder if putting this cheesy dip in dough would be be good?".

What a silly question... OF COURSE it would be.

And so, Spinach Artichoke Rolls became my new obsession.

Make them today

 (or come to my house and have one of the leftover's from book club last night... actually there will be none left by the time you get here so scratch that idea).

First, the dough:

Buttermilk Rolls 

(This recipe was given to me a few years ago from a lady who was willing to invest a little bit of time in some of us young moms and teach us the ways of old... okay, really just how to make awesome bread.) 

3 3/4 Teaspoons of Yeast

1/2 Cup of Warm Water

4 Tablespoons of Sugar

5 1/3 Tablespoons of Melted Butter

1 1/2 Cups of Buttermilk*

1 Tablespoon of Salt

1/2 Tablespoon of Baking Soda

4 1/2 Cups of Flour

*If you don't have Buttermilk, you can substitute it with regular Milk and 1 Tablespoon of Lemon Juice.

Set oven to 400 degrees.

I have a Bosch Universal Plus so making dough is a pretty easy task... put the dough hook in and add all the ingredients.  Any mixer should work; if you don't have a mixer, I think this dough would still be pretty simple to make (and pretty forgiving) and a great arm workout.

Once all the ingredients are mixed together, knead for 3-4 minutes (medium speed on a mixer).  Then take the dough out, shape into a ball, and let stand for 15 minutes.

(If wanting to use for rolls, the next step is to roll into balls and bake for 15-20 minutes. Easy!)

While your dough is standing, start preparing the Spinach Artichoke Dip/Spread.

Spinach Artichoke Dip/Spread

2-3 Tablespoons of Olive Oil

2 Large Cloves of Garlic, Minced

8 Ounces of Fresh Spinach

1/2 Cup of Milk

8 Ounces of Cream Cheese

8 Ounces of Quartered Artichoke Hearts

2.5 Ounces of Shaved Parmesan

A Small Block of Mozzarella 

A Couple Dashes of Worcestershire Sauce

A Little Dash of Ground Pepper

Saute´ the Garlic in the Olive Oil for a few minutes, add Spinach and saute´for a few more minutes. Add Milk, Cream Cheese, Parmesan and let melt, continuing to stir. Once completely melted add Worcestershire Sauce, Ground Pepper, and Artichoke Hearts, let simmer and try not to sneak any.

Back to the dough... roll into a huge, pretty thin square. Spread the Spinach Artichoke Dip, completely covering the dough. Take the edge and begin rolling, just as you would if making Cinnamon Rolls. Roll into a log and slice into as many pieces as you'd like.  I bake these in a 9x9 pan, so I usually slice them into nine rolls (however, they are HUGE and could easily be sliced into, oh... probably 18! So, it just kind of depends of your mood, and who all will be eating them.). Place the rolls into the baking pan and bake for 15 minutes. At 15 minutes, switch the oven setting to Broil and grate as much or as little Mozzarella as you'd like over the tops... I like a lot. Broil for about five more minutes or until Mozzarella is getting a nice toasty brown.

Serve these hot; you'll find that there actually won't even be an option to serve them any other way because they will be out of the pan and into your belly in seconds! So, enjoy those seconds... and then have another one.