Potato Buns

Prep Time: 45 minutes
Rise Time: 30 minutes
Rest Time: 15 minutes
2nd Rise: 30 minutes
Bake Time: 18 minutes

Grade: A+

Make Again: Yes

Recipe Source: Cook's Illustrated (July 2012)
Recipe Source: America's Test Kitchen (Season 13)

Note: the recipe is available on the ATK TV website and should be available to registered users for the rest of 2014 I think

I love this recipe. Don't be put off by the 45 prep time. That involves down-time while the potatoes are cooking, and the kneading time. The hardest part of this recipe is ricing the potatoes, but it only takes a few extra minutes. A ricer is quite helpful for that step, I'm not sure how well the recipe would work with just mashing the potatoes.

The dough is a dream to work with – seriously, it is the easiest shaping of dough I have ever experienced. The dough rolls into balls quite easily and after the rest is super easy to pat them into correct size. I have made these twice so far and I'm not sure I will buy store bought rolls again unless I am seriously strapped for time. These freeze well so can be made ahead.

My second time with the recipe I saved enough of the potato and potato cooking water to make a second batch the next day. That reduced the prep time to 15 minutes. So I ended up with 18 rolls total. I will be making this recipe again soon this way.

Ricotta Calzones with Sausage

Prep Time: 10 minutes
Rise Time:  90-120 minutes
Rest Time: 30 minutes
Prep Time: 60 minutes
Bake Time: 11-15 minutes

Grade: A

Make Again: Yes

Recipe Source: Cook's Illustrated (September 2003)


The prep time includes the rolling of the dough, and assembling. Assembling took 30 minutes of the time. It could maybe be done quicker.

I started making the filling while dough was still rising. Then I made 6 balls of dough, and did nothing during the 30 minutes rest time. Then I was able assemble the calzones. So there is a little overlap, but overall, these do take about 2.5 - 3 hours to make and bake. I had to bake in two batches because I only have a round pizza stone and they won't all fit.

The actual recipe calls for Broccoli Rabe which I did not have, so I just left that out. I'm sure it would be a nice addition though.

This recipe takes a bit of time, but it makes 6 large calzones. I managed to usually eat one full one, but was pretty hungry when I ate these. Sometimes 1/2 of one would suffice.

I froze the leftovers and reheated in the over. These were just as good as original. Actually maybe better, because there was no effort involved and we could just enjoy.

Angel Biscuits

Prep Time: 25 minutes
Rise Time: 30 minutes
Bake Time: 14 minutes

Grade: B

Make Again: No

Recipe Source: Cook's Country (August 2007)

These are biscuits with the rise from yeast and baking powder. I thought they were ok, but not as good as regular biscuits and not as good as some dinner rolls I've made. They can be made fairly quickly, but are more work and time than regular biscuits, so I won't be making again.

Rosemary Focaccia

Total Time: 24 hours, with very little work

Hands on Time: 20-25 minutes 

Bake Time: 30 minutes

Cool Time: 30 minutes 

Grade: A

Make Again: Yes 

Recipe Source: Cook's Illustrated (September 2010)

The Focaccia is very easy to make, but you do need to be patient. You need to start the biga the night before. The dough is very wet and does not kneading – just folding, every 30 minutes, 3 times. 

My dough was probably a little too wet because I couldn't really make it into a ball at the end and it spread out in pan without my help, but it turned out fine. 

It was very good, but a little greasy. I even used a bit less oil. I also used a little less salt because it seemed like so much, but it could have handled more. 

I have already reviews CI's earlier version of this recipe here. I definitely like this recipe more so this will be the one I use if I want to make focaccia again.

Runsas or Bierocks

Filling Time: 25 minutes
Chill Time: 15 minutes 
Dough Time: 15 minutes
Rise Time: 60 minutes
Assemble Time: 15 minutes
Rise Time: 45-60 minutes
Bake Time: 20 minutes

Grade: A

Make Again: Yes

Recipe Source: Cook's Country (June 2012)

These take some time to put together, but the dough and filling times can overlap some. Really there is not a lot of hands on work, it is a lot of waiting for things to rise and/or cool.

But putting them together is quite simple. The dough wrapped around the chilled filling very nicely.

The biggest bonus is that these freeze beautifully. They can be reheated in the oven when you don't want to cook. I have defrosted in microwave then heated in over for 10-15 minutes and they are great.

I will try to make an Italian or Tex-Mex version with different flavors so I don't have to use cabbage next time. I don't mind it, but the picky eater does, so I want to try something he will eat.

Chicago Style Pizza

Dough Time: 10 minutes
Rise Time: 60 minutes
Sauce Prep: 20 minutes
Sauce Cook: 30 minutes
Laminate: 10 minutes
Rise Time: 40-50 minutes
Assemble: 10 minutes
Bake: 20-30 minutes
Rest: 10 minutes

Grade: A

Make Again: Yes

Recipe Source: Cook's Illustrated (January 2010) 
I have always lived in Chicago-land area (and for a while in the city) so I do know Chicago pizza. I'm not partial to this style of pizza though, I like all kinds really. The one thing I would say about the style is that it has a buttery crust. Some of them seem like they have cornmeal in them, but I've heard that is not really true. I am not a purist though so I just wanted to try it and see if it was good.

It was good. Very good actually. Maybe not a true replication of any specific restaurant around here but close enough. The crust seemed closest to Lou Malnati's I thought, because of the buttery flavor.

It is a bit more work than a regular pizza, but it made two pies. I wrapped one pan in foil and froze, then baked a few weeks later. That one was as good as the first.

I thought the sauce was a little too sweet so I would skip the sugar next time or use less. Otherwise it was a very good recipe.

Crescent Rolls

Prep Time: 19 minutes
Rise Time: 3 hours
Chill Time: Overnight
Shape Time: 15 minutes
Chill Time: 2 hours or more
Rise Time: 1 hour
Bake Time: 22-26 minutes

Grade: A

Make Again: Yes


Recipe Source: Cook's Illustrated (November 2001) Note: If you don't subscribe online to Cook's Illustrated, you can find the recipe with Google fairly easily.

I brought these to Thanksgiving dinner that someone else was cooking, and finished up the rolls while the turkey was resting. It worked out great.

This recipe is quite old. It was from 2001 – the year I discovered Cook's Illustrated – and I've wanted to try this recipe ever since then. The instructions are fine, but I would have liked a little bit more detail on the shaping and how the dough should feel. Maybe if I read the original article, I would get more info. I think I have really become used to having videos from ATK PBS show or Everyday food, and I missed that with this one.

The dough rises initially with a 3 hour rise, then chilling overnight, then shaping, then chilling some more. Finally you set them out to warm for 1 hour before you can bake. That may sound complicated, however, you can leave the dough in the refrigerator for long periods of time (up to 3 days), and you can even par-bake the dough, allowing you to finish them with shorter bake time after freezing.

So, despite the long time these take overall to make, the recipe is quite flexible to fit into your schedule, if you give yourself enough time for all the steps. They are really fairly simple and worth the effort. I did try the par-bake method, and it worked out well. I was able to bake them while the turkey was resting at 350, and the timing was perfect. To try to bake them fully with one oven for a holiday meal with a turkey or roast might be difficult because they start at 450 and you need a preheated pan in the oven where you can add hot water.

Next time I make these, I will try to shape my initial rectangle better before first the chill. It would have made rolling out into a larger rectangle easier. I had lots of scraps from trimming because my rectangle was not great. I decided to use them to make "practice" rolls so I could try them before serving to larger group. That was fine. The 16 real rolls were still large, and I had 4 rolls from practicing.

Overall, this recipe is a winner, and I will use again.

Pretzel Sandwich Buns

Prep Time: 10 minutes
Rise Time: 45 minutes 
Roll/Water Time: 10 minutes
Rise Time: 30 minutes
Bake Time: 15 minutes

Grade: A

Make Again: Yes

Recipe Source: King Arthur Flour Website


These were simple and quite nice. Don't let the bad reviews on the website deter you. I guess there were some errors in the original recipe on the web, which have since been fixed. These were not really pretzels, but a very nice sandwich roll, with a bit of pretzel flavor and nice soft buttery interior.

It is helpful to click on the Blog link and see how the rolls should be shaped. You basically make a pretzel roll with lots of overhang, and keep the overhang going around the pretzel until the two ends meet in the middle. They turned out perfectly.

Parker House Rolls

Prep Time: 20 minutes total

RiseTime: 3+ hours 

Bake Time: 30 minutes  

Grade: A-

Make Again: Maybe

Recipe Source: Everyday Food (November 2011)  

These rolls are nice but they took too long to rise (at least according to magazine times). Reading the reviews, it appears everyone had trouble with the rise. The iPad version of the recipe said 1t of yeast, but the website says 1 packet (2 1/4 t.). At the time I thought it was because my kitchen was cold, so I heated my oven to 200 for a while and then put the dough in there for the final rise.

It has been a while since I made the CI version of these, but I think I probably like that version better. I should make them again soon and compare and pick which recipe I want to keep. 

The effort is small. Well, as long as you have a mixer with a dough hook. 10 minutes of the prep is kneading in the mixer. The only real effort is rolling out the rolls into balls and putting in the pan. The recipe called for brushing the tops with 4 T. total of butter (2 before, and 2 after.) As usual, I cut that in half. You still get the buttery top though, which is nice. The recipe also calls for a sprinkle of salt on the top after final brushing of butter and that was a nice touch. 

The rolls are pretty baked in the 13x9 pan. They all end up nice and uniform, which I liked. These would be good to serve for a Christmas dinner, and not too much effort.  However, I would try the recipe from the website instead of magazine and read the reviews first. Cook's Illustrated version or Cook's Country are probably a more reliable choice.

Thin-Crust Pizza

Dough Time: 20 minutes (including 10 minutes rest)
Rise Time: 24+ hours
Prep Time: 25 minutes
Bake Time: 12 minutes


Grade: A-
Make Again: Maybe
Recipe Source: Cook's Illustrated (January 2011)

This was good, but I struggled to shape the dough. I just couldn't get it to 13". I used Trader Joes' pizza sauce because I hated the sauce from the Veggie pizza a few weeks ago and this one was similar.

I think I prefer the really, really thin crust recipe from 2001 or the Pan Pizza recipe from Cook's Country, which I have made many, many times, because it is fast and really good.  So, even though I liked this, I'm not sure how often I will make it.

Roasted Vegetable Pizza

Dough: 90 minutes
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 15 minutes
Grade: C-
Make Again: No
Recipe Source: Light & Healthy 2010
 
The picture of this looked so good to me. (In the book, not mine!)

But I really didn't care for it. The dough was fine and I liked the crust of the pizza, which is why the recipe still gets a C. But I hated the no-cook sauce. It made the top of the dough crust a little soggy and it also made my roasted veggies soggy too, so the awesome-ness of roasted veggies disappeared.

I will probably use the dough recipe again and experiment with my own toppings, but I won't be using this light and healthy recipe again.

Pizza Bianca

Prep Time: 40 minutes
Rise Time: 2.5 hours
Bake Time: 20-30 minutes

Grade: A-

Make Again: Yes


Recipe Source: Cook's Illustrated (September 2008)
Recipe: America's Test Kitchen TV (Season 9) 

The prep time includes 20 minutes of rest time, and 10 minutes of kneading time with mixer at the end.  It was very simple with very little hands on work. 

I didn't make this perfectly, even though I weighed my flour and water.  My dough was too wet.  It is supposed to be wet, but mine was really, really wet.  I really don't know why.  It still worked though.  The dough rose, and then I poured it into the pan. 

I ended up baking a little too long and the bread was more crispy than it probably should have been, but it was still really good.

I definitely want to try this again and see if I can get it closet to what it is supposed to be.

Rustic Dinner Rolls

Prep Time: 7 minutes
Rest Time: 30 minutes

Knead Time: 5-7 minutes

Rise Time(s): 1 hour + 30 min + 30 min + 30 (folding and shaping in between)

Bake Time: 25 minutes

Cool Time:1 hour

Grade: A

Make Again: Yes

Recipe Source: Cook's Illustrated (Nov 2008)
Recipe: America's Test Kitchen Show (Season 10)

The recipe is being featured on the TV show website right now. They do not remain up there forever, so if you have any interest in the recipe, grab it now.  If not, you can get it with a paid subscription to Cook's Illustrated.  The nice thing about the CI website is it includes mini-videos.  So you can see a 3 minute video of the recipe, which is extremely helpful - you see things you won't pick up from reading the recipe - especially helpful when working with dough.  Actually, in my recipe link above, they are also including a longer 9 min video from the TV show on this recipe, which is even more helpful.  I assume that is temporary though.

Unfortunately, I watched the video after I started the recipe and realized that I was supposed to wait to add the salt until after the 30 minute rest.  I'm not sure how that effects things, but I have to assume there was a reason.

Another problem I had was that I missed the part in the recipe about how to place the rolls with cut side up.  I didn't do the best job of putting these in the pan, or cutting them, so they are all different sizes and shapes, which you may notice from the picture.

I could not wait for the oven to get to 500 degrees and put them in around 475.  It is too hot out and I needed the oven to make dinner, so I went for it.  The high heat makes the rolls higher, and mine are not too high.  Oh well.  They are still delicious.

Despite the long time these take to make, this recipe is super simple.  Lots of rest periods, and occasional turning, so you need to be home for a while to make these, but it isn't hard.

I came up with what I think is a good idea for avoiding a messy counter.  I took my 18x13 jelly roll nonstick pan and sprinkled flour in it.  I poured the dough in there, and did my cutting and shaping without having to worry about the counter.  It contained the flour and since you are supposed to make two 16" long logs with the dough, it was easy to make almost as long as the pan.

These rolls are delicious.  If you like crusty bread, you will probably like this recipe.  It always amazes me when just flour, water and yeast (with a tiny, tiny bit of honey and a tiny bit of whole wheat) can make something so flavorful.

English Muffin Bread

Prep Time: 13 minutes
Rise Time: 45-60 minutes
Bake Time: 22 minutes


Grade: A-

Make Again: Yes

Recipe Source: Baker's Banter Blog

I've been wanting to try real English Muffins for a while now, but haven't done it yet. Then I saw this recipe and had to try it since it seemed to be so quick and easy. It was quick and easy. No kneading, and a fast rise. The only remotely hard part was getting the dough level in the pan.

I do really like this, but I will try regular english muffins before I do this again. The bread is very good toasted with butter or peanut butter. I don't think it is great untoasted (just like an english muffin wouldn't be great.) This is nice recipe to have on hand.

Simple Bagels

Prep Time: 10 minutes (plus overnight starter)
Rise Time: 2 hours (3 times)
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Bake Time: 25 minutes

Grade: A

Make Again: Yes

Recipe Source: King Arthur Flour

Like any bread, there is a lot of time that needs to pass while making these, but bagels were easier to make than I thought they would be. I really liked these. My one complaint with the recipe was that it said to put the seeds on after baking 15 minutes. This was a big failure. The 2nd time I dipped my bagels right from the water bath into a bowl with poppy seeds. That worked much better.

There are really good and since the recipe doesn't require any special ingredients, I will continue to use it.

Easiest 100% Whole Wheat Bread

Prep Time: 10 minutes
Rise Time: 1 hour
Bake Time: 45 minutes

Grade: B

Make Again: Maybe

Recipe Source: Whole Grain Baking

This was as billed - very, very easy. No kneading but it is a yeast bread. It tastes fine, but not as good as CI's whole grain more complicated recipe. I do wonder if my whole wheat flour is a little rancid though, because I am not loving the two things I tried with it. There is a little bit of an off flavor or something. I haven't used whole wheat flour that much so I can't be sure. This was the white whole wheat.

Anadama Bread

Prep Time: 19 minutes
Rise Time: 90 minutes x 2
Bake Time: 40 minutes

Grade: A

Make Again: Yes

Recipe Source: Restaurant Favorites at Home

I really like this bread recipe. It is has a nice texture from the cornmeal, but it is nice and sturdy like sandwich bread. It gets its pretty color from molasses. It is fairly easy to make, but you do need to sort of cook the cornmeal (medium grind) in some hot milk first, to keep it from being too grainy.

My first rise took longer than the 90 minutes even though I did do it in the slightly warm oven, but the 2nd rise was more timely.

Parker House Rolls

Prep Time: 20 minutes
1st Rise: 45 minutes
Assemble: 15 minutes
2nd Rise: 45 minutes
Bake Time: 20 minutes

Grade: A

Make Again: Maybe

Recipe Source: Cook's Illustrated (2007)

Recipe Source: Baking Illustrated

These were quite delicious, but I'm not sure if I will make again. The main reason being that I did a horrible job of shaping them, and I'm not sure if I would do better next time. Maybe I would just use the dough, but a different shape. Mine didn't stay folded over like they were supposed to and just ended up as ovals. I think they don't need to be cooked as long when shaped this way either, because mine got quite brown.

So, if I do make again, I will try a different shape and cooking less. They were very tasty with the butter brushed on, and butter in the dough, so I might try again.

Pan Pizza

Prep Time: 15 minutes
Rise Time: 30 minutes
Prep Time: 25 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes

Grade: A+

Make Again: Yes

Recipe Source: Cook's Country (April 2006)

This was the best pan pizza I have ever made for sure. It is similar to Pizza Hut, but less greasy. Actually, the recipe calls for 3 T of olive oil on the bottom of each pan, but I use 1.5 to 2, which I think is a perfect amount, for a tasty crispy crust, but not greasy.

This recipe makes 2 9" pizzas, which is nice for making two different kinds. I cheat and use Trader Joe's Pizza sauce, which I think it pretty good. I prep the other ingredients during the 2nd rise, which lasts 20 minutes. The entire pizza is done in 90 minutes, which is kind of amazing actually.

No Knead Bread 2.0

Prep Time: 5 minutes
Rise Time: 8-18 hours
Form Time: 5 minutes
2nd Rise: 2 hours
Bake Time: 45-50minutes

Grade: A+

Make Again: Yes

Recipe Source: Cook's Illustrated (January 2008)
Recipe:  Almost No-Knead Bread (Season 9)

This is an amazing recipe. It is some of the most delicious bread I have ever had, and I made it myself, with less than 10 minutes of effort! I will definitely be making this frequently in the future. It reminds me of my favorite Ciabatta bread from Trader Joe's, with a delicious crust, airy interior and a flavorful taste (but not sour, like sourdough, which is not my favorite.)

I never tried the original from the New York Times, and now I probably won't since I love this one so much. I didn't weigh my dough, and it was too sticky, but it didn't matter, because the dough filled the Dutch oven and didn't spread out too much.