A little slice of heaven

When I was kid my family didn't have a lot of money.  A single mom with two little kids . . . it was rough but we didn't suffer.  Mom made do with what she had . . . she was economical; she gardened and canned the produce, she bought milk and meat from local farmers, she shopped with coupons and looked for bargains.


There was always food in the house but you didn't eat anything without prior approval; groceries were purchased for intended meals.  And, because we lived about 30 miles from the nearest grocery store you couldn't just go pick something up at the corner store if you ran out.  


And, because we lived so far from the store mom did one major shopping trip a month . . . that's right . . . grocery shopping once a month.  Everything that was freezable was frozen and everything else was either refrigerated or non-perishable. Towards the end of the month pickins were getting slim.


I was what would be classified today as a latchkey-kid. So, when I got home from school and wanted a snack sometimes I had to get creative. Chips, pretzels, corn chips?  I don't think so . . . mom didn't have junk food in the house.   Getting close to shopping time there wasn't always stuff to make a full-blown sandwich.    But there was always bread.  


Options were often minimal . . . sometimes I'd make a cheese and mustard sandwich.  


Peanut butter and jelly was another choice.  Sometimes I might make a peanut butter and dill pickle sandwich . . . don't knock 'til you try it; sweet and sour and crunchy.  And if there were Bacos . . . peanut butter and Bacos; sweet and salty and crunchy.


Now if the cupboards were really running low there was always mayonnaise or ketchup.  So, I'd hook myself up with a plain ol' mayonaise sandwich (or Miracle Whip, even better) or a plain ol' ketchup sandwich . . . take a piece of bread slather some mayo or ketchup on it and eat.  Don't laugh . . . sometimes you gotta do what ya gotta do.


My favorite, however, was cinnamon/sugar bread . . . smear some margarine on a piece of bread and sprinkle with cinnamon and sugar.  Like a little slice of heaven.  

Cinnamon Toast Rolls

12 Slices of Very Soft, Fresh White Bread

1/4 Cup Melted Butter

Cinnamon Sugar (1 Tbsp Cinnamon to ½ Cup Sugar)

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

If desired, cut the crusts from a slice of bread.  Roll until very thin. Spread both sides of the bread with melted butter and then sprinkle one side with the cinnamon sugar, making sure to cover very well.  

Fold each side into the middle and then gently roll up and place in a buttered mini muffin tin.  Sprinkle with a little more cinnamon sugar.  

Alternately, you can fold the bread into a triangle, and then fold into another smaller triangle and place on a parchment-covered baking sheet.

When all of the rolls are made, bake for 15 to 20 minutes, or until they are just starting to turn golden brown and get a little crisp.  Remove from the muffin tin to cool.

If desired, drizzle with some icing made with powdered sugar that's been moistened with a little milk.