Happily Ever After

When Rose and I began "Rose's Cafe" a year and a half ago, it was a project we could use to work together as a couple, even though we were separated by 6,000 miles of ocean.

It was great and we had a lot of fun doing it, but now a wonderful thing has happened: Rose is here now with me in Oregon! So "Rose's Cafe" has served it's purpose! Rose and I are now busy building our life together, and we are enjoying ourselves immensely!

We won't be posting any more recipes but we'll leave the ones that are here for everyone to enjoy.

We'll be interacting with our family and friends around the world on Facebook, sharing our new discoveries in food and travel together here in America.

It's been fun! Thank you for reading our posts!

Sincerely,
Michael & Rose

Pollo Rollo (Chicken Roll)

Note:  This will be the last episode in 2012.  Rose and I will be traveling extensively from now until the New Year, both in the U.S, and the Philippines visiting our cherished family and friends!  But episodes will resume right after the New Year, so stay tuned!


Boneless, skinless chicken breast is a great heart-healthy food. There's any number of recipes that involve pounding and rolling this meat around some sort of tasty filling. This is a simple, generic recipe for chicken rolls that involves sausage and cheese as a filling. The cool thing is that you can easily modify the filling ingredients to fit your taste. Enjoy!

Pollo Rollo

Ingredients

•1 boneless skinless chicken breast
•1/4 Pork Sausage
•1/4 cup toasted breadcrumb
•1/4 cup mixed cheddar cheese, grated
•1/4 cup onion, finely chopped
•1 slice cheese

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350°F.

2. Place the sausage, breadcrumbs, and grated cheese in a bowl and mix thoroughly.

3. Lay the chicken on a piece of plastic wrap and fold the wrap back over the meat. Pound the breast out to as thin as possible without tearing it apart.

4. Peel the wrap off the top of the breast and arrange it lengthwise in front of you.

5. Layer the sausage mixture and the chopped onions top of the breast.

6. Roll the breast up and over the mixture. Secure the edges with toothpicks.

7. Sear the roll until golden brown on all sides in an oven-proof skillet.

8. Place the slice of cheese on top and place in the oven for 10 –15 minutes.

9. Slice and plate with your choice of sides.

Fall Refreshments

Pumpkin Spice Cookies

Ingredients

•2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
•1 cup rolled oats
•4 teaspoons baking powder
•1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
•1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
•1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice*
•1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
•1/4 teaspoon salt
•2 tablespoons butter
•1 1/3 cups light brown sugar
•2 eggs
•1 teaspoon vanilla extract
•1 (15 ounce) can pumpkin
•1/2 cup apple butter
•1 cup walnuts, chopped

Directions

1. Preheat an oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Grease 2 baking sheets.

2. Stir the flour, oats, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, pumpkin pie spice, ginger, and salt in a bowl.

3. Beat the butter and brown sugar with an electric mixer in a large bowl until smooth. Add 1 egg and allow it to blend into the mixture before adding the other along with the vanilla. Add the pumpkin and apple butter; continue beating. Mix in the flour mixture until just incorporated. Fold in the walnuts, mixing just enough to evenly combine. Drop spoonfuls of the dough 2 inches apart onto the prepared baking sheets.

4. Bake in the preheated oven until the edges are golden, about 12 minutes. Allow the cookies to cool on the baking sheet for 1 minute before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.

*If you're having trouble finding commercially packaged "Pumpkin Pie Spice", you can make your own:  Mix together 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon, 1/8 teaspoon ground cloves, 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger and 1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg.

Spiced Apple Cider

Ingredients

•1 (64 fluid ounce) bottle apple cider
•3 cinnamon sticks
•1 teaspoon whole allspice
•1 teaspoon whole cloves
•1/3 cup brown sugar

Directions

1. In a slow cooker, combine apple cider and cinnamon sticks. Wrap allspice and cloves in a small piece of cheesecloth, and add to pot. Stir in brown sugar. Bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat, and keep warm.