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Psalms 13:6 "I will sing to the Lord, for He has been good to me."

Something about this time of year makes me think of God's goodness even more than usual.  Perhaps it's the beauty of the fall foliage, or the crispness of the fall air that feels so good after a long, hot summer.  Seeing my kids enjoying delicious fresh apples or picking pumpkins from the pumpkin patch, or even working hard to rake leaves into a pile and then jumping in to scatter them again - these things are glorious reminders of our Creator. 

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I am not much of a cook or baker for the most part, but the aromas and flavors that accompany this season are irresistable, even for cooking novices like me.  Whoever thought of sticking the Thanksgiving holiday in at this time of year was a real genius.  (LOL)  Thankfully, we live near family, because, as I said, I'm not much of a cook.  Each year, my mother "WOWS" us all with an unbelievable spread of Thanksgiving goodies.  Aside from the traditional turkey and dressing, my mom makes at least a dozen more dishes, and tries to cater to each of her 5 children's tastebuds.  (The youngest of my siblings is 25, but still, Mom knows what everyone likes best!)

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Now, I've said all that to say this: My assignment each year is to bring the bread for our Thanksgiving dinner.  For the past several years, I've been including my children in the breadmaking, and it's really become a fun tradition for all of us.  The recipe we use is so easy, but it tastes like it's really complicated.  (Shh!  Don't tell!  Let them think that I am really working hard!)  This recipe makes a tube pan or bundt pan full of rolls, which is plenty for us.  But if you need more, you might want to double the recipe.  (BTW - This is not the sweet kind of monkey bread, but is more of a dinner roll type of bread.)  Here it is:

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Thanksgiving Monkey Bread

2 pkg. dry yeast

 1 cup warm water

1/2 cup sugar

1 tsp. salt

1 egg

3 cups sifted flour

1 stick melted butter

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• Dissolve yeast in 1 cup of warm water.
• Mix together sugar, salt, egg, and flour - Beat well. 
• Add yeast mixture - beat well.
• Let rise until double in bulk.
• Roll out on floured surface to 1/4 inch thick.
• Cut several pieces with biscuit cutter.
• Dip each piece into melted butter and place in tube pan, layering pieces randomly.
• Let rise, again.
• Bake at 350* for about 30 minutes.

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Enjoy!

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"This, then, is how you should pray:
   " 'Our Father in heaven,
   hallowed be your name, 
 0your kingdom come,
   your will be done
      on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread. 
 Forgive us our debts,
      as we also have forgiven our debtors. 
 And lead us not into temptation,
   but deliver us from the evil one.

Matthew 6:9-13