My Favorite Recipes

The Bliss Girls, Colfax

Bridget, Dawn, Jodi, Wes, Jamie, Toni, Tiffany

The seven women who work at Bliss are a busy lot, helping relax, rejuvenate, and beautify Colfax and nearby residents. Jamie Anderson, Dawn Bennett, and Toni Grow are licensed massage therapists. Tiffany Pittman, Wes Hennigar, and Jody Weitze style and color hair and skin care. Bridget Harazin is a skin care therapist who does waxing, makeup and airbrush tanning.

Dawn Bennett came to Colfax in 1990.

A licensed massage therapist, she trained at Moscow School of Massage and has been practicing for nine years.

As one of the four original founders of Bliss, she is pleased to work with the talented women who are part of the cooperative.

Dawn works Mondays through Thursdays, while teaching a yoga class at Whitman County Library in Colfax on Tuesdays at 5:30 p.m.

through March.

She volunteers with both the Whitman Hospital Auction committee and the Colfax Golf Course auction committee and is active in the Colfax Chamber of Commerce.

A student of Chinese medicine, Dawn studies at the Hermitage in Genesee.

She is eager for spring so that she can improve her golf game.

Jamie Anderson is a Colfax High School graduate who attended Moscow School of Massage, graduating in 1999. She has worked eight years at Bliss, scheduling clients four days a week. She makes wonderful sauerkraut, using the cabbage shredder and crocks as her great-grandfather. When not easing muscles of her clients, she is busy with her son Rider, who is almost 9 years old, and daughter Sage, almost 2. Her best advice for her massage clients: “Keep moving!”

Toni Grow grew up in Walla Walla and went to Ashmead College in Seattle for her massage therapy training. Her sister is Brandy Wigen of Colfax. Toni has two small boys, Ian, almost 2 1/2, and Jax, almost 1 1/2. She works three days a week at Bliss: Thursday evening, for after work appointments, all day Friday and Saturday morning and early afternoon.

Wes Hennigar grew up in Colfax, graduating from Colfax High School and Walla Walla College in the cosmetology program. She came right back to town in 2001. Wes and Andy are parents of Harley, 8, Riley, 5 1/2, and Brody, 2. They live near Colfax so that they can raise fair calves. She learned to cook from her mom. As a picky eater, she alters dishes to suit her tastes, and their busy family eats simply.

Tiffany Pittman is a Colfax girl, graduating from Colfax High School, Eastern Washington University with a BA in education and Mr. Leon’s School. She works full-time at 14th and Grand Salon in Spokane, coming to Colfax twice a month to cut, style, and color hair, plus to do wedding and special event hairdos. Daughter Kya is now 7 years old.

Recipes:

Vanilla Pudding Cinnamon Rolls with Cream Cheese Frosting by Toni Grow

Rolls:

1/2 cup warm water

2 Tablespoons active dry yeast

2 Tablespoons sugar

3 1/2 ounce package instant vanilla pudding, made to package directions

1/2 cup butter, melted

2 eggs

1 teaspoon salt

6+ cups flour

Filling:

1 cup butter, softened to room temperature (or melted)

2 cups brown sugar (or more!)

4 teaspoons cinnamon (I use lots more, maybe 2 Tablespoons or more depending on the day)

Frosting:

8 ounces cream cheese

1/2 cup butter, softened to room temperature

1 teaspoon vanilla

3 cups confectioner’s sugar

2-3 Tablespoons milk

Directions:

In a small bowl, combine water, yeast, and sugar. Stir until dissolved. Set aside and allow to proof/bloom.

In a large bowl, prepare pudding mix according to package directions

Add butter, eggs, and salt to pudding in large bowl. Mix well. Then add the yeast mixture. Blend well.

Gradually add flour (I use a mixer until the dough is sticking together and pulling from the sides of the bowl; then knead in the rest of the flour). Knead until smooth. Do not over flour the dough! It should be very soft but not sticky. Place in a greased bowl. Cover and let rise until doubled, about 1 hour. Then roll out on a floured board to 34 x 21 inches in size.

Take 1 cup soft (or melted) butter and spread over surface of dough. Cover butter with brown sugar; then add a lot of cinnamon on top. Roll up very tightly. If you roll the dough from side to side instead of top to bottom you get a lot of layers. I usually stretch the “log” of dough a bit to make the rolls more manageable.

With a knife, put a notch every 1 1/2 inches (or just eyeball it!) cut with thread or a serrated knife. Place in a lightly greased rectangular cake pan 1 inch apart. Cover and let rise until double again, about another hour.

Bake at 350 degrees for 15-20 minutes. Remove when they start to turn golden—don’t overbake.

Frost warm rolls (if you like your frosting melted into the roll) with cream cheese frosting. Combine butter and cream cheese and mix well; then add vanilla and sugar and mix again, adding milk to achieve the desired consistency, or wait until cooled to frost, and the frosting will stay on top.

Makes about 24 rolls.

Food for Angels by Jody Weitze

1 package vanilla wafers

1/4 pound butter

2 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 cup whipping cream

2 Tablespoons powdered sugar

1 large can (2 1/2 cups) crushed pineapple (drained)

Crush vanilla wafers, and put half in the bottom of a 9 x 12-inch glass dish

Cream butter and powdered sugar. Add eggs one at a time and then add vanilla. Place this over the layer of crumbs.

Whip cream and add 2 Tablespoons of powdered sugar. Fold in drained pineapple. Pour over egg mixture. Put remainder of crumbs on top, then refrigerate.

Better when a day old!

Orange Croissant French Toast by Tiffany Pittman

croissant rolls sliced in half (as many as you need)

eggs (as many as needed)

1 Tbsp. orange peel

orange juice, squeezed

Beat together eggs, orange peel and orange juice.

Dip croissants in mixture and fry on both sides.

Orange butter:

1 stick of butter

1 Tablespoon of orange peel

squeezed orange juice

powdered sugar ( varies on amount) enough to taste sweet

Butter croissants and you can add syrup on top of that or just the butter is good to!!!!

Pumpkin Chili by Dawn Bennett

Serves 6

2 Tablespoons olive oil

1 1/2 cups chopped red onion

1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped

1 green bell pepper, seeded and chopped

1 cup chopped carrots

1 jalapeno, seeded and minced

5 garlic cloves, minced

2 Tablespoons chili powder

1 Tablespoon cumin

2 teaspoons oregano

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper, optional

1 15-ounce can pumpkin puree

1 14.5-ounce can diced tomatoes, undrained

3 cups vegetable broth

1 14-ounce can black beans, drained and rinsed

1 14-ounce can cannelini beans, drained and rinsed

1 1/2 teaspoon sea salt

3/4 teaspoon black pepper

Heat olive oil in a Dutch oven over medium heat. Add red onion, bell peppers, carrots, and jalapeño; sauté for 10-12 minutes, or until just starting to brown.

Add garlic and spices and sauté for 1 minute.

Add pumpkin, tomatoes, vegetable broth, and beans; bring to a boil and reduce heat to low. Simmer 30 minutes, partially covered, stirring occasionally.

Season with salt and pepper; taste and adjust seasonings accordingly.

Ruthy’s Ranger Cookies by Jamie Anderson

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Cream together:

1 cup butter

1 cup sugar

1 cup brown sugar

2 eggs

1 tsp. vanilla

Mix together, then add to above mixture:

2 cups flour

1 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. baking powder

Add last:

1 cup shredded coconut

2 cups oatmeal

Drop by rounded teaspoonfuls on an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake 12-14 minutes at 350 degrees. Let set on cookie sheet a minute, then place on a wire rack to cool.

Chili and Cream Cheese Dip by Wes Hennigar

1 can of chili

2 8-ounce packages of cream cheese

Warm chili and cream cheese together in crockpot, stirring to combine.

Serve warm dip with tortilla chips.