breakfast

Being spoiled is nice …

. . . and I am very good at spoiling, especially when it comes to food. I have been feeding my husband all his favorites this weekend, not because I want anything but because I have a strong need to be pleasing.

This morning we had biscuits and gravy. Turkey-sausage gravy that is, made with skim milk. It was tasty. I have to say, I make some mean biscuits. Buttermilk biscuits. Yum.

Perfect every time!

Here are the keys to making perfect biscuits every time. You’ll need:

2 cups of unbleached white flour.
4 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
4 tbsp extremely cold butter
2 tbsp cold Crisco
1 cup buttermilk

Have your oven very hot. 425 is ideal.

First: mix all your dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl.

Second: Grate your butter into the flour using a large cheese grater and add in the Crisco in little bits. Mix GENTLY with your fingertips until it’s coarsely blended. Grab a rubber spatula and mix in the buttermilk. The dough will be slightly sticky but one cohesive ball.

Third: Flour the countertop and place the dough in the flour and gently knead into a flat disc. Press the dough flat and fold repeat this process no less than four times. Using an empty can (I used a tuna can) cut your biscuits out and bake in a greased (dark metal) baking pan.

Fourth: Bake for 15 – 20 minutes. Check them at 15 for brownness.

Fifth: Eat with gravy
or peanut butter and honey
or honey-butter
or lemon curd
or homemade preserves.
or just a shmeer of butter
or what ever trips your trigger.

The real challenge is not eating them all and this is NOT a low calorie biscuit.

Smoothie health … it’s not pretty.

My father says that my very first word was pretty. He says he was holding me in his arms and showing me a picture on the wall. Apparently, I repeated the word “pretty” when prompted. He likes to say that it was befitting because I was so pretty. Father’s are biased you know.

One thing I know for sure is, my smoothies are not pretty. They look quite tasty when you blend banana’s, blueberries, cherries and blackberries. It’s when you add the four cups of chopped kale that dramatically alters the appearance. It ends up being a thick, brownish-green sludgy looking mess. I tell myself that these drinks are making me healthy. They certainly do have a “cleansing” effect on my digestive system. Wow! I drink them regardless because it’s really challenging for me to get all my green’s consumed like I’m supposed to.

Here’s what I’m talking about.

You can’t judge everything by it’s looks. It may not look tasty but it is. Not, chocolate cake good … but good.

The parable of this story is, “You have to do things that seem onerous at first but the benefits and results make life so much richer.” Oh well, some crap like that. I don’t know. What I do know is I want to be healthy when I’m at the retiring age so that I can enjoy my life without pain and discomfort. Choosing this over chocolate cake, fried chicken and Cheetos will hopefully pay off.

Or I could get hit by a bus tomorrow. Anything is possible.

No reason really . . .

I haven’t posted in a while not because I haven’t been cooking but I simply haven’t done anything new or inventive. Until today that is. I am feeling a bit overwhelmed by my lack of employment and lack of direction . Movement in general is always good I realize, I simply don’t know what direction to move. It seems to me a destination should be in mind but I don’t have one yet. I’m feeling quite useless and that’s not good. When I’m in the kitchen there are results, there are rewards. Rewards for me and for D. I am also missing my friends and wishing I had some here. The few ladies I have reached out to have not reached back. I suppose you can’t make people be friendly. I don’t know what they’re going through and perhaps they find me unsavory. Anything is possible.

Now, on the my inventiveness. Tonight I made fried fish with corn muffins. That in of itself is nothing extraordinary, I realize that. What makes it so for me is that I didn’t follow a recipe in putting the muffins together. I simply went off of memory and experience. I love that. They were moist, slightly sweet, tender and just amazing with butter and honey.  So, what’s in them? Let’s see now …

My own creation, baking is so much fun.

Dry Ingredients
In a large mixing bowl combine the following:
1 cup – white corn meal
1/2 cup – unbleached white flour
1/2 cup – whole wheat flour
2 tbsp – flax meal
1 tsp – baking powder
1 tsp – baking soda
1/2 tsp – salt

Wet Ingredients
In another bowl combine the following
1/2 cup sugar
6 tbsp melted butter (cooled)
2 eggs (one at a time and beat vigorously)
1 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup Greek yogurt

Once all the moist ingredients are together add 1/4 cup – wheat bran and let set for a few minutes. Gently combine the moist with the dry being careful not to over mix. Fill muffin pan and bake in a 400 degree, preheated oven for 20-25 minutes. Serve warm preferably with butter and honey. They’d be great with chili, fish, or alone. Yummy.

You know how the cooking shows are always touting panko bread crumbs? Well there’s a reason for that. They make what ever you are frying A-mazing! I fried flounder (I know not the ideal fish for frying but it’s what I had on hand) with panko and yum-mee! It’s so easy too. Just dredge  your fish in seasoned flour (cayenne, garlic and onion powder, salt and pepper) then dip in a egg/milk bath and finally dip again in the panko crumbs. Fry in grapeseed oil (it has a very high smoke temp so it will brown your fish quickly). Serve with HOME-made tartar sauce (mayo, capers, shallots, sweet relish, worcestershire sauce, lemon juice, white vinegar) and voila! Tasty goodness in under 30 minutes.

Tell me if you try it. I’d love to know what someone else thinks!

Pancakes, how do you make yours?

I have never understood why people use pancake mixes. They are the easiest of breakfast foods to make and I’ve never had a mix taste nearly as good as homemade. I don’t know about you but I like my pancakes dense, hearty and slathered in peanut butter, of course.

Lately, I’ve been making mine with as many grains as I can. I suppose to offset the guilt I feel about eating a pure carb meal.  Here is what mine look like:

Whole wheat, bran and flax pancakes.

What you need to make them:
Dry Ingredients
1 cup whole wheat flour,
1/2 cup unbleached white flour
1/4 cup wheat bran
1 tbsp flax meal
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
Wet Ingredients
2 cups buttermilk
1 egg
2 tbsp grape seed, canola or vegetable oil
1/4 tsp almond extract
1/2 tsp vanilla

Mix your dry and wet ingredients separately then pour the wet into the dry and mix thoroughly but not so much you see bubbles appear. I like my batter to be a bit thicker than most but you should still get a thick stream when pouring. Cook on a non-stick griddle or frying pan using a bit of butter to make the edges crispy and even more tasty.

Seriously folks, put away the mixes and make your own healthy pancakes. You won’t regret it, I promise!