Potato Soup - Ninja Style

Schools and local government facilities were closed today in anticipation of ice, sleet, and/or snow.  We had none.  By nightfall, the temperature had dropped below freezing but no frozen precipitation.  The current temperature is 28 degrees and  it's ll:40 p.m. EST.  Snow and ice fell in the northern part of the county.  Since we were expecting cold, I cooked a cold weather meal for hubby and me ... Potato Soup in my Ninja Foodi.

1/2 stick butter

1 large onion, chopped

3 stalks celery, chopped

Russet potatoes, peeled and cubed (I used 10 medium)

2 tsp salt

1 tsp black pepper

3 Tbsp parsley

1/2 tsp red pepper flakes

4 Tbsp corn starch

4 Tbsp water

1 can kernel corn, drained

1 cup sharp cheddar cheese, grated

1/2 block (4 oz) cream cheese

32 oz carton chicken broth

2 cups half-and-half

Melt butter in pot.  Sauté onion and celery in melted butter until soft and translucent (about 6-8 minutes).  Add seasonings and stir until combined. Stir  in the 32-oz carton chicken broth.

Add the potatoes to the crisping pan and insert into the Ninja Foodi.  Place the pressure lid on the pot and cook on High for 5 minutes.  Natural release pressure.

Remove crisping pan with the potatoes from the cooker.  Stir together the corn starch and the water.  Change the setting to Sauté and stir in the corn starch mixture and bring to a simmer.  Add cheeses and stir in until cheeses are melted. Stir in the corn

Add potatoes and stir until thoroughly combined.

Stir in the half-and-half and simmer until heated throughout.

Serve.

Biscuits and Sausage Gravy - Ninja Foodi Style

Loving the versatility of this Ninja Foodi.  I made Saturday Morning Breakfast in it today and it was delicious.  Hubby LOVED it.  The best thing about it was cooking everything in one pot ... including the biscuits.

The Ninja Foodi Cookbook includes a recipe for this but I didn’t go strictly by it.  It called for a tablespoon of *salt and two teaspoons of *black pepper.  Since I used hot sausage, I sprinkled just a bit of black pepper and added a dash of salt.

The sausage already has salt in it and the cheese that is stuffed into the biscuits also has salt (cheese usually tastes a bit salty to me).  I felt the only need for the salt was to season the all-purpose flour and the milk that is added to the sausage to make the gravy.

Ninja Foodi Recipe:

Ingredients:

1 Pkg (12 oz) uncooked ground breakfast sausage, crumbled
1 teaspoon kosher salt (*see note above)
2 teaspoons black pepper (*see note above)
2 tablespoons butter
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
3 cups whole milk
1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1 tube (16.3 ounces) refrigerated biscuit dough

Directions:

Select SEAR/SAUTE and set to HIGH.  Select START/STOP to begin.  Allow to preheat for 5 minutes.

After 5 minutes, add the sausage, *salt, and *pepper to the pot.  Cook for 5 minutes, or until sausage browns, breaking it apart with a wooden spoon as it cooks.

Add the butter and melt completely.  Then add flour and stir to combine.  Cook for 2 minutes, then whisk in milk.  Bring to a simmer, then cook for 5 minutes, or until thickened.

While gravy is cooking, gently separate biscuits and fill each with cheddar cheese, sandwich style.

Coat the reversible rack with cooking spray, making sure rack is in the lower position.  Place stuffed biscuits on rack.  Once gravy has thickened, lower rack with biscuits into pot.

Close crisping lid.  Select BAKE/ROAST, set temperature to 325F, set time to 15 minutes. Select START/STOP to begin.

When cooking is complete, remove rack and biscuits.  Transfer biscuits to a serving platter or a plate and top with gravy.  Serve immediately.

I prepped by biscuits before I started the cooking process of the sausage so that they would be ready to place in the pan after the gravy had thickened.  Also, I used slices of sharp cheddar cheese rather than the shredded cheddar cheese.  I cut each square of cheese into 4 squares and inserted one square into each biscuits.

Christmas Gift From My Husband

I really wanted a Ninja Foodi for Christmas and, guess what, hubby bought one for me.  I already had a Power Cooker but it doesn’t have the same cababilities as the Ninja Foodi.  

My first venture using my Ninja was to bake three sweet potatoes in it (16 minutes pressure cooker time).  I ate one and topped it with butter ... it was delish!!! I used the other two to bake a Sweet Potato Pie.

After church on Sunday, hubby and I went by the grocery store and purchased a few groceries which included a bag of frozen French fries.  I cooked a few in the Ninja Foodi using the Air Crisp feature at 360 degrees.  The fries were Delish ... done in 20 minutes (which included 5 minutes to preheat the cooker. 

Next meal ... Chicken Pot Pie in the Ninja Foodi. 

Chocolate Mug Cake

I wanted something sweet but didn’t want to spend the next couple of hours in the kitchen cooking.  My sister Sarah gave hubby and me a couple of microwave safe bowls and I used them to bake my cake in the microwave.  Here is my recipe:

Butter the microwave safe containers

In a large bowl, whisk together until thoroughly combined:
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/8 tsp salt.
2 tablespoons cocoa

Blend in until combined:
1 large egg
1/2 cup milk
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1/2 tsp vanilla

Pour half of batter into each bowl and bake (one at a time) in microwave oven approximately 2 minutes & 50 seconds or until a toothpick inserted in comes out clean.

Remove from microwave and enjoy.

Note:  Pour Chocolate Syrup over, if desired.

Mexican Cornbread, Please

Mexican Cornbread

Since discovering how to grind my own cornmeal from popcorn, I’ve wanted to try my hand at Mexican Cornbread from some of my freshly ground cornmeal.  I purchased a 14-cup Cuisinart Food Processor a couple of years ago and I’ve had it just sitting on my counter top, unused.  I’ve looked at it several times and actually wondered why I purchased a machine so complex and intimidating rather than one that is simple enough to just plug in and process.  The recipe calls for grated cheddar cheese and I decided that I wanted to try-out this food processor to grate the cheese.  I was totally blown away with the ease in which it grated that cheese.  No longer intimidated, I’m looking forward to using it again real soon.  I think I may try making a batch of cookies real soon using the dough blade.

Mexican Cornbread

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 cups cornmeal
• 1 tsp salt
• 4 tsp baking powder
• 1 Tbsp granulated sugar
• 4 eggs
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 1 15-oz can cream style corn
• 1/2 cup chopped jalapeño peppers
• 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

1. Grind the popcorn to make enough cornmeal to equal 1 1/2 cups
2. Grate the cheese in the food processor (to equal 1 cup ... a little over will not hurt)
3. Chop the jalapeño peppers (either fresh or canned)
4. Combine dry ingredients together in medium mixing bowl
5. Add eggs, vegetable oil, and corn and mix well
6. Fold in jalapeño peppers and cheese
7. Spoon into hot prepared pans
8. Bake at 350 F 30 minutes or until done.

Sarah's Fried Sweet Potatoes

My Sister Sarah

I talked with my sister Sarah this morning (she is our family's Amazing Grace) and she fried some sweet potatoes for our mother's breakfast.  I remember eating this amazing dish as a child ... one of the many wonderful delicious things our Mother cooked for us.  I don't know why I've not continued this tradition but my sister has.  I asked her how she prepared hers and the recipe she gave me is surprisingly simple.  Sarah says:

"I just peel them, slice them up, and cook them covered on medium heat, take them out and sprinkle with salt...".  Sarah says a dear, departed, friend of hers, Patsy, sprinkled hers with sugar.

Looking forward to cooking these so, here's a picture of hers on the left.  They look so yummy.


Note;  Sarah says she does turn them over while cooking them.  If you wait until the bottom of the potatoes are browned, you’ve probably cooked them too long and they will be hard.  Use your judgment.  She saves her leftover grease from frying her potatoes in a cannng jar.

My Favorite Red Velvet Cake

I purchased a cookbook back in the early 1970s from one of my co-workers and in it was a recipe for a Red Velvet Cake.  I baked one and it quickly became one of the favorite cakes in our household for Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays.

I purchased a new cookbook at BJ's yesterday and in it was another version of Red Velvet Cake.  Although the recipe below is my current favorite, I plan to check out the recipe in my new cookbook.  I've seen plenty of Red Velvet cake recipes but they normally call for shortening or vegetable oil.  The thing I love about my current recipe is that it calls for the use of butter, as does the recipe in my new cookbook.  There are a few differences between the two recipes, more or less of some ingredients.  I plan to bake one of each during the upcoming holiday season to determine if there are visual and taste differences.

My Favorite Red Velvet Cake (Currently)

• 1/2 cup butter
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 2 eggs
• 2 heaping tbsps cocoa powder
• 1 1/2 oz red food color
• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 Tbsp white vinegar

1. Preheat oven to 350 F
2. Grease cake pans & line with parchment paper.  Flour pans.
3. Cream butter, sugar, and vanilla together.  Add eggs, one at a time.
4. Make a thin paste of cocoa powder and red food color.  Add to creamed mixture.
5. Sift flour and salt together and add alternately with buttermilk, 1 tablespoon at a time, beginning and ending with flour.
6. Mix baking soda and vinegar together and blend into batter.
7. Bake at 350F 20-30 minutes (depending on oven temperature)
8. Frost with Cream Cheese Frosting.

Here's the recipe for the Red Velvet Cake in my new cookbook.  

Red Velvet Cake Inspired by California Pizza Kitchen

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/4 cups buttermilk
• 1 bottle (1 ounce) red food coloring
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened
• 2 eggs
• 1 tablespoon white or cider vinegar
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda

1. Preheat oven to 350F.  Spray three 9-inch round  cake pans with nonstick cooking spray.  Line bottoms of pans with parchment paper; spray with cooking spray.
2. For cake, combine flour, cocoa, and salt in medium bowl, mix well.  Combine buttermilk, food coloring and 1 teaspoon vanilla in small bowl; mix well.
3. Beat granulated sugar and 1 cup butter in large bowl with electric mixer at medium speed 5 minutes or until light and fluffy.  Add eggs, one at a time, beating until well blended after each edition.  Add flour mixture alternately with buttermilk mixture, beating at low speed after each addition.  Stir vinegar into baking sodden small bowl.  Add to batter; stir gently until blended.  Pour batter into prepared pans.
4. Bake about 20 minutes or until toothpick inserted into centers comes out clean.  Cool in pans 10 minutes.  Invert onto wire racks; peel off parchment and cool completely.

Frosting

• 2 packages (8 ounces each) team cheese, softened
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened
• 6 cups powdered sugar
• 14 cup milk
• 2 teaspoons vanilla
• 4 ounces white chocolate, shaved with vegetable peeler

1. For frosting, beat cream cheese and 1/2 cup butter in large bowl with electric mixer at medium speed until creamy.  Add powdered sugar, milk, and 2 teaspoons vanilla; beat at low speed until blended.  Beat at medium speed until smooth.
2. Place o ne cake layer on serving plate.  Top with 1 1/2 cups frosting; speed evenly.  Top with second cake layer; spread with 1 1/2 cups frosting.  Top with remaining cake layer; spread remaining frosting over top and side of cake.  Press white chocolate shavings into side of cake.

Old-School Cornbread

I don't particularly care for cornbread made from self-rising or Jiffy cornbread mix.  I started making my cornbread using plain yellow cornmeal a few years back but it has become increasingly difficult to find the plain yellow cornmeal in stores.  On the occasions when I do find it, it is usually the 2-pound bag of white cornmeal.  I always buy the 5-pound bag because I cook it quite often because hubby and I usually have some with our dinner, especially with fresh vegetables (collard greens, turnip greens, green beans, rutabagas, peas, beans, etc.).

I was told at one of the stores that they had started removing the plain cornmeal from the shelves because there is no longer a great demand for it.  I was crushed!!! What about those of us who still use it???

Later I remembered that when I was a child, my parents would take dried corn to the mill to be ground into cornmeal so I decided to go to YouTube for directions on making my own cornmeal.  Pay dirt!!! YouTube ROCKS!!! You can find instructions/directions for almost everything  there.  After my YouTube search, I found that all I needed to make my own cornmeal was un-popped popcorn and my blender to grind it.  I ground my first batch of cornmeal, baked some cornbread muffins and they turned out perfect!!!  Here is  my recipe:

Cornbread

1 large scoop of cornmeal from ground popcorn (approximately 1 1/2 cups)
1 large scoop of all-purpose flour (approximately 1 1/2 cups)
3 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1 tbsp sugar
1 stick softened or melted butter
2 eggs
1 to 1 1/2 cups whole milk

1. Preheat oven to 450 F.  Grease pans.
2. Grind the corn in a blender or food processor, then sift using a strainer (I grind 2 cups of popcorn in order to yield enough for me).  After sifting cornmeal into your bowl, the residuals left in your strainer can be discarded. 
3. Whisk together flour, baking powder, salt, and sugar until thoroughly blended.
4. Add milk, eggs, and butter and stir or whisk until thoroughly mixed together.
5. Pour batter into greased pan or muffin tins
6. Bake until done (10-12 minutes in my cast iron muffin pans)

Note:  Add 1/2 tsp baking soda with the dry ingredient if using buttermilk

Peach Preserves

Peaches were delicious this year and Wayfield Grocery Store had them on sale for .69 per pound.  A great buy because the local farmer's market didn't have them priced that low.  I bought several pounds and made Peach Preserves.  I don't know how many pounds I ended up with but here is how I made my preserves.  I had read an article some years ago on how to can peach preserves and I don't remember the name or author of the website but here is what I remembered and the way I made my Peach Preserves.

Ingredients:  Peaches and Sugar

I placed my peaches in a large vat of water and let them sit in the water for a while before peeling them.  Some people use the boiling water method to peel peaches but my preferred method is using the tool that I use to peel my potatoes.

After peeling the peaches, I cut them into slices. I then take a small paring knife and cut out the dark area where the peach pit was because this is a bitter area and sometimes contain bits of the peach pits. I use a large plastic bucket and layer peaches and sugar into it and let the peaches and sugar sit, stirring occasionally, until the sugar is melted.  Can be left overnight, if desired.

I've got a large pressure cooker and I place the peaches with the juice into the pressure cooker but I do not pressure cook the peaches.  Bring them to a boil, stirring constantly, and cook over medium heat for 10 minutes.  Let cool.  Repeat this process four times or until the juice has thickened into syrup.

Skim off any foam that has accumulated on the peaches and spoon into sterilized jars.  Clean the rims of the jar with a clean towel, place the lids on the jars, screw the rims on but do not tighten them.  Place jars into canner that has hot water in it.  If water in canner does not cover tops of jars, add more water to cover jars by at least two inches.

Cover canner and bring to a boil and let boil for 25 minutes.  Remove jars from canner and set on towel on counter top.  Lids should pop/seal after removal from canner.  Next day, check jars to make sure all lids have sealed.  If rims are loose, screw to secure but do not screw tight.

A Cold Cold Day Makes for a SOUPER Day

Georgia Temperatures dipped into single digits today and the wind-chill factor dipped into the ‘minus’ category.  Perfect time for a big pot of soup.  I really don’t have recipe for soup... I just dump all my left-over veggies (black-eye peas, collard greens, rice, remnants of lasagna) into my crock pot, add in some frozen veggies (corn, lima beans), and open a few cans of veggies (green beans, Ro-tel tomatoes, green peas, carrots).

What is a bowl of hot soup without cornbread?  I decided to try my spin at Mexican Cornbread.  Here’s how I made mine.  Although I listed specific amounts, I really eyeballed the ingredients as I added them to the bowl.

• 1/2 cup vegetable oil 
• 1 tbsp granulated sugar 
• 4 large eggs 
• 1 (15 ounce) can cream-style corn 
• ½ cup chopped Jalapeño Peppers 
• 1 ½ cup shredded cheddar cheese 
• 1 ½ cup all-purpose flour 
• 1 ½ cup yellow cornmeal 
• ½ teaspoon salt 
• 4 teaspoons baking powder 

1. Preheat oven to 350° F. Grease the baking pan, skillets, or whatever you are going to bake the bread in. 
2. In a large bowl mix together the cornmeal, flour, sugar, salt, and baking powder. 
3. Add the corn and eggs and blend well. 
4. Fold in the cheddar cheese and the chopped Jalapeno peppers. 
5. Pour or spoon batter into prepared pans. 
6. Bake in preheated oven approximately 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into center of the bread comes out clean.

I Love Cole Slaw

I love the Cole Slaw from KFC so I went in search of a recipe for a knock-off version.  I found and tried this version here:  I tried it and loved it!  The original ingredients include minced onions which I did not add... I’m not a raw onion lover. 

• Sugar - 1/3 Cup
• Mayonnaise - 1/2 Cup
• Buttermilk, Well Shaken - 1/4 Cup
• Whole Milk - 1/4 Cup
• White Vinegar - 1 1/2 Tablespoons
• Fresh Lemon Juice - 2 1/2 Tablespoons
• Salt - 1/2 Teaspoon
• Black Pepper - 1/8 Teaspoon
• Cabbage, Finely Diced - 8 Cups (or 1-16 Ounce Bag Coleslaw)
• Carrot, Shredded (Omit If You're Using Bagged Coleslaw Mix - 1/4 Cup

1. In a large bowl, whisk together the first 8 ingredients until smooth and well combined. Add cabbage and carrot and mix until evenly coated.
2. Cover bowl and refrigerate 4 hours minimum or overnight. Stir well before serving.

My Favorite Lemon Cake Recipe

• 2 sticks butter, room temperature
• 2 1/2 cups granulated sugar, divided
• 4 extra-large eggs, room temperature
• 1/3 cup grated lemon zest (6 to 8 large lemons)
• 3 cups flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 3/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice, divided
• 3/4 cup buttermilk, room temperature
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Lemon Sauce

• 1/2 cup lemon juice
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar

Lemon Glaze

• 2 cups confectioners' sugar, sifted
• 3 1/2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour 3 9-inch cake pans. I always line the bottom of my pans with parchment paper. 
2. Cream the butter and 2 cups granulated sugar until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. With the mixer on medium speed, add the eggs, 1 at a time, and the lemon zest.
3. Sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a bowl. In another bowl, combine 1/4 cup lemon juice, buttermilk, and vanilla. Add the flour and buttermilk mixtures alternately to the batter, beginning and ending with the flour. Divide the batter evenly between the pans and bake for 22-25 minutes (depending on the variations of your stove). 

For the Sauce:

Combine 1/2 cup granulated sugar with 1/2 cup lemon juice in a small saucepan and cook over low heat until the sugar dissolves. When the cakes are done, allow to cool for 10 minutes. Remove the cakes from the pans and set them on a rack set over a tray or sheet pan; spoon the lemon syrup over them. Allow the cakes to cool completely

For the glaze

• Combine the confectioners' sugar and the lemon juice in a bowl, mixing with a wire whisk until smooth.
• Pour over the tops of the cakes and allow the glaze to drizzle down the sides.

Lemon Cream Cheese Frosting

• 8 ounces cream cheese, softened
• 8 tablespoons butter, softened
• the zest from 1 lemon (just the yellow part not the white pith)
• 1 tablespoon fresh-squeezed lemon juice
• 4 cups confectioners’ sugar
• coconut flakes and/or blueberries, for garnish, optional

1. Beat cream cheese, butter together 3 minutes on medium speed until light and fluffy.
2. Beat in zest and lemon juice. 
3. Beat in confectioners’ sugar a cup at a time and continue beating on medium speed about 5 minutes until thick and fluffy. 
4. Frost cake when completely cooled, store in refrigerator.

My Favorite Macaroni & Cheese Recipe

4 cups milk
4 tablespoons butter
4 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
4 cups sharp Cheddar cheese, shredded
16-oz. package elbow macaroni, cooked

Preheat oven to 400°.

Microwave milk at HIGH for 2 minutes.

Melt butter in a large skillet over medium-low heat; whisk in flour until smooth. Cook, whisking constantly, 1 minute.

Gradually whisk in warm milk, and cook, whisking constantly, 5 minutes or until thickened.

Whisk in salt and 3 cups shredded cheese until smooth; stir in pasta. Spoon mixture into a lightly greased baking dish and top with remaining cheese.

Bake at 400° for 20 minutes or until golden and bubbly.

Strawberry Cheesecake

My husband wanted a Strawberry Cheesecake for dessert for Thanksgiving so I just finished baking this recipe I found on allrecipes.com. I sure hope that it's good.  I'll have to add a picture of it tomorrow because I'm too tired to pull out the camera right now.  Gotta get some sleep after cleaning up the kitchen..

Strawberry Cheesecake

1 Pkg graham crackers processed in food processor (approx 1 1/4 cups)

1/4 cup granulated sugar

2 teaspoons cinnamon

1/3 cup butter, melted

20 oz frozen sweetened sliced strawberries, thawed and drained

1 tablespoon cornstarch

3 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, softened

1 (14 ounce) can sweetened condensed milk

1/4 cup lemon juice

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

3 eggs

1 tablespoon water (optional)

Combine graham cracker crumbs, sugar, cinnamon, and butter in a bowl. Press onto the bottom of an ungreased 9-inch springform pan. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Preheat oven to 300 degrees F.

Place strawberries and cornstarch into a blender. Cover and puree until smooth. Pour strawberry sauce into a saucepan.

Bring to a boil over high heat. Boil and stir until sauce is thick and shiny, about 2 minutes. Set aside 1/3 cup strawberry sauce; cool. Cover and refrigerate remaining sauce for serving.

Beat cream cheese in a mixing bowl with an electric mixer until light and fluffy; gradually beat in condensed milk. Mix in lemon juice and vanilla extract, then beat in eggs on low speed until just combined. Pour half of cream cheese mixture over crust; drop half of reserved strawberry sauce by 1/2 teaspoonfuls on cream cheese layer. Carefully spoon remaining cream cheese mixture over sauce; drop remaining strawberry sauce by 1/2 teaspoonfuls on top. Cut through top layer only with a knife to swirl strawberry sauce.

Bake in preheated oven until center is almost set, 45 to 50 minutes. Cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Carefully run a knife around edge of pan to loosen; cool 1 hour longer. Refrigerate overnight. Serve reserved strawberry sauce with cheesecake. If the sauce is too thick, stir in water.

Also on the Thanksgiving Menu:

Turkey (my husband bought one of those greaseless turkey fryers to cook the turkey in)

Cornbread Dressing

Macaroni & Cheese

Potato Salad

Collard Greens

Green Beans Casserole

Cranberry Sauce

Carrot Soufflé 

Beverages:  Water, Cokes, Sprite, Little Hugs (for the grands), Iced Tea
Strawberry Cheesecake
Old-Fashioned Pound Cake

Food Processor Biscuits

For years I've tried to perfect homemade biscuits but was never able to get them to look or taste like the ones my mother made.  She has this big bowl that she keeps her self-rising flour in, makes a well in the center and puts a chunk of lard and milk in it to work it into a dough.  After her dough comes together, she kneads it a few times, then pinches the dough into little clumps, then rolls each one into balls, flattens them into discs, places them in a greased biscuit pan. After she has placed them all in the pan, she takes her hand and gives them another press down, places them in a 450 degre oven and bakes them.  During the last couple of minutes in the oven, she turns the oven to broil to brown them.

I love watching cooking shows on TV and YouTube and ran across a YouTube Video with instructions for making biscuits in a food processor.  I followed the instructions and loved the results.

Buttermilk Biscuits

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp Kosher salt
• 6 tbsp of butter
• 3/4 cup buttermilk
• 
  

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
2. Add dry ingredients to food processor and pulse 4-5 times to combine.
3. Cut butter into pats and place on top of flour mixture in food processor. Pulse 5-6 times to incorporate. Do not over mix. 
4. Add buttermilk and pulse just until dough forms... About 9-10 pulses... Do not over-mix. 
5. Turn out onto lightly floured surface. Shape into a ball and roll to desired thickness. 
6. I used my cookie cutter to cut out the biscuits then re-worked the remaining dough and made a bread stick. 
7.  Place biscuits on a lightly greased pan (I use a parchment paper lined pan instead). 

I probably left my biscuits under the broiler a tad too long but I do like my biscuits brown.  They were still good and my husband loved them.

Update: The recipe above calls for buttermilk and I don't always have buttermilk in my fridge.  I decided to purchase a container of the powdered buttermilk and try it.  There is a definite difference in the final outcome.  I added 3 tablespoons of the buttermilk powder to the dry ingredients in the food processor and added 3/4 cups of water in step 4.  I think I will add a little less water the next time because my dough was a bit too sticky and I had to incorporate more flour than I wanted to.  When I finally got the dough to the consistency that I wanted.  I squeezed off clumps of dough (just like my mother does), rolled them into balls, patted them into discs and placed on a parchment paper lined cast iron pan.  

Again, I left the biscuits under the broiler a tad too long but they, other than that, they were tender, soft and delicious. I don't know whether the powdered buttermilk made the difference or not.  I'll have to give each method another try to see but, as I stated earlier, I will use less water when using the powdered buttermilk.  

Pizza Casserole

This is way too much food for hubby and me so we will have left-overs for days!!!  If our daughter and her family comes by, they are more than welcome to take some home ... Their daughters will probably love it.

I saw this recipe on the Southernplate website and had to give it a try.  It was simple, only took a few ingredients, and is very tasty.  Quicker than trying to make a pizza because I didn't have to deal with making pizza dough although making Pizza dough in my Zojirushi bread maker will be a project that I plan to tackle later this week.  Here's the Recipe:

Pizza Casserole

2 pounds ground beef, browned and drained (I used ground turkey)
1 box penne pasta
2 jars pizza sauce
1/2 an onion (add to the meat while browning)
1 tsp garlic powder*
2 cups mozzarella cheese (or more)
1 pack of slice pepperoni
Salt and pepper (to taste)

Prepare pasta according to package direction. Drain water and set aside.  Mix pasta, sauces, hamburger and 1 cup of the pepperoni together and put into a lightly greased 9" x 13" baking pan.

Put more pepperoni on top, if desired, or just stir it all in.

Cover with cheese cheese is melted and bake at 350F for 20 minutes or until cheese is melted and sauce is bubbling.

So Sad

My husband and I were at the mall with our two little grands (ages 4 years and 1 1/2 years) a couple of weeks ago and we were having a really great time with them.  I was in 'MeMaw Heaven', using my iPad Pro to snap pictures of them as they rode the various kiddie rides in the mall.  I set my bag down for just an instant to help the 1 1/2 year old get into one of the little cars, went back to my bag to get my iPad Pro to resume filming and taking pictures and, POOF!!! ... just like that, my iPad Pro had been taken from my bag.  I was just devastated!!!

I had years of memories stored on that iPad. I started buying them from the very first generation and upgraded each time a new one was introduced.  Even though I synch my iPad to my desktop on a regular basis, there are still files that had yet to be synced.  I wish I had the pictures I took of my little grands at the mall.  I had installed the 'Find my iPad App' on it but it only works if the person who took possession of it goes on-line.  I went to iCloud and added a 'lock' code so that it will lock it if anyone is able to access the Internet on it.  It was password protected so, hopefully, whoever took it will not be able to gain access to my information.

Half-and-Half Bread

There was a period in my life when I dreaded cooking... it was such a chore.  Now I love to cook ... Perhaps because I am now retired and have time to cook if and when I want to.  I invested in a Viking Range in 2001 and loved it but no longer own it.  It was a gas range and hubby and I moved into a home equipped with an electric range in 2012.  The kitchen is much smaller and the Viking was too large to fit the space... bummer.  Nevertheless, I've invested in other cooking gadgets that I love.

One of my favs is a Zojirushi Home Bakery Breadmaker.  I've made many loaves of bread in it... for hubby and me, my mother, my sister, my in-laws... whoever... whenever.  Today I tried my hand at a recipe I saw on-line... "Half-and-Half Bread - Half Wheat and Half White.

Half-and-Half Bread

1 7/8 cups water
3 cups whole wheat flour
2 cups white bread flour
3 Tbsp sugar
2 Tbsp dry milk
2 tsp salt
2 Tbsp vital wheat gluten
2 Tbsp butter
2 tsp active dry yeast

Measure ingredients precisely and add to the baking pan in the order listed.  Make sure that the yeast does not touch the liquid.

Place the baking pan into the Home Bakery, close the lid and plug the power cord into the outlet.

Select the BASIC setting and press START.

When baking completes, press and hold the START/RESET button.  Take out the baking pan using oven mitts and gently shake the loaf out.

Let bread cool and serve.

Breakfast at Home

There was a time when I really dreaded cooking but now I love it.  I ran across a recipe for homemade biscuits using my food processor and it is a really great recipe.

2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp Kosher salt
6 Tbsps cold butter cut into 3/4" pieces
3/4 cup cold buttermilk

Preheat oven to 425.  Lightly grease baking pan or line baking pan with parchment paper.

Add flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt to food processor and pulse 4-5 times.
Add butter to dry mixture and
pulse 5-6 times (about 1 second per
pulse).
Add buttermilk and process until it forms a ball (about 9-10 pulses... do not over process).
On a lightly floured surface, roll dough to about 3/4" thick and cut out using cookie cutter
Place biscuits on baking sheet and bake until golden brown (10-12 minutes).