Cheddar Bay Biscuits

I miss eating those cheddar biscuits at Red Lobster. Every now and again if I want to cheat on my meal plan, these biscuits are more enticing to me than dessert. Unfortunately, they are not typically something you can eat just one of. So that can be a problem, particularly when you are not supposed to be eating them at all.

These biscuits are simpler than making regular homemade biscuits because drop biscuits simply require you mixing the ingredients and dropping them on a cookie sheet. No kneading, no rolling...so you too can make these popular biscuits at home.

Biscuit Making Tips:

Tip #1 - Always use very cold butter, lard or shortening. Cold ingredients will give you a flakier biscuit. You can shred the butter with a grater or just cut it in very small pieces.

Tip #2 - Mix the butter and flour just until it resembles coarse sand. You can do this with a food processor, stand mixer, pastry blender, or your hands. Be careful not to overwork the dough, if you use your hands, or you will warm the butter up.

Tip #3 - Make sure you are using very cold liquids and mix just until moistened for a lighter biscuit.

Tip #4 - Never grease the outside of the biscuit. Add butter after taking them out of the oven.

Tip #5 - Do not overbake the biscuits. Be sure to check the biscuits a few minutes early to see if they are ready to pull out.

Tip #6 - To reheat biscuits, wrap them in foil and place them in the oven (at 350 degrees) for 10 minutes, or until warm.

Cheddar Bay Biscuits

1 3/4 c all-purpose flour
3/4 c yellow cornmeal
4 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp sea salt
1 1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 stick unsalted butter (cold), cubed
2 c sharp Cheddar cheese, shredded
5 scallions, finely chopped
1 1/3 c well-shaken buttermilk

Preheat oven to 450°F. Line baking sheet with parchment paper.

In a food processor, add flour, cornmeal, baking powder, baking soda, salt and garlic powder. Add the butter and pulse until mixture resembles coarse sand.

Dump contents into a large mixing bowl. Gently toss in scallions and cheese. Hand stir the buttermilk until  just combined.

Drop dough on lined baking sheet at least 2 inches apart. Bake for 12-15 minutes or until golden. Brush butter on top while warm. Serve.

Damn these were so good. I almost licked the crumbs from the plate. Seriously.

All photographs are actual pictures of the recipe listed, prepared by Sweet Treats 'n Good Eats, and cannot be used without the owner’s consent.

Buttermilk Skillet Cornbread

A few things Southerners are known for: 1) they make some ridiculously good, but diabetic coma sweet, iced tea; 2) peach cobbler and sweet potato pie are dessert staples; and 3) don't sleep on a plate of buttermilk cornbread, black eyed peas and collard greens...make you want to slap ya grandma.

I am making some skillet cornbread to go along with my bowl of chili tonight. Now if you suffer from high cholesterol, you might just want to look at the photos and skip the recipe. Because this recipe calls for butter in proportions that would win Paula Deen's approval! You need a cast iron skillet for this recipe. You can use white or yellow cornmeal. And if you really want to kick your cornbread up a notch, use a bit of bacon grease instead of butter.

If you don't own a cast iron skillet and feel compelled to run out and buy one, you can typically find them at Target (between $12-$20). You will want to season your cast iron pan before you use it. Seasoning a pan gives it a stick-resistant coating of polymerized fat and oil on the surface, which will prevent it from rusting and foods from sticking to the surface. 

How to season your cast iron skillet:

1. Heat the oven to 300 degrees.
2. Coat the pan with lard. Don't use a liquid vegetable oil.
3. Place the pan in the oven. In 15 minutes, remove the pan; pour out excess grease.
4. Place the pan back in the oven and bake for 2 hours.

Tips for caring for your cast iron skillet:

1. Allow hot cast iron skillets to cool gradually.
2. Never immerse a seasoned cast iron skillet in water to clean it.
3. To rid the cast iron pan of minor rusting, use a steel wool pad and put it through another round of seasoning.
4. Never drop cold water into a hot cast iron skillet or it will split or crack.

Buttermilk Skillet Cornbread

2 c buttermilk, at room temperature
2 eggs, at room temperature
1 stick butter, melted
2 c cornmeal
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp kosher salt
1/8 c sugar (or one packet Stevia)

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees and place cast iron skillet inside to heat as you mix the batter.

Combine the buttermilk and eggs. In a medium sized bowl, combine the cornmeal, baking powder, baking soda, salt and sugar. Combine the wet and dry ingredients together. Whisk in 6 tbsp of the melted butter.

Carefully remove the hot skillet from the oven. Reduce oven temperature to 375 degrees.

Add the remaining 2 tbsp butter to the hot skillet, coating the sides and the bottom. Pour the batter into the skillet and place it in the center of the oven. Bake until toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, approximately 20-25 minutes. Remove skillet to wire rack and let cornbread cool for 10-15 minutes. Invert onto wire rack. Cut cornbread into wedges and serve.

All photographs are actual pictures of the recipe listed, prepared by Sweet Treats 'n Good Eats, and cannot be used without the owner’s consent.

Oatmeal Raisin Pancakes

I have been in the mood for cinnamon all day today so I started out my morning with these oatmeal raisin pancakes. These pancakes are nutty, have a nice texture, and taste just like an oatmeal raisin cookie! If you desire less texture and prefer a smoother batter, soak the oats in the buttermilk overnight and add the remaining ingredients the following day.

Oatmeal Raisin Pancakes

2 eggs
1 1/2 c whole wheat flour (or combine whole wheat with spelt or AP flour)
1/2 c old fashioned oats
2 c buttermilk
2 tbsp brown sugar (or one packet Stevia)
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
3/4 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
4 tbsp butter, melted
½ tsp vanilla extract
1/3 c raisins, finely chopped

Place oats in buttermilk and let stand. Whisk dry ingredients in a separate bowl. Combine buttermilk mixture with dry ingredients. Add butter, flavoring and raisins and mix well. Batter will be lumpy.

Preheat griddle or cast iron pan. Brush with butter. Ladle batter onto griddle or into pan. Cook on the first side until bubbles form and begin to pop. Flip the pancake and cook until golden brown. Keep cooked pancakes warm until ready to serve, in a 200 degree oven.

All photographs are actual pictures of the recipe listed, prepared by Sweet Treats 'n Good Eats, and cannot be used without the owner’s consent.

Buttermilk Whole Wheat Pancakes

This Monday marks yet another snow day in the Queen City. We do still live in the South, right? So it is going to be another brown couch day I suppose.

My intent was to get some work done but so far it is not looking good. I'm having a little bit of trouble getting motivated when everyone else is off work and back in bed. That really has absolutely nothing to do with me since I work from home but...this John Sandford book is peeking at me from the coffee table and looking like my only firm agenda item for today. Blanket...check. Remote...check. Laptop...check. Good eats...check.

I complain about the snow but the truth is that I really love the snow as long as the power stays on, I have a house full of food, I don’t have anywhere that I have to be, and the kids let it stay pretty for at least an hour or two before they start sledding and throwing snowballs and the snow is no longer fresh. That’s not too much to ask, is it? So I am 3 for 4 this morning, which is not so bad. I hear shrieking sounds somewhere in the distance so the kids are already at it.

In keeping with my healthy or healthier lifestyle, this recipe can be made with organic sugar, oil and soy milk.

Whole Wheat Pancakes

2 c King Arthur Flour white whole wheat flour

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/4 c sugar
1/2 tsp kosher salt

2 1/2 c buttermilk
2 large eggs

1 tsp vanilla

1/2 tsp grated orange zest

2 tbsp butter

Whisk the dry ingredients together in a large bowl. In separate bowl, whisk the eggs together. Next, whisk in the remaining wet ingredients. Combine the wet and dry ingredients but do not over mix.

Heat griddle or pan. Oil the pan or spray with cooking spray. Pour a scoop of batter onto the griddle. Cook on the first side until bubbles form and begin to pop. Flip the pancake and cook until golden brown. Keep cooked pancakes warm until ready to serve, in a 200 degree oven. Serve with warm maple syrup.

All photographs are actual pictures of the recipe listed, prepared by Virtually Everything Sweet, and cannot be used without the owner’s consent.

Stacks on Deck

It's a lazy Sunday and a tad bit dreary out so I am thinking this is going to be a brown couch day. Brown couch days consist of doing much of nothing. I am moving a little slow, as per the usual, in the early morning hours. And I am starving. As I mentioned before, I'm really not a big breakfast person. But after making these pancakes, I may be convinced to get up an hour earlier to make breakfast after all!

My bestie in NYC is always commenting on how she has to have her pancakes on Saturday mornings. So this morning I think I was having visions of pancakes because of the conversation she and I had on yesterday about her Saturday ritual.

So I pull my griddle out, which has probably only been used 4 times since I got it, and get to flipping. After eating these fluffy, buttermilk pancakes, I am thinking the next order of business is a 2-hour nap! Gotta love those brown couch moments.

Buttermilk Pancakes

2 eggs

2 cups flour

2 tablespoons sugar

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

2 cups buttermilk

4 tablespoons melted butter

½ teaspoons vanilla extract

In a large bowl beat eggs. Add buttermilk, butter and flavoring and mix well. Add flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Mix well. Heat griddle. Oil the pan or spray with cooking spray. Pour a scoop of batter onto the griddle. Cook on the first side until bubbles form and begin to pop. Flip the pancake and cook until golden brown. Keep cooked pancakes warm until ready to serve, in a 200 degree oven.

This recipe yields approximately 8 pancakes.

I prefer my pancakes with warm butter and maple syrup. But today I was feeling fancy, so I added some stewed apples and whipped cream to finish it off.

Stewed Apples

1 or 2 medium sized apples
2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp nutmeg
1/4 c sugar
1 tsp butter
1/2 c water

Slice one or two medium sized apples, leaving skin on. In a small saucepan, add apples and remaining ingredients. Cook until apples are softened and liquid has turned syrupy.

Whipped Cream Topping

1/2 c heavy whipping cream
Dash of vanilla extract

Add ingredients to a mixing bowl and beat until soft peaks form. Because there is already sugar in the syrup and apples, I do not add any sugar to the whipped cream. But you may want to add sugar, to taste, before serving on top of pancakes.


All photographs are actual pictures of the recipe listed, prepared by Virtually Everything Sweet, and cannot be used without the owner’s consent.