Category Archives: recipes

Southern Buttermilk Biscuits

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Cook’s notes: For a flaky, buttery biscuit, keep the ingredients cold and do not overwork the dough. Liquid measures are approximate, use more or less to achieve a barely moist dough that holds together, but is not wet or elastic.

Ingredients

Makes six 3½” biscuits.

  • 2 cups (250 grams) all-purpose flour, spooned & leveled
  • 1 tablespoon baking powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
  • 2 teaspoons sugar
  • 1 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 6 tablespoons (85 grams) cold unsalted butter, cubed
  • 1 cup (180 ml) cold buttermilk, plus more for the tops of the biscuits

Instructions

Preheat oven to 450°F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat and set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, sugar, and salt until well combined. Add the in the cubed cold butter and cut into the dry ingredients using a pastry cutter (you may also use a food processor for this step) until you have small pea sized pieces of butter. Pour the cold buttermilk into the mixture and gently work it together until the dough starts to come together.

Alternative method: add dry ingredients to food processor and pulse several times to combine. Add cold, cubed butter to food processor and pulse briefly several times, until butter is pea sized. Add buttermilk and pulse until just combined. Do not overwork the dough.

Scoop the dough onto a lightly floured surface and gently work it together with your hands. Pat the dough into a rectangle and fold it in thirds. Turn the dough, gather any crumbs, and flatten back into a rectangle. Do not use a roller. Repeat this process two to four more times.

After the final turn, pat the dough into a 1/2-inch thick rectangle (make sure to measure!). Using a floured 3.5-inch biscuit cutter, cut out the biscuits. Continue to gather any scrap pieces of dough, patting it back down to 1/2-inch thickness.
Arrange the biscuits on the baking sheet touching each other. Brush the top of each biscuit with a little bit of buttermilk or melted butter.

Bake at 450°F for about 15-17 minutes or until lightly golden brown. Remove from the oven and brush with melted butter if desired. Allow to cool for a few minutes, serve.

Credit: Southern Buttermilk Biscuits, Genius Kitchen

Basic Focaccia

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Ingredients

  • 3¼ to 3½ cups bread flour
  • 1 tbsp kosher salt
  • 1 sachet bread yeast
  • Scant 1½ cups warm water, divided
  • 1 tsp sugar
  • 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

Directions

Proof yeast in 1 cup warm water.

Combine flour, salt and sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook.  Add the yeast with its water and allow mixer to knead the bread until it is a soft dough.  Coat with olive oil and cover with plastic wrap.  Allow to rise 24 hours.

Pan method

Preheat oven to 450°F .

Prepare a rimmed, half tray cookie sheet with 3 tbsp olive oil. Turn out dough and spread to the edges of the pan.  Allow to rest 1 hour.  Dimple top with finger tips, then brush with olive oil and kosher salt.  Bake 15-20 minutes, until top is lightly browned and edges are golden.

Stone method

Preheat oven and stone to 450°F.

Prepare a peel liberally with corn meal.  Turn out dough onto peel and spread to the edges.  Allow to rest for 1 hour.  Dimple top with finger tips, then brush with olive oil and kosher sale.  Transfer to stone, and bake 15-20 minutes until the top is lightly browned and the bottom is golden.

Credit: Unknown provenance

Yankee Pot Roast

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This is a crock pot recipe that takes about 8 or 9 hours to cook. Halve cooking time for conventional oven and dutch oven roasting.

Ingredients

  • 2 1/2 lbs lean beef chuck roast, trimmed of fat & cut into serving-size pieces
  • 3 medium baking potatoes,  cut into quarters (about 1 lb)
  • 1 large parsnip, cut into 3/4-inch slices
  • 2 celery ribs, cut into 3/4-inch slices
  • 2 large carrots, cut into 3/4-inch slices
  • 1 medium white onion, sliced
  • 2bay leaves
  • 1/2 tsp dried thyme leaves
  • 1 tsp dried rosemary
  • 1/2 c beef broth

Directions

Trim roast of fat and silverskin.  Season roast with salt & pepper.  Combine vegetables & seasonings in crock pot.  Place beef over vegetables, & pour broth over beef.  Cover and cook on LOW until meat is fork-tender, approximately 8 -9 hrs.  Remove beef to serving platter, & arrange vegetables around beef. Remove & discard bay leaves.

To make a gravy, ladle the juices into a 2c measuring cup; allow to stand 5 mins, skim off & discard fat. Measure remaining juices & heat to a boil in small saucepan. For each cup of juice, mix 2 tbsp of flour with 1/4 cup of cold water or dry red wine until smooth.  Stir mixture into boiling juices, stirring constantly until thickened (about 1 min).

Basic Bacon dry cure

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For a dry cure bacon, use 22g salt, 10g sugar and 3.2g PP#1 per kilogram of pork belly. Cure 7-14 days, turning daily. Rest in a cool, dry refrigerator to desiccate for up to 48 hours before smoking. Surface should feel papery or leathery.

Ratios: 2.2% salt, 1% sugar, 0.32% PP#1 by weight.

For bulk cure, per weight of salt: 100% salt, 45% sugar, 15% PP#1. Add cure to meat at 3.52% by weight of meat.

Smoke at 180°F over hardwood to an internal temperature of 145°F, about 3 hours.

Bacon, bacon, bacon!

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Our last attempt at curing bacon didn’t work out so well, coming out more like a country ham than bacon. The cure also gave the fat a kind of sickly, gamey flavor that I found mildly off putting. It was a combination of too much salt, too much time and blurring the line between a wet cure and a dry cure.

Back to fundamentals. This 10 pound belly is split into thirds and I’m working on three different recipes: a basic dry cure, a basic wet cure and a bourbon & black pepper wet cure.

Basic Dry Cure

Derived from several online sources. This is for 3.3 lbs of belly.

  • 3.3 lb pork belly, trimmed
  • ¼ cup sea salt
  • ¼ cup raw sugar
  • 1 ½ teaspoon pink salt

Combine dry ingredients and coat pork belly liberally on all sides. Seal in a zip lock bag and displace as much air as possible. Refrigerate 5 days, turning daily. After 5 days, rinse the cure from the belly, pat dry and refrigerate on a rack 4 hours or overnight, uncovered. Smoke over 225°F until internal temp reaches 150°F. Refrigerate up to 1 week, or freeze up to 2 months.

Basic Wet Cure

Derived from several online sources. This is for 3.3 lbs of belly.

  • 3.3 lb pork belly, trimmed
  • ¼ cup sea salt
  • ¼ cup raw sugar
  • 1 teaspoon pink salt
  • 2 cups cold water

Combine ingredients in a zip lock bag and slosh around to dissolve. Seal belly in the bag with the brine and displace as much air as possible. Refrigerate 2-3 days, turning daily. After 3 days, rinse the cure from the belly, pat dry and refrigerate in a rack 4 hours or overnight, uncovered. Smoke over 225°F until internal temp reaches 150°F. Refrigerate up to 1 week, or freeze up to 2 months.

Bourbon & Black Pepper Wet Cure

Derived from several online sources. This is for 3.3 lbs of belly.

  • 3.3 lb pork belly, trimmed
  • ¼ cup sea salt
  • 2 tablespoons raw sugar
  • 2 tablespoons coarse ground black pepper
  • 1 teaspoon pink salt
  • 1 ½ cups cold water
  • ½ cup Kentucky straight bourbon, 80 proof

Combine ingredients in a zip lock bag and slosh around to dissolve. Seal belly in the bag with the brine and displace as much air as possible. Refrigerate 2-3 days, turning daily. After 3 days, rinse the cure from the belly, pat dry and refrigerate in a rack 4 hours or overnight, uncovered. Smoke over 225°F until internal temp reaches 150°F. Refrigerate up to 1 week, or freeze up to 2 months.

Sweet Cornmeal Pudding

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Ingredients

3 cups whole milk (do not use lowfat or nonfat)
1 cup yellow cornmeal
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup butter, cut into pieces
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup buttermilk
6 large eggs, separated
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
Powdered sugar

Directions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Butter 8 cup souffle dish. Bring milk to boil in heavy large saucepan. Reduce heat to medium. Gradually mix in cornmeal and salt. Stir until mixture becomes very thick, about 1 minute. Add butter; stir until melted. Remove pan from heat. Stir in 1/2 cup sugar and buttermilk. Whisk yolks in large bowl to blend. Gradually whisk in cornmeal mixture. Using electric mixer, beat egg whites in medium bowl until frothy. Add remaining 1/4 cup sugar and beat until soft peaks form. Gently fold whites into cornmeal mixture.

Transfer mixture to prepared dish. Bake until mixture puffs and is golden brown. Sprinkle with powdered sugar and serve hot.

ref:1996, M.S. Milliken & S. Feniger, all rights reserved

Read more at: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/sweet-cornmeal-pudding-recipe.html?PageSpeed=noscript&oc=linkback

Dixie sweet cornbread

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Makes an airy, moist cake.

Ingredients

  • 3 tablespoons of bacon fat, butter, shortening, oil or a combination for greasing the pan
  • 1-1/2 cups of all purpose white or yellow cornmeal
  • 3 tablespoons of all purpose flour
  • 2 teaspoons white sugar
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/2 teaspoon of kosher salt
  • 1/2 cup of buttermilk
  • 1/2 cup of sour cream
  • 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
  • 1 (15 ounce) can of creamed corn
  • 2 large eggs, beaten

For a savory cornbread, optionally add:

Preheat a 10” cast iron skillet to 450°F while preparing the ingredients. Combine dry ingredients in a medium mixing bowl and whisk together. Combine wet ingredients in a second bowl and whisk together. If melting butter, reserve
in a separate bowl until combined.

When the cast iron is heated, pour wet ingredients over dry and stir with a silicone spatula until just combined. Grease the hot skillet with lard or vegetable oil and pour in batter. Bake 20-25 minutes at 450°F, or until a toothpick draws clean. Turn out onto a cooling rack.

Adapted from http://www.deepsouthdish.com/2012/10/buttermilk-sour-cream-cornbread.html

Bisquik substitute

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Bisquik is a premix of flour, leavening, salt and fat. Substitute it 1:1 in recipes with a blend in this ratio:

  • 6 cups bread flour
  • 3 tablespoons baking powder
  • 1 tablespoon salt
  • 1 cup vegetable shortening, cubed

Cut the shortening into the dry ingredients until the mixture is the consistency of bread crumbs.

Cold lard may be used in place of shortening if using same day.

Red Lobster Cheesy Biscuits

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Original recipe from TSR: https://topsecretrecipes.com/red-lobster-cheddar-bay-biscuits-copycat-recipe.html?category_id=10

Ingredients

  • 2 1/2 cups Bisquik baking mix
  • 4 tablespoons cold butter, cubed
  • 1 heaping cup grated Cheddar cheese
  • 3/4 cup cold whole milk
  • 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

Preheat oven to 425°F. Combine dry ingredients and cut in butter with a food processor until mixture is consistency of bread crumbs. Do not overwork. Add cheese and toss to distribute evenly. Add milk and stir until just combined, do not overwork. Drop ¼ cup dollops onto ungreased baking sheet and bake 15 to 17 minutes, until golden brown on top.

Brush on Top

  • 2 to 3 tablespoons butter, melted
  • 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon dried parsley flakes

Tweaks

  • Use unsalted butter
  • Add up to 1 scant tablespoon of Old Bay to the dry ingredients

Houlihan’s Baked Potato Soup

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This is a copycat recipe for Houlihan’s Baked Potato Soup.

  • 1 1/2 pounds baking potatoes
  • 1/4 pound butter (1 stick)
  • 2 cups yellow onion diced
  • 1/3 cup flour, all-purpose
  • 5 cups water
  • 1/4 cup chicken broth, low salt
  • 1 cup potato flakes instant
  • 3/4 teaspoon basil dried
  • 1/2 teaspoon red hot pepper sauce (eg. Tabasco)
  • 1 cup heavy whipping cream
  • 1 cup milk
  • salt to taste
  • white pepper to taste

Directions

Preheat oven to 400F.   Prick washed potatoes and bake until a fork pierces to the center easily. Remove potatoes from oven and allow to fully cool.  Remove skin and cut potatoes into 1/2 inch cubes. Set aside.

Melt butter in a large saucepan, and add onions. Sauté over low heat for 10 minutes or until onions are translucent. Add flour to onions and butter and cook 4 – 5 minutes, stirring well until flour is absorbed.

In a separate container, combine water, chicken base, potato flakes and seasonings. Stir or whisk thoroughly to eliminate lumps. Add slowly to onion mixture, stirring constantly so no lumps form.  Increase to medium heat and continue cooking until the soup begins to gently simmer. Add milk and cream, stirring until smooth and lightly thickened. Simmer for 15 minutes.  Do not boil. Soup should just simmer lightly.

Add cubed baked potatoes and stir to combine.  Remove from heat.

Top each serving with grated cheddar cheese, sliced scallions and  bacon pieces.