Fluffy Country Biscuits!!

Let me tell ya about a weekend I had recently. This was one of those rare weekend mornings when I woke up extra early. I was sitting outside on the patio sipping on my beloved Dunkin' Donuts coffee, enjoying the wonderful Tennessee morning. I started having feelings of nostalgia from my childhood.... I should point out here that most of those feelings I have contain some sort trigger moment and an edible item.

For instance: any time I smell fresh cut grass or see lighting bugs I am taken back to the summers that my Papaw worked on a strawberry farm. I remember one particular evening, just as the sun was preparing to go down, I was sitting outside on the porch waiting for the fireflies to come out. The fireflies weren't showing up as quickly as I anticipated, but it didn't take long for my Papaw to walk up carrying a giant carton of strawberries. We sat on that porch and ate ourselves silly until the stars came out. The fireflies were long forgotten.

Now I'm going to need you to follow me here so that you can see how this simple act of me sipping on coffee and reminiscing on my childhood turned into a morning of me covered in flour trying to figure out how to create some biscuits that might stand a chance against my Gramma's.

Coffee on the patio + the smell of freshly cut grass from the day before --------> memories of my Papaw bringing home strawberries -------------> reminder of the last time I ate strawberries, which was in the form of jam on a biscuit -------------> light bulb moment : "MmmmMm.... I should make biscuits."

This is really how my mind works.

Problem #1: Remember how I have that crazy flour phobia?? Well, I forced myself to deal with it again.  When you need a fluffy biscuit, you just need a fluffy biscuit. Even if you have never made biscuits nor have the first clue how to do so (Problem #2). After researching the important ingredients to put into biscuits, I came up with this recipe. I think it is perfect. The biscuits are fluffy on the inside but have a nice, crisp, golden exterior. These guys are great for a simple spread of jam or a hearty sausage gravy.  They are also sturdy enough for all those breakfast sammies you may wanna start making, too. 

Fluffy Country Biscuits

Ingredients:

1/3 cup unsalted butter, cold & cut into cubes (+ extra melted to brush on top)

2 cups all purpose flour (+ extra for rolling dough in)

3 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt 

2 tbsp sugar

1 cup buttermilk (click here for substitutions)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400. Grease a baking sheet and set aside.

2. Whisk flour, baking powder, salt, and sugar together. 

3. Using two forks, gradually work butter into flour by chopping the forks back & forth. Continue doing so unto dough is crumbly.

4. Add the buttermilk and stir until combined. 

5. Sprinkle some flour on a clean working space. Turn the dough onto the flour and knead for about 5 minutes.

6. Sprinkle some flour on a rolling pin and roll the dough until about 1 inch thick. 

7. Use a biscuit cutter (or in my case, a drinking glass turned upside down) to cut the dough. 

8. Space the biscuits 1 inch apart on baking sheet. Brush with butter and cook for 20 minutes. 

Note: This recipe will make anywhere between 8-12 biscuits depending on the size of your cookie cutter. 

Spread some jam on them....

...or top them with some sausage gravy!!

Cumin Roasted Sweet Potato Quesadillas!!

I think if I had to pick a favorite starchy food item it would probably be the sweet potato. The things are just so darn versatile! They can be served sweet or savory. They can be baked into the perfect little fries. They can even be baked into a cake for crying out loud.

As a kid, the only time Mr. Sweet Potato showed his face was during the holidays. You know what I'm talking about... butter, brown sugar, pecans, cinnamon, marshmallows, the whole nine yards & thousands of calories later: the infamous sweet potato casserole. This lady loves herself some sweet potatoes with her turkey but further exposure to the orange spud was lacking for me until about a couple of years ago. Now I am proud to say they are a staple in my kitchen.

Let me throw some sweet potato facts atcha:

• When folks think of beta-carotene, the pro-vitamin that is essential to vision, they typically picture the carrot. However, sweet potatoes contain the same level of beta-carotene! Beta-carotene is also known as vitamin A, in case you were curious. 
• Vitamin A is one of the most potent antioxidants, making it useful in the prevention of several different types of cancers. 
• Vitamin A also helps protect your skin from UV damage caused by sun exposure.
• In addition to vitamin A, sweet potatoes contain lots of the vitamins C and E. These guys help prevent diseases! 
• Oh, vitamins C and E make ya prettier too. They contribute to the health of your skin and hair. 
• You know all those other potatoes?? Well, sweet potatoes have 2 times the amount of fiber as the white & yellow guys!
• Because of all this fiber, the caloric energy is burned slower meaning they keep you full longer. Bonus, right??
• Manganese is also found in sweet potatoes. Manganese is a mineral that stabilizes your appetite. This makes it another little helper in the "keep you full for a long time" department. 
• They are heart healthy. Sweet potatoes contain lots of vitamin B6. B6 keeps your arteries and blood vessels flexible so blood flows more efficiently.
• Sweet potatoes also have high levels of potassium. Potassium helps keep your blood pressure in check by ridding your body of sodium. 
• They are also yummy. Just saying.

Now, if one of these reasons haven't convinced you to make this quesadilla then I just don't know what to tell ya except that it is good & you are missing out. 

Cumin Roasted Sweet Potato Quesadilla

Ingredients:

4 (8-inch) whole wheat tortillas

2 sweet potatoes, peeled and diced (see picture below)

1 (15 oz) can black beans, drained & rinsed

1 cup salsa 

1 tbsp cumin (more or less to suite taste)

1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

shredded cheese

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 425. Toss diced sweet potatoes in a big ziploc bag with the cumin and olive oil. Spread sweet potatoes out on a baking sheet. Roast for 10 minutes. Stir the sweet potatoes around and roast for 5 more minutes or until done.

2. In a saucepan on medium heat, combine black beans and salsa until heated through.

3. Once the sweet potatoes are done, prepare your quesadillas: lay a flour tortilla flat on a non-stick skillet. Sprinkle some cheese all over the tortilla. Spread about a tablespoon full of black bean salsa mixture over 1/2 of the tortilla. Top this with some sweet potatoes.  Fold tortilla in half.

4. Cook quesadilla about 4 minutes on each side or until crispy. Repeat with remaining tortillas and bean/potato mixture. Cut in half or thirds and enjoy!

Also, if ya get lazy and don't feel like getting out the skillet, just pile everything directly on top of the tortilla and bake it in the oven for a fast tostada. Now go getcha some sweet taters. 

Not-So-Fluffy Pancakes!!

Ok, time for another Candace kitchen Confession. I don't much care for breakfast. On a typical work day, my morning time meal consists of some fruit and coffee. I know this is kind of contrary to what we are always told, you know the whole "breakfast is the most important meal of the day" bit. See the thing is, I have a sensitive little tummy in the mornings and just about anything more than fruit is just really too much for me.

That being said, I occasionally find "breakfast" foods to be some of the best dinners. I remember growing up, we would always get soooo excited when we were having what  we called breakfast for dinner. There is something so rebellious about making pancakes and sausage & THEN going to bed as opposed to getting out of bed & THEN making pancakes and sausage. Shake things up a bit every now and then, would ya??

Now we need a side note. In addition to not liking breakfast at breakfast time, I also don't like sweet stuff as an entree, for instance: pancakes. I can't stand syrup. I hate the way the syrup bottle is always sticky. I just learned to say no to that stuff long ago. Instead, I usually opt for butter & fruit as a pancake topper. My grandmother also introduced me to applesauce on top of pancakes. Try that out sometime. For the purpose of this recipe, I included a yummy honey butter syrup that could honestly just be drank it taste so good.

So, I don't like breakfast, I don't like sweet stuffs, and now for the kicker: If I ever do eat a pancake, that thing better have some crispy edges. No fluffy flapjacks for me, no thank you.

If you are weird like me here is an unfluffy (I made that word up, the red-dotted underline confirmed it) pancake recipe without traditional syrup for you to try out!!!

Not-So-Fluffy Pancakes

slightly adapted from Cooking Classy's Cornbread Pancakes 

Pancake Ingredients: 

1 1/4 cup buttermilk

1/2 cup cornmeal

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp salt

3 tbsp sugar

1 egg

1 tbsp vegetable oil

3 tbsp unsweetened applesauce

butter or oil for skillet

If you don't have buttermilk, visit Joy the Baker for some substitution ideas. I typically use milk & vinegar in the same fashion that she recommends with milk & lemon. 

1. Whisk buttermilk and cornmeal together in a large bowl. Set aside.

2. Preheat a good non-stick skillet to medium heat with butter or oil. (Note: The better your skillet is, the less amount of butter/oil you will need to use.) 

3. In a small bowl, combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and sugar. Set aside.

4. Add egg, oil, and applesauce to the cornbread/milk mixture. Whisk until well combined.

5. Whisk flour mixture into cornbread mixture.

6. Once skillet is hot, ladle 1/3 cup of pancake mixture onto skillet. Cook until edges are just brown and crispy. There is an art to pancake flipping and I'm not the one to teach it so I'm just going to tell ya to do your best here. Be sure to add more butter/oil if batter is sticking. Flip and cook on other side. Remove to a paper towel to let any excess butter drain off. 

7. Repeat process with remaining batter. I got about 9 pancakes. You can double the recipe for more of a crowd. If you are really talented, you can manage to cook more than one at a time. Not this girl. 

Note: I cook all of the pancakes and refrigerate leftovers. To reheat, just cook in a 300 preheated oven for 5 minutes. 

Honey Butter Syrup

Ingredients: 

1/4 cup unsalted butter

1/4 cup powdered sugar, sifted

1/4 cup honey

1/4 cup buttermilk

1/2 tsp baking soda

Directions:

1. Melt butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Whisk in sifted sugar until lumps are all gone. 

2. Whisk in honey and buttermilk. Heat to a boil, whisking continuously.

3. Remove from heat and stir in baking soda. 

4. Serve syrup warm over pancakes. 

Note: Syrup can be reheated in microwave or simply spooned over warm pancakes. 

The lumps in the syrup are because I DID NOT sift and whisk properly :)

Creamy Sun Dried Tomato Stuffed Mushrooms!

I've been gone so long. My apologies. Never fear though. Just because I haven't posted recipes does not mean that I have quit eating. See, I started a new job back at the beginning of March and I have been adjusting to a new schedule so typically any free time I have is spent cleaning house or sleeping. Judging by the condition of my kitchen table (covered in laundry), sleeping is more of an accurate description.

The good news is, I have finally gotten my act together and I am ready to enter back into the world of food blogging. Good news part two: I have been documenting pictures and notes of all the yummies I have been cooking for the past few months so you are about to get bombarded with new recipes.  Yay!!

I think I would like to start you off with something simple. Stuffed Mushrooms. Nom.

Creamy Sun Dried Tomato Stuffed Mushrooms


Ingredients:

1 8 oz carton button mushrooms (you can use baby bellas if you like, these were just on sale)
4 oz cream cheese, softened
1 tbsp olive oil
1/4 cup onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 oz sun dried tomatoes, chopped
1/4 cup cheddar cheese, shredded
2 tbsp fine bread crumbs
fresh oregano, torn (optional)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375. Spray a small casserole dish with Pam. Put a few tablespoons of water in casserole dish. Wipe mushrooms clean. Remove stems, chop stems finely, and set aside.
2. Heat olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Saute onion, garlic, and mushrooms stems about 5 minutes. Remove from heat.
3. Add cream cheese to onion mixture. Stir until well combined. Add in sun dried tomatoes, cheddar, bread crumbs, and oregano.
4. Pile cream cheese mixture into/on top of each mushroom cap. If you have any cream cheese mixture left, it is really good baked on top of chicken breast!

5. Arrange mushrooms in casserole dish, touching them to each other to help keep them from toppling over. Bake for 20-30 minutes depending on how big your mushrooms are.

PS - I promise not to be gone for so long :)

Rustic Lentil & Veggie Pot Pie!!

I've been gone for ages, I know! While I have been cooking / baking just as much as usual, I have been doing so very impromptu and without a recipe. This makes it sorta difficult for me to share measurements and even ingredients with you since I basically have just been throwing things together on a whim.

My apologies.

The problem is, sometimes I eat a meal at a restaurant, see a picture in a magazine, or simply hear about a dish through word of mouth. My little wheels get to turning so quickly when I try to recreate said meals / dishes and I just can't keep up with myself. I typically try to keep a notepad in the kitchen to write as I go but I suppose I was feeling rebellious the past few weeks....

So once again, I apologize to you.

To make up for my selfish kitchen attitude I have had lately, I give you this pot pie. I know that winter is saying farewell and that springtime temperatures are peeking around the corner but I had to cook myself one last chilly weather comfort dish. I bid you adieu, winter weather.

Rustic Lentil & Veggie Pot Pie
concept from The Curvy Carrot


Ingredients:

1/2 cup uncooked red lentils
salt
3 carrots, peeled & diced
8 oz mushrooms, roughly chopped (I just used white button mushrooms)
1 medium onion, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 tbsp butter
1/2 tsp olive oil
1 tsp dried sage
1 1/2 tsp dried thyme
1 tsp black pepper
1 tsp salt
2 tbsp flour
1 potato, cut into 1/4 inch cubes
2 tbsp tomato paste

1 box Pillsbury pie crust (comes w/2 sheets of dough)
1 egg white
2 tbsp grated parmesean cheese

Directions:

1. Wash lentils. Place them in a saucepan and cover with 2 cups of water. Add a dash of salt. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer covered for 20 minutes. Once finished, drain lentils and save the water. Set aside.

red lentils. 

2. Preheat oven to 400. Spread 1 sheet of pie dough onto bottom and sides of an 8 or 9 inch pie plate. Bake for 7 minutes or until just golden. Set aside
3. In a large saucepan heat butter and oil, saute carrots, mushrooms, onion, and garlic for 5 minutes. Add thyme, sage, salt, pepper, and flour. Add water from cooked lentils. Stir until well combined.
4. Add potatoes and tomato paste to vegetable mixture. Reduce heat to medium low, cover and cook for 20-25 minutes or until potatoes are fork tender. Add additional water, a bit at a time, if needed.
5. Once potatoes are tender, stir in cooked lentils. Spoon this mixture into prepared pie crust. Top the pie mixture with the second sheet of pie dough.

6. Brush egg white over dough.  Sprinkle with parmesean cheese. Bake for 25 minutes.

Add some dough mushrooms!

Enjoy!

Pasta with Vodka Cream Sauce!

Valentines day is coming up. I'm going to now assign you statements to read, avoid the one that doesn't belong to you: All the love birds = statement 1 ; all the single ladies = statement 2.

STATEMENT 1:
Your sweetie deserves something yummy for this special day, don't ya think?? Rather than try to get a reservation at some expensive and fancy restaurant, why not cook a meal at home? Making a special meal is way more intimate than going to an overpacked eatery. It is also pretty impressive. I know you wanna impress! This vodka cream sauce will do just that. So put on your sexiest outfit, fix your hair all cute, throw on some bright red lipstick, and head to the kitchen to whip this yummy pasta dish up for your love. After dinner, mix you and your man a cosmo with some of that vodka and pop in a romantic comedy while you cuddle on the couch together and exchange sweet cards and teddy bears. Aren't you a gem?

STATEMENT 2:
Aren't you thankful you don't have to do your hair and get all done up for some date? Also, that money you woulda spent on a dumb gift? Uh uh. Go get yourself a fancy bottle of vodka and some expensive Lindt Truffles instead. Next, head on home for your night devoted to numero uno. You. You are gonna make yourself a fancy dinner of pasta with vodka cream sauce The best thing about this meal? There is plenty of vodka left in the bottle. Grab some olives and you have yourself a martini or 5. Everything about this night sounds awesome. Add in a real-life scenario movie (I'm thinking 500 Days of Summer) and some of those truffles. Can't get much better than that. Way cooler than being in some overcrowded restaurant with a guy that you know would rather be somewhere else.  All you single ladies, indulge yourself.

Pasta with Vodka Cream Sauce

Ingredients:

1lb uncooked pasta (I used campanalle but angel hair our penne would be good)

4 tbsp olive oil

1 medium vidalia onion, chopped

3 garlic cloves, chopped

3/4 cup vodka

2 (15 oz) cans petite diced tomatoes

handful of fresh basil, torn

1 cup heavy cream

1/4 tsp red pepper flakes

salt and pepper to taste

freshly grated parmesean cheese

Directions:

1. Boil pasta in water until al dente. Drain and set aside.

2. In a large saucepan, add onions and garlic to heated oil. Saute on medium high about 5 minutes or until translucent.

3. Add vodka to saucepan and simmer about 4 minutes.

4. Add tomatoes and basil to saucepan. Stir and cook about 10 minutes. I like to use the back of my spoon to mash the tomatoes up a bit. This is optional.

5. Reduce heat to low. Add cream and simmer about 15 minutes, stirring frequently. Add red pepper flakes and salt & pepper to taste.

6. Add cooked pasta to sauce, stirring until incorporated. Simmer about 5 more minutes.

7. Serve with fresh parmesean cheese.

*Note: This recipe will make about 6-8 serving portions. I halved the recipe and had 4 big servings.* 

I really like this recipe because other than the fresh basil, I tend to have all of these ingredients on hand. It is also a fairly cheap meal to put together. You don't have to have top shelf vodka for it to be good! If I were going to splurge on any ingredient it would be the parmesean cheese! I think this would be superb in summertime also, when fresh tomatoes are in season!! I'll be serving this at my Valentine's party to all of my friends. 

Cherry Limeade Pie!

Well, I said I would do it so I better keep my promise. February is National Cherry Month!! I told you about a pie that was served alongside the meatloaf I made for my brother... here it is!

For lots of information about cherries, including why they are good for you & other recipes, please visit Cherries. America's "Super Fruit." In the meantime, make this pie.

Cherry Limeade Pie

Ingredients:

1 9inch graham cracker crust

4 egg yolks

1 (14oz) can sweetened condensed milk

juice from 4 limes (about 2/3 cup)

zest from 1 lime

1 cup heavy whipping cream, chilled

1 1/2 cup maraschino cherries, roughly chopped

2 tbsp cherry juice

1 tsp vanilla extract

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 325. Whisk egg yolks and lime zest until fluffy, about 5 minutes.

2. Add the condensed milk a little at a time and beat until thick.

3. Add the lime juice and mix until incorporated. 

4. Pour filling into pie crust and bake 15 minutes or until set. It should still jiggle a bit but be firm for the most part.

5. Place pie in refrigerator while you prepare topping.

6. Beat whipping cream on high until stiff peaks form. Add cherry juice and extract, beating until incorporated. Fold in cherries. Refrigerate until pie has cooled.

7. Top cooled pie with whipped cream mixture. Stick pie in freezer for about 20 minutes before serving. Store leftovers covered in the refrigerator (unless you want a frozen pie, then just keep it in freezer!)

This pie is a variation of a key lime pie. The sweetness of the cherries and creaminess of the cream really compliment the sour lime taste. I'm pretty fond of this pie. My mom & brother enjoyed it as well!!