Buttermilk Cheddar Dill Biscuits

Original Recipe HERE

 

I was interested in these biscuits because of their use of cake flour.  I thought they'd be lighter and fluffier than the average cheese-incorporating biscuit.  I don't know how much of a difference it truly made, but they weren't dense or dry, so I'd use it again.  This recipe made 8.5 biscuits.

 

I eyeballed the amount of grated cheese and dried dill.  Next time I might add a little garlic powder, or at least some more salt.  But they were fine as-is, and everyone in the family had two.

 

A note of caution: I know that parchment paper isn't supposed to go in a 500 degree oven, but I thought that for such a short cooking time, it might be OK.  It wasn't...I started to smell a burning odor within two minutes, and the edges of the paper were already pretty browned.  I took the biscuits off and transferred them to another baking sheet (not lined or greased), and all was fine after that.  The biscuits were easy to lift off the pan when done.

 

Ingredients

1 & 1/4 cups cake flour
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 & 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cups butter (1/2 stick), grated
2/3 cup grated cheddar cheese
3/4 cup buttermilk
2 tablespoons dried dill

 

Directions

(1) If possible, put butter in the freezer ahead of time to make grating easier.

(2) Preheat oven to 500 degrees F.

(3) In a large bowl or using a stand mixer, combine flours, baking powder, baking soda and salt.

(4) Add butter; work with fingers or paddle attachment until it resembles coarse crumbs (mine never looked quite right).

(5) Add cheese; mix.

(6) Add buttermilk and dill; mix until dough forms a ball.

(7) Use paddle attachment to knead dough, or knead several times on a floured surface.

(8) Pat dough until about 3/4" thickness.

(9) Cut biscuts with a cookie cutter (mine was about 2" diameter).  Place on baking sheet.

(10) Bake until golden brown, 8-10 minutes.

Kid Participation:

* Measure dry ingredients

* Grate cheese (to the point where bigger hands need to take over lest blood be drawn)

* Work mixer

* Pat dough

* Cut biscuits

Creamy Tomato Soup

Original Recipe HERE

 

I took a chance on this recipe, skeptical that my kids would like it - just because most kids don't like tomato soup (despite what Campbell's may try to tell you).  While it was cooking, I told myself that I was going to have a lot of soup to eat for lunches.  However, upon first taste, all three kids declared it delicious and had two or three servings (do I count the one that *J* accidentally dumped over and splattered all over the floor, chair legs, chair pad, cat food, door mat, and himself?).  There was barely enough left over for a meal the next day.

 

The taste reminded me of pasta sauce, so it wasn't the weak tomato soup that I was expecting.  The potent flavor was probably what made the kids like it so much.

 

This soup was a home run tonight...which probably means that when I make it again, they're going to say they don't like it.

 

Ingredients

1 Tablespoon olive oil
1/2 cup chopped onion
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 bay leaves
3 cans (15 oz each) diced or crushed tomatoes
2 cups broth [I used vegetable]
1/2 Tablespoon brown sugar
1 to 2 Tablespoons dried basil
Dash of crushed red pepper flakes
Salt and pepper, to taste
1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt or light sour cream [I used sour cream]

 

Directions

(1) In a 4-quart pot, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add onion; cook until tender, 3 to 5 minutes.

(2) Add garlic; cook another minute until very lightly browned.

(3) Add bay leaves, tomatoes, broth, brown sugar, and basil.  Stir well.

(4) Season with red pepper flakes, salt, and pepper to taste.

(5) Simmer on low heat approximately 15 minutes.

(6) Remove bay leaves.  Use immersion blender (or standing blender) to puree soup.

(7) Add yogurt or sour cream; stir until well combined.

 

Kid Participation: Shock me with an insatiable appetite for it.

Korean Beef

Original Recipe found in my mom's recipe collection

 

This is a meal from my childhood that is pretty common.  It tastes just as I remember it, and my kids gobbled it up just as my brother and I did.  This time I served it over barley and with broccoli, though my mom usually used asparagus.

 

The sugar amount can be reduced, depending on personal preference on how sweet versus salty you like your Asian-inspired food.

 

It can be made two ways: as listed below, or just dumping the beef and liquid into the pan and allowing it to all cook together.  It can be hard for me to keep track of the color of the beef when it's cooking in the liquid, so I prefer to separate the two.  Except on nights when I feel lazy and remind myself that meat can be medium-well and perfectly safe to eat.

 

Ingredients

1 lb piece of beef

1/4 cup white sugar

1/4 cup soy sauce [I used low sodium]

3 Tablespoons sesame seeds

4 green onions, chopped

2 cloves garlic, pressed or minced

3 Tablespoons sesame oil

 

Directions

(1) Slice beef very thin (less than 1/4").  Put into a large mixing bowl.

(2) Sprinkle sugar over beef.  Toss to coat.  Allow to sit 20-30 minutes.

(3) Add all other ingredients.  Toss to coat.  Allow to sit an additional 20-30 minutes.

(4) Heat a large wok or pan on medium heat.  Use slotted spoon to remove beef from liquid; add to pan.

(5) Cook beef in several batches (if necessary to avoid crowding), tossing and moving it so no sides burn.  Adjust heat as needed.

(6) Remove beef from pan.  If desired, pour liquid into pan and allow to briefly bubble and slightly reduce.

(7) Serve beef and liquid over rice.

 

Kid Participation: None, except giving me deja vu.

Spicy Pasta Salad

Original Recipe in Taste of Home's Contest Winning Annual Recipes 2004

 

This was more filling than the average pasta salad due to using filled pasta.  I used tortellini because I figured its nooks and crannies would hold the sauce better.

 

Despite using no spices, mild ingredients, and drained Rotel, *J* still found it too hot.  It did have a little bite to it, so I assume that canned petite diced tomatoes could be substituted for the Rotel.

 

While this was all we needed to eat for dinner, it could be made heartier with additional vegetables like chopped peppers and sliced olives.

 

Ingredients

2 packages (16 oz each) frozen cheese ravioli or tortellini

1 can (10 oz) diced tomatoes & green chilis, undrained [I used mild Rotel]

2 cups corn

1 cup taco sauce [I used mild]

1 cucumber

1/2 red onion, sliced thin

1 garlic clove, pressed

salt & pepper to taste

1/4 teaspoon cumin [optional; I did not use]

shredded cheese [optional]

sour cream [optional]

 

Directions

(1) Cook pasta according to package directions.  Allow to cool to room temperature or refrigerate.

(2) Peel cucumber.  Cut into quarters, length-wise.  Slice into bite-size pieces (not too small; you want to keep some crunch).

(3) In a large mixing bowl, thoroughly combine all ingredients.  Cover and, ideally, refrigerate at least two hours (I served before that).

(4) Serve with any desired toppings.

 

Kid Participation: Stir everything together.

Slow Cooker Refried Bean Soup

Original Recipe HERE

 

I thought this would be a standard, "good enough but nothing special" dish that wouldn't go into regular rotation but be an adequate "emergency" meal on days I wasn't sure what else to make.  However, it smelled really good while cooking, and its flavor exceeded my expectations.  I think the fresh garlic made the difference.  I decreased the amount of cumin from the original recipe (because it offends me) and subbed in smoked paprika.

 

Everyone in my family ate this.  I served it with shredded white cheddar and sour cream.  I also saw that it wasn't making the monstrous amount of food that crock pot meals normally do, so I made pearl barley as well, scooping it into bowls and ladeling soup over it.  Because I did that, I didn't feel the need to make any cornbread or add another "substantial" element to the meal.

 

Ingredients

1 can (15 oz) refried beans [I used fat free]

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

1 cup frozen corn

2 cups vegetable broth

1 cup grape tomatoes, quartered

1 cup peeled, diced carrots

3 cloves garlic, chopped

1/2 teaspoon cumin [I used roasted]

1 teaspoon dried oregano

1/2 teaspoon chili powder

1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon black pepper

 

Directions

(1) Add all ingredients to slow cooker.  Stir.

(2) Cook on high 3-4 hours or low 6-8.  Stir on occasion to break up refried bean "mass."  Once carrots are softened to preference, soup is done.

(3) [Optional] Use an immersion blender to puree a small amount of soup to thicken it.

(4) Serve with shredded cheese, sour cream, sliced green onions, or other desired toppings.

 

Kid Participation:

* Add ingredients to slow cooker

* Grate cheese (under close supervision so fingertips and knuckles stay intact)

Honey Beer Bread

Original Recipe HERE

 

I do not like beer.  Any kind.  Not even those that claim to be fruity, spicy, or pumpkin-y.  Nothing about it appeals to me.  I am a solid wine lady for life (though in my past life, I was a [multiple] vodka-and-cranberry lady...but those are stories for another time).  However, I know it has its place in cooking. I just never think to use it, despite there always being an ample supply on hand thanks to Husband.

 

But I was making broccoli cheese soup and wanted some sort of bread product to accompany it.  I was going to make my standard pizza dough recipe and let the kids make "snakes" out of it, brush them with melted butter/garlic powder/Parmesan, and hope it turned out well.  That recipe will (also) have to wait for another time.  Because I looked in my bookmarks and came across this one.  A five-minute prep time, then forget it for an hour?  Sign me up, especially since the kids were happy amusing themselves with making Halloween decorations and I didn't want to rock the boat.

This turned out awesomely.  There is a slight beer taste, but it wasn't offensive to me.  The darker the beer, the better...or so says all the recipes I read.  I used a random Red Hook ESB, which I knew nothing about.  I think there was a little too much butter (we all had greasy fingers at the end), so I decreased the amount a little below.  Hopefully the perfectly crusty crust (is it OK to use the same word to describe the same word?) would still result.  I served this with herbed garlic butter, and we all gobbled it up.

 

Next time I will add some shredded cheddar and dried dill, but since the soup was already cheesy enough, I skipped it this time.

 

Ingredients

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 cup bread flour

1 Tablespoon baking powder

1 Tablespoon white sugar

1 teaspoon salt

3 Tablespoons honey (warmed if necessary)

1 (12 oz) beer (darker is better)

3 Tablespoons butter, melted & slightly cooled

 

Directions

(1) Preheat oven to 350 F.  Grease a 9x5" bread pan.

(2) In a large bowl, whisk together flours, sugar, baking powder, and salt.

(3) Add honey; stir with rubber spatula until well combined.

(4) Add beer; stir until no dry flour is visible.

(5) Pour batter into loaf pan.  Spread so top is flat.

(6) Pour melted butter evenly over entire surface.

(7) Bake until bread is golden brown and a knife inserted in the center comes out clean, approximately 50 to 60 minutes.

(8) Turn bread out onto cooling rack.  Slice when room temperature.

 

Kid Participation:

* Stir dry ingredients

* Pour and stir beer

* Wonder why they are allowed to consume beer, regardless of the form it takes

Roasted Cauliflower & White Cheddar Gratin

Original Recipe HERE

I'm a sucker for anything with a cheese sauce.  Because said cheese sauce smothers healthy cauliflower, I figured this dish was a wash, each component negating the other.  But I ate a lot of it.  It reheated well the next day, so I continued to eat it.

I was slightly heavy handed with the nutmeg; I was cocky and didn't measure precisely.  A little nutmeg goes a long way, and next time I'll probably just leave it out.

Ingredients

1 large head cauliflower, cut into bite-size florets

2 Tablespoons olive oil

salt and pepper to taste

3 Tablespoons butter

3 Tablespoons flour

1-1/2 cups milk

1/4 teaspoon nutmeg [optional]

salt and pepper to taste

1 cup white cheddar cheese, shredded

1/2 cup panko bread crumbs

Directions

(1) Preheat oven to 400 F.

(2) Toss cauliflower with oil, salt, and pepper. Spread in single layer on large baking sheet.

(3) Roast until lightly golden brown, 20-30 minutes.

(4) In a medium saucepan, melt butter over medium heat.

(5) Add flour to butter; cook until it just begins to brown.

(6) Add milk, nutmeg, salt, pepper, and cheese.  Heat until cheese melts and sauce thickens.

(7) Add cauliflower to sauce.  Mix well.

(8) Pour into a baking dish.  Top with panko.

(9) Bake at 350 F about 15-20 minutes or until gratin is bubbling on the sides and golden brown on top.

Kid Participation: None.