101- Buttermilk Biscuits

I think that a good biscuit recipe definitely falls under the 101 category. They are so easy and so versatile that you can pair them with many things. You can have them with sausage and gravy for breakfast, on the side of a nice bowl of soup for lunch, or with some chicken and veg for dinner. Obviously those aren't the only limits to buttermilk biscuits, those are just some ideas. November's Everyday Food did a little feature on these delicious delights so I decided to whip some up last week. Instead of using all the all purpose flour the recipe called for I substituted half of it with white whole wheat, just to make things a smidge healthier for us. With it being holiday season it seems like the perfect time to whip some of these babies up.

Buttermilk Wheat Biscuits
Recipe from Everyday Food; Makes 12


4 cups all purpose flour, plus more for rolling and cutting
2 tablespoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoons salt
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, cold, cut into bits, plus 4 tablespoons melted
1 1/2 cups low-fat buttermilk

• Preheat oven to 450 degrees, in a food processor. In a food processor, pulse flour, baking powder, baking soda, sugar and salt to combine. Add cold butter; pulse until mixture is the texture of coarse meal;, with a few pea-size pieces of butter remaining. Add buttermilk; pulse just until dough is moistened, 2 to 3 times.
• Turn dough onto a lightly floured work surface; knead just to combine (do not overwork). Roll with a floured rolling pin (or pat with hands) to a 3/4" thickness. Cut out rounds with a floured 2 1/2 : round biscuit cutter.
• Transfer to a baking sheet, 1 1/2" apart. (Re-roll and cut scraps only once.) Brush top and sides of rounds with melted butter. Bake until biscuits are puffed and golden, 12 to 15 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature.

My notes: They also had some hints for biscuit variations and I decided to go with black pepper, so I added some black pepper into the dry mixture and some on top after brushing them with butter. They suggest 1 teaspoon in the dry mixture and 1/2 teaspoon atop them. I just cracked till I was happy, ha. And give the white whole wheat a shot, cause they tasted great and at least it's only half as bad for you. Also, I hate my food processor, so I didn't mess with it. I used my handy dandy pastry blender to cut in the butter and a fork to gently mix the buttermilk in.

Coming Soon

Another 101 Post will be coming very soon. Sorry, I'm a bum and forgot the recipe, ha.

101- Meatloaf

I've decided that I need to work on mastering some of the most basic recipes. The things that you expect every good cook and/or housewife would have in their repertoire, able to whip up at a moment's notice. When I started cooking I just started trying recipes, I didn't begin with an intent to learn these basics and go from there. So, while I make a bolognese sauce that my husband loves, I've never made a basic tomato sauce. I have yet to roast a chicken. These are just a few of the things that I think fall into that basic category. Hopefully this is just the first of my 101 posts.

For sometime now I'd been craving meatloaf. This isn't something that I ate a whole lot as a kid, but when we did have it I really enjoyed it. My husband had expressed disdain for the meal, so I never bothered to make it. However when, combined with my craving, the October issue of Everyday Food had a feature on the classic dish, I figured it was time I gave it a shot. The hubster agreed to give it a go. It turned out pretty good and we both gladly gobbled it up. I think next time I may try it in mini loaf pans, so that I can freeze some for later. And I realize meatloaf isn't the most attractive dish, but I hate not using pictures.

Classic Meatloaf
Recipe from Everyday Food; Serves 6












3 slices white sandwich bread
1/3 cup whole milk
1 1/2 pounds ground beef chuck
1/2 pound ground pork
1/2 medium onion, grated
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 large egg
1/2 cup ketchup
Coarse salt and ground pepper

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil or parchment paper. Place bread in food processor; pulse until fine crumbs form. Transfer to a small bowl; stir in milk. Set aside, about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
• Meanwhile, in a large bowl, combine beef, pork, onion, garlic, egg, 1/4 cup ketchup, 1 1/2 teaspoons salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Add bread-milk mixture, and mix very gently with a fork (do not overmix).
• Place meat mixture on prepared baking sheet, and form into a loaf about 9 inches long and 4 to 5 inches wide.
• Bake, brushing twice with remaining 1/4 cup ketchup during baking, until an instant-read thermometer registers 160 degrees, 45 to 55 minutes. Let meatloaf rest 10 minutes before slicing and serving.

My notes: I used store-bought bread crumbs because I hate my food processor, and we don't eat white bread so I wasn't interested in buying a loaf for 3 slices. Although that posed the problem of guessing how much to use. I used 1/3 cup and I probably could have used less. It turned out fine, but it was a very thick once the 10 minutes was up. Aside from that I really didn't change anything about this.

So, one basic recipe down, who knows how many to go!