Tuesday, July 30, 2013

Big Buttery Biscuits

This recipe originally came from the J.P.'s Big Daddy Biscuits recipe I have posted on here from Allrecipes.com.  It's a great recipe.  However, every time I made it, I needed to reduce the milk in it and the last time I made them....a few days ago....I didn't have any shortening, so used butter.  We all liked them even better!  So, here is my new recipe - with less milk, butter, and also I use more sugar than he originally had.  This recipe is a double batch, so makes about 18 biscuits.

4 cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoon baking powder
2 teaspoons salt
4 tablespoons white sugar
2/3 cup butter
1 1/2 cup milk (Adjust as needed - may need a little less or a little more.)

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, and sugar. Cut in the shortening until the mixture resembles coarse meal. Gradually stir in milk until dough pulls away from the side of the bowl.  Turn out onto a floured surface, and knead 15 to 20 times. Pat or roll dough out to 1 inch thick. Cut biscuits with a large cutter or juice glass dipped in flour. Repeat until all dough is used. Brush off the excess flour, and place biscuits onto an ungreased baking sheet. Bake for 13 to 15 minutes in the preheated oven, or until edges begin to brown.
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Thursday, July 25, 2013

A Very, Merry Happy Un-Birthday to YOU!

A few days ago I cleaned out my "party drawers" where I store all party plates, napkins, etc.  I decided that instead of buying any more napkins or paper plates, my family would use all of these "extras" until they're gone.  There's a huge conglomeration of napkins and plates, leftover from wedding showers, baby showers, school parties, church events, holidays, and birthdays.  

Maybe you have some "left-overs" you need to get rid of....or maybe in the past you've just thrown away the extras without using them.  Now you can do as my sister-in-law suggested:  Celebrate a VERY, MERRY, HAPPY UN-BIRTHDAY!  (I added the "happy" part.)
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Tuesday, July 23, 2013

Golf Ball Birthday Cake (With imperfect golf balls!)


Here's an idea for a golf birthday cake, although I forgot to indent the golf balls until party time, so used something that really didn't work very well.  Nevertheless, it worked for our son's 17th birthday party. Also, I thought the cake was pretty squared up but obviously, the left front of the cake droops down some.  Oh, well.... :)
The base of the cake is a Wilton 14 x 14 inch square cake pan. I used three cake mixes for the two layers.  The four balls were made from cupcakes. Just cut off the tops of the cupcakes for the ball to be in the grass. I used toothpicks to secure the balls to the cake better.

So, maybe you have a golfer in the family and need a golf-themed cake.  Here's one idea of how to accomplish that with a simple design.  I have other golf cakes on this site.  Use the search OR look in Decorated Birthday Cakes.
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Friday, July 19, 2013

Biscuit Pancakes - Well, of Course!

Monday morning I decided to make my kiddos a big breakfast with homemade biscuits.  I don't make a "big" one that often, so they were really excited! Well, it became the biggest disaster!  The bottom element on my oven went out while the biscuits were in the oven, so I ended up cooking some in a little toaster oven. 
I decided to cook the rest of the biscuits like a pancake - but in butter. They were really good!  However, the gravy that I tried to make with almond milk (because I ran out of regular milk), was not!  Maybe it could be, but it sure wasn't that day!
My husband fixed the oven. It ended up not being the element, but just a problem with the wires. I can't imagine why since the oven is as old as I am!! Haha!  Anyway, a few days later I made biscuits again....and they turned out well.  Really well!  YAY!  (Recipe is on here: JP's Big Daddy Biscuits.  Or search for them on allrecipes.com.)

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Tuesday, July 16, 2013

Okra and Tomates

 
I tried to have my husband name this dish.  He said to call it, "Okramater Salad".  Ummmmm. NO!  Then he said to call it "Okramater Goulash".  Ummmmm.  NO, again! Haha! So I just called it simply what it was: Okra and Tomatoes.
 Our oldest son grew the okra in our garden, but I didn't want to fry it with breading.  I put a little bit of olive oil in a frying pan, along with a pat of butter. Olive oil will burn quickly, so adding the butter allows it to cook at a higher temperature. It also makes it have a more "fried" flavor.
 I stir fried the okra until it was soft, beginning to brown, and no longer sticky/stringy.
Then I added sweet cherub tomatoes. They weren't home-grown, but tasted really good.  I cooked this for five minutes or so....just until the tomatoes began to soften.

We really liked this dish! It had a great, fresh flavor....like fresh from the garden!
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Wednesday, July 10, 2013

Roasted Yellow Squash


Our oldest son planted a garden this year and grew some yellow squash for me.  I was excited, but since I'm the only one who will eat it boiled, decided to try it another way - roasted.  I think I have a few more in the family that will now eat squash! Yay!  That's a good thing since we're going to have an abundance of the yellow veggie!

Oh, and by the way....can you believe it?  It's a NEW recipe!!  I'm so excited!  It's because for the first time this summer, I've actually been home a few days.  Hopefully there will be more new recipes to come in the future.

I found the recipe at this link: 
http://www.skinnytaste.com/2012/08/roasted-yellow-squash.html

My pictures of the finished squash don't look as good as the ones on the link, but it tasted great and that's all that matters!

Roasted Yellow Squash

2 cups yellow squash, cut into 1/4 inch thick half moons
1/2 tablespoon olive oil (I used a little bit more because it wasn't coating the squash well)
pinch of garlic powder
salt and pepper, to taste
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. In a medium bowl combine yellow squash, olive oil, garlic powder, salt and pepper and toss to mix. Place the squash on a baking sheet in a single layer and bake in the lower part of the oven 10 to 12 minutes (my "vintage"....well "old" oven took 20 - 25 minutes!), or until the bottom is golden. Remove and serve immediately.
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Sunday, July 7, 2013

Go Fish! Birthday Party

 
 Recently we celebrated our great-nephew's 3rd birthday. His mom made some really cute things for his party.  This 'fish' birthday banner hung at the par pavilion where his party was held.
 She also made these party favors using crushed Oreos and gummy worms.  The fish thank you said, "Thanks for making my party reel fun"!
These fish-themed cupcakes were so cute! The colored Goldfish cheese crackers made perfect 'fish' which were caught with a pretzel reel and icing string.  
My mother-in-law made Levi's fishing-themed birthday cake.  What a great way to end the celebration by eating yummy cake and ice cream!

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