Fluffy Buttermilk Biscuits

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Making homemade biscuits always scared the hell outta me. They always seemed to be time consuming, and anything involving “cutting in” of cold butter tends to make me nervous too. After seeing Josie’s post on them (such the Southern belle!), she gave me the confidence I needed to try. So glad I gave it a go – because they turned out absolutely perfectly. And both of my concerns that I listed above were completely unfounded.

First off, they aren’t time consuming. Not even15 minutes of prep work, and I had gorgeous butter-topped biscuits that I was putting into the oven. The food processor pretty much does all the work for you, that machine is such a workhorse in my kitchen. A few quick pulses of the flour and butter, then you add the liquid components, knead a few times, shape and cut. It’s that easy!

I don’t like to brag, but they easily were the best biscuits I’ve seen, or tasted. They stood a mile high! Okay, maybe not a mile…but still, very tall.  And the fluffy layers? Unparalleled. They were the perfect accompaniment to the fried chicken dinner I made that night, and the boys and I enjoyed the leftover biscuits with blueberry preserves the next morning. So, if you’re a bit scared of them like I was, get your butt in the kitchen and give it a try. This recipe won’t let you down!

Fluffy Buttermilk Biscuits

2 1/4 cups cake flour or 2 cups all-purpose flour
1 Tbs baking powder
1 Tbs plus 1 tsp sugar
1 tsp salt
6 Tbs cold unsalted butter, cut into several pieces
3/4 cup cold buttermilk
2 Tbs melted butter, for brushing

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

In the bowl of a food processor, combine the flour, baking powder, salt, and sugar.  Pulse several times to combine well.  Add the butter, and continue to pulse in 2-second increments, until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs with a few pea-sized pieces (about 5 pulses).  This can also be done using a pastry blender or 2 forks if you don’t have a food processor.

Transfer the mixture to a medium bowl, pour the buttermilk over it, and use a fork to mix for about 1 minute, or until the dough just comes together.
Turn the dough out onto a floured surface, knead with floured hands, and pat into a rectangle about 6×10 inches and 1-inch thick.

Fold the dough like a business letter (the righmost third over the center third, then the left third on top).  Turn the dough a quarter of a turn, pat it into another 6×10 inch rectangle, and fold it upon itself in thirds again.  Repeat one more time, then pat the dough into a 6×10 inch rectangle a final time.

Using a floured 2-3 inch biscuit cutter, cut the biscuits from the dough and place them about 1 1/2 inches apart on an ungreased baking sheet.  Pat the scraps into a 1-inch thick rectangle and cut more biscuits.

Brush the tops with half the melted butter, and bake 15-20 minutes, or until the tops are just beginning to brown.  Brush the tops again with the remaining butter and serve warm.

Source: Pink Parsley, originally from The Lee Bros. Southern Cookbook

Buffalo Chicken Pizza

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Last week, Shawnda of Confections of a Foodie Bride devoted a whole week to pizza. I happened to have pizza on the menu for Friday evening, and I couldn’t help but be inspired by all the fun twists on pizza that she’d shared during the week. I’ve been in the mood for wings for a couple of weeks now. So, I thought, why not a buffalo chicken pizza? Yum!

I looked around on a few different recipes, and there are several variations out there. I settled on Racheal Ray’s version. Say what you will about her “stoups” and sammies, but what recipes I’ve tried of hers have yet to let me down. I liked the idea of a Buffalo pizza sauce, versus just a buffalo sauce, or ranch dressing as the base. I didn’t have blue cheese, so I just mixed in a little bit of cheddar. I was thinking feta might be a good substitute as well, with the nice salty kick it lends. And last, but certainly not least, the red onions. Which, get nice and charred under the intense heat in the oven.

Everyone really enjoyed it, in fact we ate the whole thing that night. Usually, on pizza night, there’s always at least a half a pizza left over between the traditional pizza I make for the boys, and the more adulterated pizza I’ll make for us. I’m already craving this again, so I have a feeling it won’t be long before it’s making an appearance on our dinner table soon. Make sure you have plenty of ice cold beer to serve with it, as they go down too easy together!

Buffalo Chicken Pizza

3/4 pound chicken breast cutlets
olive oil, for drizzling
2 teaspoons grill seasoning
1 pizza dough
Cornmeal or flour, to handle dough
2 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce, eyeball it
2 to 3 tablespoons hot sauce (I like Frank’s Red Hot)
1/2 cup tomato sauce
1 cup shredded Monterey or Pepper Jack cheese
1/2 cup cheddar cheese
1/2 small red onion, thinly sliced

Preheat oven to 500 degrees F. Preheat grill pan to high.

Place chicken on a plate and drizzle with olive oil , then season with grill seasoning. When grill is hot, add chicken and cook about 3 minutes on each side. Remove from pan and set aside to cool. Once chicken has cooled, slice it into 1/2″ thick strips.

Stretch dough to form pizza using cornmeal or flour to help you handle it. Set pizza on pizza pan to the side and clean board.

In a small saucepan over medium heat, melt butter and stir in Worcestershire, hot sauce, and tomato sauce. Remove from heat. Add chicken strips to sauce and toss to coat, then remove and set aside.

Cover the pizza dough with remaining  pizza sauce, then top with the cheeses, chicken pieces, and red onion. Bake 15 minutes or until crisp.

Source: adapted from Racheal Ray

DIY Pita Bread

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I’ve been making my own pita bread at home for a few years now. Finding them in my local grocery store can be hit and miss, so it started out as a necessity. But, like everything else – once I had them homemade, I couldn’t go back. I figured it was high time I shared it with you guys. These pitas are puffy, pillowey, and soft . Everything that you could possibly want in pita bread!

They’re easier to make than you’d think too. I’m able to put the dough together at 3 in the afternoon, and we’re eating gyros with the pitas I’d made by 6 in the evening. It comes together quickly, and is very workable. To shape the dough, I like to stretch with my hands (like you would a pizza) and then finish with the rolling pin. I don’t like a giant “pocket” in my pita, and this technique seems to help with that. I also like a slightly larger pita, so I roll it thin.  But, if a pocket pita is what you’re looking for, just make the dough circle a bit smaller and thicker.

The recipes make 8 pitas, which was perfect for the guys and I to have dinner. Then, we enjoyed pita pizzas the next day for lunch simply by topping with pizza sauce, cheese, and some fun toppings. The boys loved having their own individual pizza to decorate, and I always love turning leftovers into something new. Enjoy!

Pita Bread

3 cups flour, plus 1/2-3/4 cup more as needed
1 ½ tsp. salt
1 tbsp. sugar or honey
1 packet instant yeast
1 ¼ to 1 ½ cups water, roughly at room temperature
2 tbsp. olive oil, vegetable oil, butter or shortening

Mix the yeast in with the flour, salt, and sugar.  Add the olive oil and 1 ¼ cup water and stir together with a wooden spoon.  All of the ingredients should form a ball.  If some of the flour will not stick to the ball, add more water.

Once all of the ingredients form a ball, place the ball on a work surface, and knead the dough for approximately 10 minutes. If you are using an electric mixer, mix it at low speed for 10 minutes.  As the dough is mixing, continue to add flour, a tablespoon or two at a time, until the dough clears the sides of the bowl and is tacky but not sticky.  (I add a significant amount of flour, so don’t be afraid to keep adding more until you reach the right consistency.)

When you are done kneading the dough, place it in a bowl that has been lightly coated with oil. Form a ball out of the dough and place it into the bowl, rolling the dough around so that it has a light coat of oil on all sides. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap or a damp towel and set aside to rise until it has doubled in size, approximately 90 minutes.

When it has doubled in size, punch the dough down to release some of the trapped gases and divide it into 8 equal pieces. Roll each piece into a ball, cover the balls with a damp kitchen towel, and let them rest for 20 minutes. This step allows the dough to relax so that it will be easier to shape.

While the dough is resting, preheat the oven to 450°. If you have a baking stone, put it in the oven to preheat as well. If you do not have a baking stone, turn a cookie sheet upside down and place it on the middle rack of the oven while it is preheating. This will be the surface on which you bake your pitas.

After the dough has relaxed for 20 minutes, spread a light coating of flour on a work surface and place one of the balls of dough there. Sprinkle a little bit of flour on top of the dough and use a rolling pin or your hands to stretch and flatten the dough. You should be able to roll it out to between ¼ – 1/8” thick – 6 inches in diameter. If the dough does not stretch sufficiently, you can cover it with the damp towel and let it rest 5-10 minutes before trying again.

Place discs on a lightly greased baking sheet or parchment paper and let rise, uncovered, until barely doubled in thickness, about 30-45 minutes.

Open the oven and place as many pitas as you can fit on the hot baking surface. They should be baked through and puffy after 3 minutes. If you want your pitas to be crispy and brown you can bake them for an additional 3 to 5 minutes, but it isn’t necessary.

Source: Brown Eyed Baker, via Annie’s Eats

Poblano Burgers with Chipotle Cream

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A couple weekends ago, my girlfriend and I ventured out to the local flea market. I was hoping to find some unique vintage plates, flatware, linens, etc. to use as props. I’m happy to report that I did, flea markets and yard sales are a great source for stuff like that. There’s also a produce cart there, that a very nice Hispanic lady runs. Most of what she had to offer were things that one would use in Mexican food – chiles, tomatillos, dried beans, cactus (!!), garlic, onions. Everything was gorgeous too. I’m not stretching the truth when I say that it was the most gorgeous spread of produce that I’ve seen around here. I will definitely be going back!

At any rate, I bought a basket of 6 gorgeous, big, dark green poblano peppers for the small sum of $2. I knew I wanted to make chile rellanos for dinner, but we weren’t going to eat that many of them. I sat down to browse my favorite cookbooks and food sites when Courtney from Cook Like A Champion mentioned on the site’s Facebook feed that they were having these burgers for dinner. It was a sign, and I was sold. They were relatively quick to bring together, and absolutely hit the spot. Jon died and went to Heaven. We just had them last week, and he’s already asking for them again.

Poblanos are a relatively mild pepper, so I was worried the flavor would get lost in translation. But, it doesn’t! The flavor of the pepper shined right through the beef. And, the chipotle cream on top is just the perfect complement. Ant leftovers make a delicious dipping sauce for fries! I went full on pig style – and added a slice of Pepperjack cheese. But, eh, you hardly knew it was there. Next time I probably won’t bother. With all this gorgeous weather everyone’s been having, I know you’ve got to be itching to fire up the grill. These burgers are the perfect way to kick start the grilling season!

Poblano Burgers with Chipotle Cream

2 poblano peppers
1 tablespoon milk
1 slice white bread, crusts removed, and torn into 1/2-inch pieces
3 tablespoons minced fresh cilantro, divided
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 pound ground sirloin
1/2 cup light sour cream
1 tablespoon minced shallots
1 teaspoon fresh lime juice
1 chipotle chile, finely chopped
2 teaspoons adobo sauce
Cooking spray
4 hamburger buns, toasted on the grill
Lettuce, onions, etc. for serving

Directions:
Preheat broiler to high. Place poblanos on a foil-lined baking sheet and broil about 8 minutes, turning occasionally, until blackened. Place in a bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Alternately, place in a plastic bag and seal. Let stand for 15 minutes. Remove skin and discard seeds and ribs. Finely chop peepers and set aside.

In a large bowl, combine milk and bread pieces. Mash with a fork until a smooth paste is formed. Add poblanos, half of cilantro, cumin, coriander, paprika, 1/4 teaspoon of salt and pepper and beef. Gently toss to combine, taking care not to overwork the meat. Divide into 4 equal portions and shape into a 1/2-inch thick patty. Press gently in the center of each to form a small indention. Cover and refrigerate until ready to grill.

Preheat grill to medium-high heat or prepare coals. Meanwhile, make chipotle cream by combining the sour cream with the remaining cilantro, salt and pepper. Stir in shallots, lime juice, chipotle and adobo sauce. Set aside.

Coat the grill rack with cooking spray and place the patties on top. Grill for 3 minutes or until grill marks appear. Turn and continue cooking an additional 3 minutes or until burgers reach desired stage of doneness. Serve with chipotle cream sauce, lettuce and any other desired toppings.

Source: adapted from Cooking Light, via Cook Like A Champion