Sift flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt into a large bowl. Cut in fat with a pastry blender until mixture looks like bread crumbs. Make a well in the center and pour in starter. Stir until all flour is combined with the starter.
Flour a board generously. Turn dough onto board and kneed just until smooth. Pat dough out about ½ inch in thickness and cut with a biscuit cutter (I just used a small inverted glass).
Place biscuits on a lightly oiled cookie sheet. Cover pan with waxed paper, and place it in a warm, draft-free place, allowing biscuits to rise for about ½ hr.
Bake 20-25 minutes until lightly browned. Serve immediately with lots of butter.
Makes about 1 dozen biscuits.
Notes
Sourdough starter recipe can be found here: http://blog.webicurean.net/2001/06/10/sourdough-starter
2 tsp House of Prime Rib Seasoning (or celery salt)
1 tsp ground black pepper
1 tsp Lawry's seasoned salt
1 tbsp dried minced onion
1 tsp dried minced garlic
1 tsp cayenne pepper
15 oz whole tomatoes, chopped with liquid
15 oz can red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
4 oz canned pimentos, coarsely chopped, liquid reserved
1 small green bell pepper, cored, seeded, and finely chopped
3 stalks celery, diced
8 oz shredded cheddar cheese, for garnish
4 chopped scallions, for garnish
Tortilla chips, for garnish
Instructions
In a large saucepan over medium heat, brown ground beef and beef cubes. Remove meat from pan and discard grease, leaving about 1 tbsp in the pan.
To the pan add chopped onion, crushed garlic, and jalapeno pepper, cooking for five minutes, until softened.
Deglaze pan with whiskey and stir meat back in. Add seasoning ingredients, mixing well, and bring to a simmer.
Cook, stirring, for 5 minutes. Add tomatoes, their liquid, and kidney beans. Then reduce heat to low and cook, covered, 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Mix in pimentos with their liquid, green pepper, and celery, and cook, uncovered, five minutes longer, stirring occasionally.
Garnish with cheese, scallions, and tortilla chips and serve immediately.
(ARA) – Remember that resolution you made at the beginning of the year to eat better? Chances are you’ve forgotten all about it and are snacking on chips or a candy bar right now. If that’s the case, put down your non-healthy snack and pick up some food for thought.
When the USDA released its revised Dietary Guidelines in January 2005, the recommended number of servings of fruits and vegetables increased dramatically. The new guidelines call for the average person with an intake of 2,000 calories a day to eat two cups of fruit and two-and-a-half cups of vegetables every day, and for good reason.
My cousin Vern sells this salad at his deli in Rohnert Park, California. Once he started bringing it to family gatherings, I became addicted. It’s super easy to make, tastes fantastic, and it’s perfect for potlucks.
pinch of each: sweet basil, cayenne pepper, rosemary, thyme
dash of liquid smoke
Instructions
Rinse beans. In a crockpot, soak the beans overnight in a generous amount of Tony's seasoning. Fill about ¾ full with water.
In the morning, add the remaining ingredients and cook about 6 hours on low. If the beans are a watery, smash them down a bit and continue to cook a little longer with the top off. The longer you cook the beans, the creamier they will be.
I’ve always wanted to bake sourdough breads, but for some reason, I found the idea of making (and caring for) a starter somewhat scary. A few weeks ago, I finally got up the nerve to try it, and guess what? It’s not difficult at all! Here’s a basic recipe:
In a large glass bowl, mix together the yeast and water until the yeast is thorougly dissolved. Add the flour and whisk until there are no lumps. Cover with a piece of cheesecloth or a towel, and store in a warm, draft-free place. Allow it to ferment for about 48 hours, stirring a couple of times per day.
You'll notice bubbles forming, and a clear liquid that separates to the top -- simply stir that back in. If the liquid on top is pink, throw out the whole thing and start over. After two days you can store your starter in the refrigerator.
Whenever you use some of your starter (or sponge), replenish it with equal amounts of flour and warm water. Your starter should be replenished at least once per week. If you do not make breads that often, take some out to share with family and friends.
So here’s the Better Homes & Gardens story. I used to work in legal. At one point, I was the office manager (and paralegal) for a small firm. I covered the phones while our receptionist was on break, and one morning while flipping through a recent BG&H I decided to enter one of their monthly recipe contests. They were looking for ground meat recipes, so during the 15 minutes the receptionist was gone, I concocted this recipe, typed it up, and mailed it in.
I didn’t give it another thought until a few months later when I discovered a winners’ notification in my PO Box… I didn’t get first prize, but I was one of the honorable mentions, earning me an award certificate and a Weber gas grill.
Given that my recipe had won a national contest, I decided to have a few friends over, and we all tried my now famous “Smoky Turkey Burgers” for the first time:
In a large mixing bowl combine turkey, cheese, poultry seasoning, salt, pepper, and Tabasco. Shape into four ¾-inch thick patties.
Spray a cold grill rack with nonstick spray coating. Grill patties directly over medium-hot coals for 15-18 minutes or till no pink remains. (Or broil patties 4-5 inches from heat for 10-12 minutes or till no pink remains)
Spread mayo and mustard onto rolls. Serve patties in buns with lettuce, tomato, and onion.
This is a slightly modified version of a recipe from Epicurious.com (http://www.epicurious.com/run/recipe/view?id=10932)
Recipe type: Bread
Ingredients
2⅔ cups all-purpose flour
1½ teaspoons double-acting baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
¼ cup poppy seeds
2 sticks (1 cup) unsalted butter, softened
1¼ cup sugar
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon freshly grated lemon zest
1½ teaspoons vanilla
3 large eggs
⅓ cup milk
For the syrup
½ cup fresh lemon juice
½ cup sugar
Instructions
Into a bowl sift together the flour, the baking powder, and the salt and stir in the poppy seeds. In a large bowl with an electric mixer cream the butter with the sugar and beat in the zest and the vanilla. Beat in the eggs, 1 at a time, and the milk and beat the mixture until it is combined well. Add the flour mixture and beat the batter until it is just combined. Divide the batter into 2 buttered and floured loaf pans, and bake the breads in the middle of a preheated 350°F. oven for 40 to 45 minutes, or until a tester comes out clean.
Make the syrup while the breads are baking:
In a small saucepan combine the lemon juice and the sugar, bring the mixture to a boil, stirring until the sugar is dissolved, and keep the syrup warm.
Poke the tops of the breads immediately all over with a skewer, brush them with some of the syrup, and let the breads cool in the pans on the rack for 5 minutes. Invert the breads onto the rack and poke all sides of them all over with the skewer. Brush the breads with the remaining syrup and let them cool, right sides up. Wrap the breads in plastic wrap and foil and let them stand overnight. The breads keep, wrapped well in plastic wrap and foil, chilled for 1 week or frozen for 1 month.
(ARA) – Remember that resolution you made at the beginning of the year to eat better? Chances are you’ve forgotten all about it and are snacking on chips or a candy bar right now. If that’s the case, put down your non-healthy snack and pick up some food for thought.
